Chapter 540: Caught In The Act

Thud!

Two cloaked figures entered the abandoned Amon family estate under the cover of darkness, but Amon was already standing outside the dilapidated residence waiting for them, a small smile appearing on his face the moment he recognized their presence.

Shin immediately pulled off his hood and rushed into Amon’s arms, hugging him tightly with all the strength he could muster, while Damian slowly removed his own hood, revealing his long white hair.

"Sire..." Amon muttered, genuine shock flashing across his face as his eyes settled on Damian’s appearance.

Damian chuckled softly and nodded. "Defeating Duke Dantalion came at a heavy price, but don’t worry, I have enough strength to kill the Prince of Gildreach Vault. This won’t affect my fighting capabilities much."

Amon’s expression immediately became serious. He knew Damian was deliberately making his condition sound lighter than it truly was, but he also respected the fact that Damian had come to him without attempting to completely hide the damage he had suffered. There was a difference between maintaining appearances before the court and lying to someone who stood firmly on his side.

"Dad, I heard you are leaving tonight for the Dark Continent." Shin asked, finally pulling away from Amon.

Amon nodded slowly. "Don’t worry, child, I’ll make sure to visit from time to time, okay?" He lied.

"Really?" Shin asked, his eyes lighting up with hope.

Amon raised his face toward Damian, expecting the young Prince to understand the difficulty of such a promise. Instead, Damian gave him a tired smile.

"Of course he will visit you twice a year..." Damian said.

Shin’s face immediately lit up like a candle.

Amon’s eyes widened in surprise. He knew very well that the journey from Velmora to the Dark Continent could take a month, and Damian needed Amon to gather as many God Crystals as possible.

Under normal circumstances, the urgency of the situation would make regular visits nearly impossible. Yet Damian had just casually promised Shin that Amon would return twice every year, effectively forcing Amon to make good on a promise he had only made to comfort his son.

"Thank you, Sire." Amon bowed deeply.

Damian nodded with a tired smile. "I’ll leave you two together. Lucy is in a carriage not too far from here. He will take Shin back when you are ready."

Amon blinked in surprise. "You are leaving?"

Damian nodded firmly. "In today’s court meeting, I could sense the desperation in some of my officials who were disappointed to find out I was doing well and okay. I already sent someone ahead to intercept them and make sure they don’t make it out of the capital... I’m just going there to make sure nothing goes wrong."

While he had been sitting in court, Damian had sensed something unusual in the Nagen, Kitsune, and Succubus clan officials. Their desperation had been far too intense to ignore, especially after the Prince of Lust had publicly demonstrated that his condition was nowhere near as bad as his enemies hoped. He had already suspected they would attempt something before the night ended, and he had no intention of allowing them to escape Velmora and warn their families.

Amon slowly nodded, a hint of understanding appearing in his eyes. "I’m guessing it has to do with your fiancées’ families?"

Damian flashed a tired smile. "The things I learned about them made me realize why Lin Qui brought you and Darbin into his court."

Amon chuckled, but there was bitterness buried within his expression. "Lord Lin pit us against them and allowed us to fight their family, but never allowed us to completely defeat them. He was a good man but a weak minded person. It’s a relief you do not possess the same flaw."

Damian blinked in surprise. From the tone of Amon’s voice, it was obvious that he truly liked Lin Qui. There was no hatred in his words, only disappointment in the choices the former Prince had made. Damian studied him for a moment before quietly turning toward the exit.

Meanwhile, several figures entered and passed through the checkpoint at the gates of the capital under the watchful eyes of numerous soldiers. Some arrived in carriages while others departed in them.

Many traveled alongside family members, while others traveled alone. They belonged to different races and came in every shape and appearance imaginable, and the massive influx of immigrants moving through the capital made it difficult for the guards to keep track of every individual passing through the gates.

"This is the perfect time to sneak out of the empire." Rin chuckled from the comfort of Yuji’s shoulder.

Yuji floated high above the capital with Rin standing on his shoulders as they watched the steady stream of people moving through the gates below. From their position in the sky, they had an unobstructed view of the roads leading away from the capital.

"Are you certain they are going to act tonight?" Yuji asked skeptically.

