I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

"No. That kind of food is unhealthy. It's fine to eat it occasionally, but not too much."

Anthony has an uncompromising insistence on matters of dessert.

After sternly forbidding Elodie from eating any more desserts, Anthony turned his gaze back to his beloved granddaughter.

Tonight, Elodie is wearing a white gown that Anthony just bought for her.

The pure white, exquisite dress perfectly complemented the child's sky-blue eyes and her long, light golden hair, which was tied up in a bun.

Elodie has now recovered from the frustration of being forbidden from eating desserts by her grandfather.

She seemed to really like the grapes Anthony had just recommended to her, and she happily popped them into her mouth one after another.

Seeing Elodie's delighted expression... Anthony's gaze became unfocused, as if he were looking at some distant landscape.

Strictly speaking... Anthony is indeed looking at a very distant view right now.

He was gazing intently at the scenes of memories he had buried deep in his mind since bringing Elodie to Japan.

"Hmm? Grandpa, what's wrong? Why are you suddenly spacing out?"

Elodie noticed Anthony's unusual behavior and stopped putting grapes in her mouth.

"nothing……"

Anthony raised his right thumb and forefinger and rubbed his eyes vigorously.

"I'm just suddenly feeling very emotional... It's so wonderful that I was able to rescue you from that person and bring you to this faraway country."

"Although this country is still fraught with crises... our lives will definitely get better and better."

Elodie lowered her eyebrows in surprise for a moment, then smiled gently, revealing a mature smile that seemed quite out of place for her young and petite frame.

"Grandpa, please don't cry here."

Elodie raised her hand and gently patted Anthony's back.

Unexpectedly comforted by his granddaughter, Anthony's expression became both amused and exasperated.

……

……

At this very moment—

Somewhere outside Bright's mansion—

"Is everyone here? Is everything ready?"

"Is everything ready?"

"Okay, let's go!"

……

For some, tonight is truly blessed by the heavens... The dark night with almost no moonlight is like a natural "camouflage".

Under the cover of night, a dozen or so dark figures carrying large wooden crates approached Bright's mansion from all directions.

After rushing to an inconspicuous corner, they used the tools they had prepared beforehand to pry open the wooden crate.

If Mr. Bright were here, he would surely find the wooden box and its contents quite familiar—the bottles and jars inside are the sake he ordered from Natsume Sohachiro.

Clang, clang... The dozen or so dark figures hurriedly carried out the sake from the box one by one, making a crisp sound like porcelain clattering together.

"Hurry up, throw them all out!"

At this command, the bottles of sake that the shadowy figures pulled from the box were forcefully thrown toward the nearby Bright mansion.

Snap, snap, snap, snap...

An unpleasant odor instantly filled the surrounding space.

What's inside these "sake" bottles isn't sake at all, but rather pungent kerosene!

"ignition!"

The cold, emotionless shouts were like a pronouncement of guilt and punishment.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh…!

The sound of flames burning...

Heat and waves of fire surged high into the air!

……

……

"Ok?"

Elodie sniffed her little nose hard.

"Grandpa, do you smell anything strange?"

"A strange smell?" Anthony glanced at Elodie beside him in confusion, sniffed lightly, and then his expression changed slightly.

He also smelled a strange odor...

The strange smell spread rapidly, and soon, more and more people in the dance hall stopped what they were doing and looked puzzled upon smelling it.

The smell grew stronger... Some people with a keen sense of smell could already detect the smell of something burning.

Immediately following the strange smell, strange sounds were heard in the dance hall.

Snap, whoosh... Although the sounds were faint, most people clearly heard the sound of the flames burning...

A bad feeling immediately popped into everyone's minds.

Quite by chance—a maid's shout as she rushed into the ballroom at that moment quickly confirmed everyone's horrifying suspicions:

"Oh no! Oh no! Fire! Fire!" (in English)

Although many of the attendees at tonight's ball came from non-English speaking countries, they could still understand some simple English words, such as "fire."

A tense atmosphere instantly filled the dance hall.

Then, in the next instant, this tense atmosphere suddenly exploded—

"Elodie!"

Anthony shouted Elodie's name, who was still in shock, and with a large, fat hand, grabbed her and rushed out of the mansion.

Screams, running sounds... the hall was no longer the elegant place it once was.

These banquet guests, who had been impeccably dressed until just moments before, were now fleeing in panic toward the mansion's gates and outwards, completely disregarding their image.

The fastest runner was a handsome Englishman wearing a black tailcoat.

He pushed open the mansion gate forcefully, and then—

laugh!laugh!laugh!

Arrows whistled past him.

Dozens of samurai stood menacingly outside the mansion's gates, ten of them carrying large Japanese bows. Upon seeing someone emerge from the house, they immediately raised their bows and fired without hesitation.

Although the arrow did not hit the Englishman, it still frightened him quite a bit.

"Don't go out! There are many assassins outside!" (in English)

The man, terrified and covered in cold sweat, retreated back into the house in a panic.

Because Anthony, who was holding Elodie in his arms, was at the forefront of the fleeing group, he also saw the group of samurai blocking the gate, and another layer of cold sweat broke out on his back.

Unable to use the main gate, the group frantically turned around to search for other escape routes.

However... whether it was a side door or a window, every possible way out was blocked by menacing samurai.

Where there are no warriors, there is fire.

Because a large amount of kerosene had been poured in advance, the flames spread extremely quickly.

The flames spread rapidly along the pillars and walls, and in just a few moments, half of the mansion was engulfed in flames.

Thick, acrid smoke began to billow towards the crowd.

Sparks flew and exploded around their ears, and the burning wooden frame overhead collapsed, grazing past Elodie and Anthony. Elodie screamed in fright.

"It's alright, it's alright." Anthony quickly patted Elodie's back to comfort her.

Anthony's voice trembled uncontrollably... He was terrified, but he had to suppress his anxiety and fear so as not to exacerbate Elodie's panic.

The fire had already spread... and they couldn't stay here any longer. Everyone quickly fled to areas that hadn't yet been affected by the flames.

Bright's mansion wasn't very large to begin with, and the dark figures had started the fire from both the east and west sides at the same time, so the flames spread at an astonishing speed.

Ultimately, unable to find a way to escape, the group had no choice but to return to a spacious corridor near the main gate, where they paced anxiously in circles.

Are those people outside thugs from the "expelling the barbarians" faction? (Russian)

"Mr. Bright! Do you have a secret escape route here?"

"Cough! Cough! Cough! Don't stay here! Smoke is coming!" (French)

……

Men were roaring, women were screaming... a jumble of languages ​​mingled with the heat and smoke.

The sudden turn of events left everyone pale and filled with fear.

Just five minutes ago, these people were chatting politely and dancing gracefully, but now they are screaming and roaring in terror... The stark contrast creates a bizarrely comical scene...

……

……

Elodie and Anthony were trapped inside Bright's mansion, so they didn't realize that not only Bright's mansion, but several other places on the estate were also set on fire at almost the same time.

It was like a movie that was playing in slow motion was suddenly sped up, shattering the tranquility of the settlement.

The sounds of flames burning, the wind whipped up by the fire, screams, and the footsteps of people fleeing in terror...

The sound waves composed of these sounds should have been harsh and unpleasant, making people feel uncomfortable.

But for Kamino, these sounds were simply the most beautiful music in the world.

—Finally, we can wipe out this hateful neighborhood…