One-Eyed Monster

The blue flame was burning on the monster’s body, and the monster let out an awful wail.

The people of Bistal had never been easily attracted by novel things, but this blue flame still made them gape in astonishment.

Brilliant, lustrous colors kept scattering from the burning monster’s body in all directions. At the approach of night, these glows were especially eye-catching.

Even the well‑traveled residents of Bistal were stunned by this dazzling rainbow sheen; it was obvious that such colors had never appeared before.

The colors were like living things; under this blue flame they danced in frenzy, freeing themselves, as if this were their final release, their ultimate departure.

Igor slowly furrowed his brows.

He looked at Kadi, then said slowly, "This feels like Spirit Entities that were Devoured—your flame seems to be releasing them!"

"Hm? Isn’t that my Devouring Power?" Kadi clearly didn’t quite understand what Igor was talking about.

"My sense isn’t wrong. These are Spirit Entities that were Devoured. They’re being released and are regaining their freedom!"

"Yeah, it’s pretty much the same feeling as when that Clown and the Puppet Master went down." Kadi also gradually felt this Spirit Power being released.

"Looks like this monster came straight for us!"

"You mean this Lord Bern is already someone we’ve taken action against." Kadi looked at Igor.

"Yeah." Igor fell silent after saying that.

The blue flame on the monster’s body was gradually dissipating. The monster that had eight arms slowly reverted to a human shape; the horns on its head and its thick toes all slowly disappeared.

In no time at all, a muscular body appeared in front of Igor and the others.

Before Igor and the others could even examine him, applause sounded from behind them.

Crack‑crack‑crack...

"You guys are amazing!"

"You protected these ancient buildings, we really can’t thank you enough!"

"Yeah, compared to those useless guys in the Court of Guards, you’re way more capable."

The citizens of Bistal showered Igor and Kadi with praise, and the compliments made both Igor and Kadi feel a bit embarrassed.

The people of Bistal didn’t reject Kadi just because of his bizarre appearance. The way they looked at Kadi was the same as how they looked at Igor.

Over the past two years, the barrier between Adventurers with Class and Non-Adventurers had been broken, and many strangely shaped people had appeared. The citizens had already grown used to this kind of thing—especially since this was Bistal; there was nothing these people hadn’t seen.

The Court of Guards squad quietly walked forward and started cleaning up the street after the battle.

Of course, by now they were completely ignored by the citizens.

The squad captain carefully inspected the muscular body lying on the ground and couldn’t help frowning.

The citizens’ scolding hadn’t made them forget their proper duties. They did what needed doing—that was their conviction.

Only, this monster had ended up in human form, and with an unfamiliar face at that, which naturally made them feel puzzled.

Public security in Bistal was extremely strict. There was no registration check when you entered the city, but once you were inside, if you wanted to leave, you had to go to the Court of Guards for detailed registration. You couldn’t just stay in Bistal indefinitely, because every household here would question outsiders living nearby.

The citizens here were basically part of the security management...

So, anyone who came to Bistal was basically under surveillance. Every household would register which unfamiliar people were living nearby at the Court of Guards...

The Bistal Court of Guards could be said to be a truly massive organization.

At this moment the Court of Guards squad captain realized that the face lying here was a bit unfamiliar.

The Bistal Court of Guards was different from those in other places. Their familiarity with the Main City had reached a freakish level. Every member of the Court of Guards possessed an astonishing memory; no matter who it was, they had to memorize the registration records. Squad‑captain level had to reach the point where seeing a name was like seeing the face; the raw recruits carried registration books on them at all times, memorizing whenever and wherever they could.

This face had absolutely never been registered in Bistal!

Just as the squad captain was still puzzling over how this unfamiliar face had gotten in, uniform footsteps suddenly sounded around them—the rhythm clearly belonged to other Court of Guards squads.

Everyone followed the sound with their eyes and saw two rows of neatly dressed Court of Guards troopers clearing the way up ahead, while a carriage rolled forward at a slow pace, surrounded by Administrative League Guards on foot and on horseback.

Judging by the formation, some big shot had arrived.

Could it be that what happened here had already alarmed the City Administrative Office?

The citizens of Bistal weren’t terribly surprised. After pausing for a moment, they continued applauding Igor and the others...

The squad captain saw the Court of Guards troopers and immediately jogged forward, then snapped off a standard Empire military salute: "Lord Court Chief, an anomaly occurred in the sector under Haas Squad’s jurisdiction. The anomaly has currently been resolved by outsiders. Our Haas Squad is inspecting the scene!"

The Court of Guards squad that had arrived was actually personally led by the Court Chief of Bistal City himself, which meant the person in the carriage was probably an Imperial Capital power holder.

"Mm, it’s good that the situation’s under control. Lord Popovich will make his own judgment. You all continue working." Court Chief Est of the Court of Guards reassured his subordinates; what had just happened here was something they naturally knew in detail.

This Main City of Bistal wasn’t very large, and the Court of Guards’ intelligence network permeated every corner. Whatever happened anywhere, these big shots already knew perfectly well. Otherwise Lord Popovich couldn’t have arrived so quickly.

Popovich slowly stepped down from the carriage. He was an old man, nearly sixty, yet his vigor had always remained excellent.

When the citizens of Bistal saw Lord Popovich personally come here, they all lost their composure. In the whole of Bistal, Lord Popovich’s prestige was higher than that of Lord Governor. Although Lord Popovich wasn’t a Politician, his status across Bistal was far above the Governor’s; even Lord Governor sought his counsel. It could be said that Lord Popovich was the true power holder of all Bistal.

"Lord Popovich!"

The citizens began to cheer, and Igor and Kadi finally saw what these residents of Bistal really cared about...

At the very least, once Lord Popovich walked onto the street, he would definitely make this bunch of lazy bums get up from their recliners...

Popovich waved his hand to greet the citizens, a smile never leaving his face. A squad of League Guards stood by his side at all times.

Igor and Kadi exchanged a glance; they suddenly became very curious about who exactly this Lord Popovich was.

The whole Circus troupe was also shocked. What on earth had happened, for even the power holder of Bistal to show up here!