The farm gates swung open, and Reyn stepped inside.
Guard captain Madlen hurried to meet him.
"Lord Reyn!" she exclaimed. Her gaze fell on the pelt in Reyn's hands—the gray-blue fur with lightning-like patterns looked painfully familiar. Madlen's heart skipped anxiously. "You... you killed that thunder leopard?" she couldn't help asking.
"Yes," Reyn nodded. "Your farm has sales channels, right?"
"Of course," Madlen replied hastily.
The farm didn't just harvest demonic souls. Materials from slain magical beasts—pelts, claws, fangs—were also valuable and used in enchanting or alchemy. The Liancel family had their own alchemical material shops.
Reyn pulled out two sharp, blade-like fangs from under the pelt and handed them along with the fur to Madlen.
"Please appraise these trophies."
"Very well, I'll send for Lord Hardin immediately."
Madlen handed the loot to one of her subordinates. Noticing that Reyn's leather armor was almost in tatters and he smelled after more than ten days in the mountains—to put it mildly—she arranged for him to be escorted to the manor for a bath.
Reyn didn't refuse. After cleaning up and changing into fresh clothes, he entered the great hall, where Hardin and Madlen were already waiting. They had spread the Swiftshadow Thunder Leopard pelt on the table and were admiring it in awe.
Genuine amazement showed on both their faces.
The pelt was flawless—large, without a single defect, of top quality. It contained immense lightning element power, enough to make at least three sets of excellent leather armor. With a master enchanter's work, selling such armor for several hundred gold shields would be easy.
The two thunder leopard fangs were also prime alchemical material, suitable for weapon crafting.
Judging by these trophies, the Swiftshadow Thunder Leopard had been incredibly powerful in life. They couldn't imagine how Reyn had defeated it in Gray Dragon Mountain. Reyn had gone into the mountains over ten days ago and vanished—they thought he'd given up. And here he was, back at the farm unexpectedly.
Since the pelt was here, the beast's demonic soul must surely be his trophy too.
Reyn glanced around the hall.
"Where's Dris?"
"His wounds have mostly healed; a few days ago he returned to Longsand," Hardin replied. "Lord Reyn, are you sure you want to sell these to the farm?"
He knew of Reyn's relationship with Viola—if Reyn took the trophies to Longsand, he could get much more for them.
Originally Reyn had planned that, but now he had other ideas, and carrying the pelt and fangs was inconvenient. He had to sell them on the spot, to the Liancel family's benefit.
"Yes. Name your price," he said.
Hardin's face lit up. The deal promised good profit.
"Three hundred gold, Lord Reyn. How does that sound?" he asked cautiously.
"Deal."
Reyn agreed instantly, not in the mood to haggle.
Hardin froze. He had been ready to pay four hundred, but out of habit tried to lowball. He hadn't expected Reyn to agree so easily. Only after a few seconds did he recover and hastily pull out the pre-prepared money.
"Thank you, Lord Reyn, for supporting our farm."
Reyn took three gold bills worth a hundred gold shields each, casually pocketed them, and prepared to leave.
"It's already dark, Lord Reyn. Why not stay the night in the manor? Tomorrow we'll send you to Longsand by carriage," Hardin offered. The successful deal had improved his mood, making him even more courteous.
"No need."
Reyn declined Hardin's offer, even refused a horse, and left the farm.
Watching his silhouette fade into the night, Hardin turned to Madlen beside him and said quietly:
"He must have very urgent business to sell the thunder leopard pelt so cheaply."
Madlen nodded silently. Her gaze was thoughtful, something incomprehensible in her eyes. Only after a long time did she let out a quiet, disappointed sigh, shook her head, and returned to the farm.
Under cover of night, Reyn ran along the road.
He didn't sprint at full speed, maintaining a steady pace. With Agility at the third level, his speed reached about fifty kilometers per hour. If he activated "Swift Run" every half hour, he could boost it by another twenty to thirty percent, but he decided to conserve energy.
