Lyon POV:

“Foo...”

My lips parted slightly as I sat alone in the middle of a derelict room. The Mark of a Pantheon wrapped around my arm, and beads of sweat dripped from my brow. My eyes remained tightly shut as I continued to meditate.

The last thing I had heard from Frida before I secluded myself away to train was that Brunaulf had left for Inner Astril. I was glad that he didn’t waste his time by coming to check on me. Every second he spent here was a second that could bring him one step closer to finding his sister.

Three days.

That’s how long I had been locked away in deep meditation. I surprised myself with how long I could now use Ki for, but it was to be expected once I took into account my present environment. I needed this time to go over as much of my Master’s teaching as possible.

Though I hated to admit it, Storm was right; I couldn’t keep fighting the way I was now. Suffering a defeat in District 1 would result in the loss of all my hard work in the last nine months. My opponent wasn’t the Royal Guards; it was the Ruler himself.

I had been given a mission, and I would succeed. Not only for my own sake, but for the sake of everyone living in the South. It was time to truly step up. It was time that I used the True Pantheon Style.

There were two main reasons why I couldn’t use it before. Firstly, the Ki requirements were far too high. The true essence of what made the Pantheon Style swift and explosive was the bursting of Ki.

Using the Mark of a Pantheon, your Ki would enter the Ignition Phase, allowing it to ‘burst’ along your Ki Channels, creating ‘Burst Chains.’ Each burst within a Burst Chain requires double the amount of Ki needed for the last burst in order to keep the propagation going. As a result, it would drain my Ki Reserves rapidly.

There was also the ‘Bursting Phase’ that I had to take into account because once a Burst Chain was ready to leave the intended exit point, the accumulated bursts would then increase the final burst of Ki, expelling an explosive attack. However, this final burst also used up a significant amount of Ki.

Essentially, one punch could potentially drop my Ki by more than one-tenth of my maximum capacity—it simply wasn’t feasible to use. That was why Master had planned on teaching me how to turn the Ignition Phase off, but he quickly noticed that wasn’t the problem.

The problem was that I actually couldn’t use the style in the first place, which brings me to the second reason: I now needed to learn how to turn it on. The Ignition Phase was effectively a seal that locked off most of the Pantheon Style techniques. The cause? I was an outsider. However, my Master had also given me the key to break that seal, and I was ready.

‘...’

The sound of footsteps ascending the stairs echoed throughout the building. They grew closer and closer till they finally came to a stop.

“You’re finally here, Lissandra.”

I opened my eyes and got to my feet. I watched her move away from the entrance, choosing to stand a few meters in front of me while examining my body. She remained silent, but I could see it in her expectant gaze that she was waiting for something.

“We have one month.”

I ripped the clothes covering my upper body off, revealing my frail exterior to Lissandra. I shifted my feet and got into the Offensive Stance.

Her lips curved upwards as her eyes beamed at me. She threw her black jacket to the ground, showcasing her black and white tank top that highlighted her toned upper body, which only seemed to accentuate her beautiful figure even more.

She stood sideways, and her long eyelashes fluttered as we made eye contact. Her cupid-shaped lips parted slightly, and she spoke with a cute smile.

“Come.”

***

Brunaulf POV:

‘...’

I looked down at the five unconscious soldiers sprawled out in front of me. The sounds of civilians gasping filled the air as they watched the scene unfold from the beginning. Many of them looked at me with frightened eyes, and some ran away out of fear that I would attack them next. I pulled the mask up over my face and left the area in a hurry.

The building architecture, all the way down to the clothes that people wore, was unfamiliar to me. There were no estates or large building complexes, no alleyways or high rooftops overlooking the earth below in this city. Occasionally, I would see a tall tower-like building in the distance that stretched high up into the sky; it was almost like something taken straight out of a fantasy book.

