“Your time magic works by using two techniques at the same time,” muttered Leo, still holding the Noble Blood’s arm. “First, you have a power that stops time. Second, you have a power that lets you move during that spell. More accurately, that power works by making you immune to your own time magic. I can read it in your magical energy. But what this means is, anyone with the same magical energy can also move through this paused time.”
“The same as me?! How?!”
“I have the power of a War God.”
War God was the EX-Rank specialization of a Fighter class. Leo was capable of feats that far surpassed the limits of a Fighter’s abilities. One such skill was the War God’s Natural Wonder, which brought the caster’s magical wavelength in sync with their opponent’s, negating magical attacks and defenses.
“Looks like your time-stopping magic is a dud,” Leo said. “Got something else for me?”
The Noble Blood was at a total loss. The ability to stop time was its safety net, and it hadn’t worked. Leo’s physical abilities also overwhelmed its own—no matter how much it struggled, it was unable to wrench its arm free from his grasp.
“C-curse you…” The beast’s face went pale as it realized it was breathing its last breaths. The battle was over.
“So you can read the future, but you couldn’t see this coming? Oh, I see. You can’t do that while you’re stopping time. You don’t know what’s going to happen when time is frozen. You can only see the future when time is moving. Wow, I didn’t expect your skill to be…such a letdown.”
Leo let out a sigh, then readied his fist.
“I am God’s divine judgment,” he said. “Through mercy and prayer, I hope that you reach salvation in this purification.”
It was over in a single blow. Leo’s divine fist essentially shattered the Noble Blood in an instant, its blue blood and flesh and bones and organs falling like rain upon the War God.
With the Noble Blood dead, time resumed and the Abyss was purified. The red mist cleared, revealing blue-gray clouds in the sky above.
“Did… Did we win?”
Pandemonium’s members looked around in a daze, but there was no joy on their faces. All were rooted to the spot by fear as they stared at Leo, who was drenched in the blood of the beast he had just slaughtered. He turned to the Seekers and, without so much as a word, walked past them. Those in his way squealed and scurried aside. They were all terrified.
“W-wait! Leo!”
Only Sumika, Pandemonium’s vice-master, shouted at Leo to stop him. He continued to walk, leaving her clicking her tongue in frustration.
“All of you, back to the airship,” she ordered. “I have to talk to the idiot.”
“Y-yes, ma’am!”
Sumika made it clear her orders were paramount, and the Seekers nodded. She ran over to Leo but, as expected, he made no attempt to respond.
“I told you to wait!” Her patience had run dry, and she grabbed Leo by the shoulder.
“What do you want?”
His eyes were endlessly dark and cold. It sent a shiver of fear through Sumika, but she quickly pushed it away and stood in front of Leo, glaring at him.
“Why did you ignore my plan?”
Leo sneered behind his mask. “Because I deemed it unnecessary. I was fine on my own.”
“That’s only because hindsight is fifty-fifty! What if you’d lost?! Every single one of us would have been slaughtered in that single frozen moment!”
“And if that happened, it would be no concern of mine,” Leo said icily.
“You son of a bitch! What do you even think we are?!”
“Nobodies. I don’t bother you, so don’t bother me. As long as we can agree on that, then I am happy to lead all you weaklings.”
“Leo, you—!”
Just as Sumika was about to punch Leo in the face, a sharp voice stopped her.
“Enough! Stop right there!”
A young girl was running toward them in a long tailcoat, her blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail. It was Marion Jenkins, an inspector for the Seekers Association and Pandemonium’s coordinator. She had been in charge of perimeter security during the battle, and she had come as a mediator. Sumika let her fist drop to her side.
“I don’t know what happened,” said Marion, stepping between them, “but you’re partners. Act like it. We’ve confirmed that the beast is dead. I’ll handle the rest.” She glanced at Sumika with some worry in her eyes.
“In that case, I’m done here,” Leo said. The War God walked in the opposite direction from Pandemonium’s airship.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Marion asked. “Airship’s that way.”
“That’s not your business.”
“Except that it is my business. You’re Pandemonium’s clan master. As an inspector, I have to know where you and your clan are, and it’s my job to make sure you’re responsible. Let me ask you again. You’re covered in blood, and you’re essentially abandoning your clan—where are you going?”
