Chapter 751: The Next Move

The next morning, there was no attack.

That should have been good news.

Instead, it made everyone nervous.

For nearly two weeks, the human domain had lived from one emergency to another. Every morning brought another report, another damaged settlement, another frightened group of civilians, another argument between the Church and the Authority.

Now there was nothing.

No smoke on the horizon.

No messenger rushing through the gates.

No dark mana detected anywhere near the borders.

Nothing.

It was as though whoever had started the attacks had simply decided to stop.

And somehow, that was more frightening than another attack.

I stood beside the window of the command room, watching the capital wake.

People walked through the streets.

Merchants opened their shops.

Children ran between adults.

Soldiers changed shifts at the gates.

For a city that had spent days expecting disaster, everything looked almost normal.

Almost.

Mia entered the room carrying several reports.

"You haven’t slept."

"I slept."

She gave me a look.

"A few hours."

"That’s enough."

"It isn’t."

I ignored her.

She placed the reports on the table.

"Three more settlements reported suspicious movement overnight."

"Attacks?"

"No."

"Then what?"

"Nothing."

I looked at her.

"Nothing?"

"That’s what makes it strange. Scouts found signs that someone had been there. Footprints. Broken branches. A few traces of dark mana."

"How old?"

"At least twelve hours."

I frowned.

"Before the reports came in?"

"Yes."

I walked toward the table.

"Did they attack?"

"No."

"Then why were they there?"

Mia shook her head.

"We don’t know."

I picked up the first report.

The location was near a military road.

The second was near a farming settlement.

The third was close to a trade route.

Three completely different places.

But none had been attacked.

I put the papers down.

"They’re testing us."

Mia’s expression changed.

"Testing what?"

"Our response."

She folded her arms.

"Why would they do that?"

"Because something has changed."

"What?"

I looked at the map.

"We stopped chasing them."

Mia stared at me.

"Yesterday."

"Yes."

"And today there are no attacks."

"Exactly."

She was quiet.

Then she understood.

"They noticed."

I nodded.

"The moment we stopped following their clues, they stopped giving us reasons to follow."

That realization made the room feel colder.

The enemy wasn’t simply watching our movements.

They were watching our decisions.

And adjusting accordingly.

*****************************************************************

The emergency council meeting began before noon.

The Church arrived first.

The Authority followed.

The War Council took their usual seats between them.

Lilith entered shortly afterward.

The room became quiet.

Even after everything that had happened, her presence still changed the atmosphere.

Some looked at her with suspicion.

Others with sympathy.

A few simply looked exhausted.

The attacks had made everyone tired.

The arguments had made them even more tired.

Commander Rurik sat among the War Council members, his expression unusually grim.

"We cannot continue like this," one Authority representative said.

A Church leader immediately replied.

"Then perhaps the solution is obvious."

Several people looked toward him.

"Lilith must remain under supervision until these attacks stop."

Lilith’s expression remained calm.

"You believe imprisoning me will stop them?"

"We believe it will remove uncertainty."

"It will create more."

The Church leader frowned.

"You have no proof that your followers aren’t responsible."

"And you have no proof that they are."

The room began murmuring.

Mia stood.

"Enough."

The room quieted.

She looked around.

"We’ve spent days arguing over Lilith while the real attacker remains free."

One of the Church representatives responded.

"Because the attacks originate from devil mana."

"So?"

"So?"

His voice rose.

"How can you say that so casually? Every attack leaves dark mana behind."

"Then find the person producing it."

"We believe the answer is sitting in this room."

Mia’s eyes hardened.

"You believe."

The Church representative hesitated.

Mia continued.

"That isn’t evidence."

The room became quiet.

She looked toward the War Council.

"How many attacks have we actually linked to Lilith?"

Nobody answered.

"How many witnesses have identified her?"

Silence.

"How many captured soldiers or devils have named her?"

Again, silence.

Mia turned toward the Church.

"You have suspicion. Nothing more."

A few people nodded.

Others remained unconvinced.

Lilith looked at Mia.

For a moment, their eyes met.

Then Lilith looked away.

She seemed tired.

Not physically.

Something deeper.

I understood that feeling.

She had crossed the border believing that humans were ready to try something different.

Instead, she had found fear, suspicion, greed and politics waiting for her.

Yet she remained.

That alone told me how serious she was about peace.

**********************************************************

The meeting continued for hours.

Nothing was decided.

Again.

The Church demanded stronger restrictions.

The Authority rejected several of them.

The War Council attempted to find compromises.

Every suggestion created another argument.

Eventually, the meeting ended without a decision.

People began leaving.

I remained near the back of the hall.

Lilith approached me.

"You look troubled."

"So do you."

She smiled faintly.

"Perhaps we are both learning that peace is harder than war."

I looked at her.

"War is simple."

She raised an eyebrow.

"Simple?"

"At least you know who is standing against you."

She considered that.

"That’s true."

For a moment, neither of us spoke.

Then she asked:

"Do you think we will succeed?"

I looked toward the doors.

"I don’t know."

It wasn’t the answer she wanted.

But it was the truth.

****************************************************

That evening, something changed.

A messenger arrived at the Authority.

Not from a border town.

Not from a military station.

From inside the capital.

A small district near the western side had reported strange activity.

No attack.

No destruction.

Just people claiming they had seen a person wearing a dark cloak moving through the streets late at night.

Three different people had reported the same thing.

I was immediately interested.

Mia wanted to accompany me.

I refused.

"Why?"

"Because if someone is watching us, they’ll recognize you."

