Grimoire of Cultivation

Chapter 87: Contract in Flames

"Where is it?!" Darius raced up the basement stairs, eyes sweeping the house's interior, "there!" He burst into the grand hall of the mansion, skidding on the polished floor while clutching the unconscious child. Launching a punch towards the chandelier, he shouted, "Solar Tyrant's Fist!"

The chandelier exploded, scattering five-colored lights through the flames as shards of crystal and glass showered the floor.

Surveying the room, he noted the house’s arrays beginning to falter and collapse. Gently, he set the werefolk child down, touching his pouch, and pulling out a vial of silver liquid. He quickly administered most of it to the child and applied the rest to his own burned skin.

'He reeks of Hershel's breath,' Darius thought, as sudden explosions from below rattled the house. Peering downward, he saw the battle rage on; Haku's raging blue aura clashing with Hershel's charging purple.

Leaving the unconscious boy, blue lightning arcing around him, Darius charged through the mansion. His gaze fixed on the flickering internal auras scattered throughout the house.

One after another, Darius gathered each slave, rushing them to the grand hall, 'they're all children.' His fury mounting with each rescue as he brought the last, a frightened girl with patches of green scales along her neck.

Quickly scanning the group, Darius focused on the eldest, the snake-bloodline girl who looked about thirteen. "You have ten seconds to decide: follow my instructions and I will free you, or stay here. Ten...nine..."

The trembling slave girl met the teen's intense azure gaze, the ground shaking beneath them. She hesitated, her breath quickening as she glanced between Darius and the other slaves. "I... we..."

"3...2..."

"We'll listen!" She cried out, her eyes snapping shut. When she reopened them, Darius was crouched before her, fingers clawing at the ground.

Boom! Another violent shake from the battle below. Darius's frown deepened, 'almost, just hold on...'

Completing the array, he slammed his fist into its center, activating the starry portal to the Vault. "All of you, jump in now!"

When the children hesitated, Darius rolled his eyes, swiftly picking up each child and hurling them through the portal. They vanished instantly, except for the eldest.

Holding her gently, he paused before sending her after the others, "I'm making you responsible for them. Keep them away from the doors. Your lives depend on it."

With a quick toss and a smirk, she disappeared into the portal with a shriek. Touching his signet ring, he closed the portal as the array vanished.

Touching his pouch, Darius pulled out a fist-sized yellow beast crystal. Concentrating, he sent a message, 'It's clear! Bring him up.'

'Took you long enough!'

The ground beneath him vibrated, the barrier surrounding the manor sparked into visibility as explosions thundered towards him from below.

As Haku was about to emerge, Darius smiled. Channeling his earth mana, his muscles bulged, his black hair whipping around in a wild dance as his aura of killing intent flared.

Watching from across the grand room, Darius crouched as the floor exploded. Haku, now a five-meter towering beast, clutched a seething ball of lightning in his jaws, landing heavily, flung the orb aside where it smashed into the wall.

"Terra Pulse!" The beast crystal in his fist blazing as he poured its energy into his attack. His palm struck the ground, summoning spikes that burst through the mansion's structure.

The spikes, rising from below and the sides, converged on the purple barrier like a vice of needles, each meeting an unyielding force. The resulting clash sent sparks flying, filling the air with a harsh, grating noise as the barrier resisted the assault.

As Hershel watched his spell near its breaking point, he threw a desperate glance at the pair. "Who are you?!"

Darius's smile widened as he intensified his mana flow, "I'm your death, can't you recognize me?"

Hershel's eyes crackled with purple light, his aura swelling around him. His white hair whipped about as his orange robes billowed. "Just because I'm retired doesn't mean I'm to be looked down upon. You picked the wrong mark, assassin. They should never have sent a boy to kill me!"

'They? Is this why he's so paranoid...let's use that.' Darius relayed his thoughts to Haku. 'Can you finish him?'

'He's tough, and that barrier... Unless he drains his mana or I find a weak spot...' Haku's response was tentative.

