'…Brackenford Cross is in the control of the Hauwnted family. This must be where they are currently living.'

Aren thought and looked at the guards through the mirror.

They weren't Blessed Ones. It wasn't a surprise. Even the great noble families of Whitesky had a shortage of Blessed Ones.

He would be surprised if there was even one Blessed One among the Hauwnted family, as they definitely weren't one of the Twenty Lesser Families like the Kornacis family.

Perhaps only a subsidiary family.

Aren entered the estate with the mirror. He went through the rooms. There were servants and guards living in their own quarters.

Hauwnted family had a lot of offspring. There were young and old family members bustling about.

They seemed ordinary enough. There's nothing special about them. And there were plenty of pets just roaming the hallways.

'…This seems like a massive waste of time, but since I've already wasted this much time, I might as well check their prison.'

Aren scratched the back of his head and tried to find the prison. It didn't take long after finding a guard standing in front of a door that led to a basement.

He entered the basement. Looked around. He then saw some guards sitting on top of barrels, guarding a door that led to another place.

"…The hunt is nigh. It will be interesting who will win this time."

A guard said, trying to light up a cigarette, but it was slightly damp so he had to try a few times before it finally caught fire.

"…No one can beat the young lord. I don't know what's with him, but it is like he has a sixth sense of tracking!"

Another guard said with a sigh.

"…Yeah. If one of us guards wins, we get a chance to marry into the Hauwnted family. I wouldn't mind marrying Athena. She's beautiful and smart."

The guard said.

"Haha, they would never let you marry Athena. I am sure that the master is planning to marry into one of the Twenty Lesser Families or even into the Royal Rask family!"

"Probably so, but let the man dream!"

The guards laughed.

'…Hunt?'

Aren thought it sounded interesting, then he snuck closer to the door, and his eyes widened in surprise.

There were carvings at the door. Mystic engravings.

'Mystic engravings? I know they can be used to track things down, but also to block Mystic abilities…'

Aren's heartbeat quickened.

While Mystic engravings were powerful, they weren't enough to block the power of the Peeking Mirror!

Without further ado, he made the mirror go through the door, and he arrived at the prison of the estate.

There were many jail cells. All dirty and cramped with haggard prisoners. There were easily thirty prisoners!

'Why are there so many prisoners? Some of these prisoners also look new, as if they had only been in the prison for a couple of days, but few look to be older than a few months!'

Aren thought in a shock.

With the mirror, he went through all the jail cells and eventually found someone whom he recognized.

While she looked a little bit dirtier than the one in the photograph, she was definitely the daughter of the baron.

Ashley Butcher!

She looked scared, but it looked like no one touched her, and she looked a little bit malnourished, as if she hadn't been fed properly.

'…Why the hell did they kidnap her?'

Aren looked stunned, leaned back against the stone throne, and looked at the vulnerable-looking girl.

Seeing that pitiful expression in her eyes, he wanted to just jump through the mirror and rescue her.

She had a strange kind of attraction that drew people in.

'…Alright, calm down.'

Aren slapped himself in the cheek, crossed his arms, and started thinking with a clear head.

'Should I tell the baron? No. He will just send his men there, and Hauwnted family will just act ignorant.

'They might just kill Ashley and bury her in the forest, where it will be impossible to find her.

'Butcher family will also look like aggressors, and the Hauwnted family will just go to the family whom they are subsidiary of and ask for justice.

'Baron Butcher will be sent to prison. Butcher family will crumble. Hauwnted family will also take care of Lanternford Market.

'They will continue doing this… whatever the fuck they are doing right now, and no one can do anything about it.

'I'll have to do this alone.'

Aren rubbed his chin, cooking up a plan, and then smiled.

'Alright, from what I know, the Hauwnted family's guards like to come to the party over at Brackenford Cross, and they're not Blessed Ones.

'I can take the identity of one of the guards, and since I have this pendant, it will seem like I am not Blessed One as well.

'I will sneak into that estate and find a way to rescue her. I will also have to find evidence of what the Hauwnted family has been doing.

'I'll take that evidence over to the Guild, and they will take care of them. I am sure that will increase my reputation over in the Guild.'

Aren smirked.

A solid plan came to his mind, but it was still dangerous, as Aren was certain of one thing.

The one who kidnapped Ashley Butcher couldn't possibly be a normal one, as it was simply too dangerous.

Hauwnted family definitely wouldn't want one of their men to get caught, so they must've asked for an outsider to do that.

'…I have reason to believe that the Hauwnted family has at least one Blessed One with them. Stealth Pathway member, must be.'

Aren tried finding that Blessed One with the Peeking Mirror but was unsuccessful. If that Stealth user wanted to stay hidden, he wouldn't be able to find him.

Stealth users were like ghosts. Peeking Mirror couldn't see past their powers to see their current location.

It just wasn't working like that.

'I need to take this slow. I cannot just go there, break into the prison, and rescue her. I must find that Stealth user. I must find out more about this Hunt. Maybe during this Hunt, most of the estate will be empty.

'That could be my perfect opportunity to rescue her.'