Hart, the capital of Yellow Sand, was the only oasis in the surrounding several thousand kilometers. Hart was the only oasis for all three major trade routes that crossed the desert. It was truly a golden route. It was impossible to tell how much it would cost to pass through Hart every year.
Previous rulers of the Yellow Sand Capital had done this as well. But after the magnate Ron took over the city, he reduced the taxes to zero. While the income from the taxes was greatly reduced, more than ten times the number of merchant caravans came to Hart. Soon, this "foolish" policy became known as the reason why the Yellow Sand Capital was able to flourish.
Perhaps some people would say that this was just a simple strategy. However, there were many times when a good policy would end up being bad. What failed wasn't creativity, but execution.
In order to truly benefit from this policy, I would also need to get rid of all the other factors that prevented merchant caravans from coming to Hart. I would need to eliminate bandits, attack competitors, regularly eliminate magical beasts, and establish resting spots in the desert. None of these would be easy tasks. On my way here, I had already heard Kassandra boast about her father's great achievements.
However, this city didn't seem as friendly as she described it to be.
As I strolled around the Yellow Sand Capital, I felt that everyone was staring at me rather harshly. Even the black-staff-wielding guards were glaring at me in an unfriendly manner.
"… I didn't do anything, did I?"
I finally realized what was wrong when I saw that everyone was looking at me warily.
"Isn't this city being too xenophobic?"
"That's not it. It's just that the last two times Hart was almost conquered were thanks to information provided by foreign spies. Now, an unfamiliar outsider has appeared on the streets, and he's obviously a warrior. "
Even though Kassandra Carolyn had entered her own city, she still wrapped herself in a thick cloak as if she was hiding from something.
"… Then why wasn't I interrogated when I entered?"
"That's because the other few times when Hart was attacked from both inside and outside, the scouts were all local tieflings. Those tieflings finally discovered that tieflings don't have much loyalty as long as they pay a good price. Tieflings are much cheaper than scouts from other tribes."
Alright then, I could pretty much guess why Kassandra Carolyn was still hiding even after entering her own city.
Was she worried that the spies still hadn't given up on her? In other words, she didn't believe that the ordinary city guards could protect her.
However, being stared at like this wasn't a good thing either. After I turned a corner, two dragon horns appeared on my head and a pair of dragon wings appeared on my back. I also let off some of the aura of the Chaos Abyss. Instantly, the guards' defensive gazes disappeared.
However, why did the appearance of this creature, which had a pair of blindfolded eyes, a pair of wings on its back, and two horns on its head, seem so familiar? I really wanted to make an old joke about how "you're all seeking your own death", but I felt like I was getting bored of it. Besides, it seemed like nobody here understood what I was seeing.
"Umm … Adventurer, can you send me home? My family should be looking for me. They will reward me handsomely. "
Blinking her eyes, Kassandra tried to recall her etiquette teacher's lesson on diplomacy. She wanted to use her most sincere words to invite Mr. Blind Ogre to visit her home, but in fact, she was cursing in her heart.
"You actually scared me to the point of peeing … You actually dared to scare a lady, see how my father will deal with you!"
She wouldn't go so far as to repay kindness with evil, but if she didn't find a chance to take revenge, Caroline, who had always had a smooth sailing life, would feel wronged.
"No, it's too troublesome. Where's the most famous tavern, bar, and restaurant in this area?"
Even without seeing the red-haired girl's flashing eyes, I knew what she was planning to do. Based on her personality, it could range from a harmless yet disgusting naughty child's prank to a vile attempt to kill someone to keep them quiet.
I refused, not because I was afraid of this girl, but rather because it was better to avoid unnecessary trouble. Yep, it definitely wasn't because I was so hungry that I didn't want to move.
"How could these ordinary restaurants possibly compare to my family's? My family's chef is a super chef hired from the most famous restaurant in Shalor Rain City. All of my food is purchased from thousands of kilometers away … "
"Yep, I'll go."
In front of my stomach, I would rather not care about my face or anything like that.
Suddenly, an evil wind attacked me. I couldn't help but shiver as if some vicious beast was staring at me.
I suddenly raised my head to see a figure in the sky that I had just met two days ago.
"Lasnina!?"
Compared to a week ago, Lasnina seemed rather disheveled. The thick dark bags under her eyes indicated that she had been suffering from insomnia for a long time. Her long hair was messy and uncombed, and her originally beautiful appearance had been reduced yet again.
The bandages and bloodstains on her body indicated that she was still unable to break free from the effects of the "Stare of the Hell God". Perhaps this was also why she was unable to sleep peacefully.
"Damn it, did I waste too much time in the desert?"
I didn't believe that I had been followed. No matter how profound a prophecy spell was, it would be impossible for her to find any traces of me in the River of Fate. Tracking my footprints in the desert would be even more of a joke. In that case, I must have stayed in this level for far too long. She was unwilling to give up after following me here, and was searching for me in every city.
Lasnina's carelessness in floating above the oasis naturally attracted the attention of others. The Air Knight and the mage riding on the giant bat had already approached her, but they still hadn't come into contact with Lasnina yet.
The Devil Lord Karwenz casually waved her hand, causing a chain of lightning to strike down and ignite all the Air Knight. Even the black-robed mage who was wearing a magical shield was unable to resist at all as he was instantly reduced to ashes.
