Bermuda [bl]

Sanctus Linar, the very center of the Raina Logia Empire and the location of the imperial palace. Also known as the "Holy Linar," it was commonly referred to as the "Imperial Capital" as it was the path leading to the imperial palace.

Atop the densely packed, towering, majestic, and ornate buildings with domed roofs, the flags of Raina Logia fluttered high. Beyond the grand and colossal gates, decorated with diverse and intricate carvings that seemed to come alive, the streets were lined with trees and flowers in harmonious arrangement.

Amidst the beautiful scenery, luxurious carriages bustled about, carrying high-ranking officials in various uniforms and elegantly dressed nobles.

Unlike the polar regions such as Frost, the Imperial Capital was the product of sacred and dazzling civilization, as well as the political, cultural, and economic center of Raina Logia, where the central government agencies under the imperial family were heavily concentrated.

With a long history and being the most sensitive to change, as well as having a concentrated population, even the smallest news spread quickly.

And the most attention-grabbing news in the Imperial Capital right now was that Leonardo Blaine had finally been arrested by Hugo Agrizendro.

"Big news, big news! Everyone, read the newspaper!"

The lively and bustling Imperial Capital was even more chaotic than usual that day. People were talking, each holding a newspaper, and the newspaper delivery boys were running around busier than ever.

"He's finally been caught?"

"His Excellency Agrizendro personally arrested him."

"Of course! No matter how strong Leonardo Blaine is, he can't stand a chance against him."

In the vast residential area of the Imperial Capital, made up of densely packed houses with red roofs and yellow bricks, and commercial buildings of various colors, the story of the two was more of a hot topic than the fresh produce newly arrived at the lively morning market.

A fruit vendor announced a special discount, saying he had heard good news, and heavily promoted his wares. The owner of a tailor shop closed the store for a moment, saying he needed to read the newspaper, and ran outside. Even the children who were running around in the alleys, oblivious to the situation, perked up their ears and focused when they heard the names of the two.

In the city center, slightly away from the residential area, where towering spires and dazzling buildings lined the streets, middle-aged men in luxurious fabric clothes waited for the tram and made comments while reading the newspaper.

"So, does this mean the Imperial Army has scored a big win?"

"Well, seems like it, doesn't it? After expelling him and then keeping it hushed as if the Council didn't do anything good."

"Hey, only talk about that when it's just us."

As the Imperial Knights on horseback appeared right in front of them, the men coughed and held their tongues. The knights, wearing red tops with gold-lined insignia, stared at them for a moment before riding their horses and moving to another location.

As the men sighed in relief, the tram they had been waiting for finally arrived. The mana-powered tram was a popular means of transportation within the Imperial Capital.

The tram was already packed to the brim, but the men, despite their disgusted expressions, grabbed their hats and squeezed themselves inside.

"Oh my, every time I go to work, it's like this."

"Why don't you bring your own carriage next time? You can give me a ride too."

"Easy for you to say. These days, even viscounts get glared at if they bring a carriage to the Imperial Capital."

As the men entered the tram and found their seats, the tram, which had struggled to close its doors, departed immediately without waiting for anyone else. Another gentleman who had missed the timing rushed to the stop, but stopped in frustration as he watched the tram leave.

Across from where he was standing, at a bakery with wide tables, women in elegant two-piece dresses and soldiers in black uniforms were having breakfast. As the scent of butter filled the street, passersby glanced at the place.

At that moment, as Council members in white uniforms passed in front of them, the two groups in black and white subtly made eye contact and engaged in a silent confrontation. A soldier in a black uniform got agitated and half-rose from his seat, but at the urging of the woman with him, he sat back down.

On the wide avenue a little away from the city center, people also stopped and read the newspapers posted in front of the stores. The store owner brought in heavy bundles of newspapers and said to the people outside,

"Hey, if you've read it, put it back properly!"

"Oh my, is this really true?"

Regardless of the store owner's anger, people paid no attention and focused only on the contents of the newspaper. The basket on the shelf where people put money in exchange for reading the newspaper in front of the store was already overflowing with money.

The angry store owner looked at it with satisfaction, took it inside to empty the basket, and put it back. The empty basket quickly filled with money again.

A woman with orange hair, wearing a wide-brimmed hat pulled down low and a plain, worn-out dress that reached her calves, was walking with a paper bag full of medicinal herbs when she stopped for a moment in front of that store. She stared intently at the newspaper people were reading, and eventually unfolded a crumpled newspaper that was stuffed haphazardly.

As her gaze carefully scanned the black letters, her hand holding the newspaper gradually tightened, and soon she was clenching the paper and trembling.

「The Empire's Sword Cuts Off the Empire's Rotten Silver Arm」

While people cheered at the sensational phrase splashed across the front page of the newspaper, she felt very uncomfortable with the situation. People were talking about the article everywhere, as if it were a celebration.

