Age of Adepts

There was a small, rural, and unpopulated forest.

Through the sparse trees, the dim lights of Xavia Castle could be seen approximately one kilometer away.

Two adepts wearing the Fabres Clan emblem on their chests glared at the castle in the distance with wicked expressions. The one in the lead viciously said, “It’s here; Xavia Castle. Count Thomas that lives within has explicitly rejected our solicitations. The clan has ordered that we must exterminate these foolish idiots today. Remember, leave no one alive. Every man and animal in that castle has to be exterminated. The spoils will belong to yourselves.”

The eleven adept apprentices following behind the two adepts betrayed joyous expressions upon hearing this. The five dozen black-armored guards standing even further away burst out into soft cheers.

“Very well, let’s go!”

As the adept gave the order, the eleven apprentices led the fifty guards out of the forest with swift steps and charged toward the gray castle standing in the darkness.

They had already investigated the castle prior to this. There were only two adept apprentices in Count Thomas’ castle. One was an intermediate apprentice and the other was an advanced apprentice. Neither of them could be considered powerful opponents.

The mission reward offered by the Fabres Clan listed Count Thomas’ head to be worth two hundred magical crystals, and the heads of the Crimson apprentices were fifty and a hundred magical crystals, respectively. The other vital members of Count Thomas’ family were listed between five to ten magical crystals each.

The official adepts leading the party might not care for such ‘pocket change,’ but the adept apprentices they led had gone mad with greed for the rewards. They stormed onto the battlefield as fast as they could.

Even though it was already dark, the walls of the castle were still heavily guarded. Several guards were patrolling the entire length of the wall with torches in hand, as if enemies would attack at any time.

Xavia Castle was only an ordinary worldly territory of the Crimson Clan located in the Ailovis Region. Count Thomas, who managed this castle and the sixty square kilometers of land around it, was only one of many worldly nobles within the Crimson Clan. Moreover, he was one of the most insignificant nobles of them all.

However, as the surrounding noble forces all chose to defect to the Fabres Clan due to their overwhelming strength, Count Thomas stood out remarkably for his decision to wave away their messenger.

It could be said that the entirety of Xavia Castle had been panicking from the moment they sent the messenger away. Everyone was waiting for an unknown calamity to descend at any time.

If it wasn’t for his granddaughter who was studying in White Tower of the Northern Lands, Count Thomas might not have found the courage to go against the will of a veteran adept clan. Little Winnie had incredible talent. She was already an advanced apprentice at the young age of eleven.

If nothing unexpected were to happen, Little Winnie should be able to become an official adept before she was thirty years old.

Once Little Winnie became an official adept of the Crimson Clan, the Thomas family would find themselves with an opportunity to rise to power. It was precisely due to such considerations that Count Thomas found the courage to refuse the messenger that had come to solicit his surrender.

Perhaps aware that disaster was unavoidable, Count Thomas sent away his most capable son along with his most talented grandchildren to Pinecone Town after turning away the messenger.

That was where the Crimson Clan had first come to power. The town should not have been affected directly by this war.

Meanwhile, he prepared himself for the worst and silently waited for disaster to descend. His idea was simple. He was hoping that the Crimson Clan would treat Little Winnie and the rest of his family well on account of his loyal sacrifice.

This way, when Little Winnie finally achieved power, the seeds left behind by the Thomas Family would be able to rely on her to rapidly strengthen and regain their former glory!

When alarms rang across the castle walls, Count Thomas closed his eyes in agony, alone within his room.

He was eighty years old now, and did not have much time left. This was all he could do for his family.

The other nobles might not be optimistic about the Crimson Clan’s future.

They had chosen to be fence-sitters, swaying to whichever side held the advantage. However, Count Thomas had a strange feeling that the Crimson Clan would still obtain the final victory, much like the way they had during the last clan war. Once the Crimson Clan won, these nobles who had chosen to surrender to the enemy would be facing a bloody purge.

Flowers grown with blood would grow stronger and bloom brighter!

Count Thomas had chosen the right side during the last adept war. He had risen from the mere Baron Thomas to the rank of Count. However, he never expected a second choice to so quickly arrive in front of him, a mere dozen years after the first.

The war this time was greater in scale, and the enemies of the Crimson Clan were even more terrifying. Choosing during such circumstances was only more complicated. Fortunately, Little Winnie’s existence saved Count Thomas from the trouble of having to choose.

He was old now. He could no longer lead the Thomas Family. As such, it was time for him to sacrifice himself to win the family more space for development!

Thomas trembled as he sat up from the couch. He drank the red wine in his winecup and stumbled to his bed. In his hand, a gold-laced dagger inlaid with a big bright ruby gleamed with cold light.

