Purple Lightning returned home. She glanced at the healed wound on her cheek, then went to the bathroom for a shower. The water that struck her forehead was slightly warm, yet mixed with a chill. If her guess was right, the Order Keepers had already mobilized in full and completely surrounded the black market.

Cantata Two's Magic Maidens stood ready and waiting. They only wanted the black market to withdraw from District Twenty One for good. Once that happened, the power of District Twenty One would fall fully into the hands of the Magic Maidens.

She was District Twenty One's dog. Naturally, she had to obey the decisions of its upper ranks. Whether uprooting the black market was good or bad was still unclear. But making that call at a time like this didn't feel appropriate. That was why Purple Lightning had no desire to get involved in the black market's affairs.

And once they moved against the black market, a lot of people would definitely get dragged in. Purple Lightning couldn't quite make peace with that. All she could do was protect herself, and use her own strength to keep the current situation as stable as possible...

Without a doubt, the start of this whole farce was the Old Woman and that Key. As long as they got the Key, everything would end. As long as she dealt with Zhao Qingsnow and the Old Woman first, and took the Key, then District Twenty One likely wouldn't need to make such a huge show of force, nor would it have any reason to move against the other factions.

"You..."

After thinking for a moment, Purple Lightning went down to the basement. The moment she stepped in, she noticed Kaneko staring at the wound on her face. Kaneko parted her lips slightly and slowly spoke a few words.

"You're hurt?"

Purple Lightning didn't hide it. She told Kaneko about what had happened with Zhao Qingsnow today. Kaneko nodded, looking somewhat unmoved.

"You're not worried about them?"

Kaneko shook her head. She only knew the Old Woman and Zhao Qingsnow because Night Frost had connected them in the middle. In truth, she didn't know them that well. They had taken care of her before, yes, but in the end, they were just strangers she'd spoken to a few times.

"I'm not actually that close to them. And even if I were, I'm a prisoner right now. What's the point of panicking?"

Purple Lightning agreed with what Kaneko said. She was clearly so young, yet she could already think this far ahead. That only made Purple Lightning more curious about where she came from.

Kaneko chatted a little more with Purple Lightning, who didn't have much else to talk about. Purple Lightning let slip that District Twenty One's branch had already surrounded the black market where Zhao Qingsnow and the Old Woman were hiding. They had no wings to fly away with, and even burrowing underground wouldn't work.

District Twenty One's branch had spent a huge amount of effort just to catch them. How could they possibly leave even the slightest chance for escape?

Purple Lightning was certain. A war between the black market and District Twenty One was unavoidable. But at the very least, this peace would hold until tomorrow morning. Only after the speaker of District Twenty One's branch finished negotiating with the black market's representative would the war begin.

She slowly walked to the spirit altar of her younger sister and replaced the incense with a fresh stick. She hoped everything would go smoothly tomorrow. Once Zhao Qingsnow and the Old Woman were dealt with, she'd think of a way to handle Kaneko's situation too, and decide whether she would stay or go.

The Old Woman and Zhao Qingsnow kept circling around the central district. In just those past few minutes, several members of Cantata Two had arrived. But they didn't rush in. Instead, they wandered around the outer edge of the central area, with no intention of entering.

"The owner here probably won't let the Order Keepers come in that easily."

Precisely because those Magic Maidens couldn't enter so easily, Zhao Qingsnow and the Old Woman had a chance to catch their breath. After all the running around, Zhao Qingsnow's injuries seemed to be showing signs of flaring up again. So most of the work fell onto the aged and physically weakened Old Woman.

The Old Woman quickly built a small room underground, then used her exquisite earth-burrowing technique to swipe a fair amount of supplies. That included not just bedding, but medical supplies as well. Zhao Qingsnow, being a surgeon, gave her worsening wounds some basic treatment, then used wooden boards and bandages to secure the limbs she needed to swing with force.

Inside that small makeshift base, Zhao Qingsnow and the Old Woman ate a simple meal. A few minutes later, the Old Woman proposed using earth-burrowing to break out of the encirclement, and decided to test it herself.

There were some decent members of Cantata Two in the city too, but the Old Woman was exceptionally skilled at escaping—ah, no, at earth-burrowing.

So the Old Woman took the lead. She moved quickly through the soil, but before she had gone more than a few steps, the surrounding Mana and soil-detection devices erupted into loud alarm bells.

Before the Old Woman could even poke her head out, more than a dozen magic shells began dropping from the center of the sky canopy, crashing toward her approximate location. Sensing something was wrong, the Old Woman hurriedly turned around and used every trick she had. She dove deep into the earth and followed the veins of the land back to the little room she had dug out.

She smoothed back her messy hair. Just a few centimeters closer, and she would've had to eat those powerful Magic Cannons head-on. The Old Woman was glad that even with her weakened body, she hadn't lost her control over Mana. She couldn't help but marvel that she still had it in her.

After telling Zhao Qingsnow about the rough situation outside, the two looked at each other. Neither of them could think of any good way to break through.

The black market had its own rules. District Twenty One would definitely make its move against it. Before long, this place would probably descend into chaos. The Old Woman might have a chance to escape in the confusion, but if she brought Zhao Qingsnow along, the odds of getting out would only shrink further.