As Hershel began to gather his aura, Darius sensed his own earth mana depleting, the strain evident on his glowing bones. "You've got a hefty bounty, you know. Even if you manage to kill me, they'll just send another. And another. It won't stop until you're dead."

Hershel erupted into maniacal laughter, his expression twisting devilishly. "So I should just roll over? Is that it? Ha! I didn’t survive this long just to bow down to some greenhorn!" His hands crackled, warping the air as he concentrated a fierce surge of lightning between them.

"What if I reveal who wants you dead? What then?" Darius pressed, even as the force of the spikes drained.

Observing the boy's faltering strength, a smirk spread across Hershel's face. 'He’s getting desperate.' With a scornful chuckle, he relaxed his stance, his broken nose wrinkling as he sneered. "I'd obliterate that fool, and anyone connected to him."

Smiling wide, Darius released his martial technique and dropped the drained crystal, standing slowly, he held his hands up.

Stepping from the wall, the barrier around Hershel dimmed, "you invaded my home. Why should I trust a word you say? What's stopping me from just killing you now?"

Darius touched his pouch, pulling out two sheets of parchment. "We'll make it binding with a contract," he explained with a measured calm. "First, we sign a contract outlining the terms of our agreement. Secondly, I will write the truth on this separate piece of paper." He held up the second sheet for emphasis. "My pet will create a clone to hold it. Once we leave safely, the clone will dissipate, leaving only the note with the truth."

Hershel eyed him warily, his suspicion apparent. 'He knows contracts aren't always binding; that's why he's being overly cautious,' he thought, maintaining a skeptical tone. "Write your part, no tricks."

Darius pricked his finger, allowing a drop of blood to fall onto the parchment as he wrote. Sending his thoughts to Haku, 'paranoia and confidence mix poorly.'

'I'm sorry, big brother. His magic is too strong.'

'No need for apologies. His barrier is powerful, and except for your latest technique, your attacks are mostly physical, which mages can easily counter.' Darius finished writing, sealed the parchment, and held it out. "Summon your phantom."

Haku concentrated, activating his Celestial Blaze Phantom Art. His massive form glowed, horns swirling with molten energy as his blue flames intensified around his neck and front legs, his back and tail's fire pulsing rhythmically. From his back, two flaming streams arced, this time converging and creating only one larger blazing replica of Haku, about two-thirds his size.

Approaching the flaming phantom, Darius held out the parchment. The fiery fox gently took it in its jaws, the flames curling around without scorching the paper, and carried it over to Hershel.

Hershel examined the phantom warily, his barrier intensifying as it neared. He quickly plucked the paper from the fiery figure, stepping back warily. "Quite the creature you command, unlike any I've known. What do they call it?"

"Quit stalling," Darius shot back.

Frustration flickered across Hershel's face as he scratched his bald head, then shifted his focus to the parchment. Though he frowned as he read, a smirk twisted inside him. 'The fool left no loopholes. Just let him walk out of the city, and my obligation ends—no clause for revenge.'

After a wary glance at Darius, feigning concern, Hershel bit his finger and started to scrawl his response.

Finishing his portion, Hershel rolled the parchment, extending it towards the phantom fox. "Take it." The flaming beast carefully bit the paper and trotted back, presenting it to Darius.

Scanning Hershel's writing, Darius smiled faintly as he pricked his finger to sign, "It seems you're more reasonable than your information suggested." No sooner had he finished signing than the contract glowed intensely, tearing from his grasp and splitting into two beams of light that shot into Darius's and Hershel's chests.

"Now, I'll fulfill my part," Darius wrote his name—Darius Valdene—folded the note, and handed it to the Phantom. "Once we've left the city safely, my pet's clone will disappear, and you'll have your answer. And trust me when I say this, you will never see us again."

Haku, flashing a wild grin, signaled his phantom to take position next to Hershel.

"If I do see you again, it will be the day you die. Make sure your words hold true," Hershel stated flatly, eyeing the Phantom and the paper held in its mouth, his gaze sharp.

"Let's go." Turning to leave, Darius called back, "Deactivate your remaining arrays, 'safely' remember?"

Waving dismissively, Hershel sneered, "leave my home."

