Chapter 143: Life is a Journey
Wayne and Kael returned to the bar, just in time to see the mayor’s wife coming out. Kael stepped forward to strike up a conversation, his simple bar joke instantly making her laugh and open up. His face was a natural source of charm magic, and the mayor’s wife earnestly invited him to her home, mentioning that her husband wasn’t there.
Kael was delighted. “To be honest, ma’am, the moment I saw you for the first time, I was captivated by your charm...”
“Ahem!” Wayne fake-coughed into his fist, telling him to stop flirting and get back to business.
Kael pursed his lips, disgruntled by the bothersome third wheel. Both of them accepted the mayor’s wife’s invitation and visited the mayor’s mansion.
Once inside the living room, Wayne pushed Kael aside and fed the mayor’s wife a mushroom, inquiring about the gold mine. It turned out to be quite complex, but could be summarized simply:
Silent Hill had an abandoned copper mine that had been closed for years. Recently, word spread that they had struck gold. The mayor, abusing his power and influence, suppressed the news, planning to buy the land containing the copper mine at a low price.
Mona was purely acting out of righteousness, unable to stand such abuse of power. While she was secretly gathering evidence, she was found out by the mayor’s thugs. They, along with the police, went after her together. Instead of resisting, she fled and drove to Silent Hill.
“Wales and Dunn went to Silent Hill together. Dunn said that the woman has a powerful background, and to prevent the gold mine from being stolen, they must silence her permanently...”
Having swallowed a mushroom, the mayor’s wife transformed into a mindless answering machine with a blank, dazed expression. “Dunn is very capable, a distant cousin of Wales’s. Wales became mayor entirely thanks to Dunn’s help, so he holds him in high regard...”
“I don’t know who Dunn is. He likes to be alone and barely communicates with anyone other than Wales. Perhaps he’s a mage. He can accomplish some incredible things...”
“The gold mine is at Element Mountain...”
“Wait!” Wayne raised his hand to stop her. “What element?”
“The elements from the periodic table,” the mayor’s wife replied blankly.
Wayne fell silent. It was his fault for getting too excited.
He went to one side of the living room and checked the map on the wall, carefully memorizing the geographical layout of Eclipse Town, Silent Hill, and Element Mountain. On maps covering bigger areas, Silent Hill and Element Mountain weren’t marked, while the map at the mayor’s place was detailed down to every village, waterway, and transportation route.
By then, Kael had continued his questioning. Curious about Dunn, he asked the mayor’s wife where the man lived.
“Dunn doesn’t live in town. He comes once a month and stays in the attic. Every time, Wales gives him a lot of money...”
Five minutes later, Kael had no more questions. Generally speaking, he was quite reliable in his work. He’d not only extracted information about the mayor’s illegal activities, but also learned the location of the account book.
Wayne and Kael split up, one heading to the attic and the other to the study. Nothing was found in the attic, while a wealth of criminal evidence was discovered in the study.
The mayor hadn’t kept the evidence at home because he was foolish enough to believe that he’d never be caught. On the contrary, he kept the evidence in case he was ever arrested.
Over the years, he had committed every cruel deed possible, finding new ways to exploit others for his gains. The money he made, aside from the part that funded his own enjoyment, mostly went to Dunn and bribery.
Whose palms he greased, who took the bribes, how much he paid each time—the account book recorded everything clearly. This was the mayor’s lifeline. As long as he had the account book, he wouldn’t die.
“This guy deserves to die ten times over.”
Kael flipped through the account book before handing it to Wayne. As he skimmed through the pages, his expression became stiff.
Besides corruption, bribery, and other immoral deeds, the mayor was also responsible for many deaths. He’d replace the town’s police force with his own people through bribery. Employing his minions, he eliminated the good and protected the wicked, as well as robbing the poor to give to the rich. He completely turned the small town into his private territory, where he could do whatever he pleased.
No wonder Mona intervened. Even Wayne felt compelled to do something.
“I’ve been to Eclipse Town, but never paid attention to this guy...” Kael frowned slightly. “Looking at these crimes he’s committed, the fact that they still haven’t been exposed means something other than bribery must be in play. Dunn has to be a mage.”
“A mage supports the mayor’s rise in power, helping him cover up his crimes while demanding rewards in return. Or maybe the mage is the mastermind, while the mayor is only a puppet,” Wayne speculated.
“That’s definitely possible, but unlikely for ordinary mages. The mage either follows an evil faith or is a dark mage.” Kael seemed displeased. “This guy’s good at hiding. He hasn’t been discovered for so long.”
They took the evidence and left the mayor’s mansion. Wayne picked a crooked tree, burying the wrapped evidence underground.
