At first, Annan worried Black Pearl might hurt the Minister. But she was only in her teens in terms of level. Hurting a Legendary Imperial minister would be difficult.
That only made it stranger... Who could chase someone Legendary around like a rat?
Black Pearl dug deeper and deeper. The commotion drew Imperial Army troops stationed nearby.
Several miles away, an Imperial squad watched them.
They spotted Free City's distinctive Airship and, rather than assume it was an enemy incursion, sent someone to make contact.
Annan was too embarrassed to admit he had lost the Imperial minister, so he claimed they were testing a new weapon.
Word of the battle fought by the Freedom Army and the Kingdom Army at the Northern Great Wall had spread through the Empire. At the very least, officers across the land knew about it.
The Soldier who approached looked enlightened. After asking whether Annan needed them to keep it secret, he backed off when Annan awkwardly said, "Better not tell anyone." He even kindly stood guard farther out.
The Great Pit Black Pearl had made was already over fifty meters deep, but they still had not found the Mousehole.
"Annan calling the Minister. Annan calling..."
Annan was still calling out when the dot on the Otherworld Leaf suddenly moved again and sped away.
Weary to the bone, he shouted, "Hey, are you coming back for dinner?"
Snap—
Fingers broke the water's surface and touched something solid. The whole hand clamped down like a sprung mousetrap, gripping the jutting rock tight.
The Minister barely managed to halt himself in the rushing current.
He lifted his head above the water and took several deep breaths, filling his lungs with air again.
Then he surveyed his surroundings. He was in a narrow cavity carved out by