Barnacle disappeared beneath the ground, the black tendrils vanishing along with him.
The hunter remained frozen in place.
Still shaking.
Then—
Clap.
Clap.
Clap.
Three slow claps echoed across the ruined city.
The hunters immediately turned toward the source.
Their exhausted expressions quickly shifted into annoyance.
"Ugh… it's the Purloin Guild," one hunter muttered, rolling his eyes.
Five men in suits approached from the distance, stepping over rubble and broken concrete like they owned the place.
The one in the middle stood out immediately.
White suit.
Perfect posture.
Wide grin.
Too wide.
"Seems you all defeated the boss," the man said mockingly, clapping one last time before sliding both hands into his pockets.
"What do you want… Lucien?" one of the hunters asked coldly.
Lucien's grin only widened.
His eyes wandered lazily through the crowd—
Before landing on Zachary.
"Oh?" Lucien hummed with interest.
He walked straight toward him.
"You there," he said casually, stopping just a few feet away. "Are you Mackenzie Quinn's son?"
Zachary stayed silent.
Lucien's smile twitched slightly.
"…Ignoring me?" he muttered.
The atmosphere shifted instantly.
Lucien slowly raised his hand, fingers together, palm open—
Like he was about to slap him.
But before he could—
Grab!
Lilia caught his wrist tightly.
"What do you want with the boy?" she asked sharply, stepping in front of Zachary without hesitation.
Zachary's eyes widened slightly.
Lucien looked at her hand gripping his wrist.
Then at her face.
And smiled.
"Hey, hey… calm down now," he said smoothly, not even trying to hide the amusement in his voice. "No need for mindless conflict."
"Mindless conflict my ass!" Lilia snapped.
Her cheerful expression was gone now.
"You started harassing our guild the moment we opened!"
The air suddenly felt heavier.
The four men behind Lucien stepped forward at the same time.
Their large builds blocked out the sunlight behind them, their shadows stretching across the cracked ground.
Several exhausted hunters instinctively tightened their grip on their weapons.
Because everyone there knew—
The Purloin Guild never showed up without a reason.
The four men moved instantly.
Before anyone could react—
They shoved Lilia backward.
Thud!
She hit the ground hard, dust scattering around her as pieces of broken concrete scraped against her arms.
Lucien calmly rubbed his wrist afterward, acting as if she had actually hurt him.
"Tch… violent as always," he muttered.
Zachary immediately dropped to his knees beside her.
"Are you okay!?" he asked quickly, worry clear in his voice.
Lilia blinked for a moment—
Then let out a small laugh.
"I'm okay," she said warmly, pushing herself back up. Dust covered parts of her jacket and back as she brushed herself off casually.
"Thanks for worrying about me.."
She smiled at him.
A genuine one.
And for some reason—
Zachary's heartbeat suddenly sped up.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
His chest tightened as his heart slammed against his ribs harder than it should've.
"…?"
Even Zachary looked confused by his own reaction.
Lilia stepped slightly in front of him again, her expression hardening as she faced Lucien.
"Leave," she said firmly.
"Now."
The warmth from earlier vanished completely from her voice.
And for the first time since arriving—
Lucien stopped smiling.
His grin slowly disappeared, his face turning completely expressionless as he stared directly at her.
The atmosphere around them became tense almost instantly.