Today, they too are going to their deaths.

It was the fourth day since Cui Xun arrived in the other world.

Many things are on track and beginning to become repetitive.

He would glance at his heart in the early morning, swallow a few pieces of now-cold stew, skim through the agents' reports, and then read books, study supernatural powers, and conceive of future development directions.

He doesn't need to personally oversee other matters for the time being.

The royal support and the brutal killings of the previous days led to the immediate disappearance of local gangs, and "good cops" began patrolling the area, cracking down on illegal and criminal activities.

Following orders from above, local nobles and factory owners began to carefully study and implement the newly issued "Safety Regulations," and it was expected that masks, gloves, and protective clothing would be allowed into the factories within a week.

They also significantly reduced the workload of local workers while keeping wages unchanged, and began piloting an evening class system.

The largest local cult has transformed itself and is now operating as a charitable organization, offering free schools for children and talented individuals to attract new members.

The local union received a guarantee from Prince Charlemagne, allowing workers to choose their own representatives and widely gather worker opinions.

The city's suggestion boxes have regained their function, new public infrastructure projects have been put on the agenda, and a large number of jobs have alleviated the wave of layoffs. Even the "decent people" who originally considered themselves middle class and ignored the workers' protests feel that the overall atmosphere has begun to improve.

Tonight, the number of people waiting under the streetlights will probably start to decrease.

Cui Xun thought for a moment, turned the page, and started writing again, but accidentally broke the nib of his pen.

The ink on the pages was so glaring that it rendered most of the page useless, and some of the ink even seeped into other pages from where the pen nib had poked through them.

But Cui Xun ignored the book. In order to find the source of the sudden sense of crisis in his heart, he rushed out of the window, climbed onto the roof, and jumped up.

He had a view of almost half the city.

Some people are arguing heatedly over trivial matters, even swinging their fists at each other; a patrol officer dealing with a crime suddenly becomes violent, striking his opponent with his baton; a nobleman who seems to be having a pleasant conversation suddenly draws a gun from his waist and points it at the other person's head...

An eerie atmosphere permeated the city.

Those were the waves that destroyed the sandcastle, the rust that covered the iron, and the frost that stole body heat.

It advanced step by step, methodically and patiently destroying everything in its path, pushing everything toward annihilation.

No! Destruction is merely its manifestation; Cui Xun's intuition tells him that beneath that appearance lies an extremely powerful flame.

It left itself no room for maneuver, seeking only the most dazzling moment, wanting to burn itself and the whole world to ashes.

Just like when he's focused on revenge.

Is there some super-powerful being seeking revenge, or is someone filled with vengeance launching a massive ritual attack on this city?

Human strength has its limits, and extraordinary individuals in this world often use complex arrangements to amplify their power in order to achieve things that they cannot do on their own.

This method is called a ritual.

However, Cui Xun's research on the extraordinary systems of this world has not yet reached the realm of rituals. That is something that only a small number of experts and those who have pushed themselves to the limits in their pursuit of personal power would study.

Regardless of size, any unregistered ceremony will be dealt with seriously by royal agents and may even be regarded as a declaration of war, prompting the military to mobilize its forces.

Cui Xun's gaze swept over the agents running around the city, but they seemed oblivious to everything, going about their business as if they hadn't noticed anything. Some of them even became violent due to the influence of that force.

The agents most familiar with the rituals knew nothing about it. Wasn't this a ritual?

But this unusual atmosphere was so clear!

Cui Xun could even sense that the source of the anomaly was on the train that was about to enter the city!

He turned his head, pondered for a moment, then returned to the road and said to Alice who was rushing over, "There's been a problem with the recent intercity train. Immediately gather all the city's special agents, and also remind the Serpent Worship Cult to prepare for battle."

Without waiting for Alice's reply, Cui Xun snatched her steam locomotive, stepped on the gas, and sped off towards the direction of the train.

On the train, Andrew smiled at the attendant and took a serving of fish ball risotto.

He just ate someone and isn't hungry yet, but if he wants to play the role well, he needs to pay attention to every aspect.

