Marked Ones: Advent of the Demon Prince

Indarel heard the explosions long before he actually registered them happening. Somehow his forces allowed an intruder to pass by them and enter into the manner. Such a scenario was grounds for death. Those that survive would soon meet the headsman's axe.

The other nobles in the room looked to him for guidance. None had weapons on them because of the strict rules for attendance. Indarel could not very well let someone in with a weapon that was not under his direct control. However, the downside to that decision was in this situation, even the strong among the noble attendants were crippled. With exception of those who could use magic that is…

"Who among you can use magic?" Indarel shouted. "Clearly we have uninvited guests and I will not rest on my laurels as they ransack my home and plunder my family's treasury."

A handful of men and women raised their hands. Among them only a handful were Advance Rank, while the rest were Intermediate and Beginner. Indarel was an Intermediate Ranker himself, having spent most of his time learning politics and managing his estate. His only benefit was he was a rare Thunder Magic user.

"Those without Magic or Arts, move to the back of the ballroom. Those with; join me. We will move to the armory and equip those with Arts with weapons. Do not let the Resistance scare you. They rely upon sneak attacks and actions within the shadows in order to survive. Put up a fight and they'll either die or flee in terror like the cowards they are!" he cried.

His shouts were joined by half-hearted cheers from his guests. Many of them looked unwilling to leave their family members, barely making any moves to join him near the entryway. He needed something… something more direct that would show he was serious. If rallying them for his family was not enough, then there had to be another option to…

Indarel's eyes fell upon the man that Everia had claimed to be her brother. He was nothing special, a scrawny young man with shaggy brown hair and loose-fitting clothes only barely befitting a man of his station. The young noble cowered as he approached, eyes blazing with anger.

"You." Indarel growled into his ear, trying to keep the volume quiet enough to not be overheard. "Call Everia's 'pet'. Your beastman slave is now mine. Everia's, and by extension the Cortis family's, trickery owes me penance. Where is it?"

"I-I-I don't know, mi'lord… h-h-he is… Everia isn't…"

Indarel roared indignantly, bringing his hand down across the noble's face. The young Cortis skid across the floor, the action eliciting a number of gasps from the others present.

"As you can see." Indarel exhaled and straightened his clothes. "Betrayal and failure to properly abide my rules and requests are not advisable. The Cortis family will meet the axe because of tonight's events." Indarel punctuated his claim, "[Tempestas: Lightning Bolt]", sending a bolt of electricity into the young man's body. He contorted and writhed in pain, unable to even cry out. After a moment the spell faded, leaving behind a charred corpse.

"We are with you, Mi'lord."

"Yes! We stand with you, sir!"

"You have my blade! When I get one…" Your next read awaits at My Virtual Library Empire

Indarel smiled, gesturing for the others to follow him. With renewed determination, the gathering of elves headed for the doors to the ballroom. An obstacle suddenly appeared, however, in the form of a man with strange, cat-like eyes. They reflected the chandelier's magical light like precious metals.

This must have been the pet that the Cortis siblings brought with them. His visage brought a frown to Indarel's face. Unlike what he had hoped of Everia during their dance, the creature was not properly collared. Worse yet, he was not even a pure-beastman; he was a filthy-mixed blood.

The mutt looked over to the blackened corpse on the floor with undisguised curiosity, before glancing amongst the party.

"Looking for your master, you filthy beast?" Indarel hissed. "I apologize, but she's been taken away. Her fate soon to follow her brother's. Later, the rest of their line. Do not worry, I will take over your contract. Do me a favor and act as my shield, maybe then I will spare your master."

Infuriatingly, the creature looked at him with confusion before switching to contempt. "I serve no master."

"Is that so? Strange. Was she sleeping with you then? No matter, why are you here?" Indarel prepared himself to cast another spell. At first, he thought it might be the infamous Lucius Kane. However, a man such as that was said to have a staggering amount of mana. This man had none.

"I'm here for you." The man's eyes seemed to flit around Indarel's body, as if reading something… the man continued, "Where is Shiyani?"

"Why would I answer questions from you! Die, scum! [Tempestas: Lightning Bolt]!" a flash of light erupted from his hand, shooting for the beastman. In an instant, it closed the gap and struck the fool directly in the chest. Sparks of electricity flashed around the man's body, but he stood still with unblinking eyes.

"Where is Shiyani?" he repeated.

How did that do nothing? Was the person in front of him not a simple beastman? How in the name of Celestia could that spell have done nothing. "[Tempestas: Lightning Bolt], [Tempestas: Lightning Step], [Tempestas: Thunderclap]." Indarel struck the beastman with another spell, before charging his body with the speed necessary to physically close the gap.

Indarel materialized next to the beastman before slamming his hands together to send out a wave of force. This was his secret technique. While only Intermediate, and focusing little time on his combat abilities, Indarel did manage to learn how to cast [Thunderclap] using only his hands. So far, no one had stood…

"Done? I was sure that your first spell doing nothing would have convinced you to stop trying. Clearly pride outweighs intelligence." Indarel felt a rush of mana fill the room and found his body unwilling to listen to his commands to move as a hand settled around his throat. "Where. Is. Shiyani?"

"Lucius Kane?" he croaked. "How? He would have told me if you were in the city!"

The grip around his neck tightened and a warm liquid ran down the outside of his throat. At the same time, a foreign mana seemed to invade his body. The sensation of a thousand small insects crawling under his skin hit him like a wave before suddenly disappearing.

"Answer me." Lucius' grip tightened once more. Each of his nerves felt like they were lit ablaze. Indarel screamed in agony, yet no one came to his aid. He managed to glance back at the nobles who uselessly allowed this to continue. A field of mana had enveloped the floor with an occasional spark of electricity striking across it. Even if they wanted, they couldn't move.

"I don't know…" Indarel suddenly found himself unable to speed. The pain he was feeling earlier was gone, thankfully, but with it, so was the sensation of his extremities.

Suddenly standing behind Lucius was a large, bald elf. His curved sword dripping with blood. Oh… I've been… betrayed.