“Emergency reinforcement request!?”
“What’s going on? Why is there smoke coming from Winterer suddenly?”
The faces of the White Steel Vanguard members were filled with confusion.
Such flare signals were usually seen in the middle of a battlefield, so their first thought was a possible enemy ambush.
“What the hell are you all doing? Grab your swords!”
At the shout of the leaders, the soldiers hurriedly began to move.
Theo expelled the alcohol from his system using his mana, and within moments, the dragon’s nest filled with the pungent smell of liquor.
“What’s happening? Why is everyone acting like this?”
Bracken, the only one who didn’t fully understand the situation, grabbed Theo’s arm. But even he could tell that something was off and tightened his expression.
“We’re not sure yet,” Theo replied, “But it seems someone is trying to take advantage of the chaos from the Dragon Ascension Tournament and target us with a terror attack.”
“Terror?”
The mention of the word made Bracken’s expression darken further.
“There’s no better time than in the midst of confusion to hatch a plot. We’ll help too.”
“Thank you.”
The White Steel Vanguard and the Ranke family’s swordsmen quickly mobilized.
A Moment of Disbelief
“What the hell happened!? How did we fail to stop this!?”
Dept barked, his face twisted in anger, causing Diego to hastily lower his head in shame.
“It was my fault. I’m sorry.”
“Soon, the Law Enforcement Bureau and the Central Bureau will be here, along with the White Steel Vanguard’s pests! Damn it!”
Dept kicked the wall in frustration.
Although Dept was an ordinary man who hadn’t mastered swordsmanship or magic, there was no sign of injury. But even so, Diego could sense the crushing weight of Dept’s anger.
The deep resentment and contempt he held for his half-brother grew stronger with each passing moment.
‘You’ll never be of any use to the family, Selphord! I should’ve killed you and thrown your body into the pigsty when I had the chance!’
Dept and Diego had one simple goal:
But if Selphord refused their offer, they had planned to forcefully seal him, avoiding the need to kill him.
After all, killing him in such a public place would have been nearly impossible to cover up, especially given the potential consequences of revealing his identity as a White Steel Vanguard member.
The true grand scheme was set for midnight—the final round of the Dragon Ascension Tournament, when the atmosphere would be perfect for executing their plans.
As long as they bought enough time until then, there was no reason to worry.
But, to their surprise, Selphord acted first.
Just before he was about to be trapped in the otherworld, Selphord seemed to have caught on and set off the flare early.
As a result, people outside the building began to stir, and spectators quickly gathered near the area.
A Narrow Escape
“Now’s your chance! You must hide your identity and escape before it’s too late!”
“The eyes outside are everywhere! Do you have any idea whose grip you’re in right now?”
The crowd had grown too large for them to flee unnoticed. There were already several people who had seen the Gardner family’s swordsmen enter.
Realizing his failure, Diego clenched his lips tight. There was nothing else to be done now.
If he said anything else, he feared Dept would show him nothing but contempt.
“Maybe if we can divert their attention...”
Suddenly, Dept stopped muttering to himself, and a realization hit him. He burst into a wide grin and slapped Diego on the shoulder.
“Hahaha! You fool, your nonsense might actually help us after all!”
Diego’s face tightened slightly, but he quickly masked his reaction, then cautiously asked,
“W-What do you mean?”
“What else?”
Dept grinned widely, and soon, Diego’s face lit up in understanding.
***
“What’s going on here?”
“I don’t know. Does anyone know what’s happening?”
“From the way it’s spreading, it looks like a signal flare from the White Steel Vanguard...”
“Eh? The White Steel Vanguard? Why would they fire a flare here?”
“Some people said they saw Gardner’s swordsmen eating with a few members from the White Steel Vanguard...”
The front of White Ember was suddenly crowded with people.
Given the already intense atmosphere of the Dragon Ascension Tournament, many were gathered here. Then, the commotion intensified with the flare, and rumors began circulating that it might have something to do with the White Steel Vanguard, who had been gaining notoriety recently. As a result, the crowd grew even larger.
But no one in Winterer thought there was any actual danger.
After all, this was the heart of the Ragnar Clan, the very center of their power.
A thousand-year-old sanctuary, untouchable even by the Troy Peninsula.
So, instead of concern, the crowd was filled with curiosity.
“Shouldn’t we call the law enforcement or at least the Central Bureau’s inspection agents?”
Just then—
Scree! Screech!
“Everyone, step back!”
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“Stay at least 100 meters away. We don’t know what kind of danger this could be!”
