Chapter 352 - 309: Cosmic Mage, a Conflict of Power

Without the mobility of Radiant Teleportation, Seventy-Six couldn’t even bring thirty percent of his power to bear.

His modifications from the Assassin Court were designed solely for assassination; unlike an Imperial Knight, he was not suited for direct confrontation.

’Kill this Tier Two Mage, who’s even more powerful than Warlord Nico?’

’For the Divine Emperor’s sake.’

’Seventy-Six decided it would be wiser to force a retreat with Radiant Teleportation and gamble that the warped space-time wouldn’t tear him to shreds.’

Having said his piece, Enok grinned at Seventy-Six. His disdainful gaze was that of a man looking down upon an ant. He gently pointed a finger of his left hand at Seventy-Six’s shoulder and whispered, "Fold."

The instant the word left his lips,

a horrifyingly immense Wizard’s Power erupted from within Seventy-Six’s shoulder!

In a single breath, the alchemy mechanism within Seventy-Six’s right shoulder was torn free from the inside, as if thrown into a compactor, and folded into a high-density cube the size of a fingertip.

If he were made of flesh and blood, that single blow would have been fatal.

But for Seventy-Six, whose entire body—even his brain—had been replaced with memory cores, this level of damage was far from fatal. He felt no pain.

Enok’s expression betrayed a hint of surprise.

"As expected of a creation from the Mechanical Order. It’s a shame I can’t make use of this ancient technology."

"Like what you see? Wait ’til I shove my barrel in your mouth. You might like that even more."

Seventy-Six knew this Wizard was beyond him. He took a step back, retreating into the Radiant Teleportation gate.

Seeing his attempt to flee, Enok snorted coldly. He raised his left hand once more, pointed at Seventy-Six’s body, and whispered, "Collapse."

In that instant,

the terrifying power of a Cosmic Mage was on full display!

Once activated, a Radiant Teleportation transfer took less than half a second. But in that brief window, Enok’s Wizard’s Power violently twisted the space-time around the Teleportation Gate.

The immense power, like the crushing pressure in the deepest trenches of the ocean, slammed in from all sides, instantly compressing half of Seventy-Six’s body into a fist-sized ball of high-density scrap metal.

If Agate hadn’t modified his Radiant Teleportation,

even with his extensive alchemical modifications, Seventy-Six would not have survived.

Before his consciousness initiated self-preservation and went into standby, he used Spiritual Energy to transmit one last message to Koller.

"Target confirmed dead. My injuries are critical. Unable to proceed..."

The message cut off abruptly.

「Elsewhere.」

Upon receiving Seventy-Six’s message, Koller’s brow furrowed.

The assassin from the Assassin Court was likely dead, but aside from lamenting the loss of an excellent weapon, Koller felt nothing more.

More importantly,

his Spiritual Perception detected a vast blind spot within Savenxis—a sign of some extremely powerful Spiritual Power shielding the area from his senses.

And besides the Think Tank, only one other type of person possessed such power.

Wizards.

Furthermore, just as he received Seventy-Six’s final message, a Spiritual Power far exceeding his own brutally tore through the encrypted Spiritual Energy channel.

Then, a refined and gentle voice suddenly echoed in his mind.

"I must congratulate you. Your assassination of Lord Lima went very smoothly. It’s quite amusing, really. The fool actually believed the power granted to him by the great Prophet was a Void Divine Artifact. Heh heh heh...

Utterly moronic.

I forgot to introduce myself.

You may call me Lord Enok, Great Lord of Bator World, student of the great Cosmic Mage Lord Kles, and master of the Infiltrator Council.

I had intended to kill that assassin you sent, but he unfortunately escaped. Of course, given the opportunity, I wouldn’t mind meeting the legendary ’Emperor’s Vengeful Angel’ in person.

I’ve heard of his glorious deeds on more than one occasion.

And now, if you’ll excuse me, I have matters to attend to. I can’t stay and play.

