Qin Ran, his face full of anxiety, completely failed to notice anything unusual ahead.
Until he stepped straight into the trap.
Sensing the change in the surrounding aura, Qin Ran's expression shifted. He tried to retreat, but the trap activated faster than he had expected.
A ring of intertwined blue, white, and black light abruptly rose, enclosing Qin Ran and an area roughly ten meters in diameter around him.
Clatter!
Amid a series of sharp rattles, a chain in the same three colors shot out of thin air and coiled around Qin Ran like a venomous snake, binding him tight.
Then, above the bound Qin Ran's head, an execution blade resembling a guillotine slowly began to appear.
Banks appeared with it.
"You're the Burning Family's eldest illegitimate son?"
With a gem flashing in his hand, Banks stepped out of the shadows and scrutinized Qin Ran suspiciously.
There was no mockery.
Only confusion.
Dressed in a robe, with glasses and disheveled hair, Banks felt that this had been a little too easy.
But immediately afterward, the gem in his hand pulsed, making him retreat several steps.
"Illusion?!"
"Just as Modi said."
"Aren't members of the Burning Family supposed to specialize in fire, with illusion as a secondary discipline?"
Banks asked and answered his own questions.
Then he shook his head, deciding not to pursue the matter.
After all, his only responsibility was to capture the target.
He could leave the rest to Modi.
That had always been the principle behind their dealings.
He stayed out of Modi's affairs, and Modi never asked about his research.
It seemed a strange arrangement, but it was the foundation of their dealings.
Both Banks and Modi understood that.
"I hope you won't struggle."
"Otherwise, you'll suffer for it."
After pointing at the guillotine overhead, Banks