Drayce went back to the alley where he lost the Black Witch.

The island was small, and he could have used his powers to appear before her no matter where she was hiding since he already branded the essence of her power in his memory. However, she must have used some unconventional means to hide her presence and he could no longer detect her.

With no other choice, he had to track her in a less efficient way. He went to the same alley and climbed the same wall, jumping over it exactly like how that Black Witch did it. Being a supernatural being with the same dark attribute, he could still sense those fading traces from when she was flustered by his discovery.

He continued to track her with the help of those fading traces of dark energy, though there were several times he found it hard to decide which way to go. Whenever there was a fork in the road, he had to rely on his intuition.

Maybe the Black Witch had stayed for a long time in Port Hope, or perhaps she knew Drayce would come after her and wanted to mislead him, but her traces were all over the place. Like that, he continued to move in and out of multiple streets and buildings. As the town proper was merely developed along the coastline, it didn’t take long for him to reach the other part of the town empty-handed.

‘We need to find her, Erebus. That is the only way to make sure that no harm will befall Seren. We have to ensure she is not a spy sent by our enemies.’

Soon, he backtracked the way he came from.

In the end, his own power led him towards one inconspicuous inn among the many small buildings at the outskirts. It was a simple and ordinary structure made of wood– to be more precise, a shabby one isolated from the other inns, seemingly catering towards those travelers who could not spend much money on their lodging. Looking at it, he could guess there were not many customers in that inn as he did not even see a single person go in or out from the moment he arrived.

‘Big Barry’s Inn’

Beyond the swinging door  was a tavern where no proper woman would prefer to stay. Like most inns, the first floor was an area for drinking and eating, while lodgings would be offered on the other floors.

But in this particular inn, seated on one of the tables were drunk men who brought hired women with them, and they were short of acting as if they were in a brothel. What kind of decent people would behave like this publicly and in the middle of the day?

‘That young witch didn’t look like the sort who sells her body. Could she be the owner of this inn?’

No one paid attention to him. There were no errand boys or servers to welcome him, and the drunk men had a world of their own. Drayce walked towards the person behind the bar, an old man who looked to be the innkeeper since he was sitting with a small book in hand. He was scribbling on it, seemingly calculating the money he had.

Skritch, skritch…

“Food or lodging?” the old man asked with a gruff tone without even looking at Drayce, as if he was not bothered by who comes and goes out of this inn.

“I am here to search for someone.”

“This ain’t an information guild, son.”

“The person I am looking for is a woman.”

“What? Did some lass cheat a night out of you?” the old man commented lazily as he put his little finger inside his ear to relieve an itch. “So many useless people come here to have some fun and no one stays here for long.”

Drayce ignored his behavior and put down a piece of silver in front of the man. “She is a young woman with reddish blond hair and hazel eyes. Do you have anyone in mind with this description?”

The old man was about to drive the young man away, but he changed his mind at the sight of the silver coin.

“Ain’t no such woman here,” the man replied after snatching it and continuing his work. “I don’t have time to pay attention to what kind of women those filthy men bring with them. If you are in need of a pretty lass to warm your bed, then you can go to the first square from the right. Many of them would come flocking to a young man like you.”

“Are you the sole person working in this inn?”

p AndD nOve1.cO,m “What? You think this ol’ Barry, can afford to hire anyone with what I earn?” The old man guffawed, his broken yellow teeth showing. “Son, I’d be lucky if those drunkards don’t run off and forget to pay for their drinks. Ugh, I’m on the verge of becoming broke!”

Drayce realized his mistake.

‘That woman was hiding her identity so if she wasn’t the owner of this inn, then she must be a guest. Also her clothing, she must be disguising as a man.’please visit panda(-)N0ve1.co)m

His eyes narrowed in suspicion.

‘She sure has something up her sleeves to stay in such a shabby place in disguise. As if to hide from someone. Forget about witches who prefer isolation, supernatural beings find even normal humans intolerable, what more this kind of scum? Something’s going on with her.’

Drayce pushed another silver coin. “Then, what about a man with a short slender build who keeps his entire face covered whenever he goes outside?”

Innkeeper Barry’s hand froze mid-writing and finally lifted his head to look at the stubborn young man, but even before he could say a word, he was taken aback by his appearance.

‘Money bag–no, wait! I’m screwed! It’s a nobleman!’

A pair of red eyes were looking down at him, and though the young man wasn’t glaring, it gave the innkeeper an impression that he was holding on to the last shred of his patience. That domineering handsome face, dignified manner of speaking, not to mention his bearing and those lowkey luxurious travel clothing gave away his high class background. Barry immediately stood up from his chair.

“Ah, Sir, Young Master, Young Lord, I apologize for acting rude–“

Just a couple days ago, a neighbor unluckily met a temperamental noble who ordered his men to trash his inn because the innkeeper disrespected him. His inn might be on the verge of becoming broke, but it’s still earning him a decent amount of copper coins so far!

‘His eyes are red in anger, ain’t it? Huh? Red eyes?’ the man thought in panic. ‘Dammit. They’re truly red! Didn’t the bards and sailors say only the King of Megaris has red eyes but…why would the King be here at such a shabby place, asking for some shady person? Must be someone else. Red eyes can’t only run in the royal family, right?’

All these happened in a flash. The old man changed his tone to a respectful one and spurted out everything in one breath. “My Lord, there was indeed such a man who stayed here in my inn. Now that I think of it, he did look suspicious. He never ordered for food to be brought to his room, and he never brought a woman with him–“

“Is he upstairs?” Drayce asked, his dignified voice enough to give that man a chill.

“H-He had left the inn already. About… about an hour ago!”

“Where did he go? Any idea?” Drayce asked.

“No, my Lord. Once someone leaves this inn, we don’t care about who goes where.”

“Which room did he stay in?”

“Let me show you, my Lord!” The man guided his way inside the inn. Crossing a corridor with a few doors, they reached the end of it and the man opened the last door. “This was the room.”

Drayce stepped inside the room, and as he expected, the traces of her magic were the thickest in this place. ‘It must be because before I arrived on this island, there had been no need for her to hide her power.’

He searched around the empty room. He had no doubt that the witch would leave after erasing anything that could be used against her, but he still wished to look out for some clues. His gaze landed on the ordinary bed in the room. On the floor near its feet, he found some kind of dirt.

He kneeled on one leg and picked up withered leaves among bits of soil. Drayce briefly recalled her carrying a leather pouch in her hand. She was grabbing onto it firmly, not willing to let it go at any cost, giving Drayce a chance to snatch her head wrap off because she couldn’t fend him off properly.

Though the leaves crumbled the moment he pinched them, the vein on the leaf and the stinging grassy scent gave off the plant’s identity.

Nightshade, a highly poisonous herb banned by the kingdom.

‘It is one of the rare ingredients used to enhance the effective range of casting black magic. When used on humans, it counts as an illegal drug where a small amount induces hallucination, and a large amount can affect the heart and act as a slow poison to a person’s heart.’

Drayce, being the son of Esther, a witch with vast knowledge, he was well-versed in medicine and poisons as well..

‘Why is she carrying these herbs for? For some evil means?’

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