Good work. Now let's see how fast the country catches like wildfire, how hot the reaction burns.

When the lure shines bright enough, people do anything; a golden carrot dangled before a hungry crowd. Anyone who joins the hunt for those two sisters gets paid, and whoever wounds or captures them can stroll the Basiloth Empire’s treasury and pick any prize, like choosing fruit from a glittering grove.

Without knowing the targets belong to the Mizumi Clan, how mad will the nation swell? To be honest, Wilsar felt a spark of expectation, like a hunter tasting metal on the wind.

Mm. We wait and watch. Rangetsu nodded, sleeves flowing like night water, then drew out a gold-edged command token that gleamed like a cold sun and tossed it to the Dark Demon member beside him. Move every unit. “Arrest” the sisters who dared kill Prince Diak.

Understood!

With a bow like a blade laid flat, the Dark Demon turned and left, a shadow cutting through lamplight.

Bring the Basiloth Empire’s full weight to bear; even if we can’t break the Mizumi Clan, we’ll make their road rough and full of stones. Wilsar murmured, eyes drifting past the hall into a horizon like iron.

They’re still just four or five people. No way they can face the whole Basiloth Empire, right? Nakat’s voice was firm, but his confidence rang like thin glass.

No. Nakat, you don’t understand how terrifying Yumigawa Sumeragi and his people are. Lixin disliked them, yet faced facts like frost. Our last defeat carved it into me: their scariest edge is resources, a mountain that never runs out.

Resources? The few they carry can’t outstrip the empire’s entire vault, can they? Nakat frowned, doubt humming like bees.

They actually outstrip it. Lixin’s voice dripped with jealousy, like venom warmed by the sun. They eat Supreme Divine Spirit Medicine like ordinary fruit, just snacking as they walk. As for our treasury—how many Supreme Divine Spirit Medicines does the Basiloth Empire even have?

Uh… it seems not even one. At best, we have three high-grade Divine elixirs. Nakat finally realized how badly he’d underestimated them; the truth landed like cold rain.

Don’t talk about our vault. Even the Supreme Divine Spirit Medicine we can barely obtain is, to Yumigawa’s people, just fruit on a roadside tree.

There’s no point measuring resources against the Mizumi Clan. Wilsar sighed, helpless as wind over barren land. If we’re honest, the entire Inner World might lose to them in sheer wealth. Let’s stop wasting air on that.

Mr. Wilsar’s right. If we topple the Mizumi Clan, the Central Continent’s resources spread before us like a harvest field.

Inner World? Is that what Wilsar calls his side of reality? The thought pricked Rangetsu’s heart; suspicion rose like mist, then thinned.

Mm. For now, prepare and push as hard as we can to fulfill the order from that existence. His tone fell like a hammer on stone.

…

Meanwhile, the Basiloth Empire’s populace exploded like a summer storm. Every city churned with debate; words flared, sparks flew, and streets felt hot like a forge.

Whoa—Prince Diak, that arrogant peacock, actually got killed? And by girls this stunning, like moonlight on snow?

Yeah, their beauty’s beyond rare, like blossoms that bloom once a century. If I catch them, I’ll pick a reward from the treasury and then… heh, heh, heh. His laughter crawled like oil.

They killed Prince Diak, who was half‑step Divine. You got water in your head? Or think you’re Divine yourself?

I’m just fantasizing; I wouldn’t dare. I’ll tag along with the crowd, like a fish in a current.

Right, with strength like theirs, few can be confident. Folks will form giant teams, a tide of bodies surging together. Hey—look! A mercenary company’s already recruiting teammates! The leader’s peak Saint‑tier!

What are we waiting for? Let’s sign up! Feet itched like drumbeats.

Come on, don’t miss out! Join our Wolf‑Hunt Mercenary Company; let’s capture those sisters! Rewards split fair and square after the job!

The Wolf‑Hunt Company that claims no mission goes unfinished? I’m in!

Beside the bandwagon chatter rolled heavier words:

What?! The Basiloth Emperor’s sole heir is dead? No wonder the bounty burns this bright. If they killed Prince Diak, then beyond faces like jade, they’ve got half‑step Divine strength or higher. Beauty brings ruin, like silk hiding a blade.

Wrong phrasing, but the point stands—we’re taking this bounty. The Divine high‑tier elixir, Heart‑Calming Bloom, the only cure for our big brother, sits in the Basiloth treasury like a star behind bars.

You’re right. We must get the Heart‑Calming Bloom, come hell or high water.

Just the two of us won’t cut it against them; reality’s a hard wall. Let’s recruit in Beite City; I doubt anyone will pass up this bounty.

Whoa, the reward’s staggering! Looks like I can finally pay off my debts; might even come out ahead, heh heh. His smile showed teeth like a fox’s.