“Silent Hill isn’t far, only fifteen kilometers away. How about we walk there?” Kael suggested. “A car is too conspicuous, and that area is bound to be full of the mayor’s people. There’s a risk of the car getting blown up. It’s safer to walk.”
“That won’t be necessary. We’re outsiders they don’t recognize. Driving or walking makes no difference.” Wayne shook his head. There was no point in hiding since they couldn’t hide.
“Then...”
“We’ll take your car.”
“...”
***
Silent Hill.
Two figures walked through the night. Kael absolutely refused to sacrifice his car. In his words, a car was a man’s lover, with a family status approaching that of a wife. Since he wasn’t married, his car was his wife. Why would he let anyone blow her up?
Wayne was also unwilling since he had just recently lost a car to an explosion. Walking it was.
Silent Hill was a mining area beside Eclipse Town. It had once been prosperous due to copper mining, and large numbers of miners had settled down there. At its peak, its total population exceeded thirty thousand. Not anymore, though. Most miners had left, and aside from the locals, few people visited.
Perhaps it was in his head, but Wayne found Silent Hill to match his imagination almost perfectly: mountainous forests in the middle of nowhere. Even starlight seemed dim in the night sky, and everything looked blurry and unclear, as if shrouded in a layer of darkness.
Wayne and Kael walked along the road. Before approaching the town, they discovered a car at a three-way intersection. It was scraped in many parts, its windows smashed. The interior was a mess, and the four tires had been punctured.
Wayne reached into the car to grab a handful of air. The perfume was familiar—definitely Mona’s scent.
The scent could only be detected in the car, though. As a Silver-rank mage, Mona had perfectly concealed her presence, so Wayne couldn’t track her exact location.
“Once again, it’s a choice between three options...” Kael looked at the intersection, his detective side taking over. “Splitting up now would be asking for trouble. Choose a path. Which way do you think Mona went?”
Wayne sniffed around but detected nothing. It had been a day. Any scent in the air had long since faded. It was unrealistic to try to find Mona by tracking the mayor’s smell. Besides, if he actually found Mona by tracking the mayor, she would most likely be broken when they found her.
“I don’t think there’s a need to find Mona. A dark mage, some guns, and a few police dogs can’t possibly catch her. Instead of wasting time looking for her, we should look for the mayor.” Wayne looked toward the village in the distance. “Catch the dark mage and the mayor, and when Mona gets wind of it, she’ll come out on her own.”
Kael’s detective spirit instantly died down. He muttered in disappointment, “You’ll miss a lot of surprises by going straight to the point like this. Life is a journey, and the scenery along the way...”
“Stop babbling. Just because you talk a lot doesn’t make you right. Find the mayor and the dark mage.” Wayne interrupted his spiel. “Speaking of which, you came to Silent Hill for a commission. What are you investigating?”
“It’s a commission from the White Glove Society. There are flashes of light near Element Mountain at night, and they want me to write an investigation report.” Kael didn’t hide the information. He had seen too many similar commissions, most of which ended up being paid vacations.
Flashes of light?! Can it be signs of heavenly treasures manifesting in the world?
Wayne perked up and said cheerfully, “After we find Mona, I’ll write the report, and you’ll comfort the mayor’s wife. She’ll be sad when her husband goes to prison.”
“That’s generous of you, but why?”
“Hm, just split half of the commission payment with me.”
***
Silent Hill’s mining area was divided into inner and outer zones. The outer zone housed the residents who had moved there when the copper mine was discovered, while the inner zone housed miners and other workers. After the copper mine was abandoned, the inner zone became virtually uninhabited. Numerous shops closed down, leaving the place pitch black without even streetlights.
Since it was an area constructed with a comprehensive plan, the roads were laid out in a neat grid. During the day, it was easy to see the mine entrance from a street corner.
Wayne entered the inner zone and quickly caught various human scents, including tobacco, alcohol, and the body odor of people who hadn’t bathed in many days.
There was a dormitory near the mine entrance, in front of which, around eight cars were parked. Two bearded men in police uniforms were having a drinking competition. Barricade tapes had been set up around the area to prevent unauthorized entry into the mine.
A floral fragrance drifted over. The two drunk men soon collapsed on the ground, snoring loudly.
The faith magic of the Church of Nature might not have the devastating offensive power of the faith magic of the Church of Sun, but its crowd control ability was unrivaled, especially against ordinary people. He could knock down everyone with a single move.
Wayne had obtained seeds from Veronica and started a small garden in his backyard, cultivating quite a few types of spores. Compared to hallucinogenic and parasitic spores, he preferred these sleep-inducing spores. They could put people to sleep without leaving a trace.
Meanwhile, Kael checked the nearby dormitory. He shook his head when he returned, having found nothing.