She frowned.

"And they won’t recognize you?"

"Not the same way."

She didn’t like the answer.

Neither did I.

But there was another reason.

I wanted to see whether the person would approach me if I was alone.

So I left.

********************************************************************

The district was quiet.

Too quiet.

Most shops were already closed.

A few lamps illuminated the streets.

I walked slowly.

No armor.

No visible weapons.

Just an ordinary coat.

I passed through several streets.

Nothing.

Then I heard footsteps.

Behind me.

I stopped.

The footsteps stopped too.

I continued walking.

Again.

Footsteps.

I turned.

Nobody.

The street was empty.

I smiled faintly.

"So you’re following me."

No response.

I continued.

The footsteps returned.

Closer.

Then disappeared.

I reached the end of the street.

A narrow alley opened to my left.

I entered.

Nothing.

But at the far end stood a man.

His face was hidden beneath a hood.

He wasn’t moving.

I stopped.

For several seconds, neither of us spoke.

Then he turned.

Not toward me.

Away.

He began walking.

I followed.

He didn’t run.

That was strange.

Anyone trying to escape would have disappeared immediately.

Instead, he walked at a normal pace.

Almost as if he wanted me to follow.

I knew the feeling.

It was the same as the clues.

The same as the marks.

The same as the attacks.

Another trap.

But this time, I didn’t care.

I followed.

The man led me through several streets.

Then into an abandoned building.

He disappeared around a corner.

I entered.

Nothing.

I searched the room.

Empty.

Then I noticed a table.

There was a piece of paper on it.

I approached.

There were no words.

Only a simple drawing.

Three circles.

One crossed out.

Two connected.

I stared at it.

Something inside my mind clicked.

Not because I understood the symbol.

Because I understood the thought behind it.

A distraction.

A false choice.

One option eliminated so the remaining two appeared connected.

I stepped back.

My breathing slowed.

"This..."

I whispered.

"I know this."

Not the symbol.

The method.

The way of thinking.

It was mine.

Or something frighteningly close to mine.

I looked around the empty room.

"Who are you?"

Silence.

Then I noticed another paper beneath the first.

I picked it up.

This one contained a single sentence.

You keep looking for the person causing the fire.

I read it twice.

Then a second line became visible beneath the first.

You should be asking who benefits from putting it out.

My eyes narrowed.

I crumpled the paper.

Someone was playing with me.

They wanted me to think.

They wanted me to question everything.

And most importantly...

they wanted me to know they were close enough to speak directly to me.

I turned toward the door.

A faint pulse of dark mana passed through the building.

I rushed outside.

The street was empty.

Again.

But this time I saw something.

A shadow moving across the rooftop.

I jumped.

My feet struck the roof.

The figure was already moving.

I followed.

Across one building.

Then another.

The figure moved quickly but not impossibly fast.

I could have caught them.

But something stopped me.

The movement.

The rhythm.

The way the person shifted their weight before turning.

I had seen it before.

Not in someone else.

In myself.

I stopped.

The figure reached the opposite rooftop.

Then turned.

For the first time, I saw part of their face beneath the hood.

Only the eyes.

I couldn’t identify them.

But something inside me reacted.

A strange sensation.

Like remembering something that had never happened.

Then the figure spoke.

Only three words.

"You’re still searching."

And disappeared.

I remained frozen.

The words echoed inside my head.

Not because of what they meant.

Because of how they were spoken.

The tone.

The rhythm.

The pause between the words.

I had heard it before.

I couldn’t remember where.

I couldn’t remember when.

But I knew it.

I had heard someone speak like that.

Someone...

like me.

************************************************

I returned to the command center before dawn.

Mia was waiting.

She looked at my face.

"You found someone."

I didn’t answer immediately.

"Zero?"

"I found a person."

"Who?"

"I don’t know."

"Did you fight?"

"No."

"Then what happened?"

I looked at her.

"They wanted me to follow them."

Mia frowned.

"And you did?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because I wanted to know where they would take me."

"And?"

"Nowhere."

She stared.

I continued.

"They wanted me to find a message."

"What did it say?"

I hesitated.

Then told her.

Mia remained silent.

"They’re playing with you."

"I know."

"Then stop following them."

I looked toward the window.

"I don’t think that’s what they want."

"What do they want?"

I thought about the voice.

The movement.

The strange familiarity.

"I think..."

I stopped.

"What?"

I shook my head.

"Nothing."

Mia frowned.

She knew I was hiding something.

But she didn’t press.

I was grateful.

Because I didn’t know how to explain what I was feeling.

I couldn’t tell her that the person had moved like me.

Spoken like me.

Thought like me.

That would sound ridiculous.

There were thousands of people in Edolas.

Someone was bound to have similar habits.

That was what I told myself.

It had to be coincidence.

Yet deep inside...

I didn’t believe it.

**********************************************

Far away, the hooded figure returned to the hidden room.

He removed the cloak.

He stood before the map.

Several locations had been marked.

Several had been crossed out.

One remained.

He touched it.

"The next one."

His voice was quiet.

Then he paused.

A faint smile appeared.

"He’s beginning to remember."

He looked toward the capital.

"Not yet."

He moved another piece.

"Not yet."

The room fell silent.

The plan was moving exactly as he wanted.

But there was one thing he hadn’t expected.

Zero had stopped chasing the clues.

He had started questioning the person leaving them.

That was dangerous.

Because once Zero stopped following the path laid before him...

he might begin creating his own.

And that was precisely what the man behind the shadows had spent all this time trying to prevent.