After the battle is finished, Azzy returned to the teacher's dorm and locked himself in his room to take nap.
Meanwhile, Flora also returned to her room but she started searching the drawers and wall shelves for something.
"Where is it? Where did I keep it? I remember I have the album for sure…"
After a rigorous search for 30 minutes whole, she finally found the thing she was looking for and took out her school photo album.
She opened it and looked at the photos one after another. After a while, she closed it in disappointment, "That skull… that corrupted yet familiar energy… and how Gary slipped up my nickname from high school. Not to mention the fact that he is friends with Serestia's father. I thought he studied at Eternal institutions for sure. But, he is nowhere in the album. Did he drop out or something?"
"Maybe, I was thinking too much. Well, if he really is someone I know, I should be able to remember him. Since I don't, at the very least, it means that we don't have much connection in the past. This is just a waste of time."
Flora was about to keep the photo album back in the cardboard box but just then, she spotted a picture frame lying at the bottom.
She casually picked it up and turned it around. As she wiped the dust with her hand, the picture became clear and Flora was taken aback in surprise as she saw herself with a poker-faced boy standing beside her.
Flora was around 9-10 years old in the photo and there was a 14-year-old Azzy with a flag in her hands "It's him. I knew it." Her eyes fell on the flag. Staring at it, she mumbled, "I still remember it. There was this replacement combat instructor named Arley Blood. On his first day, he conducted a test known as flag finding.
We formed teams and we won in the end. I believe he was my partner who mentored me for a while. And the fact that I took the trouble of making it a picture frame would mean that we are also close. Then, why couldn't I remember anything when I remember the tiniest detail of my academic life? Were my memories erased or something? There were such techniques. Ugh… stop thinking too much. Let's ask Mia or her husband to ask about Gary. Wait a second…"
It was then, all of a sudden, she remembered her behavior with Azzy and she couldn't help but grab her forehead, "damn, I acted a bit too cold with him without knowing who he is. He wouldn't hate me, would he? Should I apologize?"
Flora immediately threw away the thought, realizing that it is a bad idea. "Nah, if I suddenly change my behavior, he might think that it is because of the outcome of the battle. How about I confirm the exact nature of our relationship and then have a talk with him? For some reason, I have a strong feeling that his name is also a lie just like his official credentials.
Hmm… let's first talk with Mr. Calder and decide on the next course of action. But, the biggest hurdle now is facing him at the dinner.
Should I skip it? Nah… that would be too cowardly. Let's take a nap until midnight and then eat outside. Yup, let's do that."
Little did she expect Azzy to skip the dinner entirely and just cooped himself in his room, doing meditation.
Around 2:30 in the night when everyone is sleeping, Azzy finally got out of the room. He left the dorm and then the academy premises before started running in the direction of downtown.
Within five minutes, he reached a place known as Navona square and stopped nearby a lamppost. He looked around to find a hoarding that displayed the advertisement for an alchemy store. "There's the hoarding. According to the information given by the supreme commander, our agent went missing right at this location."
Azzy fell into thoughts, "What was he doing at this place, at this hour? Alder was said to be fighting someone and he was losing. Once he realized that he cannot win, he managed to send the location for investigation. That much is clear. But I don't understand the significance of this place.
Was he supposed to meet some informant and got trapped? Or was he followed by the abductor from the start?
Alder was working there for the past year to keep an eye on the students. He wasn't specifically investigating anything. Hmm…"
While he was pondering, Azzy's eyes captured a restaurant, a couple of bars, and a few convenience stores that are still open. "Did he perhaps come here for the late-night dinner or maybe to have a few drinks?"
Azzy decided to investigate and walked into the bar. He looked around and there weren't that many people inside the place.
As it appeared that no other customer is paying attention to him and minding their own business, Azzy ignored them and walked straight toward the bartender. The latter was surprised when he saw Azzy who looked like a young adult.
Since there were laws that prohibit people below 16 to drink, the bartender immediately reminded him about the age restrictions and asked for the identification card.
Azzy took out his wallet and handed him his ID from WAMO. "I'm not here to drink though."
The moment the bartender's eyes fell on ID, he grew nervous. He apologized immediately, "I'm sorry. I didn't know that you are…"
Azzy put his finger on the lips, gesturing for the bartender to stay silent. As the latter stopped talking, Azzy went on to show the photograph of Alder. "Ever seen this man?"
The bartender took the photograph and looked a bit closer before nodding, "Yeah, I have seen him a few times."
"Is he a regular here?" asked Azzy.
The bartender shook his head, "No, he isn't."
"When was the last time you saw him?" asked Azzy.
The bartender replied in an unsure tone, "I don't know. Maybe a couple of weeks ago?"
"So, this guy drinks but is not a regular here, huh? No use in talking about it further." Azzy took back the photograph and nodded, "Okay, thank you for the info."
He was about to leave the place but then the bartender asked him, "is he a fugitive?"
"No, just a missing person," replied Azzy before walking away.
Just as he walked a couple of steps, the bartender stopped him, "wait a second."
As Azzy turned around, the bartender said, "I don't know if it helps your investigation or not but that man was often accompanied by a blind man and he always complains that our service isn't on par with Bluess Bar, which is our competitor. I think he might be a regular there."
"You mean blindfolded man?" asked Azzy while thinking of his neighbor.
As the bartender nodded, Azzy commented that the former has a good memory and further thanked him before leaving the bar.
The so-called Bluess Bar is just a few blocks away and could be seen that it is still open. But, he didn't go there directly as there were a couple of convenience stores and a restaurant on the way.
He visited each of them one after another to find out about the incident.
Everyone either told him that either they had a vague impression of Alder or they weren't sure. Hence, he could only put his hopes on this 'Bluess' Bar for clues.
And just as he entered, he felt the drop in temperature. It was like he visited some polar region. The bar was empty with only one customer drinking crazily while the staff members were shivering in cold.
*Hiccup*
"You damn Matilda. I told you I don't need a fuc*ing man. You stop arranging blind dates for me, will ya." *Hiccup*
A drunken woman was screaming out loud as she kept on drinking. The servants were clearing up the table and kept refilling it with new bottles.
Downing another glass of beer that has about 63% of alcohol content, she continued to curse the people, "I… this… everything is your husband's fault. That white-collar worker keeps on suggesting you… forget it. I don't need a man… I'm happy living alone…
Gramps, you old geezer, stop trying to blackmail my parents with your stupid death… I won't marry… No… You over there… stop staring at me and stop shivering. Refill it, brat."
As the woman was continuously speaking to herself, the surprised Azzy let out a sigh and walked toward her table.
She raised her head and looked at Azzy. She spoke, "you… I know you… You lied to me, you bastard." She got up from the table and directly grabbed his collar, "You didn't graduate from Egrein academy. You studied at Eternal institutions. I have the…"
Azzy gave a swift chop to her neck and knocked her out. "An alcohol addiction? Ugh… you have spoiled my image of you, Flora."
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