‘Is this where I die?’

Aria reflected. The feeling of being dominated with her life on the line… She’d never thought that she would feel it again. An Archmagus that was one step closer to the pinnacle of magic… she was not. A woman that had overcome her fears… she was not. An S-Class Ranker that the entire world looked up to… she was not.

Years had passed since that incident occurred. Aria had thought that she’d forgotten all about it. The helplessness… The fear… The complete desolation… Those were feelings that Aria had buried a long, long time ago. At least, that was what she’d thought.

‘Why me again?’

Aria was paralysed. The knife in ‘Sabrina’s’ hands had dug into her supple neck, and with just a proper flick to the wrist, her windpipe would be severely cut. And worst still, if the person behind her so wished, Aria’s head would have been lobbed off her neck by now. It was the most demeaning position one person could ever be in. Even if Yvette was present, no healer in the world could resurrect someone from the dead, particularly if it was an instant death.

If Aria used magic, off came her head. If she used brute force, off came her head. If she cried out for help… off came her head. There was no winning in this situation, and Aria knew it well. After all, she had been in it once before.

Brought back to that time, Aria’s mind was emptied. She couldn’t move a muscle, and she unwillingly surrendered her entire body to the assailant. The mana in her veins stopped flowing, and her soul seemed to be put in stasis. No matter how much she willed herself to move, her body would refuse her order.

‘It’s the same… It’s the same scenario all over again...’

Aria’s legs shivered while her spine tingled as if a thousand needles were injected into her body. Why did she avoid the dungeons for so long? Why did she hate someone peeking into her memories to see her deepest and darkest fears? Aria knew. But deep down, she didn’t want to admit that fear existed. Aria was afraid… Aria was afraid to...

‘I-I… I don’t want to die!’ Aria cried. No one wants to die, but whether she lived or died… It was no longer in her hands. Aria was terrified of that fact.

Aria was trained as an Archmagus. She mastered all of the elements and had created a whole new branch of magic to cater to her needs. One reason for developing the Creation Magic branch was to deepen her understanding of the magical world. However, Aria had a much more selfish reason for mastering magic that created golems that could withstand both the physical and magical arts.

Aria wanted… a protector.

Something that would fill the void in her heart, to protect her no matter what the cost was. To take the bullet for her, to envelop her with safety and charm and to… save her from the fear of death. Aria knew the darkness that humans shared, she knew how ugly a human could become once their lives were on the line. Thus, Aria wanted to be capable of protecting herself. But alas… In this situation, all that Aria could do was pray for someone to save her from the throes of hell.

‘Someone… save me!’

A silent prayer. No one could hear it, and no one could possibly comprehend the agony that Aria was going through. But Aria still hoped… She still held onto that sliver of hope… that someone would save her… And well.

“Hey… What are you doing to Aria?”

That resonant voice rang within Aria’s ears. Frozen, the young Archmagus was unable to move her head. However, that voice that rang… it was oddly comforting. To the man who was holding her by the neck, that voice was a hammer of justice that struck fear into any living being’s heart. But to Aria, that voice was anything but menacing. All of her worries, the dark feelings that had resurfaced… they were all washed away by that one, simple sentence.

“Are you… hurting Aria?”

Aria didn’t need to peer over her shoulders. She knew who was threatening the man behind her. The cold feeling of the blade slowly vanished, and the overwhelming presence that held her in place was gradually getting eased. Groans of agony could be heard as Aria’s four limbs became free. Through her vision, all she could see was the President rushing over, and in an instant, Aria was free from the evil grasp of the assassin. The hostage situation was over as quickly as it began, and Aria helplessness was replaced with unadulterated relief. Aria fell to her bum, her chest rapidly expanding and contracting to get the oxygen pumping to her frozen brain.

The President held the woman by her shoulders and with one swift movement, pounced five metres away. Supporting her with one arm, the old man asked: “Aria, are you alright?!”

“Y-yeah...”

“That’s a relief...” The President sighed. “Sorry… It was my misjudgement. I’ll be sure to make it up to you. For now...” The President turned his attention towards the two entities standing just metres away from them.

Aurum, the man who was supposed to be chained up and sealed, was free of his restraints, with two broken chains dangling down from his cuffs. Ironically, ‘Sabrina’ was the one sealed up. Held by the wrist, there was nowhere for ‘Sabrina’ to run. The strength that Aurum was displaying far exceeded that of any S-Class Warrior and was reaching into the realm of superhumans. No matter how much ‘Sabrina’ struggled, there was no shaking off those mighty hands.

“You’ve hurt Aria… So now, I hurt you!” Aurum roared.

Like a pitcher, Aurum tossed ‘Sabrina’ into the nearest wall with all of his might. Aria couldn’t believe her eyes. It was as if ‘Sabrina’ had just teleported away and disappeared into thin air. The ease in which Aurum moved his hands… one would have thought that he was throwing air instead of a fully grown human. However…

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!