The distance from the farm to Longsand was just over one hundred fifty li—about seventy-five kilometers. Bypassing towns and villages along the way, Reyn reached the outskirts of Longsand in less than three hours.
He didn't enter the city but turned south.
Another half hour of running—and he reached his goal.
It was a thriving town called Burktown. In the vicinity of Longsand there were over a dozen towns of various sizes, with populations from a few thousand to tens of thousands. All belonged to the Silver Star Duke.
Burktown held a prime location—with a railway station here. It lay on the route from Longsand to the Tulda Trade Union. The population was thirty to forty thousand, surrounded by vast fertile lands, and not far from the duchy capital. Thus, Burktown was practically a small city with developed trade and economy, yielding over ten thousand gold in taxes annually.
However, the Silver Star Duke had long granted Burktown to another lord.
Its lord was Viscount Gallowena.
In the months Reyn had lived with Viola, they had mentioned her uncle—her main rival—many times. Many in the ducal family envied Gallowena: his domain was conveniently located and profitable.
Not far from Burktown rose an ancient castle, its history stretching back centuries.
Originally, the castle belonged to a noble aristocrat of the early Empire, but his line eventually died out. When Longsand was granted to the Silver Star Duke, the castle came with the lands.
Becoming lord of Burktown, Gallowena invested huge sums annually in restoring the castle, naming it Burk.
The castle's interior was lavishly furnished. Gallowena often held feasts here, inviting aristocrats and wealthy men, thereby expanding his circle and weaving a complex web of connections. Many Longsand nouveau riche considered it an honor to be invited to Burk Castle—it meant entry into high society.
Reyn reached Burktown after ten in the evening.
In the distance, a few kilometers from the town, he saw a low hill, just a few dozen meters high, partially hidden by dense forest. Atop the hill loomed the castle's silhouette, adorned with numerous lights.
That was Burk Castle.
Empire aristocrats preferred building castles in inaccessible spots—lone hills, cliffs, or river bends—for a sense of security.
Burk Castle was no exception. Approaching the hill's base, Reyn circled it quickly. The Soul Eye pierced the night darkness, allowing him to study the terrain in detail.
Then Reyn began ascending the slope from the castle's rear, weaving through the trees. He didn't approach the walls closely but hid in shrubbery and activated the Voice of All Things.
His hearing filled with myriad sounds.
A feast was underway in the castle, apparently going for several hours. Men's conversations, women's laughter, servants' quiet complaints—all crystal clear.
Drawing on memories of the auction encounter, Reyn quickly isolated Gallowena's voice. Focusing on it, he listened intently.
Gallowena himself was a Superhuman; otherwise, he couldn't have stood out in the ducal family, earned the duke's favor, gained a viscount title, and this domain. But at the feast, he behaved like an ordinary aristocrat, not mentioning Superhumans.
He was very busy, constantly switching interlocutors. Talks were of business, connections, social pleasantries, mutual flattery, or the favorite male topic—women.
Reyn listened for a while but caught nothing useful.
He sat in the forest quite a while. Suddenly, Gallowena left the banquet hall, went up to the second floor of the castle, and entered a room like a study.
Someone was already waiting there.
Reyn listened to the man's heartbeat and breathing. He could tell it was a Superhuman, but not his power or class.
"My lady!"
Gallowena's voice sounded completely different from the feast—deep respect, even fawning.
"Viscount, still no news?" came a haughty female voice, full of condescension.
Hearing that voice, Reyn froze.
Phyllis!
What was she doing here?
Though he and Viola had suspected—after the auction incident, Phyllis hadn't made a scene at the "Violet House," which was out of character—that she might have allied with Gallowena, hearing their conversation firsthand was still unexpected.
Gallowena didn't reply immediately. He clapped his hands, and another Superhuman entered the room.