But to be honest, even after hundreds of years, he still didn't like Albion's food, especially this cheap meal.

Most of the fish were caught from stinky ditches, where they had eaten their fill of feces, so even after processing, they still had a lingering odor.

Aside from being cheap, this fish is utterly worthless; it even overpowers the flavors of the eggs and cream, making the risotto smell like shit.

The original owner of this identity would probably have to be mentally prepared before speaking, faced with such an amazing feast.

A hundred years ago, before the Kingdom of Albion had completed its transformation, the poor ate this rubbish. Fifty years ago, when the Industrial Revolution was in full swing and production capacity was increasing rapidly, the poor were still fed this due to the population explosion. Now, in the period of decline, the poor are still eating this.

Everything seemed as if it had never changed.

Andrew put down the fish stew, shut off his sense of smell, and looked out the window at the distant city.

A typical second-tier city.

Unlike Birmingham, which is located in a transportation hub with endless black clouds from trains, or Manchester, where the latest machines from the Royal Society turn the city into a steel jungle, Andrew felt a strange atmosphere about it.

It was like suddenly seeing a brightly lit cabin in a blizzard.

The chill hadn't yet dissipated when a warmth welled up from the bottom of my heart, making me feel that as soon as I opened the door, I could experience this rare good fortune, be treated to a cup of hot tea by the host, and relax my tired body.

In a blizzard so fierce it blinds you, would there really be such a small house? Could it really withstand the wind and snow?

Andrew was momentarily lost in thought as he remembered his deceased best friend.

The previous master of Meliaduk was a noble knight who believed that he could restore justice through his own strength and efforts.

He took the first step, the second step, the third step on that path, making the whole country better and restoring its weakened national strength. Then, in the war to defend the country, he was killed by the queen.

The country he wanted to change, and his weapons, were both taken away by that woman.

The person who created that atmosphere seemed like his close friend, yet there was something different about them.

"It's a dragon..."

Andrew's senses penetrated the snow-covered cabin, revealing the whole scene.

He saw a red dragon with its massive mouth wide open behind the hut. It suppressed its madness and savagery, playing the role of a hospitable person, using its dragonfire to provide light and heat to the hut, hoping to protect the travelers in the blizzard through the stolen method.

But it was a red dragon, its blood flowing with arrogance and rage. It craved blood and death, and the impulse to destroy was always on its mind.

Even though it tries hard to maintain peace, it cannot hide the fire in its eyes. It is just that it forces itself to play such a role and finds a reason for it.

Destroy this hut, let it bleed, and it will shed all pretense and reveal its brutality and madness once more.

Normally, Andrew would probably look forward to how the dragon would wreak havoc on the kingdom, wanting to figure out what made the dragon disguise itself. But now, he is the dragon slayer.

He was simply excited about the great hunt that was about to take place.

It's no wonder that Charlemagne abandoned his cooperation with him and instead devoted all his energy to this "dragon".

He truly has the ability to reshape this chaotic nation, to make it stand again amidst blood and ashes, and even to bare its claws once more to seize more monsters.

Andrew guessed that the other party had probably also noticed the anomaly and wanted to hunt down those who defied him, but fortunately, he had a lure that could draw attention away from the dragon, and the red dragon was not yet familiar with the hunter's cunning, and it had too many burdens in its mind.

Andrew quietly unsealed part of the package, allowing Melia Duke's aura to overpower his own.

Melia Duke is a cursed sword that brings madness and war; only cruel conquerors and noble knights can wield it.

Once it gets out of control, it will, over time, continuously incite violence in the hearts of those around it, eventually unleashing chaos on a city-wide scale.

Andrew didn't expect this to completely conceal his true identity, but a moment's hesitation would suffice; the decisive blow was just as important as the advantages he had accumulated step by step.

He waited patiently.

I completely gave up on the idea of ​​eating Albion's signature shit-flavored risotto.

Cui Xun's heart suddenly raced, and his body became excited due to being close to the center of the anomaly, immediately entering a battle state.

Blood flowed like a river through his body, his bones and internal organs gathered strength with a slight tremor, and his muscles constantly tensed and contracted, preparing for an explosion.

