Bckbeak Street was quite busy since Ren's previous visit, as one of the rger, three-story houses that occupied a central position had been rocked at its foundation. There was no way for Boursat to salvage it, so it had to be demolished. When Ren finally came again, rebuilding was already underway, a process that hadn't occurred here for about a hundred years. The whole neighborhood was like an anthill that had been disturbed, as people of all kinds and ages were moving around and working in some way or another. As Ren walked through the previously empty-looking streets, she saw people pushing handcarts filled with building materials, children running around with vats of water, and elderly people sweeping up the trash. It felt like a well-oiled machine as everyone, regardless of age or gender, had their roles in this part of the Cheese District.

  "I'm surprised how orderly they work," Ren murmured, walking next to Hal, going towards the main construction, watching the busy people around her.

  "Boursat was a general and an heir to the throne once." He answered, "He valued order and efficiency when he was commanding his troops. This is not so surprising."

  "Oh, Mother told me a little about it. Hmmm... Uncle Hal, you never mentioned you were a General once, either. Is this some tradition?"

  "It's not important anymore." The old man smiled, "The same is true for both of us. I once led the support troops, but it was a long time ago, and I was injured... So, I stepped down. It was a different life, in a different time."

  "Huh... I see. I'm just curious how you ended up with us." She smiled, listening to him, crossing her arms behind her head.

  "The Lord is worthy of following. That's all, nothing more."

  "I get the feeling you don't want to talk about it." Ren muttered, pursing her lips, "Ooookay, consider it dropped."

  "Stop! Who are you, and what are you doing here?" came forward two men, wearing old, leather armor, with clubs at their waists and a red headband, just as Ren stopped talking.

  "Wildcat members, Young Lady." Hal introduced them. "From the enforcer teams."

  "Yeah, we knocked a few simir guys out when we came here," she nodded, smilingly at the two.

  "If you are here to stir up trouble, you came to the wrong street!" one of the 'guards' snorted as he kept his hand on the club's handle, eyeing Hal, ignoring Ren completely.

  "My Young Lady is here to meet your Boss," Hal answered in turn, not even flinching at the threat the two were signaling towards them.

  "A lot of people want to meet him. What makes you special?" They snorted, ready to follow it up with an insult.

  "Stand down," a woman's voice interrupted, and a moment ter, Isha appeared, wearing a gray overall with different tools hanging from her waist. She was covered with dust and paint smudges all over her clothes as she took off her gloves, walking over with a suspicious gaze.

  "Captain!" The two men saluted, standing to the side while Isha looked at Hal, then at Ren with even colder eyes.

  "What about the two others?" She snorted.

  "They couldn't come. You look good, already in top form?" Ren giggled while answering, checking her out, top to bottom. "Tsk, I really envy you!"

  As an answer, Isha only rolled her eyes before turning around, waving the two thugs away.

  "Follow me!" She snorted, "Plus, tell your boytoy next time he will be the one on the floor, puking," she added with a frustrated voice, leading them into one of the run-down houses at the side.

  "No problem," Ren cpped, grinning, "but I'm not so sure about that, fufufu~!"

  "Hmf. I admire your bravery to come back so soon." Isha countered, not wanting to give her the final words.

  "And I admire yours! That was selfless what you did. You like him, don't you?" Ren walked up to her with a sly smile, watching her face.

  "Yes," came the straight answer without hesitation.

  "Are you a couple?" She pressed on.

  "No."

  "Huh? Why?" She blinked her eyes, surprisedly, because as far as she remembered, Boursat's reaction was also pretty intense when Isha threw herself into the way of the belt.

  "He took me in when I was a kid and almost killed myself." Isha murmured, with a tinge of sadness, remembering those years, "It was the darkest days of my life, and he rescued me from it."

  "Oh, I see!" Ren sighed, but then patted her hand suddenly, making Isha flinch in surprise. "Don't give up. I may be able to help you push him down!"

  "Huh? What?! You? And the grass is blue!" she screeched as she tore away her hands, looking down at Ren as if she were mad.

  Luckily, she didn't have to spend too much time with her, as they arrived at a spacious room filled with tables pushed together and a giant blueprint sprawled out on them. As they walked in, Boursat and a few others stood around it, discussing how to design the new building using the avaible materials.

  "Boss." Isha interrupted them, and when Boursat saw Hal and Ren, he kept his calm exterior, only watching the smiling little girl for a second before speaking to his men.

  "Half an hour break, and we will continue afterward." He said ftly, "I've got something to take care of."

  There were no protests amongst them, and a moment ter, only the four of them were left in there. Remaining silent, Boursat lit his pipe and took some deep huffs from it before speaking again, looking at Ren with a fsh in his eyes.

  "You want a rematch?"

  “Ugh… well…" She flinched, "I thought about it, true, but... no." Ren answered honestly.

  "You've got guts, you little-" Isha snorted, but Boursat stopped her with a hand and just listened to Ren's following words.

  "You held back, for the most part, I realized it," Ren continued, "but you must admit it! If we were just a level stronger, you would've been in danger!"