Purple Lightning would definitely make a move. Once the two of them were exposed, neither of them would be getting out. Zhao Qingsnow felt the Old Woman should leave alone, while she stayed behind to deal with Purple Lightning. That way, at least one of them might survive.

But that proposal was, without question, rejected by the Old Woman. In her view, it made more sense for her to stay behind and cover the rear while Zhao Qingsnow escaped. After all, Zhao Qingsnow was the main force. Even if she got surrounded, she'd still have a way out.

For a while, neither of them would give in, and neither could persuade the other.

In the end, they reached an agreement on one point. Rather than arguing here over who should leave, they might as well first figure out which route was safer. That way, no matter who ended up leaving, the escape would go more smoothly.

"There are slightly fewer people on the east side."

The Old Woman had circled around outside a few times, being extremely careful. She had only taken a couple of looks from afar and hadn't gone too close to those annoying, peace-disturbing devices. As long as those things didn't go off, her earth-burrowing was still fairly hard to detect.

But because the intel wasn't precise, there was still no telling whether it was a trap laid by the enemy. If someone had deliberately left that gap there, and the Old Woman and Zhao Qingsnow dove into it without thinking, they'd likely end up as fish on the chopping block, left for others to carve up.

"There's a very simple way."

Zhao Qingsnow looked at the Old Woman.

"Just send one person to test it, and we'll know. For example... aren't there still plenty of people in the black market? Throwing in a few shouldn't be a big problem."

But the moment Zhao Qingsnow said it, the Old Woman objected.

"No matter what, you're still one of Twelfth District's Order Keepers. If anyone's going to suggest something like that, it can only be me."

"I'm not an Order Keeper, but you are..."

"I can also not be one. If it means you can live, if it means Twelfth District can live, then I can give up this identity that's binding me."

"So you were bound too."

After reconciling with Dawnlight, Zhao Qingsnow had thought about it for a long time. Why had she once wanted Dawnlight to leave Twelfth District's Order Keeper branch? Why had she not wanted her to become an Order Keeper? The reason was actually simple. The title and slogan of the Order Keepers would bind a person.

Zhao Qingsnow had already been bound for most of her life. She longed for freedom. Dawnlight's mother had also given her life for the Order Keepers.

The death of Dawnlight's mother made part of society notice Dawnlight's family, and notice Zhao Qingsnow. Society praised Dawnlight's mother for her bravery and mourned her death.

"Your mother was so upright. She died for the greater good. You have to become someone like her too..."

"You'll become someone like that, right? A hero like her!"

"Wasn't your mother a hero? Then why did you turn out like this...?"

That was what people in society told Dawnlight. As a child, Dawnlight worked hard for that very reason. She inherited her mother's mantle and became an outstanding Magic Maiden.

At the same time, society also watched Zhao Qingsnow. As the relative of a hero, and also an Order Keeper, then surely she'd be just as outstanding as Dawnlight's mother, right?

"Why did you kill him?!"

"Give me back my daughter! If it weren't for you, I would've already..."

"Thank you, but sorry, I..."

What Zhao Qingsnow saw was even more sorrow. She wasn't as exceptional as Dawnlight's mother. Her actions did reduce casualties, but they also brought even more grief.

During those years, she was wrapped in rumors and gossip. Accusations and abuse filled her life. So for a time, she resigned from the Order Keepers and became a doctor. Unless something major happened in Twelfth District, she absolutely would not act.

"She just doesn't have what it takes... would've been better if she'd left earlier..."

"Once you leave the Order Keepers, you're nothing!"

Those kinds of rumors still lingered in life, never really fading.

That was why she strongly opposed Dawnlight becoming an Order Keeper. What the Order Keepers brought wasn't just physical pressure, but mental pressure too. But Dawnlight was too outstanding, just like her mother. She was never someone who'd give up after a few words...

After years of relentless effort, Dawnlight still became a Magic Maiden. She willingly accepted that title's restraints, and willingly offered her life for the people of Twelfth District.

In the end, Zhao Qingsnow could never measure up to Dawnlight. She cared more about herself. Naturally, Twelfth District's affairs came after that. She thought she had broken free from the title of Order Keeper, but when she turned around, she found she could never truly sever it.

She returned to the battlefield, as a Magic Maiden, and as an Order Keeper. After opening up to Dawnlight, she realized just how impossible it was to escape that bond.

Zhao Qingsnow was an Order Keeper. Because of that identity, she hesitated. Because of that title, she could only die gloriously. She couldn't use underhanded means to slip away. Compared to those vague and hollow things, she wanted more to enrich herself, not uphold some surface-level puppet.

Maybe Zhao Qingsnow was unfit to be an Order Keeper. She was greedy. She wanted to use any means necessary to keep everything she cherished alive forever. The Old Woman who had reached out to help her in this moment of danger. Her beloved niece. The land of Twelfth District that she loved.

"In the end, I realized this bond had already become one with me. Even if I cut it off on the surface, it was still rooted deep in my heart."

"That's love... a deep love for all of it."