Hearing the relentless pounding on his courtyard gates, Saint Rosward was both nervous and furious.

  "What the hell is Cudius trying to do? I've shut the gates and stayed out of his way, and now he's banging on my door?" Rosward fumed, pag bad forth in his courtyard, his face red with anger.

  Surrounding him was a group of sves, along with his mentally defit son, Saint Charlos, who was sitting on a chair being carried by attendants.

  Charlos, still rec from the beating he'd received from Cudius some time ago, fli the side. His injuries had yet to fully heal, and every movement reminded him of the pain. Hearing the otion, Charlos looked panicked.

  "Father! That guy is here for trouble agai's run away!" Charlos blurted, his voice trembling with fear.

  He didn't dare provoke Cudius anymore. The st time, he'd only taken his shoes off, a Cudius nearly beat him to death. He still couldn't take care of himself not that he ever really could. Just the thought of Cudius st in made him shudder.

  Suddenly, a thought crossed Charlos' mind, awisted his bloated body in a panic. "Quick! Someone brier to wash my feet! If my feet are , maybe Cudius won't hit me!"

  Rosward's eye twitched as he watched his son. He nearly spat blood in anger.

  "What kind of idiot are you?!" Rosward roared, spping Charlos across the face. "Calm down! I'm here! Let's see if Cudius really has the guts to y a finger on you while I'm standing! If he tries anything, I'll take this straight to the Five Elders and demand justice! We're Celestial Dragons! How dare we ehis kind of persecution?!"

  Charlos froze in shock, holding his cheek where his father had spped him. "Father… you hit me?" he stammered in disbelief.

  Rosward's anger fred again, and he looked like he was about to kick his son, but a youial Dragon girl tugged at his arm.

  "Father, don't be mad at Brother. He's just scared," said the girl gently.

  Rosward sighed and patted her on the head. "Shalria, stay behind me. Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to you."

  From their versation, one might think Cudius was some notorious vilin terrorizing the i. Well, given the current circumstances, perhaps that wasirely wrong.

  Suddenly, there was a loud crash. The ores of Rosward's estate fell to the ground with a thunderous bang, crushing the manicured flower beds below.

  Through the settling dust, Cudius strode in with his usual carefree demeanor. He looked around the courtyard, rubbing his as if iing the pce.

  "Not bad, not bad. The ndsg here is pretty unique," he mused aloud.

  "Cudius! What is the meaning of this?!" Rosward roared, stepping forward in fury.

  "What's the meaning of this?" Cudius replied casually. "I was just passing by and noticed your door seemed broken wouldn't open no matter how hard I knocked. So I did you a favor and ope for you. Don't worry, I'll send someoo install a brand-new oer. I'm very siderate like that."

  Rosward's face turned crimson with rage. His hand trembled as he poi Cudius. "Get out of here! You're not wele in my home!"

  Cudius didn't bother responding. He stepped forward, brushed aside Rosward's hand with ease, and leaned down slightly. Using his height advantage, he tapped Rosward on the forehead with his finger and said, "Listen here, Rosward. Don't stand here pointing at me like you're somebody important. Don't fet your pce. We may both be Celestial Dragons, but there's a hierarchy even among us. You're just a mid-level Celestial Dragon, while I'm from the Donquixote family. Don't get too full of yourself."

  The tap on the forehead made Rosward stagger back a few steps. He ched his fists, swallowing his humiliation as he stared at Cudius with a mix of anger and fear.

  "Don't be tant, Cudius!" Rosward finally snapped. "I haven't eveled ats with you over what you did to Charlos st time. Now you e st into my home? If you don't give me an expnation, I'll take this straight to the Five Elders!"

  "Oh? Are you threatening me?" Cudius asked, his voice dripping with mockery. Then, with a smirk, he added, "Let me give you a little advice, Rosward: don't push your luck. Resisting the w is a serious offense, you know?"

  Rosward felt like his brain had short-circuited. Resisting the w? He was sitting at home minding his own business, and now Cudius was acg him of breaking the w? What w? What nonsense was this?

  Ign Rosward's dumbfounded expression, Cudius shifted his gaze to Charlos. The moment Charlos caught Cudius' eye, he flinched as though he'd been struck, trembling in his seat. Cudius, however, didn't bother with him. Pig on Charlos was hardly satisfying, it was like bullying a puppy.

  Behind Rosward, Cudius noticed a young girl peeking out nervously. Shalria, if he remembered correctly. She retty, but he had no time to himself with her.

  "I hear you've got four mermaid sves in your house," Cudius said, his tourning cold. "Hand them over now. If even one is missing, you'll find out why the flowers are red."

  "Preposterous!" Rosward roared. "Even if you're a high-rankiial Dragon, you 't just waltz in here and rob us! Those mermaids are my property, my sves!"

  Cudius waved dismissively at one of his attendants and said, "Write this down. Rosward obstructed justice, resisted w enfort, and refused to surrender illegal sves. Record this as an act of defiance against the Wover."

  Behind him, one of his clerks dutifully scribbled the words into a notebook.

  Rosward was livid. "What w did I break? What nonsense are you spewing, Cudius?!"

  Instead of answering, Cudius spped Rosward across the face, sending him sprawling to the ground. He then turo his ente and ordered, "Go inside, find those four mermaids, and bring them out. Take anything else that looks iing while you're at it, we 't visit a pce like this and leave empty-handed."

  Rosward writhed on the ground, his voice trembling with rage. "Cudius, you're nothing but a bandit! This isn't over, I'll make sure you pay for this!"

  Cudius casually dusted off his hands, ign the outburst. "Bandit? Me? Nah, I'm just following orders from the Five Elders. See for yourself."

  He tossed the royal edito Rosward's chest, then leaned down with a grin. "This is official business, saned by the highest authority. If you've got a problem, go ahead and take it up with them. But let me give you some advice, don't waste your breath. I've got more houses to raid today, and as long as you stay out of my way, I couldn't care less about you."

  Without waiting for a response, Cudius strode deeper into the estate, his ente following close behind.