Even though Baston desperately wanted to open the old book the moment the lunch ended, he restrained himself.
To take out a mysterious object and stare at it in the middle of a noble gathering would not only be impolite. It would be reckless eventually.
He had just begun earning the genuine respect within the Xavierius estate. One wrong gesture with one suspicious movement and the fragile image that he had built would crumble.
In the end, he endured for a while.
He smiled when required and he responded modestly when the elders praised him. He even accepted a second helping of roasted meat to maintain the appearance of a carefree and gluttonous boy.
Only when the atmosphere softened and the conversations disperse, he excused himself politely and headed toward the nearest restroom.
Inside, he locked the door. The cheerful expression on his face soon disappeared.
With careful movements, he slipped his hand beneath his inner robe and pulled out the old book. The leather felt cold, too cold that it felt unusual.
The cold did not resemble the touch of aged material. It felt active like something that had just awakened from the sleep. A thin shiver crawled along his fingers and climbed up his wrist before fading.
For a fleeting second, he wondered if the old book had reacted to something else entirely. After all, the reaction was kind of different.
Usually, the old book only trembled upon new quest. It gave warmth to its body just to signal that it had something to do. Though the old book was a mysterious item, it felt constant until a moment ago.
Now, the old book gave him a cold sensation. He wondered whether it was influenced toward his ice element. However, considering that he had already wielded more than ice, he shoved the idea.
He opened the book and the words appeared immediately.
"Kill the dark wizard…"
There was no elaboration, no decoration, and no other intention. It was just an order to kill.
For a long time, Baston did not breathe since this quest was entirely different.
Every quest until now had required the manipulation, performance, deception, or investigation. Even when people had died in the town, he had not wielded the blade himself. The consequences had unfolded indirectly.
This time, there was no ambiguity. He must kill someone in order to finish the quest.
He would need to ensure the target's death personally or at least, ensure the death occurred without a doubt.
It was a direct act which he hardly believed. His fingers tightened slightly against the page.
Was he hesitating because of the morality or because of the risk?
The dark potion incident in the town had already made one thing clear. The dark wizards were not merely the criminals. They were the architects of slow and invisible slaughter. He had no illusion about their cruelty. If the old book identified one here, then someone in this estate had already brought a corruption through its gates.
Still, to stab a dagger into someone and to watch their life leave, that was a threshold for him.
He closed the old book slowly and leaned against the wall. He had to think seriously at the moment.
The quest had triggered today. It was not yesterday and it was not during his earlier interactions.
That meant the dark wizard was nearby and it was present within the range of whatever the perception the old book operated on which raised another unsettling question.
If the old book could detect darkness within a certain range, then how far the distance between him and his target?
Was the dark wizard getting away from the spot or just getting closer?
What was the purpose of this vile person of staying nearby?
Baston frowned slightly. If a dark wizard had already been within the estate, then it meant the person had a way to bypass the alarm.
Someone here had evaded such detection effortlessly. He did not believe the dark wizard could go inside in a chance. There must be an unknown way to seamlessly enter the noble residence.
He wondered whether the person's target was among the Xavierius core family. When he had previously stood among Harry, Angus, and the elders, the book had remained silent. In the end, something change and the old book detected a new quest.
When he returned to the hall, his expression was calm again. He replayed the faces in his mind before and began comparing with the new faces at present.
There were five individuals he had not met before. There were five new variables and one of them carried the darkness.
He did not rush. Instead, he began drifting casually from one conversation to another. He needed information before his suspicion could take a place.
More importantly, he needed to observe how each of them reacted to subtle probing.
A true dark practitioner would not panic easily since the panic was for the amateurs. Those who walked in forbidden paths survived through the restraint.
Eventually, he did not ask some direct questions.
He asked the harmless ones about the journey, the weather, and how impressive the estate was. He watched their eyes, he listened to their breathing patterns, and he paid attention to pauses that lasted too long.
If there was darkness among them, it would not reveal itself openly but it might shift when they were tested.
*****
The first one was the coachman.
A broad-shouldered man with sunburned skin and thick arms. The man claimed that he remained outside most of the time to guard the carriage since his lord feared the theft. Despite the layered protective enchantments, he insisted on staying near it.
He only came inside the room because his lord needed something from him.
It sounded practical. Perhaps, he was overly cautious but it was not abnormal.
The second was the maid. She was young, beautiful, and nervous all the time.
She said she volunteered to stay near the carriage because she feared of breaking something in the mansion. After further questioning, she confessed she was clumsy and often damaged many objects at home. To avoid embarrassment, she chose to remove herself from such delicate environments.
She forced herself to enter the room because her master wanted to share some food with her. Such master was quite rare nowadays.
It was an odd explanation but it was quite plausible.
However, something about the ease with which she blamed herself felt rehearsed but it did not necessarily mean she was guilty.
Sometimes, the weakness was simply a weakness.
Baston had built his life on the performance. He knew the difference between the calculated vulnerability and the genuine insecurity.
The maid felt fragile yet such fragility could be exploited by someone else.
He did not remove her from suspicion but he quietly lowered her probability.
The third was a guard from another household.
He was initially tight-lipped but later, under the relaxed conversation, he admitted that his boots were dirty from travel. He feared stepping onto the polished floors and causing the insult. It was a solid excuse considering the etiquette.
The fourth was a heavily adorned woman who introduced herself as a wife but Baston's eyes were not fooled.
Her posture lacked the noble discipline, her laughter lingered too long, and her gestures were exaggerated.
The jewelry could be purchased but the refinement required several years. She was likely a mistress who was elevated temporarily for the appearance.
