The Warden of The Witches

Chapter 132:

The Dangerous Outside World

In the evening, Aiden changed out of his uniform in his dressing room, preparing to leave the prison after work.

Just as he was hanging up his uniform in the closet, memories of his conversation with Priscilla from that morning came back to him—

"I remember that day when you damaged my Token. You must have sneaked into Abigail's gathering and then got kicked out, right?" Priscilla confirmed with him at that time.

"That's about right." Aiden admitted straightforwardly, as it was quite obvious and there was nothing to deny.

"In that case, Vera should already know that I'm in trouble. I came to trace the Blood Moon Cult. And I had contacted Vera Before moving here. Knowing her temperament, once she finds out that my Token have fallen into someone else's hands, she's likely to come here to check on my situation."

"Is that so? But then, at most, she can only confirm at your base that you've been caught by the Inquisition, right? Let me be frank with you, I did indeed sneak into Abigail's gathering that day, but I was in disguise. I doubt anyone could recognize me at that time." Aiden remained calm at that moment.

When he infiltrated Abigail's gathering, he had transformed his body into that of a woman through physical alteration.

So even though he had stirred up trouble with the witches' gathering, Aiden wasn't particularly worried, considering that most of the witches probably hadn't realized that the woman who infiltrated the gathering that day was actually the former senior inquisitor, Aiden Galord.

"Well, I'll be frank with you as well. Vera and I had established a secret emergency contact point. On that day, before I was ready to make a move against you, I had already controlled a bat to bypass surveillance and deliver a cryptic note to the contact point. While I can't send messages across the entire continent like Abigail, sending it from within the city to the outskirts was achievable. If Vera goes to the contact point and gets that piece of paper, she will immediately know everything."

Upon hearing Priscilla's revelation, the composure on Aiden's face vanished in an instant. "Where is this contact point?" he inquired.

"It's an abandoned guard treehouse on the outskirts of the city, a place you'll likely struggle to find, and even if you do, it won't help you. Vera has been active on this side of the Autonomous State; she could reach Silver City within a day by train. She's impulsive, so once she realizes I'm in trouble, she'll likely act quickly. Given the days that have passed, she probably knows everything by now. This is just my speculation. After she knows everything, she might seek to retaliate against you."

"It's been a few days in jail, and now you're telling me this?" Aiden questioned.

"You should be thankful I told you; I could have chosen to say nothing. Besides, what do you have to fear? While I doubt you can catch Vera, with your skills, she probably can't do much to you," Priscilla replied nonchalantly.

...

With these thoughts in mind, Aiden was filled with resistance towards leaving the prison.

Not long ago, he had just learned from Mephilia that his life was still being targeted. Now, with Priscilla dropping bombs on him, revealing that the Witch gathering might have also discovered his identity, the situation was becoming increasingly grave.

Upon a brief reflection, it became evident that the cryptic message Priscilla had sent out on the day she planned to make a move against him contained crucial information summarized as follows:

1. My Grand Witch token fell into Aiden galord hands that night. If you encountered any suspicious individuals at the gathering that day, it's highly likely that he was involved.

2. This person is now the Warden of Rose Prison. I plan to seize his body tonight to rescue Dailey.

After sending out this coded message, Priscilla went silent.

If the Grand Witch Vera had received this message and realized there was no further contact from Priscilla, she should have deduced that Priscilla had met her end at his hands.

Vera was likely to relay this information to other Grand Witches through various communication channels.

From the impressions of that gathering, the Witch Gathering wasn't a unified organization, but it wasn't entirely fragmented either.

Firstly, the organizer, Abigail, held a considerable amount of influence over other witches.

Secondly, within the Witch Gathering, there existed smaller groups with a sense of camaraderie. Priscilla, Vera, and Dailey seemed to form such a group, especially Priscilla and Vera, who advocated for consolidating the Witch Gathering into a cohesive force.

According to Priscilla, leaving aside others for now, Vera was likely to retaliate for this.

At this moment, Aiden suddenly felt the outside world beyond the prison walls becoming somewhat terrifying, with forces targeting his life everywhere.

Living in the prison wasn't difficult; in fact, due to the nature of his work, he occasionally spent consecutive days within its confines.

Whether in professional matters or private life, completely tying oneself to one's workplace was never realistic. He wasn't about to give up his normal life over uncertainties.

Tonight, he had a dinner appointment—Rebecca had mentioned wanting to treat him to a meal when she was rescued. Initially, Aiden thought it was just a polite gesture, but later, while coordinating work at the Inquisition, Rebecca directly approached him to set a time and place.

With no reason to refuse, he couldn't just stand her up.

After changing into casual attire, Aiden left the dressing room and coincidentally met Veronica, who was also changing into casual clothes to leave work.

"Oh, Chief!" Veronica reflexively saluted.

"No need to be so formal after work; relax," Aiden waved his hand. "I'm not that serious."

"Oh, I'm used to it," Veronica smiled somewhat shyly.

"You happen to be on day shift today; it's rare to catch you at the end of the shift," Aiden walked briskly towards the exit along the corridor.

"Yes, because you, Chief, always have long working hours..." Veronica followed behind him, watching his back for a moment, then suddenly realized something. "Um, chief, have you had dinner yet?"

"Not yet, I'm about to go out to eat."

As they conversed, they walked out of the side door designated for prison guards' entry and exit.

"Then..." Veronica hesitated, wanting to say something.

Just then, a figure outside approached them. "Finally, you're out! I've been waiting for you."

"Hmm?" Aiden glanced over and couldn't help but look surprised. "Rebecca?"