Chapter 18: The Awakening III

Now that Ingrid herself had successfully become another awakened, she needed to be put on a tighter leash so that she would never run rampant with her newfound powers.

Ultimately, the next morning came and Herbert started teaching Ingrid a few tricks which she quickly understood, once she had gained sufficient understanding, they ate together for breakfast and left for Clive's house once again.

This time, Herbert had increased the number of bodyguards that came with them which made them look intimidating to the others in their surroundings. He did not want a repeat of what happened yesterday and he also wanted to keep Ingrid in check.

Ingrid, on the other hand, did not seem to mind the extra guards that came. She was still excited about her newfound powers. She probably felt that she was getting an inch closer to getting her revenge. In this period, what she needed to do the most was to practice. She knew that it wasn't common for people to awaken two bloodlines, it was even rarer to find someone that got a mutated power that came about from those two bloodlines. She had already heard about Herbert's explanation and was thrilled to find out that she was talented. She knew that sooner or later, the power dynamic between the two of them could change once she had strengthened herself.

After reaching Clive's house, Herbert squinted his eyes as he saw another group heading in the same direction. Instinctively, Herbert felt unpleasant. The group of men in front of him was walking in a tight formation. Although they had dressed casually and feigned being commoners, Herbert saw that their bodies moved in a systematic and trained way as if they had been doing strict, organized, and uniform movements unconsciously. They were probably soldiers from a major power. But considering the place where he is currently, he could already guess at the few powers that they could belong to.

In the center of the group was a man wearing white robes. He stood up like a sore thumb as he was the only one that was unusually clean in this kind of place. On his neck was a metallic amulet with a vertical line streaking through a circle in it. The symbol reminded him of the Phi sign which was in the form of a Greek letter. His brows creased as he had basically confirmed where this group originated from.

Their timing was impeccable. It was almost too unbelievable to be called a coincidence. It didn't take too much effort for him to understand their reason for coming here. Since they were the ones to start the plague, they would also need to appear as heroes by giving the victims a show of good faith by temporarily alleviating them from their pain.

Obviously, doing just that wouldn't be sustainable in the long run, they also needed to spread the disease and worsen the situation to the point where the residents would have to be reliant on them.

To prevent gathering their unwanted attention, Herbert temporarily told his guards to scatter and surround the area. This time, he was left alone with Ingrid and two other guards. He then told them to remain hidden. He did not want to cause any commotion nor raise their suspicion so he could only make do with what he had for now, but once they leave, he would have to erase any traces of Clive and his family to prevent anything unnecessary.

From somewhere hidden, Herbert watched as the group of men entered Clive's house. The guard that he had left behind was initially weary about the sudden intrusion and was about to make a ruckus until he suddenly heard a whistle that carried Herbert's command to stay down. The group only stayed there for a couple of minutes before they send out personally by Clive who had a pleasing smile on his face. He was undeniably good at judging the situation and being a good boot-licker.

Once they had finally left his sight, Herbert recalled his group and went to see Clive who was waiting outside together with the guard that Herbert left with them.

"My lord, we are ready to leave at your command."

Herbert did not say anything and directly entered the room where Clive's wife was resting. The last time that he had come in, she was still asleep and bedridden. This time, she is awake and is able to sit upright with the support of her son. She was pale and sweating, however, she was in a much better state than she was yesterday.

He almost had a headache trying to deal with her, Herbert didn't know that she was someone who had been chosen to serve as one of the spreading points of the disease. Although the place was certainly a breeding ground for a severe sickness, it would originally have needed a couple more years to turn into something terrifying like a plague. But judging from the awakened that had come in here just a few moments ago, Herbert felt weak undulations of scattered energy lingering on Clive's wife.

"How are you feeling?"

"Yes, I am fine, my lord. Thank you for sparing my husband and giving him a chance to redeem himself."

Judging from her reply, Clive had already told her about them leaving the place. She had a little difficulty speaking, but she still finished her sentence. Herbert nodded and once again looked at Clive.

"Did you tell the men earlier that you would soon be leaving this place?"

Clive felt sweat appearing on his forehead, he didn't know if he should answer truthfully as Herbert might be displeased with him. However, he also knew that Herbert had one of his men stay with him which could easily give him an answer yet he still decided to ask Clive. Judging from that, he understood that this could also be a test of his loyalty as such he decided to tell him the truth.

"Yes, my lord. I didn't think much of it back then; I do apologize for not being able to ask for your permission to divulge this information."

"What did they say?"

"They discouraged me but they eventually relented. They also gave me a couple of bottles of medicine for my wife to take along for the journey."

"Give it to me."

Clive soon took out a wooden bottle from one of his pockets and presented it to Herbert with two hands. Once Herbert took it, he swiftly opened it and took a whiff.

"It's the same…."