Looking at him, Jackal spoke calmly.

“Take on the request.”

“Thank you so much!”

He expressed gratitude, even shedding tears, but somehow, he seemed engulfed in deep guilt.

Jackal looked around at the members and spoke with charisma.

“Spread out and investigate the lakeside.”

“Yes!”

The client handed them items and clothes that the children usually used.

Jackal and Sosa waited for the organization members to disappear from their sight and then transformed away from the client to a secluded place.

The two wild horses sniffed the ground, detecting the scent of the children.

The reason they also took search requests besides hunting was evident here.

Horses were truly animals with a keen sense of smell.

Other organization members, too, searched diligently with search dogs.

However, as Geb was passing nearby, he suddenly noticed two horses sniffing noses and walking side by side.

He stopped for a moment, looking at them with a bewildered expression.

Whether they felt his gaze or not, the two horses glanced back for a moment but then continued walking casually, sniffing the air.

“The chief’s horses, I heard? He’s quite an unusual guy….”

Geb shook his head in amazement.

He didn’t even approach the client, who was from the same Nasun tribe, let alone exchange greetings.

In Ricaon, there were only those who had cut ties with minority tribes and decided to live a new life.

Therefore, everyone tried not to have any private interactions with minority tribes.

While the search operation was in full swing, the sky became even more overcast.

The dark and gloomy sky, as if rain was about to fall any moment, was looked up at by Jackal, who had turned into a horse.

Continuing the search on a day like this seemed difficult.

If it rained, not only the scent but also footprints would disappear, making it challenging to find traces.

Moreover, the wind was stronger than usual, and with the river nearby, the smell of water and rain made it hard to detect the children’s scent.

Jackal turned back into a human and was about to tell the members to call it a day.

However, at that moment.

In the distance, along with the horns of the search team, urgent shouts were heard.

“Chief! It’s an ambush…!”

Jackal’s eyes widened.

In an instant, cries, clashing armor, and the sound of drawing swords echoed from all directions.

The Ricaon members, though trying to disperse and escape, already seemed to have their escape routes all figured out, as arrows flew from all directions, piercing the air in front of them.

The area around the lake turned into chaos in an instant.

The Ricaon members quickly drew their swords and engaged in a fierce battle with the knights rushing towards them.
However, it was a mismatch to face them, who were armored with armor from head to toe.

After a short battle, Ricaon found themselves surrounded on three sides, leaving the lake behind.

Jackal, from a distance, noticed a man galloping towards them on a rough horse and frowned.

Red eyes shining fiercely between black bangs.

He was none other than Emperor Karaf.

Last night, hearing Duren’s plan, he had been uneasy.

‘If she requests it from the minority village… she will surely try to help them…’

‘Yes, that’s right. Moreover, when I inquired with the minority tribe, they said that when Lady Bannet was in the village, she took care of the orphaned children. If the children are missing, Lady Bannet wouldn’t stay silent. Lady Bannet is… a kind person.’

Duren’s expression, concluding his words, was also full of guilt.

Karaf didn’t want to hear or know anything related to the minority tribe anymore, but she still cherished the minority tribe unlike Ricaon.

And his prediction was correct.

Karaf hadn’t felt Asha’s warm heart as much as this time.

It was also very painful for him to use her kind heart, but the moment he lost her from his hands during the Enlightenment era was something he could never forget.

It became a nightmare every night, turning his mind into a mess.

As if she would disappear forever if he let go of her hand, he couldn’t sleep without holding anything, be it a pillow or a bottle, in his hands.

Jackal desperately looked around, but the client was nowhere to be seen.

‘Could it have been a trap…?’

He gritted his teeth without showing it.

Dust-like pollen filled the air, emanating even more strongly from Karaf’s crazed face than last time.

It was pollen full of life, as if trying to suffocate the opponent.

All Ricaon members covered their noses and mouths, coughing due to the pollen like desert sand.

Karaf, descending leisurely from his horse, coldly observed the Ricaon members trapped in the trap he set.

Slowly sweeping his gaze and scrutinizing each face, he didn’t see Asha’s face anywhere here, and he felt a bit disappointed but relieved at the same time.

He didn’t want to blatantly show her the cruel things that would happen in the future.

Turning his head, Karaf looked at Duran next to him and gave a cold order.

“Sweep them away.”

“Yes.”