"Relax, officials of the Nagen and Succubus clans have already snuck out. I’m waiting for the Kitsune clan official to walk past, then we can rope all three clans together and start the well needed purge." Rin shrugged indifferently.

Buzz!

Yuji’s eyes suddenly widened with shock. He had been carefully observing the people below, yet he had noticed nothing unusual.

"How did you know? I didn’t see a thing." Yuji’s eerie voice could not hide his surprise.

"While in Cinderfall, we came across an artifact from the Sin of Envy which hides the presence of cultivators like ourselves. However, after witnessing it several times, I have come to understand its fatal flaw." Rin began, and Yuji’s eyes widened even further.

He had heard of the beetle necklace that consumed a person’s presence and concealed them from the perception of other cultivators. It was an artifact capable of making even powerful demons appear like ordinary civilians.

"What is the weakness?" Yuji asked with genuine interest.

"The necklace is so effective that it hides a person’s soul presence."

Buzz!

Yuji’s eyes widened with shock. Unlike demonic force, everything in existence possessed a soul. Its presence was faint and almost negligible, so cultivators rarely paid attention to it, especially when compared to the raw and intense presence of demonic force.

"You mean..." Yuji muttered.

Rin nodded. "Two people who passed here didn’t have a soul presence and hid their appearances under cloaks. If it were the Kitsune clan member, they would have a transformation skill and wouldn’t need a cloak, so I guessed it’s the Nagen and Succubus clan members."

Yuji looked at the small fox on his shoulder as though he were staring at something terrifying. Rin’s ability to notice such a subtle flaw was becoming increasingly unsettling.

"Oh, and there goes the third one..." Rin said casually.

A carriage had stopped at the gate, and the soldiers stationed there opened the windows to inspect the passenger inside. A woman’s face appeared behind the glass for several seconds before the guards completed their inspection and allowed the carriage to continue through the gate.

Yuji watched it disappear into the distance, his expression becoming increasingly confused.

"Aren’t we going to go after them?" He asked.

Swoosh!

A powerful wind current suddenly blasted against Yuji’s face. He instinctively raised his hand to break the force of the wind before looking toward the source, only to find Damian floating beside him.

"You took your time." Rin said in an accusatory tone.

"Sorry, traffic..." Damian shrugged indifferently.

"Bastard, there is no traffic in the air!" Rin cursed.

Damian rolled his eyes. "I’ll leave the fox to you two... I’ll grab the other two."

Swish!

Without waiting for a response, Damian shot forward like a cannonball, tearing through the clouds as he accelerated toward the two cloaked figures who had already begun fleeing the capital.

Yuji blinked in surprise, but before he could say anything, Rin leapt from his shoulder and shot toward the carriage in a shifting blur.

Bang!

In mere seconds, Rin caught up to the carriage and smashed through its roof, entering the carriage directly. The woman inside yelped in shock, but her expression slowly twisted from surprise into terror when she saw Rin sitting comfortably on the opposite seat, calmly licking his paw as though he had not just crashed through the roof.

"Lin Qui must have played the fool so many times for you guys to forget that the Sin of Lust reads desire better than anything. The moment you decided to betray him, Damian was already aware of it." Rin chuckled while licking his paw.

"You..." The woman’s fist burst into crimson flames, but Rin simply looked at her with disappointment written all over his face.

"You do know you are only at the realm of a mere Greater Demon, right? A rank below that of Damian’s weakest concubine. I am not someone you can fight." Rin said without a care in the world.

"Bastard!" The woman tried to thrust her flaming hand forward, but another hand suddenly seized her wrist from behind.

The woman looked over her shoulder only to see Yuji’s hands holding her down while the strange demon had phased directly through the carriage from behind. His grip tightened around her wrist, completely preventing her from using the crimson flames.

Meanwhile, Damian moved through the night sky like an eagle descending upon its prey. He swooped low and seized the two cloaked figures riding as fast as they could on horseback, grabbing both of them before they could even react. Their horses continued galloping as Damian turned sharply and shot back toward the capital with the two men suspended helplessly in his grasp.

"My lord!" Both screamed in terror, their voices filled with panic.

"Don’t bother speaking... This is the end of your clans." Damian hissed, his voice cold enough to silence them immediately as he carried them back toward the capital.