abnabooks Chapter 230 She's gone
Chapter 230 She's gone
Chapter 230 She went back
Hearing footsteps, he looked up, a gentle smile familiar to Li Ang on his face, and said, "Li Ang? Is there something you need?" Carlos gestured for him to sit down, his tone as usual.
"Faction Leader," Li Ang said without any formalities, "have you seen Instructor Eve today? Ginny said she hasn't been able to contact her since this morning, and we're a little worried."
The moment the words "cannot be contacted" were uttered, Li Ang clearly saw that the gentle expression on Carlos's face faded abruptly, as if erased by an invisible eraser.
His pupils contracted almost imperceptibly, his lips tightened, and his entire being seemed to freeze and become ashen in an instant.
It wasn't just surprise or worry; it was more like a deep-seated fear or the deathly silence that followed the confirmation of some terrible prediction.
Although the change was brief, it did not escape Li Ang's notice.
"No." Carlos's voice was lower than before, and even sounded a little dry.
I didn't see her today. She's probably busy with her own things. You don't need to worry too much.
"
He waved his hand, his tone returning to calm, but beneath that calmness lay a deliberately maintained sense of distance.
This made Li Ang even more suspicious, but Carlos was clearly unwilling to talk about it, so he could only respectfully bow and take his leave.
He temporarily suppressed his doubts and turned to go to his mentor Karin's alchemy workshop, where he received the same disappointing answer.
Karin, the mentor, said that she had not seen Eve today and wondered why Leon was so nervous.
In her mind, what could possibly happen to Eve, a level four wizard, in Riley City?
An hour later, Li Ang returned to the workshop entrance, where Ginny was already waiting, her face filled with disappointment and even deeper anxiety.
"I asked at the library, the observation deck, the cafeteria, and a few tea rooms she occasionally goes to—no one there has ever seen Lady Eve."
Ginny's voice trembled with tears, "Lord Leon, this is so abnormal—"
Li Ang's heart sank, and Carlos's fleeting, unusual expression kept replaying in his mind.
He immediately instructed, "Ginny, go back to the living room and wait. What if the tutor was just temporarily out and has already returned? If we both search outside, we might miss him."
Although Ginny was worried, she also thought it made sense, so she nodded: "Alright, then I'll go back and wait. Lord Li Ang, you—"
Li Ang pondered for a moment and then said, "I'll go to the enforcement team to ask about the situation first, and then—"
He paused, his tone becoming serious. "Go see the faction leader again."
The reaction of the Carlos faction leader was too strange. Logically speaking, upon hearing that his daughter might be missing, even if it was only temporarily out of contact, a father's first reaction should be to be anxious, ask questions, or even immediately use his power to search for her.
Instead of the deathly stillness he has now—as if he already knows that this is some kind of unchangeable ending.
Upon arriving at the enforcement team, Li Ang met Deacon Celons in Celons' office.
After listening to Li Ang's report, Deacon Seronster showed no expression on his face, and simply reviewed the surveillance footage and entry and exit records of the past few hours in a businesslike manner.
"Captain Leon," Celeste's voice was as steady as ever.
"According to records, Wizard Eve Chloe did not leave Riley City using any official channels today. No unreported high-level energy flight paths were detected in the air traffic control area. No more than twelve hours have passed since she was last seen."
He looked at Li Ang: "According to the procedures, if a person has been missing for less than 24 hours and there are no signs of violence or illegal intrusion, a formal investigation cannot be initiated."
Li Ang's heart sank. He was familiar with the enforcement team's procedures, and Deacon Celons' statement was beyond reproach, but it did not dispel the gloom in his heart, especially when he thought of Carlos's unusual reaction.
"I understand, Deacon." Li Ang did not press the matter further.
"I will continue to keep an eye on things. If I discover anything, I will report it to headquarters immediately."
After leaving the enforcement team, Li Ang stood at the entrance of the headquarters. The afternoon sun was a bit dazzling, but he felt a chill.
It seems we can't rely on conventional channels for the time being. Carlos clearly knows something, but he refuses to say. It looks like we'll have to go again.
Without further delay, Li Ang arrived at Carlos's office for the second time.
This time, he didn't knock, but simply pushed open the unlocked door.
At this moment, Carlos was not sitting behind his desk, but standing by the window with his back to the door, his figure appearing particularly desolate.
Hearing the door open, he slowly turned around. Just over an hour later, Carlos's appearance gave Li Ang a jolt.
The previous gloomy look did not fade, but instead became even more pronounced, making him seem to have aged considerably in an instant.
His eyes were empty, devoid of any light, like two bottomless pools of stagnant water.
"Faction Leader," Li Ang said, closing the door to block out outside noise, and got straight to the point, "You know where Instructor Eve is, right?"
Carlos's gaze slowly focused on Li Ang's face. A complex emotion seemed to flash in those lifeless eyes: pain, helplessness, and a deep sense of powerlessness.
It's hard to imagine that this is the expression of a level 5 wizard.
He didn't deny it, but said slowly in a hoarse voice, as if sandpaper was being rubbed, "She—went back."
"Did you go back?" Li Ang stepped forward and asked eagerly.
"Where did you go? Faction Chief, please tell me! Ginny is very worried, and so am I—"
"That's not a place you should know, Leon."
Carlos interrupted him, his voice carrying a deep weariness and an undeniable resolve.
"It's not something I can interfere with—"
He turned around, looked out the window again, and gave the order to leave: "Go back. Forget about today. Eve—she won't be coming back."
"Faction leader!" Li Ang wanted to ask again, but the closed-off and desperate aura emanating from Carlos made him realize that asking further would be futile.
He clenched his fists so tightly that his nails almost dug into his palms.
Eve was the person who had nurtured and cared for him without reservation since he came into this world. He could not simply accept Carlos's words and pretend that this had never happened.
Leaving Carlos, Li Ang took a deep breath, his eyes hardening. Since he couldn't get help now, he could only rely on himself for the time being.
His goal was clear: to first check out Eve's mentor's residence, the last known place she had stayed before her disappearance, where she might have left some clues.
When he stepped through the door of the room, Ginny, who was inside, saw that it was Li Ang, and the hope on her face instantly turned into disappointment.
"Lord Li Ang—how is the situation?"