Sorcerer's Handbook-Chapter 637: Pursuit

“She got into Felix’s car? Is Felix leaving Swordflower now?”

Outside Swordflower College, a young man with black hair and dressed in purple listened intently to his subordinate’s report from within a nondescript matte black car.

“It seems tonight is the night. After days of waiting, we finally have something.”

He exhaled a cloud of smoke, drawing a cigarette from a metallic case, and took a slow drag. The smoke was expelled through the car’s ventilation system as he spoke, “Uncle Veille, could you call Uncle Koruno?”

The middle-aged man in the back seat nodded and nudged the slender man beside him, who had his eyes closed.

Moments later, the slender man opened his eyes, looking rather displeased. “I was just about to deduce the first affix…”

“With your skills, you should stick to brute force rather than playing detective,” the middle-aged man scoffed. “You know you’re not cut out for this.”

“But I’m a mystery writer; I can’t always resort to brute force to solve phantoms.”

“But you write social mysteries!”

“Are social mysteries not mysteries?”

“Enough,” the black-haired youth chuckled, cigarette in hand. “Felix has left Swordflower, and it’s time for us to act.”

“Lelouch, are you sure you want to follow Felix?” the middle-aged man asked seriously. “He’s the second son of Vlozrada. If anything goes wrong…”

“Even Vlozrada can’t stop the Valuda Family from obtaining the secret to surpassing the Sanctuary!” Lelouch extinguished his cigarette, watching the silver car pass by them, and started their car to follow. “If we can get this secret, the Valuda Family might just become the sixth pillar of Stars!”

Inside the car were Lelouch Valuda, and the sanctuary sorcerers ‘Bullet Storm’ Veille and ‘Ashen’ Koruno!

Veille was Lelouch’s uncle, the gunmanship sanctuary of the Valuda Family; Koruno, on the other hand, had been accepted into the Valuda Family, becoming the son-in-law of the Count of Voidstar and a wind spell sanctuary!

The Valuda Family had only these two sanctuaries, and their days spent in this car were not without ulterior motives-they aimed to steal the secret of the sword Princess’s half-year sanctuary upgrade!

To achieve this, Lelouch had joined the swordsmanship club, spending over half a month trying to get close to the sword Princess, but he couldn’t break through the social barrier. In the end, he attempted a bold move by confessing, hoping to change their relationship, but the sword Princess was as cold as stone, refusing even a friendship card.

However, besides direct attempts, the Valuda Family had other plans. As the wealthiest new noble family, Lelouch spared no expense, using his pursuit of the sword Princess as a cover to bribe almost every student within 500 meters of her, all to uncover her detailed schedule and deduce the secret method she used for rapid upgrades.

As the investigation deepened, a suspicious figure came into view: Felix Vlozrada.

If Felix was merely pestering Sonya, Lelouch might have thought he was also pursuing the sword Princess. But the problem was, Felix rarely met with Sonya. Often, Sonya would leave the Forest Library, and Felix would enter shortly after, their schedules mirroring each other with a slight time gap.

And this wasn’t just a coincidence for a day or two; it was a routine that lasted over a month!

If anything, Felix seemed more like a stalker, but the question was, how could the second son of Vlozrada be reduced to merely stalking a girl from afar? Moreover, Felix’s reputation for being a playboy was well-known, even to Lelouch.

As for whether Felix was also trying to steal the sword Princess’s secret method, it was unlikely-if the secret method was something she could access daily, it would have been discovered the night the Meteor Trial ended!

Thus, there was only one possibility: Felix and Sonya were communicating secretly!

Lelouch didn’t know their exact method of communication, but he didn’t need to. He just needed to know that Felix was also aware of the secret method!

Thinking back, the reason no one could find the sword Princess’s secret method was likely because the secret wasn’t with her; she was merely the result of the secret.

The true holder of the secret was probably Felix!

Was it an adventure from the Virtual Realm? Or the latest research result from Vlozrada?

Regardless, the Valuda Family had to get a piece of the pie!

For this reason, ‘Bullet Storm’ Veille and ‘Ashen’ Koruno had spent six days and nights with Lelouch at Swordflower College, waiting for an opportunity!

Among the newly risen nobility, the Count of Voidstar was already at the level of the Five Pillars in various aspects, but the family only had two sanctuary sorcerers, making it impossible to compare with the Five Pillars. However, the cultivation of high-tier sorcerers wasn’t a matter of ten or twenty years, but nearly a hundred years of generational inheritance. The suddenly wealthy Valuda Family couldn’t accept such a long return period.

They wanted to recruit sanctuaries, but most sanctuaries cared little for gold and silver, valuing spellcasting inheritance more, such as Vlozrada’s Vibration Swordsmanship.

But the Valuda Family had no spellcasting inheritance!

Thus, upon learning of the sword Princess’s ‘half-year sanctuary,’ they tried every means to win her over. They heard she admired Delarose, so they spent money on Delarose’s new play, reserving a role for the sword Princess, hoping to corrupt her with wealth.

Yet the sword Princess refused the collaboration!

There were many other attempts, but the sword Princess never responded to any overtures.

Lelouch’s attempt to get close to the sword Princess was out of desperation. He despised the sword Princess’s village girl roots, feeling that even as a sanctuary sorcerer, her speech and demeanor carried an inescapable cheapness.

In small towns, he might play around occasionally, just for a change of pace, and to give those pretty village girls dreaming of marrying into nobility in Galaxia a fantasy. In a way, it was a good deed. But if he were to marry the sword Princess, he would feel ashamed.

So getting the secret from Felix was the best outcome; the sword Princess was merely a lucky beneficiary of the secret, and without it, she was nothing.

I’ll make you regret the day you rejected my goodwill at the swordsmanship club!

