Chapter 797: Body of Magic
“Not bad.” Roland tilted a nod toward the darkness where the curtain had swallowed her, and a smiling face surfaced from the shadow like a pale bloom, acknowledging the praise before sinking back. Without knowing it was a witch, he might have shouted.
“Your Majesty — there are enemies in the hall.” Faldi’s voice came low and careful. “Their magic power reads nearly as strong as hybrid demonic beasts.”
“Can you handle them?”
“As long as none of them are Senior Demons, Ling and I won’t have trouble.” Phyllis answered without hesitation.
“Then we proceed as planned.”
As Roland moved through the long entrance porch, he noticed the windows were boarded over — wood planking and tape sealing every pane. The lights inside were sparse, barely enough to push back the dark. The cold hit next, sharp and stale, as though the air conditioning had been running for days without purpose. Then the smell: a deep, wet rot that built in the back of his throat and refused to leave.
At the center of the hall, a man in a suit stood motionless. From the moment Roland stepped inside, the warmth in his body surged — several times stronger than it had for the fake man in the park. His pulse answered it.
Faldi had found a big fish.
But what arrested him was the wall behind the suited man.
A sculpture hung on the two-story mural surface — something vast, assembled from material that looked like weathered wood or cured leather. A human face sat above a body that made no anatomical sense: broad hind legs, curled and powerful; slender forepaws folded at the chest; a pair of wings spread wide. Close to four meters in length. The carving of every feather, every vein beneath the skin, was so precise and lifelike that the craftsmanship alone put its value in the millions.
“The grotesque taste of the rich,” Roland muttered, and looked away.
“Begin.”
Phyllis struck from two meters behind the target, her blade claw lashing from her back with a speed that outpaced reaction. At this distance even an Extraordinary would not have had time to turn fully before it was over. The claw opened the suited man diagonally from shoulder to hip. He went down.
Dark red blood painted the floor.
So — even a Fallen Evil dies if its body is destroyed severely enough, regardless of whether the core has been removed.
“That’s all?” Ling surfaced from beside the sofa, looking faintly disappointed.
“The main work is next.” Roland covered his nose. The rot smell had thickened, which might have been perception — or might not. “Do you remember what I told you?”
Ling raised her hand promptly. “Gold ornaments, red paper, chests with orbs. Coins are worthless. Leave the gemstones.”
“Exactly. Red paper most of all.” He had learned from the Holy City of Hermes that gems fluctuated too wildly to sell without loss. Gold was stable. Cash was best of all. Please don’t let this one be an enthusiast of digital transactions.
He crouched over the body, reaching for the Force of Nature mounted near the man’s torso.
“Hold on.” Faldi’s expression shifted. “Why do I still sense magic?”
The others went still.
“The source isn’t gone. It’s growing.” She turned her head, scanning. Her eyes landed on the sculpture. “That monster — it’s alive.”
The sculpture opened its mouth.
A tongue shot out — long and whip-thin, like a frog’s, moving at the speed of a thrown blade. It aimed at Roland.
“Careful, Your Majesty!”
Phyllis stepped in front of him. Her claws rose to intercept.
But Roland had already reacted. He caught Phyllis at the waist and pulled, rolling sideways, and the tongue missed them both — burying itself into the bisected corpse on the floor instead. It coiled the Natural Core and jerked backward. The crimson core, which had been solid and still in Phyllis’s hand a moment ago, began to rotate the instant the creature touched it.
Insects swarmed out from the sculpture’s back, panicking in all directions. Roland understood immediately: they had been drawn to the creature’s magic power, nesting inside it. And because he couldn’t share what he was seeing with Faldi, she had registered the insects and the sculpture as a single source rather than two.
“A pack of martialists delivering themselves,” the sculpture said, and swallowed the core. Its voice emerged from the wrong place — not the mouth, but the chest, as though it were speaking through the hollow of itself. “Thieves in the sacred territory. You have no right to be here.” It inhaled, that vast carved chest expanding. “Go to hell.”
What came out was not fire or acid or any force Roland had encountered before. It was magic power in its raw state — a gust of blood-red air that unmade everything it touched. Furniture exploded. The matte curtains were struck and torn; Dawnen and Faldi, concealed within, were thrown and cut and dropped hard. Only the edge of the blast caught them rather than the center, or the result would not have been wounds.
Roland, closer to the source, found something remarkable: as the force hit him, the warmth in his body rose to meet it — spreading through his chest, his arms, his spine — and held. Like armor laid down between his organs and the impact.
“What kind of attack is this?” He had never seen magic power transformed directly into kinetic force. Whatever this creature was, it was not a Fallen Evil.