No matter what, those sisters can’t fall into anyone else’s hands. For the next clan head selection, I need a fitting relic from the vault, a blade that sings in my palm.

And aside from clear goals, there was the hunger of pure desire:

I’ve seen countless women, but this—this is beauty like starlight on a lake. I must have them.

Young master, they killed Prince Diak. Their strength’s beyond us; going alone is suicide, a moth rushing a torch.

Then what? Don’t tell me to give up; I’ll never let go, not while my blood runs hot.

We join a powerful mercenary force first. Then, when the tide crashes, we take our chance like wolves cutting a straggler.

Mm. Not bad. We’ll do just that.

Latest news just dropped! The sisters are in the Ancient City of Satesha right now, and with them is a blond pretty boy and two other girls just as stunning, plus one a notch less.

Is that real?

Absolutely. Crowds from every corner are pouring toward Satesha like rivers; wait too long and you won’t squeeze in at all.

What are we waiting for? Move!

The bandwagoners, the bounty-chasers, the treasure-seekers, the lechers with eyes like knives—every kind of person spilled into the roads, wheels and boots beating like rain. One thing was certain: anyone with a little strength flooded toward Satesha, target bright and singular—capture the Yumigawa sisters.

Most formed teams, waves marching together. Only a handful of self‑assured Divine‑tier experts strode alone, lone hawks cutting through the sky.

Today would not be a calm day for the Basiloth Empire; the air itself felt like a drawn bow.

…

Satesha, oldest of the Basiloth Empire’s cities, had been the capital more than once; its bones were stone and story. Ancient buildings and ruins stood everywhere like sleeping giants, the best mirror of the empire’s old culture.

At Nalu’s suggestion, I had Lanxia descend over Satesha, so we could feel the city’s age on our skin, like dust warmed by sun.

We walked the old streets, bricks worn smooth as river stones, and the buildings around us breathed history like incense. A quiet satisfaction settled in my chest; I’ve always loved places like this, where time pools like deep water.

Maybe because everything here is too old, or because development lagged behind other cities, Satesha felt cold and sparse. We saw middle‑aged faces and elders like weathered bark, but hardly any youth. A famous cultural city should be full of visitors, even if locals are few; the emptiness felt wrong, like a bell with no ring.

And something odd pressed over Satesha, a strange air like fog, moving toward us, not away, creeping like ivy.

As if to prove my gut right, a roar of footsteps rolled from afar, dust puffing up like smoke. Within moments, we were ringed by mercenaries and adventurers, steel and leather closing like a thorny crown—troops among them—easily several thousand.

It’s really them! And… gods, they’re even more beautiful than on the bounty poster, like dawn breaking ice!

Heh, if I can, I’ll catch them and enjoy every inch— The laughter scratched like rust.

Don’t worry, with this many people, we’ll have chances. And more are coming from other cities, rivers feeding a flood.

The ugly chatter kept pouring into our ears, filthy words like mud. Their predator stares gnawed at us, insects buzzing a ripe peach.

I was about to tell Lanxia to unleash Dragon Aura and stun the crawling scum, when Lixue moved first.

Wind and Snow: Absolute Icebound.

No one even had time to scream. In a single breath, the thousands around us—and the surrounding buildings—froze into ice sculptures, blue and clear as winter moons. You could feel how angry Lixue was; it bit like frost.

Why is this happening? Why did so many disgusting pests crawl out at once? Lingxiao’s face twisted in pure distaste, like someone smelling rotten fruit.

…Looks like we’ve been put on a wanted list. Lingsaki caught a paper that skittered past on the wind, fingers closing like a net. We gathered around; the sheet held Lingxiao’s and Lingsaki’s portraits, their charges, their bounty, all inked like frost-black leaves.

Prince Diak was killed by us? When did that happen? My mind’s blank, like a page washed clean. Lingxiao frowned, genuinely puzzled.

Mm. Back when we first reached the Northern Abyss Continent, didn’t some gross guy hit on us? Maybe that guy was Prince Diak. Lingsaki’s memory rose like a lantern in fog.

Right, that did happen. Lingxiao remembered, but stayed unmoved, heart steady as stone. He brought it on himself by pestering us; die and be done. Serves him right.

Exactly! Lanxia snorted, full of scorn like thunder under silk. Those ants never checked their station, daring to hit on Yumigawa Sumeragi’s sisters! If this dragon had been there, I’d have dragged that idiot prince to the Basiloth imperial palace and raised hell from pillar to gate.

Emperor, more people are surging toward us, a black tide. We need to be ready to fight. Lixue’s gaze was sharp as ice, fixed on the street ahead.

I know. I let the bracelet ripple back into the Shattered Light Sword, light breaking like shards in my hand. Didn’t expect our first day in the Basiloth Empire to be this unlucky; the mood soured like rain.