******
"M-Mama….."
Lily's murmured voice sounded faint from behind the prison, while her mother, Elenna, was imprisoned in front of her with chains binding her arms and neck.
Yesterday, the large-scale rebellion led by the First Son of the Schrizford Family was carried out very openly and suddenly; even before the Seo Hunters could do anything, the rebels had taken Elenna and her daughter hostage and threatened them that if they did anything or reported this to Do-hyun, Elenna and Lily's lives would end.
They also destroyed all signal transmitters and used signal jammers to prevent the news from spreading outside. This was all done very silently and quickly.
It was evident that although Elenna was still alive, she seemed to have been beaten and injured, as seen from the wounds she had received, while Lily was sedated and placed in a different cell.
In the fortress, the sounds of battle cries could also be heard, seemingly fierce and massive, being waged by the three supporting factions.
Near the room of the head of the Schrizford Family, who was now dying, a fierce resistance was being faced against dozens of high-rank hunters trying to break into the place with full force.
This place truly felt like hell tonight.
******
Nighttime in the capital of Neo Austria, Vienna.
We arrived here quickly. However, the situation here seemed strange; we could not use our phones at all, and our communication was cut off due to the lack of internet.
If only one or two people were experiencing this, it wouldn't be strange, but everyone was experiencing the same thing. So, we found that this must be caused by something else.
My father, who had been wearing a worried and tense expression, I couldn't help but ask him.
"Father, what are you thinking? It seems like it's not good news?"
Hearing my question beside him, my father turned to me and explained after sighing with worry.
"Sighh…. Because she is your mother, I suppose I can explain..."
"Every day…. I have been asking your mother's guard to always provide me with daily reports on Elenna and your younger sister's condition. Sometimes I do video calls with Elenna and your sister. However, for the past 3 days, I haven't received any daily reports from your mother's guard, and I tried calling for a video call with Elenna, but her phone has been completely inactive…."
Ahhh…. I got the point.
From my father's explanation, I thought that my mother or her guards couldn't communicate with my father due to this signal issue. However, if I observed and thought deeper, it seemed this wasn't the main problem.
After arriving at a small airport located quite far from the city, the two of us continued our journey quietly using a public sedan that had been prepared by one of the company's spies there.
Some time passed, and we passed through the city and arrived at a fortress standing 50 meters tall stretching as far as the eye could see.
It was Fortress Orion, a colossal fort separating the outside world from the Royal Schrizford Family Palace, an ancient noble family that had risen again after the apocalypse.
The guards standing in front of the fortress gate approached us arrogantly.
"This is Fortress Orion; please leave here at once."
Ignoring the guard, my father just stood still for a moment before his previously slightly worried smile turned serious and very cold.
Then, without turning back, he said to me.
"Hey, son."
"Yes?"
"I hear and detect sounds of battle and the use of magic energy coming from within this fortress; it seems Elenna and your younger sister are in danger…."
Unbeknownst to me, my father had released a very thick and oppressive aura that could make anyone kneel due to its intensity.
"….. Prepare yourself; we are going to war…."
After those words, he pressed several buttons on his phone and immediately brushed aside the guards who had begun to confront us with his magic.
"Get out of the way, you damn trash."
His voice was so heavy and intimidating; his dark red aura was truly overwhelming even though my father didn't direct it at me at all.
Truly worthy of being the power of an untouchable being.
Pulling out a poker card from my subspace, I began to put on my combat gear and said.
"I'm ready, father."
"Good, our troops have also arrived."
"Troops….??"
I turned to see my father.
"….!!!"
There, I saw hundreds of hunters armed with various combat weapons, but all wearing cloaks with the same symbol, starting to advance until they reached us and knelt in unison.
""Salute to the Master and the Young Master-!!!!""
The shout truly shook the ground beneath my feet.
Placing his hands on his hips, my father began to explain.
"Sorry for calling you here suddenly at night. However, I have an urgent matter we need to address. As you can feel, there is a battle ahead, and who knows what kind of bastards have disrupted my wife's and father-in-law's house. Therefore, let's wipe out these pests and secure my family. Do you understand?"
"We understand-!!!"
Were they sent here using that dizzying Teleportation Scroll?
"Good!! Now, let's move!!"
******
They started by breaking down the gate and rushing in suddenly; with astonishing speed, they managed to enter the second circle of the fortress and reached the main circle where the battle was ongoing.
Everyone present was astonished by the sudden arrival of the foreign forces. Even before they realized it, they were bombarded by attacks from the wizards under my father.
Boommm!!
Booooommmmmm-!!!!!
Attack after attack was launched, each one carrying destructive power that obliterated more than 30% of the enemies present.
As for my father, he remained silent, not doing anything, but I knew from the movements of his magic that he seemed to be trying to detect something, apparently searching for my mother and Lily.
As for me? Well, I split off with the troops heading toward my grandfather's chamber to rescue him.
"For Team Alpha, move with me to Grandfather's chamber in the Orion Palace."
"Understood!"
We forcibly entered the palace, seeing that battles were taking place there as well. With the residual memories from Hyeon-woo, who had been here before and vaguely remembered my grandfather's loyalists, I began to sort out the opponents for the other team to hunt.
Launching all my poker cards, I encountered hundreds of enemies blocking the corridor and began my battle there.
I threw several cards directly at the necks of those who were too slow to notice my attack, cleanly severing their throats.
Then I threw 40 more cards and spread them throughout the corridor, attacking them all with at least 2 cards each that spun and accelerated, seeking gaps to kill them all.
Now I was starting to understand how to use these cards; it was as if they had hands holding them, but in an infinite amount according to my Mana capacity, though it was a bit difficult to control them all correctly.
Scrashhh—
"Ourfff—"
"Stop, stop those intruders!!!"
One man wearing formal attire very different from the others began to shout a killing order toward Team Alpha behind me.
Seeing this, I merely snorted coldly. Although I wasn't a strong person, it was different from Team Alpha, whose team leader was an S-rank Hunter, and its members were top A-rank Hunters.
An elite force among elites.
Without turning even slightly, I stepped forward, getting closer to my grandfather's chamber, which was about 100 meters away from this corridor.
"W-what is this?!!!"
"A card?!!!"
"Block it, block it!!!"
Some of them, with precise timing and accurate speed, easily deflected my cards, and the wizards managed to protect the man who seemed to be one of their important figures.
"Ohho…. Alright, alright. That's impressive. Then, how about this?"
I threw a card depicting a Double Jack toward the man who was surrounded by a protective array.
Then I snapped my fingers and said, "Breaks it."
Crashhhh-!!!!!
In an instant, the array shattered as the two Jack cards fused with square-shaped magic began to spin and zoom through the air with a sharp screech, striking the man they were protecting.