Chapter 795

“P-please, spare me!”

Rayburn was flat on the ground, hands clasped desperately in a pleading gesture. Akorella was infamous even within the Magic Department as a complete lunatic. He immediately realized this wasn’t a joke.

No matter how the situation was unfolding, one thing was clear: the Eastern mages wanted him dead, and the only ones who could save him now were the palace magicians.

“…♡”

“P-please, have mercy! H-heart!”

His trembling fingers awkwardly formed a heart shape, but it was pitiful.

Akorella snorted and whipped her head around. Look at these guys—without mages, they’d collapse in an instant, yet here they were, acting all tough. Ian should see this. What a shame.

“Don’t act so cocky from now on.”

“Ugh…”

Rayburn trailed off without realizing it. He wondered if these crazy Magic Department folks were colluding with the Easterners to toy with him.

But he quickly steadied himself, banging his forehead against the floor to shake off such foolish thoughts. As if on cue, Akorella growled and barked:

“Hey, answer me!”

“Alright! I don’t know when I acted cocky—”

“Get out there and evacuate everyone immediately.”

There’s no time to waste putting up shields for you.

At Akorella’s command, Rayburn hesitated briefly before springing up and storming out of the study. The servants had already gathered downstairs, disturbed by the commotion upstairs.

“Get out! Everyone, leave the mansion!”

“M-master? What’s going on?”

“Hurry! Get far away if you don’t want to die!”

“Ah, aahhh!”

Crash! Bang! Clatter!

As the noise downstairs died down, Akorella cracked her neck and glanced at Eunrang and Hohun. The two exchanged looks, unsure what to do, awkwardly holding hands.

“Ah, these adorable little lovebirds. Dating, huh?”

“Dating? Let’s just kill them already.”

“After what they did to Ian!”

“Exactly! Ian’s in that state because of them!”

“Do you even understand the meaning of this cloth?”

“Watch closely—”

With a dramatic flourish, Akorella revealed a crimson cloth wrapped around her fist.

“It means you’ll be bleeding this much.”

“…”

All of them were completely unhinged. Dangerous, regardless of their power. Hohun whispered to Eunrang:

“Think we can handle this?”

“Yeah.”

There was no other choice. The Magic Department was hopeless, and the Foreign Minister had already failed in his assassination attempt. It was better to kill everyone involved and make a break for it, waiting for the right moment.

Eunrang extended her hand and unleashed her magic.

“Sejeol (細切).”

Ziiing! Ziiing!

Scrolls inscribed with Eastern characters bloomed endlessly around Eunrang.

The mages gawked at the sight, mouths agape. It was definitely magic, but the casting method was completely new.

“Whoa, shit—”

Sejeol was a highly effective attack in enclosed spaces. Objects forming the space were finely sliced, their sharp edges gleaming. As Eunrang swung her arm, the shards flew toward the mages’ vital points as commanded.

Swoosh!

The mages reflexively raised shields to block Eunrang’s assault. They managed to hold, but the power was so intense that the sound of shields cracking echoed here and there.

“…!”

Without missing a beat, Hohun cracked his blue whip. It moved as if alive, weaving through the mages and quickly tightening as if to sever their limbs.

Sssshhh!

But at that moment, shadows flickered at the window—

Heil and Nakina. The two immediately dropped low and approached, wielding their magic like blades. The middle of Hohun’s whip was sliced off, and its power dissipated.

Bang! Crash!

“Heil, captain!”

“Stay alert. You’re getting cut off.”

They had been lying in wait near the water, but upon realizing the battleground was Rayburn’s mansion, they hurried over.

Dust rose, and in the darkness, the mages’ golden eyes flashed. They were still recovering, so even a brief fight drained them.

And above all—

‘These guys…’

‘They’re strong.’

‘We’re screwed.’

‘Damn it.’

Eunrang and Hohun’s skills were no joke.

The mages tensed and steadied their breathing. Sure, the opponents were formidable, but so what? They’d already faced the Shadow of God and won. Even if a whole cartload of these guys came at them, they wouldn’t flinch.

“Not a big deal.”

“Yeah, exactly!”

The mages shouted loudly enough for each other to hear. Just as Eunrang frowned, the mages simultaneously pulled out magic amplifiers from their robes and injected the power into their arms.

“Still, we have to give it our all!”

“Hell yeah!”

Lately, they’d been trying to hold back, confused whether the stuff coursing through their veins was blood or amplifier fluid. But this was no time. Without it, no matter their spirit, they’d get utterly crushed. That was unacceptable.

“…?”

The faint magic power of the mages surged noticeably. Still, even combined, they might barely hold off the two.

Eunrang thought how strange the Western Regions were as she prepared to launch another magical attack.

“Hey, hey, that’s not fair! Don’t you have any code of honor in the East?”

“You guys attacked first, so now it’s our turn.”

“Follow the order!”

Just as she thought they were spouting nonsense and fighting well—

The mages’ spell made Eunrang’s eyes widen.

“Gyeonhap (牽合).”

Ziiing! Ziiing!

There was a familiar energy emanating from the magic circle.