A few of Winterer’s patrol inspectors blew their whistles and began pushing the crowd back.
“What’s going on?”
“I don’t know. Some of Gardner’s swordsmen came in to have a meal with White Steel Vanguard members, and then the flare went off. After that, no one’s answering, and we haven’t heard anything.”
“Tch. I have so much to do, and now this?”
The inspector general scratched the back of his head in frustration.
With so many tourists arriving, his focus had already been stretched thin, but now, with this new distraction, the situation seemed hopeless.
But what could he do?
A report had come in, and the individuals involved were beyond his reach—people from the White Steel Vanguard were involved, after all.
Could there have been a dispute? He’d have to find a way to handle it, either by negotiating a resolution or passing it to the Law Enforcement Bureau.
“Sigh... Let’s go inside.”
The inspector general crushed his cigarette underfoot and, with his subordinates in tow, began to move toward the restaurant.
The Explosion
Suddenly—
Boom!
With a deafening crash, shards of glass and stone from the third floor rained down.
Screech!
“What’s happening?”
“Is it an explosion?!”
The onlookers gasped and looked up at the third floor, where the hole in the wall spewed black smoke. Something— or someone— was urgently escaping from the building.
The inspector general’s eyes darted in that direction.
“Gardner?”
The figures emerging from the building were clearly identifiable— they wore crimson armor.
Those were unmistakably the Blood Wolf Swordsmen that the 6th Division of the Gardner family was famous for.
However, they all bore grim expressions and were covered in various wounds— large and small.
It looked like they had been in a fierce battle.
Blood Wolf Swordsmen?
“Diego Gardner! The Young Lord of the Gardners!”
“Why are they in this state?”
Among the crowd, some recognized Diego’s face.
He stared up at the exploded second floor, muttering angrily,
“Selphord... Why would you do something like this...?”
Diego’s face twisted in frustration as he muttered curses, then hurriedly joined his fellow swordsmen, retreating from the scene.
The inspectors tried to pursue, but the inspector general raised his hand to stop them.
“Stop! Let the Law Enforcement handle the Gardners. We’ll confirm the situation here!”
There was no point in chasing them now. The patrol inspectors couldn’t keep up with the speed of the Blood Wolf Swordsmen.
They had to find out what had happened here before rushing into action, so they quickly made their way up to the third floor.
The Scene of Chaos
“...What a mess.”
The inspector general let out a grim sigh as he looked over the explosion site, littered with sword marks and blood stains.
The carnage was beyond what a regular person could do— this was a level of violence that only someone truly desperate would inflict.
The blood was so widespread that it was a miracle anyone had survived.
An Unexpected Appearance
“Someone’s coming!”
“Oh my, who’s that?”
Just then, the noise outside intensified again.
“Inspector General!”
“What now? Can’t you see I’m handling this?”
The inspector general was about to snap at one of his subordinates when his eyes widened at the sight of the approaching figures.
“It’s him...”
A young man walked in with a slight bow, his steps light but purposeful.
His face was so strikingly handsome it almost seemed feminine, and it immediately caught the inspector general’s attention.
“The... the Young Lord!”
Behind him was a group of familiar faces— unmistakable to anyone from Winterer.
The leaders of the White Steel Vanguard and even the head of the Ranke family!
‘What are they all doing here together?!’
The inspector general felt as if a bomb had dropped at his feet.
“May I inspect the scene myself?”
“Of course...”
The inspector general, suddenly taken aback by the authority in Theo’s voice, took a cautious step back.
Theo moved forward with a serious expression, thoroughly examining the area.
A Quiet Observation
“Do you have any idea what’s going on?”
Gorito asked, his voice laced with curiosity.
Theo didn’t immediately answer, just nodding slightly, still focused on the scene.
He was fully immersed in the investigation, not willing to let distractions pull him away.
The others, despite their many questions, remained silent, giving Theo the space he needed to work.
In the Depths of His Thoughts
‘What is it that I’m seeing here?’
‘I can’t tell just yet.’
‘For now, we’ll have to wait and see.’
The leaders of the White Steel Vanguard, accustomed to war, found this situation unusually tense. Despite their experience, they had never faced something like this—an internal conflict like this was rare, and their inability to make sense of the scene added to their frustration.
A Final Revelation
Theo’s eyes flicked toward Bracken, his gaze cold and sharp.
“Lord Ranke, you mentioned you had something to tell me about the Gardners? Would it be alright to ask about it here?”
In Theo’s eyes, the scene around him was bathed in a deep, blue hue.
It was clear to him that something much larger than a mere skirmish was unfolding.