Revenge: A Path of Destruction
Chapter 177: Unexpected Visitor

Chapter 177: Unexpected Visitor

A fleet of sleek black mana-powered cars glided smoothly over the paved highway, weaving through the flow of ordinary traffic like silent phantoms.

If one paid close attention to the insignias etched onto the glossy car doors, they’d spot the unmistakable crest of the Guild—an eagle soaring above the earth, wings spread wide in regal flight.

At the heart of the convoy, nestled securely within the central vehicle, sat Lauren and Liam, both wearing matching expressions of confusion and guarded curiosity.

To understand the source of their current state, we must rewind the clock—a few hours earlier.

[Earlier That Day]

The morning had started like any other.

Lauren had just stepped into her office within the European Guild Branch, prepared to begin the day’s operations.

She had only just set her bag down and removed her coat when the door to her office burst open.

The Association’s branch manager’s assistant, flushed and breathless, rushed in.

"Ma’am!" the assistant said, voice laced with urgency. "An envoy from the Wind Clan has just arrived—they’re asking for you and Liam directly. They’re already in the Branch Manager’s office!"

Lauren blinked, her thoughts immediately shifting into a more serious gear. She hadn’t received any prior notice of a diplomatic visit from the Wind Clan. The suddenness of it set off quiet alarms in her mind.

Without wasting time, she nodded once and followed the assistant out of her office.

Moments later, she stepped into the large, stately office of the Branch Manager. The air inside was thick with tension and formality.

The room itself, always neat and adorned with emblems of past expeditions and relics of significance, felt colder today.

Liam was already present, standing tall near one of the room’s wide windows. He turned as she entered and gave her a polite nod. Lauren returned it in kind, her gaze then drifting toward the far end of the room, toward the desk of the Branch Manager.

Standing beside the seated manager was a stranger—a man she didn’t recognize. His posture was relaxed, but the aura around him was anything but casual.

His presence pressed against the room like a gust of controlled wind threatening to become a storm.

He was already looking at her when she arrived, his sharp green eyes scanning her with calculating interest.

His long coat bore the silver and green sigils of the Wind Clan, tailored to perfection, his posture immaculately polished. Even his mana—restrained but tangible—tasted of the skies above mountaintops.

Lauren instinctively straightened her posture, her diplomatic instincts taking hold.

"Lauren Blackwood," the stranger introduced himself, his voice resonating with a deep yet velvety timbre, reminiscent of a blade concealed beneath soft silk.

"And Liam Drake. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you both finally. My name is Elric, and I come representing the enigmatic Seven Pillars of the Wind Clan." He paused, his intense gaze flickering between them, a sense of urgency emanating from his poised demeanor.

"We have a matter of great importance that requires your immediate attention. If you could find it in your hearts to oblige, I would like you to accompany me to Russia, the home of the Seven Pillars."

Lauren and Liam exchanged a glance.

Lauren blinked. "I’m sorry... accompany him where? And why?"

The manager clenched his jaw before responding. "I don’t know; he just arrived here demanding both of you."

Liam stepped forward. "Sir, we can’t be pulled from our duties without reason."

The envoy raised a hand calmly, not to silence, but more like a sign of interjection. Without a word, he reached into his cloak and pulled out a small crystalline cube. With a subtle twist, it activated, and a light-blue sigil of authorization floated into the air, spinning slowly above the cube’s surface.

It bore the Wind Clan’s crest... and more importantly, the Imperial Commission Seal — the highest level of urgency and clearance.

Lauren’s stomach sank.

She’d seen that seal only twice before in her life.

The manager exhaled. "As you can see, this request is sanctioned directly by the Seven Pillars themselves. Both of you are expected to cooperate fully."

Lauren stared at the sigil, then back at the envoy, who was now watching her with unsettling calm. There was something behind his gaze — not threat, but purpose.

The kind of look someone had when they were hunting for something... or someone.

She didn’t like it.

Liam gave her a small shrug, but even he was tense now.

The manager gestured toward the door. "Vehicles are already waiting. You’re to leave immediately."

Lauren didn’t respond. She looked at the envoy, then back at the branch manager who was currently feeling helpless at their demands, before she replied, "I don’t think that will be necessary, as we also have convoys of our own, and we will prefer riding in them" Lauren said.

The envoy looked at her but said nothing, before nodding as he saw no problem, as he spoke "I’ve no problem with that, but I do hope you don’t delay us" he said as he stood up from his seat, making his way out of the office.

[Back to the Present]

Lauren sat quietly in the backseat of the car, arms folded, eyes fixed on the passing cityscape outside the window.

Liam, beside her, finally broke the silence. "Still trying to make sense of it?"

Lauren sighed. "More like trying to predict what they’re not telling us. Wind Clan emissaries don’t just show up at a branch without reason, let alone send a convoy and ask for us personally."

Liam nodded in agreement, tapping a finger against his knee. "And with the bounty they posted and secrecy of the bounty... I don’t like it. It smells political."

Lauren turned to look at him. "That’s exactly what worries me."

Their convoy continued forward, bound for a destination the envoy had provided—a private manor owned by the Wind Clan on the outskirts of the city.

Neither of them knew what awaited them there.

But they could both feel it—

This wasn’t a meeting.

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