I’ll let these pitiful mortals play with you instead."

Hearing this brazen, in-your-face mockery, Urus clenched his fists so hard the servos in his Power Armor gauntlets groaned.

Koller’s face fell as well.

The Spiritual Power of the Wizard speaking to them was terrifying—it was even greater than his own!

Reinhardt’s gaze passed through the panoramic viewscreen of the Avenger Flagship, staring out at the Savenxis Great Fortress coiled like a Giant Dragon in the mountains. His voice was cold and ruthless as he responded.

"But I want to meet you now, Wizard."

"Heh heh..."

The spiritual communication went dead.

Reinhardt took up his Black War Axe and issued his first command as the Great Tutor of Vengeful.

"Koller, locate the ship that Wizard is on. Also, inform the Red Flame Son to intercept any of the local Lord’s private forces attempting to flee Savenxis.

Stearns, if we don’t hear from Seventy-Six in one minute, you and Koller are to find him and bring him back to the flagship.

Urus, proceed immediately to the Savenxis Great Fortress and report on the situation inside. If the Defense Army shows any sign of mutiny, I authorize you to exercise summary judgment and execute all mid-to-high-ranking officers involved."

If a fortress world like Savenxis fell from the Administrative Region’s control, it would become a massive liability, even if it was only garrisoned by the Defense Army.

There was also a significant risk that they would join the rebels, turning Savenxis into a beachhead for the insurrection.

Although Reinhardt’s every command was sound, the Vengeful Angels were not what they once were, and the men he now commanded were not Raphael and Matthias.

In other words, if not for this crisis provoked by the Infiltrator Council, had he merely relied on his authority as the Great Tutor of Vengeful to give orders to Urus and Koller—two powerful and deeply experienced Imperial Knights who already wielded great power before their service in the Vengeful Angels—they would have, at best, accepted reluctantly and paid his commands little heed, perhaps even ignoring them entirely.

Even though their brief clash during Technician Soldier Hook’s betrayal had forced them to acknowledge Reinhardt’s strength, working with these two decorated and formidable Imperial warriors was not so simple. It would take more than the title of Great Tutor of Vengeful or overwhelming force to truly command them.

The three of them now formed the leadership of the Vengeful Angels. Every decision made aboard the Avenger Flagship had to be discussed; it was no longer the one-man-show of Reinhardt’s past command.

Power may be intoxicating.

But power also changes everything.

Even after witnessing Reinhardt’s strength, Koller had still chosen to disregard his authority as the Great Tutor of Vengeful, acting first and reporting later by giving orders to the Red Flame Son right in front of him.

After hearing Reinhardt’s orders, Koller frowned and retorted sternly, "Lord Reinhardt! Surely you don’t intend to face that Wizard alone?

Impossible.

I will absolutely not agree to this!

I admit that bastard Wizard is deliberately provoking you, but you are the leader of the Vengeful Angels. Your safety is our highest priority.

As for the order to locate his ship, forgive me, but I cannot carry it out."

Urus walked over to the dead Technician Soldier’s body. He was silent for a moment. Unlike Koller and his strict, by-the-book style typical of the First Legion, Urus was still shaken by the memory of Reinhardt pinning him to the floor with a single hand.

’If the Great Tutor had meant to kill him just now...’

Of course.

This newfound respect and fear, however, did not translate into agreement with the order.

"I’ve handled many similar incidents, but the risk of sending a single man into an enemy fortress is too great. If he’s ambushed, we will be at a massive tactical disadvantage.

And Lord Koller is right.

Your Honor Guard is not yet fully assembled, and your First Company is still being formed. We must prioritize your safety.

My Lord, you are not an Assault Captain or a Special Operations Captain for the Vengeful Angels. As our leader, you cannot personally rush to the front lines unless it is absolutely necessary.

If something were to happen to you, it is a responsibility that Koller and I cannot bear."