For an ordinary traveler, even on horseback and pushing hard, crossing the Buchert Kingdom from its eastern edge to the west took about a month. From the Royal Capital to Cesecity took about half that.
For Jack and the two soldiers, mounted on warhorses with enchanted tack, that time could be cut in half.
It had been over a week since Jack left the Royal Capital. For the past two days in Cesecity, you couldn’t exactly call it eating, drinking, whoring, and gambling—except that’s exactly what it was.
He had the two soldiers keep watch on Alisha while he enjoyed the happy life of a professional deadbeat.
With the bounty money in hand, Jack lived more than comfortably. He swaggered in and out of casinos with dolled‑up beauties on his arm, and made it rain in taverns.
Even so, he still wasn’t satisfied. After sampling the top courtesan at Cesecity’s largest brothel, he managed to burn through every coin of his reward.
He’d already blown his grandfather’s inheritance back in Redriver City. That was why he rummaged through old letters and ended up discovering Kaelxi’s trail.
Now Jack was so broke not even a coin would jingle.
Work? No way. Not in this lifetime. Especially not in Cesecity, where workers got skinned alive.
He hadn’t gone to the West District to see the beggars with his own eyes, but he’d long heard of Cesecity’s notorious reputation.
So how to get money?
Of course, from his dear distant relative—the poor woman he always called the “old cousin whore”—Alisha.
For an ordinary vagrant, Alisha would gladly show mercy. The small house she’d meant for Kaelxi still had plenty of spare rooms.
But for Jack? Absolutely not.
That bastard had kicked a living man to death right in front of her. He’d also been the one who drove Kaelxi away.
Over her poor granddaughter, Alisha had wiped away secret tears so many nights she’d lost count.
She only knew Witt had taken Kaelxi to the neighboring country to the west. Whether Kaelxi was fed or warm, healthy or not—she had no idea.
While tidying Kaelxi’s room, Alisha found a bedsheet with the telltale “first‑blood” stain, which eased her heart a little. (It was actually nosebleed drops from Witt punching himself in Chapter 17 and Kaelxi sucker‑punching him in Chapter 27, landing in the same spot.)
She hadn’t spoken much with the young man named Witt. But from his demeanor, his actions, and the few words exchanged, she judged he was trustworthy.
In short, she felt Witt was honest to a fault—kind of dumb.
If a man like that had taken that step with Kaelxi, then Kaelxi’s safety was probably secure.
If Kaelxi knew what Alisha was thinking, she’d probably pop Witt in the nose one more time.
As for Jack, after failing to borrow cash from the two soldiers, he set his sights on Alisha. Every day he threw a fit in front of her bakery. He called her “old cousin whore” and accused her of stealing property that should have been his.
The neighbors didn’t even bother with him. Ten days ago, they’d seen him lead dozens of black‑clad thugs to hunt a poor girl across the city.
When Jack sobbed with snot and tears, the neighbors expressed their “sympathy” with fists that rained down like a storm.
The two soldiers watched like it was theater. They didn’t care whether their nominal superior lived or died.
As imperial soldiers, they already despised a useless hoodlum like him. Then news came in these days: the king had passed away.
Though Cesecity sat on the kingdom’s border, its people still loved their king.
The residents mourned his passing, and all the more the two who’d been in the King’s Guard.
They were busy grieving. However Jack got beaten had nothing to do with them.
Seeing that causing a scene only earned him a beating, Jack quit the tantrums. Every day he approached Alisha with a smile and greeted her.
He even addressed her sweetly as Grandma Elisa.
Alisha stayed wary of this cold‑blooded, good‑for‑nothing man. Still, you don’t hit a smiling face, and the neighbors couldn’t very well jump a suddenly polite Jack.
Even Alisha had a momentary illusion that Jack might have turned over a new leaf. She knew it was only an illusion.
She would never forgive the bastard who’d tried to turn Kaelxi into a slave.
But for some reason, every time after meeting Jack, she caught a strange fragrance. Her body grew heavier and heavier, to the point she could barely stand.
It never lasted long. It faded soon after Jack left. Alisha chalked it up to getting old, time being merciless, that she might soon follow her brother.
Her greatest wish was to see her lovely Elf granddaughter again in this lifetime.
Jack, who had poisoned his elderly grandfather to death, now planned to poison Alisha too.
“Old cousin whore, once you’re dead, the house and the money are mine. Hahahahahahaha!”
He’d been drooling over the room next to the bakery for a long time. That was the one Alisha had meant for Kaelxi.
If he really pulled it off, he’d sell the place cheap right away, throw the money on the tables, and spend the rest on women.
––––––––––––––
Meanwhile, Kaelxi and Witt still hadn’t made it out of the desert.
On the third day after they set off, a sandstorm that blotted out the sky blocked their way to the Desert Kingdom.
Seeing the wall of sand, Witt’s face went grim. He conjured a longsword of mana. He meant to have the stunned Kaelxi retreat first while he met the “giant sand monster” he’d never seen before.
He was a mountain‑village kid. Even after half a year adventuring, he knew nothing about deserts.
The Buchert Kingdom had no deserts. The seasoned adventurers he’d met mostly stayed within Buchert.
His only knowledge was that the border between the Desert Kingdom and the Buchert Kingdom had a stretch of desert that took three days to cross.
Kaelxi snapped out of it. Seeing Witt ready to charge a colossal monster like a man ready to die moved her, but it also felt a little funny.
She tore her skirt hem into two strips. She handed one to Witt, covered her own mouth and nose with the other, and shouted, “Idiot! If you wanna live, do what I do!”
Not understanding why, Witt copied her and bound the strip over his mouth and nose. He followed Kaelxi to a windbreak. The two of them lay down, pressed tightly together.
Kaelxi was so light she almost got blown away. Witt freed one arm and locked it tight around her shoulders.
The storm passed over their heads, roaring, howling, dancing.
Their spot was buried under yellow sand.