I managed to find a secluded area and immediately pulled out the card. Only a few bolded words were left, but I didn’t like the direction this was heading towards. This was supposed to be a stealth operation: get in and get out with my sister without drawing too much attention to myself. Clearly, that plan had fell through a long time ago.

This time, I tapped on the word ‘unison,’ hoping that it would let me meet the informant. This wasn’t the case with ‘networks’. That word had changed the card into a proof of identity pass—it was how I was able to enter the city without any problems despite my attire.

‘...’

A small map popped up with a large X showing the destination. The transparent building design looked similar to that of a tavern which was a good sign.

I immediately left my current location and chose to move from above. I darted across the roofs, ignoring the suspicious looks directed at me while I followed the map’s guidance.

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Ten minutes later, I jumped down and stood in front of the tavern. The people around me seemed less frightened, rather, the look in their eyes started to become more condescending. I pushed open the door and stepped inside.

The inside of the tavern reminded me of Comfort, just a lot more spacious in comparison. I saw people talking and drinking amongst themselves as I found a suitable spot in a corner to sit down. They turned their heads to send me disapproving gazes or to psyche me out, but I ignored them.

A waitress came up to me a minute or two later, but I politely dismissed her services. She nodded her head and walked away. Unsure of what I was supposed to do here, I examined the card once more, but nothing changed.

‘...I need to get back to Outer Astril before the war starts.’

I sighed inwardly while I placed the card back into my pocket. Five more minutes passed by, and still nothing. My anxiousness grew now that I couldn’t distract myself from the reality of the situation. The same question had tormented me ever since I stepped into this city: Would my sister even want to see me?

I leaned back in the chair and pondered for a while. It was hard to come up with simulations of how that encounter would play out because there were too many factors involved.

‘!’

Something sharp pressed against my back, and I instinctively knew that I couldn’t move carelessly. I had been on guard the whole time, right up until my awareness began to slip as I thought about my sister. They accurately grasped that opening and created an advantageous situation within that short time frame—this wasn’t your average person.

“You stick out like a sore thumb, Mad Wolf.”

A woman’s voice? It was sweet and seductive, yet confident and strong. Could she be the informant? She even knew what they used to call me...

“I wonder why.”

I heard her chuckle lightly as the sharp object inched closer towards my skin.

“Let’s talk somewhere more private. You’ve kept me waiting long enough.”

A black cloak obscured my vision, and rather than resist, I accepted my fading consciousness.

***

It was pitch black when my eyes abruptly opened. My hands had been bound, and I was standing upright with some sort of dark fabric covering my head.

I could sense multiple people in the room. One of them approached me and pulled the covering off my face.

‘...’

The first thing I saw was an enchanting woman sitting with her leg over the other on a desk. Her breasts were large, and her wide hips emphasized the shape of her figure. A string connected to an eyepatch with a black and red rose that covered her right eye.

“You’re the informant.”

“Correct. Your reputation precedes you, Mad Wolf. You’re far more handsome than I thought you’d be.”

My eyebrows twitched as I watched her tongue run over her thin lips. She leaned forward and gazed into my eyes, almost like she was searching for something.

“I don’t go by that name anymore. What information do you have on my sister? And who are you?”

I broke the flimsy restraints and pulled out the card I had received. She didn’t bat an eye at my actions as I dashed it toward her. She caught the card in between her two fingers and smiled seductively. I watched her place it on the desk lightly while she took out a black card with three gold stars embedded in it.

‘!’

My eyes widened as I examined the card. Wasn’t the maximum five gold stars? I didn’t expect her to be so highly ranked within the Underground.

“Call me Beatrix. Beatrix Kassmeyer.”

Her long eyelashes fluttered as she put the card away.

“Hmm... Then let’s start here. Your sister is still alive.”

My eyes trembled slightly as I smiled inwardly. The anxiety in my chest lessened, and a feeling of slight relief brushed past me.

“How do you know she’s my sister?”

I knew her words could be trusted, but I had never been to Inner Astril; no one here should know what I look like. My face was hidden when I made that deal with those smugglers.

