"I don't believe a Master Rank Mage like me can't kill you!" The assailant roared atop his lung.
"Oh?" Daniel scoffed. "You call yourself a Master Rank Mage? Pathetic. If you think any feeble spell of yours could harm me, be my guest. But, the outcome may not be what you desire." His voice dripped with contempt as he looked down at his enemy, daring him to make a move.
"You!" The assailant gathered all of his power as much as his magic vein could allow and even overheated it a little bit.
He takes his time to put the converted mana into his prepared magic insignia as much as he can and activates the function that allows him to increase the power of his spell as much as he can.
The mana fluctuation was so intense to the point that even normal people like Ardito could even feel it. The light intensity created by overloaded insignia shone like a high-powered spotlight. All of the Ardito people are trying to retreat as far as they can.
Daniel's confidence and disdaining smile still display for all to see. It was as if the assailant in front of him was just a clown who continued to dance for his amusement.
Magic power continues to gather into the assailant Insignia without stopping, after a full three minutes, it begins to slow down.
Cackling laughter echoed across the battlefield as he mocked Daniel's foolishness.
"Hahahaha! Fool! You even allowed me to complete my preparation! Do you have no sense of strategy? The first lesson in any mage fight is to not let your opponent gather their power so easily. Now, DIE!!"
The assailant's eyes gleamed with malicious delight as he readied his spell, clearly relishing the chance to take down his overconfident foe. He never saw a mage as stupid as this Artificer in front of him.
The moment that the prepared spell was ready he jumped high into the sky and was about to unleash his prepared spell. This spell will destroy anything within 200 meters radius below him,
At that moment, In a blinding flash, the sky lit up as if it were daytime. Before the assailant could unleash his spell, a brilliant bolt of holy lightning descended upon him, obliterating his form from existence in an instant.
Pure holy mana energy from that strike could be felt even from two kilometers away, and startled many priests who are privy about the Curtained World.
They wonder what in the world had happened that invoked such a phenomenon from God. The mana was so pure that it surpassed even the holiness of the Vatican's cathedral, and some knowledgeable priests could sense the extraordinary power that had been unleashed. Whose sinner suffers this wrath of God?
Within Daniel's mindscape, Three holy mana that he could use to actualize Michaela appeared. What he just did is using a quick spell card that required a little bit of a condition to using it.
Card: God's Reclamation
Picture: The picture of fierce white lightning struck down from the sky, obliterating nightmarish creatures below and turning them into pure light mana.
Rarity: Rare
Type: Quick Spell
Mana Cost: 2 Light, 1 Non-Element
Description: Destroy target attacking creatures, Generate Light mana equal to the target creature's mana cost.
Flavor text: If they do not repent. God might reclaim them to create more room for his believer.
Daniel looked up into the sky where the assailant had been obliterated. He takes out an emblem from his suit's inner pocket, it has a skull and the word in Latin "In anima confidimus, quia veritatem solum ostendit engraved on its golden frame." (AN: Translate to "We trust in the soul, for it reveals only the truth.")
Daniel presses on the skull emblem, and the soul of the assailant materializes before him. The assailant's expression is one of deep horror as he realizes that he has been ensnared by the Emblem of the Syndicate Union, rather than the bounty emblem of the Hightower.
This is a source of great shame for any mage, as the Syndicate Union is an organization established by non-mage individuals who sought to protect themselves from the powerful and dangerous world of magic.
Although the Syndicate Union offers much higher monetary compensation than the Hightower, few bounty hunters are willing to use it, as it is considered a blatant act of disrespect towards the clan or organization to which the mage belonged.
This is because every mage soul captured by the Syndicate Union is used as a bargaining chip against the Hightower, causing the prestige and power of the mage's clan or organization to be greatly diminished in the eyes of the Hightower council.
If the captured mage belonged to a clan with a seat on the council, this act of disrespect would be even more severe.
