The night wind blew, carrying the scent of salt and thick tension. Beneath a veil of dark clouds that obscured the moonlight, the majestic silhouette of Cassiopeia Castle loomed arrogantly atop the cliffs of Cetus Island. The white marble castle stood as a monument to the Dizara Kingdom's despair, and a symbol of the Altena Magic Empire's greed.
From atop a rocky cliff jutting slightly toward the sea, not far from the castle's main gates, Venti stood calmly. His green cloak fluttered gently, matching the rhythm of the wind. His teal eyes stared straight at the multi-layered defensive barricades in the castle courtyard. Thousands of silver-armored Dizara soldiers stood on guard with spears and shields, while behind their lines, dozens of Altena mages wore elegantly tailored robes in a blend of white and silver, clutching their magic wands.
This was no place for a civilian to take a stroll. It was a military fortress preparing for war.
"Security is pretty tight for a sinking island," Venti murmured lightly, twirling a piece of seaweed between his fingers.
He glanced back, looking at the two former elf kings who were on full alert. Hedin Selland stood with perfectly upright posture, adjusting his collar. Beside him, Hogni Ragnar looked down, his shoulders slightly hunched while his hand traced the hilt of the pitch-black sword at his waist, though the blade remained sheathed.
"Hedin, Hogni," Venti called out, his tone casual yet carrying absolute authority. "The front gate is your stage tonight. I need you to draw the entire attention of the castle's defenses. Make a big enough commotion so that not even a fly notices me slipping inside."
Hedin bowed elegantly. "As you wish, Lord Venti. We will ensure their eyes cannot turn away from the courtyard."
"Uuu... may I cleave them all in two?" Hogni muttered, his left eye peeking from behind his bangs beginning to glow red. His dark personality was practically taking over. "Their blood would surely look so beautiful staining that white marble..."
"Ah, about that," Venti raised a finger, smiling playfully. "Keep your sword sheathed, Hogni. Remember our plan, right? Royman Mardeel and the Guild in Orario desperately need them breathing for interrogation. You are not allowed to take the life of a single Altena mage."
Hogni flinched, his savage posture instantly shrinking back into that of a timid elf. "Uuu... yes, Lord Venti. Even though cutting them down is the fastest way... But very well. We will just use our bare hands and elements."
"Exactly," Venti nodded in satisfaction. "You can break their bones, or burn and shock them until they cry begging for mercy. Just make sure their hearts keep beating."
Hedin pushed up the frame of his glasses, catching a faint glint of light. "Understood. Subduing enemies without killing them is an art that requires precise control. We will not disappoint you."
Venti nodded in satisfaction. He then looked at Dina and Vena standing nearby. "You two, come with me. The moment Hedin and Hogni start the show, we'll use the wind paths to enter the throne room."
In the main courtyard of Cassiopeia Castle, the guards patrolled with tense steps. The fear of sea monsters and the uncertainty of their island's fate had driven the Dizara soldiers' morale to rock bottom. The only thing keeping them at their posts was the threat of the Altena mages watching them from behind.
Suddenly, the sound of calm footsteps echoed across the stone bridge connecting the rocky cliff to the main gate.
Two Elven figures walked closer without a hint of fear. No weapons were drawn, no shields were raised. They simply strolled like nobles enjoying an evening promenade.
"Halt right there! Who are you?!" shouted the Dizara guard captain, leveling his spear. "This is a restricted area! Turn back, or we will kill you on the spot!"
Hedin didn't answer. He simply let out a long sigh, as if exhausted by having to deal with a swarm of flies. Beside him, Hogni chuckled softly. Without his sword, Hogni cracked his knuckles. His split personality erupted once more.
"GAHAHAHA! You think those toothpicks can hold us back?!" Hogni roared, his posture instantly turning tall and defiant.
In the blink of an eye, Hogni lunged forward. His speed matched that of a top-tier adventurer, purely shattering the soldiers' visual perception. Before the guard captain could even blink, Hogni was right in front of him. A roundhouse kick cloaked in an explosion of blackish-red flames from the Cruor Calyx slammed into the captain's steel shield.
KABOOOM!
