Chapter: 584

“Mi-as-ma?” he said slowly, “I wonder how effective it will be…”

“I wonder if it can control the hallucinations?” he thought, scratching his chin.

“Ah. I better get back before they get suspicious.” he said with a sigh before turning to the helminth.

“Hide underground and don’t come near the guild. Don’t let anyone see you either.” he said.

The helminth lowered its head, and seemed to look sad for a moment as it looked in the direction of the guild.

Jay watched it with a raised brow, wondering what was going through its hollow skull and its strange behaviour.

The helminth turned back to Jay and snapped its jaws once before burying itself underground.

“I guess it really wanted to be with me?” Jay thought.

With a shrug, he partly undid his pants and walked back to the path, doing them up completely just as he got back to the track.

“Actually, come to think of it… maybe I do need to pee…” he shrugged,

“Oh well. It can wait.”

As Jay approached the guild there was a startling difference: the floating mana stone gate had disappeared.

The boulders used to form it had all been dumped just outside the gate, no longer floating or even rippling with light-blue veins.

Jay thought it was a shame, but he guessed that perhaps it was meant to represent something – as to what it represented, he wasn’t sure.

Perhaps the mage hunters simply didn’t need a gate.

As he passed by the black-armour guards, neither of them questioned him, and Jay didn’t look up at them, though he did hear one of their helmets turn with a soft ceramic-grinding sound.

Still, Jay decided not to look, not after what happened last time he stared at their armour.

Behind the black armoured guards were some of the normal Losla guards, but they didn’t say anything either; they looked even more tense than Jay as they stood at attention like statues. It was like they were about to welcome a royal to the humble compound.

“Huh. I guess I won’t be asking them who these guys are.” Jay thought as he kept walking.

He kept walking past quietly as he went to ask Margaret.

Beyond the gate, the courtyard felt completely different.

There were no adventurers practising, none passing in and out of the guild to trade, and none of the usual lively atmosphere. It was eerily quiet, as if the whole place had been abandoned.

– – –

“Lara, the portal is almost ready. Another hour and I can activate it at any time. Have you heard anything at the guild?” Lannister asked as he formed mana into glowing golden glyphs around the stink-rat marsh.

Lara was holding an invisible crystal, while a blue string of mana went from it into her wrist.