“A witch!”
“Could it be Lan Qingyou, the Witch of the High Tower?”
As soon as the crowd saw the figure in the sky, they immediately thought of a certain person.
As the saying goes, Lan Qingyou’s reputation was simply too great.
While she might just be a famous name in other areas, in District 666, there were many ‘legends’ about her.
It could be said that almost everyone who had managed to survive this long had patronized Lan Qingyou’s shop or used her potions at some point.
Even though Lan Qingyou’s shop currently served almost no purpose other than buying books, many people still visited it from time to time.
After all, no one could ever figure out this witch’s patterns.
What if she suddenly stocked something new one day?
One had to remember that this witch almost never interacted with others.
“Lan Qingyou! What are you doing here?! Why are you destroying my palace?!”
Hearing that it was Lan Qingyou, Sherlock, who had been sprawled on the ground, scrambled to his feet in a flash and pointed a finger at the sky, cursing loudly.
It was as if his near-death state from a moment ago had been entirely faked.
In reality, it was.
Sherlock had been acting just now to see how the slaves under his command would react.
It was a sort of loyalty test.
And the result had broken his heart.
He had clearly done so much for them—giving these low-lifes food and upgrading their shelters—and all he asked for in return was their loyalty.
But why? Why were these damned wretches still not satisfied?!
Aside from a mere dozen or so people who had rushed forward to save him, everyone else actually wanted him dead!
Fine, fine. It seemed this batch of slaves was no good. Once the matter with the witch was settled and the palace was finished, he would order this lot to go and die.
Sherlock thought this way as he glared fiercely at the witch in the sky.
He didn't know her personally, but based on her outfit and the broom, it was definitely the Witch of the High Tower.
After all, who would run around in a full witch costume for no reason? It wasn't like this was a cosplay convention.
Up in the sky, Lan Qingyou heard the barking of a fat man below. Judging by his clothes and the way the people around him treated him, he had to be Sherlock.
Without a second word, Lan Qingyou began raining down even more bottles of Explosion Potion.
She threw so many that it looked like she was giving them away for free. It terrified the previously imposing Sherlock, who began frantically looking for nearby cover.
Ultimately, it was only by being dragged by his subordinates behind a section of ruined wall that he managed to survive this round of explosions.
Wasn't this just alerting the enemy?
Why was Lan Qingyou doing this?
Actually, this was the result of Lan Qingyou’s careful consideration.
While flying through the cold wind and light snow, she had been pondering this problem. Eventually, she thought: “Since conflict is inevitable, why not strike first?”
Exactly.
The conclusion Lan Qingyou had reached was to forgo any greetings and just start the fight.
Whether she could actually kill Sherlock didn't really matter to her.
What she wanted was to announce her arrival to the people in the ruins and let them know she wasn't someone to be trifled with. This would save her a lot of time and prevent many unnecessary hassles later.
However, since she had run into Sherlock right away, she decided to just beat him to death.
That way, no one would be left to scheme for her Spoon.
So, for Lan Qingyou, she didn't even want to say a single word to a dying man. She just wanted to let things rip.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
He fled, she pursued, and he found himself with nowhere to run.
Transformed into a human bomber, Lan Qingyou soared through the sky, dropping one Explosion Potion after another.
Below, Sherlock was like a panicked, grounded chicken, scurrying and hiding under the guidance of his men to dodge the potions falling from the sky.
“Stop bombing! Stop bombing!”
“What do you want?!”
“Just say it! What on earth do you want?!”
“I’ll give you everything I have, alright?!”
Being bombarded like this from the very start had completely broken Sherlock’s spirit. He didn't even know how he had offended this witch-turned-bomber.
It was so frustrating!
He wanted to fight back, but he couldn't reach her.
She was at an altitude that even the strongest crossbows among his men couldn't hit. What could a man who had become a slave owner through deception and trickery possibly do?
And so...
After running for over a hundred meters, Sherlock, feeling like he couldn't run any further, screamed toward the sky.
He wanted to use this to distract Lan Qingyou.
Give her things?
Not a chance.
As a miser who wouldn't even give up a single hair, it was fundamentally impossible for Sherlock.
The only reason he said it was to trick the witch. If she came down from that height, his men would have plenty of opportunities to kill her.
What “Greatest Alchemist of Kalim,” what “First Person of Blue Star recognized by the world consciousness”—it was all nonsense to him.
True, he had once wanted to recruit this witch who knew alchemy for his grand dream of an “Ether Empire.”
But he didn't want her anymore.
He only wanted this woman dead!
No matter the method, he didn't care if he lost a little face.
As long as he killed her, he believed he would have no more rivals in this Abandoned Land of District 666.
When that time came, forget a single city of ruins—the entire Abandoned Land would belong to the great Sherlock!
His plan was good, and his shamelessness was commendable.
However!
Lan Qingyou had no intention of communicating with anyone.
She had come here for three things: to crush him, to crush him, and to freaking crush him!
Only when Sherlock was dead could she sleep soundly.
It couldn't be helped; they both had their eyes on the same thing.
The struggle for resources had always been like this.
Whether it was on the old Blue Star or the current Kalim continent, it was the same.
The only difference was that compared to others, both Lan Qingyou and Sherlock were fighting for much higher-level resources.
Indeed.
They no longer bothered to fight for low-end resources. Those were for the masses to survive on; fighting over them was useless.
The Treasure-seeking Rat.
No matter whose hands this A-grade monster fell into, it would bring that person unimaginable, endless benefits.
That was why Lan Qingyou had to kill him.
As for what he said or what he planned to do, it wasn't within her scope of consideration at all.
Meanwhile, the slaves watched all of this happen in silence.
Well, not exactly ‘silence.’
Because during his flight, Sherlock would occasionally use his talent to call over those who had become his slaves to act as human shields and die in his place.
His previously loyal “kneeling subjects” had long since perished in Lan Qingyou’s carpet bombing.
Now, all he could do was run. He didn't care if he had to drag everyone down with him or abandon everything he currently owned.
In short, he had to survive first, and then find a way to take his revenge later.
Rate on N.U.
