"What? What's happening? Why can't I feel the mana!?" one of the mages exclaid, panicking as he tried to cast a simple spell, but without mana, the spell failed to activate.
Before the mages could make sense of the situation, the killing machine strode forward, its fist plunging into the nearest mage's chest, killing him instantly.
In just five minutes, the fight turned into a massacre. Without their ability to cast magic, the mages were no different from ordinary people. Whether it was attack spells, defensive spells, or even basic physical enhancent magic that made them more formidable, nothing worked.
The slaughter continued for re seconds before it subsided, leaving all the mages lying dead in pools of their own blood. The only survivor was Silva Encantada, who had been knocked out at the start of the fight.
At that mont, a woman in a leather armored dress walked in. The armor was crafted from the hide of an archfiend, one of the most powerful demonic beings in Hell, and her helt-like crown was fashioned from its horns—four black horns curving backward, with a demonic ruby set at the center of her forehead.
Her long, silky purple hair was tied into an intricate braid, captivating anyone who looked at her.
This woman was Envy, wearing the battle armor she had made from the archfiend she had slain long ago. She calmly sat on the couch where the fake Envy, the SD-800-I series that imitated her, had been seated. The killing machine, now reduced to its endoskeleton, walked over and stood beside Envy like a servant awaiting its master's command.
Envy glanced at the killing machine, giving it a nod. The machine responded in kind before moving toward Silva, who lay unconscious on the floor. It grabbed Silva by the hair and slapped her a few tis, rousing her from unconsciousness.
As Silva awoke, she looked around, bewildered, until her eyes landed on Envy, who was sitting in front of her in full battle gear, her legs crossed regally like a queen.
The sight of Envy in her battlegear set off alarms in Silva's mind. Having been Envy's friend, she knew exactly what this ant. It ant Envy wouldn't hold back, her mind set for war. She would not stop until all opposition either surrendered or was destroyed.
"Hello," Envy greeted, her voice devoid of warmth.
"H-Hello... I think there's been so misunderstanding, Envy... I-I can explain," Silva stamred with a forced smile, attempting to stand. But the killing machine holding her wasn't allowing it.
Crash!
The machine slamd Silva's face against the glass tea table, shattering both the glass and her once-beautiful face. Her front four teeth were broken, and she had no choice but to spit them out onto the floor, coughing up blood.
Envy waited patiently as Silva spat out the blood and caught her breath before speaking again.
"Lady Encantada... this conversation we're having is not between equals, not between friends, but between the victor and the defeated. I hope you engrave that fact into your mind, as there will be no further warnings," Envy said in a cold, heartless tone.
"If you understand, nod," Envy commanded.
Silva nodded repeatedly, and Envy smiled in satisfaction. "Good... now, for the first question…"
Envy began interrogating Silva Encantada about the Hightower, the mage families, and all her accomplices. The interrogation took so ti, and while Silva seed to cooperate, Envy could see in her eyes that she hadn't given up hope. Envy knew exactly what Silva was clinging to.
"You still have so hope, don't you? Are you counting on reinforcents? Or perhaps the Hightower itself?" Envy asked, her cold smile beautiful but laced with cruelty and venom.
— anwhile - Outside — Read latest chapters at m_v-l'e|-
A mage from one of the families, assigned to monitor the situation inside the lounge, noticed that Silva Encantada hadn't responded for over 30 minutes, and all communication had been cut off. Following protocol, they knew a team had to be sent to check the situation.
"Team A, co with ! Team B, stay here! We need to check on Lady Encantada's situation!" the team leader ordered his subordinates, leading them toward the hotel.
At that mont, a group of people in military uniforms walked into the boundfield. The mages were confused. The only ones able to enter the boundfield were mages or rcenaries with artifacts to resist its effects. Yet these newcors didn't seem to be mages. They felt more like ordinary people, but... how could ordinary people enter the boundfield without being affected by it?
