{Chapter 42} Disappointed in the rules......

“……”

Has she returned...?

Biting her lip, Heather lowered her head slightly, fists clenching tightly. She couldn't tell whether she should feel joy or sorrow.

A pair of pure white eyes now swamped with exceptionally complex emotions. She took deep breaths repeatedly, trying to convince herself that she truly didn't care about that wretched woman, the one who could casually declare she'd save someone, then just as casually abandoned them. Yet the violent turmoil within made her realize she was fooling no one, least of all herself.

She missed that person so much...

But... more than that...

“Was the attack witnessed by many people?”

Heather immediately questioned the man, stepping forward aggressively and making him freeze in place.

Her completely unnatural white hair and white pupils made her look like a mountain snow ghost.

Although her usual appearance was gentle, like a neighbor's housewife, the truth was that this housewife-like demeanor was merely an act... because that rotten thing had always preferred this “big sister” type.

Although Heather insisted she only wanted to change, to become less intimidating, clearly there were other reasons involved.

This was a side of Heather even Gravilier had never understood.

“……Probably… quite a few?”

Cassie said slightly. Truthfully, Heather didn't need to ask him, she only needed to glance around to realize many in the marketplace had noticed the terrifying creature.

It wouldn't be long before news spread.

This made Heather's brows slightly furrowed. She let out a cold snort, narrowed her eyes at the man, then suddenly kicked him unconscious.

This sudden action leaves the slow-to-react Gravilier confused.

“Heather... what's wrong with you?”

Why was Heather having such intense emotional fluctuations?

And what she'd just said...

“Just an illusion...”

Heather faintly shook her head, then lowered it to search through the man's clothes. Suddenly, her eyes narrowed seriously.

“Gravilier...”

“Hmm?”

“There might actually be a chance for your wish, to see the Sea Voyage Association settled, to come true.”

...

“You're saying... this was a gang clash?”

Inside the meeting room, the tall woman wore her tightly-fitted, fully-covered uniform. Her expression gradually turned grave.

She fell silent for a moment, then lifted her head to look at Heather, who stood reporting before her, with slight puzzlement.

“But according to Captain Gravilier's report...”

“Captain Gravilier is an extremely intelligent person, but sometimes she truly can be influenced by certain things.”

Heather's words were calm, her smile as usual.

“...Indeed.”

Hearing Heather's response, the woman hesitated briefly before giving a slight nod.

Indeed, Gravilier was in every way an exceptionally perfect patrol officer. Her only flaw was that she sometimes became overly idealistic.

Once she saw certain things, she found it difficult to continue investigating their deeper causes.

Compared to her, Heather was actually better suited for this profession... only her identity complicated matters.

After a moment of silence, the woman gave a slight nod.

“In that case, I'll register it according to your investigation report... However, if it was a gang clash, who is the opposing gang?”

“...Apologies, District Chief. We haven't identified them yet.”

Heather shook her head slightly and sobbed. But the woman didn't seem to mind, nodding gently before speaking with a smile.

“This isn't your fault... The Sea Voyage Association trying to break into the capital's current system is bound to offend many. Most likely, it was one of the several gangs in the capital. I'll have my undercover agents investigate later.”

“...Understood.”

Heather nodded, then turned to leave.

But just before exiting, her footsteps paused slightly.

She turned her head, looking at her former comrade, now her superior...

Although their positions differed, the two had always maintained a good relationship.

But...

There were some things that simply couldn't be shared.

“...Anything else, Heather?”

The woman smiled, narrowing her eyes in an amiable expression.

Heather lowered her head slightly, speaking calmly.

“Nothing...”

“District Chief Seren...”

...

Sssha...

Above the sky, storm clouds began to gather.

Although the daylight remains bright, this makes the dark clouds appear even more oppressive.

Kaelis panted, straightening her appearance slightly before gently knocking on the dilapidated wooden door.

Soon, the old man slowly opened the door.

“Kaelis?” Seeing Kaelis, Old Struth was taken aback, seeming slightly surprised. “You came here...”

Their master-apprentice relationship had technically ended long ago... He had returned Kaelis's tuition fees, because he realized she no longer needed his guidance.

He had thought they would never cross paths again.

But...

“I came to visit you.”

Kaelis narrowed her eyes, as docile and adorable as ever...

Of course, to someone like Old Struth, he could see clearly, Kaelis' docility was merely a facade...

‘I'm well-behaved... I'm just pretending.’

This little girl's mind was terribly cunning!

“...”

Old Struth was suspicious for a few moments, but then his eyes suddenly sharpened.