The Emblem of the Syndicate Union is a symbol of the immense power wielded by the organization and the fear it instills in the hearts of the magical community.
The act of trapping a mage's soul in this emblem is not only a means of claiming a bounty but also a demonstration of the Syndicate Union's potential dominance over those who wield magical power.
Even so, The Syndicate Union knows better than to provoke the wrath of the Hightower, the pure-blood mage organization, they only hold onto these souls as bargaining chips to safeguard their own interests.
Nevertheless, the mere sight of this emblem can strike fear into the hearts of those who know of its true power.
"Magitek! You dare to use that against me? Do you have any idea what you've just done? You have not only offended The Tessia royal family, but you have also sealed your own fate. The king himself will hunt you down and make you pay for your insolence!" The assailant hissed at Daniel, his voice trembling with anger and fear.
Upon hearing the assailant's threat, Daniel was momentarily stunned. The assailant smirked, thinking his words had struck fear into Magitek. But his expression quickly turned to shock as he saw the defiant smile on Daniel's face.
"Of course! That's exactly what I want!" Daniel retorted boldly.
"Let Victor come after me personally so I can kill him for what he did!" With excitement and hatred, Daniel increases his mana input into the emblem to accelerate the soul capturing process.
The thought of exterminating the royal family and avenging what Victor had done to him and his girlfriend had consumed him entirely.
Terror filled the assailant's face as he realized he was dealing with a dangerous lunatic whose sole purpose was to spill the blood of the royal family. People like him were unpredictable and relentless, they wouldn't stop until they met their demise or the royal family was completely annihilated.
"No! Lord Magitek! Please! anything but that! I could pay you two... no! Three times the price that Syndicate Union had offered! I will give you all of my artifacts! and magic tome! Please!!" The assailant pleaded with horror, realizing the terrible fate that awaited him and his family if the royal family discovered his mistake and got trapped in the Syndicate Union bounty emblem.
The royal family was infamous for their lack of mercy towards those who brought disgrace upon their name. If they discovered his involvement, his entire family would suffer the consequences.
Daniel didn't respond, only looking at the assailant's soul with cold, unfeeling eyes, as if regarding a worthless maggot trying to squirm its way out of misery.
"Please… Lord Magitek… please… for the sake of my family. Please… spare me… please…"
The assailant was completely broken, his soul writhing in agony as it was dragged into the emblem. He couldn't even kneel or grovel on the ground, but his voice was filled with desperation as he pleaded for his family's fate.
Upon hearing the assailant's pleading, Daniel unconsciously reduced his mana input into the emblem, allowing the soul momentarily respite. While he despised the royal family, he still couldn't bring himself to involve innocent family members in his vendetta against them.
The idea of the innocent suffering the consequences of someone else's actions made him loosen his grip on the emblem, and he looked at the assailant's soul once more. This time, there was a glimmer of empathy hidden behind his cold and unfeeling gaze.
The assailant's soul let out a relieved smile, thinking that he had managed to appeal to Daniel's better nature.
But then, memories of the night that had turned his life upside down flooded Daniel's mind. He could hear his girlfriend's screams as Victor trying to defied her.
Rage and hatred filled his thoughts, and any empathy he had felt for the innocent was buried under the weight of his fury. His eyes blazed with a murderous glint as he increased his mana input tenfold and swiftly trapped the assailant's soul in the emblem.
After the assailant's soul was trapped within the emblem, Daniel turned toward James, who was leaning against a nearby container, grinning from ear to ear. He had fully recovered from the poison thanks to his werewolf regenerative powers.
Daniel walked up to him and gave him a pat on the back in a friendly manner, expressing his gratitude.
"Thank you, James. You saved my life," Daniel said, his gratitude evident in his eyes.
James beamed with pride at the compliment, but his easygoing nature quickly reared its head. "Hey, no worries, my lord. I'm always happy to help you out," he replied, giving Daniel a playful wink.
Daniel chuckled at James' goofiness, but the respect he held for him remained unchanged.