CH87

Miro spoke clearly and without hesitation, showing no signs of lying.

Helag didn't think Miro would lie about such matters and silently pondered the situation.

"Mr. Miro, you must be mistaken. I've been to that place several times, and the town was inhabited. It was just a normal town. But two days ago, the mountain path was normal on the first day and overgrown with weeds the next. That kind of growth takes years," Robert said, visibly agitated.

Miro straightened up. If both a great knight like Robert and a mysterious figure like Helag said so, it was no trivial matter.

These two wouldn't joke about something like this.

After a moment of thought, Miro said, "Mr. Helag, you remember the Creek Valley Town files I showed you? Everything I said is recorded there. We can check them again."

Helag nodded. "That's exactly what I was thinking."

He believed that while human memory could be flawed, written records wouldn't lie.

The three of them went upstairs to the archive room.

Miro, just like last time, retrieved the Creek Valley Town files.

He handed them to Helag. "Mr. Helag, take a look."

Helag took the files, checked for any magical residue, and began reading.

He read silently for about ten minutes.

After finishing, he closed the files and thought, "Deep Blue, bring up the previous Creek Valley Town data."

[Creek Valley Town data retrieved,] Deep Blue displayed the previously scanned files.

Helag compared them and thought, "How can this be?"

The files clearly stated that Creek Valley Town was attacked by bandits thirty years ago, and everyone was killed.

The bandits looted the town and burned many houses.

Importantly, the bandits were never caught, and their identities remain unknown.

After this event, Creek Valley Town gradually became deserted, with few people visiting.

Due to the high death toll, no one wanted to settle there, and the town was eventually forgotten.

From the paper and handwriting, Helag could tell the files were old and not recently forged.

"Deep Blue, did Miro show any signs of lying?" Helag wanted to confirm.

[Based on observations, there is a 99.8% probability that Miro is telling the truth,] Deep Blue responded.

Miro, a knight-level individual, showed no signs of energy particles, indicating he wasn't lying.

Helag was confused. The files he remembered clearly recorded the population changes, taxes, and other details of Creek Valley Town over the past thirty years.

These details were very specific and had been scanned by him.

"What kind of strange place is this? When did I start being affected?"

Helag had never visited Creek Valley Town before coming to Stormwind City, so his initial experience at the Adventurers' Guild should have been unaffected.

But things changed after his return.

Helag's expression grew serious. "It seems either Miro's or our memories have been altered. What kind of power can affect such a wide area? This likely involves rules…"

The text in the files had undoubtedly been altered, but Creek Valley Town was over a hundred kilometers away.

As Helag pondered, he handed the files to Robert.

Robert took the files, glanced at them, and his eyes widened in disbelief.

His hands trembled as he finished reading. "Mr. Miro, are you serious? Are these files real?"

"Of course. This isn't a place anyone can just enter, and no one would swap such an insignificant file. It's just a small place, and this happened many years ago," Miro explained.

"Robert, go outside and ask people about Creek Valley Town. Don't ask anyone from the Adventurers' Guild, just people on the street," Helag instructed, still unsure and wanting to confirm if everyone's memories were altered.

Theoretically, Miro could be lying or the files could have been swapped, though the probability was low. Helag wanted to be certain.

Robert nodded, understanding Helag's intention, and quickly ran downstairs.

He also wanted to confirm, hoping his mind wasn't playing tricks on him.

***

About an hour later, Robert returned, out of breath.

His expression showed fear rather than exhaustion.

"Sir, I asked around. They all said the same thing as Mr. Miro," Robert said, pale and glancing around as if something was following him.

Helag nodded, understanding. Miro couldn't have coordinated the entire city to deceive them.

This left only one possibility: after their encounter in Creek Valley Town, some force altered everyone's memories except theirs.

Such an act could only be achieved through rules, a power Helag wasn't qualified to understand for a long time.

He and Robert were unaffected likely because they were in Creek Valley Town at the time, shielded from the alteration.

Robert, though unsure why he slept there, remembered drinking in the tavern, indicating he had been there.

"Sir, what do we do now?" Robert felt everything around him was false, believing only he and Helag were real.

Helag patted his shoulder and smiled. "It's fine. It's just some power at work. Don't worry too much. Just live normally."

"But sir…" Robert was still uneasy, never having encountered something so bizarre.

One person misremembering was one thing, but for everyone to have the same false memory, even altering file contents, was beyond Robert's understanding.

"Relax, it's not a big deal. We survived, didn't we? Don't be so scared."

Helag could only offer comfort, not telling Robert there were things worse than death.

The situation in Creek Valley Town was beyond his capabilities, and there was nothing he could do.

The only option was to leave.