Fire Mage

Chapter 745: Targets



Edith touched her spatial ring as Runeth spoke and took out large bundles of thick, organized parchment tied with black cords.

"Leave it to me."

With those words, she placed the entire stack upon the long table, the weight thudding against the wooden surface with finality.

Her gaze sharpened.

Each paper contained detailed surveillance—down to the minute—of the daily movements of every major council member from the past twenty days.

Who they met, where they went, when they returned to their houses, what they ordered, bought, discussed, and many other things.

Nothing had been spared.

The kids from the slums had even noted down the carriage numbers they used to travel and the outfits they wore.

'Still, I need more information.'

"Do you have the Star Constellation Book?" Edith asked.

Runeth waved his hand, took out a black-covered book, and gave it to her.

"Tell the inn owner not to send anyone into this hall until tomorrow," Edith instructed as she stored the book in her spatial ring, not lifting her gaze. Then, without pause, she added,

"You two leave as well. I don't want any disturbance."

Runeth's lips curved into a smile, though it held a trace of unease. He nodded and motioned to Rhea.

"Come. Let's not bother her."

He gently guided Rhea out of the hall, locking the door behind him with a metallic click.

Rhea furrowed her brows as they stepped into the quiet corridor lit by faint orange lanterns.

"What happened? Why did she become so serious all of a sudden?"

Runeth exhaled slowly, pausing before he answered. Instead, he asked,

"Do you know how smart Charles is?"

Rhea blinked, recalling Jessie's voice when she once described the young man who orchestrated the Miracle City incident. Her expression turned grim. She nodded.

Runeth looked at the sealed door as if his eyes could pierce through it.

"Charles is the most calculative and cautious person I've ever met. His plans sometimes feel absurd, even foolish, yet they work, capable of fooling even gods. The only thing that stops him is the small sliver of pure heart left inside him."

He paused. His tone grew darker.

"But Edith… she may appear calm, gentle, maybe even kind… but her nature is cruel. Dangerous. She's someone I can't even understand completely."

He glanced once more at the closed door.

"Let's hope she doesn't raze this whole city to the ground."

He turned and walked down the corridor, his footsteps echoing faintly.

Inside the hall, silence reigned. Only the crisp sound of paper shuffling broke the stillness.

Edith sat cross-legged, eyes moving rapidly over the documents. With a flick, she replaced a regional map with a blank white parchment and began writing names.

Three names remained at the top of the sheet:

Asthar from the Azure Federation.

Nedia from the Blood Empire.

Zegan from the Rogue Throne.

Multiple names were written under each in order.

She slowly looked at each person's background and replaced names with new ones.

Then, struck them out.

Then, replaced them again.

Every few minutes, she muttered, "Not a good target…" or "Too loyal…"

Her eyes narrowed at the first name. She pulled out several pages and laid them neatly beside her.

"Asthar will be my first target…"

She stared at his name with intensity.

"He's a Rank-5 Mystic in official records. A known avatar of the God of Order. But the Azure Federation is unaware that the Sacred Empire is secretly backing him. Only a select few know of this: the Pope, two Cardinals, Jagis—the demon I killed—and another demon hidden under the alias of 'Red Duke.'"

She rubbed her temple.

"They never meet face-to-face. Only communicate through encrypted letters. After Jagis' death, they'll become even more cautious. The other demon might vanish completely."

She tapped the table with her pen.

"But I found one important truth before Jagis died: Asthar is a dual-class Mystic—Rank-5 [Deceitful Man] and Rank-6 [Elemental Bow]… Basically, he is a Legend Rank Mystic like me. He uses a long-range weapon and specializes in deception… That's how he managed to kill the second and fifth princes of the Azure Federation without leaving a trace."

Her expression twisted with distaste.

"Everyone knows he did it. But there's no evidence."

She paused and then smirked.

"Fortunately, the Crown Prince of the Azure Federation is openly hostile toward him. That same Crown Prince is being backed by a Demigod… And several council members also secretly resent Asthar."

She scribbled down their names below Asthar's column: allies, weak spots, vulnerabilities.

Then, she turned to the next.

"Nedia…"

She sighed.

"She's the seventh daughter of a Duke in the Blood Empire. Backed by the Earth Church, but the Royal Family neither supports nor opposes her political moves… In truth, they don't care about the council seat."

Her brows furrowed slightly.

"Fate Professor called Nedia by the title 'Forgotten Devil.' Her strength is unknown. She walks the path of a Dream Walker and also holds a Thief-class Mystic title. That combination means she possesses bizarre, unpredictable, and possibly untraceable abilities."

Her hand trembled for a second.

"She likely surpasses other Mystics of her level. And her personality makes it worse. She's narrow-minded, tyrannical, and believes herself superior to all. She silences opposition through fear and violence."

Edith also knew this characteristic might be crafted to mask her real character, and it made her uneasy.

She noted down several names below Nedia's.

"She'll be harder to predict. But not impossible."