The team leader also noticed this anomaly. After a brief mont of confusion, he rembered the protocol: no outsiders were allowed in the area. If any were found, they must be removed by any ans necessary.
"Kill them!" the team leader shouted into his radio, ordering the rcenaries and mages stationed around the area to follow the protocol.
Gunfire erupted as the rcenaries opened fire on the newcors. But the bullets seed to bounce off their bodies, deflected as if they struck armor beneath their skin. The newcors advanced without flinching.
The intruders responded with lethal precision, killing the rcenaries with their bare hands—crushing skulls, snapping necks, or delivering fatal blows to the head. They stole weapons from the fallen rcenaries and continued their advance, completely unfazed by the bullets pumping into their bodies.
One rcenary fired a grenade launcher at a newcor, successfully blasting away their clothes, skin, and muscle, only to reveal a gleaming Atlantean steel endoskeleton underneath.
"What!? They're... robots!?" one of the rcenaries exclaid in disbelief just before his head was blown off by one of the killing machines.
The killing machines showed no reaction to the damage they received. Bullets and explosives seed aningless to them as they advanced, unstoppable, killing rcenaries and mages alike.
The mages, though stronger than the rcenaries, managed to hold out longer against the assault. But then a drone flew past and launched a smoke grenade at their group.
With the grenade's smoke, the mana in the area was quickly drained, leaving the mages powerless as the mana levels reached dangerous lows. Without their magic, the mages were helpless, and a massacre ensued. Agonizing screams and cries for rcy echoed within the boundfield as the killing machines butchered their victims.
After about half an hour, the area surrounding the hotel fell silent. Every rcenary and mage had been eliminated. The drones sent by Nexus Pri began cleaning the area, recovering damaged SD-I series robots whose synthetic skin and muscles had been burned or blown off in the battle.
In the lounge, Silva Encantada stood frozen, witnessing the skirmish and ruthless massacre with her own eyes. She was stunned and turned toward Envy in disbelief. She never thought Envy would be so well-prepared to deal with her.
At that mont, an old butler entered the lounge. "Pardon my intrusion, Lady Envy," the butler said, bowing. "Everything has been taken care of. We only need your confirmation to cancel the boundfield, and then we can retreat at any ti."
"Thank you, Wilkins. I've gathered a lot of information from Ms. Encantada. I just need to confirm sothing before we leave." Envy then turned toward Silva, who remained in shock at the sight below the hotel, where all her subordinates and reinforcents had been eliminated. None had survived.
With this move, the Encantada family could kiss their influence in South Arica goodbye. They would likely face challenges from new mage families eager to claim their position as the top family in the region.
"Golden Scale and that mysterious man in the black robe said they would push the Curtained World into a civil war. Do you have a list of the families that will participate? And which families are under Hightower's control?" Envy asked.
Defiance flashed in Silva Encantada's eyes. In an instant, she grabbed a shard of glass and stabbed herself in the neck, choosing suicide rather than revealing the information. In her final monts, she smiled defiantly at Envy—but Envy was unimpressed.
"Hmph! Typical," Envy muttered disdainfully. She waved her hand, and green mana flowed from her palm into Silva's body, pulling her soul back from the brink of the underworld and binding it in a soul chain.
"What!? What is this? You know necromancy?" Silva gasped in alarm. If she had known Envy possessed necromantic skills, she would never have dared to die in front of her. Now, in her soul form, she was utterly helpless. Her resistance against the necromancer was as futile as an ant resisting a human's stomp.
"I don't practice necromancy, but that doesn't an I don't know how to use it. After all, I'm 1,500 years older than you. I've had plenty of ti to learn. Now… where are we?" Envy paused, pretending to think before flashing a cruel smile. "Ah yes... which families are participating in the civil war, and which ones are under Hightower's control?
Tell !" she commanded, tightening the soul chain.
As the soul chain tightened around her, a scream of agony escaped, and only regret filled her mind… the regret that she should never have double-crossed Envy.
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