"A bit outnumbered, aren't you?" Teased the man with a sultry tone.

"Shadows...Converge." Returned Renata calmly.

Seemingly from the depths of darkness, dozens and dozens of Shadows appeared, answering Renata's command. And standing behind us were the elites, few in numbers.

Chaos spread like wildfire among the crowd. They could taste the thick tension brewing worse thanks to Melkor's sudden execution, and the daunting entrance of the mysterious Shadows surely did not make it any better.

Amidst the ongoing chaos, the man's gaze stayed glued to the newcomers draped in black before a smirk bloomed lightly on his amused mug. "So it was true that you did bring all the little toys when you left. What a pity..."

"You talk as if you're getting out here alive, Pepe. And know this: they volunteered themselves to be part of this mission when they heard you may come." Replied Renata, unfazed.

"My, what an honor! How about you, my Red Lyli? Did you miss me too? How about we relive the night of passion and love we shared before?" The man laughed raspy in heat.

Renata sneered in disdain. "I see your libido is still acting up despite your body rotting away."

"More than you might think, Lyli...More than you might think." He licked his cracked lips.

"Is that right?"

The two shared a banter back and forth, ignoring the world around them.

'Merchant. Evacuate with James. Leave the rest here to us...Spy. You know what to do, right?' Meanwhile, I was sending messages to Margareth and Clara.

Now that her role was over, having Margareth, who knew next to nothing about fighting, inside the venue would be fatal.

As for Clara, her job was to find and secure Marquess Pearl when all hell broke loose. She would have three Elite following to assist her, so there should be no problem on her front.

"Ho...What a peculiar smell and trace. You're making this master excited...So you're the Black Nightmare everyone is talking about. Amazing! WONDERFULL!" Raved the man hoarsely.

'He knows?'

Word magic was a power that depended on how my imagination worked. If he was able to find me like that, then that could only mean that my imagination was just not enough to encompass all the other factors I currently knew nothing about, similar to how I got caught by Father.

But this was not a problem without a solution. They could be solved by studying the cause, and I could also play the waiting game because word magic was a cheat that grew stronger over time, after all.

When, and I meant at the time when my mind, body, and soul could house the full might of word magic, that would be the day when my word became the law in this world.

But right now...I have to make do with what I have...

Renata stepped forward after shaking her head at me, hinting that keeping my mouth shut would be the wisest course of action.

"You're making me really jealous! Don't ever do that again!!" Cried the man wildly, seeing the short interaction between us.

She threw her dagger without any warning at the man draped in a grey mantle. It pierced and punctured him dead in the wall. She then waved her hand, calling the cursed relic back to her.

"That feistiness of yours hasn't changed in the slightest. Are you that impatient to have me in my bare skin?" From the other end of the venue, the same murky sound emerged once again, throwing yet another off-putting sexual remark.

Stolen novel; please report.

However, the difference was everyone could now see what the other party looked like without the cover of the mantle.

A hunched bald old man with a broken hairline and wrinkles fashioning his entire body.

On his hand, a short staff was used to support his body, which looked so frail that it was as if we were looking at a man with nothing but skin and bones.

His attire was hidden before, but now, we could actually spot the slim-fitted suit that hugged the man's body close. It was the kind that was often used by prominent and dashing men in the Royal Capital, which painted a totally different feel when the old man wore them.

What's more, it was like the asshole was incapable of speaking normally without including sexual remarks. 'I mean, get a fucking mirror and act your age, you old bloke!'

He bugged the fuck out of me. That's the truth...

"I'll take care of the rest, Assassin. I'll leave him to you." Cracking his joints, Trodin slowly churned his Geast.

"Appreciated, Paladin." Retorted Renata without taking her eyes off the deranged old man.

"Hm..." He then drew a long, deep breath, filling his lungs full before unleashing an ear-splitting roar to stun the whole venue. "Shadows!! Wear your masks. Wield your blade and see your enemies! Tonight! We'll open the gates of hell for its new denizens! FOR THE HOUSE!!"

"FOR THE HOUSE!!!" Answered the shadows.

Sigils lighted up, magic was shot, blood splattered, and people flew in the air like flies; it was a freaking fiesta...

"Elites! With me!" Barked Renata, jumping away as soon as her words landed flat.

They weaved their way through the chaos towards Pepe.

Against the incoming onslaught that Renata brought to his feet, Pepe returned the favor by pitting them against baleful monsters that manifested out of thin air.

With no sigils and mana flow beforehand, everyone knew that those monsters were nothing more than illusions he conjured, and that's why Pepe was so troublesome in his own way.

His magic was not real, yet he could make his enemies feel how real it was in their skins. Playing tricks in their mind, sowing thoughts full of nothing but doubts.

The Elites were able to handle the illusions, albeit stumbling a bit, but Renata herself was moving with deadly precision and efficiency like no other.

She evaded what she could evade and finished off whenever a sloppy chance presented itself before her eyes while never ceasing to point her way to where Pepe was.

"Rargh!!!" A beastlike roar drenched with thick bloodlust stole my attention out of nowhere.

Trodin, like a feral creature that was out for blood, was rampaging amongst the armored knights that threw themselves at him akin to a moth into the fire.

Necks broken, heads cracked open, limbs torn apart, and caved chests.

There was no glory and beauty in the way Trodin fought his battle. Merely, corpses, limbs, and only more corpses lay silent in his wake.

It was brutal...yet honest...

Little by little, the number of those who dared to bar his steps was dwindling. And Trodin, being Trodin, lightly rendered the one who surrenders by incapacitating them, sparing their lives.

'Hm...? Okay, time to work...' Picking up a series of movements thanks to my Mind's eye, I finally floated out of the cage silently. "Shadow. My mask."

In the blink of an eye, a Shadow faithfully materialized before me. She knelt while bowing down, offering the mask with two sides above her head.

"Finally feel like getting up!? Pity your timing is a bit lacking! You're already surrounded with nowhere to go!!" Shouted Pepe madly.

'Yeah, I know, you fucker...' Copying Helena's habit, I clicked my tongue at the sickening sight. "Assassin...Paladin...Merchant is in trouble. I'll be back." I addressed the two shortly before gliding my way toward the exit.

"Have a pleasant trip, Milord."

Replied the two.

"Don't feel like talking to me? Everyone is like that at first. But they'll end up singing loud for me!!"

Two chimeras that have the body parts of a wolf, squid, and bat meshed in as one bolted through the open space and blocked my way.

How do they look? Trust me, you don't want to know.

'Fuck, that's so ugly! Disappear!!'

And with a wave of my hand, I wiped them back into the void.

Pissed off due to the sudden jumpscare, I turned to the man who was staring at me with bloodshot eyes.

Slowly, I raised both hands and showed him the universal language the whole universe knew...

'Go fuck yourself, you bitch-ass pervert!' I gave him the fingers.

"BLACK NIGHTMARE!!!!"