At that moment, the body of a beheaded wizard suddenly turned into mud, and another figure emerged from the ground.
Sophie was still alive. Upon appearing, he held a puppet in his hand. He smeared his own blood from his bleeding neck onto the puppet, then directed it towards Murphy.
Murphy sensed something was wrong and immediately flashed in front of Sophie, ready to chop off his head with a sword. But Sophie acted faster, slapping the puppet against himself.
"Thud!"
Murphy felt as if his heart had skipped a beat, and then his body suddenly froze in place.
Sophie Christian, too, stood motionless across from him.
The two stood face to face, less than a meter apart, as if they were under a petrification spell, unable to move even a finger.
Murphy found himself unable to mobilize his magic power, and the same seemed true for Sophie. In Murphy's magical vision, Sophie's magic power was like dead water.
A curse?
This curse was much faster than Alexei's and seemingly had fewer preliminary steps. Perhaps because of this, its side effect also "froze" the caster.
Probably that's why Sophie didn't use this curse from the beginning.
But now, in his view, he undoubtedly had the advantage.
After all, this was Duke Ivan's residence, and apart from Murphy, everyone else was his ally. Even the soldiers lying on the ground had some mobility left. Any one of them standing up could pick up a sword and chop off Murphy's head.
Just then, the door to the courtyard was suddenly pushed open.
Two teenagers, covered in blood and with eyes blazing with fervor, rushed out.
Seeing Murphy, they shouted, "Lord Murphy! We've brought you the heads of our father and brother!"
Sophie was shocked. He recognized the voices of George and Alexander.
How did they get here?
And, Lord Murphy?
What heads?
But his questions were soon answered. George Frederick and Alexander Frederick each held a dripping head and came between Murphy and him.
He immediately recognized that George held the head of Ivan Frederick.
The Duke... was dead?
"Lord Murphy, look, this is my father's head, just cut off by me," George Frederick held up the head as if seeking approval. "He was so shocked before he died, as if he couldn't understand why I would kill him. Alas, it's so sad. I loved him, but he posed a threat to Lord Murphy and had to die."
Sophie Christian was on the verge of madness.
Why?
How could this be possible?!
George and Alexander were like his own children, with good relations with Ivan and Lars. How could they commit patricide and fratricide?!
Just then, Murphy suddenly moved. His arm first trembled, then swung the greatsword in a forceful arc, chopping into Sophie's neck.
The puppet fell from his hand, and the curse was immediately lifted.
Murphy breathed a sigh of relief, took the head from George Frederick, and raised it before Sophie, "You must be confused about many things, but it doesn't matter. Go reunite with your brother."
With that, his sword swung again, severing Sophie's head.
Then, whoosh, countless lightning crows flew out from the palace door, administering electrotherapy to the struggling wounded soldiers in the courtyard, sending them to the afterlife. The crows then merged into Murphy's body.
Murphy looked at George and Alexander, "Well done. You know what to say in front of others, right?"
"We know. Our father and brother planned a coup. We overheard their plan to abduct the Empress and had no choice but to kill them."
"Good."
The chain of events was like this:
The Empress wanted to use Lady Yaga to restrain Felipe Carlos, so Murphy could kill Duke Ivan. For some reason, Duke Ivan knew their plan in detail and had Sophie Christian set up to kill Murphy — because Murphy was the Empress's only trump card.
Sophie, aiming to eliminate Murphy, turned their plan against them, sending Felipe Carlos to distract Lady Yaga while setting traps for Murphy.
He trained a literally "invisible" army with his mastery of invisibility magic, believing that this force, along with poison and curses, would be enough to kill Murphy.
He did well, indeed.
But what he hadn't anticipated was that before his plan was set in motion, Murphy had already turned George and Alexander into his puppets using the Soul-Stealing Curse, Command Charm, and Seed of Mind.
They were the real executors in Murphy's plan to assassinate Duke Ivan.
As for Murphy, he was the bait to attract Sophie's attention, creating conditions for George, Alexander, and his lightning crows.
In this play of strategy, the Empress was on the first layer, Sophie on the second, and Murphy in the stratosphere.
As for how Murphy broke free from Sophie's curse — the moment he realized he was cursed, he used the Seed of Mind to control the transgenic adenoviruses in his body, which were used for cell repair and aging delay. He stimulated his arm's nerves using these viruses, which had spread throughout his body, to complete the interrupted strike.
However, George and Alexander's actions were faster than he anticipated; otherwise, he could have waited for them, avoiding the need to activate the viruses.
After finding the antidote for the poison gas on Sophie, Murphy drank it, and his discomfort eased significantly.
"Get me a box to pack these heads, and have those loyal to you clean up this place. The Duke is dead, and you are the only heirs. You'll need to maintain good relations with your subordinates," he instructed the now loyal sons.
"You really think of everything... we would die for you."
"Keeping oneself useful is the best way to serve me."
"We understand, Lord Murphy."
After packing the heads, Murphy took a few empty boxes and left the Duke's residence. Shortly after, a battle erupted at the Ancestor's Tomb, and ten minutes later, Murphy appeared on the Sky Street Terrace outside the Spring Palace.
He walked straight to the palace, and halfway there, Azir hurried towards him. "Mr. Murphy, are you alright? I heard..."
Before he could finish, Murphy suddenly swung his right hand, his fingers slicing towards Azir's neck like a knife.
But Azir seemed to have anticipated the attack and instantly earth-teleported away ten meters. Before he could catch his breath, Murphy flicked his hand, and invisible blades sliced Azir into pieces.
"Wind blades?" Azir died with his eyes wide open.
"I watched Lady Yaga use them a few times and probably just learned how," Murphy said.
Under the magical vision, the movement of magic power was displayed more vividly than ever before, allowing him to mimic and learn a spell with little effort.
"How did you know you were a mole?" Murphy sighed. "Who else could have leaked the plan so thoroughly? And the blood for Sophie's curse, that came from you, right?"
Although he was hit by a wind blade in the fight with Sophie, he had long been cautious about Suvian shamanic curses. Almost instantly upon being injured, he evaporated the spilled blood with lightning. According to what he knew of curses, they needed the victim's body tissue to work.
After arriving in Arkaim, he could only think of the time when Azir performed a ritual and took his blood and hair. It seemed like he burned it all, but he must have kept some.
Still, Murphy couldn't quite understand, "Why do this? The Empress trusted you."
"With, the tiger... you are, more than... Ivan, more..."
But Azir's words were left unfinished as he breathed his last.
Murphy used another wind blade to chop off his head, placing it in a box. Then he walked into the Spring Palace.
The battle was over, and now it was time to claim his reward.
This conclusion to the intricate web of schemes and plots in the palace showed not only the depths of deception and betrayal but also Murphy's ability to maneuver through them and emerge victorious. His actions not only removed his enemies but also reinforced his position, ensuring that those loyal to him were placed in power, further solidifying his influence and control.
As Murphy entered the Spring Palace, the weight of the day's events and the lives he had altered or ended weighed on him. But in this world of magic and power, such decisions and actions were necessary for survival and success. Now, it was time to see what the future held and what role he would play in the shaping of this world.
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