Witch, Fireball and Steam Evil God

Chapter 264 The King of Gold
The president stood within the pillar of light, gripping his scepter tightly. With each passing second, the indescribable pressure intensified.

When he opened his eyes again, he had already arrived on the deck of the "Golden City". The first thing that caught his eye was two magnificent golden harpy statues. The two statues seemed to have life, their sharp eyes looking down at him. The crew members wearing golden masks ignored his presence and continued to do their work with their heads down.

Each person's face was covered by the same golden mask, concealing their original appearance.

The Golden City was unusually quiet. The guild leader took a moment to calm himself down before heading towards the main hall in the distance.

A king was waiting there for his arrival.

He wore a golden crown, its dazzling rubies reflecting a blinding light, and a crimson robe, the color of fire. Beneath the throne were his "minions," each wearing a golden mask with a different expression, each representing their unique identity.

At the same time, these masks also have another meaning—no matter what plane they come from, no matter what their past identity was, from the moment they put on the mask, they become the subjects of the Golden King, and everything in the past is no longer relevant to them.

It's less of a blessing and more of a shackle.

"I am the head of the 003 Dimensional Transfer Station. Greetings, Your Majesty, the King of Gold!"

The guild leader knelt on one knee and respectfully bowed to the figure on the throne. At his position, he could learn some of the secrets of the guild's higher-ups. Not long ago, he had met with a messenger from the guild's higher-ups, but he never expected the messenger to be so efficient, and he never expected that one of the guild's founders would actually come here.

Along with his golden kingdom that blots out the sky.

This also means that the situation is worse than he imagined.

"You did a good job and completed the task assigned to you by the guild very well."

"Your Majesty, the actual cause of this accident is..."

"This is not your responsibility. It seems that Merlin's choice of that place was intentional."

The voice beneath the mask was loud and authoritative, yet sounded reasonable.

However, the president's heart was in his throat. The person before him held the power of life and death over him. "Unfinished business will always leave behind trouble. All of this is due to my past mercy... Oh? Cynthia, what are your thoughts?"

The president subconsciously followed the King of Gold's gaze and saw a figure wearing a golden mask who was maintaining a smile. Even through the mask, he could see the fear in the other person.

The figure wearing the smiling mask said nothing, yet the King of Gold understood her meaning.

"Since you've brought it up, I can give you a chance."

After a moment's thought, the King of Gold said with great interest, "You have three days to correct your mistakes... Go, Cynthia, this is your last chance."

After saying that, he looked at the president and said, "I'm entrusting her to you. She knows a lot about that dimension."

"Please rest assured, I will definitely handle the problem properly."

The president bowed respectfully to the King of Gold. Although he still had many questions in his mind, he wisely refrained from asking them.

Clearly, this woman named Cynthia has intricate connections to that plane. The Golden King even mentioned the existence that the guild considers taboo while talking to himself.

All signs indicate that they once explored that plane, which is quite different from the guild's records.

There is no information about this plane at the 003 Dimensional Transfer Station. Zak and Zul'ga's missions were all issued as exploration missions, including the subsequent rescue work. If anyone killed them, it could only be the person who covered up those investigation records.

but……

If this was an instruction from higher levels of the guild, then it was their destiny, a noble sacrifice.

Before he took office, the investigation records of this plane had already been destroyed, and his predecessor was transferred back to the guild headquarters. The staff of the entire 003 plane transfer station underwent a major reshuffle.

Smart people know they shouldn't delve too deeply into the reasons behind it.

He began to work on the task at hand, the first thing being to get on good terms with this "messenger" named Cynthia, but... she didn't seem easy to get along with. She was too quiet, and all that could be heard along the way was her footsteps. He tried several times to speak to her to try and get closer to her, but Cynthia only responded with silence.

Maybe she's mute?
The president once had such a thought.

He could only judge the other party's rank by their clothing style: light leather armor, a short knife slung across their waist, and leather boots that made a rhythmic sound as they stepped on the deck.

Perhaps he is a hunter.

The guild leader thought so, and that being chosen by the King of Gold must mean he was an exceptionally skilled hunter.

Her decisive actions were very much in line with the hunter's style. She was very familiar with the guild's registration process and completed the registration without him having to explain. She then quietly handed the form to him, facing him with that ever-present smiling mask.

"Please come with me."

The president abandoned his attempt to communicate with Cynthia and, under the curious gazes of the investigators, led her through the hall toward the teleportation node.

Forget it, let's just assume she's mute.

In an empty room, several rotating white spheres float in the air, each reflecting a blurry image.

Without needing the guild leader to point the way, Cynthia walked to the rightmost sphere. The guild leader silently observed her actions from behind—sure enough, she had been to that plane before, and might even have come from that plane.

He had heard some legends about the King of Gold, such as his hobbies.

The King of Gold is a collector, but his collection of "items" is different from most people's. He likes to bring the locals who have impressed him onto his ship—the floating city called the Golden Kingdom—when he is investigating planes.

Even from the guild's perspective, no one knew how that behemoth, comparable in size to a city, floated up. Some believed it was a manifestation of the guild's founder's power and authority.

However, according to the guild's procedures, there are some points he, as the person in charge of site 003, must mention in advance.

"In their last communication, Zak and Zulga mentioned that they had detected unknown energy fluctuations on an unprecedented scale, which most likely involved an unknown source of contamination..."

Before she finished speaking, Cynthia's figure disappeared into the spinning sphere.

The president's expression froze, and he stood there awkwardly, stunned.

The investigators' communications with the guild were affected after that unprecedented energy fluctuation. Station 003 subsequently sent another experienced investigator, but they lost contact with her almost immediately. This means that the energy fluctuations mentioned by Zark and Zul'ga may have damaged the plane's structure, rendering their previous assessments of "human civilization," "safety," and "habitability" invalid.

