Aunt Sam stood outside holding the torch, not stepping in. Only Noel entered.
Inside, the mayor sat on a battered chair, working on paperwork. He looked up, surprised to see a visitor.
"You're the one who put out the request for help? The mayor of this town?" Noel asked bluntly, believing it would be the most efficient way to start.
Seeing the mayor hiding in a place like this, Noel couldn't help but feel puzzled. Weren't there mages in this town? Why didn't they organize themselves to protect the town?
"You're a mage here to take up the request?" The mayor eyed Noel with suspicion. A child so young, handling a request like this? It was absurd.
"I'm not here to accept the request, but I have my own reasons for coming." Noel explained calmly.
"This is nonsense. How could I possibly let a child handle something like this?" The mayor's eyes flashed with anger, and he almost shouted, but managed to swallow his frustration.
It was good, in some ways, that a child would want to help, and there were tasks even a child could handle, like pulling weeds or finding lost cats.
But this mission? It was far too dangerous for a child.
"I only want some information. I won't do anything reckless." Seeing the mayor's reaction, Noel remained unmoved, determined to follow through with his plans.
"…Fine." The mayor sighed, giving in reluctantly. The confidence of the boy in front of him shook his resolve more than he cared to admit.
"I assume you already know some things about what's been happening in town? About the dark guild… There's nothing I can do, so I'm hiding down here." The mayor shook his head, defeated. He would have preferred to be in his office overseeing town affairs, but that was impossible now.
"It's ridiculous, really. If it weren't for this cellar, I'd have nowhere left to go." The mayor let out a bitter laugh, and Noel could tell he wasn't lying. Without this cellar, the dark guild would have already captured him.
"What exactly happened?" Noel hadn't expected things to be this bad, that even the mayor no longer had authority. Just how deeply had the dark guild rotted this town from within?
"At first, they tried to tempt me with money, trying to buy me off to join them. I refused. After that, strange things started happening around town—sudden disturbances, violence."
"I suspected the dark guild, but I had no proof."
"In this world, without proof, no one will believe you."
The mayor spoke at length, sharing his suspicions, all of them pointing toward the dark guild, but he had never been able to gather solid evidence.
Noel nodded. He could tell this mayor was a good man. He had even helped the slums in the past, and Noel still remembered how those days had been some of the best in his childhood.
"I see now." Noel said quietly. "But you underestimated them. No one could have predicted they'd go this far."
"It's my fault. If I had realized earlier, none of this would have happened. So many people have died…" The mayor's voice was heavy with guilt.
Even while hiding in the cellar, the mayor had been paying attention to the town's plight. If only he had acted sooner, he might have been able to stop this.
"That's enough about your regrets. I came here for information. My time is limited."
The mayor's face twitched with emotion, but he forced himself back to the point.
"You want to find them? That's simple. On the west side of town, there's an old fortress."
"From what I know, that's where their base is. But there are a lot of them there. I recommend you wait for the mages the guild is sending to handle it." The mayor explained, sharing his analysis.
"And due to the terrain, that fortress is difficult to assault. They're entrenched there."
"That won't be a problem. I'll deal with it in my own way."
"Is there any more information?"
Noel knew this wasn't enough. He needed to know more.
"That's all I know."
The mayor wanted to give Noel more, but he simply didn't have it. Anything else was just rumor, and he couldn't pass on unreliable information.
"Then I'll make my preparations." Noel said, an idea forming in his mind.
He knew the dark guild members weren't amateurs—there would be powerful mages among them. It would be too dangerous to rush in unprepared.
He wasn't so arrogant as to think he could take on an entire guild alone, but picking them off, one by one, might be possible.
Now that he had the information he needed, he could move forward. When he stepped outside, Aunt Sam was still waiting. Her torch had burned down to half, showing how long he had been inside.
"Well? Did you get the information you needed?" she asked.
"I learned a lot. I'm going to take action tonight."
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