Everything had led to this moment. A moment he had been waiting for.
No... 'waiting' was too soft. He had yearned for it.
His killer had finally revealed himself in the hope of completing his unfinished job.
"I don't think things would go your way." The familiar voice echoed loudly.
Alexander didn't need to look to know. He recognized the voice instantly.
Truthfully, he wasn't even surprised. As a matter of fact, of all the names on his list, this one had always been at the top.
First, in the novel, the killer was actually a Tier–6 magical warrior. Yet, he had lied, stating he was a Tier–4 magical warrior.
Secondly, Alex couldn't help but notice his body shudder involuntarily whenever he gazed at the figure.
And lastly. His weapon, that was one important piece that completed the puzzle. A weapon he could never forget.
"Stay away from the Crippled Prince... he's mine." Dylan said coldly as his aura flared wildly.
"You traitor! Dammit!" Ren exclaimed in fury, standing before Ivan.
The situation had changed instantly yet, Freya couldn't help but notice the calm expression on the prince's face.
In fact, he appeared to be struggling to hold back his laughter.
Pffft–Hehehe! Alex finally burst out in laughter, clutching his stomach. "Damn. I was trying to hold it in."
Even Ren was taken aback by his laughter. Wasn't the Prince supposed to be scared for his life? Or had the Prince finally lost it?
Their opponents were no joke: a Tier 6 magical warrior, a peak Tier 5 magical warrior, and another early Tier 5 magical warrior.
The situation was dangerous, and their chance of survival was near impossible. But Alexander wasn't trembling.
Maybe he realised Ren wasn't going to give up without a fight. Or it was just too much for him to handle.
Gripping his sword, Ren was already thinking of how to handle the battle and, at the same time, protect the Prince. He was a Tier 7 magical warrior, but an injured one.
Yet, he had a duty to perform. It was for moments like this he was appointed the Young master Personal guard after all.
Also, his years of experience were nothing to laugh about.
But then...
Tap. Tap. Tap.
They stared with wide eyes as Ivan calmly walked forward, standing at their centre.
"Young master! It's too dangerous! You need to stay behind me!"
Staring at Ren for a moment with a small, unreadable smile, he then turned towards Dylan, his expression undergoing change instantly.
'Something isn't right.' Freya thought with an unsettling feeling.
"Ren. You can kill the brute. Oh... start by ripping his tongue off. Then do whatever you see fit to him. But I need the general alive."
"Yes, Young master." Ren replied instantly. "But Young master, what about... him." Ren pointed towards Dylan with a scowl.
"Ohh, the dog? I'll handle him myself."
Finally frustrated from the whole ordeal, Dylan charged forward with his body getting encased in armour of earth.
Standing in eerie calmness, Alexander stared forward with an expressionless face. Yet, no one knew he was staring at a translucent screen visible only to him.
[Are you sure you want to merge the Nullification Rune with the surrounding environment?]
The notification blinked softly, waiting for his response.
"Yes. Commence merge." Alex commanded mentally.
[500 Domination points will be consumed]
A blinding light exploded outward as Ivan confirmed the process.
When the light finally faded, a crater had formed beneath a figure, and a cladded boot now pressed the figure's head into the ground.
Ivan watched with glee as Rohr stomped harder on the head underneath his feet.
The others paused in their tracks, stunned by what they just witnessed.
"Carry on. Don't mind me," Ivan said with a devilish smile, waving at them.
Staring at him, krazoth felt a shudder run down his spine.
[Nullification Runestone activated]
[Range: 20 metres]
[Effects: All magical affinities within the zone are nullified for 15 minutes]
This was one of the perks of an increased grade of the rune stones. He was able to merge the ability with not just himself but also the environment.
He was pretty sure there was more to it. But for now, this will suffice.
Ivan just had fifteen minutes to round up the battle quickly.
Freya frowned as she noticed she was unable to summon her ice power.
Even Dylan, who had encased himself in an armour of earth, realised it had crumbled to dust.
Of course, the ability had no effect on Alexander. Not only could he use his summons, he had already summoned Rohr to intercept Dylan charge and, at the same time, retaliated with a brutal counterattack.
From his hand, crimson mist flowed out, forming two figures.
Lin and Joro had been summoned.
Freya watched with wide eyes as the blood warriors fully materialised, their crimson eyes burning brightly.
"You... So it was you!" She exclaimed quite shock from the whole ordeal.
Ren, seeing everything play out, instantly got to work. His body vanished only to appear behind Krazoth, who was a tad late in realising.
Fast. He was nightmarishly fast.
Swinging his sword, the brute barely turned when the flat side of Ren's sword slammed into the back of his head, sending him flying.
Moving once again, he appeared ahead of him, grabbing him by his throat, and stopped his motion with terrifying ease.
"Young master ordered for your tongue. Let's not keep him waiting," Ren mumbled as his hands moved, reaching into his mouth and half a second later pulled back with force.
"ARGGGHHHH!!"
A splitting scream tore through the battlefield. Soldiers froze as they turned towards the source.
The soldiers watched with pale eyes as their commander tongue was ripped out, blood spraying out like a fountain from his throat.
Ren's sword flashed, and then he calmly stepped away from Krazoth as if suddenly disinterested.
"Young master, your request has been fulfilled." He said with a small smile.
A thin line form on Krazoth neck as his head slowly slid from his neck. The cut had been so clean that the head had only begun to slide off when the body tilted to the ground.
Alex watched everything quite amazed at the same time shocked. Ren was truly terrifying.
The way he had ripped out his tongue and the cut he had delivered, just those little details showed he had truly lived up to his title—The Executioner.
Krazoth neck had been cut so clean in a fluid motion that not a single blood had spilt before his head finally hit the ground with a thud, bouncing across a couple metres before coming to a stop.
Alexander finally focused on his opponent, who had managed to break free from his summon hold.
"So... you've been hiding your powers too, huh?" Dylan spat with a snarl. "Well... won't matter. You're still going to die!"
"We'll see about that," Alex said, eyes gleaming as he charged forward. His summons followed behind just as Ren charged at Freya.
On the other other side of the battlefield, another battle taking place was finally drawing to a close...