The train rapidly expanded in Cui Xun's field of vision.

Front of the car.

Vehicle body.

Finally, there is the carriage located at the center of the anomaly.

A man sat alone in the carriage, seemingly oblivious to anything amiss, staring at the risotto with a troubled expression.

Besides the risotto, there was a plain-looking package on the table, but even its unassuming appearance could not hide the presence of what seemed to be the source of disaster.

What is this?

Cui Xun immediately thought of the gift Charlemagne had promised him. He claimed that in addition to the original text, a weapon worthy of the new king would also arrive today.

Considering the red dragon's trait of war, it's not hard to understand what the old prince offered.

He was so nervous just now, turns out it's a special weapon with built-in special effects.

Just as Cui Xun, riding his motorcycle, relaxed his guard and turned his gaze from the carriage to the front, preparing to turn the motorcycle around and return to the city, Andrew shook open the package, propelling Melia Duke to launch the assassination.

The carriage was struck by demonic flames and brute force, and the flying iron plates and debris began to melt in mid-air.

One of the train's wheels was damaged by the shockwave and rubbed violently against the rails, making a piercing sound amidst the flying sparks.

Even faster than all of this was the man who rushed towards Cui Xun's back.

He was like a warhead, launching himself with a determination to fight to the death.

The atmosphere was torn apart, but the deafening roar was swallowed by the flames before it could fully resonate. Only the rapidly approaching, surging heat proved its arrival.

But it was too fast, too fast.

Anyone in this city, even Prince Charlemagne, would probably have been killed before they even noticed the enemy if they hadn't attacked the carriage immediately, but Cui Xun reacted quickly enough.

That innate instinct, tempered through battles with monsters and elevated to another level through its power, made Cui Xun abandon his motorcycle and leap forward abruptly.

However, the pure slash, devoid of any murderous intent, had already been unleashed.

The top experts used their exquisite skills, honed over a century, to nimbly traverse the weak points in space, cutting through everything in their path along a hidden route imperceptible to human intelligence.

Skin, flesh, bones...

The spine, which is vital to humans, was severed in one blow!

But Andrew didn't feel the tangible satisfaction of killing a powerful enemy, and couldn't even confirm that he had successfully dealt a heavy blow to his opponent.

The effect of this attack was far less than he had expected.

He should have cut the opponent in half at the waist, allowing Meliaduk's demonic flames to penetrate the target's lungs and internal organs, burn away the internal organs, ignite the remaining body, until the opponent was completely reduced to ashes.

Severing the spine is enough to paralyze an ordinary person, but for a "red dragon," it's just a warm-up.

Then let's deliver another blow!

In a moment that an ordinary person could not even accomplish with a thought, Andrew stepped on the air and made a second leap in mid-air, simultaneously turning his sword and incorporating all the remaining power into his next attack.

Die!

The blade slashed down vertically, striking the long blade made of blood and bone.

Unable to turn around in mid-air, Cui Xun broke his left elbow. With his now incredibly strong body, he recreated the state he had when he fought the monster to the death, and thrust backward.

Despite his seemingly inflexible stance, he managed to unleash a powerful blow against Andrew's full strength, resulting in a thrilling and evenly matched contest.

Delicious, absolutely delicious!

Without a second thought, Andrew released all his momentum, leaned back to avoid the spurting arrows of blood, and revealed a warrior's smile that he once thought he would never show again.

The next moment, the two landed back on the ground.

The powerful shockwave spread outwards, scattering soil and rocks on the ground and causing the already unstable train to sway for a moment.

At the same time, it washed away the human skin on Andrew's body and blew away Cui Xun's broken bones.

The two, both Avengers, stared at each other in silence for a long time.

The only sound here is the incessant murmur of the train moving forward.

Both of them focused all their attention on finding each other's weaknesses and guarding against any possible attacks.

One is clad in the uniform of a forgotten kingdom, wielding a longsword engulfed in demonic flames; the other is dressed in hunting attire, swinging his arms to transform them into bizarre, fleshy weapons.