Lelouch’s face was cold as he trailed the silver car, unafraid of being exposed, because ‘Ashen’ Koruno had already cast the Miracle “Night’s Concealment,” raising a wind that could hide all things.

With the added effect of the night, they and the car blended seamlessly into the darkness, invisible even to reconnaissance Miracles.

Soon, the silver car left Galaxia’s city center, arriving at a relatively secluded factory.

Lelouch’s heart raced with excitement. “This must be the place where the secret is cast! Prepare the recording equipment; once we enter, we need to document everything inside!”

‘Bullet Storm’ Veille still hesitated. “Won’t this offend Vlozrada…”

“Vlozrada holds this secret without sharing it; they’re offending all of Stars’ nobility! We’re just trying to experience this technology, and we’re willing to pay. Whatever resources this secret requires, Valuda will cover it!” Lelouch said. “Once we know the secret, it’ll be Vlozrada begging us!”

“Father has entrusted me with full responsibility for this matter. Uncle Veille, Uncle Koruno, let’s go!”

Veille suggested, “Shouldn’t we contact the patriarch first?”

The request was reasonable, and Lelouch had to suppress his excitement, activating his Miracle wristband, but soon shook his head. “No, there seems to be jamming equipment nearby; the Miracle wristband can’t connect to the outside-Vlozrada has invested heavily to keep this place hidden.”

“Wait, jamming equipment can often detect all signals in the area; they might have already noticed uninvited guests. We can’t wait any longer!”

Veille and Koruno exchanged glances and nodded, decisively following Lelouch into the factory. They cast Miracles, revealing Felix’s path after leaving the car, and soon found a hidden underground passage!

They arrived at an iron door, exchanged glances, activated all recording equipment, and then broke through the door!

The secret must be inside!

Virtual Realm, Distant Sky Domain, dream phantom.

“A hole in the left hand large enough to hold an eye, rendering the observed unable to move… This is the Four Pillars Cult’s ‘Eye of Astonishment’!”

Cult Leader Ashe provided official confirmation. “Your classmate is a member of the Four Pillars Cult!”

Sonya nodded. “You mentioned before that you were controlled by the Eye of Astonishment, and I immediately remembered.”

Deya asked nervously, “Sword Princess, you didn’t join them, did you? They’re all bad people!”

“Of course not,” Sonya shook her head. “Although Felix’s offer was tempting, the Four Pillars Cult you encountered were all ruthless scoundrels. Am I supposed to believe I just happened to meet a good one? Instead of gambling on that luck, I’d rather bet on someone suddenly becoming devoted and passionate.”

Ashe scratched his head.

Vesser suddenly spoke, “You were immobilized and unable to use spellforce; couldn’t you be taken away?”

“Yes, I thought I might be taken,” Sonya said. “But I’m not without means of resistance… Hey!”

A valiant female swordsman spirit appeared in her palm, the Vibration Sword.

“The moment I was immobilized, the Vibration Sword jumped out and stabbed Felix. The injury was quite serious, but I didn’t apologize. He was the one who launched a surprise attack,” Sonya huffed. “Once he moved his hand away, the Eye of Astonishment’s effect disappeared, and I said I’d consider it and left.”

“He’s probably looking for someone to heal his injury now.”

Lelouch, ‘Bullet Storm’ Veille, and ‘Ashen’ Koruno burst through the iron door, immediately controlling the recording equipment to document everything inside.

But instead of the ‘secret site’ they imagined, they were met with a grand and solemn underground hall.

Strange and intricate murals covered the walls, lavish and colorful chandeliers hung in the hall, and four towering statues stood at the corners: a heroic general, a cultured middle-aged scholar, a benevolent elder, and a pure maiden.

“…?”

In the hall, a dozen Four Pillars Cult sorcerers stared at the three uninvited guests.

A deep chill spread from their spines throughout their bodies, and Lelouch swallowed hard, his legs trembling violently, an indescribable fear gripping his heart-he realized that among these dozen sorcerers, aside from Felix, he recognized all the others.

Moreover, Felix was the weakest among them.

The others were either famous figures he often saw in the news or top-tier sorcerers even his father, the Count of Voidstar, had to curry favor with!

Felix was covering her eye, blood continuously flowing from it.

Tonight was the Four Pillars Cult’s regular gathering, and she had hoped to persuade Sonya this time, conveniently bringing her to formally join the cult.

Unexpectedly, Sonya still refused, and Felix ended up being wounded by Sonya’s spirit. Felix didn’t bother seeking a healer; after all, any uncle or aunt here could easily heal her eye.

But…

“I’m sorry,” Felix apologized sincerely. “I seem to have led them here.”

“It’s alright; this place blocks all external signals,” a nearby female sorcerer healed Felix’s eye with a gentle touch. “We can still salvage this.”

These renowned and amiable sorcerers outside looked at Lelouch and his companions with increasingly cold, ruthless, and sinister gazes.

Veille and Koruno immediately raised their Sanctuaries, but the barrier that could defend against anything offered little comfort. They dared not turn their backs on these people, only cautiously retreating, trying to exit the underground hall.

Lelouch trembled, hiding within the Sanctuary, and Veille and Koruno were pale, sweating profusely, their hearts pounding!

They realized they might have uncovered a monumental secret.

But there was still hope; they were sanctuary sorcerers, tactical weapons, and wouldn’t die easily here-

“Oh? We have guests tonight.”

Someone arrived behind them!

And it was only one person!

In a flash, Veille and Koruno acted in unison, attacking the person behind them. If they could capture this person as a shield, they could cover their retreat-

“Greetings, Tactile Sense.”

In the moment before losing consciousness, they heard the sorcerers respectfully greeting.