Neo's sensors picked up fifty presence inside the hall, apart from Tobias and Matias. After that, he checked the layout of the building and determined the exit. He also checked if there were any active array formations.
After confirming that the building's Array formation was only a basic defensive array, he calculated his chances of achieving his objective.
That was right. He had no plans of escaping. Besides, he could not warp to a specific location. His memories were made up of numbers, and he was only using the nature of the Void energy when he warps.
With a solemn expression, Neo eyed the gallery. Since the emergency action code was still active, everyone inside had also become his target.
Neo determined that his best course of action was to find the exit and make them believe he wanted to escape. After which, he would eliminate his pursuers one after another.
Doing so would not require over-extensive use of his energy core's capacity.
If there were any person in the hall who would not come after him, he would find and eliminate them instead.
When Neo found the exit, his reddish-purple eyes flashed, and, at the same time, his energy core whirled with Void energy. However, before he could warp toward the exit, several black chains shot out from the floor, instantly binding him in place.
A warning message appeared in Neo's vision, advising him that the chains were made of a material that prevented a mage from using their stored magic energy.
But the warning message was only to let him know about what the chains could do. He was not really affected by them. After all, the active magic energy in his energy core was the Void, and its nature made him immune to any status attack.
Nevertheless, Neo decided to stay in place because he determined that this situation could provide him with a better move to deal with these people.
A few meters opposite Neo, Tobias placed the unconscious Matias on the floor and stood up. He looked at Neo and sneered, "You won't be able to escape."
The people in the gallery looked at Tobias and the unconscious Matias and more or less guessed the situation.
Initially, they thought Tobias was with the intruder because they did not recognize his silhouette. Apparently, they failed to recognize him only because he was carrying Matias.
Hush discussion filled the gallery as they looked at the man bound by the chains.
Suddenly one of them shouted, "I-Isn't he that... impertinent Disciple from the Blacksmith Order?"
After hearing this, the hushed discussion was raised up a bit.
Overlooking the whole hall was a large gallery. A woman in a red full-gown and a white mask was standing close to the edge of the balustrade, looking at the scene below.
"Tobias," the woman spoke, and in an instant, the noise died down. "Is this person really that detestable disciple?"
Tobias lifted his gaze at the woman and respectfully lowered his head.
"Your Grace," he greeted and continued, "Although he looks like him, he is, in fact, a mere pup—."
A black-blue glint flashed past the side of Tobias's neck. It was followed by a chill that ran down his body and then a splurting of deep red liquid.
It was unknown who reacted first, but the next thing that happened was a blur of chaos.
The woman in the large gallery screamed in anger as her magic pressure erupted. Surprisingly, the pressure she emitted was that of a Magus.
Several magic arrays filled the air as magic attacks rained down at the center of the hall.
As for Neo, the chains that bound him had long left his body, and he was like a phantom, appearing and disappearing while waving the short black-blue blade in his hand.
Blood soon filled the hall as screams of death filled the air.
Tobias might have thought that taking Neo back to the Lumley Family's Ancestral Hall was a good move. Instead, he had doomed his family.
A middle-aged woman in a red and black gown desperately fled the Lumley Ancestral Hall. She broke several teleportation tokens to gain distance. When she reached a few hundred meters, she took out a scroll and infused her magic energy into it.
The scroll was similar to the one Tobias had used.
It was different from the Regis Clan's Transmission Scroll. But it also had the ability to transport anyone inside the array at a certain location.
Tobias's scroll allowed him to be transported to the ancestral hall, while the woman allowed her to be transported to her real 'family.'
The moment the scroll activated, golden magic arrays appeared, and the woman disappeared.
*
Inside a darkened room, Ingrid leaned on her chair with closed eyes.
A magic fluctuation appeared a few meters before her, and a golden light flashed before the middle-aged woman who had escaped from the Lumley Ancestral Hall appeared.
"Lady Ingrid, I have returned."
Ingrid opened her eyes and looked at the woman.
"You are...?"
The woman lowered her head and replied at once, "I am one of your father's aides, sent to infiltrate the Lumley Family fifteen years ago."
Ingrid's eyes narrowed while she looked at the woman. She indeed heard from her father about several trusted Boyd family members infiltrating other noble families fifteen years ago. However, it would be the first time that one of them had appeared before her without a prior appointment.
Seeing Ingrid's expression, the woman immediately knelt on her knees and took out a bronze token. The token had an overlapping rifle engraved on its surface, the insignia of the Boyd Family.
"This is the proof of my identity, Lady Ingrid."
Ingrid lifted her hand and beckoned the bronze token out of the woman's hand.