A subtle presence of Ian Hiel’s power. Though he wasn’t here, his essence clearly lived on in the magic circle. That made sense—Gyeonhap was a newly created spell based on Ian’s power.

“No way—”

Eunrang instinctively covered her mouth. Then, an unforgettable force swept through—the power of their master and archmage, Jaan. Eunrang went pale and let out a hoarse scream.

“You bastards! You used the trap spell!”

“What trap?”

“That power! It’s definitely Jaan’s spirit!”

“Oh, this.”

Around the mages, a World Tree sprouted.

Eunrang felt dizzy. What had they done with that precious treasure to make such leaves bloom?

Akorella grinned and charged forward excitedly.

“Master?”

What could she do? It had been incredibly useful against forbidden mages in Luswena.

The World Tree grew endlessly, shooting up through the mansion’s upper floors, shattering every window as its branches spread. Just as Eunrang’s Sejeol magic was more effective in confined spaces, the World Tree’s power multiplied in the narrow area.

“Heil, tell me how it went. They seem curious!”

Heil calmly nodded in response.

“Well, it tasted good.”

“Damn it!”

Eunrang and Hohun raised their magic power, but that was all they could do. The World Tree’s trunk blocked their movements, and even if they caused explosions, the attacks wouldn’t land properly with all sides blocked.

The Bariel mages were in the same boat, unable to move freely while maintaining the World Tree.

Except for two.

Ta-at!

Akorella and Heil.

They had exactly what they wanted and twisted their bodies to charge at the others. Heil threw a punch first.

Pow!

Hohun raised both arms to block Heil’s attack.

Eunrang tried to counterattack, wrapping magic around her hand to strike Heil’s neck, but Akorella intercepted it. Eunrang’s lower lip trembled.

“Oh ho. So this is the power of love?”

“Arrogant!”

“I’ll show you too! That thing!”

A crooked grin. Akorella clenched her fist tightly and swung it wide, using the strength from her waist.

For a moment, Eunrang hesitated. Are these so-called mages really going to fight this brutishly? Just a punch—!

“Ah-hah.”

At that moment, Akorella snorted and spread her palm wide. In her hand was a shard of Idgal. Its sharply cut edge gleamed even in the darkness.

“Pretty, isn’t it?”

“…!”

Part of her wanted to just beat her senseless, but these were mages from the East. There were issues with Hwan and Ham, and above all, nothing could be done without Ian’s decision. So for now, the only option was to subdue them like this.

“I’m going to have to refuse.”

“You wanted this so badly, didn’t you?”

As Eunrang tried to step back and dodge, Akorella grabbed a fistful of her hair and yanked her forward. Seeing this, Hohun thrashed violently toward Akorella, ready to kill, but Hale flicked the cigarette in his mouth, stopping his movement.

‘…This is a brawl.’

That was the impression of the mages who maintained the World Tree.

Suddenly, the four of them, closely entwined, simultaneously surged their magical power. The startled mages wrapped their bodies in the World Tree’s protection, but couldn’t stop the explosion.

KRAAAASH!

BOOM! BANG!

Far from the mansion, Raiven spun around at the loud noise. The beautiful estate, preserved since his great-grandfather’s time! The family’s pride, freshly renovated just recently, expected to last another hundred years!

“Gah, gyaaaah!”

Windows and walls shattered from the World Tree’s force, and the roof had long since collapsed in ruin. Every explosion inside made the mansion’s pillars tremble precariously.

Staggering, as if in a trance, Raiven moved toward the mansion. His household members panicked and grabbed him.

“Honey! No, don’t!”

“N-no, our, our home—”

“Master, snap out of it! If you go, you’ll die!”

“Our hoooome! Ugh!”

“Master? Master!”

Eventually, Raiven’s eyes rolled back and he collapsed. The guards and villagers who had gathered slowly raised their fingers, pointing in one direction. Their eyes held a strange, unspoken amusement.

His household slowly turned their heads to look toward the mansion.

“Ah.”

Have you ever seen a grand mansion collapse? Marble pillars, painstakingly decorated, shattering like glass bowls; sturdy walls swaying like paper before crumbling.

RUMBLE!

CRASH!

They witnessed it—the rare spectacle money couldn’t buy that night.

Raiven’s wife fainted, following her husband down, and then his son and daughter both lost consciousness simultaneously.

CRASH!

But the chaos inside the mansion showed no sign of stopping. Bursts of colorful light continued to explode, illuminating the night sky. The household members muttered in stunned disbelief.

“Did Master make a huge mistake with the Magic Department?”

“Uh…”

Probably. They didn’t know what was going on inside, but from the outside, it looked like someone was deliberately tearing the place apart.

Kneeling in the bushes, they watched the mansion begin to burn fiercely. A spectacular finale.

“Th-there!”

After a long while, as the noise finally began to die down, a woman limped out through the flames. Her hair was wild, her body covered in soot and dust, a complete mess.

The crowd tensed.

“Sister! Where are you going?”

But then another woman with pink hair followed behind her. She, too, looked disheveled and far from well.

Eunrang staggered, turned to look back, and then finally lost consciousness, collapsing. A clear cut from the Idgal shard marked her shoulder.