In the Ibut Lord Ameer Residency, a city several times larger than Melun City, rows of soldiers stood guard, sealing off a massive building. They watched with growing impatience as a Liberi man pounded on the iron gates.
"—This is unlawful detention! On behalf of the Columbian government, I strongly protest this! You have no right to detain us! I demand to speak with Ibut Lord Ameer! I want to see Padishah Sotinah!"
The Liberi man, dressed in a suit, shouted with a mixture of bluster and underlying fear from within the iron gates.
Once his voice grew hoarse, another Columbian official, this time a Perro, stepped forward from the building to continue the protests.
The soldiers stationed at the gate exchanged quiet words in Sargonese:
"How much longer do we have to guard them? It's been a week already."
"Until we get orders from above. Not even a mosquito leaves this building without permission," replied another soldier firmly.
"Is that really necessary?"
"Absolutely," the second soldier answered with conviction. "They smuggled out medicine capable of treating Oripathy from the Hotlands. From what I've heard, the Lord Ameers upstairs have been arguing non-stop. They've even considered snatching it outright from that Vouivre woman, Saria."
"Why haven't they done it? Afraid of a single pharmaceutical company?"
"If it were just a company, they'd act without hesitation. But behind that company stands Columbia. If the big shots provoke Columbia and start a war with Sargon, what then?"
As tempting as the cure's potential profits were, the risks were equally high.
In Sargon, while the Shahanshah reigned as the supreme leader, Padishahs held the equivalent of governors' authority, and Lord Ameers acted as city mayors. A few Lord Ameers might unite to serve their own interests, but if they incited a conflict between Sargon and Columbia, they'd be the first casualties.
For now, the Lord Ameers had chosen to confine Saria and the others, providing them with water and food but keeping them under strict surveillance. Their aim was to pressure Saria into handing over the medicine or, failing that, use her and her team as bargaining chips in negotiations with Columbia.
After all, this was Sargon—not Columbia.
The potential fortune tied to Oripathy-suppressing medicine was worth the gamble.
<+>
"Looks like they won't let us leave anytime soon," said Kal'tsit calmly, gazing out the window at the Lord Ameers' guards encircling the building.
"Sorry for dragging you into this," Saria said. She too looked outside, her expression calm but barely masking her simmering anger.
"It's fine. If things truly go south, Scout and the others will ensure our safe departure."
When they spotted the Lord Ameers' guards, Kal'tsit had immediately ordered Scout and the others to separate from the main group to prevent their weapons from being confiscated.
In truth, if it came to a fight, the few hundred guards outside wouldn't stand a chance. Ascalon alone could easily wipe them out. But neither Kal'tsit nor Saria would ever give such an order—neither for personal nor strategic reasons.
Kal'tsit could have left with Scout, but she chose to stay. She owed Saria a favor—no, two. One to Saria, and one to Garde.
"At least not everything we've encountered since leaving the Hotlands has been bad," Kal'tsit said, her tone softening slightly.
Saria knew what she meant. Only at this moment did her expression also soften.
"Yes."
Before the final battle, Garde had told them that if he disappeared afterward, they shouldn't waste time searching for him but should leave the Hotlands.
So even though she longed to stay and continue searching for Garde, the endless sands offered no clues. She had no choice but to leave.
Thankfully, after leaving the Hotlands, the Rhine Lab operators stationed outside informed her that Garde had made it to Melun City.
Melun City was close to Columbia. If they had left the Hotlands and traveled directly to Melun City, they could have arrived in two, maybe three days.
She looked at the vial containing the black dragon's blood, encased in Garde golden Ascension Power. The golden energy preserved the vitality of the blood, preventing it from losing its potency over time.
Who ultimately claimed the black dragon's blood didn't matter to her. The mission was a success. This single vial would attract countless investments for Rhine Lab, revitalizing the company.
But she couldn't let it go.
This blood was something Garde had risked his life to secure for her. It wasn't for Rhine Lab, nor for those opportunistic government officials.
No one but Garde had the right to decide its fate.
Suddenly, the golden energy around the dragon's blood flickered.
Garde!?
Saria immediately looked out the window.
A deafening "boom" echoed through the city as if a meteor had crashed to earth. A shadow tore through the city's high walls.
The piercing wail of air raid sirens filled the sky. Such recklessness, such brazenness—it seemed oblivious to fear.
Across the room, Kal'tsit's usually composed expression betrayed a rare flicker of change.
"Is he here?"
<+>
Five minutes earlier
It had taken Garde about five hours to travel from Melun City in Sargon's northwest to the Ibut Lord Ameer Residency in the southwest.
Although Garde's standard running speed wasn't particularly fast, at full speed, he moved as quickly as a high-speed train. More importantly, he was tireless.
Over the course of 1,500 kilometers, Garde didn't stop to catch his breath once.
Along the way, he even tracked down Elliot in the Redhorn black market, extracted a pile of information about the Ibut Lord Ameer Residency, and dragged Elliot to the city gates.
Over the past two months, Elliot had completely reorganized Redhorn's underground forces. His next target was, naturally, the Ibut Lord Ameer Residency.
His grudge against Ibut Lord Ameer wasn't new.
"Elliot, I'm giving you the chance to deal with the Ibut Lord Ameer yourself. As much as he disgusts me, he hasn't crossed the line where I'd kill him personally," Garde said, patting Elliot on the shoulder.
