Her attitude completely obscured the idea of ​​a resistance group lurking in the hotel. She gave the impression of a "popular waitress who's loved by everyone in town," and the neighbors responded in a friendly tone.

"Tsk, Hika is amazing..."

"Just how weird is your personality..."

Ryan Hyde stared at Cui helplessly, but she deftly blocked his gaze with her drooping rabbit ears, as if to say, "What the hell do you care about me?" It seemed that she and Qiara really didn't get along.

Regardless, the tense atmosphere eased considerably, and Natsu began to eat his breakfast. Bandu took over the discussion and began:

"The more important issue right now is the Black Gate. Has the Black Gate of Esperade been opened?"

"That's right."

"Uh...what's the problem?"

Sharon, who had been quietly listening to everyone's conversation, asked timidly.

It was Cui who answered his questions. But this greedy rabbit actually tried to collect information fees (?) and reached out to snatch Sharon's unfinished omelet—but was stopped by Ryan Hyde! Being a conscientious person, he wouldn't let anyone take Master Sharon's food! So, the despicable rabbit let out a "tsk!"

Natsu sighed and gave half of his egg roll to Tsui. Her mood immediately brightened, and her bunny ears wiggled happily as she began to explain.

"Remember, the effect of the artifact 'Black Gate' doesn't allow you to move to any location as long as it's within its effective range. It means you can move to the 'location of the Black Gate' within its effective range."

"That means... ah, that's right. In other words, if there's no 'Black Gate' in Esperade, there's no point. Using the 'Black Gate' outside the city would be too far..."

The train overturned near the Black Gate, located in the suburbs, about ten kilometers away. Unless they moved immediately to the next Black Gate like Cui and the others did, they would surely be overtaken by the flying dragons.

In order to ensure the safety of the passengers, they had to blend into the crowd without letting them know the attacker's identity before returning home. Therefore, it was necessary to move the passengers to the city at all costs.

"That's right. And the location must be chosen carefully, so—"

"It would have to be set up somewhere like the Liberator's secret base. Ah, but wait, then the passengers would know about the secret base!"

"That's why Mr. Bandu said this matter was problematic. Mr. Natsu came back so late to help with the aftermath, right?"

"That's exactly what happened."

In fact, in Esperade, in addition to the "Black Gate" used for emergency escape, there is also another "Black Gate" for emergency support.

Of course not at the Reshena Hotel. If the enemy were to use Black Gate to their advantage, the branch would be completely wiped out.

Therefore, the location was chosen as another secret base—a long-established clothing store run by a middle-aged woman with the aura of a noble lady. It was also where the inquiries before joining the Esperade branch took place.

That’s right, it was the shop owned by Ms. Melissa that Niz and Chiara had visited before.

One of the fitting rooms in the store is where the "Black Door" opens.

If necessary, Melissa could use her unique magic, "Handwriting Identification," to confirm whether the transferred person was someone the manager knew. If there were only one or two people, even if a customer who hadn't entered the store walked out, passersby wouldn't notice.

However, there were about a hundred passengers on the train at the time, and if many people with confused faces were to come out of the clothing store in an endless stream, it would surely be very eye-catching.

Moreover, the passengers themselves would certainly report the train attack to various church-related organizations.

"So, you came back alone because Leonardo and the others stayed at the branch? That's no surprise. The news of the train overturn alone must have been a huge commotion in Esperade. To keep track of the Church and the subjugation forces, and to handle the various investigations starting with Ms. Melissa, we simply couldn't have enough manpower."

"No, they've all left Esperade and will be hiding somewhere else for the time being."

At this moment, for some reason, Cui suddenly tensed up, as if feeling guilty, and her eyes shifted inexplicably. However, Bandu didn't notice and continued speaking.

"Why is that... Oh, right? It's to guard against Kaim Byrne's 'Holy Guidance', right?"

"That's right. Currently, apart from having Ross examine them, there's no way to confirm whether they've been affected by that magic. Leonardo and the others' souls might have been synchronized when the train was attacked. Considering this possibility, not only the headquarters, but also none of their branches dare to enter."