"Inok, have your people found out today where Reyn went?"
"Viscount," Inok rumbled in a low voice, "not yet."
"What's wrong with you?" Phyllis's voice rose. "Some pretty boy, and you've failed to find him for over ten days! Last time he fled to an underground fortress, you let him slip—fine. But when he came out, you should have acted immediately! You chickened out, and look where it's led. Gallowena, you know the situation perfectly. The phonograph is already selling big in Longsand. If you do nothing now, you'll never become count!"
Gallowena smiled bitterly.
"Lady Phyllis, it's not that I didn't want to act. It's just this Reyn is nowhere to be found, and arresting his family is pointless."
Silence fell in the room for a moment.
"Less than ten days until the God's Birth Festival," Phyllis said with hatred. "Decide for yourself. I give you five more days. If Reyn doesn't show in five days, we abandon the plan. I'll find people myself to eliminate Viola, without your complications."
With that, judging by the loud hum, she opened a portal.
When the hum faded, Gallowena muttered quietly:
"That bitch is brainless. If you weren't a mage from the Floating City of Pallas, you'd have been killed long ago."
After a pause, he asked:
"Inok, how are things in Iglmarsh?"
"The brothers await my signal. As soon as Reyn appears, they'll grab him and deliver to the warehouse in the city," Inok replied dully.
"Good," Gallowena said. "The duke plans to grant him a noble title at the God's Birth Festival. He'll definitely show."
Ending the talk, they returned to the feast.
In the forest by the castle walls, Reyn's face remained impassive.
He gazed at the brightly lit castle with a flickering stare. Without hesitating a second, he turned, left the forest, and raced to Burktown.
Midnight approached, and most townsfolk were asleep.
Avoiding drunks, Reyn found a weapons shop, broke in, and knocked out the owner. Ten minutes later, he emerged in heavy black armor.
The armor was thick and massive, unenchanted, weighing over a hundred pounds sterling—about fifty kilograms. But it didn't hinder Reyn at all. The helmet with a T-shaped visor completely hid his face.
Besides the armor, he acquired a huge two-handed sword.
The blade alone was over a meter and a half long, and with the hilt nearly two meters total. It weighed more than two hundred pounds sterling—about a hundred kilograms. Such a sword was for berserkers or great sword masters; an ordinary man couldn't even lift it.
Reyn held the giant sword one-handed as easily as a straw.
Leaving Burktown, he found a secluded spot, dug a hole, and buried everything that could identify him: Song of the Azure Sky, the excellent runic book, and the dragon leather belt.
Then Reyn headed to Burk Castle.
This time he didn't sneak from the rear but approached openly along the main road. He stopped in the shadows near the castle, patiently waiting for the right moment.
The feast was still going but nearing its end.
Nearing midnight, guests began departing, leaving in cars and carriages. There were quite a few Superhumans among them, and powerful ones, but none noticed the armored figure lurking in the shadows.
Gallowena stood at the main hall entrance, bidding farewell to guests.
Reyn watched him closely, assessing the castle guard's strength. As a viscount and very wealthy man, Gallowena had over twenty Superhumans at his disposal—mostly low-level Iron Guardians and Archers. Additionally, a squad of fifty well-trained, armed ordinary guards was in the castle—a full personal force.
The Voice of All Things caught the sounds in the castle gradually fading.
Galloweyna saw off the last guests, gave orders to the manager and servants for cleaning the hall, and retired upstairs to rest.
The lift mechanism slowly raised the castle's main gates.
Reyn took a deep breath and stepped out of the shadows, approaching the castle step by step.
At first he walked slowly, but his speed rapidly increased, shifting from a walk to a furious run. In a few moments, he burst into the guards' view at the gates, accompanied by the furious whistle of air.
The guards spotted the enemy, but before they could make a sound, a monstrous shockwave swept them away.
Boom!
Pouring all his power into Charge, Reyn slammed into the castle gates.