Renith gave her wand a light flick, and a magical barrier materialized in an instant, blocking the incoming attacks completely.
In that very moment, the chaotic, roaring battlefield fell into a dead, ringing silence.
Then, no one quite knew who started it, but one by one, the crowd dropped to their knees and kowtowed in Renith’s direction.
Behind them, squads of gang members were busy hauling prisoners onto carts and shuttling them off to the already-prepared Mobis City prison.
But there were simply too many captives this time. Even after cramming five people into every usable cell, they still had nowhere to put the rest.
Among all these prisoners, Kolk—thanks to his formidable strength—received special “attention.” He was rewarded with a private cell all to himself.
Not only that, but Renith personally carved three arrays around his cell, binding him tightly in place.
Finally, after a long stretch of silence, Kolk slowly came to.
Groggily, he opened his eyes and took in the unfamiliar surroundings. The moment he saw the cold iron bars and Renith standing before him, it all came rushing back.
Instinctively, he tried to break free—only to find that the surging “Qi” within him had vanished without a trace, and even his precious “Divine Gift” was reduced to barely a wisp.
Fear clawed its way up his heart. The ever-present whispers from his original world buzzed in his ears once more, mercilessly mocking his failure.
Kolk thrashed and struggled, hurling curses at Renith. His twisted face and furious roars laid bare his unwillingness to accept defeat.
But Renith simply watched him coldly, as if he were nothing more than a clown putting on a show.
Then, with a casual flick of her hand, a basin of cold water splashed over Kolk’s head.
The icy shock jolted him back to his senses. He shuddered, stopped cursing, and just stared at Renith with eyes burning with hatred.
“There are many things I want to know,” Renith said, her gaze calm as she looked at him.
This was the first Transmigrator of such power she had captured, and she figured she could get plenty of useful information out of him.
“And what’s in it for me if I tell you?” Kolk shook his head, seemingly aware that Renith wouldn’t let him go anyway. The woman before him was unquestionably a Transmigrator killer—not a single one who fell into her hands had ever survived.
“To be honest, I’d rather not resort to torture. Otherwise, people might start seeing me as the villain,” Renith said with a slight frown, snapping her fingers casually.
At the sound of the snap, fine, intricate lines emerged on the ground and spread rapidly. Then, from those very lines, tongues of scorching flame roared to life.
The searing pain of being burned flooded every inch of Kolk’s body. He howled in agony, writhing desperately to escape the terrible flames, but it was no use.
“I—I’ll talk!”
It took only a few seconds before Kolk couldn’t take it anymore and begged for mercy.
At that moment, all traces of his former commanding presence were gone.
Perhaps it was because his “Divine Gift” had been drained to near nothing, or perhaps his true nature had always been this weak. That arrogant, stubborn streak was just a mask he’d put on to hide the scars deep inside him. What a pitiful soul.
“What do you want to know?” he gasped.
“The scale of the Transmigrators. And how many are as strong as you.”
Kolk mulled it over for a moment before slowly speaking:
“The Transmigrators are vast in number. If you spread them out evenly… take Mobis City for example—probably more than twenty thousand out of every hundred thousand people would be Transmigrators.”
“But in reality, the outer rings of the Empire barely have any. Compared to those less luxurious, less extravagant places, the Royal Capital and its surrounding core cities are where most Transmigrators gather. Those cities are enormous and densely populated, with Transmigrators making up eight or nine out of every ten people there.”
Renith was slightly taken aback.
The Royal Capital and its surrounding cities combined held over ten million people. If what Kolk said was true, the number of Transmigrators was staggeringly huge.
She didn’t interrupt him—just stood quietly in front of him, listening as he continued.
“I only came to this world a few years ago, so I don’t know all the details. But I do have a rough idea of how many people are on my level—or even stronger… including me, there should be nine.”
“The two who founded the ‘Merchant’ and the ‘Scholar’ factions are unfathomably powerful and hold immense prestige and authority among Transmigrators.”
“The rest are seven Transmigrators with special ‘Divine Gifts,’ and I’m among them. But I don’t know their titles. Every one of them has extraordinary abilities and shouldn’t be underestimated.”
If these people were truly as Kolk described, then it seemed all of them could hold their own against a Grand Magus or a Duke for a while, and the strongest among them might even rival the current mightiest in the land.
Renith mused to herself. While their power didn’t compare to the Empire during the Demon War era, the steady encroachment of Transmigrators and the passage of time had caused magic and “Qi” to decline. The Empire was no longer as formidable as it once was.
“That’s it? Their abilities? Their locations?” Renith furrowed her brow, pressing further.
“All I know is that the ‘Merchant’ is in the Royal Capital and the ‘Scholar’ is in the High Tower. I have no idea where the others are, but they’re probably like me—ruling over the cities around them.”