The witches’ faces confirmed it. Even Phyllis, who had fought Senior Demons in the real world, was looking at the creature with open shock.
“Its magic reaction is close to a Senior Demon’s,” Faldi said through her teeth. “How is that possible?”
“So you call my ancestors demons?” The creature’s voice had lost its theatrical quality. It shifted now, colder, flatter. “You trespass in the Divine Domain and steal from it — then use such words?” It snapped the mounting rivets from its own wings and leapt from the wall, landing in a deep crouch between the party and the exit. “I am a Chaser. You are nothing.”
“Divine Domain? Chasers?” Roland filed both words. “What is it talking about?”
From behind the creature, a thread of black shot from the shadow. Ling. The dagger crossed the space between them in an instant, entered through one eye and out through the back of the skull with a sound like ice cracking. Then she was gone again, back into the dark.
“Beautiful.” Phyllis breathed it like a verdict.
“Beautiful?” The creature did not fall. A fracture appeared across its wooden-looking face. When it spoke again, the voice had gone thin and cold, all affect stripped away. “Common metal and a trace of magic power. You have no understanding of the Divine Domain. I will show you what the Lord’s true strength looks like.”
A series of sounds split outward from the fracture — rapid, sharp, like a shell under pressure. The crack extended to its body, and the outer surface began to fall away in dark fragments. Beneath it was something else entirely.
The revealed interior glowed dark red, like blood illuminated from within. Small clusters of star jade pulsed inside its form. Gradually they pulled toward each other, converging into a single great ring at its chest.
Roland stared.
Not flesh. Not bone. Not shell.
A body formed entirely from magic power — and the star jades inside it were the machinery of that power, grinding slowly toward some terrible convergence.
This was not a Fallen Evil. This was not anything he had a category for.
A magical creature. That was the only term that applied.
Chapter 797: Body of Magic
Translator: TransN Editor: TransN
“Not bad at all.” Roland waved towards the black shadow which had deftly entered into the drapes.
A smiling face emerged from the darkness as if to acknowledge his encouragement. This would have been a frightening sight if he had not known that it was a witch hiding inside.
“Your Majesty, enemies are within the hall. I can sense that their magic powers are nearly as strong as hybrid demonic beasts.” Faldi cautioned.
“Can you handle them?”
“Don’t worry. Ling and I won’t have any problems as long as they aren’t like Senior Demons.” Phyllis replied.
“Then let’s act according to plan.”
As Roland passed through the long porch, he discovered that the villa’s windows were all covered up with boards and tape. There were only a few lights within, making the hall seem rather dim. Due to the weak airconditioning, he felt as though he had just entered from early autumn into winter. Furthermore, the rancid and putrid smell which filled the air caused him to feel nauseous.
A man dressed in a suit stood motionless in the center of the hall – he was clearly this trip’s target. The instant Roland stepped into the hall, he felt a warmth begin to swell inside his body with an intensity several times stronger than when he first saw the fake man.
From the looks of it, Faldi had snagged a big fish.
However, what distressed Roland was a sculpture of a huge monster hung on the two-story mural wall which the man was facing. He could not tell if it was made of wood or seasoned leather. It had a human face and a pair of wings, while its brawny hind legs and slender front paws were curled up in front of its body – a completely mismatching appearance. It was close to four meters in length, while the carvings of feathers and veins on its body were highly lifelike, thus marking out its high value.
“The grotesque taste of rich people,” Roland muttered to himself. Judging from the craftsmanship, it was worth at least a million gold royals.
“Time to act.” He looked away from it and placed his attention on the target.
“Yes.”
Making use of the matte curtains to sneak two meters behind the enemy, Phyllis initiated the first attack.
A claw protruded from her back and lashed with lightning speed toward the suited man. The interference of magic caused the curtains to ripple. At this time, the target seemed to sense something and turned his head sharply. However, at this distance, even an Extraordinary would have no time to dodge. The claw slit through the man’s neck and out from his lower back, thereby cutting him diagonally into two.
The enemy’s eyes stared wide in disbelief as he collapsed on to the floor, and dark red blood spattered all over.
From the looks of it, even if the natural core of a Fallen Evil was not stripped away, it would not be able to survive if its body was heavily damaged.
“That’s all?” Ling peered out from the shadow beside the sofa.
“The plundering we now have to do is the main point,” Roland answered while covering his nose. The putrid smell in the air had intensified once more, though he was not sure if it was his own false perception. “Do you still remember what I taught you?”
“Gold ornaments, red paper, and chests with orbs!” Ling raised her hand. “Coins are worthless, and leave the gemstones!”
“That’s right. In particular, the more red paper, the better.” From his experience of plundering the Holy City of Hermes, he knew that the price of gemstones fluctuated too greatly, and hence it was difficult to sell them off at a suitable price. Gold was certainly far more stable. Of course, the best of all was cash notes. He mused to himself, “Hope this fella isn’t too fond of online shopping.”
As Roland bent his body and intended to convert the Force of Nature which was mounted on the belly of the man, Faldi suddenly frowned and remarked, “Hold on, why do I still sense the presence of magic reaction?”
“What?” The other three people startled at once.
“The source of magic power isn’t gone. Instead, it’s growing bigger!” She lifted her head and looked around the hall in search of something. Her eyes fell on the sculpture. “Damn it, that monster is alive!”
Just as she finished speaking, the sculpture abruptly opened its mouth and revealed a frog-like tongue which thrust directly at Roland.
“Careful, Your Majesty!”
With no hesitation, Phyllis shielded in front of Roland and used her claws to obstruct the path of the incoming tongue.
But Roland was much improved from his former self. He anticipated the monster’s attack, before catching hold of Phyllis’ waist and rolling toward one side in order to avoid the tongue which was as sharp as an arrow.
The tongue thrust into the half-section of the corpse lying on the floor. It entwined the natural core and jerked away violently. With that, the crimson core flew in the direction of the sculpture’s mouth.
Roland noticed that the Force of Nature, which had entered into a solid state, began to rotate once again upon the monster’s touch.
The monster’s movements caused a large swarm of insects to fly out from its back and panickedly flee in all directions. They had obviously been attracted by the monster’s magic power, but because Roland could not share what he saw with Faldi, she was not able to discern that there were two different sources of magic reaction in the hall!
“Hah… what do I see, a bunch of martialists delivering themselves to me?” The sculpture swallowed the core and began to speak. “Thieves like you have no place in this sacred territory. Go to hell!”
It raised its neck as if to inhale a deep breath, and then blew a gush of bloodred air at the people in the hall.
It was magic power in its purest form!
In a flash, the furniture in the room was ripped into smithereens. As the matte curtains were struck, Duncan and Faldi, who were hiding within, suffered several wounds on their bodies and fell heavily on the floor. Fortunately for them, they got away from the central and most powerful region of the magical attack by a hair’s breadth, or they would have suffered the same fate as the furniture.
On the other hand, Roland was in much better shape. As the magical attack came upon him, the warmth inside him spread all over his body and protected his vital organs like a piece of armor.
“What form of attack is this?” Roland was disconcerted that its ability was completely different from that of witches. He had never seen magic power directly turn into a potent energy before. Ever since he acquired the strange force, he was able to better understand how magic power worked. The monster’s attack was certainly not something a Fallen Evil was able to perform.
The expressions on the witches’ faces were also that of extraordinary surprise. It was clear that the monster’s understanding of magic power was a level above theirs.
“Its magic reaction… is close to the Senior Demons’!” Faldi bit her teeth. “How’s this possible?”
“Demons? Is that what you call my ancestors?” The monster grinned and laughed wickedly. It easily snapped off the rivets which fixed its wings to the wall, then leapt onto the floor and stooped like a gargoyle in front of the party. “You try to take energy from the Divine Domain without permission, and now call the Chasers ‘demons’? Sheer stupidity!”
“Divine Domain? Chasers?” Roland began to frown involuntarily. “What’s it referring to?”
Suddenly, a beam of black light sprung from the shadows behind the monster and flew against its cheeks. It was Ling’s shadow! A crisp clicking sound was heard as she stuck a dagger into its eyes and out from the back of its head. Without pausing to contemplate her success, she escaped back into the shadows. The entire surprise attack was as smooth as flowing water.
“Beautiful!” Phyllis clenched her fists and commended.
“Beautiful?” The monster did not collapse like the Fallen Evil did. A crack appeared on its wooden-like face, and it now spoke in a shrivelled voice which sounded cold and indifferent. “You think this piece of common metal and tiny amount of magic power can harm me? You have no idea what the Divine Domain’s all about! Now, I shall let you witness the true might of the Lord!”
Before it finished talking, a series of rupturing sounds broke out. The crack on its face extended to its entire body, and subsequently, its pitch-black shell split into fragments and peeled off. The now-revealed interior emitted a dark red glow, as though it was flowing with burning blood.
When all of its true body was revealed, Roland gaped in shock and horror.
Underneath the shell had been a body which was purely formed by magic power. Small clusters of star jades glistened inside its body, and gradually converged into a huge star ring at its chest.
It was what you could call a magical creature.