Thanks to the new orders issued by Guffy, the members of the Elite Knights became exceedingly busy. They began tightening security at the four main city gates, the primary entry and exit points of Glafelden. Everyone passing through the gates had to show an identity card issued by the town hall, valid throughout the kingdom. The Elite Knights recorded several details about the townsfolk passing through the gates, including their names, purpose, addresses, and the duration of their stay. All of this was done to ensure that their target, a person named "Anggi," would not be able to escape.
Nearly every moment, members of the Elite Knights patrolled the city streets, gathering information and capturing suspicious individuals. Unfortunately, among those they detained, none were their intended target. The longer they patrolled, the more they expanded their search area, even reaching the outskirts of the city.
In the corner window of a dilapidated house, a woman parted the curtains and peered outside. Two men, dressed as beggars, walked past her house after questioning some men who had gathered at the end of the street. Her eyes narrowed with sharp judgment. To someone like Almira, a former Elvian spy, it was easy to tell that the two men were from the Elite Knights. Just before the two "beggars" noticed her presence, the woman quickly stepped back from the window. Then she sank into a sofa with a long sigh.
"There must be something going on right now. Why suddenly are there so many special forces from the capital?" she murmured to herself.
As an Elvian disguised as a human in this city, Almira was understandably cautious about the Elite Knights. If it were just the city guards or ordinary soldiers, her illusion magic would have been enough to deceive them. However, the Elite Knights were different. Among them were experienced soldiers capable of detecting the scent of Esze.
That's why she was so careful when going outside her home. She only ventured out to work or pick up her child from school. If there was no urgent need, she preferred to stay inside.
Almira sat back for a moment, resting her chin on her hand. Her lips murmured something meaningless. She thought to herself. Normally, her husband, who worked in military administration, would send her a letter whenever something happened in the capital. But this time, there had been no news, which left her puzzled.
"Is this mission of the Elite Knights known only to high-ranking officers?" Almira thought.
Her mind was consumed with various possibilities, trying to piece together what was happening. But no matter how hard she thought, she couldn't find a clear answer. That's why Almira decided to investigate on her own. She quickly stood from the sofa and grabbed the thick hooded jacket hanging by the door.
Even with her illusion magic in place, she took extra care to minimize the chances of being detected by the Elite Knights. It was a cold night, especially after the heavy rain earlier that had dropped the temperature below normal. Most humans would choose to stay indoors rather than shiver in the streets. If they had to go outside, they would wear something to keep themselves warm. Because of this, if Almira didn't want to be suspected of being an Elvian capable of surviving extreme temperatures, she had no choice but to blend in with the rest of the townsfolk. She slowly opened the door and glanced inside the room, where her son was fast asleep.
Almira then leaped into the street, walking carefully on the slippery, muddy path. Occasionally, rainwater dripped from the edges of the building's roofs and splashed onto her hood. She walked cautiously to avoid slipping and dirtying her freshly washed clothes.
After a short while, she arrived at the corner of the alley where several men had gathered, chatting and sipping beer to warm themselves.
"Yo, Almira! Want to join for a drink?" offered a short, chubby man, a neighbor who lived across the street from her.
"Not this time, Luiz. I have a question for you—did two men come here earlier?" Almira asked in a low voice. "What did they talk to you about?"
"Oh, that! They asked about someone named Anggi."
"ANGGI!!?" Almira gasped. Her eyes widened in shock, as though they might leap from her skull.
"Yes, according to those two, the Elite Knights have come to this city because they're chasing her. I don't know what she did to make the whole city go into a frenzy! But it seems like she's a fugitive of the Elite Knights," Luiz replied. He tilted his head, noticing that Almira was still frozen in place. "Do you know something? If you do, you should head to the mayor's office. They'll pay well for any information related to that person."
"What!!? Anggi!!?" Almira shouted inwardly. "Wait, what does this mean? Why is the Elite Knights hunting Anggi? Did she steal something from them? I know she's foolish, but I can't imagine she'd dare steal from—Ah!"
The woman suddenly realized. Something as trivial as theft would never result in being hunted down by a special royal force sent from the capital or having the city gates closed to strengthen security. One thing that crossed Almira's mind, and which could explain why Anggi was being pursued by the Elite Knights, was her true identity.
Finally, the woman understood the root of the chaos that had enveloped Glafelden all day. She concluded that somehow, high-ranking officials from the kingdom had learned Anggi's true identity. That's why the kingdom had instructed the Elite Knights to capture this poor girl.
It was certain that the kingdom intended to use Anggi to strengthen its military forces. Almira suddenly remembered several letters sent by her husband, which repeatedly mentioned that the Lurivia Kingdom was strengthening its military forces through programs devised by high-ranking military officials. This included the recruitment of new knights from cities throughout the kingdom, improvements to the quality and quantity of military training, and inviting experts such as researchers and blacksmiths to collaborate on building new weapons.
Almira tried to think like a high-ranking official in the kingdom. If, while strengthening the military, they received fresh information—whether true or not—about someone with great power in their territory, wouldn't they want to recruit that person for their own cause?
Still, she couldn't quite understand why the Lurivia Kingdom was so determined to increase its military strength.
"Do they want to start a war with another country? Which country? What is Lurivia's real goal?" Almira thought to herself.
"Mira! Hey, Almira!!"
Luiz's loud shout startled the woman, pulling her from her thoughts. Almira flinched, as though a balloon had just been popped in front of her face. She then turned to meet Luiz's curious gaze, which had been watching her strangely.
"What's wrong? You're spaced out," Luiz asked.
"Oh, it's nothing... I just remembered something I need to do. I'm leaving now," Almira replied, walking away from the group of men. She turned back over her shoulder. "Luiz, can I hold you to that drink next time?"
"As long as I'm still a good man," Luiz answered with a laugh.
After leaving the gathering, she quickened her pace, crossing the slippery street. More than once, she nearly slipped, but that didn't stop her determination to reach her goal as quickly as possible: the infamous hunting lodge of the world's most notorious monster hunters, 'Kelam Malam,' the place where Anggi lived.
The first thing that crossed her mind was the safety of the girl. Almira had briefly hoped that perhaps the Elite Knights were pursuing another girl with the same name.
But when considering the more reasonable possibilities, it was clear their target was the Anggi Almira knew—the Haier-Elvian girl who always asked her to teach Esze. The same Anggi who had once said she came from another world. The Anggi who loved to complain about even the smallest things.
Thinking of this, Almira hastened her steps.
A few minutes later, she saw the large, weathered wooden building. It was so dilapidated that she wondered if, with just a breath of Esze, it would collapse into rubble. However, she quickly pushed away those thoughts, for Kelam Malam's headquarters, though worn, was still home to her. The building was barely more than a shack, but it had its own charm.
Outside the building, Igresti was busy repairing the wooden fence, replacing the old boards with new ones. Sweat glistened on his forehead, and his grin was bright as he admired the fruits of his hard work.
Almira, too impatient to care about Igresti's task, pushed through the door that had just been repaired, making it come loose from its hinges.
"You foolish woman! What do you think you just did?" Igresti yelled at the person who had just destroyed his hard work.
But Almira paid him no mind and didn't even glance back. Her eyes were fixed on the muscular old man sitting comfortably on a long bench in the front yard. The man, noticing her gaze, looked up and returned her stare.
"Grussel, where is Anggi?" Almira asked, breathless.
The man looked at her for a moment before giving a small, knowing smile, as if he already knew what she was going to ask next.