A Deception
When Ali returned to the house, there was still no sign of activity.
Nothing appeared to have been added or removed.
Pushing open the partially closed door, Ali stepped into the room from which Jelia had vanished.
He examined the doorframe, then the surrounding wooden walls.
Everything remained as it was, showing no signs of alteration.
According to Monka's account, ever since someone mysteriously disappeared, no one had lived in this house again.
All the furnishings within had been left exactly as they were when the previous occupants moved out.
Expanding his mana sensing, Ali closed his eyes, allowing every detail of the room to imprint itself into his mind, which then reassembled into abstract geometric shapes.
Although mana sensing was not as acute as Ali's five senses, it was perfectly suited for detecting things beyond normal perception.
Such as concealed spell matrices or spirits that were fading away.