Each time a flash of light streaked across the blackened sky, immense divine power sparked outward in all directions like lightning.
“What are you still doing here? Hurry back!”
Bill, who had joined the group, leapt down from his Phantom Steed and shouted toward the brothers.
Bill Kinzell—the second son among the Kinzell siblings—was a slender young man with a pale face. He served as the family’s administrator and aide to the Head.
“Do you really not know why our eldest brother is dawdling at the front lines? He’s deliberately stalling because of you! What about the others? Did you rescue them?”
“Yeah! They tore their scrolls first and returned!”
The triplets pecked and chirped together like a bunch of baby birds. Yet Bill’s expression as he looked at them was icy cold.
“Then you should have returned with our sister from the start, and now you’re bragging about it?!”
“We’ve been with our Vin for less than three minutes, though…”
“We were just about to leave anyway…”
Pouting, John rummaged through his bag with a deflated expression and tore open a return scroll.
Brilliant green light spread from the seal in his hand, enveloping the triplets.
“Squirreee~l! We’ll go ahead first, okay?”
“See you in a few seconds, baby!”
“Love you! Mwah!”
Whoosh! By the time the green light faded, the triplets had already vanished.
“Ron, why are you just standing there?”
Bill turned to Ron, who was still standing in place with Ivyn cradled in his arms.
“Ah… it looks like I lost the scroll during the scuffle just now. Damn it.”
“You shoved your way in again?”
“Well…”
“Phew, never mind. Here, take this.”
As Bill, looking exasperated, tossed a teleportation scroll toward Ron, a voice rang out.
“Stop right there!”
Zff~ With a sound of air tearing apart, a silver mana arrow shot forward at incredible speed, embedding itself at their feet.
“That bastard!”
Seeing Theodore rapidly closing in on them, the whites of Ron’s eyes turned bloodshot.
“Brother, take care of Ivyn. I’ll skin that bastard alive—”
“Ron! Tear up the return scroll immediately! Avoid unnecessary confrontation!”
In the next instant, a blinking light shot into the sky like green sparks.
What followed was a flickering light and green sparks shooting into the sky. At the same time, Ron, Bill, and Ivyn vanished from the battlefield.
Bang! Pow! Bam! Like fireworks igniting in the sky, the flares flashed, sending a message to the far side of the field:
—Ivyn rescued.
—Youngest line returned.
—Withdrawal requested.
Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the battlefield.
“The signal’s up.”
The eldest son, who had been drawing the attention of the holy forces as a makeshift tank and aggro, let out a sigh of relief upon confirming the signal and slammed his fist into the ground.
Thud!
“Self-destruct.”
At his command, the undead that had been scattered like grains of sand across the battlefield froze mid-action and lifted their heads toward the sky.
And in the next moment,
Boom!
Kwang!
Crash!
A chain of explosions began.
The undead’s heads were blown off one after another.
Whoosh~ A whirlwind of bone dust swept across the battlefield.
“Cough—cough!”
“I-I can’t see ahead!”
A few seconds later, when the storm of ash finally settled, the battle was already over. In front of the paladin forces, the only trace left of the undead army was dust.
“Dispel.”
Feeling the faint black energy left behind by the enemies who had vanished in an instant, Theodore slowly released the divine power coiled in his hands.
“Hoo…”
Theodore, who had been staring for a while at the spot they had been just moments ago, removed his steel gauntlets and roughly brushed back his sweat-stained hair.
A chill of anger swept through his entire body.
“I… I really don’t know anything.”
‘To think she used such fake tears to deceive me and buy time to escape.’
“…Ivyn Kinzell.”
His voice, thick with the weight of defeat and rage, fell across the empty plain.
She had clearly been within reach not long ago, bound and helpless. Yet in the blink of an eye, she had vanished like a bird leaving its branch, leaving no trace behind.
“Next time we meet… I will finish you with my own hands.”
╭══ ≪ •❈• ≫ ══╮
At the same time, in the audience hall of the imperial palace in the capital.
At the far end of the hall, framed by soaring ceilings and adorned with dazzling gold, stood the emperor’s throne, carved from white marble.
Beneath it, like a mountain standing tall, was Dylan Kinzell, head of the Necromancer family.
The sole reason he had urgently sought the emperor today was simple: to obtain approval to declare war on the Holy Nation.
Within the empire, no declaration of war against another territory could be made without the emperor’s sanction.
Although the Holy Nation was technically independent, it lay within the empire’s lands; thus, the emperor’s approval was required.
“I’ve heard the circumstances in full. Lord Kinzell.”
In contrast to Dylan Kinzell, struggling to restrain his anger and maintain composure while giving his report, the young emperor slouched casually on the throne, wearing a look of utter boredom.
“But you see… I’ll be departing at first light tomorrow for a tour along the eastern and western borders. You’ve probably heard, since it involves the salt resources. Let’s deal with that matter first.”
“However—”
“You’re completely losing your composure right now. It’s unwise to make any decisions in such a state.”
The emperor smirked faintly down at Dylan Kinzell, whose face had turned red with fury.
“Let’s keep it peaceful, shall we? Let’s resolve this with dialogue first. When I return from my trip in a week, I’ll arrange a meeting with the Holy Nation. Until then, take care of your daughter and calm yourself, alright?”
With that, the emperor ended the audience and rose from the throne.
“See you then, Lord Kinzell.”
Flanked by his royal guards, the emperor strode away, his crimson cloak billowing, until he was out of Dylan’s sight.
“…”
Dylan Kinzell clenched his massive fist tightly as he stared after the retreating figure of the young emperor. His expression showed how much he was trying to keep his cool.
