Theus made it all the way back to the manor without incident.
For some reason, he could not shake the faint feeling of unease.
The worker Theus's corpse had vanished without explanation, like a heavy stone pressing against his chest. Who could have pulled off such a switch right under the Candlelight Society's nose?
Wait—the Candlelight Society's nose. Theus suddenly frowned.
That shell had been full of Pollution, and it had taken Theus a long time to purify it completely. If the Candlelight Society knew about it and chose to bury him in such a remote place, he could understand that.
But during the burial today, there had clearly been no ritual at all. They had simply buried it.
Something was wrong.
The Candlelight Society knew there was Pollution in the shell, yet they buried it directly?
Did the church possess some unique purification ability, or was it because...
They knew the coffin was empty?
Theus took a breath.
The sense of impending danger grew stronger.
"No, I need to ask about this. Connor!"
The maid at the door poked her head in, then hurried off to find Connor.
Connor had been busy these past few days, with tomorrow's banquet among his responsibilities. He was currently directing the servants in the reception hall as they arranged everything, and only came to the study after a while.
"You called for me, Young Master?"
"Tell me about the Candlelight Society's burial rites. Yes, the one for that cultist buried today."
Connor looked somewhat surprised. "Today's burial rite? There did not seem to be much of a rite. They buried him directly. Their church did not have enough manpower, so our people helped with everything."
"I know all that. What I want to ask is whether the Candlelight Society always buries cultists like