As the mana currents began to shift, Haku shifted to his Ghost-form. Darius muttered, "Ethereal Steps," and vanished in a blur.

Hershel's eyes widened as he stared at the spot where Darius had vanished, 'He’s faster than I realized. And his mana... why couldn't I see it? No matter, I’ll pry it from his body later.'

Turning his attention to the phantom, his eyes crackled, "Fascinating ability. It's much weaker than its original, yet such an advanced construct is rare to see."

As he circled the beast, Hershel suddenly halted, his face flushing red. "My slave!" He closed his eyes, after a moment, a surge of awareness sparked his aura into a violent burst. "That devious little scum stole them all!"

His rage zeroed in on the phantom. He advanced, finger jabbing the air, "If you can hear me, you little thief, once you've le—"

A blinding flash of white cut him off, Haku's phantom detonated, swallowing everything in silence.

Across the street from Hershel's manor, on a rooftop under the cloak of a moonless night, a sudden burst of light washed over Darius and Haku. The sky lit up as if day had broken, a column of fire marking the sky, visible to the heavens, casting a terrifying glow over the city.

"So combining them increases the explosion...noted," Darius murmured, his face paling. Beside him still in his Ghost-form, Haku gulped nervously, shifting back into his smaller body, he ducked behind Darius.

Peering out as the roar of the explosion died down, a restrained smile flickered on his face, "It's a good thing we used crystals with that barrier."

Gazing into the settling flames, Darius channeled a massive surge of lightning mana into his eyes, intensifying his Arcane Gaze to its limits. "We need to make sure he's dead."

"Do you think he survived that? There's no way."

"We can take a mo—"

Lightning struck. The rooftop to their left exploded in a shower of sparks, with Hershel appearing, his face charred, rage etched deeply as he stretched his hands toward them.

Caught off guard, Darius was still focused on the destruction ahead. As he and Haku faced Hershel's manor, the old mage’s spell cracked violently.

Suddenly, a bolt of purple lightning erupted from Darius's shoulder.

"...what?! How did you..." Hershel stuttered, clutching the gaping hole in his chest as his knees buckled. He crumbled forward, his body rolling off the rooftop and crashing into the street below.

Appearing in a flash of lightning on Darius’s shoulder, Neko bristled, meticulously licking the residual blood from his paw. 'Neko watched!' he chirped proudly.

"Good job, Neko," Darius gulped, just as a woman's scream echoed from below. Shaking off the interruption, "Get back into the Codex for now, here," handing Neko a beast crystal before the small creature retreated into the Immortal Treasure.

"Let's go, the city is going to be very busy tonight," a satisfied smile crossing his face as he and Haku vanished.

'Marcus isn't going to be happy about this, but the real issue is what to do with those kids.'

Continuing through the city, it's residents rushing to the scene as they passed undetected, Darius's thoughts lingered on the group of slaves now safe in the Vault.

'Best to lay low until the wedding; stepping out in this city only seems to bring me trouble.'

----

Standing on his terrace, Marcus gazed into the distance, his eyes fixed on a towering pillar of flames splitting the night sky. "He didn't...please tell me that's just a coincidence."

A knock at the door heralded Percy's entrance. "Did you feel that? What's going—" His words trailed off as he caught sight of the fiery spectacle.

"Is that what I think it is?" Marcus asked dryly, his back still turned to his son.

Percy shifted his gaze between his father and the fading pillar of fire, his expression tightening. "Probably. I told you he has a short fuse. That old man must have crossed a line Darius wasn't willing to tolerate."

Marcus sighed and shook his head. "Let's just hope this doesn't escalate. The last thing we need is the towers getting involved."

He turned to his son. "Summon Ivan; we might need a scapegoat for this."

Percy nodded, his face settling into a grave expression. "Yes, father." He turned, a smile flickering as he went to fetch their butler, 'He really does intend to fully support the boss. I need to make sure I do my best for them both.'

Marcus watched his son leave, his aura dimming as he sank into his chair at his desk. He held his head, shoulders drooping. "I'm getting too old for this."