Hearing Makar’s words, Priest Zhong’s expression didn’t change much. He quickly looked at Makar and replied.
“Mr. Makar, regarding this matter, Priest Hua, Priest Li, and I have reached a unanimous decision: we agree to cooperate with you.”
Hearing Priest Zhong’s answer, Mr. Makar, knowing his objective for the day was achieved, couldn’t help but let the corners of his mouth turn up slightly as he said, “I must say, your cult is quite pragmatic. I actually thought I’d have to do a lot more convincing, or perhaps even demonstrate the power of our Necromancer Association, to get you to agree.”
Hearing this, and fully aware that the Necromancer Association was far stronger than their own Cult of the Flame Demon, Priest Zhong dared not show any hint of his inner dissatisfaction. He replied, “Mr. Makar, our Cult of the Flame Demon has always had a very clear sense of self-awareness.”
“Indeed,” Makar said. “Your cult’s self-awareness is among the clearest of all the organizations I’ve cooperated with.”
After a brief pause, Makar continued, “Now that our cooperation is settled, my task here is complete. I’m sure we’ll meet again someday.”
Having achieved his goal for coming to the cult’s hideout, Makar had no desire to linger. After saying this to Priest Zhong and the others, he stood up, intending to leave.
Seeing this, the young Priest Li, who had been sitting quietly, felt extremely displeased. But, remembering that they needed the Necromancer Association’s help to rescue their Bishop from Longyang Prison and to avenge the two dead priests, he kept his true feelings hidden. Noticing Priest Zhong and Priest Hua rising to their feet, and understanding the principle of ‘the nail that sticks out gets hammered down,’ Priest Li also stood up and said to Makar, “Mr. Makar, let us see you out.”
“Thank you.”
Seeing all three people opposite him stand up and hearing Priest Li’s words, Makar understood their intention and felt quite smug. After tossing them a casual “thank you,” he turned and walked towards the exit of the hideout.
Watching Makar’s retreating back, the three priests said nothing, silently and in agreement following him.
A few minutes later, they successfully escorted Makar to the main entrance of their hideout. The thought that he wouldn’t have to deal with this foreigner much longer allowed Priest Li to breathe a slight, internal sigh of relief.
“Alright, Mr. Makar, this is the main exit from our base. Let me get the door for you,” Priest Zhong said, stepping forward to open the tightly shut door.
Watching the door swing open, Makar didn’t think much of it. He stepped through the doorway and out onto the street outside the hideout.
Naturally, the three priests didn’t want to lag too far behind. Forming a loose group, they also moved to step outside.
But before they could fully exit, Makar, who was walking ahead of them, suddenly stopped and looked ahead warily, asking, “Hmm? Who are you people?”
Hearing Makar’s voice, expressions of confusion appeared on the faces of the three priests. Subsequently, they filed out of the small house one by one, emerging onto the street.
There, they saw a group of unfamiliar faces completely surrounding the small house they had just left.
“Who are you people? Why are you blocking my doorstep?” Looking at the circle of strangers, and though unsure exactly why they were surrounding the cult’s hideout, Priest Zhong knew their intentions were certainly not good. He deliberately adopted a accusatory tone as he asked the question.
Facing Priest Zhong’s challenge, Bai Yuling, who had led the Special Affairs Bureau members to surround the place under Yan Qi’s guidance, quickly responded, “I’m sorry, sir. We are from the Fengfang City Special Affairs Bureau. Based on a tip from an informant, we suspect unauthorized cult activity is taking place inside this premises. We must ask you and the people with you to cooperate with our investigation.”
Upon hearing this, the faces of Priest Zhong, Priest Hua, Priest Li, and Makar, all standing at the hideout’s entrance, instantly darkened.
Dammit! Someone actually reported us? If I find out who it is, I’ll make sure they suffer a thousand cuts! Priest Zhong cursed inwardly, but he knew this rage was useless to his current situation.
He stopped his internal futile fury and quickly exchanged glances with the people beside him, thinking about how they might break through the Bureau’s encirclement and escape to safety.
“Sir, why haven’t you responded? Could it be you have a guilty conscience?” Bai Yuling had already noticed the change in expressions on the men’s faces and was sure they were hiding something. While speaking to them, she secretly began to channel her supernatural power, preparing to engage in combat at any moment. The other Bureau members around her, also sensing the shift in atmosphere, similarly prepared themselves.
Hmph. Your Cult of the Flame Demon’s hideout is hardly secret at all, being discovered so easily by the Special Affairs Bureau. It seems your chances of escaping this are slim. At that moment, Makar, after scrutinizing Bai Yuling and the Bureau members and finding no one stronger than himself among them, felt relieved. He couldn’t help but turn to Priest Zhong beside him with a smug, almost punchable expression, and said, “Your base’s security is truly lacking.”
“Mr. Makar! How can you just openly say our cult’s name like that?” Priest Zhong immediately retorted with clear displeasure.
“What’s the problem with me saying your cult’s name now?” Makar withdrew his gaze, not even looking at Priest Zhong, as he reminded him. “You’re already surrounded by the Special Affairs Bureau, after all.”
Hearing this, Priest Zhong initially wanted to argue further, but knowing the other man was stating a simple fact, he gave up on pointless debate about the topic and instead said, “Mr. Makar, it’s true we are surrounded. But don’t forget, you are surrounded here with us.”
“Surrounded? Mr. Zhong,” Makar said, finally looking back at him with a hint of disdain. “Do you really think this Fengfang City Special Affairs Bureau team, without a single Two-Star super among them, can actually surround me?”