Chapter 2876: Mist District, Star Mist City

Date: Unspecified

Time: Unspecified

Location: Myriad Realms, Card World, Southern Region, Mist District, Star Mist City, Teleportation Hub

"Welcome to Star Mist City, Your Highness Wyatt."

The City Lord came personally, trailed by his closest aides, all smiles and ceremony as he ushered me toward a banquet in my honor.

The banquet itself was nothing more than a stage. The city’s most influential Card Apprentices had gathered to present their loyalty, each hoping to turn their defection from the Southern Royal Family into bargaining power.

It wasn’t.

With Seraphina Heatsend as the new Southern Heir, their options had already collapsed. The Southern Princess might strip them of wealth and leave them breathing. Seraphina would not bother with such restraint. She would take their heads and call it order.

Unless the Princess rose again, these people had nowhere left to go. They weren’t negotiating. They were clinging for their lives.

Even so, I followed him to the banquet and pretended to enjoy it, though I had always disliked such gatherings. This wasn’t just my first impression of them—it was their first impression of me

Most of these people conducted business across the Southern Region. They had connections in cities that had chosen to side with me, as well as in those still loyal to the Southern Royal Family. Whatever I did here would ripple through their social circles, not just across the Southern Region but throughout all five regions, get the people talking about what was happening even if it was uncomfortable for a few.

It aligned with my plans to expand west, so I made an appearance, if only to announce the arrival of the new Southern Heir, Seraphina Heatsend.

At my words, the entire banquet fell silent, and soon enough, questions began to ripple through the hall about what I intended to do. I let Karl answer them. With practiced ease, he suggested that anyone who didn’t feel safe was free to use the teleportation hub to temporarily relocate to other cities. Of course, it came at a premium, war-time rates during a bloodstorm, and an even steeper fee for priority.

With that, the banquet quickly came to an end, leaving the City Lord unsure whether to laugh or despair at his situation. As the City Lord, like any other bureaucrat, he could not abandon the city in a time of distress unless he was prepared to be branded a deserter and face the consequences.

Watching the city’s elites flee in panic, paying steep prices for their escape, I couldn’t help but shake my head. I wasn’t sure if it was cowardice or a lack of trust in me. Either way, it was clear their loyalty lay with their own interests and wealth.

Compared to the Border City, Star Mist City was something else entirely—though both had their strengths. One was a war fortress; the other, a money press.

I kept watch over the city with Henricks while Sansa and Redfall checked the perimeter. Thanks to the Southern Royal Family’s greater teleportation array formation, Seraphina and her demigod squad could arrive anywhere within the old Southern Region. That was why I was certain that if she didn’t strike Star Mist City as expected, she would go straight for Sky Blossom City.

"My Lord, I think you were right—she might be planning to attack Sky Blossom City," Henricks said as time dragged on and nothing happened.

"I know she’s going to attack Sky Blossom City. Why else do you think she pushed these cities into our arms?"

"She wanted to hand us a win so we’d lower our guard. Her plan has always been to capture Sky Blossom City—and the Blossom District. After all, that’s where you began your campaign. If she takes it, right at the heart of your new empire, the other districts will be discouraged and feel like they have no choice but to surrender."

Coming to this realization, Henricks’ eyes widened in surprise before he turned to me and asked, "Your Highness, why aren’t we at the Sky Blossom City to wait for her?"

"Will a predator walk into a trap to steal the bait if it sees the hunter nearby?" I glanced at the horizon, a faint smile playing on my lips.

"Then why didn’t you tell the others in the city? Are you worried there are traitors among them?"

"No, it’s not traitors that concern me, but the Southern Royal Family’s diviners. After witnessing the memories of Clown Mask, they invested heavily in their divination department to better navigate the future she saw—and the one they’re now living through. It isn’t their strength or numbers that worry me, but their methods."

Henricks nodded in understanding. Though impressed by his lord’s insight, he couldn’t help but ask, "Then why bring only the five of us? Wouldn’t a larger force make the bait more tempting for the predator?"

"It would—but this predator is highly intelligent. She knows how I operate, thanks to the Southern Princess, who learned how I defeated the three mischief with a small team of capable demigods through Corey. If I brought more demigods with me, she would know something was off.

"Let’s just wait patiently for news from Sky Blossom City. By now, with the help of the greater barrier array formation covering the entire old Southern Region, they should have confirmed that I’ve truly left Sky Blossom City and am actually camped in Star Mist City."

Hearing that his lord had taken everything into account, Henricks shook his head in quiet dismay. In all his centuries of experience, as the Field Marshal of the Central Region and the leader of the freedom fighters, he had rarely seen such thorough foresight. He could not help but wonder if his lord himself was a diviner.

Well, I was not a diviner, but I possessed the Hive Spirit, which not only gathered information but also allowed me to simulate outcomes with accounted errors.

"Everyone, assemble—the predator has taken the bait. It’s time to hunt," I said, the moment my bloodkin in Sky Blossom City alerted me to Seraphina and her demigod squad’s arrival.

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