“You already know how. I was there when you sold her.”

I clenched my teeth in annoyance. It rubbed me the wrong way hearing a stranger say those words to my face, but in the end, it was true. She must have been one of the masked smugglers that broke into District 4. Judging by what I had briefly grasped of her character, it didn’t seem like she was into the smuggling business, so she must have had other reasons to be there.

“How much?”

I got straight to the point. Information wasn’t free—I knew I had to pay. No matter how high the cost, I would be returning to Outer Astril with my sister.

She smirked and hopped down off the desk. She stood in front of me and ran her finger down my chest.

“Payment... You will be the payment.”

I locked eyes with Beatrix as I grabbed her wrist. I leaned forward, closing the gap between our two faces.

“Be careful what you ask for.”

Madness exploded from my back, taking on the form of spider legs while I glared at her. If she wasn’t going to give me the information I wanted cordially, then I’d take it by force. There was no way I would ever hurt Denise by doing something like that with another woman.

Lightning flashed through the sky, lighting up the dark room. I watched her thin lips spread into a wide smile as her eyes narrowed. Her Ki exploded, ripping the eyepatch away from her face and revealing a greyed-out eye with a large scar; that spread out over most of that area.

“Do you think you can handle me?”

I looked directly into her eye that contained its own story as she spoke. The strands of Madness seemed pleased by what I saw as the air began to shake around us.

‘Upper Shin stage...’

To be more accurate, Beatrix was about to break through to Monzen. If I were to factor in her unknown ability, it was hard to say if I could win. For a triple gold star member of the Underground, her strength couldn’t be underestimated.

“How surprising. Do you know how many men would kill to merely stand in my presence? I even offered you my first time too~”

She took a step backwards as the tension in the air rapidly decreased. Beatrix didn’t seem the least bit fazed by the fact that I had turned her down, instead, her eyes looked at me with fascination. She had never broken eye contact with me since our conversation started, and it was a bit unusual.

“I’m sorry, but I have someone waiting for me back home.”

The Madness faded, and I recalled Denise’s sleeping face resting on the bed. My gaze shifted to the ground as I clenched my fist tightly.

“...I want to meet her.”

I looked back at Beatrix, who folded her arms. Her smile had mostly faded, but she still examined me closely.

“Even if you came, you wouldn’t be able to talk with her. She’s been in a coma for over three weeks.”

Her eyebrows quivered, and her smile vanished. She moved away from the desk and sat on an expensive chair.

“You have surpassed my expectations, Mad Wolf.”

Beatrix rested her fist against her cheek. The change in her demeanour put me on edge, and I wondered how negotiations would go from here.

“Then let’s talk business. The place where your sister is being held captive also happens to be a place where I need to get my hands on some important documents. However, your sister aside, there’s a reason I haven’t made a move yet to get what I want.”

“...”

I could already tell where this was going—she wanted me to be the bait. Beatrix had accepted my rejection earlier, leaving me in a position where I couldn’t make any demands of my own.

A triple gold star member like her didn’t move recklessly. Therefore, the documents she was after clearly weren’t being held by an ordinary member of society. A simple process of elimination left me with people who were ranked quite high in the social hierarchy within Inner Astril.

The higher the rank, the higher the risk. Ramifications were usually unavoidable as you dealt with higher members on the social ladder. I surmised that Beatrix planned on dealing with nobility.

“Which noble does the place belong to?”

Her eyes lit up as she moved her fist away from her face. Her thin lips curved upwards, and she pulled out a new rose eyepatch, placing it over her right eye.

“They say genius and insanity are two sides of the same coin.”

“Genius? You rate me too highly.”

“On the contrary, it is you who rates yourself too low. As for the noble, he has peculiar tastes to say the least.”

We had moved back on topic, and I was curious about what rank this noble held.

“His name?”

Beatrix cocked her head to the side while she smiled at me.

“Baron Oswald the 3rd.”