Jean dashed into the Royal Tower as if propelled. After that, as long as the intruders were stopped, Kenbi's job would be done.
"My my, that was quite fast."
"Even so, I'm shouldering everyone's expectations."
On the road surrounding the tower's perimeter, right down the center between the flanks of Jean's forces, a black-haired young man with a well-trained physique strode forward with utmost composure.
From his body, wreathed in purple lightning, one could feel a tremendous energy. In sheer volume alone, he surpassed Kuubi.
Bursting light. One of the most difficult schools of magic to master. A wielder of thunder arts that embodied the wrath of heaven.
The Thunder Emperor, Klahi Andrich. Behind him trailed his unremarkable companions.
"I thought magic couldn't be used in this city?"
The magic-suppression system installed by royal decree should still be operational.
"I'm already used to it."
A flash of light. Energy contracted and spread through the ground via the metal road. That alone sent the vigilant troops flying.
It was devastating power.
I'm supposed to be wearing boots with lightning resistance, though.
"No one can stop my lightning!!"
The Thunder Emperor, wreathed in lightning, closed the distance in an instant. Whether through physical enhancement as well, his speed was unthinkable for a mage — and unlike Kenbi, who held a blade, he was unarmed. Simply incredible.
Did she want to be cut clean in half?
But Kenbi didn't move herself, instead addressing Kaiser, who stood behind her like a statue.
"I'll leave that one to you."
Kaiser kicked off the ground without a word. His movement seemed slower than the Thunder Emperor's, yet in no way was it inferior.
The lightning-wreathed Thunder Emperor and Kaiser crossed paths.
And then — the Thunder Emperor was sent flying with tremendous force.
He spun through the air and landed on the ground. But his expression was one of shock.
Despite clashing head-on with the lightning-wreathed Thunder Emperor, Kaiser was unharmed. They might look evenly matched at first glance, but they weren't.
After all, no matter how talented, the Thunder Emperor was a mage. He couldn't hope to match Kaiser in close combat.
"So... you're the Kaiser that Klye spoke of!?"
Kaiser rose on one foot, swaying gently. It was a disorienting kind of footwork.
Before the Thunder Emperor's late-arriving companions could take their stances, Kaiser attacked. They were far from capable to begin with, and the fight was like between an adult and children. Even the shield-bearing woman who seemed the most skilled among them couldn't deflect Kaiser's flowing strikes.
The Thunder Emperor launched lightning, but Kaiser dodged by leaping as though he could see it coming.
Deflecting it would be one thing, but dodging lightning — as expected of a Level 8, he was insane.
"Klye, you said I'd have no problems, didn't you? Tempest Dancing... troublesome. But against my opponent, more than sufficient!!"
The lightning wreathing the Thunder Emperor blazed even brighter.
The troops she'd prepared showed no signs of being useful. Well, they'd only get in the way, so it didn't matter — and then, the Thunder Emperor shouted.
"Kuubi, Kenbi is yours as planned!"
At that voice, a sharp-eyed man who hadn't moved at all until now stepped in front of Kenbi.
With parted-back hair and a black robe. And from his body, an empty sort of magical power could be felt.
An oddball mage who had once reigned as one of the organization's bosses. Kuubi, who freely manipulated "Void."
The man Kenbi had labored to capture and imprisoned in the prison's lowest level stood there.
"Heh heh heh... It's been a while, Kuubi. Have you gotten a bit thinner?"
"Out of my way."
The reason Kenbi had managed to capture Kuubi was that she'd used the full power of the organization to corner him. That mage was a dangerous opponent even for Kenbi in a one-on-one fight.
Magic power swirled within Kuubi's body, and a mass of energy formed in his left hand. He'd wondered whether they could fight in a city that could be called this mage's natural enemy, but it seemed that at the level of the Thunder Emperor and Kuubi, it wasn't a problem once they got used to it.
Still, their activation speed and power seemed diminished — Kuubi raised his arm and aimed his palm.
In its path was — the Thunder Emperor, facing off against Kaiser.
"!"
Whether by intuition, the Thunder Emperor took a large step back. At the same time, a strong wind blew.
No, not wind. It was — a shockwave. "Void" was the art of manipulating space. Cracks ran through the road, and a literal hole was blown open in one section of the surrounding Jean forces.
The sound of mercenaries launched high into the sky crashing back down to earth.
"...Kuubi!? What exactly do you think you're doing!?"
"I had wondered about it. The more I observed, the more I thought — Thousand Transformations was not the kind of person Kenbi would elevate to a subordinate. Every time I saw that flippant behavior, my doubts turned to certainty."
Kuubi spoke matter-of-factly, his palm still aimed at the sky. Kenbi smiled.
Kuubi had contacted Kenbi just yesterday. The subject — about Kuubi's natural enemy, Thousand Transformations.
It seemed Kuubi had believed that Thousand Transformations was Kenbi's agent, sent to the Martial Emperor Festival to drag Kuubi down from his position. His reasoning was that Thousand Transformations knew far too much internal information for it to be possible without someone of considerable standing involved, but that was a preposterous notion. Unlike Kuubi, Kenbi had no interest in scheming.
And through her discussion with Kuubi, Kenbi learned the truth. The shocking truth that it was Thousand Transformations who had been trying to activate the Key of the Earth at the Martial Emperor Festival.
It was a ridiculous scheme. The audience, the nation, the organization — everyone had been deceived. Anyone looking at that situation would think Thousand Transformations had been preventing the activation of the Key of the Earth. Who would think it was the opposite?
And so, Kenbi and Kuubi made peace. Kenbi vowed to report the truth to the organization, and Kuubi would let bygones be bygones and cooperate with Kenbi. A deal that benefited both sides.
For Thousand Transformations, who had been counting on Kuubi's fighting power, this must have come as a bolt from the blue. But Kuubi and Kenbi had always been bosses of the same organization, and Thousand Transformations should have known better than anyone that they were the root of all evil.
It was now four against one. The Thunder Emperor, suddenly placed in a desperate situation, took a step back.
"...Impossible... betrayal...!? Thousand Transformations... so this is the 'Thousand Trials'!?"
"This isn't the time for that, Klahi!! W-we need to run..."
Failing to notice the betrayal, trusting Thousand Transformations too much — it was the end of her luck.
The companions who had been blown away by Kaiser once formed a circle around the Thunder Emperor. But no matter how they stanced up, apart from the Thunder Emperor, they were a rabble.
Jean's forces, realizing their absolute advantage, began screaming to kill. The weaker ones always bark the loudest.
There, Kenbi confirmed what had been on her mind.
"Where's Thousand Transformations?"
"They entered through a separate route. Once we finish cleaning up here, I'll go after them and make them regret underestimating me."
A separate route... she hadn't heard about that.
Kuubi had probably deliberately kept it to himself. Thinking that if he told her, Kenbi would go after Thousand Transformations to kill them — that was Kuubi's bad habit.
But Kenbi quickly shifted her thinking. Taking them down individually to eliminate the Thunder Emperor for certain wasn't a bad deal.
At the front, a soft-looking girl holding a large shield. A thief who stood ready with bare fists despite his nervousness, and a pink-blonde mage who glared at her while breaking into a cold sweat.
None of them were any match for the Thunder Emperor, but they were perfect prey to demonstrate the organization's terror.
An overwhelmingly advantageous situation. She'd cut them to pieces in a single swing.
As she readied her blade, Kenbi suddenly remembered the order she'd received from Jean. She addressed the girl standing dully behind her, wearing a white mask.
"Sāya — no, Saya. Use your ability and kill them."