The token flew into Ingrid's hand, and she examined it carefully.
The woman eyed Ingrid anxiously. She was not worried that the latter might think the token was fake because it was real as it gets. What worried her was Ingrid's lack of urgency because it might result in the destruction of the Lumley Family.
After a few minutes, Ingrid finally lowered her hand, looked at the woman, and said, "It seems real enough."
The woman could not help but frown inwardly at the latter's words.
"And? Why have you come?"
"Lady Ingrid, I beseech you," the woman put aside her displeasure and replied. "The Lumley Family is under attack. If we don't send assistance, they will likely be destroyed."
"Did I hear it correctly? You are asking me to help the Lumley Family?"
"Yes, Lady Ingrid— ugh!"
Ingrid's eyes flashed, and the woman slammed to the wall in an instant.
The woman fell to the ground as bits of rubble from the wall fell on her. She looked at Ingrid with questioning eyes as she said, "W-Why...?"
"Are you part of the Boyd Family or the Lumley Family?"
The woman took a sharp intake of breath as realization hit her. That was right. Her duty was to keep an eye on the Lumley Family and assess if they could be useful to the Boyd Family, not the other way around.
If the Lumley Family was under attack, she had to assess the situation calmly, and if there was a way to save them, she had to make a move herself. But if the chances were slim, her priority was to secure all the information she had gathered while staying with them and remove her tracks before returning to the Boyd Family.
Ingrid's eyes narrowed after seeing the look of realization on the woman's face.
"Judging from your expression, you seemed to have forgotten your priorities," she said while rousing her magic. She raised her hand, and a dark-brown magic array appeared before her. Slowly, a cannon's muzzle emerged from the center of the magic array, and concentrated magic energy began to form within.
The woman's eyes constricted, and although her whole body protested in pain, she prostrated on the floor and hastily said, "T-The one attacking the Lumley Family is Disciple Tyr from the Blacksmith Order, Lady Ingrid! I-I heard her Highness, the Crown Princess, is interested in him!"
Ingrid's hand froze. At the same time, the light from the magic energy forming inside the cannon's muzzle dimmed slightly.
"Why is he there?" Ingrid asked and immediately used her ability. "I clearly told them to find an opportunity to..."
Her voice trailed off as she confirmed that 'Tyr's' presence had changed from the southern part of the empire and back to the east.
"Tobias, one of the Lumley Family's talents, had transported to the ancestral hall with Disciple Tyr," the woman replied. "Based on Tobias's condition and the unconscious little Matias with him, they seemed to be in a middle of a fight. However, I don't know why Tobias decided to transport them to the Lumley's Ancestral Hall. Still, t-that Disciple Tyr is a monster, Lady Ingrid! H-He also seemed to possess spatial abilities."
"What do you mean?"
"One moment, he is there, and the next, he is already in a different position."
"That young man is an Array Specialist. No, he may as well already reach the same level as Master Noir. In any case, he knew how to create transportation arrays and could even create them in a few minutes... maybe even seconds. Because of his Array knowledge, the Crown Princess needs him," Ingrid reasoned.
"I-I am not sure about that... but... because of that... he can actually hold his own and kill people without a change in his expression!"
A smile appeared on Ingrid's lips.
"Interesting," she said. "No wonder the Crown Princess is interested in him."
She waved her hand, and the magic array in front of her disappeared.
"I don't care what happens to the Lumley Family. But since our target is there, we will take him back with us."
*
Kyran briefly introduced Max and Reuben to his mother, grandfather and uncle before getting down to business.
"Father is still taking Azaloth's Inheritance," Kyran told them. "I don't know when he will complete it, but we can't wait much longer. At least, we have to take everyone to safety first."
Aron looked at Kyran and asked, "Is the situation outside really that bad?"
Kyran looked at him with raised brows.
"Are you not aware of the situation outside?"
Jared heaved a sigh and answered, "Unfortunately, after the barrier got damaged, we lost visuals outside. We can't use any communication devices as well."
He paused before adding, "As a matter of fact, we can't use any type of magic device. It's like the Inner Wall has been contaminated by a strange magic that rendered everything useless."
Kyran fell silent as he thought of Ruin's strange magic. Suddenly, he thought of something and looked at them in concern, "How about arrays? Is it working inside?"
Jared shook his head, "We tried to activate an old transmission array connected to the Regis's former land, but the array won't work."
Kyran felt an incoming headache as soon as he heard his reply. But then he paused at the mention of the Regis's former land. He looked at them and asked, "When you say the Regis's former land, you're not talking about that town close to the Shaiha Ruins, are you?"
Aron arced his brows as he looked at Kyran, "I don't remember telling you about that place."
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