Back to the Council Room, the atmosphere was suffocatingly silent, pressing down on everyone present. Unlike before, there were fewer people this time.

  Only Lady Elara, Noah, and the Imperial Knight standing to the side remained. Lord Garret, Seraphina, and Cadet did not show their faces for reasons unknown. The dark-skinned man, Nolfer, was also no longer present. As for Lady Aileen, she had intercepted them midway along with Elowen, concern evident on her face, though she hid it well for the child's sake.

  It was Eyolian who briefed Lady Elara on what had happened, as Mr. Eldric was not in a condition to speak at length.

  When Eyolian finished summarizing everything, Lady Elara remained silent for a long time before finally speaking.

  "I see," she said, her expression grim. "Have my knights not returned since then?"

  Her voice held a note of worry, but Eyolian was about to douse it with cold water.

  "No, I haven't seen them since I left the illusion with my father. And we didn't search for them."

  Lady Elara stared into Eyolian’s eyes for a while before nodding in understanding. "We owe you an apology and will compensate you once… we get out of this mess. You may rest now; you’ll be informed of any changes that occurred in your absence."

  Eyolian nodded, and so did Mr. Eldric. They walked side by side toward where Noah was seated, his gaze fixed on them as if he had been waiting.

  "I'm glad you're back," Noah said the moment they sat down.

  "Thank you," Mr. Eldric replied, a strange look crossing his face as he eyed Noah.

  Noah seemed to pick up on Eldric's thoughts just from his expression, as he turned to Eyolian and asked, "I see you told your father?"

  Eyolian said nothing, but her lips curled slightly, almost mockingly. On the other side, Mr. Eldric looked away.

  "As much as I’d love to talk about that, I think I should update you as the lady suggested," Noah said, his expression unchanged, though his tone was slightly faster than usual.

  "Has a lot happened?" Eyolian asked, genuinely curious.

  "Well, first of all, they didn’t find the person the terrorist group demanded. He simply doesn’t exist—no one in town matches the description of this individual. And they had to cut the search short because of the magical missiles and the destruction they caused."

  Noah sighed, a flicker of sorrow passing through his blue eyes.

  "The same people assigned to the search were reassigned to handle the damage, along with others. Lord Garret and his son are now at the front lines. A significant number of the town's mages have been redirected to defend the broken section of the barrier—at least until the crowds are evacuated from the impact zones."

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  Eyolian absorbed the information with an open mind. This was expected. They were on the receiving end of the assault, and those who only received damage without dealing it back never won.

  She lifted her gaze to Noah. "What about you? Your condition?"

  "I was getting to that," Noah said with a strange expression. "Sir Nolfer confirmed that my condition was caused by a type of poison that suppresses mana. He said the poison originates from the kingdom of Astrolise—it was used extensively in the last war to hinder soldiers and mages."

  Eyolian had an idea about the poison but still asked, "What kind of poison?"

  Noah closed his eyes as if struggling to remember. His fingers played at his lips, betraying his thoughts.

  "Sir Nolfer said the poison is extracted from a creature that lives in desert regions. I forgot the name of the creature, but the poison’s name was, if I remember correctly, 'Ghost Curse Poison.' It has mana-suppressing properties, according to him."

  Of course, Eyolian was quite familiar with the poison. In general, Ghost Curse Poison targets a person’s life force and core, suppressing their natural magical abilities. It affects both awakened and non-awakened individuals alike. But how had Noah come into contact with such a poison?

  "Well, did you do anything to get exposed to this poison?" Eyolian asked, growing suspicious of Noah. If this wasn’t enough evidence that he was the target of the organization besieging the town, she didn’t know what was.

  Noah seemed to understand exactly what she was thinking and merely chuckled lightly before answering.

  "For once, I’m really just a victim. I’m as surprised as you are."

  Eyolian’s gaze remained unconvinced. If anything, she only blamed him more, openly so.

  Mr. Eldric looked between the two of them, feeling odd about their exchange. "Why don’t you let him explain himself first?"

  Noah glanced at Mr. Eldric in gratitude before returning his attention to Eyolian.

  "My exposure to the poison was indirect rather than direct—like through food, drink, or inhalation. The poison, as Sir Nolfer confirmed, was not injected directly into my bloodstream. This means I wasn’t the only intended target."

  Eyolian frowned. His words stated exactly that he was the sole target, yet now he was saying the opposite. Was he trying to hide something obvious?

  Interrupting her thoughts, Noah continued his report.

  "After a small investigation of my room, they found traces of the same poison on the books I bought from the town’s library. This shifted the investigation to the library, only to discover a significant number of books coated in the same colorless poison.

  The same investigation was carried out at the place where I bought my food supplies, and they found the same results. As for the town’s water supply, the lake that provides it is deep within the forest near the Adventurers Guild, so that remains unchecked."

  Even though Noah delivered the information with an unchanged expression, the implications were massive and terrifying. Someone had gone to such lengths just to target a single person. Suddenly, in Eyolian’s mind, this organization became far more dangerous than she had given them credit for.

  Although Noah hadn’t directly stated that the organization was behind the mass poisoning, Eyolian still connected the dots. Even Lady Elara had said that Noah’s condition could provide insight into the overall situation. She had also mentioned that their investigation concluded the organization’s scheme had been in motion for over three months.

  Eyolian turned to Mr. Eldric beside her, only to find him so shocked that his usual composure had completely slipped away. She herself wasn’t faring much better.

  She returned her gaze to Noah to ask more questions, but before she could, Lady Elara re-entered the room. At some point, she had stepped out, but now she was back, heading straight for them.

  She stood in front of Noah, gazing at him intently.

  "Is your offer still on the table?"

  ‘Offer? He made an offer to her?’

  Before Eyolian could finish her thoughts, Noah stood up from his seat, his eyes locking directly onto Lady Elara’s red ones.

  "It still stands," he said calmly, though Lady Elara’s slight frown suggested otherwise.

  ‘What is this about?’

  Eyolian remained silent and observed from her seat. She would find out sooner or later.