Chapter 687 Mira

Mira lowered her head slightly, clutching the cloth around herself as she greeted Liam in a quiet voice. "Good evening, sir." There was something almost overly cautious about the way she spoke, as though she wasn’t accustomed to addressing strangers and was afraid of saying the wrong thing.

Liam, however, simply smiled at her and returned the greeting naturally. "Good evening, Mira." His voice carried none of the suspicion that had been present only moments earlier, and that alone made Irina glance at him. Something had changed in Liam’s demeanor so quickly that she couldn’t quite follow it. A moment ago, he had been interrogating Eldric about supernatural beings, curses, dead brothers, and a village that had been trapped for years. Now he looked almost completely relaxed.

Liam rubbed his chin thoughtfully before turning toward Eldric. "Thank you for everything. You’ve been really helpful. I’ll make sure the people know about your contributions." Eldric’s eyebrows rose slightly, clearly pleased by the unexpected compliment.

"Huh?" Irina’s eyes widened as she stared between the two men. She didn’t understand what had just happened. What the hell was going on? Liam had walked into the elder’s home demanding answers, questioned him about the creatures, listened to a story about a cursed woman and her two sons, and then suddenly he was speaking to Eldric with the politeness of someone thanking an old friend.

There was no argument, no suspicion, no further questioning. Just gratitude. Irina’s eyes narrowed as she watched Liam, trying to figure out what exactly he had noticed that she hadn’t.

Liam, however, didn’t explain anything. He simply gave Eldric another polite smile before turning around and walking toward the door. Irina stood there for a moment longer, still trying to process everything, before realizing that Liam had already left.

"Seriously?" she muttered under her breath as she hurried after him. She had no intention of being left behind, especially when Liam had clearly decided something without telling her. As she passed through the doorway, she didn’t notice the way Eldric’s eyes followed her. The elder’s expression remained friendly while Liam was still within sight, but once Irina’s back was turned, his gaze slowly traveled over her from head to toe. A faint, unpleasant smile appeared on his face as his eyes lingered on her figure.

She’s one piece of work, he thought.

The thought disappeared behind his polite expression almost instantly as he stepped outside to escort Liam toward the front yard. By the time he reached them, his face was once again the picture of a welcoming village elder, and there was nothing in his expression that would have suggested what had passed through his mind moments earlier. Liam stopped near the edge of the yard and turned back toward him. "If we have any developments, we’ll let you know." Eldric smiled warmly and nodded. "I will look forward to hearing from you, Mr. Liam." Liam returned the nod before turning away, and this time he didn’t say anything else. He simply began walking back toward the house he and Irina had been staying in, with Irina following beside him.

Eldric remained where he was.

His eyes lingered on Irina until the two of them disappeared from sight.

Only then did he turn back toward his stay.

Meanwhile, Irina had already reached the limit of her patience.

The moment they were far enough from the elder’s house, she moved closer to Liam and looked at him with disbelief. "What was that?"

Liam glanced sideways at her. "What was what?"

Irina stopped walking for half a second, staring at him as though she couldn’t believe the words had actually come out of his mouth. "Don’t do that."

Liam continued walking as though he hadn’t heard her. "Do what?"

"That."

"I’m genuinely confused."

Irina’s mouth opened slightly. She stared at his back while he continued walking without the slightest concern. "You were questioning him like you suspected something, and then suddenly you’re thanking him and acting like he’s the most trustworthy man in the village."

Liam glanced back with an innocent smile.

Irina narrowed her eyes.

"You know exactly what I’m talking about."

"Maybe."

"Liam."

He smiled.

That was all she got.

Irina let out a frustrated breath and hurried after him, but Liam didn’t slow down. He had already made his decision, and whatever he had noticed inside that house, he clearly wasn’t ready to explain it in the middle of the street.

By the time they reached their house. Liam opened the door and stepped inside without saying anything. Irina followed him, still wearing the same suspicious expression, but before she could even ask another question, Liam reached behind her and closed the door.

The lock clicked.

Irina turned around.

Liam immediately caught her by the hand and pulled her closer, guiding her backward until her back met the wall.

Her eyes widened.

Her face instantly turned red.

For one brief moment, every question she had been planning to ask disappeared from her mind.

She stared at Liam.

Liam stared back.

Her heart began beating faster as she remembered the intimacy they had shared recently, and a completely different explanation suddenly entered her mind. Is that why he was so eager to get back here? Her cheeks grew even warmer at the thought. She knew Liam well enough by now to know that he could be shameless whenever he wanted, and she couldn’t exactly pretend she disliked his attention. In fact, despite her embarrassment, the thought wasn’t unwelcome at all.

Liam leaned slightly closer.

"We were followed."

The words instantly shattered the direction her thoughts had taken.

Irina froze.

Her face somehow became even redder, this time from embarrassment rather than anticipation. "Oh."

Liam released her and stepped away.

Irina cleared her throat and tried to recover her composure. "Of course."

She immediately turned toward the window.

Liam watched her with a faint smile, though his expression quickly became serious again. Irina moved toward the window and carefully looked outside without opening it. She lowered herself slightly and peeked through the edge of the curtain, scanning the street, the houses, and the narrow spaces between them.

"I don’t see anyone."

"Look again."

Irina’s eyes moved across the village.

Nothing.

The street looked empty.

A few villagers were still outside, but they were too far away to have followed them without Liam noticing. The nearby houses appeared quiet, their windows either dark or partially covered. She looked toward the path they had just walked down, but there was no obvious movement.

"I really don’t see anyone."

Liam didn’t answer.

He had already activated his enhanced vision.

The world around him changed.

Walls were no longer obstacles.

Darkness no longer concealed what lay behind it.

His Aether Sight pierced through the structure of their own house and extended toward the surrounding buildings. He carefully examined the spaces between the houses, searching for movement, abnormal energy, or anything that didn’t belong.

Then he found it.

Someone was hiding.

Between the two houses beside theirs, where the narrow gap was barely wide enough for a person to stand, a figure remained pressed against the wall.

They had positioned themselves carefully, making sure they couldn’t be seen from the street.

But Liam could see them perfectly.

He stared at the hidden figure through the wall.

The person wasn’t moving.

They were waiting.

Liam’s expression became cold.

Irina turned away from the window and looked at him.

"What is it?"

Liam didn’t answer immediately.

His eyes remained fixed on the space between the two neighboring houses.

The person hiding there still hadn’t realized that Liam had already found them.

And that was exactly what made the situation interesting.