Victor's discomfort grew as he observed his master's subservient behavior. Something was not right.
Lucien glanced at the guards and aides before nodding at Victor, signaling him to clear the room. Victor, who had been disciplined by the ominous mage since he was young, dared not disobey and obediently fulfilled the request.
"Leave us," Victor commanded, without a hint of his usual haughty and arrogant attitude.
Once the room was cleared, Victor stepped down from the throne and Lucien took his place, sitting regally.
This was a common occurrence during Lucien's visits. Although Victor was the king, he was not truly in control of the Tessia Kingdom. While he had some autonomy in handling affairs, matters related to providing sacrificial material for Lucien required strict adherence to his master's instructions.
"Master…" Victor said in a subservient tone as he bowed to his master.
"Why did my sacrificial material not arrive on time?" Lucien asked bluntly, making Victor shiver.
Victor decided to bite the bullet and speak the truth. It was impossible to lie to his master.
"There is a very powerful mage, who forcefully took over the dock and released all of the sacrificial material. His name is Daniel, his alias is Magitek," Victor answered truthfully.
"How powerful is he?" Lucien asked again.
"He can decimate a Master Rank mage in a matter of minutes," answered Victor.
"He's good, he should be at the Grand Magician Rank if he could do that much," Lucien praised but then Victor added, "Master… He's an artificer."
Once the word artificer was spoken, Lucien glared at Victor as if a rabbit had just bit a tiger to death. It was impossible; how incapable his pupil was?
ραndαsΝοvεl ƈοm "What did you just say? He's an Artificer!? And you lost all of my sacrificial material to a f**king artificer!? What are you then!? A f**king idiot!?" Lucien shouted in anger, never imagining that his pupil could lose to an artificer.
What kind of artificer could decimate a Master Rank mage within a minute? Lucien thought Victor must have become senile!
"Master! He also can use faith-based magic!" Victor added in a fearful manner, feeling the need to tell his master everything he knew about Daniel.
"No mage can use faith-based magic! Don't try to lie to me!" Lucien's anger reached its peak. Frustrated, if it weren't for a special reason, he would have already beaten up Victor!
"Master! I spoke the truth! We have evidence of his power." Victor quickly brought up his smartphone and accessed an app that only verified mages could use.
This app was like a door to many web pages for people within the Curtained World. Victor then opened a video clip of Daniel fighting Kyros in a trial by combat for his master to see.
Lucien took the phone from Victor and watched.
"Isn't that… the Enforcer? And an Alchemont at that." Lucien murmured after identifying the Enforcer who was fighting Daniel.
As the video continued, Lucien's eyes widened as he watched a swarm of metal scarabs emerges from inside Daniel's suit. He was even more surprised when a red scarab penetrated Kyros's tempest shield without causing any explosion or flames upon impact. Lucien was left speechless, his mouth gaping open in disbelief.
"This… Magitek… is he from Covenshire? His artifacts are so powerful. No, the Covenshire specializes in artifact weapons, not artifact constructs. Hm… Is he from the Hephaestus Institute?" Lucien asked curiously.
"I don't think he's from any large clan, Master. He didn't even have a mage ID. It was as if he just popped up from a secret realm somewhere we don't know," said Victor.
"Interesting. Do you have more information about this Magitek?" his master asked.
"Yes, Master. Please wait a moment," Victor replied, quickly calling his servants to bring all of Daniel's data for his master to see.
Lucien waited patiently as Victor's servants brought him a stack of papers and video data containing all the information they had on Daniel.
After obtaining the data, Lucien spent about two hours scrutinizing it in the study room that Victor had prepared. The word "shocked" was an understatement to describe what Lucien felt.
As a mundane man, Daniel was a genius who could develop a new production line for heavy industry, become at least a Grandmaster Rank artificer at the age of 30, and could use faith-based magic to annihilate his opponent! The mystery surrounding the deletion of his file from the LV.9 clearance personnel added another layer of fog that Lucien couldn't see through.
Why did the Level 9 personnel delete his file in the orphanage? He was an orphan, but who was he really? Who were his true parents? The more Lucien learned, the more questions arose instead of answers.
In the end, Lucien concluded that Daniel was an extremely dangerous individual -- "Too dangerous to be left alone." Given Daniel's ability to wield powerful faith-based magic, Lucien prioritized him at the top of his hit list.
