Wizard: Starting from the Skill Tree-Chapter 341: The Imprisoned Wizard

Chapter 341: Chapter 341: The Imprisoned Wizard
The energy fluctuations on them were noticeably stronger than the guards at the city gates, clearly showing they were experienced awakened warriors.
Inside the ring of vigilance formed by the soldiers, the atmosphere was as heavy as if frozen.
What drew everyone’s attention were the special cages standing on the high platform.
These cages were not made of ordinary wood or iron bars, but of a dark black metal that seemed to absorb light, engraved on the surface with complex and dim silver runes.
The runes occasionally emitted a faint, icy glow, exuding a chilling sense of energy confinement.
Three people were held inside the cages, and their condition was rather poor.
One seemed to have lost consciousness, leaning weakly against the cage wall, the faint rise and fall of his chest proving he was still alive. Another had his arms twisted at a bizarre angle, obviously having suffered serious injuries, yet his bloodshot eyes stared straight ahead, filled with deep hatred and unwillingness.
The third one seemed relatively better, leaning there, his face pale as paper, with bloodstains left at the corner of his mouth, staring blankly at the sky with a sense of hopeless numbness.
Duke inadvertently glanced at them, his heart sank sharply, and his pupils imperceptibly contracted for a moment.
He knew all three of them, or rather had seen them before, just wasn’t familiar with them.
These three were members of Hela’s small team, originally four people, now only three remained, and the female wizard was nowhere to be found.
"They actually got caught..." Duke recalled when they parted ways earlier, the other side was still hesitating whether to stay away from the Seventh Outpost.
Duke didn’t care about them at that time, anyway, he had decided to run away first without the slightest hesitation.
He didn’t know what happened afterward, but it seemed his decision at the time was wise.
With the strength of the Leighton Clan, it was unlikely they could capture these people, who were at least Level 1 Liquidation Mages. Even multiple Level 1 awakened ones couldn’t possibly capture them.
At least a second-level awakened warrior would have to take action to turn these people into prisoners.
Next to the high platform stood a huge wooden sign with a conspicuous notice written on it, and a person wearing the Leighton Clan’s emblem robe was vociferously reading it out to the crowd.
"These people are all evil demons! Don’t be fooled by the fact they look like us, humans. In reality, they are demons that endanger the entire world!"
"If anyone discovers any clues about such evil demons, you must to us immediately! We will reward you handsomely!"
"It’s also straightforward to distinguish these demons, as they have the power of the awakened but lack the ability to devour energy."
"If you encounter someone behaving similarly to these awakened ones, they are likely evil demons!"
...
Duke silently listened while hidden in the crowd, gathering his entire aura and lowering his head, to avoid eye contact with the three in the cage.
Even though Duke wasn’t familiar with these three, they would surely recognize him at a glance, and emotional fluctuations at that moment could be troublesome if noticed.
"Those who provide effective leads will be rewarded with one hundred lion coins! Those who capture or kill evil demons will be rewarded with five hundred lion coins!"
The Leighton Clan offered a very high bounty that made many people in the crowd particularly excited, eager to yank someone out from their side as a demon to hand over.
Duke quickly calculated in his mind; the capture of the Seventh Outpost personnel meant they might have already leaked some intelligence about the wizards.
The abilities of awakened ones are varied, and even if these three could withstand severe torture, there are many ways to probe into the information hidden in their minds.
There must be higher-level people behind the Leighton Clan; the Leighton Clan is just a subordinate, with more powerful forces behind it.
Looking at those specially-made cages, Duke knew these three shouldn’t die for now. For the natives of the Devourer Plane, living was more valuable.
They probably already learned quite a bit about the Wizard Plane and would certainly discuss strategies to counter this.
Duke never thought of rescuing these three because he simply didn’t have the ability to rescue them; getting this information to the Fifth Outpost would be his best effort.
The only concern now is that if the news at the Fifth Outpost has already leaked, where to go next.
In the intelligence he knows, there’s only the location of the Fifth Outpost, and he is completely unaware of other outpost information.
Duke’s gaze once again swept over those three miserable figures on the high platform, then silently retreated, merging into the morning mist, quickly leaving the noisy and dangerous Central Square.
"I must leave Goose Peak Castle quickly and reach the Fifth Outpost." He felt a growing urgency.
What is known is that there might be hidden strong awakened ones in Goose Peak Castle, which would pose a great danger if exposed.
The three captured people are all higher-level than he is and still ended up like this, enough to show they confronted an extremely formidable enemy.
This enemy is likely the same one that destroyed the Seventh Outpost; just that second-level awakened of the Leighton Clan probably couldn’t have achieved this alone.
Now, even the news of the Fifth Outpost might have leaked, so Duke needs to rush over all the more, as delay could change things, and bringing this intelligence there is crucial.
Now that the Leighton Clan labels wizards as evil demons and publishes related information, it indicates some changes in the situation.
Duke is worried that if it’s delayed, it might even become difficult to leave the city, and the channels through Raven’s Beak might not be reliable. Perhaps in a few days, it might not be feasible to leave.
Goose Peak Castle’s warm morning light fell on Duke at the moment, but he felt not the slightest warmth, only piercing cold and urgency.
Duke didn’t continue to loiter inside Goose Peak Castle; when he returned to the inn, Hawke hadn’t come back yet. Most of the caravan was still sleeping, exhausted mentally and physically after the long journey.
He waited for a while in the Raven Tavern, sensing when Hawke returned.
After coming back to the Raven Tavern, Hawke went straight upstairs, and Duke let him in even before he knocked.
"Sir, the matter is settled; there’s an opportunity tonight to go along with the line, and we can take you with us," Hawke brought back good news, smelling slightly of alcohol and looking somewhat tired.
Hawke evidently hadn’t slept all night, likely drinking and dining with others just to handle this matter for Duke.
"That’s good; I can depart at any time," Duke said.
He thought of rewarding Hawke with something but dismissed the idea after considering the recent events.
Many things with Duke are related to the wizards, giving it to Hawke might inadvertently harm him instead.