Wayne first deflated all the car tires. Then he grabbed one of the officers. The overweight man had a full beard, the police uniform on him stretched tight. The clothes were clearly not made for him.
Wayne grabbed him by the collar and slapped him awake, feeding him a mushroom before delivering another slap. “Speak! Where did Wales go?”
“The mayor went into the mine this morning and hasn’t returned.”
“Why did he go into the mine?” Wayne looked at the mine entrance in puzzlement. Under the dim lights, two mining cars could be made out.
“I don’t know, but Mayor brought everyone there. The two of us are supposed to stand guard and not let even a mouse slip through.”
“Right, good job. You didn’t let any mouse through.”
Wayne let go of him and questioned the other fake officer in the same way, getting the same information. He turned to Kael, who nodded at him.
“Since we’re here, might as well go in and take a look. Consider it part of the investigation.”
“No rush,” said Wayne. “Let’s get changed first.”
When they returned, Wayne was dressed in workers’ clothes with a safety helmet on, holding a flashlight with a towel hanging around his neck. His gun was tucked behind his back, and he had stuffed a hardtack into his pocket.
“Don’t you think you’re being a little excessive?” Kael asked resignedly.
He quite liked Wayne and didn’t find anything about him disagreeable, but Wayne always surprised him with how cautious he could be. Really? The hardtack? Even if there was a cave-in, he could grow mushrooms on his own.
Wayne didn’t respond to that. A bridge wasn’t going to become accessible magically when one reached it; only through caution could anyone sail a ship safely for decades. It was never wrong to be careful.
The two walked into the mine. Railways were laid throughout the cave systems. The entrance was quite spacious, with electric wires running along the route for the mine lamps that were hung every ten meters.
Wayne thought of something and stopped. “You don’t smoke, do you?”
“It’s bad for the back, so I quit.”
“Good. I was afraid you’d light a cigarette to calm your nerves and drag me down with you.”
“What kind of idiot would smoke in here? That would be too stupid. Besides, we’re mages. Flames can’t hurt us...”
Resigned, Kael fished a matchbox out of his pocket and tossed it away.
Boom!
The moment the matches hit the ground, a huge explosion echoed from the depths of the mine. The lamps above their heads flickered, casting their faces in dancing light and shadow.
“You called it. Some idiot did smoke in the mine,” Kael said with wide eyes.
Wayne’s eyes were also widened. He pointed toward the mine and then pointed outside.
“...”
Three seconds later, the two followed their hearts and left the mine. The explosion just now could very well cause a collapse. They were only trying to catch a dark mage. There was no reason to risk their lives.
Moments later, hurried footsteps came from deep within the mine, followed by an angry curse:
“Set up the guns and guard the entrance! The other exits have all been sealed. If that woman doesn’t want to starve to death in there, she’ll definitely try to break out through this spot.”
The footsteps grew closer. Wayne leaned against the wall outside the entrance, silently counting from one to three. “Fall! Fall! Fall!”
After a series of muffled noises, the cave became silent.
｜_•´)
“Kael, check if any of them is faking sleep.”
“Why should I? What if the cave collapses...” Kael grumbled as he ventured a total of five meters into the mine. After a thorough check, he confirmed that everything was clear. He buried all the weapons and said disappointedly, “No mayor or the dark mage Dunn. These are just ordinary people.”
He looked back at Wayne. “What now? Should we go in? From what they said, Mona is about to starve to death.”
Refusal was written all over his face. He didn’t want to enter the mine.
Wayne shared the sentiment. “No need. Mona knows holy light magic. She won’t starve to death in a few days. A bit of hunger will be good for her. Consider it dieting.”
Kael wholeheartedly agreed. They dragged the dozen or so thugs out of the mine and stacked them like a human pyramid in a corner. Their ambush continued!
After another five minutes, two sets of footsteps drew closer to the mine exit. Just as they were about to enter the area of effect of the spores, the footsteps suddenly stopped.
“Leo, I told you to guard the entrance. Why isn’t there anyone here?”
The underlings were sound asleep, so the question was met with awkward silence.
Wayne kindly lent a hand to lift the awkwardness. Raising his five fingers, he conjured spores and sent them into the mine. At the same time, he drew his pistol from his back and fired several shots at the blurry figures under the dim light.
Bang, bang, bang!
Dunn was on guard. He waved his hand to summon a strong gale, blocking the fragrant current. The bullets that hit his body glanced off as if they had struck steel.
“Nature magic...”
Dunn’s face darkened. It was a mage from the Church of Heavenly Father and a follower of the Church of Nature. The situation was becoming increasingly troublesome.
When exactly would the Bishop arrive? If he didn’t come soon, they wouldn’t be able to protect the stone tablet!