"Lawrence, spare us that hypocritical talk from your Crossbridge Empire!"
"When this place was nothing but barren wasteland, where was your claim then? Now that you see fat meat, suddenly it's yours? By our mercenary code, whoever seizes it, owns it!"
"Want to hog it all? No way!"
"We lick blood from our blades—if there's profit, we get our share!"
"You vulgar orc!"
Lawrence's face flushed red.
The orc mercenaries and the Crossbridge Empire were natural enemies; in every respect, they despised one another.
Were it not for the conference table here, their men would already be clashing the moment they met outside.
"Calm yourselves."
Master Lupotin spoke coldly, his faint Legendary Magus pressure silencing the tent at once.
"Bickering is meaningless. The key issue is this—we cannot get inside!"
"You all witnessed the strength of that barrier. A direct assault would be costly and uncertain. As I've said, it likely requires finding its energy nodes or control core."
"That takes time. And it takes cooperation."
His gaze swept the gathered leaders, his eyes glinting shrewdly.
"Before we find a way in, two things must be ensured."
"First: the treasures inside must not be destroyed or relocated by the natives. That means we must stand guard outside and allow no one to leave the city."
"Second: this cake must not be tainted by the flies gathering outside—no, not even allowed to glimpse it."
His meaning was plain enough.
Unite to blockade. Clear the field!
First, drive out the small fry and lone wanderers, preventing the news from spreading further and stopping them from fishing in troubled waters, waiting for the great powers to bleed each other dry before reaping the spoils.
"I agree!"
"Exactly as it should be!"
"No objection. The cake belongs to true powers! Do those weaklings deserve to covet it?"
"Clear the rabble, then each faction seeks the entry point by their own skill. Once we succeed, we'll discuss dividing the spoils within."
Unanimous consent.
In the eyes of these continent-spanning powers, the weak had no right to a share of the feast—merely watching was a crime.
Their consensus came with startling ease.
"Then next…"
A cold gleam flashed in Lupotin's eyes.
"…is the execution. I expect you all to restrain your men and act in unison. Now is not the time for internal strife."
…
The meeting ended.
The representatives walked out of the tent, each wearing different expressions.
Soon, orders were passed down.
The elite troops of the factions—already on edge—pounced like unleashed hounds upon the lesser mercenary bands and small adventurer groups who had been loitering nervously on the outskirts.
A squad of knights in imperial armor, led by a knight-captain, charged toward a small mercenary group of a few dozen.
"By the command of Marquis Lawrence of the Crossbridge Empire!"
"This land is under Imperial control! You have one minute to retreat one hundred miles!"
"Defy the order, and you will be branded rebels and cut down without mercy!"
The knight-captain's voice was icy, steeped in unquestionable arrogance.
The mercenary captain's face went pale. He tried to protest.
"My lord! We only came to look, we mean no harm. By the Continental Pact…"
"The Pact?"
The knight-captain sneered, drawing his longsword half from its sheath, cold steel glinting.
"Here, the Empire's command is the Pact."
"Now begone!"
Faced with such naked oppression, the mercenary leader could only swallow his fury and retreat in humiliation.
In this world, the biggest fist was the only truth.
"Damn it! Those imperial dogs—bullying the weak, cowering before the strong!"
"Shhh! Quiet, unless you want to die!"
…
Elsewhere, several fanatical knights of the War God Church swung their flails to drive off wandering mages and adventurers.
"Heretics! Begone!"
"This is holy ground! Leave, or be purified!"
One young adventurer failed to dodge in time, his shoulder shattered by a flail strike. He collapsed with a scream, yet no one dared step forward to help him.
The Thunder Mage Tower mages were comparatively gentle—they unleashed mass fear spells and conjured violent winds. These drove the lesser factions into disarray, sending them shrieking and fleeing in shame.
The orcs of the Dark Blade Mercenary Corps were far crueler. They simply butchered several slow-moving adventurers on the spot.
Blood splashed across the dirt, a brutal declaration of ownership and savagery.
"Why?! Does this wasteland belong to you?!"
"You're nothing but bandits!"
"Can't we even watch from afar?!"
Cries of protest, curses, and screams rose one after another.
But against overwhelming force, against the united clearing of the great factions, the smaller groups and adventurers were powerless.
They could only swallow their fear and rage, retreating in panic away from Dalton Town.
Soon, only the armies of the continent's greatest powers remained beneath Dalton Town.
They staked out territories, raised temporary camps, and sent their men probing cautiously around, searching for the energy nodes or control core of Dalton Town.
Though distrust lingered and skirmishes broke out, the impenetrable barrier and the promise of riches kept a fragile balance among them.
Yet within Dalton Town, the residents remained oblivious.
Or more precisely—at this moment, they were all in the sky-borne city thousands of meters above, immersed in the vast ocean of mana. They had no concern for what transpired outside.
Even if they had noticed, they would not have cared.
…
Meanwhile, beyond the distant stars.
Lilith felt the world around her blur, like fading brushstrokes on an old painting.
The next instant, she stood within a grandeur beyond words—limitless, breathtaking.
She and her father seemed to stand upon the very spine of the cosmos, overlooking the eternal river of stars.
Beneath their feet stretched a radiant current of light, composed of billions of stars, slowly rotating in majesty.
Each shimmering dot was a blazing sun, with its own worlds and stories.
In the distance, vast nebulae billowed like the silken veils of a goddess, glowing in dreamlike hues of violet, red, and blue—the cradles of unborn stars.
Farther still, a dying star erupted in its final brilliance. Its supernova flared like a silent scream, beauty entwined with destruction, making the soul tremble.
Now and then, colossal astral beings drifted past—shapes like translucent jellyfish, unfurling tendrils of pure energy, floating leisurely through the void, utterly indifferent to the two tiny specks by their side.
"F-father…"
Lilith clutched Leo's hand tightly, her azure eyes reflecting the magnificence of the cosmos.
Her voice quivered under the weight of awe.
"Where… are we? This is too… too…"
She had thought their outing meant traveling to the royal capital, or meeting her father's old friends, or perhaps wandering across the lands…
And yet—
How had they ended up in space?!