Chapter 48 : A Perfect… Conclusion?

In truth, there weren’t any overly complex mechanical traps inside Chishuang Mansion, nor was anyone patrolling.

This was because the multiple Restrictions set up by a sorcerer dispatched by the Grand Duke of Gray Tower were already a highly effective countermeasure.

Generally speaking, even if someone managed to bypass the outer guards, the moment they stepped into the mansion, they would trigger the Restrictions, sounding an alarm while potentially facing bizarre magical attacks.

Their current ease was purely due to the remarkable power of the Ether-shielding scroll—it could even selectively sever the mansion’s internal Restrictions’ connection to the Ether without affecting the revolutionaries or the external guards.

“Shielding the Ether” was an extremely profound and esoteric skill, incomprehensible even to the slightest degree unless one reached the fourth-stage Scepter, and even among the rare fifth-stage Crown wielders, not all possessed this ability.

Ether was the blood of sorcerers, their soul, their life and their source of power.

Severing the Ether’s connection was, without question, a devastating and highly effective technique.

Thus, the “Professor” mentioned by the Wanderer undoubtedly held a pivotal role among the revolutionaries.

However, Hitana, completely unaware of this, had only one thought— wasn’t this a bit too easy?

So easy that it felt unnatural, a lingering sense of being manipulated.

“…” Hitana rubbed her arms silently, wondering if these people were sent by the Hydra.

Could that guy be hiding somewhere, watching me right now?

She thought for a moment, then tentatively asked the Wanderer and Stinger: “What do you think of that guy, the Hydra?”

From what she knew of the Hydra’s subordinates, they couldn’t stand anyone insulting him.

Even the slightest bad word, and they’d want to hack you to death. It was terrifying.

So, if these two reacted oddly…

“…The Hydra?” The Wanderer and Stinger exchanged a glance, their expressions somewhat strange“Do you have a grudge against him?”

“…”

Hitana opened her mouth but didn’t answer directly, instead diverting: “You hate nobles, don’t you? Isn’t the Hydra the biggest noble in Chishuang Territory right now?”

Meanwhile, the Wanderer, Stinger, and Snowhawk communicated through their mental link:

“Is Count Ironstone trying to stir up conflict between us and the Hydra?”

“Hmph, which noble isn’t afraid of the Hydra? That’s too typical.”

“Wanderer, how are you going to respond? We’re selling her out anyway, so no need to bother talking, right?”

They knew that after selling Hitana out, nothing they said would be taken seriously, so they didn’t plan to engage with her.

After all, with only fifteen minutes left, who had time for idle chatter? They were busy looting!

The Wanderer grabbed various decorations from the rooms along the way.

His small waist pouch kept taking in items without ever bulging, leaving Hitana dumbfounded.

This was too professional.

Were these guys specialized in robbing nobles? Like… What was it, robbing the rich to help the poor?

Unable to hold back, Hitana asked again: “You’re taking so much. Where does the money go after you sell it?”

“A great cause.”

Stinger answered, clearly disliking the way Hitana looked at them as if they were bandits.

“…I thought you’d distribute it to the commoners,” Hitana muttered, pursing her lips.

Just a bunch of bandits… “A great cause”? Who are you fooling?

At least the Hydra was upfront about being deceitful and didn’t really do much harm.

You guys do bad things but give it such a grand name.

No matter how you look at it, you’re not the good guys.

Seeing Hitana’s increasingly disdainful expression, Stinger grew furious.

She wasn’t impulsive, but for a noble’s lackey to look down on them?

Who were the real bandits here?

Sensing things were off, the Wanderer quickly cautioned Stinger through their mental link while continuing to lead the way briskly and saying: “This friend, why are you here, then?”

“…None of your business.”

“Then stop pointing fingers,” Stinger sneered. “Are you going to distribute the Chishuang family’s wealth to the commoners after looting it?”

“Of course!” Hitana replied without hesitation. “Do I even need to say that?”

How shameless can this person be!

The revolutionary trio reached a consensus in their minds, deciding to teach Hitana an unforgettable lesson before leaving, or else her brazen attitude would be unforgivable.

Hitana was annoyed but stayed silent.

Compared to these people, the Hydra’s hypocrisy didn’t even seem like hypocrisy.

At least… At least that guy was never hypocritical with me.

The trio navigated through corridors and rooms in the dark, twisting and turning.

The Wanderer used some unknown method to open several sealed doors, finally leading Hitana to the basement’s entrance.

“We’re almost there.”

The Wanderer glanced at Stinger, then turned to Hitana, who had indeed kept her distance as promised.

The darkness didn’t hinder the Wanderer’s vision, but the girl sent by Count Ironstone was extremely cautious, disguising herself with a headscarf and mask, wrapping herself tightly.

Aside from the collar around her neck, there were no distinctive features.

“After entering the basement, pass through three more doors, and you’ll reach the treasury where the Chishuang family stores their assets. They likely don’t keep everything there, but there’s definitely plenty.”

He checked his pocket watch: “Seven minutes and sixteen seconds until the Ether-shielding scroll expires. Plenty of time. Let’s talk again, friend.”

The Wanderer maintained the vigilance and caution appropriate for dealing with a stranger, ensuring the “Count Ironstone’s lackey” didn’t realize she’d been seen through: “We’re only taking the gold and other easily liquidated assets, plus two specific items. You can take whatever else you want.”

“All the gold…?”

Hitana’s eyes widened slightly, thinking, aren’t these guys a bit too greedy?

Though she initially came hoping to snag a Shadow Crystal, now that she had this chance, Hitana didn’t mind grabbing more.

She was fully aware she was stealing, but the money would indeed go to the commoners—well, to her own village, that is.

But before the Wanderer could continue his act, Hitana spoke up again: “Fine, take as much as you want. I didn’t help much anyway.”

“That’s… for the best.”

The Wanderer felt a slight suspicion, thinking this girl seemed… oddly straightforward, but he quickly dismissed the negligible hesitation.

He placed his hand on the door lock, and as magical runes flickered, the mechanism twisted automatically, gears clicked, and the lock popped open.

The subsequent locks were handled the same way, even the massive treasury door, which the Wanderer opened in about ten seconds.

In that instant, the dazzling array of treasures made Hitana’s eyes ache—some gems glowed on their own, shining brilliantly even in the dark.

The Wanderer and Stinger were highly efficient, frantically collecting gold and gems, stuffing them into the Wanderer’s waist pouch. Hitana didn’t interfere, diving into the gem pile to search for a Shadow Crystal.

But as she searched… Hitana soon grew confused—why were none of these like the one in Anselm’s hands?

Of course, Anselm’s Shadow Crystal was specially made by his father, one of a kind in the world.

As the treasury was nearly half-emptied, Hitana saw Stinger pocket a large jar that seemed to contain a heart and a blood-red crystal.

Not caring anymore, Hitana grabbed five or six crystals that looked somewhat similar to Anselm’s, stuffing her pockets full.

“Ding-ling.”

It was normal for things to fall and make noise while rummaging, but since Hitana was handling gems, the metallic sound caught her attention.

Glancing down, she saw a beautiful ring with an emerald gem rolling at her feet.

“…Why’s there a ring in the gem pile? Hmm… it’s pretty. I’ll take it for Lina to wear!”

Hitana wasn’t interested in gemstone rings.

If she were to wear one, she’d prefer a pure metal one, maybe engraved with an animal head—a wolf head would be cool!

She slipped the ring into her pocket, patting herself down to cram every possible space with loot.

“Should I grab a couple more rings? Hmm… taking too many seems pointless, and I can’t fit anything else—!?”

The instincts that let Hitana shoot prey dead at a hundred meters, never falter in hand-to-hand combat, and seize the fleeting chance of survival in a life-or-death moment felt like a blade slicing across her neck!

Her body moved before her mind could react, grabbing a gem and swinging it behind her without hesitation!

Ding!

A crisp sound echoed through the treasury, followed seconds later by something like a steel needle hitting the ground.

Hitana slowly turned, her dark red eyes gradually igniting with a ferocious blaze.

“What… Do you mean by this?”

“What do you mean?” The Wanderer snapped out of his brief daze, his expression turning cold.

“A crying thief isn’t a good look, friend.”

A thief crying thief?

You bandits, not only do you hypocritically claim to be working for some great cause, but now you’re trying to double-cross me early, and when you fail, you accuse me of crying thief?

What’s the difference between you and those shameless nobles! You dare call them beasts?!

The stinging sensation on her skin struck again.

Now prepared, Hitana moved even faster and smoother, raising a gem to block, but this time… it wasn’t the sound of metal clashing.

Shh—!

Most of the thin, sharp steel needle pierced into Hitana’s palm.

The gem she’d been using as a shield… shattered instantly!

The magical matrix in the Wanderer’s hand faded and he looked at Hitana, whose expression was growing strange, with a slight smirk: “Thought I was just a lockpicker? Sorry… disassembly, construction, recombination—these are required courses for disintegration magic. Lockpicking practice is just part of it, friend.”

He shrugged, ignoring Hitana, and walked out.

Hitana didn’t understand his nonsense, but she could feel… after that needle pierced her palm, her body was gradually losing control.

“My neurotoxin will destroy everything about you.”

Stinger stared at her expressionlessly: “Control over your body, your five senses—your consciousness will be trapped like a ghost in a body no different from dead wood… No need to thank me. It’s what you deserve.”

“Stinger, time to go. Two minutes left.”

The woman looked down at the collapsing Hitana.

Recalling the disdainful looks from this noble’s lackey, the resentment and anger surging in her heart made her hurl one final taunt:

“Go ahead and hate us revolutionaries in your struggle and despair, you parasite of the old world.”

With that, she turned and left.

Hitana didn’t feel the despair that Stinger had described.

The so-called “neurotoxin” had merely paralyzed her.

All she felt now was… an unprecedented fury, so intense it made her forget how dire her situation was.

“Wanderer… Stinger… and the one behind you all…”

The wolf struggled to force out a nearly distorted voice from her throat.

Her dark red pupils twisted slightly with rage: “Just you wait!”

***

Outside the mansion, Wanderer and Stinger, who had successfully escaped via Snowhawk’s short-range teleportation, let out sighs of relief.

“Phew, that was close but no harm done,” Wanderer exhaled deeply.

“I thought the Gray Fox would have stationed one of the Magic Academy’s latest golems inside. I heard that a monstrous genius from Babel Tower developed an ether-cycle golem that can’t even be stopped by an ether-shielding scroll. If that thing was there… we’d have been in deep trouble.”

Stinger nodded in agreement: “It was indeed much simpler than we expected. If it’s just this, there was no need to send us.”

“Haha, feeling like it was a waste of manpower? Wendigo’s still squatting in some remote village, gnawing on black bread every day. Let’s not complain.”

Snowhawk stood up, disassembled his sniper rifle, and pulled out a signal flare gun, firing it directly into the open short-range teleportation portal.

The next second, a blazingly bright signal flare shot out from inside the mansion.

He stretched lazily and said to his companions amidst the guards’ furious shouts: “Let’s go.

The heart and core of the Red Ice Python—now that we’ve got these, we’ve got all the materials we need. Mission accomplished.”

“Indeed.”

In the windless, snowless night, a fourth voice sounded.

“Thanks to the efforts of the revolutionary army.”

That radiant golden hair, seemingly bright enough to illuminate the night, and those all-encompassing sea-blue eyes stood in stark contrast to the silent darkness.

“But for me,”

Hydra, watching his own figure reflected in the trio’s increasingly terrified eyes, announced with delight:

“We’re still a few insignificant steps away from perfection…”

“First, your ill-gotten gains—”

The solemn, icy Snake-headed cane transformed into a blade that could tear through anything.

The monster wielding the steel serpent murmured with a smile in the night:

“Shall be kept in my custody.”

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