Since the enemy had arrived, it was time for him to die!

He did not wish to fall into the enemy’s hands only to suffer even more torture. It was better for him to commit suicide.

Just as he arrived by his bedside, a soft knocking sound rang at the wooden door.

“Lantz, don’t try to convince me anymore. I will not leave with you guys! Hurry and escape before the enemies enter the castle! The secret passage at the stables in the backyard should let you leave the castle safely.”

Lantz was one of the two Crimson apprentices that Count Thomas had hired at a high cost. He had attempted to convince the Count to escape to Pinecone Town with him countless times. Unfortunately, Count Thomas still rejected the offer after hesitating repeatedly. That was why Thomas had instinctively assumed the guest to be Advanced Apprentice Lantz when the knocking resumed.

The wooden door opened.

A tall and sinister figure loomed at the entrance. The bright light poured in from behind, adding a golden halo to his figure.

This person was not Lantz!

Thomas’ heart thumped furiously. He stepped back in terror and said with a shaking voice, “Who...who...who are you?”

The tall figure ignored Count Thomas’ question and walked to the window. He looked down upon the black guards swarming into the castle through the narrow wooden window. A strange smile appeared on the peculiar face hidden beneath the shadow of the hood.

Advanced Apprentice Lantz walked in from behind the towering figure with a lamp in his hand. He smiled at Count Thomas.

“Alright, Lord Thomas, stop thinking about death already. This is a Lord Adept sent by our clan. He’s here to bring you to Pinecone Town. Hurry up and come with me. The journey is very far still!”

Who would be willing to give their life up if they didn’t have to die?

Count Thomas hastily put the dagger away upon hearing this. He couldn’t be bothered to bring any of his wealth or treasure. He called for his closest servants and wives, got onto a black carriage that had been waiting behind the castle for a while, and soon rumbled into the distance.

The black carriage might be inconspicuous, but it could not escape the eyes of the Fabres apprentices and guards. However, to their surprise, anyone that got within fifty steps of the black carriage was slashed in half by a silent and unseen blade.

Eight guards and two apprentices had already died to this mysterious killer from the time Count Thomas got onto the carriage to when it drove into the darkness.

Of course, everything that was happening here had been discovered by the magical eyes activated by the Fabres adepts.

An invisible eye in the night sky slowly moved to the back of the castle, secretly scanning everything in sight.

Meanwhile, the black figure was still looking out of the window in the Count’s bedroom. He silently observed the ‘deathmatch’ happening between the black-armored guards and the soldiers of the castle. The castle’s soldiers were all brave warriors. However, they could not defend themselves when faced against the adepts’ guards, who were dressed in magical armor and equipped with razor-sharp blades.

Just as the black guards charged into the castle for a slaughter, Lantz returned to the room after sending the Count away. He walked before the cloaked figure and bowed, “My Lord, the castle has been emptied. Everyone who should be sent away has been sent away!”

“Good, very good. Then let my little babies have a proper meal once more!”

A sinister screech came from the tall figure as countless black beetles fell out of his cloak like dumplings falling into water. These black beetles swarmed across the ground like a tide and surged out of the bedroom. They avoided the apprentice as they moved, making sure not to drag him into their midst.

Even though Lantz knew that these beetles were under Lord Billis’ control and would not harm him, he couldn’t help but be nervous seeing the tide of insects pass by him at point-blank range.

Lantz had to grit his teeth with all his strength to not let out a rude scream of fear.

The fighting outside only lasted for a few moments before falling silent. All the guards and servants left behind in the castle had been killed. The guards and apprentices searching the castle quickly ran into the swarm of black beetles.

The sound of swinging swords, the crackling of torches, and the loud explosions of elementium fireballs quickly rang out from every corner of the castle.

The sound of crazed fighting and terrible screams continued throughout.

However, the guards who had been the predator earlier had now become prey in the eyes of others.

Screams echoed throughout the castle but quickly fell silent, leaving behind only the strange sounds of gnawing and crunching in the darkness.

“Dammit! It’s Bug Adept Billis.”

The expression of the two Fabres adepts turned dark. Their hearts couldn’t help but start beating furiously.

The bug adept of the Crimson Clan was even more terrifying than the legendary fire adept.

The legendary fire adept might be powerful, but he had only displayed his power in public a few times. He was far less dreaded than this bug adept who had committed slaughter everywhere with far more cruel and bloody means.

More importantly, Bug Adept Billis could be considered a core adept of the Crimson Clan.

They might have failed this mission when they ran into him, but they would still be greatly rewarded if they reported his appearance to their leaders!