Orange Core

Said POV

[An hour has passed since Gatlin penetrated into Norman family households] 

"Hey Frederick, something seems off; isn't he taking too much time? My gut is telling me we need to get out of here right now." I asked my companion Frederick, trying to warry the strange feeling within me.

"Don't you know him? He is probably playing with the woman, brutally molesting her as he always does," — my companion answered calmly, without even a simple drop of uncertainty in his voice. 

"Scumbag." — If it weren't for him being an orange-core mage, I would have beheaded him myself." I let my thoughts slip through.

Other than power, that man Gatlin doesn't possess anything, not in his brain or his heart.

"He just left us behind to guard the area, as if we were some kind of fodder dogs for him!" — I added

Frederick sighed; perhaps he has the same interpretation of Gatlin as me, but he grasps that we aren't able to do much against a strong mage like Gatlin.

*Crack*

*Splash*

Blood burst out, covering the whole area, myself included.

In a matter of seconds, while neither I nor Frederick could react, an axe was thrown at his head.

I instinctively knew that I didn't have a moment to spare for sympathy toward Frederick.

I pulled out my sword, getting ready to engage the sudden intruder. 

*Whoosh*

Suddenly, it felt like the wind itself began storming me, cutting small wounds all over my body.

A wind element mage. That's unfortunate of me to encounter a mage whose magic element has the upper hand over mine, and of such a caliber too.

*Swoosh*

"Well who do we have here, two weak nobodies? How were you even capable of removing the barrier?" — questioned the man. 

The first trait that caught my attention was his shoulder-length, curly, black hair.

Just by sensing his aura, I can claim that he is an orange-core mage; actually, he uses two axes, so he is a battlemage.

"So you aren't willing to answer me. Then I'll be quick with it." — annoyed by my silence, he said.

"H-haha! While you're busy dealing with me, our boss is probably having the time of his life with that Norman family's lady!" – 

Marsh Emerson's POV

*Snap*

A mere white core, who can't even withstand the "burst of winds," is speaking high. Naive.

I sprinted towards the Norman family households after what the man said.

His boss? The lady is in danger. If he is capable of removing the barrier, he is at least at the orange core, and right now in the house, there is no one capable of resisting him. I need to hurry up before it's too late.

Within 20 seconds, I arrived at the door, which had been knocked down and thrown away.

I barged into the house and looked around. The house was in a mess.

I could sense a spell being used here, someone casted a fire attribute spell—to be exact, a "spear of fire."

The only room in which I could sense human beings was the lady's room, but strangely, there was no sign of an orange-core mage there.

I rushed towards the room, up the stairs.

The moment I entered the room, I was speechless at the image awaiting me. Blood. It was scattered all over the room. 

But there was something even more startling.

A man was lying down with countless stab wounds that pierced his body, and all the stab wounds were in vital places, as if some professional assassin had murdered him.

There was no sign of an assassin, but he was there. Fray Norman was sitting on top of the man's dead body, with blood all over him and a dagger in his hands.

Fray was unconscious. 

The lady and the maid were also there, but compared to those two on the floor, they seemed fine.

*Whaaaaa*

I was too distracted by the corpse and Fray that I didn't even notice the baby sobbing.

I asked the only question for which I desired an answer now.

"What the hell happened here?"

The maid, who was the only conscious person in the room other than the baby, answered,

"Fray saved us; if he didn't arrive on time, then I can't even comprehend what would have happened to us." — her voice was cracking and trembling, and her eyes began to tear. 

It's not surprising; after seeing this image, I can tell what has happened here.

But I still can't understand how. How did Fray kill him? Even I, who was on the same core stage as the man, am not sure if I would have been able to deal with him, but Fray did, and with a dagger?

It seems like I have underestimated the child. He's no talent, but a genius.