’Why is this Witch running all over the world collecting Red Dragon Scales, anyway?’

The Witch seemed to read Baron’s mind and said, "The reason I’m collecting Red Dragon Scales is..."

Baron perked up, listening intently.

Carmen gave him a playful smile. "And why should I tell you, Mr. Constantine?"

Baron shrugged.

————

In the carriage, Silver Wizard Fei’s brow was furrowed in thought.

’That Demon Hunter from before... I actually couldn’t read his "Destiny"?’

’There’s a Destiny in Fude City that I can’t read?’

A flicker of interest sparked within Fei.

Recalling the Demon Hunter’s appearance and attire, he took a pencil and sketched him on a piece of paper. Then he pulled out a Compass from his coat and began his calculations.

His brow furrowed even deeper.

’I... can’t divine it.’

He couldn’t even get a general "approximation" or a "direction," the most basic results in Astrology.

There were only three possibilities for this situation:

First, the other person was of the same or a higher Tier than him. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

Second, the person possessed an Alchemy Creation or even one of the Taboo Items that could shield their destiny.

Third, the person’s Destiny was so powerful that he was currently unable to observe it.

Any one of these possibilities was enough to pique Fei’s interest, which was now growing even stronger.

After arriving at the residence prepared for him in the City Lord’s Mansion, he sent someone out with Baron’s portrait to gather information on him. Then, he sat in quiet meditation, awaiting nightfall.

Night was the best time for Astrology.

————

「Evening. The underground street, the brothel, the main hall.」

Two men sat rigidly on the sofa: Maguire and Morey.

Two others lounged casually, taking intermittent sips of their drinks: Zod and Baron.

And there was one more, disguised but with a curvaceous figure that suggested she was a woman, glancing around curiously. That was Carmen.

To be honest, Baron was still a little hesitant about bringing a woman to a brothel, but Carmen had insisted. To avoid detection, she had to stick to him like a shadow, preferably staying within ten meters of him at all times.

So, he had let her follow him into the brothel.

’I get why Maguire is shy, but Morey? The old lecher who once said, "My Knight’s Medal is vibrating, there must be a prostitute nearby"? Why is he suddenly so fidgety around Carmen? Don’t tell me the old rogue has a thing for her?’

Baron whispered to Carmen, "Before you found me, how did you avoid that Fei guy’s divination?"

Carmen said, "At that time, I was in a deep sleep due to severe injuries, and my Red Dragon Aura was leaking uncontrollably. KK took over my body to temporarily suppress it."

"But you could say Fei is the person who knows me best in the world. Even without the Red Dragon Aura, he can still pinpoint my location through the subtle fluctuations in my Spiritual Power from my injuries. When that happens, the only way to hide is to consume Spiritual Power."

"And Fei is a Silver Mage. Even though I’m also Silver, avoiding his Astrology still consumes a great deal of power."

The Witch said, "The reason I sought you out is because my Spiritual Power is almost completely depleted."

"If a Red Dragon Knight can evade divination, why can’t you, with the Red Dragon’s Soul, do the same?" Baron asked.

"The Red Dragon’s soul has acknowledged me, but its spirit is another matter," the Witch said meaningfully.

Baron was stunned and wanted to ask more, but Zod suddenly came over with his drink, clapped him on the shoulder, and said, "He’s here."

Using the dim light and the back of the sofa for cover, Baron, Maguire, and the others peeked out. Sure enough, they saw a large, bald man in a gray leather coat, with a skeletal vulture tattooed on his head.

Just as Tate had described, this was probably the high-ranking member of the Immortal Church who had been secretly meeting with the Iron Thorn Gang.

Baron breathed an unconscious sigh of relief. He had worried the target wouldn’t show up; after all, their group hadn’t run into him here the night before.

He hadn’t expected to be so lucky. He’d come to the brothel with a special purpose twice now, and both times he’d accomplished his goal.

"When do we go?" Maguire’s hand was already on his blade, eager for action.

Baron said, "Not yet. Anyone who dares to meet alone is usually quite strong. Making a big scene will be hard to clean up. We’ll wait until he’s at his most vulnerable."

"His most vulnerable? When’s that?" Maguire asked.

"It’s simple."

Baron grinned. "We just have to catch his..."

