章節 44: ENDLESS JOURNEY

Adrian regarded him with a gentle and polite smile. "What do you mean?" he inquired innocently, tapping his cane on the table. As David's eyes rolled back, he slumped out of the chair, succumbing to the unexpected turn of events.

"Mere exposure to the aura of a relic, and they crumble. What a pitiful bunch," Adrian muttered to himself with a hint of disdain, rising from his seat to find David slumbering peacefully on the floor.

As he began to explore room after room, Adrian pondered his next move. "She didn't provide any specific location. I suppose I'll search in any area that exudes luxury," he contemplated. While Adrian embarked on this exploratory journey, the watchful gaze he had seemingly forgotten still clung to him, growing more intense by the moment.

It was as though a dormant presence had awoken from its slumber and abruptly began to take notice of Adrian. The intensity of this gaze was so palpable that it caused his back to perspire.

"Easy now; there's no need to be so vigilant. Stealing isn't inherently wicked, and I'm doing it for the greater good, you see. I have no insight into Alaya's intentions for that compass."

Adrian concluded, speaking to himself with the hope that whoever was scrutinizing him could comprehend his reasoning. However, the intensity of the gaze persisted, unwavering.

"Could you be a treasure hunter, perhaps? Is there some hidden gem in this room that has you so intrigued?"

Adrian mused to himself, engaging in an inner monologue as he scrutinized the surroundings with a more discerning eye. He remained uncertain about the nature and purpose of the watchful gaze.

Only time would reveal whether it bore auspicious or ominous intent.

Unaware of the gaze's intended message, Adrian persisted in his quest to locate the relic. As he entered the final and most prominent room, his attention was drawn to a striking detail: a lone red door. This door, composed of plain wood, exuded an air of simplicity.

"Red typically symbolizes trouble, but the intensifying gaze implies I'm on the right path," Adrian mused. Without further hesitation, he grasped the doorknob, expecting it to be locked as a matter of course.

Yet, in a fortunate coincidence, the door yielded to his touch that day. Once the door swung open, a flight of stairs leading into the basement came into view.

"There must be a basement down there too, likely where they store all their relics. It can't be just the one I seek here. I might as well seize any that piques my interest. Such an opportunity won't come my way again," Adrian reasoned, and with that thought in mind, he began his descent into the basement.

"How far does this basement go? It seems never-ending," Adrian grumbled with growing frustration as he continued his descent through the seemingly interminable staircase.

When he cast a glance over his shoulder, he found nothing but unending darkness. Even for someone with heightened werewolf vision, discerning the previous stairs was becoming an arduous task.

"My cursed intuition is utterly useless in this situation. What's the deal with this wretched existence of mine? I can't even locate a single relic, and these never-ending stairs are driving me mad."

Adrian lamented in exasperation. However, his mood shifted as he finally caught sight of a faint light at the end of the seemingly interminable staircase.

Adrian swiftly descended the remaining stairs and reached the origin of the light. However, what he discovered left him feeling rather foolish.

"Why on earth is this ordinary lantern here?" Adrian muttered aloud, his frustration mounting as he couldn't comprehend the purpose of those extensive stairs leading to a seemingly mundane object.

Just as he reached out to grasp the lantern, the intense gaze upon him nearly solidified, and at that moment, Adrian finally grasped the true meaning behind the gaze.

"So I'm not supposed to proceed when the gaze intensifies. Understood. I appreciate your guidance, mighty gaze, for being my true ally," Adrian remarked, his gratitude now directed at the watchful presence. "As for Emelie, well, she's quite the expert at lounging around and munching on chips all day."

With this newfound understanding, Adrian withdrew his hand from the lantern. However, when he turned to leave, he was met with an unexpected sight: the final stair he should have touched was nowhere to be found.

"Dear Mother Gaze, what should I do now?" Adrian inquired, sensing an eerie wrongness in this place that quickly transitioned from an unsettling feeling to a disconcerting reality.

The supposed lantern, typically an inanimate object, began to rotate, leaving Adrian to wonder whether it was a mere figment of his imagination or if something more uncanny was afoot.

"Could there be a rat inside, or is my mind playing tricks on me?" Adrian pondered, fully aware of the pressing necessity to extricate himself from this perplexing situation.

In a sudden and startling twist of events, the lantern's lid emitted a faint creak as it swung open, revealing a fiery figure within.

This spectral entity embarked on a curious metamorphosis, seamlessly transitioning from the visage of Emelie to Alaya and then seamlessly shifting into an incarnation resembling Alan. It assumed the forms of individuals whom Adrian had encountered since 2019, the year he had first ventured into human society.

The lantern eventually settled on the form of a woman, radiating a breathtaking allure that left Adrian astounded, his heart pounding in his chest. He struggled to fathom how someone of such ethereal beauty could exist, and the very presence of this figure left him in awe.

However, given that the lantern seemed to be adopting the shapes registered in his mind, Adrian was baffled by this captivating vision and where he might have encountered such beauty.

In a voice that had the power to reduce Adrian to a state of speechless awe, the lantern inquired,

"Hark, my child, what dost thou seek?"

The enchanting timbre of the voice rendered Adrian's mind a quagmire, causing it to cease functioning properly. In a flustered state, he blurted out without thinking:

"Will you be my partner for life?"

"..."

"I mean, who are you? Whose form have you assumed now?" Adrian questioned, his bewilderment evident. "I can't fathom how I could forget such beauty if I had ever encountered it before." Desperate for answers, he sought to unravel the mystery before him.

"If it be her desire, she hath the power to do so."