Portrait

Tai Yuema raised his sword to block...

Clang!!

A tremendous force sent him flying. His palm went numb, and as the scenery rushed backward around him, he slammed into a wall. He paused for a moment before regaining his senses.

When he looked at the longsword in his hand, he found a small notch in it, marked with something resembling a bite.

"Disaster Grade High Rank Anomaly... Disaster Grade High Rank Anomaly!!"

Tai Yuema made a snap decision. He abandoned the Eagle Merchant Group and ran for his life.

But to his surprise, the Sticky Cotton Anomaly seemed to have its sights set on him. It pursued him relentlessly, ignoring the others in the Eagle Merchant Group.

The two of them raced through the night, one chasing the other, soon vanishing into the darkness.

At first, when the members of the Eagle Merchant Group saw Tai Yuema run, they all froze in unison. Their faces turned ashen with fear and panic.

But when they realized the Anomaly had left with him, they immediately understood.

"Lord Tai is drawing the Anomaly away from us!"

"He's using himself as bait! What noble sacrifice!"

"Thank you, Lord Tai, for saving our lives!"

Their voices rang with gratitude. It was fortunate Tai Yuema couldn't hear them, or he would have spat blood.

He'd intended to use these people as bait while he made his escape. But the Anomaly wouldn't let up, and he'd ended up as the bait instead.

After figuring out which way to go, Tai Yuema hurried toward the Heavenly Merchant Alliance headquarters.

The Heavenly Merchant Alliance had many experts. Most importantly... its leader was there!

Little hands emerged from the eaves to block his way, but Tai Yuema dealt with them one by one without slowing down.

At full speed, it