Everything that had just happened felt like a dream.
She had run her tavern in Qinghe Town for over a decade and had heard countless rumors about sorceresses—summoning wind and rain, slaughtering people like grass, wiping out entire cities single-handedly—but she had never taken them seriously.
Until today, when she saw with her own eyes a cloud of white steam swallow half the street, saw those usually arrogant mages leave behind not even a corpse, and saw the mayor ignited before her like a candle.
And now, she watched as Wu Yao returned and sat down as if nothing had happened, holding the child and looking as though she were still waiting for her food to be served.
The owner shuddered all over and scrambled back into the kitchen.
This sorceress possessed such power, yet she neither plundered the tavern nor left without paying, sitting there peacefully waiting for her meal instead.
Looking at it this way, she didn't seem as fierce and evil as the rumors claimed.
She had better just focus on doing her job first.
“Lady Wu Yao, what should we do with those people?”
Benita asked, looking at the mess out on the street.
The stalls overturned by the shockwave lay in a chaotic mess, and cloth banners, torn to shreds, fluttered in the wind. The soldiers were still huddled together on the street, hanging their heads and hunching their shoulders like a flock of rain-drenched quails.
She hesitated for a moment, then turned around and asked seriously, “Do you want to become the new mayor of Qinghe Town, my lady?”
Wu Yao frowned the moment she heard this. Who would want to work a job in a game? What was the point of being a mayor? If she was going to rule, she would definitely be a king!
Seeing her expression, Benita took a deep breath.
Her hands quietly clenched into fists at her sides, her thumb pressing hard against the knuckle of her index finger as if trying to steel herself.
“If you think I am suitable...”
She began, her voice a bit tighter than usual and her pace a beat faster. “I would like to temporarily take over the town's affairs to stabilize the order here. I used to treat people in town, so I know quite a few people. I—”
Before Benita could finish, Wu Yao's eyes lit up. She pulled the Mayor's Seal out of her Inventory and shoved it into Benita's hands like a hot potato.
“It's all yours!”
The Mayor's Seal was a stamp with a brass base engraved with patterns of wheat ears and a river, stained with a small patch of dark grime.
Holding it in her hands, Benita felt its immense weight and remained silent for a long while.
Wu Yao didn't care what she was thinking. She gave Benita a highly supportive pat on the shoulder, her tone as casual as if she were commenting on the nice weather. “If anyone gives you trouble, I'll kill them all for you.”
She said it so nonchalantly.
Benita gripped the seal tightly. Its metallic edges dug painfully into her palm, bringing her a sharp sense of alertness.
“My lady, I will not fail your trust,” she said, as if swearing an oath.
Wu Yao had already turned around, her eyes shining as she stared at the tavern owner coming out with a dish. Her gaze was entirely captured by the sizzling, greasy roasted lamb chops in the owner's hands.
Coarse salt and crushed wild pepper were visible on the surface, their aggressive aroma forcing its way into her nose.
Benita carefully tucked the seal into her inner pocket, stood up to smooth her clothes and headscarf, and turned toward the soldiers who were still standing blankly outside the window.
“I will go talk to them,” Benita said.
Wu Yao took a bite of the chop, her teeth sinking into the crispy crust as savory juices burst in her mouth. She let out a satisfied grunt and waved her hand at Benita.
Phelin followed her lead, waving at Benita as well, though her curious gaze trailed after her mother as she pushed open the tavern door.
Sunlight poured in through the doorway, outlining Benita's back in a golden glow. She walked with steady steps, keeping her back perfectly straight as she faced dozens of burly soldiers who stood a head taller than her.
Benita's gaze swept across their anxious faces. She calculated rapidly in her mind: These men fear Lady Wu Yao.
Fear was a rope, but fear alone could not bind people's hearts. She had to make them realize that staying here offered a better chance of survival than running away.
She did not speak immediately. The silence washed over their diverse, tense expressions like cold water.
The soldiers of Qinghe Town were nothing but a bunch of useless gluttons who had bribed their way into their positions. Normally, they strutted around town, experts at bullying merchants and harassing local women, but they had never faced a real battle with real weapons.
Now, with the mayor and mages gone, they were like snails stripped of their shells, limply exposed to the scorching sun.
“What do you think is keeping you alive right now?” Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried a chilling sharpness that sent shivers down their spines.
No one dared to answer.
Benita slowly scanned the crowd, taking in every bit of guilt and cowardice on their faces.
“You are alive only because that lady has no interest in killing you.”
She pointed behind her toward the tavern. Through the window, they could clearly see Lady Wu Yao feasting heartily. The scene didn't look frightening in the slightest.
Yet everyone remembered that just a few minutes ago, this very sorceress had casually turned their mayor into a charred pile of remains.
“Killing you would be like crushing ants,” she said in a calm, matter-of-fact tone, as if stating an indisputable truth.
“But if an ant is foolish enough to try and bite back...”
Benita's voice suddenly rose, carrying a trace of killing intent that made the soldiers in the front row flinch. “Then it can only be crushed to death!”
“Your hands haven't been clean these past few years. Just because the mayor is dead doesn't mean your debts are wiped clean.”
Benita gave them no room to breathe. With every step she took toward the soldiers, the wall of men retreated an inch.
Seeing that she had achieved the desired effect, Benita finally stopped.
“You should count yourselves lucky—lucky that her ladyship is merciful. But that is on the condition that, starting today, you know whose side you are on.”
She let out a short laugh. “Of course, those who want to leave can do so right now—”
The soldiers widened their eyes, unable to believe that the woman before them could be so generous.
“However, think carefully before you go. Once you leave Qinghe Town, you will be refugees. How you feed yourselves and your families will be your own business.”
Benita paused, a slight smile playing on her lips. “And it will be the perfect opportunity to redistribute those ownerless lands to reward those who perform well.”
An exchange of hushed, suppressed whispers erupted among the soldiers.
Ninety percent of the land in Qinghe Town was controlled by the nobility, and the land these soldiers could get was pitifully scarce.
Most of them were merely tenant farmers on noble estates; owning their own land was something they didn't even dare dream of.
A tall soldier was the first to speak up. “Madam, Hort is willing to follow your orders.”
The others inwardly cursed Hort for being a sly old fox, yet they moved faster than anyone, scrambling forward to pledge their loyalty, terrified that a slow response would leave a bad impression.
Benita nodded and issued her first command: “Hort, take some men to clear the corpses from the street, then wait for me at the town hall. Tie up anyone who refuses to obey orders.”
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