When Ur stepped out of the castle, he arrived just in time to witness Singer's death. Then, he realized that he wasn't surprised in the slightest. There was no ripple in his heart, no emotional fluctuation whatsoever. He even felt a faint urge to laugh.
From the moment Singer began dealing with a dark guild, his ending had essentially been sealed. As for what kind of ending it would be, one could look to the wealthy tycoons who had fallen one after another at the auction in the Kingdom of Kiyin.
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"Why?"
Singer stared at the blond man behind him, his gaze filled with shock and confusion, but even more so with the rage of betrayal. His eyes were bloodshot, his expression twisted with fury.
"Hahahaha! Why?" The blond man laughed wildly, his face contorting as fanatic excitement poured out of him. His words spilled forth in near delirium. "Of course it's to harvest the fruit."
"Do you think your power just came from nowhere? If we hadn't deliberately handed you that magical formula, how could trash like you ever come into contact with the great Lord Zeref's power…"
"That formula… it was yours?" Singer's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Hmph. Naturally. That secret formula has always been our guild's highest confidential legacy," the blond man snorted coldly.
The Beast Apostles were, in fact, a dark guild with an ancient lineage. Their name originated from that very secret legacy.
According to the guild records, the founder of the Beast Apostles had once been a rare, powerful mage—one who possessed magic capable of controlling monsters and magical beasts. Using this power, he once enslaved countless creatures, bringing catastrophic destruction to the continent.
Then, he died.
Besieged by numerous mages from the light guilds, he met a truly miserable end. With his death, the monsters and magical beasts under his control either perished or fled. Yet despite that, the magic he wielded did not vanish—it was passed down.
For many years, the Beast Apostles concealed themselves in the shadows, fearful of being discovered by the light guilds.
Until now.
Only after the world had mostly forgotten that ancient calamity did they dare to reemerge. Yet another problem soon arose.
The current guild master of the Beast Apostles discovered that he was unable to learn that monster-controlling magic. Or rather, he couldn't fully master it.
True mental domination should have allowed control over all lifeforms and even non-living objects through spiritual power. But he found that his own mind manipulation was crippled. He could only control non-living matter.
After scouring over the guild's records, the blond man finally uncovered the reason.
The explanation was simple.
His innate spiritual talent was insufficient. He fundamentally lacked the aptitude to learn such a powerful magic.
When he realized this, it was like a bolt from the blue. After hiding for so many years, he was finally able to step back into the world—only to be told that he couldn't inherit the guild's legacy. How could he possibly accept that?
And so, he resolved to forge ahead through sheer determination.
Surprisingly, he actually found a loophole.
By using an ancient magical beast with extraordinary and powerful mental energy, the Demon Jellyfish, he could create a puppet. Through this puppet, he could indirectly cast magic. And because of the defective nature of his own ability, that puppet had to be a dead object.
Which was precisely how the present situation came to be.
That was the truth behind everything.
As for why the blond man had chosen Singer as the vessel, one could only say it was fate… or perhaps misfortune.
Of course, none of this was something the blond man intended to explain to Singer. After all, he had no habit of satisfying the curiosity of someone about to die.
"Now that I've said everything that needs to be said, you can go on your way in peace," the blond man continued coldly. "Don't worry. I'll soon send that guy to join you. After all, we've got a score to settle with him as well."
As he spoke, his indifferent gaze swept over Ur.
Ur: "..."
Damn it, why are you looking at me?
Did I provoke you or something?
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For someone who practiced mental domination magic, the illusion created by the demon jellyfish did not affect the blond man at all. That was precisely why he had been able to launch such an effortless sneak attack.
Singer was furious and unwilling to accept it.
But in the end, he could only slowly close his eyes.
The moment Singer died, the blond man could no longer restrain the excitement in his heart. He hurriedly began channeling his spiritual power, invading Singer's brain and attempting to seize control of the body that had fused with the demon jellyfish.
Seeing this, a cold gleam flashed in Ur's eyes. He drew his blade and slashed straight toward the blond man.
He didn't know what the man was doing, but facing a dark guild was entirely different from dealing with Singer.
When Singer had been the mission target, Ur had still needed to think before striking. But against members of a dark guild, there was no need for extra thought.
Just cut them down.
If you can cut them, it's definitely not wrong.
Naturally, the other three members of the Beast Apostles weren't about to stand by and watch. Almost the instant Ur moved, all three stepped in front of the blond man, killing intent blazing as they stared at Ur.
They remembered him all too well.
After all, out of the six of them, two had already died at this young man's hands.
One against three.
Just as a violent battle was about to erupt, a shrill, terrified scream rang out from behind the three Beast Apostles.
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Next Chapter: Counterkill
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