A highly condensed burst of fire exploded without any incantation whatsoever. The guard captain was thrown into the air like a ragdoll, his shield melting, and crashed into dozens of soldiers behind him until their formation completely crumbled.
"Chantless fire magic?!" shrieked one of the Altena mages standing in the back. "Impossible! That strike was too fast!"
Before they could process what was happening, Hedin Selland raised his right hand.
The Electro Calyx on Hedin's chest pulsed. Without uttering a single word from his lips, flashes of high-voltage purple lightning shot from Hedin's fingertips, forming an electric spiderweb that swept across the ground. The Electro current intelligently bypassed the fallen Dizara soldiers and struck straight into the ranks of the Altena mages.
KRA-KOOM!
"Aaarrghhh!"
Screams of agony echoed as dozens of white-and-silver clad mages were paralyzed by the pure electric current. The protective magic they hastily cast was instantly pierced by an element that left absolutely no trace of normal Mind fluctuation.
From behind the grand gates, a tall man stepped out. He wore the most luxuriously tailored white and silver garments, denoting his high status. His arrogant face scrunched in suppressed anger upon seeing his elite troops being toyed with. He was Valerius von Elden, the leader of the Altena mage delegation in Cetus. As one of the strongest mages the empire boasted, his magic power and Mind capacity were estimated to be on par with a Level 3 magic adventurer from Orario.
Behind Valerius, following with hesitant steps, was a young, bespectacled woman in crafter's attire. She was Isadora Thalestris, a magic item crafting expert from Altena sent specifically to serve as a subordinate and technical advisor to Concubine Jiene.
"What is the meaning of this chaos?!" Valerius snapped, his voice magically amplified to be heard across the courtyard. His sharp eyes glared at the two Elves standing in the midst of his groaning troops.
Valerius narrowed his eyes. He saw how Hogni unleashed a blast of fire from his palm, and how Hedin summoned lightning with just the snap of his fingers. There was no chanting, no traditional magic circles.
Seeing this sight, something boiled inside Valerius's chest. It wasn't just anger from being attacked, but jealousy, an inferiority complex, and hatred exploding uncontrollably.
As a noble of the Altena Magic Empire—a nation that crowned itself the center of the world's magical knowledge—Valerius and his peers had to study day and night just to shorten their incantation times. Yet in this world, there was one existence that had trampled on the pride of all of Altena.
A High Elf from Orario. Riveria Ljos Alf.
Riveria was an anomaly to the world's rules. When all humans and gods agreed that Falna only granted a maximum of three magic slots, Riveria came along with her Chant Connection ability that allowed her to master nine variations of large-scale magic. Altena had once tried to persuade, seduce, and even threaten Riveria to join their Empire in order to study her secrets, but the High Elf flatly refused, choosing to remain loyal to the Loki Familia.
That rejection was a humiliating slap to Altena's history. Ever since then, every elite Altena mage harbored a deep-seated hatred and envy toward the magic of the Orario Elves.
And now, right in front of Valerius, two Elves from out of nowhere appeared, using chantless magic with such ease. It tore open the old wounds of Altena's pride.
"Chantless magic?! You think you're so great?!" Valerius screamed hysterically, his face flushing from overflowing emotion. He raised his magic wand high. "You wild Elves are all the same! You always use dirty tricks and cheap anomalies to show off!"
Isadora Thalestris, standing behind Valerius, instantly paled. She knew the world's history and Elven racial biology all too well. Isadora reached out, trying to tug at Valerius's clothes.
"Lord Valerius, wait! Please control your emotions, do not provoke them—" Isadora tried to warn him, but her voice was drowned out by Valerius's roar.
"You think you're superior to Altena's pure magic?!" Valerius continued to shout, his hatred blinding his common sense. "Just exactly like that arrogant High Elf from Orario! Riveria Ljos Alf is nothing but a disgusting anomaly destroying the order of magic! And you two are just trash copying her cheating!"
An absolute silence suddenly fell upon the Marble Castle's courtyard.
The sea breeze seemed to stop blowing. Hogni's black fire, which had been burning wildly, instantly extinguished. The purple lightning at Hedin's fingertips vanished without a trace.
The two former Elf kings stood frozen in place.
