Katarina arrived back in the Elven village and saw everything in the forest engulfed in an infernal fire. The solemn, gargantuan guardians of the forest were caught in an insidious fire, turning its bark into incandescent coal and its leaves as fuel for its growth.
Elves ran amok, trying their damndest to quell the spread of chaos by dousing the tree with water arrows. But their efforts were in vain. No normal water can extinguish this fire—this fire ladened with Aubility Power.
Guards tried to guide the Elves into safety, but their tumultuous screams were only getting drowned out by the crackling of fire. Panic and hysteria spread across as the Elves saw their own houses become lit up with an insidious red fire. They were about to lose everything.
"Keep calm!" the guards shouted. "The fire will be doused soon! Believe in Lady Farren!"
Katarina scanned the entirety of the village, keeping her eyes peeled to see a glimpse of those treacherous bastards.
He knew them well enough to know that this was only the start. This was a distraction to their real goal.
They may be vile and corrupted, but they do not sow destruction just for the sake of it. This was deliberate. They wanted the Elven village to be wrought in chaos.
While the Elves were busy putting out the fires, they would be striking from the shadows and retrieving their target without even anyone knowing they were there. That was their M.O.
The question was what. What was so important with the Elves that they brought out a frontal assault?
Just as she thought that, she suddenly remembered.
"Keo!"
…
…
…
Michael was awoken by the initial explosion that shocked the village. It was hard not to, as the entire tree shook violently and almost caused the whole thing to careen to the side.
What the hell?!
On the window overlooking the vista to the entire Elven village, he saw nothing but fervid fire raging everywhere.
He used his Supreme Talent and his Drone Vision to see his surroundings. And immediately, his whole vision became filled with a glowing, red hot hue that only got intense as the fire spread.
This fire is made out of Aubility Power!
This was obviously a severe case of arson caused by a powerful Maugnetic. The ferocity of the fire was too strong for it to have been a mistake.
Wanting to get a better view of the situation, he ordered his Drone to fly out into the air to take stock of what had happened.
But before that happened, he heard another crashing sound echoing out of the hallway, as if someone had just kicked down a door.
Then a second later, another door was forcibly opened, and then another, and another, with their booming kicks getting louder and louder as they came closer to Michael's room.
Eventually, his wooden door burst into splinters as a group of hooded men came into his room.
There were five of them in total, all their faces obscured by a veil covering everything but their eyes.
But even then, Michael could see the anxiousness in their expression. They were in a hurry. And judging by the multiple scanning glances they took around his room, it looked to him as if they were searching for something… or someone.
"Damn it, it's not here," one of the hooded figures cursed. Then with a disgruntled, dismissed look at Michael said, "Take care of this kid. No one should know we were here."
All five figures glared at Michael, hostility radiating from their bodies. Their intention to kill was clear.
Are they the vandals? They fit the Elven guards' depiction exactly.
And just as he expected, the vandals were ramping up their stunts into something much bigger, something much more devious so as to wreak fiery havoc upon thousands of innocent Elves.
This time, they truly crossed the line. They crossed the rubicon. There was no going back now.
Immediately, ChatJK5 displayed a window overlaying on each of the vandals' faces showing their cultivation realms and their Aubility Powers.
His eyes widened.
[Unknown assailant]
[5th stage Body Formation realm]
[Talent: Artificial Strength]
[Aubility Power: The user gains control over an infernal fire, which can burn everything and persevere beyond the limits of nature.]
[Artifice detected]
That last line was critical. All of them had the same talent and Aubility Power, and all used Artifice as an expedient for achieving a reality-bending power.
This was no coincidence. They were no ordinary vandals. This meant that this attack was premeditated by someone else: the Faux-Stil company or at least someone similar to them.
It all made sense now. Their previous pranks were simply a gauge to test the Elves' defense systems. First, they limited their attacks on the outskirts of the forest, trying to see the strengths and weaknesses of the Elven guards.
Once they found a suitable breach in their defenses, they moved closer, attacking the Garden Monuments as their final preparation before eventually setting their sights on the very village itself.
And today, they successfully besieged it with an uncontrollable fire.
It was a perfectly executed cerebral plan to set up something a lot more nefarious: a heist of critical proportions.
"Who are you people?" he asked them.
But these hooded figures remained silent until one of them raised their hands and pointed it in his direction.
"You don't deserve to know, Cretin. You only deserve to perish under our fire."
A blazing, humanoid figure appeared above all of them, exhibiting the same Diva and power.
But strangely, this figure didn't look… realistic. The flames surrounding the Diva looked drawn and animated, as if it was constructed through a 2D animation software.
This was extremely different from any other Diva he had seen before, making him question if they were even Divas in the first place. After all, Divas were supposed to be unique, and these were anything but.
However, the hooded figures didn't give him the time to investigate.
A billowing beam of fire shot out from the hooded figures' hands, reaching halfway into the ceiling before it solidified, forming into a fiery club in their grasp.
They lunged at Michael, intending to bash his head into the nether realm.
But unbeknownst to them, fifteen Drones shimmered around the room, their cannons glowing with a prismatic light.