Mumei and Shoya were still in the banquet hall with the leftover nobles. Almost everyone in the Kyouya Family was in the training room on the 43rd floor.
There was a slight tremor causing the banquet hall to shake. Shoya looked at Mumei with a worried look. It was more of an 'it couldn't be' look.
"Those tremors are coming from..."
"The training room, for sure."
Mumei confirmed. It was ominous energy but it felt akin to Ayato's bloodlust.
"Do you think Ayato can win against all of those guys?"
"He can, definitely. After all, he was titled the Magician of the Night."
Shoya raised his brow.
"What's that mean?"
"Huh? You mean I've never told you?"
"No?"
"The title of the Magician of the Night is given to whatever Kyouya has overwhelming power. It means that they can compete with the world's strongest magicians."
It was not a stretch. Only three people in the history of the Kyouya Family have ever been given this title. The first patriarch, Goto Kyouya's mother and Ayato Kyouya.
·———·
The battle finished in ten minutes. Every single person in that room was on the floor, excluding concubines and Horobi Kyouya.
They all stood frozen in awe of the power of the boy named Ayato Kyouya. He walked past Horobi and put his hand on his shoulder.
"Try again next time, if you can."
Ayato walked out and Horobi stood still. He was seething with rage and frustration. His plan failed. No, it didn't fail. It didn't even work in the first place, after all, Ayato Kyouya was an absolute powerhouse.
Ayato used his Deconstruction to disconnect a major vein in all of their mana nexus. This vein wouldn't put any danger to their lives but it would knock them unconscious.
To be able to do that would require precision and the ability to accurately disconnect over a hundred of the same vein. Magicians have evolved over time to the point where some can withstand gunshots.
In the same way, their brains have evolved. The reason magicians are able to read incantations is due to the brain's processing and solving aspects. They're able to comprehend things faster similar to thought acceleration. If a normal human reads an incantation, their body feels like it's collapsing from the inside out.
"That bastard..."
He croaked, barely able to keep his rage bottled up.
Horobi calmed down before smiling. He still had another plan in mind.
"It's fine... It's all fine..."
·———·
The second day of the Midnight Banquet was simply a rest day. It was made for socialising with the other nobles at the banquet.
Ayato couldn't do such a thing despite being so important and 'popular.'
"UNO! Hah, when are you going to win, Ayato?"
Yukina asked him with a triumphant look.
They were all playing UNO. So far, they've played four games. Yukina won two, while Retsuya and Ayaka won one each. Only Arashi and Ayato were without a win.
Arashi glared at Ayato, jealous of the attention that he was receiving.
"What about—?"
"Huh, who ordered you to talk, Arashi? Aren't you under punishment?"
He nodded frantically. Despite Ayato losing too, only Arashi got punishments since Yukina decided so. It was unfair but they played on either way.
"By the way, have you lot seen Anastasia?"
He asked, curious. They're playing in his room meaning that Anastasia should be sleeping but she isn't. Ayato didn't know where she was.
"Anastasia? I thought she was doing something for you."
"Yeah, I remember you said that she's supposed to sleep during the day."
Retsuya and Yukina had no idea. If so then the other two had no clue as well. Ayato began to feel uneasy. It wasn't like Anastasia to disappear without saying a word. What's more, this was during the Midnight Banquet.
Abruptly, Ayato's phone began buzzing. He stood up and picked it up.
"Unknown number..."
The last time he got an unknown number, it was a jester from the Court. For some reason—even if he had no reason to—he believed that it wasn't them.
"Hello?"
[Hello, the heir of the Kyouya Family.]
He instantly recognised the voice.
"Horobi..."
His unease became stronger.
"What did you do with Anastasia?"
[You're a sharp one. Here, listen.]
Horobi seemed to move the phone to someone else.
[M-Master... D-don't come...]
The boy tensed his jaw, hearing Anastasia's faint voice.
[As you can hear, she's barely hanging on. I may have played with her a bit too much.]
The black rage in his stomach slowly rose. It steadily rose the more he heard Horobi's voice.
[The Kyouya Family house. Meet me there.]
He cut the call. Ayato lowered his phone from his ear and crushed it. The black rage rose in his chest and spread. Black mana leaked from his body in his state of rage.
"A-Ayato?"
It felt uncomfortable for them to even stay near him. They could feel the full brunt of his anger. It was dark and suffocating. Even his bloodlust was a far cry from this.
It felt like the presence of death. Not even the best magicians could produce such a pure aura of death.
"I'll be back."
Ayato announced in a dull tone. He walked out of the room, leaving behind the lingering air of death caught at their throats.
The boy had been consumed by a black rage.
·———·
"Hahahahahaha! Don't you think this is wonderful?!"
Horobi asked Anastasia, who was tied to the wall. It was a horrendous sight.
She had been tortured using special tools. Horobi was a sadist, one that couldn't be controlled. Anastasia was covered in burns, fresh scars and even her right eye had been plucked out.
"You... bastard..."
She was dressed in mana-restricting cuffs. It stopped the flow of mana through the gates of the body. They were similar to the ones Yukina used as a disciplinary committee member.
"You can still talk? I guess I didn't do a good job."
He joked, putting down his phone. Horobi laughed.
"You're... You're so dead..."
"Huh?"
"You don't... r-realise, do yo-ou?"
Horobi narrowed his eyes, frustrated with how vague Anastasia was. She smiled.
"What is it?"
"You angered... the wrong person."