Arsen stared at Robert's aura with a blank face. Even he wasn't surprised or bothered by Robert's suddenly increased energy.
Edric looked seriously at the scene, "What exactly was that pill he swallowed earlier?"
Arsen glanced at him, "What I saw was that the pill was black."
Oscar hummed suspiciously, "And after he swallowed it, his strength suddenly seemed to increase rapidly. Very suspicious."
Philip snorted, "I didn't even know there was such a pill."
The four of them gasped as they felt another surge of energy besides Robert's. It was weaker, but there was more of it.
Philip frowned, "What is this again? Where did it come from?"
Arsen gasped, "It's... From where Chris was."
Arsen concentrated to feel it more clearly. The result remained the same, although he also felt other energies that were thinner to the point of being almost imperceptible.
"You mean the place where the suspicious side of this barrier is? The one your royal physician is investigating?" Oscar's question was answered with a nod from Arsen.
Edric hummed, "Do this man's allies know that your subordinates are researching it and plan to get rid of them?"
Arsen paused, "Most likely."
Robert's energy blasts had stopped, allowing the four to turn their attention back to him. What they saw was quite shocking, but there was no look of surprise on their faces.
"All the wounds are gone?" asked Edric skeptically. Was what Robert swallowed earlier a potion? Then why did his strength suddenly increase?
Robert laughed out loud as he examined his body, "This is amazing! Not only has my strength and power increased, but all my wounds have disappeared! Amazing!"
Robert smirked as he looked down at the kings, "How about that? Are you afraid of my power now?"
Oscar snorted with laughter, "He said afraid? Very funny."
"Either he forgot on purpose or he forgot how miserable he was just now." Philip added in an amused tone.
Robert's smirk disappeared and was replaced by a growl, "Shut up! I'm different now! I'm stronger than all of you!"
Arsen raised his eyebrows, "All because of a pill?"
Robert chuckled, "I see you don't know about this pill yet."
He took another black pill out of his pocket. Now the four kings could see it clearly. It was just a pill with a pitch-black color.
Edric frowned in confusion, "What kind of pill is that? I've never seen one before."
Robert laughed out loud, "So there's something even a king doesn't know about? Even these people know about it and have so many of these pills! How sad!"
"So it's an illegal drug?"
Arsen's flat question left Robert speechless with his eyes wide open. He stared at Arsen, who stared back at him sharply until he involuntarily shivered with fear.
"You're the one who said it. These people know. I guess you're talking about your new ally." Arsen said sharply. From the beginning he had suspected that Robert had joined the group that had attacked his friend's kingdom.
"These invaders are refugees from the kingdom of Glatteis. They don't use this pill there. So they must have just found it." Arsen guessed.
"But since the four kingdoms don't know about it, whatever pill it is is an illegal drug. Whether it has recently become known or has just appeared, it is certain that these pills are not for general sale."
Arsen's explanation made the kings look at each other. Normally, if there was a new item on the black market, they would know about it, especially if it was dangerous and too powerful. Since they didn't know about it yet, it was likely that only this group had it.
Robert paused before smiling broadly. He clapped his hands mockingly at Arsen, "As expected from my former king."
Robert looked at the four kings with a smug look, "What you said is absolutely true! This pill only exists on the black market! It's very difficult to get even one grain!"
"The pill has only been around for a short time, right?" Edric asked in a calm tone. His blue eyes looked calculatingly at the man before him.
Robert snorted lightly, "So what? This pill is already very popular among criminals."
They knew immediately that Robert was lying. If it was famous, there was no way they wouldn't know about it. It was an obvious lie.
"So it's a power pill? How disgusting." Philip commented with a disgusted look on his face.
"You say that now. But once you know what the effects are, you'll be crazy too." Robert chuckled at the thought of that actually happening.
"That's why you are so disgusting."
The statement that came out of Arsen's mouth brought him out of his reverie. He stared disapprovingly at Arsen, who was still staring at him sharply, as if the explosion of his power hadn't affected him.
Oscar refrained from cheering at Arsen's blunt words. He could use it for his own entertainment without interfering in the fight.
Arsen clicked his tongue in annoyance, "Instead of relying on yourself, you rely on such things to become stronger. What a shame."