He knew he needed to devise a plan to eliminate Daniel once and for all, regardless of the cost, as the existence of this Magitek could potentially impact his grand plan in Tessia kingdom.
Summoning his pupil to the study room, Lucien knew he would require his cooperation to execute his plan.
"What do you require of me, Master?" Victor asked, bowing before Lucien who sat behind a large desk.
"Prepare a heavy bomber and destroy the entire condominium where he lives," Lucien said without any hesitation or remorse, as if he was asking Victor to do something as mundane as jogging.
"But, Master! That place has thousands of people living in it! There are even hundreds of children, not to mention a nearby hospital!" Victor was taken aback. He knew his master was cruel and practical, but he never expected him to go this far.
Hearing his pupil's objections, Lucien looked at Victor as if he was a stranger.
"That's strange... usually, you wouldn't bat an eye when massacring some measly innocents. Something is not right," he said as he scrutinized Victor carefully.
He activated his magic Insignia and examined Victor's magic vein through his magic-enhanced eyes.
"Hmmm? Why is your magic vein like that? It's as if you haven't gone through the magic vein opening ceremony," Lucien said before standing up and walking towards Victor, who was fearful of his master's approach.
Lucien placed his hand on Victor's shoulder and attempted to send his mana into Victor's magic vein to sense if there was anything unusual.
To his surprise, Lucien discovered something unbelievable inside Victor's body. The reason why Lucien had been lenient towards Victor was that he had implanted something called the Seed of Sins into him during his magic vein opening ceremony when Victor was 14.
"Why was the Seed of Sins in your body in a sealed state!? It should be at least 60% or even 70% awake by now!" Lucien unintentionally revealed the secret he had kept hidden for so long in a moment of panic.
"Seed of sin? Master... What is that? Why was it in my body?" Victor was taken aback by his master's sudden outburst.
Ignoring his pupil, Lucien's eyes reflected fury, extreme fury, as if his long-term goal had been interrupted by someone. He no longer trusted Victor, as the only reason why the Seed of Sin would be in such a state was that Victor must have been affected by some kind of holy blessing.
Not just any blessing, but one from the Grand Paladin or the Great Cathedrals of Notre Dame or the Vatican.
Lucien's grip on Victor's head tightened, preventing him from escaping. "No matter what, I must know what you've been through these past few years!" he roared.
Lucien then activated his magic Insignia and used his magic to read Victor's memories for the past three years since his last visit. However, mind-reading magic was considered banned by the Hightower because it could disorient the victim's soul and cause long-lasting damage, even disabling them from using any magic in the future.
Despite this, Lucien used the most powerful mind-reading spell known to modern mages, delving deep into Victor's memories. The process would likely leave Victor's mind in shambles, unable to function normally.
Victor's agonizing scream echoed through the soundproofed study room. It was one of the rooms he used for his sick leisure and pleasure time, and no one heard his cry of pain.
Lucien delved deeper into his pupil's mind and found nothing unusual in the first three years. The awakening process of the Seed of Sins inside Victor's body was more than satisfactory. But then, during a VIP meeting at the auction house, Magitek smirked at Victor, and suddenly, the Seed of Sins was in a sealed state!
Lucien released his grip on Victor's head and threw him to the ground like a used rag.
"What did you do, Magitek?" Lucien muttered furiously. But there was no time to cry over spilled milk. The sealed state did not last long, and he needed to preserve what was left of the Seed of Sins.
Lucien brings a sharp knife out of his pocket and begins to cut away Victor's clothing, leaving him barebacked. With swift and precise movements, he draws a blooded forbidden magic circle on Victor's skin, the crimson hue of the blood contrasting sharply against his pale skin.
Once the circle is complete, Lucien stands up and raises his arms to the ceiling. His eyes are closed, and he begins to chant in an unintelligible language, so dark and ominous that it seemed to corrupt the very air around them. The words echo and resonate, seeming to come from everywhere and nowhere at once.
As Lucien chants, the magic circle on Victor's back begins to glow with a sinister red light. The light grows brighter and brighter until it envelops Victor entirely, and the room is plunged into darkness.
The chanting continues, and the room feels as if it is vibrating with the power of dark magic. Shadows seem to move and writhe, and the air is thick with a sense of foreboding and danger.
Finally, after what feels like an eternity, Lucien's chanting stops. And the red silhouette emerges from the magic circle on Victor's body.
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!
Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter