One-Eyed Monster

Princess Juliette didn’t say anything more.

She understood her brother; her brother was a very persistent person.

Once the plan was set, they would execute it. Princess Juliette also believed her brother wasn’t unreasonable, and he would never harm an innocent.

Prince Charles came mainly to discuss the next steps with his sister. Each of them had made detailed plans regarding these matters, and though they communicated, no one could change anyone else’s final decision.

Prince Charles’s approach was like the Hunter: silent, confusing perception. Princess Juliette’s approach was that of the Wizard: direct confrontation while secretly exerting power...

Both were thinking about a rescue; one aimed to rescue the empire’s ruler, whose liberation would rally everyone, and the other aimed to save the empire’s intellect, to devise more brilliant plans.

No matter what, they both intended to rescue people, to save the entire empire.

Ultimately, they reached an agreement: both sides would proceed according to their plans, coordinating with each other.

Charles would deploy the Dark Cabinet to silently approach the palace while Princess Juliette continued her rescue of Xiso. Their plans were already in motion; this coordination was merely to share their results and prepare for what’s ahead. Should anything happen on one side, they would immediately accelerate their actions. No matter how powerful the Alchemy Workshop’s forces were, it would be difficult for them to manage two fronts.

Unexpected situations were bound to happen; this they had anticipated, hoping to gain something from this effort as the battle had just begun, and the enemy had merely shown a tip of their forces.

Charles’s plan was naturally secretive; no one knew he had already arrived at Xinbal; everyone thought he was still on the steam train.

After all, the information he gave suggested he was heading to Xinbal backed by the king’s orders. He had a perfect stand-in, with Manfred handling everything. When this stand-in reached Xinbal, all the families sworn to serve him would have to greet him and give a report; despite their attitudes already expressed in response, an in-person pledge was still an important gesture.

This was also part of Charles’s plan, for those truly willing to follow him wouldn’t overly care about such formalities. In such a critical moment, ensuring everything was ready for his arrival really showed who was on his side; he would carefully assess the rest.

The Kangen Family, for instance, was one such supporter.

Of course, families like the Kangen Family were rare throughout Xinbal; although Bayes Avenue had many ancient families, none were as large as the Kangen Family.

Don’t underestimate these small families; when they band together, they can swallow half of Bayes Avenue.

Thus, attention must be paid to the power of these families.

Charles, as a Cabinet Elder of the Dark Cabinet, directed the Dark Cabinet’s operations in Xinbal, all under covert identities, operating on the outskirts of Bayes Avenue, for entering Bayes Avenue would inevitably be noticed by members of these families. On the outskirts, no one cares about them, but once they get close, they’ll be monitored; even with guarantees, they’d be scrutinized thoroughly.

Charles managed to sneak in unnoticed because he disguised himself as a gardener.

Sometimes, the concealment of a Hunter isn’t merely about hiding Spirit Power; integrating into others’ lives is also a very ingenious method.

This method is the highest form of Stealth Ability.

Under Charles’s command, the Dark Cabinet integrated into Xinbal using this method; despite the short time, they swiftly infiltrated the city by hiding their Spirit Power and appearing as ordinary people.

Ordinary Non-Adventurers wouldn’t attract much attention; these Cabinet elites were gradually getting closer to Bayes Avenue. It wouldn’t be long before they could conduct operations in Bayes Avenue. Some Dark Cabinet members were already awaiting orders there, posing as cooks, blacksmiths, or street sweepers—there were various identities.

The Dark Cabinet’s actions were silent, while the Kangen Family and the Wizard Alliance, commanded by Princess Juliette, were causing a commotion.

Bigas and Biggs were making a scene at the entrance of the Alchemy Workshop, forcing out the Golden Seats; they clashed skills, leaving the door of the Workshop battered.

Golden Seats are not easy opponents; Bigas and Biggs gave it their all. Their fight caused such a ruckus, naturally attracting the observing families.

The Kangen Family quickly joined in the fight against the Alchemy Workshop, giving no reason, directly rushing in, shocking all of Bayes Avenue.

Everyone thought the Kangen Family had gone mad. Later, evidence from some elders abandoned by the family confirmed it—the Kangen Family indeed went mad.

The Alchemy Workshop had never faced such pressure; all Golden Seats moved out, bringing some control to the originally one-sided situation and even giving the Workshop a slight advantage.

This small advantage puzzled Bayes Avenue—it seemed odd that such a strong Alchemy Workshop found it difficult against the Kangen Family. They began to speculate.

They wouldn’t know that Kuyi Tulan’s power could hold up half the sky, nor would they know that part of the Alchemy Workshop’s forces were guarding an experimental site.

Igor and Kadi were gradually approaching that experimental site.

And others were also heading this way.

These others were Kuyi Tulan and the Shadow Ghost.

These two disputing fellows were in constant argument, but arguing didn’t solve their problems, so compromise followed.

The two finally decided to visit the Alchemy Workshop; they also aimed to capture Xiso.

The Shadow Ghost’s original plan was to capture Kadi, but learned about Xiso’s uniqueness during arguments with Kuyi Tulan.

Though skeptical, the Shadow Ghost didn’t mind checking out who this Xiso was, thinking someone capable of predicting his movements was indeed extraordinary. He wished to see this Xiso.

Time, for some, was extremely precious, but for the Shadow Ghost, it wasn’t that special.

This was also a form of compromise because he felt he’d need to rely on Kuyi Tulan in many things in the future.

He didn’t use the Teleportation Spell, as it would consume too much of his Devouring Power; his capacity wasn’t yet fully recovered, and he couldn’t afford to expend too much Devouring Power...