Kolk racked his brain but couldn’t come up with anything more.
Renith gave a slight nod, having grasped the gist.
After that, she asked a few questions about technology, as well as about the Royal Capital’s troop strength, Hetis, and the Goddess Cult.
Kolk could speak a bit about technology—he even seemed to paint a picture for Renith of a society advanced by scientific progress. Though she found it intriguing, she had other promises to keep right now.
But when it came to troop numbers and Hetis, Kolk drew a blank.
“I spent most of my time in my own territory and rarely paid attention to the Royal Capital’s affairs, so I know nothing about their military deployments. As for Hetis, I’ve only heard the name—I don’t know the specifics… And the Goddess? She seems to be the deity worshipped in one of the larger cathedrals inside the Royal Capital, which is how the Goddess Cult got its name.”
After getting a general sense of the situation, Renith made up her mind.
She then handed Kolk over to the gangs and workers to deal with. They gathered around him, discussing animatedly how to punish the “mastermind” who had brought havoc to Mobis City.
After a heated debate, they unanimously decided that he had to be executed—to serve as a warning to others.
And so, Kolk’s execution was set for the morning two days later.
Renith also went to check on the captured students. Ever since she had buried the crystal from the stone statue, their mental states had gradually improved—but they still couldn’t shake off certain mental imprints anytime soon.
It was just a matter of time. Three years? Five? Or even longer.
Renith shook her head. The ones most likely to save them were probably their closest loved ones.
Over the next two days, everyone was busy dealing with the aftermath of the war.
Parts of Mobis City had been heavily damaged during the fighting and needed rebuilding.
The Borland Gun Factory, in particular—a key military industrial base—had to be restored as quickly as possible. There was also the Brand University Library, which Renith had evaluated and found to contain many valuable books.
Schubert, Lance, and over a hundred villagers stayed behind. Together with the gang members, they worked on fortifying Mobis City’s defenses.
They dug trenches along key routes and piled sandbags around important facilities within the city.
Meanwhile, the inventory work proceeded in an orderly fashion.
Renith noticed that the successive victories had greatly boosted the combat strength of the gangs and workers—they’d essentially swapped their “muskets for cannons.”
They had captured four trucks, greatly improving mobility; a hundred crates of grenades, whose power everyone had witnessed on the battlefield; and piles upon piles of guns and ammunition, enough to last them a good long while.
There was also plenty of food—even if the workers and gang members ate three full meals a day, they’d have enough for four or five days.
Vesda and Lance, following military customs, awarded those who had distinguished themselves in battle.
Though they had no medals to give, they presented each meritorious person with a fine rifle and made promises of a brighter future. These simple rewards weren’t expensive, but they were more than enough to bring plenty of smiles.
Some gang members were mobilized to round up the brainwashed students who were still resisting. These students, though fanatical, were sharp—they started waging guerrilla warfare against the gangs, causing quite a commotion.
The rest began clearing the battlefield of corpses, gathering all the bodies of the fallen gang members and workers.
Just to search for these bodies, the gangs and workers mobilized two hundred people and enlisted nearly a thousand residents who hadn’t evacuated. It took an entire day and night, scouring the city from end to end.
After paying their highest respects to these heroes, everyone cremated them together and buried them under a single headstone.
Renith used the recording stone from her codex to capture the scene, made copies, and gave them to Vesda and the others.
When Renith walked up to Schubert, she paused for a moment, a flicker of surprise crossing her face.
What amazed her was Schubert’s progress.
The many battles he’d fought had given him a wealth of experience and showcased his remarkable leadership and combat skills.
After the war ended, his outstanding performance earned him the title of a Baron.
To think—rising from an ordinary soldier to a Baron in just one month. Two hundred years ago, that kind of talent would’ve caught the Emperor’s eye directly, and he’d have been promised a future as a great general.
She’d stumbled upon a real gem. She hoped he’d keep growing.
Renith then took stock of her own gains. They weren’t much—just some potential intelligence, and the fact that her mana felt a little more solidified.
But for her, that was already enough.
She had wandered for so long, seen countless people and events, yet very few had truly stirred anything profound within her.
After wrapping everything up, Renith stepped out of the law firm’s doors. It was now the second morning.
The sun once again rose in the east. For the first time since the war, residents dared to venture out into the streets—it seemed the flames of battle had truly died down.
The residents and workers outside were all heading in roughly the same direction, and Renith followed along, arriving at the Milan Grand Plaza—the site of Kolk’s execution.
After a simple cleanup, though the scars from grenade blasts still remained, it didn’t stop the crowd from gathering.
Pushing past the throng of people, Renith spotted Kolk, bound beside the guillotine, seated before the platform.
