The warehouse under the shroud of night was eerily silent.
The walls were dilapidated, most windows sealed shut with wooden planks, looking no different from any ordinary abandoned warehouse.
Julius circled the outer wall, his fingers lightly brushing over the rough bricks as he whispered to confirm, “No sign of traps.”
Kyle was crouched on the ground, examining tire marks, and when he looked up, he grinned. “It’s clean out here, that’s for sure. Either they’re confident no one would dare come near, or — everything’s inside.”
Selina’s gray eyes narrowed slightly as she stepped out from the shadows at the rear of the warehouse.
“No hidden sentries in the vicinity. Not even a trace of a cat or dog. Honestly, I don’t like things being this ‘clean.’”
After a brief silence, Julius finally spoke, “Whatever the case, we have to check it out. If there really is a secret passage, it must be inside this warehouse. Better now than never. Why don’t we take a look inside?”
Selina’s voice drifted into their ears like the night breeze.
The vampire girl’s familiar flitted through the shadows, searching every corner of the warehouse before quietly perching back on her shoulder.
“No one.”
She confirmed in a hushed voice.
The three exchanged glances, their expressions instantly tightening, heartbeats seeming to slow in response.
They stood side by side at the warehouse’s main entrance, their movements as light as a feather falling.
Creak—
The heavy wooden door was slowly pushed open. Darkness surged like a tide, yet the three figures slipped silently inside, vanishing in an instant into the quiet behind the door.
A heavy, damp air filled the warehouse, the scent of wood and dust mingling together.
Rows of towering shelves stood silently, cobwebbed beams blurred by the night.
Kyle raised his hand, signaling the other two to be cautious.
Julius quietly closed the door behind them, stepping lightly, his gaze sweeping rapidly through the dimness.
In the empty space, there was no sound at all—only their own breathing echoed softly.
“Looks like no one’s used this place for a long time.”
Selina murmured, though her tone held a hint of doubt.
“That’s exactly what they want you to think.”
Kyle let out a quiet chuckle, “If there were signs of long-term use, they’d have been exposed long ago.”
The trio moved quietly between the shelves.
The dust on the crates was thick enough to lift away in layers at a touch, clearly untouched for ages.
But in the farthest corner, Julius suddenly stopped.
“The dust here… something’s off.”
He crouched, pointing at a faint scratch on the floor.
It was the mark left by a heavy crate being dragged, but the scratch was fresh, utterly out of place among the surrounding layers of dust.
Kyle naturally reached out to push the crate, finding it not nearly as heavy as it seemed — almost as if placed there on purpose to throw people off.
“Someone’s been here.”
He said quietly.
Selina crouched down, her gray eyes fixed on a corner of the floor — that spot seemed a bit different from the rest.
“Looks like we’ve found the right place.”
The girl nodded, speaking softly.
Julius said no more, setting his hand on one side of the crate. Together with Kyle, they put their strength into it.
The crate made the faintest scraping sound as it was slowly pushed aside, revealing a wooden plank beneath, its color subtly different from the surrounding floor.
The plank’s surface was also covered in dust, but the edges were suspiciously clean, as if people often moved about there.
Julius raised his eyebrows, wiping away the dust. “A trapdoor? That’s an old-fashioned design.”
“I thought they’d hide it with magic or something.”
“If they did use magic, it’d be easier for us. We could just use Magic Detection and not have to search like this, bit by bit.”
Kyle picked up the conversation, raising his hand to stop Julius’s movement, “Wait a minute.”
He looked around, making sure there were no mechanisms or hidden traps, then nodded.
“All right, now we can.”
Julius slowly lifted up that plank.
As the trapdoor opened, a rush of damp, chilly air hit them.
Darkness gaped like an abyss at their feet, and they could vaguely make out a stone staircase descending below.
Kyle leaned over for a look and gave a soft whistle, “That’s creepy. Doesn’t look like a good place to be.”
Selina narrowed her eyes and said quietly, “This scent… definitely has the stench of those rats.”
Julius frowned, his gaze lingering on the pitch-black steps for a moment as he lowered his voice, “Let’s go down, but we have to be careful.”
The three exchanged glances, nodding in silent understanding.
Julius gripped his longsword first and slowly stepped onto the first stair, his boots scraping against the stone with a faint sound.
Kyle followed right behind, with Selina taking up the rear, her gray eyes scanning every direction without pause.
As their figures gradually melted into the darkness, the warehouse returned to silence.
Only the trapdoor left open behind them, like a cold, unblinking eye, silently watched their backs.
The stairs stretched downwards, the air growing more and more damp. The torches set in the walls had long since burned out, leaving only a thick residue of wax.
After walking for a while, they reached a spacious underground chamber.
It was arranged almost exactly like the warehouse above:
Rows of crates, stacked barrels of wine, and countless bottles lined up on wooden racks.
But these wine bottles were clearly shoddy—uneven walls, messy labels, some even pasted on crookedly, nothing like genuine Morning Dew Brew.
Selina’s lips curled in a cold smile.
“So this is where they store the counterfeit wine.”
“And there’s a lot of it… Looks like they’re planning a big operation.”
Kyle nodded slightly, speaking softly.
Julius didn’t answer. Just as he was about to step forward, a faint snoring sound broke the silence.
The trio held their breath, looking in the direction of the sound.
Near one of the racks, a figure in a black robe lay sprawled across several crates.
The hood hung half off, his breathing deep and heavy, seemingly in a deep sleep.
But what truly made their hearts clench was not how deeply he slept, but the wine bottle clutched in his hand.
“Am I seeing things?”
Julius rubbed his eyes and stared hard at the black-robed man for several seconds, his voice barely above a whisper.
“He’s holding… isn’t that a Morning Dew Brew bottle?”
Kyle narrowed his eyes, examining closely, uncertain as well. “It does look like it… Is this guy drunk?”
“If they’re drinking it themselves, it can’t be fake, can it?”
“Probably… not.”
Selina wrinkled her nose, trying to distinguish the scent of the wine in the air. “By the smell, it’s no different from our Morning Dew Brew.”
“If they can fake it that well, they might as well make it for real.”
“How did they get their hands on the real Morning Dew Brew?”
Kyle raised an eyebrow, surprise in his tone. “Wasn’t the latest batch still in the Guild’s warehouses?”
Julius thought for a moment before replying softly, “Most likely Baron Black’s doing. His family may have fallen, but for him to get hold of a few bottles of Morning Dew Brew…I don’t think that would be much of a challenge.”