Noel and the others were exploring the village to confirm there was a clue they had missed.
In the end, they reached the same conclusion. It seemed that the village was empty. Only those fifteen people resided in this village. And they were truly people from the Supreme Devil Organization.
As for the rest of the people, they might have evacuated the village.
The two captains, the vice captains, and a few people who were adept at using their brains, such as Noel and Rose, gathered in the center of the village. They had to discuss their next move, considering they couldn't find anything.
Most of the Demon Beholder Squad were in the village as well, while the rest were scouting the nearby area to see if there was a cave or something.
"So, there is nothing we can find here." Igor sighed and said, "Maybe they have left the village. They are already aware of our movement from the beginning or something."
"That is a possibility." Paul nodded in agreement.
Rose and Noel were still in deep thought, believing this was not the case. As much as they wanted to believe this was the situation, there was simply no reason why Anna had to be in that situation.
"Is there something you wish to add?" Igor asked Noel, wondering what the brain of the Demon Relief Squad could do.
Noel scratched the back of his head. He was weighing the pros and cons of sharing Anna's situation. But that was the only clue that led to this place being a trap.
He decided to explain it. "Actually, I have another partner, not from the Demon Banner Army. She has been helping me with the investigation of a secret passage that the Count Family uses."
"Well, it's for an escape route. So, I haven't mentioned anything so far, considering we can't find the truth about it. And when she returned not long ago, she was covered in injuries. I couldn't hear her explanation since she hadn't woken up after two hours. That was the reason we were late."
When they heard the stories, they couldn't help but frown, feeling a bit dissatisfied.
However, as an expert in investigation, that small piece of information gave him another thought. The Vice Captain of the Demon Beholder Squad asked, "Wait a minute. Did you say a secret passage? I could understand that the Count Family was suspicious. But what do you mean by a secret passage? Is it somewhere near this place?"
"Yes." Noel nodded. "The secret passage was said to be connecting the Count Mansion to this mountain, specifically the other side of this mountain. So, we tried to find the secret passage so that we could build a tunnel and use the passage to escape in case something went wrong."
They could understand the precaution. Since the Demon Relief Squad was the one who did all the small work, such as an escape route, they didn't question Noel further.
Surprisingly, that secret passage made the vice captain fall into deep thought.
"A secret passage. What kind of secret passage? What's the size? This is the Count Family. No, what if the Supreme Devil Organization is cooperating with the Count Family? They also have an Arbiter."
"What the Supreme Devil Organization currently has… Why do they want to lead us here? Why do they use the empty village to make us think there is a cave or hidden passage near us?"
The vice captain fell silent for a moment. All of a sudden, he gasped as though he had seen through the scheme.
He looked at Igor and said, "Sir Igor. If you don't mind, can you assist me in my investigation?"
"Sure." Igor nodded without hesitation. It seemed that he had gotten a clue, so it was better to check it. They didn't have anything to do here anyway.
The vice captain pointed at the ground and said, "Please hit the ground. No need to hit it so hard."
"Sure. But why do I need to do that? What did you find?" Igor asked with a curious expression.
"After thinking about a secret passage that led to the other side of this mountain… I couldn't help but think the hidden passage was beneath this village. I don't know if they are related, but if the secret passage is beneath us, then it's going to be dangerous. There are a lot of things to suspect."
"Alright then." Igor put his knees on the ground while raising his fist. "Tell me when you're ready."
The vice captain placed his ear on the ground. He then released his Spiritual Energy before concentrating it on his ear. It seemed like he was using the vibration and the Spiritual Energy to listen to the movement of the ground. "Please."
Igor hit the ground with his fist. It wasn't hard, but the vibration moved downward. All the vice captain needed was feedback from the sound. As long as there was a gap, there would be a huge loss in the vibration he could hear.
But he was stunned the moment the loss happened.
He opened his mouth wide, as if he couldn't believe it.
"The vibration stopped only a few meters below us. There seems to be a huge room beneath us. But the problem is that we are at least fifty meters above ground."
'A room beneath us? No, if there is indeed a room beneath us, then the Demon Beholder Squad should be able to find the secret entrance. The connection between the Supreme Devil Organization and the Count Family… the secret passage, a tunnel, an escape route…'
Noel suddenly connected everything and shouted at the top of his lungs, trying to warn everyone. "Not good. Leave this village at once!"
But the moment he warned the others, a series of explosions occurred. All those explosions came from the edges of the villages.
They were confused, but the ground didn't seem to allow them to react as they began to crumble.
"We're going to fall!"