Although aged, his sense of the scent of blood... remained extremely acute.

Old Struth fell silent, glancing left and right.

Kaelis realized she'd been a bit careless in her cleanup, and sighed helplessly.

“I've dealt with it...”

When she arrived, she happened to encounter those people expelled by Cassie.

After brief consideration, she had disposed of them all immediately.

“...As expected.”

Old Struth sighed.

Since the very beginning of teaching Kaelis, he had observed her personality.

Undoubtedly, Kaelis could be considered a good person... but she was often very self-centered.

Her so-called docility was simply because her personal standards happened to match society's definition of “well-behaved.”

Dig deeper, and one will discover her values differ greatly from this world's.

Anyone who interacted frequently with such a person was bound to get into trouble.

Yet Old Struth still did so, having long prepared for this possibility.

However, he hadn't expected things to happen this quickly...

“So... the reason for your visit this time...”

Old Struth invited Kaelis into his small house.

The room was tiny, appearing no more than a dozen square meters, with all furniture extremely simple. The rough wooden surfaces seem handmade by Old Struth himself.

A cold, lonely atmosphere pervaded the cramped room. Even after living here for nearly ten years, he'd never considered this place his home.

Sleeping here was no different from sleeping under a bridge.

“The matter probably won't be resolved quickly, and this incident was partly caused by me... I hope you can temporarily leave the capital for a few days... I'll cover all your expenses!”

Kaelis spoke earnestly.

She'd now made enemies with Cassie, and even the Sea Voyage Association behind him.

Kaelis didn't care about where this conflict originated, but one thing was certain... the enemy would gradually target people close to her.

Since Old Struth had helped her through many difficult times when she was still powerless, Kaelis felt obliged to protect the old man... At the very least, he shouldn't get dragged into trouble because of her!

Yet upon hearing Kaelis's words, Old Struth didn't respond. After staring blankly for a moment, his expression suddenly changed drastically.

Without waiting for Kaelis to react, he suddenly stood up and ran outside without looking back, his face showing a childlike panic for the first time.

This startled Kaelis.

But when she chased after him, Old Struth had already disappeared.

He was far more familiar with this area than Kaelis.

This left Kaelis momentarily dazed, but she gritted her teeth and immediately summoned several hunting dogs. After they sniffed Old Struth's furniture, they dashed off in pursuit.

And just as Kaelis ran for a while, she suddenly noticed distant parts of the city erupting with flickers of firelight.

This made Kaelis anxious.

The wind before the storm grew increasingly oppressive.

Kaelis clenched her teeth, still trying to find an opportunity.

But the hunting dogs stubbornly led her closer and closer to where the flames had ignited.

Then... Kaelis saw the apartment building billowing thick, rolling smoke!

A large crowd of citizens had already surrounded it, frantically attempting to extinguish the fire.

Piercing screams and shouts continued to echo.

“There's still someone inside! Someone's still in there!”

The shrieks were deafening, while several young men blocked the entrance, preventing others from entering.

“Don't go in! It's dangerous! Don't go in!”

They shouted loudly, maintaining order.

They appeared to be a protection team, but Kaelis noticed they weren't making any actual rescue attempts.

This makes the normal rule-abiding Kaelis instinctively pause her steps.

But... at that very moment!

The third-floor window suddenly shattered!

An elderly man, completely engulfed in flames, resolutely wrapped a figure in cloth and plummeted straight down!

Rescued?

No!

Old Struth was being pushed out!

Everyone cried out in shock, while Kaelis instinctively rushed forward.

“Please maintain order!”

Before Kaelis, the figure spoke in a strangely cold, slow tone.

Kaelis's eyes widened.

She lifted her head, staring at the person.

These people... weren't official firefighters?

Then who were they...

Kaelis didn't speak, nor did she care about their intentions. Ink surged from her fingers, condensing into a ferocious savage, which swung a fist straight forward!

Breaking through the line!

Kaelis had already accelerated to full speed, but several hesitations caused her to miss the optimal timing.

By the time she arrived, the old man had already crashed heavily onto the ground.

Blood began gushing from his head. Kaelis' running steps gradually stopped...

The flames rapidly consumed the old man's entire body and the object in his arms. Kaelis attempted to rescue it, only to discover the child wrapped in cloth inside had long since stopped breathing...

This left Kaelis frozen in place.

Behind her, the attacking man's face flushed with anger.

He immediately restrained him, giving a slight companion shake of the head, then cast another glance at Kaelis.

Then... they began withdrawing into the crowd of onlookers...

Leaving only Kaelis standing alone, silent and motionless…