Hours Earlier

“Haa… this is so frustrating!” Damien Lawcroft growled as he walked through the dry forest.

It had been a week since his humiliating defeat at the hands of Jared Leonard, and he was still not over the loss.

Still, he was smart enough to know when to retreat and when to retaliate.

At this point, it was time for the former.

“I better stay low-key…”

It was for this very reason that Damien had not made any noticeable move all week. He no longer had any influence, and his network had been cut off thanks to Jared’s plan.

The man had no idea what his enemies were planning, so he trod carefully.

‘I had a feeling they would have found my base, so I decided to teleport to my auxiliary safe zone.’ White fog escaped his nose and mouth as he exhaled the cold air.

It was quite cold in the SouthEastern edge of the world, but not unbearably so.

Damien’s Original Magic worked like a switcheroo. He could exchange positions with any object he had marked.

Of course, depending on the distance needed to be covered, it took a great deal of Mana.

Still, when it came to escape or even combat, it was a very handy ability to have.

That was the only reason he was able to escape, after all.

“I can see it. It’s in view.” Damien smiled, finally emerging from the thickets and dried branches that surrounded him.

He had finally reached his destination—The Base assigned to him by the Organization.

“I waited a week before coming here, waiting for the heat to die down…” However, from the looks of things, they never found out about the existence of this place.

That was perfect.

Every member of the Twelve Seats had territories assigned to them, as well as their Base.

Not only could the Bases connect to one another, but they also had camouflage functions, Magic defenses, and several assault functions.

It was a state-of-the-art structure that was said to be designed by one of the members of their Organization.

His name was Beruel—an Upper Seat, or so Damien heard.

‘Let’s get this over with.’

He needed to contact a colleague as soon as possible.

Now that he was compromised, he needed to report the details of what he knew to the Organization.

Surely, the information in his possession still guaranteed his value to them.

Damien had no idea what happened to the Demons since he had been isolated for a week, but they were most likely vanquished.

With their demise, it was clear that the Organization needed more allies—especially someone who had a close encounter with the enemy that caused the Demon side to lose.

Damien smiled, intending to leverage on this to once again solidify his position among their ranks.

‘They can’t kick me out! I won’t allow it!’

Since his position in the Eastern Kingdom was practically nonexistent, the Organization was all he had.

‘I’ve been trying to reach that bastard, Legris, but he’s not responding!’ Damien gritted his teeth.

For a moment, he considered the fact that the Organization had turned its back on him, but after approaching the Base and realizing that he was still recognized as a member, Damien’s worries dissipated.

The Base in question looked like a cabin from the exterior—but it had a much bigger space within.

Usually, no one would be able to spot it—or even get close to the thing. However, since it was Damien’s Base, his Magic resonated with the building, allowing him entry.

The cabin door creaked open and he gently made his way inside.

Damien did not bother to look around for caution, considering that he was assured of the Base’s functions.

Once inside, Damien took in the warm atmosphere surrounding him.

He first appeared in the reception area, and then he could spot the stairs leading to the bedroom from where he stood.

‘Haa… this is much better.’

His backup structure was nothing this grandiose.

The interior of the base was impeccably tidy and beautiful.

The lacquer walls seemed fresh—forever preserved so by Magic. The Carpets appeared brand new, the same as every furniture around.

Damien would have loved to rest or take in the sight even more, but there was something more urgent that warranted his attention.

“I had better contact someone.”

Since Legris was the 9th Seat, and he was the 10th, it was protocol that Damien contacted him first.

However, Legris had somehow blocked off all contact with him, making that route impossible.

‘I’ll just jump straight to the 8th Seat, then!’ With this in mind, Damien moved to the center of the room and pressed his hand on the floor.

A large Magic Circle manifested, glowing purple as if warbled with ominous intensity.

>BZZZTTTTZZZZZ<

Suddenly, the Circle crackled and buzzed, deactivating soon after.

“W-wha—?! Why didn’t it work?”

Damien had never experienced this issue, so he was somewhat surprised by what was going on.

‘Did they really cut me off…?’ Sweat began to appear on the middle-aged man’s face.

“I should try agai—”

“Don’t bother.” A voice echoed in Damien’s ear, causing him to jump in shock.

>VWUUUSHHH<

Transforming into his Mage Mode while Fusing with his Familiar, Damien took on a dark blue glow and donned a Mage outfit while holding a crooked wand.

He pointed his sole weapon in the direction of the voice, wary of the stranger that invaded his haven.

“I’ve been waiting for you for a while now. Say, a week? It’s a good thing you’re here now…” The voice was calm, and the clacking of a person’s shoes echoed.

Damien could feel his body shaking despite being in a powerful state.

‘I can’t do this! I’ll just run!’ Instinct caused the prideful man to activate his Original Magic, aiming to flee.

However—

“I don’t think so.”

>BZZZZTTTTTZZZZZ<

Instantly, the effects of whatever Magic Damien wanted to cast became null. No, it was more like the man didn’t have access to it any longer.

“W-what did you…? Who are you?!”

As Damien was still wondering who the mysterious person was, two bodies plopped on the ground.

They looked familiar, yet the devastated state of their bodies caused Damien to fake a few moments before recognizing them.

’12th Seat and 11th Seat?!!’

What could this mean? They were both dead—brutally so at that.

“Who the hell are you?!” Damien Lawcroft raised his voice once again.

“You’re so noisy. Be quiet.”

Just as the voice sounded, the flustered man realized he couldn’t utter a single word.

His lips couldn’t move, causing his eyes to widen in shock.

“Mmph!” Taking a sudden step backward, Damien accidentally tripped, forcing him to get a closer view of the corpses of his previous colleagues.

That was when the emotion he had been trying to push down finally erupted.

FEAR!

“MMMMPPHHHHH!!!”