—

"Timing!"

Ten minutes later, Baron and the others, masked and with blades drawn, burst into Vulture’s room from the other side.

Vulture, who was on top of a girl, shuddered in fright.

"Who are you people?" Vulture cried out in terror.

Forcing down the discomfort of his "flight being suddenly grounded," he tried to channel his Spiritual Power to activate his Alchemy Circuits but was knocked unconscious before he could.

The prostitute’s base instincts kicked in and she started to scream, but one of the masked figures looked at her. His pupils were rose-gold, like molten gold.

She didn’t dare make a sound.

It was only after the masked men had "packaged up" Vulture and taken him away that the prostitute remembered something important.

Vulture hadn’t paid yet. In other words, she’d gotten screwed for free.

An hour later, Vulture’s corpse appeared in the exact same spot where they had dumped Tate’s body.

The group then hastily prepared their horses and rushed to the First Hunter Association.

...

「Meanwhile, in a guest room at the City Lord’s Mansion.」

Silver Wizard Fei put down the newspapers he was holding about Demon Hunter L, pushed open the window, and saw the sky glittering with a myriad of stars.

It was the perfect time for divination.

He took out his Astrology Disc and Astrology Cards, arranged them before the portrait he had drawn of the Demon Hunter, and painted the runes for the divination. He waited for the moonlight to shine on his Compass from outside the window, then circulated his Spiritual Power, closed his eyes, and began his calculations.

As time passed, more and more cold sweat beaded on his forehead, and the struggle on his face intensified.

After a quarter of an hour, he spat out a mouthful of blood.

Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, he clutched his chest, which ached from the backlash of trying to divine Destiny, his face completely blank.

’I was actually... rejected?’

It wasn’t because the target’s power was too great, nor because his Destiny was too bizarre, nor because he had an Alchemy Creation to block scrying.

He was simply... rejected by Destiny itself.

’How is that possible?’

Unwilling to give up, Fei once again laid out the Astrology Disc...

—

「At that very moment.」

On the road to the First Hunter Association, Baron, who was galloping on a fast horse, suddenly felt his heart clench, as if he were being watched by something.

Then, his skin began to itch.

Thinking it was a fly, he swatted at it but hit nothing.

But there were a few drops of blood on his palm.

’A mosquito?’

Baron didn’t think much of it.

Until the itching returned. He swatted again, and once more, a few specks of crimson blood appeared.

’Are the mosquitos in Fude City really that aggressive? They can keep up with a galloping horse? And they can fucking pierce my skin to suck my blood?’

"What’s wrong?" Carmen, who was riding a fast horse behind him, noticed his condition.

"It’s nothing," Baron said. "Just some flies."

Just as Baron was marveling that Prole was just Prole, where even the mosquitos were mutated, Fei spat out another large mouthful of blood in his guest room at the City Lord’s Mansion.

His Compass was soaked in black blood, and the paper with the runes was blurred and smeared. The Silver Mage’s face was slack with shock, like a dog that had been hastily fished out of the water.

If the Wizards at the Wizard Tower were to see the normally handsome, dignified, and erudite Silver Wizard Fei in such a sorry state, they would probably assume that the brutes from Suluka had finally gotten fed up with the bitter cold of the Land of the Far North and attacked.

Otherwise, he would never look like this.

The second backlash was more painful than his previous failures, but it also helped Wizard Fei calm his thoughts and begin to ponder the reason.

First, he ruled out immense power.

The newspapers said the man was just a Black Iron Demon Hunter, and the upper limit for participants in the Hunting Competition was Bronze. It was unlikely he was hiding his true strength.

Second, he ruled out shielding from Taboo Items or Alchemy Creations.

That type of shielding would simply block his "gaze" and wouldn’t cause such a severe backlash.

That left only one possibility...

The thought made Wizard Fei’s body tremble uncontrollably, and his breath quickened, like a painter seeing the Mona Lisa for the first time, or an explorer first summiting Mount Everest.

The man’s Destiny was too powerful—so powerful that he was unable to observe it!

A Destiny so strong it could defy even a Silver Tier Wizard... could it be...

"Gold," Wizard Fei said.

"He might be a Law Enforcer with Gold-level Spiritual Sense!!!!"