CHAPTER 515: INFORMING THE GUILDMASTER

Coco entered the guild’s doors, closely followed by Sinclair and Heiren, while still holding Kairo in her arms.

When the door swung open and Coco stepped inside, the guild instantly fell eerily silent, the chatter and activity grinding to a halt as every pair of eyes turned toward Coco, Heiren, Kairo, and Sinclair.

Their collective gaze focused on the group, surprise and curiosity etched on the faces of the various guild members.

The sudden attention made Coco’s grip on Kairo tighten involuntarily before swiftly making her way to the guildmaster’s office on the second floor, not batting them an eye.

She walked with urgency, the sound of her footsteps echoing softly against the wooden floorboards.

Heiren and Sinclair followed close behind, their own footsteps mirroring her stride.

Once they ascended the stairs and reached the second floor, Coco navigated the hallway leading to the guildmaster’s office.

Fortunately, the surroundings were quieter up there than the lively ground floor, the muted sounds from the main hall barely reaching their ears, but it was still enough to be considered a noise.

Not long after walking for a few seconds, Coco, Heiren, and Sinclair arrive at the guildmaster’s office door.

Knock.

Knock.

Knock.

Sinclair took the initiative in tapping gently on the door, his knock a gentle yet audible sound against the solid wood.

The silence that followed amplified the sound of the knock, the three of them waiting for a response from the other side of the door— and it didn’t help that the permission to enter took long enough that it made Kairo shift in Coco’s arms.

After a moment of waiting though, they heard a muffled voice from the office.

"Come in." The guildmaster’s voice was slightly distorted through the door, but the words were clear and distinct.

Sinclair, ever the gentleman and a lovely familiar, stepped forward and grabbed the door’s handle before swinging it open and holding the office door open for Coco.

She gave him a grateful nod before proceeding inside, her attention immediately drawn to the guildmaster as she entered.

The guildmaster’s gaze immediately landed on Coco and couldn’t hide the surprise etched on his face with the way his eyes widened, his expression housing both bewilderment and curiosity.

It was clear that he hadn’t expected to see her so soon, especially accompanied by Heiren and Sinclair with Kairo in her arms.

"Please, take a seat." Mr. Covez said in a commanding yet kind voice as he gestured to the couch. "I assume you’re here to relay the events that happened?"

"Yes, sir." Coco answered with a straight face.

"Then, feel free to do so once you’re comfortably seated." The guildmaster stated as he pointed to the soft cushions.

Coco nodded in understanding, her eyes flickering towards Heiren and Sinclair, to silently tell them to follow, before she walked to the couch and gingerly took a seat.

She made sure that she placed Kairo comfortably on her lap before giving him the time to shift into a position where he would be able to hide his face more.

Then, Heiren and Sinclair followed suit, taking their places beside her on the couch.

"I don’t want to speak about what happened.." Kairo fidgeted in Coco’s arms, his voice in a hushed tone. "Please let me stay here quietly for a bit.. It feels uncomfortable somehow."

Coco instinctively held onto him tightly upon sending the distress in his voice.

Despite the guildmaster’s expectant gaze, Coco understood Kairo’s reluctance to discuss the details of what happened so she nodded to agree with his request.

Coco turned to face Mr. Covez. "I’ll brief you on what I know and what happened, but please don’t force anything out of Kairo."

The guildmaster blinked in surprise, not fully expecting Coco to mention forcing Kairo. "I wasn’t planning on asking him about it. Rest assured, Coco."

"Good." Coco’s face softened. "He’s not ready to talk about it just yet."

The guildmaster merely nodded in understanding at Coco’s plea because he fully recognized the importance of respecting Kairo’s boundaries and he understood the sensitivity of the situation.

Then, the room fell into silence as everyone waited for Coco to begin.

"Before we found Kairo.. I bumped into the guild’s new receptionist." She started, her words filled with disdain which was surprising because Coco was a friendly and cheery person.

"I didn’t have any reason to suspect anything, but there was something about the situation that felt off." She continued, mixing lies with the truth.

"What could possibly be off about him?" Mr. Covez asked, frowning.

Coco’s gaze remained on the guildmaster, her words blunt and direct. "He’s a monster in disguise, sir, and it wasn’t for a good cause."

The guildmaster’s eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected revelation.

He hadn’t anticipated such a twist in Coco’s story and the thought of a monster disguising itself inside the guild was deeply concerning.

Just how did a monster sneak under his nose?

"A monster?" Mr. Covez repeated, his tone cautious and concerned. "Can you elaborate further?"

Sinclair could sense the need for concrete evidence so carefully placed an object onto the table— a decapitated head, with one half bearing a human counterpart and the other sporting a grotesque grey complexion and a lifeless, milky eye, lay there for all to see.

The guildmaster’s expression darkened as he caught sight of the head because it wasn’t just any head.. It’s the head of the receptionist.

The gravity of the situation sunk in, making Mr. Covez curls his hand into a fist.

Coco’s gaze darted on the head. "When I beheaded the receptionist, something quite unusual happened.. His corpse.. It didn’t bleed, sir."

The guildmaster frowned. "What happened then?"

"Instead, it simply.. Turned to ash." Coco answered, a grimace falling into her face.

Now, what she just said wasn’t the actual truth.

The monster did turn into ash when she killed him and didn’t bleed, but after the ash disappeared, she noticed that they left his head laying on the ground.