Leonardo and the others came to this conclusion after hearing from Nizu what happened after they split up.

Suddenly, Xia Lun's expression showed sadness, and it was not difficult to imagine what was on his mind.

Ryan Hyde was worried about him, but he still raised the question in his mind first.

"Natsu-sama. If there are no pursuers for a while, doesn't that mean everything is fine?"

"No, the other party may have deliberately let them act freely."

"That's true. Anyway, we can only wait for Ross to wake up. Although, in this state, even Mei's regeneration might not be able to cure it immediately..."

"Whether or not your physical condition is good also makes a big difference."

At this point, the image of Meredi flashed through Natsu and Bandu's minds.

"Anyway, we should focus on getting back to headquarters."

After Natsu finished explaining, Bandu and the others nodded in agreement. But a certain rabbit didn't nod.

"Excuse me……"

It was Cui. Somehow, she had suddenly become inexplicably quiet when she was halfway through listening, and only now timidly raised her hand.

There was something really wrong with her reaction.

His eyes were wandering and he seemed to be sweating a little.

Seeing her like this, everyone present thought she must have gotten into trouble.

"Tell me, useless rabbit, what did you do?"

Bandu asked aggressively, a broad smile on his face. As expected of the Demon King's brother, his smile was truly Demon King-like.

"H-Well... Mr. Natsu, before that, let's ask Tsui to confirm one thing. Which hideout did Mr. Leo and the others go to?"

"Hmm? I remember they said they were going to the outskirts of the capital to keep an eye on the subjugation team—"

"ah."

It was Ryan Hyde who spoke. Then, Sharon asked with a stiff expression, his mouth twitching:

"Ms. Cui...did you tell your brothers back then that you were willing to reveal our secret base near the capital in exchange for their saving your life?"

Suddenly, the air froze.

Nizu and Bandu stared at Cui. Their eyes were empty and lifeless, a look that could only be described as emptiness.

Cui's gaze flickered for a moment like a swimming fish, and then her expression changed.

"Yeah, yeah, that's exactly what Tsui said, but so what!? Tsui was desperately trying to buy time back then! Oh right! Blame it on you two, Natsu-san, for taking so long!"

Shifting the blame and making a fuss.

“You really are…”

Bando's cheeks twitched stiffly, and Natsu held his head in distress.

"Come to think of it, when we confirmed that Mr. Rouse was in Entris, the hideout there was already abandoned! Who would have thought that a companion would go back and use it?! And even then, Cui didn't reveal the exact location! That's it, perfect! Cui's performance was flawless again this time! Hurry up and praise Cui!"

"No, since they know there's a hostile base near our base, they'll definitely be searching desperately for it. If we don't notify Leonardo and the others, it'll be disastrous."

"Then just send a message! No problem!"

Then, Cui continued to shout, "That's it, you have all been refuted by Cui, and this matter ends here! Cui will not accept any opinions!" She immediately stood up and fled back to the room on the second floor.

"Never mind, never mind. Her improvisation did buy us some time, otherwise the consequences would have been disastrous..."

"Y-yes! Natsu-san, Bando-san! Tsui-san definitely didn't betray us! I guess... maybe... it must be..."

Ryan Hyde hurried to smooth things over, but Sharon seemed unsure.

Natsu and Bandu looked at each other, paused, and then continued:

"We don't doubt her."

"As far as buying time is concerned, this is indeed the best topic. This guy is still the same, except that he's particularly good at taking advantage of opportunities."

After saying that, the two of them shrugged and smiled bitterly at the same time.

It seemed that the trust between them had not been affected. After realizing this, Ryanhead and Sharon both breathed a sigh of relief.

So, Natsu grabbed Cui's collar and dragged her back to the cafeteria.

Then, they sent a message to Leonardo using the hotel's messenger bird, and discussed future plans. By the time Chiara returned, the group had already set off for headquarters.

About two days passed since then.

