Const Orphanage 18

It was a man wearing a silver half-face mask, tall and straight, his figure becoming even more stern and imposing under the halo of light.

A hint of deep blue in his pupils, cold as the ice of the far north.

It was him, Altair.

Indeed, he was the de facto controller of the Sterling consortium, certainly possessing the strength and status to exploit others here. Elvira thought to himself with a cold sneer.

"He's my assistant," Altair repeated, "Is that a problem?"

Georgewill's hand loosened. An investor with diamonds adorning the corners of his eyes was of unparalleled prestige.

Even though he knew the person he had caught was an intruder, he still couldn't make a scene in his presence.

He stepped back apprehensively, apologizing repeatedly, his eyes darting around, planning to report to his master.

"Is there anything else?" Altair said to Georgewill, his tone indifferent.

"Please, after you," Georgewill bowed respectfully.

Altair didn't spare Georgewill another glance, simply striding forward. Elvira wore a smile on his face, deciding to follow him for the time being. As he passed Georgewill, he gave him a meaningful look.

The interior of the hall was decorated in a simple and classic style, with a warm color scheme that evoked a solemn and majestic atmosphere. The lighting of the entire hall was provided by traditional chandeliers and wall lamps, casting a soft glow that illuminated every corner.

Centered in the hall was a tall podium. On each side of the podium, there were rows of benches, and behind them, a massive crucifix hung on the wall.

At the top of the hall was a beautiful painting of the Virgin Mary holding the Christ Child. The Virgin was dressed in splendid and solemn attire, her face gentle and compassionate, her eyes brimming with endless love and wisdom. The Christ Child in her arms appeared innocent and pure.

Below the painting, there was a row of carefully carved text that read: "God is with us."

At the iron gate, Altair smelled the scent of birch trees, the woody aroma of a snowy night, clean and pure. It seemed Elvira was here too.

He walked to the entrance of the hall and saw Elvira, currently being held by the wrist by a person in charge, unable to break free. A glint of cold light was about to shoot from his sleeve cuff, and those with ill intentions in the darkness were about to pounce—

Without hesitation, Altair chose to come to help him.

Afterwards, he approached Elvira, his gaze shifting from down to up, finally settling on Elvira's face. Beneath the silver-white half-mask, his eyes were sharp, his lips tightly pressed together, like a sheathed sword cold and sharp.

At that moment, he thought he saw Lorcan.

Lowering his gaze, he was reminded of the Undead Spirit Dagger. A man from the Nieva family, who knew no magic, yet held a sacred artifact of the witch families. The situation was truly perplexing.

The witch family Halliwell followed a matriarchal system, similar to a matrilineal society, valuing women above men. The family was composed entirely of adult women who inherited magic.

When a Halliwell witch bore a son, these boys, naturally unable to inherit the Halliwell family's magic, would be expelled from the family upon reaching adulthood, living incognito among ordinary humans. The same went for the Nieva family's girls. Thus, there shouldn't be any Nieva men who knew no magic, nor any Halliwell women without magical abilities. From yesterday's events, it seemed Elvira indeed did not understand magic spells.

However, Altair had definitely sensed a magical fluctuation from Elvira, albeit faint. Unlike Lorcan twenty-three years ago, whose magic was as vast as the ocean.

Perhaps, Elvira's appearance could be a breakthrough.

Now, with the situation at a stalemate, with increasingly bold Human-beasts on one side, hunters specialized in killing supernatural beings on another, and the newly arisen servant of God organization subtly probing, and some humans hybrid mixed with supernatural creatures had established a new organization.

After twenty-three years, even an internal conflict should have reached a conclusion.

After resolving the matter at Const Orphanage, he would also need to deal with the wizard.

Altair sat on a bench in the auditorium, his expression calm.

"Thank you very much for helping me out, Mr. Sterling." Elvira sat beside Altair, looking up at the stage of the auditorium, his voice soft like a gentle breeze, just loud enough for Altair to hear.

Altair's gaze fell on Elvira's mask, stating calmly, "You shouldn't be here."

Elvira chuckled, tilting his head and shrugging nonchalantly, "But this place is my home."

"Your home?" Altair looked down, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes," Elvira, propping his chin, smiled lazily, speaking in a relaxed tone, "I'm an orphan, so the Orphanage is naturally my home. My father eloped with someone else, and my mother died in a car accident, so I came here when I was sixteen."

"You're an orphan." Altair's tone remained even as he added, "Here today for the investment?"

Elvira felt the scrutinizing gaze of Altair, the cold and slightly suspicious look accelerating his heartbeat. He licked his lips, intuition telling him he shouldn't divulge anything about Teacher Ginger to Altair.

With a sly smile, he conveyed a hint of cunning, "A secret."

Elvira did not continue to respond but simply closed his eyes, focusing on the sounds around him. He tried to locate the person from the previous night, but it was futile.

The best way to hide a drop of water is in the ocean, especially when that person's voice is as soft as falling snow.

At this moment, the clock on the wall struck eight, and the Orphanage echoed with eight chimes.

A man stepped onto the podium of the hall, and it was Georgewill.

"Ladies and gentlemen, distinguished investors, good evening! Welcome to the Const Orphanage Investors' Banquet. I am Georgewill, the daytime manager here. We would like to express our heartfelt thanks to all the sectors that have been concerned with and supporting Const Orphanage."

"For this, the children of the Orphanage have prepared a choir performance as a token of our gratitude."

After Georgewill finished speaking, two to three dozen children holding white candles stood below the podium.

Each of them had an innocent smile, their cheeks slightly flushed, dressed in white clothes.

Georgewill stood among them, bowing to the seated investors. The lights in the hall dimmed gradually, and then he turned to start conducting the children's song.

"In a whimsical world where instruments hum,"

"When the sun dips low, the peculiar fun has begun."

"Whispers in the cobwebs, secrets they weave,"

"Alone, I play in a dreamy reprieve."

"Little one, beware, for the night is bizarre,"

"In the ghostly hush, where oddities are par."

The song was pure and clear, like the divine sound of golden sunlight shining through the clouds. Yet, the lyrics were bizarre, and coupled with the flickering candlelight, it added an eerie touch. Elvira felt he had heard these lyrics somewhere before, perhaps in a dream.