This evil invader used such an obvious method of attack to express her undisguised evil intentions. The city's alarm bells instantly rang, and the entire city entered a state of war.
Even more powerful mages and city guards all walked out of their own fortresses and mage towers. Numerous offensive magic spells took form on top of the mage towers. As the most important business city in the area, how could Hart not be heavily guarded?
However, Lasnina seemed to completely ignore the threat before her. She simply silently chanted her own incantation.
Black magic began to spread, and the clouds in the sky were dyed black. Then, they began to transform into dark green clouds. Judging from the amount of magic gathered, this spell would soon surpass the definition of a forbidden spell in the world.
"Don't let her use that spell!"
It wasn't that there weren't any mages who knew what was good for them. If this dark-green curse spell landed, it was likely that Hart, the capital of the desert, would be nothing but sand in the future.
"That's how she chased us all the way here? Just how many cities did she destroy on her way here? "
I didn't believe that Lasnina knew that I just happened to be in this city. Otherwise, it would be quite foolish of her to immediately cast a powerful spell. This type of forbidden spell was incredibly powerful and had a large area of effect. It would be far less threatening to powerful individuals than a 9-circle single-target spell. In that case, Lasnina simply wanted to destroy this entire city.
"… I don't know where you are. But as long as I keep destroying cities one by one, you'll appear before me sooner or later."
Perhaps Lasnina wanted to vent her anger, or perhaps she wanted to cut off Lasnina's ability to attack her, or perhaps she was considering how naive Lasnina's identity as a Holy Knight was. Over the past week, while Roland had been in a state of confusion, the "insane Devil Lord" had become the scariest natural calamity in the mortal plane!
Previously, due to the Snake God's existence, the Chaos Abyss's kingdom had still been faintly orderly. That situation had obscured the true appearance of the Chaos Abyss.
From a certain standpoint, everything that happened in this ownerless Chaos Abyss was the true Chaos Abyss, a jungle paradise where the strong preyed on the weak.
In the countless levels of the Chaos Abyss, people and cities would be destroyed every moment for various reasons. Oftentimes, the lives and deaths of the weak would be nothing more than a form of entertainment for the strong.
"Curse her!"
"Milord, please have mercy and spare us."
"Why? Why is this happening? Why are you attacking us? "
Lasnina smiled in delight as she listened to the ants' screams and angry roars. If it wasn't for the fact that she was in a hurry to find Lasnina, she would have even cursed the ants so that they wouldn't die for so long.
Perhaps spending an entire year listening to their screams and curses would be a good vacation for her.
A reason? Did she even need a reason to casually stomp a bunch of ants to death? Did she even remember how many annoying mosquitoes she had slapped to death?
Perhaps some people would despise the existence of Order. But when even the most basic Order no longer existed, when there were no restrictions on those who possessed martial power, and when the strong didn't believe that the weak were the same kind of existence, it was only natural that anything could happen.
A large-scale massacre? Was it possible to find a witness for something that didn't happen? Everyone had died? That meant that the dead couldn't testify?
Destroying peaceful and neutral medical facilities and diplomatic embassies? I accidentally used the wrong information from a map from ten years ago. Let me verbally express my regret.
Creating famine and refugees? Oh, that was truly an unfortunate accident. Still, it was their fault for having such an evil master!
Apology and compensation? How would that be possible? I already said that it was an unfortunate accident. Since it was an accident, there was no need to think too much about it. Yep, let me verbally express my regret.
War crimes? Haha, youngster, no matter which world you were in, war would always occur. You just might not know about it.
When the strong lost all restraints on their power, when simple use of martial power would be able to obtain tremendous benefits, even the most terrifying of evil deeds would become a daily occurrence.
Furthermore, when evil deeds became a daily occurrence, killing and destruction would no longer be related to personal benefits or the country's name. Killing and destruction would become nothing more than simple entertainment.
Those war machines that were already addicted to killing and destruction might not only destroy themselves in the end.
This was the 37th city that Lasnina had intended to destroy in the past five days. From the bottom of her heart, she had already given up on searching for Roland, as it would be like searching for a needle in a haystack. It was highly likely that Roland had already left this dimension.
However, the endless destruction and screams made her feel as if she was being poisoned with pleasure. Watching these ants beg for mercy before being stomped to death made her feel comfortable all over. It was as if the injuries on her body had become much more comfortable.
For Lasnina, who had fallen into darkness for countless years, the judgment from her soul didn't awaken her conscience that she had long since abandoned. Instead, it made her eager to pass on her pain to even more weaklings.
"Ha, cry, scream, and then all of you can die!"
Her hysterical laughter echoed in the skies above the city. The next instant, a transparent ice sword suddenly pierced through her heart.
Lasnina turned around with an expression of disbelief. However, the ice sword that had pierced through her heart was burning fiercely.
The assassin that suddenly appeared out of the clouds had a pair of gorgeous wings. The fiery wings of the War Angel were emitting astonishing heat and holy light.
The assassin furiously roared and directly pushed away the dark-green cursed cloud. The killing intent within the sword was like a calamity that could destroy the world.
"Lasnina! Receive your judgement! "
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