Chapter 543: 'nobles'

"It seems that they've swapped out the City Lord. The name of this person is Leonel Morales. He seems to be one of the prime targets for the World Spirit hunt."

In hushed tones, voices communicated back and forth within a residential area of White City. Oddly enough, despite the fact they didn't try to lower their voices in the slightest, if one stood more than a half meter away from them, hearing their words at all would be a fool's dream.

The people of Terrain weren't fools. It was an impossibility that they never considered what might happen should a city of theirs be captured. They were well aware that despite the fact Earth was a fledgling world, the threat they posed to a weaker world like theirs was astronomical.

As such, Terrain's goal was never to be perfect. Rather, they had planned for decades and as such had decades worth of contingency plans.

Just one of these contingencies were the spies left within the city. These people were regular residents. Not only had they not joined the war efforts, but they had even lived in this city for years now. Even if one interviewed every citizen of Terrain, it would be impossible to weed them out.

Not only had these people been deeply undercover for several decades, but they were highly intelligent and adept at hiding themselves. There was simply no chance at finding them with any sort of ease. Even Tyrron got a headache dealing with them all.

However.... Leonel wasn't Tyrron.

...

With a flip of his palm, Leonel retrieved the other half of the communication talisman he left with the Head of the patrol units.

"Hello."

"Right, I have no idea what that Prince is... Ah! Yes! Prince! At your service!"

Aina giggled to the side as Leonel shook his head. If he had really wanted to, he could have been listening in on their conversation from beginning to end. It was just that he didn't have the mind to care about the thoughts of these patrolling guards.

Actions spoke louder than words.

"Prepare 38 tactical units. No single group can be made of less than 10 individuals. Prepare yourselves to be swift, decisive and safe."

"Prince?"

The Head of the patrol units was clearly confused. Where was all of this coming from? What were these units for?

"Don't ask any questions. Speed is of the utmost importance. Ready yourselves now and go to these locations."

When Leonel disconnected the call, the looming darkness over White City seemed to grow heavier.

Leonel stood silent before the City Lord Mansion, his eyes closed.

"Begin."

The moment his words fell, the City descended into chaos. The sound of breaking doors, screaming women and children, and the loud badgering shouts and roars of men resonated.

Leonel sighed lightly. But, he didn't make any moves to stop it.

This was war. He had no doubt that of those he caught this time, a majority of them would choose to commit suicide. And, of those who failed to go through with it, their states wouldn't be much better.

To make matters worse, these spies had long since settled down in this city. They had family, they had friends, they had wives, they had children... In most cases, these family members wouldn't even be aware of the hidden purpose of these spies. All they would see was the fact someone they loved was being dragged away and, in some cases, killed.

War was truly a cruel thing. Despite the fact Leonel got to stand here and didn't need to witness any of it personally, he still felt his stomach churn. The feeling was no different from the first time he killed a man. And somehow, he felt that this feeling was even worse in some ways.

"Are you alright?" Aina asked softly.

Leonel smiled somewhat bitterly.

"I'm not, but I will be." He finally replied with a sigh.

Aina squeezed Leonel's hand.

In truth, she didn't feel much from this matter. One would think that she, as a woman, would be more empathetic than her boyfriend. But, this wasn't the case. Compared to Leonel, Aina had long since seen the cruelty of the world.

In her opinion, Leonel's actions were even more benevolent than they would be had anyone else gone through with them. At the very least, he could pinpoint the exact spy. Aina was certain that if Tyrron was left to do this, he would simply wipe the entire family from the face of Camelot.

"Is that all of them?" Aina asked after another long while.

Leonel shook his head. "There's still one more group in this city that even Tyrron likely didn't suspect. Because if he did, he wouldn't have left them where he had."

"One more...?" Aina's expression was confused for a moment before they suddenly lit up beneath her mask. "You mean?"

Leonel nodded. "That's right. This one, we'll have to do personally."

Leonel and Aina walked toward the City Lord's mansion.

In this place, there was a large military field out front, completely unlike other mansions. Whereas most would opt for lush gardens and maybe a few koi fish ponds, City Lord White hadn't bothered with any such pomp and circumstance.

However, compared to the past where these fields had been nothing but deep foot marks, sweat, and blade scars, it had been completely revitalized. Now, there were numerous luxurious homes, looking completely out of place.

Of course, these homes were recently built and may have even been the work of Tyrron and the others.

Leonel understood Tyrron's actions in this regard. But... Just because he understood them didn't mean he accepted them.

With steady steps, Leonel strolled into this makeshift community of rich folk with Aina by his side. Considering it was late at night, other than a few flickering lights behind their luxurious curtains, there was nothing else to see in the streets at all.

Obviously, people of their standing wouldn't necessarily go to bed so early. But, though Tyrron had given them some advantages, he wouldn't go too far. So, these 'nobles' had to abide by a certain curfew.

It seemed that the sudden restlessness of the city had shaken these people, because they obediently followed these protocols.

At that moment, Leonel suddenly released Aina's hand and clapped his own together forcefully.

What did it sound like for skin as tough as Fourth Dimensional metals to slap together with such strength?

Well... The moment Leonel's palms collided, it felt as though an explosion had erupted.. Without him even having to say a word, these 'nobles' scurried out of their homes, a mixture of shock, fear and confusion on their faces.