Behind the front lines, Isadora Thalestris covered her mouth with both hands, her eyes widening in pure terror.
"Fool..." Isadora whispered with a violently trembling voice. "Lord Valerius... you have just broken the greatest taboo in this world."
As a researcher, Isadora knew that there was a natural instinct deeply embedded in every blood cell, bone, and soul of the elven race. No matter what part of the world they were in, no matter what faction or god they worshipped, all Elves possessed an absolute, instinctual respect and devotion toward their royal bloodline: the High Elves.
Insulting Riveria Ljos Alf in front of other elves was no ordinary provocation. It was a declaration of war against their entire race.
Hedin Selland, who had maintained an arrogant smile all this time, now lowered his head. The pressure of Mind exploded from his body uncontrollably.
Beside him, Hogni Ragnar was no longer laughing madly. His body was now tense like a bowstring drawn to its absolute limit. His red eyes no longer radiated a thirst for battle, but a thirst for slaughter.
"Lord Venti gave orders not to kill you," Hedin's voice sounded incredibly soft, incredibly cold, and incredibly flat. There was no emotional intonation there, only a deadly emptiness.
Hedin lifted his face. A purple glow shone so brightly it blinded the eyes of the Altena mages.
"However," Hedin continued, taking a single step forward, "he said that we are allowed to break your bones. He said that we are allowed to burn you."
"Disgusting insect..." Hogni said, his voice trembling with unbearable rage. A blackish-red aura erupted from his body like a pillar of blood soaring into the sky. "You dare... sully Her august name with your rotten mouth?!"
Valerius von Elden took a step back, the magic wand trembling in his hand. All of a sudden, the air around him felt incredibly heavy and hot. His mage instincts screamed of mortal danger.
"A-Attack them! Kill them all!" Valerius shrieked in panic.
However, before a single Altena mage could even open their mouth to chant a spell, Hedin snapped his fingers.
Not a single web of lightning. Not an ordinary flash.
KRA-KOOOM!!! BOOOOOOM!
A giant pillar of Electro struck straight down from the dark clouds above Cetus, smashing right into the center of the Altena mages' ranks. Its destructive power was dozens of times stronger than the previous attack. The million-volt electrical current tore through the marble ground, creating an incandescent crater.
"AARRRRGGGHHHH!"
Valerius and dozens of his elite mages screamed with a sound that nearly tore their own vocal cords. Their skin blistered, their luxurious clothes were burned to a crisp, and their magic wands exploded from energy overload.
But the torment was not over yet.
From behind the blinding flash of lightning, Hogni lunged forward. He purely used his fists, coated in the fully powered Cruor Calyx.
Hogni charged at Valerius, who was kneeling and convulsing. A single punch coated in black fire slammed into the arrogant mage's chest. Valerius's ribs shattered with a sickening crunch. Hogni's fire burned his skin, roasting him at extreme temperatures without directly killing him.
"This is for your rotten mouth!" Hogni roared, kicking Valerius's jaw so hard the man was sent flying a dozen meters, slamming violently against the castle gate wall. Valerius collapsed to the ground as an almost unrecognizable lump of charred flesh, gasping for breath in an agonizing coma.
The other Altena mages who tried to flee were immediately swept up in Hedin's lightning storm. The former White Elf king walked gracefully through the chaos, directing his index finger like the conductor of a symphony of death. Every time his finger pointed, purple lightning struck, electrocuting enemies until they convulsed and lost consciousness.
In less than a minute, the strongest defensive line of the Altena Magic Empire was leveled to the ground. No one died—as per Venti's orders—but their condition was far worse than death. They would be crippled, traumatized, and require high-level healing magic or Elixirs just to be able to walk again.
Hedin stopped in his tracks. He turned to look at the sole Altena mage still standing, trembling in the corner of the courtyard.
Isadora Thalestris collapsed to the ground. She stared at Hedin in pure despair, waiting for the lightning execution to strike her.
However, Hedin merely looked at her coldly. He realized that this woman was the only one who did not partake in insulting Riveria, and had instead tried to stop her superior's foolishness.
"You are spared," Hedin said flatly, adjusting his glasses. "Someone needs to remain conscious to tell the Guild and that pathetic country of yours about the consequences of an unguarded mouth."