Anyway, that did not make her harmless. In fact, it made her unpredictable.
The fifth was a young nobleman, distantly related to someone present.
He had apparently excused himself from most of the gathering due to fatigue from the travel. He avoided much attention since he was uncomfortable.
Avoiding the attention was not a crime but neither was it innocent.
What unsettled Baston was not the excuse itself but the absence of imperfection.
The young man's fatigue appeared controlled. His posture, though relaxed, never truly sagged. Even in avoidance, there was an awareness as if he had calculated the exact degree of required invisibility.
It was that kind of restraint that did not belong to someone who was merely lazy. It belonged to someone who was disciplined.
Someone who was more patient and Baston did not stare long enough to be noticed. However, he marked the man.
*****
Baston completed his route and retreated to a quiet corner.
There were five suspects but there was no clear sign and no visible aura of corruption. If only the old book had specified the gender, age, or origin.
He rubbed his temple.
If he acted rashly and chose the wrong person, he would not only fail the quest. He would create the chaos within the Xavierius estate.
The chaos here would not be simple. It would not be a brawl in an alley since it would be like a political fracture.
The trust would be broken between the households, the suspicion would be planted in elders' minds, and the worst of all, it would direct all the attention toward him.
If a dark wizard escaped because of his miscalculation, the consequences would ripple far beyond this estate. The old book demanded the result but it did not shield him from the aftermath.
He needed certainty or he needed someone else to create it for him. His gaze soon drifted toward Alicia.
Angus was currently engaged in discussion with the elders and Harry stood nearby. Only Alicia was relatively free.
He picked up a glass of juice and a plate of sliced beef before he approached her casually. She immediately sensed the change in his demeanor.
"What's the matter?" she whispered.
"There's a dark wizard here…"
Her fingers tightened around her fork, "What? Who?"
"It should be among those five new guests…"
Her shock was genuine, "How can you be so sure?"
He did not answer and he simply looked at her steadily. Alicia was smart and her expression shifted from the confusion to the calculation.
"The cult?" she murmured faintly.
Baston did not confirm and he also did not deny. The silence was enough for the answer.
Her breathing slowly steadied, "What should we do?"
"Kill the dark wizard. No matter what, that person cannot escape."
The word kill made her flinch but her eyes sharpened instead of retreating. If this was connected to the cult, the hesitation could cost lives.
She thought quickly. She would need the family backing to do the job.
"One more thing…" Baston added quietly, "Don't tell anyone that this information came from me."
She blinked then the understanding dawned upon her. If the discovery traced back to her
investigation and if she presented it as her own deduction, her standing within the family would rise.
The kingdom would surely take a note. Her influence would increase while he would remain unseen. Both of them would be benefited.
She nodded, "Understood…"
For a brief moment, he studied her expression. The excitement flickered beneath her composure. It was not greed and vanity but she had an ambition inside her heart.
She saw the opportunity while he saw the concealment. Two different intentions aligned perfectly and that was the most efficient kind of alliance.
Alicia moved first to Angus while Baston remained where he was, casually finishing his juice.
He did not need to kill personally.
The book had never specified that he must wield the blade. It only required the dark wizard's death so borrowing the knife was still the killing.
There was a quiet cruelty in that realization. He did not need blood on his hands because he only needed the confirmation.
The old book did not care about the method. It cared about the outcome and he had long since accepted that the outcomes were what shaped the world.
If he wished to survive within this system, the hesitation had to be measured but it must not be indulged. At this time, he just watched from afar.
*****
"What? Are you certain?" Angus asked in hushed urgency.
"Yes, uncle... One of these five guests is a hidden dark wizard..."
Angus's expression hardened. After all, the dark wizards were existential threats. He questioned her briefly about the source.
Alicia crafted her explanation carefully, mentioning prior investigations regarding the dark potion tragedy, hinting at the overlapping signs, and the suggesting patterns.
It was not perfect but it was believable.
Angus had heard about the town incident. He connected the pieces himself and that was enough for him to act. After all, Alicia was not the type to lie easily.
Within several minutes, the subtle movements began.
The Xavierius elders did not cause panic. They did not confront anyone openly. Instead, they repositioned the people.
The guests were gently separated, the servants were redirected, and the guards were divided casually.
The five suspects were maneuvered into an isolated position within the mansion grounds, far enough from the main gathering to prevent the hostage scenarios.
The reinforcements quietly entered the perimeter and the protective enchantments were strengthened. Nothing looked abnormal since everything was deliberate.
The servants laughed where they were told to laugh. The wine was refilled with steady hands and the music continued in the distance.
From an outsider's perspective, the gathering had merely shifted its locations. But beneath that surface, the mansion had transformed into a silent hunting ground.
The invisible formations were activated one by one. The mana threads tightened like a net that was drawn slowly across the water.
The five suspects were no longer guests. They were pieces on a board and the elders were waiting for a signal to overturn it.
Baston watched and waited. The tension in the air shifted. It was not loud and not dramatic, just enough to fool everyone. In the meantime, he felt it most clearly.
The subtle distortion in mana, the faint resistance beneath the air, and the way the old book remained unnaturally still.
It didn't react and didn't warn. It only waited for the action. It was the same way it had waited before the town incident unfolded. The same way it had remained silent until the final moment.
Somewhere within these grounds, the darkness was breathing calmly.
It felt confident and hidden, unaware that a command had already been written for its death.
He lowered his gaze slightly, hiding the faint glint in his eyes.
The blade did not need to be in his hand.
It only needed to fall and once it did, the old book would judge.
Not by his morality and not by his courage but only by the result.