Just nanoseconds later, a thunderous explosion shook the chambers. The aftershock of the hit sprung everyone off their feet, including the martially trained President. The winds generated by the shockwave brushed against Aria’s face, pulling her hair and lips back. It was as if someone had cast a fully charged explosion spell within the confines of the cell.

‘Such power!’ Aria exclaimed, both her arms guarding her face.

Although she was visually impaired for the moment, Aria could make out the damage that was done to the invader in that short time. Cracks could be seen throughout the enclosed prison, even past the wall that he was thrown into. Dust and debris fell as if they had no limit and endless amounts of wind continued to push Aria and the others back. Only after a good five seconds did the aftershocks slowly ceased to exist.

Aria slowly dropped her raised arms. She wiped the dust that had gotten into her eyes and shook her head to get rid of the ringing in her ears. As her vision started to clear, Aria could now make out what had become of ‘Sabrina.’

“T-that!”

Unable to hold his transformation, Number Six broke out from his metamorphosis and turned back into his vampire self—blonde hair with crimson red eyes that resembled the pool of blood underneath him. Weakened, Number Six was unable to hide the two sharp fangs that naturally came out of his mouth.

“Vampire!” The President shouted.

Hearing the man’s words, Aria’s mind instantly connected the dots. That’s right, there was only one entity that was capable of hiding the existence of an S-Class Metamorph. The country that was shrouded by a thick fog of mist… The Vampire Federation, Raklius.

“Capture him! We can’t let Raklius find out about Aurum!”

Evidently, the President was able to connect the dots as well. Raklius’ bread and butter was information gathering and selling. The only reason why they have lasted this long despite their low population was due to their intensive network of spies and overwhelming connections. If Raklius found evidence that Yudonia was hiding the ancient man… The consequences would be dire.

‘That bastard...’

Number Six pulled himself out of the rubble, broken rocks and pieces of metal falling upon his body in the meantime. The impact had forced him to reveal his true form, but it hadn’t taken him out just yet. Though it came quite close. Number Six, a trained operative that could withstand a thousand degrees of pain, was agonised from head to toe. Every part of his body was aching, and his mind was on the verge of collapsing into darkness. It was pure willpower that was keeping his consciousness intact, though one could argue that it was a bad thing. After a hit like that, it was better for Number Six to simply pass out and let others treat him back to full health. Alas, a spy like him won’t have such luxuries. He had a mission to do.

‘Hostage capture… failed. The ancient man is far more powerful than I’d imagined.’

Aurum had thrown a wrench into Number Six’s elaborate plan. No one was able to see through his disguise as Sabrina until Aurum stepped in. Aurum’s ability to intimidate and his overwhelming strength wasn't factored as well. All in all, Number Six had failed because he had underestimated how unpredictable a variable Aurum was.

Number Six looked to the left and saw Aurum glaring daggers at him, eager to land yet another blow. He then looked to the right, where the President was rushing towards him with mana-infused hands, ready to apprehend him. There were no vents to escape from, and neither was there a method to brute force his way out of the enhanced cell. Number Six also lacked the energy to go for a prolonged battle as well. So there was only one option left for the failed spy...

‘Since I have no way of escaping… Let me take you down with me!!!’

Mustering up the last ounce of power in his body, Number Six willed himself into a puff of black mist and rushed right past the enraged President. Morphing into smoke made him unhittable, particularly for the President who only specialised in martial arts. Therefore, no matter how much the President flailed his hands about, the only thing that his golden hands touched… was air.

“Damn it!”

In no time at all, Number Six passed the President. Moving at breakneck speeds, he willed his fading consciousness awake just to land one final blow. A knife came out from the black mist as Number Six began to turn back to his normal self once he was just half a metre away from Aurum. Surprised by the sudden movement, Aurum was slow to react. Or rather, he didn’t know how to respond. Aurum stood still as Number Six’s blade came ever closer towards his neck.

‘DIE!!!’

Alas…

Clink!

The expected piercing of the flesh didn’t occur. The expected warm blood didn’t flow, and the expected cry of fear… didn’t come. Number Six’s blade, the knife that had assassinated an innumerable amount of S-Class Rankers, had failed its final mission.

Standing tall, Aurum looked down at Number Six, seemingly in bemusement. The knife hadn’t even made a scratch on Aurum’s neck, and his face was completely calm, devoid of any fear or apprehension. It was as if the man was mocking the master assassin.

Number Six had lost. There was no disputing that fact. He wasn’t done in by the power of Yudonia, and neither was he defeated by the master Archmagus that Yudonia was so proud of. Instead, he was defeated by the unknown variable that he was dispatched to dig into. And thus, with the tone of a loser, Number Six asked:

“... Are you a monster?”

“No...” Aurum snorted. He peeled off the knife from his neck and clenched his other fist down. With one continuous movement, he struck Number Six in the chest, sending him flying back in the same direction. An exact repeat of the former situation unfolded, but this time, there was more damage to the walls and more importantly… the spy sent from Raklius never got up again.

“I’m not a monster, I am Aurum.”