Natsu and the others arrived at the city where the Liberator's headquarters was located.

The capital of the Principality of Uldia, Damdorak.

This city is located close to the eastern shore of the world's largest lake, Lake Ur, and is known as the "Water City".

However, this city is not built along the lakeside, but about half of the city is built on the lake.

Rivets are driven into shallow waters several kilometers long to create a foundation on which buildings, roads, bridges and other facilities are built.

The urban area on the lake is covered with a network of waterways, and most people use boats as their main means of transportation, creating a somewhat elegant atmosphere.

In addition, the clean lake water from the northern mountainous area is the lifeline of this rich agricultural country. Therefore, no one dares to pollute the water quality, and it is always crystal clear, reflecting ever-changing brilliance under different sunlight and moonlight conditions.

──The most beautiful city in the world.

Even the gods agree with this title, which is enough to prove that its reputation is well-deserved.

Now, the group was hiding in the woods on the south side of the lake, gazing at this beautiful city. "Wow..." Sharon couldn't help but exclaim in admiration. Ryanhead was also fascinated by the sight.

"So? How long are we going to stay here?"

Cui doesn't seem to know how to appreciate the beautiful scenery.

"Someone should be here to pick us up," Natsu replied briefly. Tsui tilted her head in confusion.

"A pickup, huh? Looks like we're not going through the city streets."

"The streets in the city are very narrow, and it's inconvenient to move around by boat."

After saying that, Natsu glanced back. Behind him were Uruluk and Kuo. He was right. It would be impossible to sneak through the streets with these two behemoths.

"What a hassle~ Let's just find a place to release these two—"

""Horr!"

"Eeee! I'm sorry~!"

Cui immediately knelt and kowtowed. Bandu, carrying Rouse on his back, looked at her with a look as if she were an insect and began to persuade her:

"Don't complain. Uruluk and Kuo are also exhausted, not unscathed. I want them to receive Mei's treatment as soon as possible."

With Uruluk and the others putting pressure on her, Cui had no choice but to say "Okay~" with tears in her eyes.

Thanks to Cui's embarrassment (?), Sharon and Ryan Hyde finally stopped being moved by the beautiful scenery. To hide his previous tourist mentality, Sharon quickly put on a serious expression and asked.

"Just now you said you wouldn't go through the city streets...but isn't the headquarters in the city?"

Ryan Hyde turned his head, his expression saying, "Could it be..."

However, before they could get a reply, Uruluk and Kuo reacted first and looked up at the branches above.

A beat later, Natsu and the others also turned their gazes. Then, a leisurely greeting sounded, "Nya~."

It was a cat. A cat with black and white stripes, a common sight. It was perched on a branch, looking down at the group.

"It seems like they're here to pick us up."

"Huh? Is that the cat!?"

“No, he’s my guide.”

Sharon and Ryan Hyde subconsciously tensed up because the voice that said this was completely unfamiliar.

Glancing to the side, Natsu and Bando looked a bit surprised, but not wary at all. Only then did they let down their guard.

"Tim, is that you?"

"The captain of the communication unit came out to greet us personally. It's truly VIP treatment."

"Stop teasing me, Mr. Natsu, Mr. Ban."

The man said this with a wry smile. At the same time, he emerged from the bushes. It was a young man wearing a peaked cap and carrying a backpack—Tim Rockett.

The cat jumped down from the branch and came to his shoulder.

Although he knew he was one of his own, Ryan Hyde still stood in front of Sharon and asked:

"Excuse me, who is this person...?"

"They're the winners in life, letting animals do the work for them while they idle away their time."

Cui's sour explanation displeased the cat on Tim's body. "Swish!" it pounced on her. "Ah, stop it! Stop pulling out my rabbit fur!" Cui wailed loudly, rolling on the ground. No one paid any attention to her.

After the two sides introduced themselves to each other and clarified their identities, Tim suggested that they should not stay here for long and led the group to move.

"Come to think of it, this is quite unusual. Of course, I don't agree with what Cui said..."

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