Finally, her gaze fell on the third name.

"Zegan of the Rogue Throne…"

Her eyes gleamed, but she said nothing yet.

The room was still again, save for the soft scratching of quill on paper and the sharp breath Edith took as her plan began to form.

Outside, the night deepened.

The Mermaid's Inn lay silent under the starless sky.

Edith remained seated in the quiet hall, unmoving, even as the sun rose and fell beyond the stained-glass windows. Lamps burned low. Ink ran dry and was replaced. But her hands never stopped moving—writing, drawing connections, eliminating paths, predicting counter-moves.

At the twenty-third hour, she finally exhaled and leaned back.

Her fingers brushed her temple as she stared at the circled name:

"Councilor Meledin Vargan."

A Legendary Rank Mage with Water Affinity. One of the oldest surviving members of the Azure Federation's High Council.

Also, the man who stood up and openly opposed Asthar's support for the Nightmare Serum.

That single act caused one-third of the Federation to halt, hesitate, or resist its usage. It saved tens of thousands of innocents in the Arc Kingdom.

A rational man. Cautious. Principled. Loyal to the Azure Federation… but not blind, Edith thought, her eyes half-lidded.

A perfect first ally.

He had power. Influence. Reputation. And unlike the others, he wasn't swayed by Asthar's pretty words or veiled threats.

But he's sharp. And cautious. I cannot approach him as myself. Not now. Rhea is still connected to me... If I fail, she'll be the first one investigated.

Her lips curled downward slightly.

So… I'll become someone else.

She closed her eyes.

"Whose identity should I use?"

The question lingered in her mind as names and faces flickered through her memories. She eliminated them one by one—too unknown, too suspicious, too closely monitored, too dangerous to imitate.

Then a face surfaced.

A man in a dark coat, cold eyes, and a calm voice.

Edwin Davis. No, his original name wasn't Edwin Davis—but Mathew Jonas!

He was the son of Head Deacon Colt.

After the Expedition of Star Tombs, Head Deacon Colt had been trying his best to get in touch with his son but had found no clue so far. The only lead he had was that he was working with a mage named Charles Nightwind—

A name Charles once used to deceive Colt and gather information about the Star Tombs.

An identity soaked in mystery, yet oddly trusted if used wisely.

After all, Edwin was an Inquisitor of the Sacred Empire and also had a good reputation.

Many nobles in the Sacred Empire and military officers knew of him.

Edith's lips stretched into a slow smile.

"…Perfect."

She reached up and touched her face.

In the next instant, a ripple passed over her features like a breeze over still water.

Skin tone changed. Hair darkened. Jawline shifted. Shoulders broadened. Even the glint in her eyes grew colder, more calculated.

In less than a minute, a completely different person sat in Edith's place.

A man in his late twenties, sharp-featured and quietly dangerous.

"Next is the information I need about Asthar and the others."

A black-covered book appeared out of thin air. Edith took a pen and an ink bottle from her inventory, moved towards the window, and opened it.

Then, she looked at the dark sky and started writing something on the blank page.

A few moments later, her eyes turned blurry. A vision appeared in her mind the next second.

Edith found herself standing a few feet away from a black-robed figure.

Though he hid his face and even held an umbrella to make his presence unnoticeable, she instantly realized it was Asthar!

"Oh? Asthar is going to meet someone, huh?"

But as Edith tried to look further, she saw five more figures appearing in the dark alley.

Each of them wore black robes and hoods to conceal their identities.

As she tried to move closer, the vision suddenly shimmered and broke into countless pieces.

"Sh*t!"

But Edith didn't stop at all.

She again wrote down all the information about Asthar—his position, his strength—and peeked into the future.

In this vision, one of the hooded figures walked closer to Asthar and said something in a whisper.

But again, the vision broke like a mirror.

Although it's impossible for me to see the ones at the back, I can take a look at the closest one.

She continued to write information in the Star Constellation Book and looked into multiple similar visions.

After multiple attempts, she managed to find out that Asthar was meeting with a silver-haired young man in his twenties. He also gave him a disc-like structure and then left.

Edith then wrote down Nedia's personal information and looked into her future.

To her surprise, this time Edith appeared behind one of the three dark-robed figures.

In this vision, she saw Nedia conversing with a black-robed figure standing next to her and also giving him a red-covered book.

Meanwhile, the black-robed figure took out a familiar bluish crystal from his pocket and gave it to the other person in the hood.

"A meeting? What are they scheming? What is that disc? Wait… Bluish crystal?"

At that moment, a strange image flashed in Edith's mind.

It was the same crystal that was used to assassinate Demigod Raphael!

'Wait… If Asthar and Nedia are here, what about Zegan?"

She also wrote down Zegan's information and soon noticed the one standing next to Nedia was none other than Zegan!

She instantly realized all three candidates were plotting something big.

"But the question is: who is this fifth person?" Her gaze moved towards the other robed man. She tried her best to look into the future all night but found no useful information.

'At least, I got a lead.'


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