Such large-scale catastrophes have occurred frequently in their past investigation records.

A plague or a natural disaster is enough to alter the structure of an entire plane, turning a safe and habitable plane into a barren wasteland in just a few days, or even worse.

Of course, after Cynthia left, the president could only silently go over the things he had intended to say in his mind to cover up his embarrassment.

"Good luck."

After a long while, he finally managed to utter this sentence.

..............................

For Ethan, it was another sleepless night. In the next room, Winter was curled up in a ball, hugging her pillow and wrapped in a blanket. Her brows were relaxed, as if she were having a sweet dream, and she occasionally let out a few unintelligible murmurs, which sounded as soft as a kitten from a distance.

The desk in the study was piled high with books.

This is one of the advantages of being in the Academy. As one of the oldest places in the world, the Academy has the most comprehensive collection of books. You can find almost everything related to occultism in the library.

Before the battle began, Ethan drank two large cups of black tea, rolled up his sleeves, and adopted the same posture he used to adopt when studying for exams.

One night, a miracle.

This is an ultimate skill that only those who have experienced an intense student life can master.

This all started with the agreement he made with that time traveler, who agreed to recommend him to the guild on the condition that he could find a way to send her back to the guild. It was a place called Transfer Station 003, a very sci-fi-like name, but according to Sue's description, the structure there was more like a large city in the mid-19th century. Considering the magical technology from different dimensions, the actual standard of living there was much better than in the 19th century.

Ethan already had a plan in mind for how to send Su back to transit station 003.

However, just before this night of miracles was about to begin, the seashells on the table made a "doo-doo-doo-doo" sound.

The moment the call connected, Ivy's voice came from the other end of the line.

Her voice sounded tired, as if she had been woken up from her sleep.

1 points in the early hours.

For modern people, nightlife is just beginning, but whether it's winter or Ivy, they all follow regular schedules.

"Black Wolf, do you remember me?"

"Black Wolf? Which Black Wolf?"

Ethan was stunned for a long time.

“He was the first buyer when you were advertising electromagnetic crossbows in Fireplace Bay a few months ago.”

After Ivy's reminder, he did remember that there was such a person.

The reason Black Wolf gritted his teeth and spent a huge sum of money to buy the electromagnetic crossbow was simple: he had taken on a seemingly impossible commission, targeting the High Priest of the Papacy in Darkforge City, as well as the nobles who had joined forces with the Papacy to launch a "tax exemption" in the area. What happened next made headlines in the Gryphon Daily.

On the day the rebels were publicly executed, an arrow pierced the high priest's shield and was sent to the goddess of life in full view of everyone.

From that day on, the title of the legendary assassin Black Wolf began to circulate in various places.

With the fall of Julius's power in the Papacy, Black Wolf's actions were highly praised, with many believing he had fired the first arrow to crush the corrupt forces.

But in reality, Ethan had never directly interacted with Black Wolf. "I remember now, what happened to him?"

"Black Wolf is a follower of the goddess of the hunt, and ever since that incident, he's become... well, a bit mystical."

"Did he do something wrong?"

Ethan tensed up slightly.

Could it be that this black wolf has shot and killed another imperial official?
"No, he suddenly went to the cabinet tonight and insisted on conveying a message to us."

Ivy hesitated, then stopped speaking. Cabinet members described Black Wolf's erratic behavior and felt that he was somewhat delusional. The information he revealed to the cabinet also fit the label of a delusional person.

"He said he observed that Cynthia had come back to life."

Considering the one in ten thousand chance, the cabinet still informed Ivy of the news overnight. The staff who received Black Wolf also patiently inquired about the specific situation. "Black Wolf claimed that after the empire's reforms were completed, he had been studying faith. Tonight, he suddenly had an unprecedentedly strong premonition, so he performed a divination according to an ancient ritual. As a result, he actually received a response from the goddess of the hunt."

What kind of response?

"He couldn't explain it clearly either, but he could vaguely sense the other's presence."

After listening to the cabinet members' reports, Ivy immediately dialed Ethan's number.

Because, in Black Wolf's own words, this is not a good omen.

The signal he received through divination signified destruction.

"He wanted to warn the Empire that something bad might be about to happen... What happened to you? Are you alright?"

The sound of the window shattering instantly snapped Ivy back to reality. She involuntarily raised her voice and asked urgently.

In the stillness of the night, the sound of shattering glass was truly jarring.

"...It's not a big problem."

About ten seconds later, Ethan finally replied.

Ethan remained seated at his desk, phone in hand, in the same posture as before.

The arrow that had pierced through the air hovered in front of him; it was made of gold and was radiating a golden glow.

The arrow shaft was held in the palm of a hand wreathed in blue arcs of electricity. Gold and blue intertwined, and the golden arrowhead swayed slightly, as if it were trying its best to break free from the hand's grasp.

The next moment, the sound of thunder drowned out the vibration of the arrow.

The arrow, broken into two pieces, lay on the table, its owner's warning tied to the fletching with a thin thread.

"Stop the investigation, or die."

His words were concise and to the point, suggesting that he must be a decisive and efficient person.

"This is not a good sign."

The senior with the slicked-back hair glanced down at the broken arrow on the table. A conspicuous red mark remained on the part of his hand that had gripped the shaft. "Junior, you've been targeted by some troublesome thugs."

"Ethan!"

Ivy, who had been left standing there, could no longer contain herself and raised her voice, "What exactly happened on your end?"

"take it easy."

Ethan calmly explained, "It was just some thug who shot an arrow at me through the window."

(End of this chapter)