-1560- Prepare the next move

The night of bloodshed marked its end.

The massacre, which had only recently begun, was abruptly halted when the flock of wyverns in the sky one by one turned into magical light and disappeared, as if they had never existed.

The Asmods, who had been hunting down the various representative teams within the ninth artificial floating island, were all recalled after that.

The wounded began firing signal flares, calling for external assistance.

And at some point, the twilight-colored barrier that had enveloped the ninth artificial floating island vanished, as the final device producing collapse force was destroyed by the S128 special task force.

Immediately, the Sky Wizard teams wasted no time abandoning the competition. They took their injured members and left the ninth artificial floating island to receive rescue from Vebel personnel.

This night was destined to be sleepless.

Not only the ninth artificial floating island, but even Vebel was shaken to its core.

Everyone now knew that the ninth artificial floating island had been attacked by an unknown external force, and that the representative teams had nearly been slaughtered by unknown monsters. This sent shockwaves throughout Vebel, even reaching the members of the Floating City Alliance.

To deal with this matter, Hartmann, acting as the representative and Pope's agent of the Sky Wizards Martial Arts Festival, personally announced its temporary suspension and dispatched the security forces to conduct investigations and rescue operations on the ninth artificial floating island.

At the same time, Hartmann and the other members of the Floating City Alliance began interviewing the Sky Wizards one by one, hoping to learn more about the incident from their perspectives.

But in the end, nothing concrete came of it.

The Sky Wizards only knew that they were being hunted by unknown monsters, that their communication crystals had been jammed, and that the ninth artificial floating island had been sealed by a twilight-colored barrier, making escape impossible.

As for who was behind the attack and the reasons behind it, no one had any clue.

Of course, they all knew that someone had resolved the crisis.

That someone was a mysterious individual who had somehow appeared on the ninth artificial floating island and had summoned both a sea of crimson flames and a legion of wyverns, though no one knew their true identity.

After hearing the accounts of the Sky Wizards, learning of the existence of the crimson sea of flames and the legion of wyverns, many were left speechless, unsure of how to respond.

In the end, since neither the mastermind nor the one who resolved the crisis could be found, the incident was treated as an unfortunate accident.

Hartmann and the other members of the Floating City Alliance publicly announced that the monsters that attacked the ninth artificial floating island were a new breed of Armored Beetles. These creatures had unknowingly made their nest on the island, and the battles between the Sky Wizards during the Sky Wizards Martial Arts Festival had inadvertently disturbed them, leading to the attack.

The existence of the crimson sea of flames and the legion of wyverns was completely concealed.

The members of the alliance warned all the Sky Wizard teams, advising them not to reveal any details of the incident. Anyone who did so would face severe punishment.

Thus, the public only knew that a new breed of Armored Beetles had attacked the ninth artificial floating island, leading to the suspension of the Sky Wizards Martial Arts Festival. The rest of the details remained unknown, as the curtain was hastily drawn over the incident.

…

Noesis Palace, Chairman's Office.

Led by Yamier Kaiser, Vebel's representative team entered the office, returning to their leader.

"We have returned, Lord Zeth," Yamier said, bowing to Zeth, who was sitting behind the desk.

Behind her, the humanoid Armored Beetles from the Vebel representative team also bowed, though their expressions still carried traces of confusion.

Kirsty Vermilion, standing beside Zeth, wore a grave expression as she observed the scene.

Zeth, too, watched them for a moment before addressing Yamier.

"Give me a detailed report. Leave nothing out," Zeth ordered.

"...Understood," Yamier responded after a brief silence, nodding her head.

With that, Yamier recounted everything she had seen and heard to Zeth.

Upon hearing her account, Zeth also fell into silence.

Beside him, Kirsty's expression grew even more serious.

"You're saying that Rorelai Arneet not only possesses the ability to convert mana directly into flames and heat, just like you, but can also summon countless wyverns?" Kirsty asked, seeking confirmation.

Especially when she mentioned "wyverns," her voice was filled with disbelief. It was hard for her to imagine such creatures existing on the ninth artificial floating island.

While this world certainly contained its share of mysteries, with various types of Armored Beetles and other rare creatures, dragons, like those from myth, had never actually been seen. At most, there were beings with dragon-like appearances, but nothing close to the legendary creatures.

Thus, hearing Yamier mention a legion of wyverns, and that they had obliterated Leysritt's forces, sounded like nothing more than a wild daydream.

However, Kirsty knew that Yamier wouldn't fabricate such claims.

Not only was Yamier's personality unsuited to making such jokes, but the dazed expressions of Vebel's representative team also made it clear that they had witnessed something extraordinary.

But…

But…

"An ability to convert mana into flames and heat is one thing, but to summon a legion of wyverns—it's just too hard to believe," Kirsty admitted, sharing her inner thoughts.

Yamier remained silent.

Even for someone as battle-hardened as her, the scene had been so overwhelming that it was difficult to regain her composure.

Zeth felt the same.

"I never imagined that this human would have such abilities," Zeth said calmly. "Come to think of it, when I was in Mistgun, he showed me a powerful female swordsman. Later, in the mansion, I witnessed a magically crafted weapon that seemed to possess a life of its own, as well as an unknown entity that ambushed me. And now, there's a legion of wyverns."

"Rorelai Arneet."

"This man must be hiding secrets far beyond our understanding."

Zeth concluded.

"What should we do?" Yamier asked directly.

"Don't act rashly for now," Zeth said, as if he had already made up his mind. "That human remains far too unpredictable. He keeps giving me the impression that I've underestimated him. Until we uncover all his secrets, apart from the proxy wars of the Sky Wizards Martial Arts Festival, we need to prepare our next move."

Prepare their next move.

Everyone knew what that next move was.

"I will send my real body to the Gate immediately," Zeth decided. "Kirsty, you'll come with me."

"Understood," Kirsty agreed without hesitation.

"Yamier, you will continue fighting in the Sky Wizards Martial Arts Festival," Zeth ordered, turning to her.

"Understood," Yamier nodded, then asked, "What about Leysritt?"

"Leave her," Zeth said coldly. "She's no longer useful."

At these words, the others nodded in agreement.

That night, history took yet another step forward.

What the future held, no one could say.