A Tower’s Reprieve, A City’s Fury

Aya Tone stood silently atop the high tower.

He felt a powerful spatial fluctuation within his domain, tearing a rift open.

He couldn’t help but grumble.

“Go if you must, but must you be so violent?”

“Couldn’t you have just called? I would’ve opened it for you. Now I have to mend it myself.”

“Oh, no signal. Never mind then…”

His gaze then fell upon the adventurers continuously roaming in the darkness below.

This night was destined to be a sleepless one. Until he received the President’s message, he wouldn’t know how long he’d need to sustain the domain.

Perhaps half an hour, perhaps the entire night.

“Eh…”

‘A long night stretches ahead, and I regret not having…’

‘Hmm?’

‘Wait, I actually do!’

Aya Tone found a spot to secure his staff, then reached into his bag.

He recalled having recently stocked it with a plethora of snacks, precisely for moments like this.

With that thought.

Through his efforts, the rarely visited tower top was transformed, a tea table miraculously pieced together.

It was laden with an abundance of snacks.

Propelled by magic, the kettle began to steam mere moments later.

The long night stretched on, but now he had live entertainment, snacks, and tea.

It couldn’t get any better.

****

Meanwhile, on the other side.

Fire Finch’s situation was far less leisurely.

Yan’an City was vast, even half of it.

Even with her full Vermillion Bird power unleashed, transforming into the Vermillion Bird itself, she barely managed to cover half of Yan’an City.

‘Was it still too strenuous?’

She flapped her fiery wings, her form streaking across the sky.

Her sharp, piercing eyes, as if possessing the power to see through souls, scanned the shadowy figures darting below.

Unlike Aya Tone, that ‘cheater’, her internal energy couldn’t sustain a prolonged blockade.

She had to eliminate all the puppets within a short timeframe!

After pinpointing the enemy’s location, several fiery arrows shot forth from the vast sea of flames, descending upon the city below.

Just then!

Dozens of dark figures moved stealthily through the shadows, attempting to create chaos and escape while evading detection.

“What’s happening! Those fiery lights in the sky don’t look like normal astronomical phenomena at all! Have we been discovered?”

The shadowy figure beside him cursed, brows furrowed, yet his feet never ceased their rapid movement.

“Nonsense! Can’t you see there’s not a soul on the streets, and those police officers, working with the adventurers, are hunting us down?!”

Yan’an City’s forces had been completely annihilated by that Witch during their last operation.

These individuals had gathered from outside Yan’an City through various legitimate means.

‘We shouldn’t have been discovered!’

‘Could there be a mole!?’

Before he could ponder further, a searing flash of fire rapidly expanded in his pupils.

There was no escape!

In an instant!

These cultists, attempting to sow chaos, were incinerated by the Undying Flame, turning to ash and vanishing from this prosperous era.

Fire Finch merely glanced, then continued her search for the next target.

Whether Qian Mian’s clones were among them, she neither knew nor cared.

The real ‘big fish’ was still lurking, observing the bait from the shadows.

In mere minutes, over a hundred fiery arrows rained down from the sky.

Each descending arrow signified the death of a cultist.

‘Hmm… is the President also moonlighting as a cleaner?’

From atop his tower, Aya Tone rubbed his slightly full stomach, his gaze passing through the intersecting flames and stars, landing on the distant Vermillion Bird.

‘Perhaps I should get some exercise too?’

Within his domain, his perception was infinitely amplified. The cultists’ movements appeared like glowing points in the darkness, making them impossible to miss.

Whatever was infused into their magic, it certainly made them far from ordinary.

Thinking this, he mimicked the action, unleashing a surge of magic towards the starry curtain.

The moment his magic touched the starry curtain, there was no imagined roar, but rather a seamless integration of kindred power.

The next second.

Several stars erupted with dazzling light, plummeting fiercely towards the stealthy cultists.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk, isn’t this just a space-based weapon?” Aya Tone couldn’t help but exclaim, observing his handiwork on the ground.

‘With a built-in percentage-based targeting system, how sneaky is that?’

‘The only problem is the destructive power is hard to control. I wonder if I’ll be held responsible for damaging the city later…’

The cleanup continued.

Everyone huddled in their homes, watching through windows as beams of light descended with a force akin to the Thunder God himself, a chill running through their hearts.

In that moment, the image of that cute, white furball quietly began to shift towards that of a Witch.

The roar was fleeting, leaving behind shattered, cracked earth.

Even the adventurers, who lived for combat, were thoroughly shaken.

As they pursued these human traitors, they naturally understood their opponents’ strength.

Yet, with just a single attack, enemies who had been their equals vanished in the blink of an eye.

Terrifying power!

‘Is this the strength of an S-rank!?’

Aya Tone was unaware of their thoughts. He was currently pondering how to deal with the cultists hiding inside the buildings.

‘I can’t just demolish the buildings, can I?’

‘He certainly didn’t have enough money for compensation.’

Just then, a voice emanated from the communicator resting on the tea table.

[My Lord! Leave the enemies within the buildings to us.]

Aya Tone glanced back, recalling that the President had given it to him before leaving.

Considering it, he didn’t have a much better solution at the moment.

[Then I’ll leave it to you.]

****

It was unclear how much time had passed.

The distant flames swiftly retracted, like a whale drawing in water.

Seeing this, Aya Tone paused, slightly stunned.

‘Is it over?’

Yet, in his perception, a small amount of anomalous energy still flickered within the domain.

They had grown clever, hiding inside buildings and refusing to emerge, clearly discerning Aya Tone’s scruples.

Among them, the life signatures of many adventurers and police officers rapidly weakened, then vanished entirely.

—They had all fallen in the line of duty.

A wave of sorrow washed over Aya Tone. He had been perfectly capable of saving them.

But…

Under the Starlight Domain, he couldn’t utilize the healing powers of Sun Mode.

Not even simple enhancement magic was possible.

‘I’m sorry…’

At this moment, he could do nothing but offer an apology.

****

Vermillion Bird Tower.

Amidst a blaze of golden light, the Vermillion Bird roared down from the horizon, its colossal wings eclipsing the sky, its body wreathed in fierce flames, dazzling and painting half the heavens crimson.

Each feather shimmered like molten gold, its tail plumes unfurling with the wind, resembling glorious celestial clouds.

Fire Finch, imbued with immense power, descended abruptly towards the rooftop.

The instant her massive form touched the rooftop, the structure trembled slightly, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Subsequently, the flames on her body began to recede, and her radiant glow gradually diminished.

Her colossal body rapidly shrank, its contours slowly transforming to resemble a human.

In the blink of an eye!

Fire Finch waved her hand, retracting the last vestiges of the Undying Flame, and landed gracefully on the rooftop.

Her long, fiery hair cascaded wildly over her shoulders, her brows were like distant mountains, and her eyes sparkled like stars.