"A talented person like you should just keep your mouth shut! You don't understand what it's like!" shouted Robert angrily.
Black lightning sparks began to envelop his hand, "I don't understand. But I understand one thing."
Arsen raised his hand. A black magic circle appeared above Robert, accompanied by black lightning sparks like the one in Arsen's hand now.
Arsen looked at Robert coldly, "Nothing will change if I choose the shortcut."
The moment he lowered his hand, a huge black bolt of lightning immediately came down from the magic circle and hit Robert hard. The strike caused a strong wind accompanied by dust that obscured the view. For the first time that day, Arsen used a lightning magic attack directly on Robert.
The dust covering the view began to clear. Robert was still standing, his armor still active. There was not the slightest wound on his body, which meant that Arsen's attack had not hit him at all.
Robert examined his body with a broad grin, "Hahaha! Now your attacks won't work on me! I'm much stronger than an arrogant bastard like you!"
Arsen not bothered. After all, it wasn't his strongest attack. It was only about 20% of his power, but it was strong enough. He just wanted to test Robert's strength, which had been increased by the pill.
Edric hummed, "It seems that the pill works very well. He can even withstand 20% of Arsen's strength." Oscar nodded in agreement.
Philip snorted, "Something that powerful must have even more powerful side effects. Just wait for the right time and he will feel his body slowly disintegrate. At least that's what I think."
Robert looked back and grinned as he found what he was looking for, "Hey, Your Majesty. Didn't you feel the energy explosion somewhere else?"
Arsen just looked at him coldly, "So? My subordinates are no weaklings."
Robert's grin grew wider, "Oh? I'm not talking about your subordinates."
It was then that Arsen realized what Robert meant. Earlier he had felt a surge of energy where Chris was. But he also felt the same thing in another place, but a much weaker version, barely perceptible. As if something was blocking it from being felt by others. Something big was happening inside the barriers.
Robert chuckled loudly, "I would like to see my comrades inside, who use the same pill as me, finish off those brats and cut them into pieces.
The atmosphere around the kings immediately became heavy. The temperature dropped drastically. The eyes of the four kings shone sharply with a heavy aura as they stared at Robert.
"Try to touch them."
Sparks of black lightning began to surround him as his cold, sharp gaze pierced Robert's wide-open eyes. He touched the hilt of his sword, still in its sheath. But black sparks of lightning began to envelop the hilt.
"And I will make your life more miserable than hell."
Robert smirking wickedly, "Try me."
With that, Arsen increased his power until a loud rumble was heard in the sky, accompanied by lightning.
Daisy glanced anxiously at the sky before turning her attention back to the knights fighting the invaders, "This is not good."
"What do you think they swallowed, Uncle?" Natalie asked as she watched the battle unfold before them.
At first the two sides fought evenly. But as time passed, the enemy's strength increased. Probably under the influence of the pill they had swallowed.
"Strength-enhancing pills. That's all I can think of." Chris replied seriously.
Martha frowned, "There are pills like that?"
"I'm sure they're on the black market." Jane replied with an exasperated groan.
"Your Majesty."
Chris' call made the queens stare at him. He glanced anxiously at the barrier behind them.
"I'm sure you all felt the explosion of power from inside the barrier as well."
Natalie nodded firmly, "We know. That's why we need to finish this as soon as possible."
Martha chuckled before giving Natalie a light elbow, "You don't want to lose to the husbands, do you?" She said with a broad smile that was met with laughter from her friends.
Natalie gripped Chris's hand tightly, "Uncle Chris, please take care of Daisy."
Chris's expression softened as he returned Natalie's grip no less firmly, "As you wish, Your Majesty."
Then he patted Natalie's arm as he whispered softly, "Be careful." Natalie nodded with a soft smile.
Daisy looked worriedly at her friends, "Be careful!"
The three nodded confidently before preparing to join the fight. Since they had no weapons at the moment, they could only rely on physical combat and magic.
"So? Time to go on a rampage?" Jane asked calmly as icy vapor began to envelop her hands.
Martha grinned as flames began to envelop her hands, "Been a long time since I did that."
"Use everything you've got." Natalie said seriously as white sparks of lightning began to envelop her hands.
"And destroy them all."