  "True. And then holding back would only result in my loss," he nodded as he exhaled smoke through his nose. "Drinks?" he asked, and hearing it, Isha had produced a wine jug, filling four cups, muttering under her breath.

  "I never tried it before!" Ren giggled, reaching towards one cup, but Hal grabbed her little dress and pulled her back, making her grunt in protest, "Ugh! Uncle Haaaal~!"

  "You are still too young to drink, My Lady."

  "Ahaha, true, she barely reaches the table~!" Isha ughed, watching her mockingly, while Boursat also had a smile on his face.

  "Hmf, you did this on purpose…." Ren murmured as if sulking, looking at Isha, who, in response, only ughed at her even more loudly.

  "So, what is the reason you came then, if not a rematch?" Boursat asked, putting the conversation back on track, "Not even the Emperor's men have come here in the past few days to ask what happened. I did not expect to see you again so soon either."

  "I'm sorry," Ren said suddenly, cupping her hands and bowing to Boursat, which made him almost choke on the wine while Isha spilled hers onto herself, unable to comprehend what was happening... because Ren was way too sincere in that moment.

  "I just can't get a read on you..." Boursat replied after a sudden pause, shaking his head, forcing his mind back to spinning, "Enough! Straighten already! I don't care anymore... If this is all you wanted, leave!"

  "I have a second thing here. A kind of… business proposition." She continued, smiling like a devil.

  This, finally, also surprised Hal as he watched Ren, who brought a chair closer and stood on it so she would be at the same height as the giant man. Which even then was a challenge... and a failure, forcing her to still look upwards.

  "But first, I'd like to know more about your businesses." Ren added, deadly serious, "I don't want to make a deal with someone who tortures their own."

  "I'm not a saint." Boursat answered, keeping eye contact, curious, "I run my streets like I ran my unit. I have strict ws, and if someone breaks them, they pay. I own every property in this part of town, too. They live rent-free, have their safety guaranteed, but in exchange, they work for me. Always. Every person who lives in my district is part of my unit and has their responsibilities, be it a child, elderly, man, or woman."

  "What about the working girls?"

  "I take a forty percent cut on their income." He continued, never breaking eye contact, "Isha regutes and oversees their health, safety, and working schedules. If they are tired, they can take up management roles and train the newcomers. They are lucrative, that's for sure, and if they don't work or don't want to, then they can get the fuck out of my streets. I don't feed, dress, or house zy pigs."

  "What about the marking I overheard?" Ren continued, asking everything she had memorized.

  "It's this," Isha said, as she took off her top while turning back and showing a tattoo resembling a butterfly, spreading its wings, pstered above her right butt cheeks. "It's a blessing from the Gods."

  "Expin," Ren spoke, turning more serious, watching the tattoo while Boursat and Isha looked at each other, surprised at her reaction.

  "The Young Lady never paid attention to religious matters," Hal added quietly, shaking his head. "She avoids it more than anything."

  "As most nobles do. They dislike the thought of someone above them!" Boursat sighed, shaking his head, "The Emperors never promoted it either, but most mortals tend to pray to Goddess Nilier here. This is a blessing from her. It's not cheap, but for those who work for us, I provide them with it. It's permanent. It can be applied only by a priestess who remained pure, never touched by a man, and practiced the worship of Nilier her whole life. Otherwise... it will be defective. Nowadays... finding someone like that... Only a handful remains throughout the empire."

  "It protects the girls from all kinds of illnesses, mostly from intercourse and keeps their… um… privates clean." Isha added, "Goddess Nilier is the protector of women, after all. She has a wide range of blessings, as I heard, but... the virtue to acquire them is not what we excel in."

  "What a great protector, caring for those who pay..." Ren snorted, rolling her eyes. "And virgins...? Really... One bad boyfriend and she turns to the extreme...?" She added, muttering under her breath.

  "You need to earn the grace of a God when you get this on your body," Isha added, and it felt like she believed in its effectiveness."

  "This is… bad… this never happened before; they had followers, but not like this. Blessings? Offerings? Something is off." Ren couldn't help but bite her lips, thinking about it. "Tsk… I need to get stronger and look into it, but I'm not ready to do it just yet. Ugh... If they perceive my soul through a prayer or something, and then they can identify me... Fuck… this is troublesome…” She kept thinking to herself, biting her finger, looking like she was considering something significant.

  "Young Lady?" Hal asked, interrupting her thoughts.

  "Nothing." Ren flinched, shaking her head, "Khm. What about other gangs?"

  "We have a fragile equilibrium set up." Boursat answered, seeing she returned to the present, "There are scuffles, but nothing great. No one intrudes on the others' streets and businesses, and everything goes peacefully until it remains true. Why?"

  "Because what I want to offer may change that." Ren smiled slyly. "Did you not wonder what made us strong enough to fight you?" she added, standing on the chair and stepping on the table with one leg, looking like a pirate captain. "I devised a new cultivation technique. I'm willing to share it because I need a great amount of feedback from different affinities to refine it! My current data and analysis are still insufficient to finalize it... Simply put: I need a greater sample pool!"