Isadora swallowed hard, nodding jerkily with tears of terror streaming down her cheeks. Tonight, she saw firsthand that the wrath of elves was far more terrifying than any monster in the lower world.
While the Elves' fury created a living hell in the main courtyard, on the other side of Cassiopeia Castle, a silent peace dominated.
Taking advantage of the absolute chaos created by Hedin and Hogni, Venti stepped lightly down the marble corridors on the upper floors of the castle. Dina and Vena walked behind him, using wind manipulation to completely muffle the sound of their footsteps.
"Lord Venti, the magic and elemental fluctuations from the front gate suddenly spiked drastically," Vena reported in a worried tone. "It seems Hedin and Hogni are using their full power. Is that alright?"
Venti chuckled, folding his arms behind his head. "Ehe! Just let them blow off some steam. At least they still remember my main order not to take any lives. Let's focus on our primary goal."
Venti closed his eyes for a moment. The night wind slipping through the window crevices brought him all sorts of information: the smell of sweat from running soldiers, the heat from a fireplace, and panicked heartbeats from the end of the west hall.
"Got it," Venti opened his eyes. "They're hiding in the throne room, thinking that steel doors layered with protective magic can keep them safe."
The three of them walked down the grand corridor adorned with maritime paintings, until they arrived in front of a pair of giant double doors carved with the Dizara national emblem. The doors were locked tight from the inside, and Venti could feel a fairly thick barrier magic aura coating them.
"Dina, Vena. Please knock on the door for me," Venti requested with a casual smile.
"Yes, Lord Venti," the two Elf girls answered in unison.
Dina and Vena stepped forward. The Anemo-Calyxes on their bodies glowed brightly. They didn't unleash noisy Wind Magic and Elements. Instead, they pressed their palms against the surface of the steel doors and manipulated the air pressure in the space between the doors and the frame.
A vacuum wind vortex was created in an instant, sucking the air to an extreme degree, creating a pressure difference unbearable for either the metal structure or the magic.
CREEAAK... BOOOM!
The giant double doors exploded inward, thrown onto the throne room floor with a deafening crash. Marble dust and wood splinters scattered in the air.
Inside the incredibly vast and luxurious room, panic broke out.
King Unohm, a middle-aged man wearing a pearl-studded crown, jumped from his throne. His face was deathly pale. Beside him, Queen Jiene—a noblewoman from Altena who had a cunning face but was now filled with terror—retreated to take cover behind a pillar. Only four elite Dizara soldiers (Sea Knights) remained guarding them in the room, and all four immediately drew their swords, trembling.
The dust smoke slowly thinned out, swept away by a cool gust of wind.
From the shadows of the destroyed doors, Venti stepped inside calmly. He was accompanied by two seemingly fragile Elf girls.
Venti stopped in the middle of the red carpet leading straight to the throne. He looked up, staring right at King Unohm and Jiene with an incredibly friendly smile, a friendliness that ironically made their blood freeze.
"Good evening, Your Majesties," Venti greeted, his melodious voice filling the dead-silent throne room. He bowed slightly with the theatrical flair of a bard. "Apologies for entering without knocking politely. We are looking for something you have hidden in this castle."
King Unohm swallowed hard. His eyes glanced at the shattered doors, then looked back at Venti. "W-Who are you?! How did you get past the Altena guards out there?!"
Venti straightened up, his smile slowly fading, replaced by a flat expression that radiated the depths of a bottomless mystery.
"The Altena people are currently busy learning manners from my friends out in the front courtyard," Venti answered lightly. He stepped forward slowly. "As for who I am... you may call me Barbatos. And I come representing the peace of Melen City, which you have just thrown into chaos."
Hearing the name Barbatos and the northern port city, King Unohm's eyes widened, cold sweat dampening his forehead.
"M-Melen?! You... a god from Orario?!"
"Exactly. I have come to cut off your illegal siphoning of the Leviathan Seal," Venti's smile slowly faded, replaced by a flat expression. "Stealing the remnants of a World Calamity with an Altena machine to maintain this marble island is a very bad idea, Your Majesty."
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P - Gem_Blanks
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