Among them, she read the article with a pale face, then threw the newspaper on the ground and kicked over the newspaper bin in front of the store. As attention was drawn to her, she hurriedly ran away, and the store owner, who saw this, was startled and ran out to start picking up the scattered newspapers.

Seeing the scattered newspapers and the retreating figure of the woman, people who understood the situation helped the store owner and said with a frown,

"What's with that girl!?"

"Please bear with it. On such a good day, there are always weird people causing trouble."

"Tsk tsk, they're just social misfits."

The store owner clicked his tongue and put the newspapers back in the upright bin. The newspaper thrown on the ground was so crumpled and tattered from being tightly clenched. Unable to put it back, the store owner thought he would have to use it as waste paper and took it inside.

On the back of the newspaper in his hand was an article sharply criticizing Leonardo Blaine's past misdeeds.

* * *

Hugo looked at the massive iron cage with wheels, being pulled by several horses. The cage was tightly wrapped in a black tarp and sealed with various mana stones and binding stones. It was being escorted by the prominent battalion commanders of the Council's Northern Branch, and Hugo slowly followed the procession on horseback.

To reach the Imperial Capital from the Frost territory, there was no way to go in one go, and they had to pass through a total of 3 portals.

If they had used teleportation to cross the territory in an instant and passed through the portal at the gate, they would have arrived at the Imperial Capital in just a few minutes, but now they had to move this huge iron cage, covered in mana stones and binding stones. Therefore, when moving to another gate within the territory, they had to use physical means instead of teleportation.

As a result, the return journey to the Imperial Capital took much longer and was more arduous than the trip to the Frost territory. However, with the help of the Northern Branch members, they were able to pass through the treacherous path quickly, and finally arrived at the last gate leading to the Imperial Capital.

As the massive iron cage reached the gate, the battalion commanders who had accompanied them dismounted and greeted Hugo with a salute. Hugo also got off his horse.

"Our escort ends here. Once you cross the gate, the Central Branch will be waiting."

"Thank you for the escort up to this point."

"We were just fulfilling the Council's duty. The real work... was done by the Council Commander, wasn't it?"

The 2nd Battalion Commander of the Northern Branch said, looking at the iron cage once. No one knew how many people had struggled until this cage became calm. If it hadn't been for the Council Commander, it would have been almost impossible to put the guy in there and keep him confined.

Hugo also looked around the iron cage following the 2nd Battalion Commander's gaze, and shook his head, saying,

"It's thanks to everyone's efforts. I couldn't have done it alone."

"You're too generous, sir."

3rd Battalion Commander Moria Halipe responded to his words. Her gaze lingered on the small wound under the Council Commander's left eye.

When they had set out from the Northern Branch headquarters to escort Leonardo Blaine, the guy had thrashed around even when bound in the net, and the other members couldn't even touch him.

In the end, the battalion commanders and Hugo had decided to restrain him in the iron cage, but taking advantage of a momentary lapse, Leonardo had launched a sudden attack. The wound on his eye was from when Hugo had tried to subdue him and was scratched by the guy.

The injury wasn't that deep, but if it had grazed a little higher, he might have gone blind.

Normally, wounds on the skin can be healed to some extent with Recovery magic, but the scar left by the guy still remained even after using Recovery.

Of course, it would naturally fade over time, but the incident of Leonardo Blaine scarring the face of Commander Agrizendro would likely be recorded in history.

Hugo looked around the battalion commanders, then approached the back of the iron cage and grasped the metal column slightly peeking out from under the tarp. With a hissing sound and wisps of biting steam, a fierce chill radiated from his hand. If he hadn't wrapped ice around his hand, the temperature would have been hot enough to sear the flesh.

The items wrapped around the cage were all resistant to fire attributes, so for now, they seemed to be withstanding the heat he was emitting.

However, seeing the various sealing tools stuck all over the cage, Hugo was greatly worried that if even one of them fell off, not only would the flames flare up, but an uncontrollable dangerous situation would arise.

The guy inside the cage was currently extremely agitated. Moreover, the Imperial Capital would be in great turmoil and commotion over the news of him. If the subdued guy got excited again, even Hugo couldn't be sure of perfectly preventing the damage.

"Commander, the Central Branch has completed the access control for the citizens and is on standby."

"...Alright."

When Flynn relayed the message from the Central Branch outside the gate to Hugo, he nodded lightly. But his expression seemed a bit troubled.

Hugo shook hands with each of the battalion commanders and expressed his gratitude to the Northern Branch battalion commanders and members who had escorted them this far. Flynn also exchanged greetings, then grabbed the reins of the horse leading the cage and slowly entered the teleportation portal of the gate.

And Hugo followed behind him.