"I'll stir things up by wrecking his home. You can take it from there."
Golden streams of energy rippled across Garde's body. If he wanted, he could have flung rocks from kilometers away to destroy the Ibut Lord Ameer Residency without leaving any trace.
Who would have thought that someone could throw a several-ton stone from thousands of meters away and land it precisely in a Lord Ameer's home?
Even Garde could only achieve such a feat during his ultimate state.
But causing collateral damage to the innocent wouldn't do.
So, Garde decided to handle it personally!
The black dragon within his axe gathered some Originium dust, enveloping Garde and concealing his form, making him appear like an enormous, shapeless black shadow.
"Not bad," Garde nodded approvingly after seeing his new form.
Letting Elliot take care of his own plans, Garde strode toward the gates of the Ibut Lord Ameer Residency, taking a deep breath.
Buzz!
The black shadow enveloped Garde entirely, and at nearly 100 meters per second, he charged forward, leaping powerfully toward the tall walls.
Bang!
The impact was deafening. The wall of the nomadic city was shattered as Garde smashed through, his shadowy form landing with no hesitation before rushing toward the residential district of the Ibut Lord Ameer Residency.
Along the way, Garde even pulled out a map to double-check so he wouldn't smash into the wrong house.
The Ibut Lord Ameer Residency was undoubtedly at the very center of the city.
This nomadic city, with a diameter of about seven kilometers, wasn't particularly large nor small compared to other moving cities across Terra.
With Garde's speed, he had already crossed half the city by the time the air raid sirens began to wail.
The Ibut Lord Ameer Residency was now within reach.
"What the hell is that!?"
A startled shout came from the side. Garde's speed wasn't overwhelmingly fast, but in a city, someone capable of keeping up for a short time could usually be found.
A heavily armored Kuranta man emerged from the street, one of the captains of the Ibut Lord Ameer's guards. Spotting the shadow heading straight for the Lord Ameer's residence, he immediately moved to intercept.
But he overestimated his abilities—and underestimated Garde.
As soon as he reached Garde, a shadowy arm extended toward him. The Kuranta man thrust his weapon forward in response.
Clang!
His sharp lance struck as though hitting steel. Before he could react, the world went black as though he'd been hit by a speeding train, and he lost consciousness instantly.
Meanwhile, the guards stationed near the Ibut Lord Ameer Residency hadn't even realized what was happening when the black shadow charged past them and crashed into the Lord Ameer's home.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Garde, like a demolition machine, tore through the residency's support pillars in mere seconds.
Being considerate as ever, he even paused briefly to let ordinary residents escape, staring blankly at the underwear stuck on his head—apparently having accidentally barged into a bathhouse full of women.
He swore it wasn't intentional.
"Who are you?!"
By this time, some of the Lord Ameer's guards had gathered their wits and surrounded Garde. Ignoring them, he spotted several disheveled figures emerging from the rubble, including the Ibut Lord Ameer and two other Lord Ameers.
After a moment's thought, Garde pushed past the guards, lunging toward the three Lord Ameers, who still hadn't grasped what was happening.
As they looked up, they saw the shadow rushing toward them.
Two of the Lord Ameers were seized by the throat and dragged away, leaving the Ibut Lord Ameer bewildered and alone.
He had assumed the shadow was after him.
However, realizing the danger, he immediately understood the stakes. If anything happened to the other two Lord Ameers on his turf, he might face retribution from their tribes.
Though he secretly wished for his rivals' demise, he couldn't let them die here.
He hurriedly ordered his guards to rescue them, unaware that Garde's indifference toward him wasn't mercy—it was because, in Garde's eyes, he was already a dead man.
Meanwhile, Elliot entered the nomadic city through the ventilation systems, initiating contact with his agents within the Lord Ameer's territory. Since his arrival in Sargon years ago, Elliot had been preparing for this day. Garde's arrival merely accelerated his plans.
Elsewhere, Garde dragged the two Lord Ameers through more of Ibut's residences, causing additional destruction. Debris from the wreckage left the two Lord Ameers bloodied and bruised.
They tried to speak, offering all their wealth for their lives, but Garde's speed was so great that the wind silenced their voices.
Eventually, Garde carried them out of the Lord Ameer's territory and into the wilderness. After running dozens of kilometers, he casually tossed them aside and left.
Teaching the two Lord Ameers a lesson was incidental. They had collaborated with Ibut to imprison Saria, so they deserved to pay a price.
Garde didn't kill them—leaving them in the wild was punishment enough. Whether they survived or not depended on their luck.
With Ibut's residence demolished and the two Lord Ameers dealt with, it was time for the main task.
Carrying his axe, Garde headed back, passing convoys from Ibut's territory searching for the two Lord Ameers. They'd never guess that Garde had already dropped them miles away in just a few minutes.
The chaos Garde caused left the Ibut Lord Ameer's territory in disarray. Garde used one of Elliot's hidden routes to re-enter the city unnoticed.
The soldiers guarding the Rhine Lab building were significantly fewer. Garde's chaos would likely keep them occupied all night.
Sneaking into the building took little effort. After creating a small diversion, Garde slipped inside.
Thanks to the Ascension Power he had left with Saria, finding her room was easy.
Climbing onto the balcony, Garde saw Saria in the hall, staring at the power he had given her. He knocked on the window.
"What's this, Ms. Saria? Thinking about me?"
<+>
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