Marion’s words were stern, and Leo let out a sigh.
“A bath. I need to wash this blood off, so I’m going to a nearby town to take a bath.”
“Are you trying to piss me off?” Ferocity flickered in her eyes as she glared daggers at Leo. “Fine, then. Let’s say you’re screwing with me. Whatever. But don’t forget—if you and your lot are underestimating the empire, then I will make sure you know your place.”
“Is that a threat?” Leo asked, turning to sneer at Marion. “You can talk as much smack as you like, but you’re the ones who will pay for it.”
“If that’s what you think, then get this through your thick skull: you kill me here and relations between the Seeker Association and your Holy Cross Church are severed completely. Is that what you want?”
“Look at you, a little dog hiding behind your organization so you can bark up a storm.”
“I don’t have to take that from a bat-brained idiot who won’t pick a side. Nobody’s denying you’re the strongest, Leo. But how long are you going to play this dumb fence-sitting game? Is that why you’re always abandoning your fellow clan members? Because you feel guilty that you’re working for the church?”
Leo did, in fact, work for the Holy Cross Church, the largest religious organization in the Velnant Empire. The church had a large number of Seeker adherents, but Leo was no mere follower. He was an agent for the pope’s militant group, Mistletoe.
Mistletoe’s duty was to infiltrate countries and expand the church’s power through shows of military strength. And just like the mistletoe plant—a parasite that flourished and fed on much larger trees—the group had worked its way into the heart of many nations worldwide.
Leo becoming a Seeker was for the sake of fulfilling his duties, but the only people who knew this were Marion, Sumika, and a few members of the Association. Although the Association knew Leo’s true identity, they still couldn’t let him go—a tacit admission that his unique strength was still useful. Marion also held Leo’s fighting abilities in high regard, but she had no intention of abandoning her responsibilities.
“I won’t ask you what kind of position you’re in or whether you’re just a lapdog for the church. Whatever the reason is, you chose to be a clan master, and you will shoulder the responsibilities that come with it. You will trust your clanmates and fight alongside them.”
Leo turned his back to Marion as she admonished him. The unspoken message was clear: I don’t care.
“Are you waiting for a worthy enemy before you start to take this seriously?”
He didn’t reply to her question either.
“Don’t get conceited!” Marion shouted as Leo walked away. “No matter how strong you get, there will always be someone above you!”
At that, Leo stopped in his tracks. “You mean the Valiant? I’ll be there for that battle, so you don’t have to worry.”
“I’m not talking about the Valiant.”
“Oh? Supreme Dragon, then?”
“No. I’m talking about Noel Stollen.”
Leo turned around, his hands on his stomach as his laughter echoed into the air. He didn’t even try to hide it.
“Are you trying to make me laugh myself to death? The swindler? He’s cunning, I’ll give him that. Smart too—it was a brilliant move, setting up that farce of a tournament. But what of him? I promise I’d turn him into minced meat in the space of a second.”
Leo continued to cackle derisively, but Marion didn’t even flinch.
“Then let me ask you this,” she said. “Could you do what he has done?”
“I’m not a swindler, so your question’s pointless.”
“Don’t play that game with me. If you can’t do it, just admit it.”
The rage hidden behind his mask bubbled to the surface.
“You are the strongest, Leo,” said Marion, “but Noel sits above you. It doesn’t matter how strong you get. You’ll never beat him.”
“You’re all bark, pup. Talk is cheap.”
“Indeed.” Marion shot him a belligerent grin. “But words won’t be enough at the Seven Star Cup.”
She walked up to Leo, took an envelope from her jacket pocket, and passed it to him.
“From Noel.”
Leo reluctantly opened the envelope and read the letter inside. It was impossible to discern his feelings from his expression, but after a time, a chuckle rumbled inside his mask.
“Uh-huh… Fine. I’ll enter the Seven Star Cup.”
Sumika gawked in surprise at the clan master’s declaration. “You’re going to enter? You literally just said it was a farce…”
The decision of whether Pandemonium would enter the tournament was left to Sumika, but from the very beginning, Leo had said he would not compete, calling it a sham. She did not know what had inspired this change of heart, but she could feel Leo’s fighting spirit—a resonant madness dripping from every fiber of his being.