Living As the Villainess Queen

During the active season, more robust measures were necessary to seal the seeds. However, during the dry season, as long as the seeds weren’t mishandled, they were stored with just a small amount of oil, minimizing the risk of breakage. Shaking the glass bottle lightly, one of the men spoke, “With three lark seeds, that number will be reduced to ashes in an instant.”

Another voiced caution, “If it’s too threatening, it could be problematic. We need to extract the head of the Arse family without causing harm. How about releasing only two for now?”

Consensus reached, the five men, knights known as Judges, discussed their sinister plan with a casual and nonchalant demeanor.

Unbeknownst to the city’s inhabitants, the Judges were far more malevolent than the world knew. Rarely seen within the city, Judges assumed an inconspicuous presence. Tasked with their mission by Sang-je, they had been covertly tailing Dana since her departure from the city.

“Retrieve the head of the Arse family. However, keep this information shrouded in secrecy,” Sang-je had commanded.

Sang-je asserted having unearthed evidence of Anika Jin’s collaboration with sinister forces, prompting her hasty flight, with the head of the Arse family purportedly serving as her clandestine sponsor. The veracity of the claim was inconsequential; even lacking a concrete rationale, the Judges would unquestioningly adhere to Sang-je’s orders. They were unequivocally obedient to his directives.

The Judges were enthralled by the power that allowed them to rationalize any action as the divine will. For them, force became the swiftest and most straightforward means of resolving matters.

While Sang-je had merely directed them to retrieve the head of the Arse family, providing no explicit details about the method, the Judges interpreted the mandate of secrecy as an implicit order to eliminate potential witnesses. This approach had consistently proven effective in previous missions without complications.

“Let’s release only two for now. And when the larks start moving, you and you…”