"I plan to unseat Noah from the city lord's position and take his place."

Henrik said with determination as he stared at Russell.

There was no hint of hesitation or uncertainty in his voice. Rather, there was an intense look of resolve in his eyes.

The Ross family was a top four family, yet they couldn't compare to the other three on the rankings. They might have been able to fight their way there and remain on top, however, because of their lack of deep heritage like the other top four families —including some top factions like the displaced Oder family— the Ross family's spot was quite shaky; even after almost thirty years.

This position allowed them to see things from a different lens and perspective. That was probably what led to Henrik's decision. Russell guessed this because his father was once like this. But that was exactly what led to his death.

"Are you sure you want to walk this path? Can you even walk this road?" Russell asked Henrik with a grave voice.

The path to becoming a city lord wasn't one of only determination and desire, neither was it easy. it required not just the support of the influential forces in the city, but also one's strength to be remarkable.

Henrik was only an eighth level Apertures Opening stage stellar practitioner. Even Russell was much stronger than him. The current city lord, Noah Bergs, was a tenth level stellar practitioner. If Noah was forced to step down, the most likely successor would be Fredor, who was at the same level as he was.

The only way for Henrik to win would be to surpass Fredor in all other areas. Even then, he still had to be at least a ninth level stellar practitioner.

Progress in stellar refinement wasn't easy and one could get stuck in the same level for years. Russell couldn't see how Henrik would suddenly cover up the gap in a few weeks.

"You don't need to worry about that. I'll make it in time. All I need is your support."

Henrik stretched out his hand towards Russell, staring at the latter with enthusiasm and beseeching eyes.

. . .

"I'm back."

Lucas stared at the familiar layout from more than four months ago.

During that time, Lucas had been framed as a terrorist by both the machinations of the top forces of Baylands City and the Stygian Abyss. Baylands City's top factions wanted to have his skills and technology under control, with the intention of turning Lucas into their work slave.

Naturally, Lucas wasn't a fan of this idea, but he couldn't retaliate against them as he was too weak. So, Lucas escaped from the city by relying on the system skill, Branch Travel.

Now, after so much time has passed, Lucas has returned to the city where it all started.

The interior of the Seven Stars Forge workshop was still the same as it was back then. There was no speck of dust either. This was all thanks to the system's automatic cleaning function that covered the store in the absence of the host or employees.

"Big brother, are we going to stay here for long?" Melissa who had tagged along stared curiously at Lucas and asked.

Initially, Lucas had wanted to leave her behind in Trundel City under the care of Vienna. However, Melissa insisted on following him. In the end, Lucas acquiesced to her demands. But he wasn't bothered at all by that.

"For a short while. Do you want to go back?" Lucas glanced at her.

Melissa shook her and innocently said.

"I want to be where you are."

Ugh, 5000 damage.

Recovering from the sudden 'sneak attack', Lucas walked over to the display unit set by the checkout counter. He then proceeded to log into his old KSSI account.

After leaving Baylands City, Lucas had made a new account to avoid getting tracked by the city-state's authorities. Logging into it now would tip them off about his presence, but Lucas wasn't bothered by this.

Currently, Baylands City's higher-ups were in a state of anxiety and preparation. They wouldn't have the time to bother about him as their focus was on the city lord's position. But that wasn't all.

The entrances of the Seven Stars Forge store — including the windows — could not be breached no matter which method they tried. In the end, what the authorities decided on was to have a unit assigned to monitor the area 24/7. Even after more than four months had gone by, there was still a team on standby.

Because the store didn't prevent surveillance technology, it was possible for the surveillance team to monitor the situation inside using infrared and heat signature cameras. By now, they should have already discovered Lucas and Melissa's presences in the store. That being the case, whether or not Lucas used his old account didn't matter anymore.

Lucas immediately went to work and updated himself on the situation in Baylands City. Naturally, this would take quite a bit of time, so he had Melissa get occupied with her vestige-smith training so she won't get bored.

While this took place, just as Lucas had surmised, there was a surveillance team monitoring the Seven Stars Forge store. They didn't notice when Lucas first arrived as the interior of the workstation was protected by the system. However, once he left the room for the lobby, his presence popped up on their equipment.

"Ca, captain. Someone. There's someone on the footage!"

The rookie cop stuttered as he exclaimed.

Over four months had gone by since Lucas was last spotted in Baylands City. Initially, experienced and skilled agents were placed on stand by around the store, but after a few weeks, they were taken out. Instead, the patrolling mission became a role taken up by a team of rookies from the Baylands City Patrol Corps under the lead of an experienced corps member. It was basically an easy job with zero risk, but it wasn't taken out of commission due to the importance of the store.

"What the hell are you talking about?" An middle-aged man who was taking a break in a restaurant closeby growled into his communicator.

He was currently taking a break, although one he shouldn't be taking, and was enjoying a healthy lunch at the restaurant when the call interrupted his meal. Naturally, he would be grumpy, especially with the contents of the message.

Someone in the store? Might as well be a ghost because that was basically impossible.

The middle-aged man didn't believe those words and thought maybe the rookie wanted to play a prank on him. But before the young man could even respond, two other voices spoke up on the link.

"Captain, a presence!"

"There's someone, no two people, inside."

At this point, the middle-aged man's eyes widened with clarity.

This wasn't a prank.

The rookie's call could be taken as equipment malfunction or a prank. But for the other two agents to send in the same message implied something else. This was because unlike the rookie, the other two already had quite a bit of experience and weren't ones to play around.

In other words, there was really someone — no, two people — inside the building.

'Wait, two people...!'

The middle-aged man abruptly stood up.

"Those two, is the silhouette and life signature of one of them like a little child?" The man hurriedly asked.

It took a short while for a response to come in, and it came from all three. A solid 'yes'.

In that moment, the middle-aged man's blood ran cold.

It wasn't a ghost but the target of this mission.

On one hand, he was elated as the mission had come to an end during his shift. This meant that the bounty rewards would go to his team, and as the leader, he would get the larger portion of the rewards.

On another hand though, he was afraid.

Rumour already had it that the backer of this store was a Tier 1 Grandmaster, the equivalent of a ninth level Apertures Opening stage stellar practitioner, and possibly from the Bernin continent as that is where Grandmasters could be found.

Also, the disappearance of the two figures was very baffling like magic, confounding everyone's ideas and senses, while adding an extra layer of mystery to their identity.

For such uncanny individuals, this captain didn't want to offend them in any way, especially since they came back. Everyone knew that when they left, it was because they were being chased. Returning now would most likely be for revenge.

Originally, the middle-aged man had smiled when he received the posting, treating it as a very easy task; just survey the area for a few days until his shift was over. It was more like a vacation than a job. However, with the sudden unexpected occurrence taking place, this easy task became a dangerous one.

Either risk offending the mysterious backer of the store and the bizarre individuals, or disobey his higher-ups and desert his station.

"Everyone. Report the situation and run."