Chapter 337: Eighty-First Floor, Monstrous Might and Malevolent Spirits (5)
After our brief exchange, we fell silent—we needed time to process what he had just heard.
Within the stillness that settled heavily around us, my mind churned rapidly. Chronologically speaking, the merchant’s claim of having visited an untouched capital didn’t align with the facts.
However, it wasn’t entirely implausible.
The high official set up an illusion barrier around the village.
We had absolutely confirmed that the capital had been attacked; both the general and the high official had proven that much. The merchant had likely been misled, which made the illusion theory the most likely explanation.
Although he had entered the city and hadn’t merely glimpsed the city from afar, there were over three hundred yokai involved. One of them could very well have tampered with his memory or cast an illusion powerful enough to fool him.
There was something I needed to clarify first.
“Ha-Seon.”
“Yes?”
“If a yokai tampers with someone’s memory or casts an illusion, does that leave any trace of their energy?”
“You’re asking about the merchant, aren’t you?”
“Right. I didn’t sense any trace of a yokai’s power from him.”