  Even Hal was surprised and couldn't help but interject as she heard her words. He knew the Young Lady and the Fourth Prince were working on something, but he never looked into it deeply as he trusted Ren. But telling this to... someone like Boursat?!

  "Young Lady, why not tell your parents first? Or ask for help from them?"

  "I'm ready to tell them." Ren nodded, "Don't worry, I'll tell my mother after we return home. But I can't ask for help or teach this to soldiers under Father's lead. They are the 'property' of the empire. In the end, others would easily pick them up, make them disappear, and it would invite trouble for Father after they realize what is happening... I won't do that."

  "So?" Boursat asked, now more interested than ever before, long before she started to expin. Since that fight, he was taking Ren as someone who was on the same level as him, not as a child.

  "At first, I'll teach this to Isha." Ren hummed, "She can try it out and maybe advance in a few days."

  "A few days?" Isha blinked her eyes, clearly shocked. "Yeah, sure! Dream on..."

  "You have been stuck at your level for over a decade now, no?" Ren gnced at her, licking her lips, "My method will help you out. It's just… You need to figure out how to utilize it."

  "How can you tell...?" Isha asked, feeling a bit taken aback at her precise reading.

  "I felt it." Ren shrugged. "You have fire affinity... Mhm. If you are not careful, you can burn your own body and suffer internal injuries," she added, smiling like a little devil again, "But my method comes with a big reward. When we advance," she pointed at herself, "we do it with one push and have greater strength than others on the same refinement levels. We don't need to worry about unsynchronized body parts as we go through the levels as a whole being! As it should be."

  "Pft! Sure!" Isha rolled her eyes, "Speaking like you know best. Bitch."

  "So you want us to be used as guinea pigs?" Boursat asked, raising his eyebrows, ignoring Isha.

  "Mmm, it's nicer to call yourselves… um… as research partners!" Ren giggled, sticking her tongue out, "I don't ask you to force this on everyone, of course. I want you to select talented people under you with different affinities and let them train with it. I require regur feedback and evaluation on a monthly basis. Just... let the curious have a go at it."

  "What's the catch?" Boursat asked, aware that things don't come freely.

  "Nothing, really." Ren answered honestly, "I just need data and feedback. You are outside the eyes of most officials, perfect for me. Also, learning about your backstory, I honestly admire you! I don't bow to Gods, but I do bow to those I admire. If you are willing, I'll share my technique with you, help you occupy the entire Cheese district, and bring it under your control. I know you will step on a lot of toes this way, but it would be better in the long run for everyone, no? What do you say?"

  "..." Boursat was only munching on the end of his pipe, blowing out smoke from his nostrils constantly, for about five minutes, finally answering after all his thoughts fell into pce.

  "Sounds good. But aren't you afraid I'll stab you in the back?"

  "No, I'm not. My back is protected~!"

  In the end, after shaking on it, she told them everything she had devised over the past few years, teaching it to Isha and letting Bourast observe everything, providing him with a written form. It was hours ter when Ren finally left, looking tired but excited... As soon as she knew, if everything went as she expected with this new method, she could slowly start to change the world again.

  "Are you sure about this, Boss?" Isha asked after they had left.

  "I thought I forgot this feeling," Boursat whispered, watching the disappearing back of Ren.

  "What feeling?"

  "Excitement!" he let out a small ugh. "That little girl is the devil, and we just made a pact with her… but if we are careful enough, we can come out on top, and you can advance. You can become stronger than me. Isn't it exciting?" he said with a warm smile, stroking her head while Isha had a shy, sweet expression, closing her eyes, enjoying his touch while only nodding her head.

  …….…..

  Hours ter, in the evening, in the middle of the General's mansion, mother and daughter were sitting together, lost in meditation.

  "Interesting. I already feel… something. I know what to do!" Anya murmured as she stretched after a round of cultivation, while her daughter y on the floor, exhausted and sweating. "You kept us in the dark for this long, huh? When did you develop this technique? Haah... never mind... I just wonder... Where is my adorable little sparrow from the days?" Anya sighed, but her eyes were sparkling as she looked at her brightest gem in the entire world.

  "When… When was I a… bird?" Ren moaned, totally out of breath, barely having enough energy to push herself up.

  "You are still one with the one-way mindset of yours!" Anya snorted, turning it into a ugh, "Go, take a bath and rest! Don't forget, you are still under house arrest, Young Lady!"

  "Oookaaaay~!" she sighed softly as she picked up her sore body, leaving Anya, who now had a bluish aura exploding out of her. In just one session... she had almost broken through.

  "This little…" she muttered as Ren left the sealed room, "Hmph! Keeping this from us! It needs some change, but I can catch up with my dear before he returns... Or at least... get really close! Fufufufu, that will be a fun surprise! Ahahahaha!" She kept ughing, clearly in a great mood, wearing a slightly pink expression, biting her soft lips, thinking about Xendar… wanting to show off before him as soon as possible. Something that was very simir to her own daughter.