Lord: Sequence Master

On the surface layer of the Spirit Realm, Count Fritz glanced nervously at the Fate Script in his hand. Flipping through it, he saw that out of the 49 carefully cultivated soldiers from his domain, only 15 had survived.

The moment danger struck, his Fate Perception skill instinctively alerted him to his imminent death. In a split second, Fritz had fled into the Spirit Realm, and five of his soldiers with spatial abilities had narrowly escaped with him. The remaining ten had survived by combining their defensive skills to withstand the explosion, but they were critically injured—on the verge of death due to the intense heat and lack of oxygen.

Fritz retrieved a magic scroll and cast a Fire Element Barrier around himself, a protective measure from a Sequence 6 item. Only then did he cautiously emerge from the Spirit Realm, prepared to save the ten soldiers who were still barely alive.

Upon spotting a severely burned Sequence 8 Knight nearby, Fritz expanded his elemental barrier to envelop the wounded man. He hurried forward and administered a life potion. However, at that moment, his Fate Perception detected mortal danger once again.

While Fate Perception could sense impending threats, it wasn't an ability to foresee the future. The larger the threat, the clearer the warning. In the case of the explosion caused by the Rose of the Pauper, the blast would have killed Fritz instantly, hence the timely alert. But the virus that followed was different. Though deadlier than the explosion, it didn't kill immediately. By the time Fate Perception warned him, the virus had already begun ravaging his body.

Even though he now knew he was in mortal danger, it was already too late to avoid it. Blood dripped from all seven orifices of his face as Fritz covered his mouth and nose, feeling his cells rapidly decaying and his life force draining.

This wasn't an ordinary bomb—it carried a virus designed to destroy living cells.

Unable to focus on rescuing his infected soldiers, Fritz quickly consumed a Sequence 6 Universal Antidote. The rapid loss of life slowed, but the antidote could only suppress the virus, not eradicate it.

Knowing the virus still lingered, Fritz realized he couldn't risk getting near his infected soldiers again. Without hesitation, he retrieved a Long-Range Teleportation Scroll and began activating it. But at that moment, Rosen appeared, tearing apart a Sequence 6 Spatial Disruption Scroll, blocking the teleportation.

Seeing his teleportation fail, Fritz instinctively tried to retreat back into the Spirit Realm. But before he could, Rosen projected his Divine Domain, enveloping Fritz within it. The domain's interference prevented Fritz from forcibly entering the Spirit Realm.

Realizing he couldn't escape that way, Fritz activated a Sequence 6 Acceleration Scroll, boosting his speed several times over as he attempted to flee back to Adventurer King City. If he could shake Rosen off, he could still teleport or retreat into the Spirit Realm.

However, Fritz came to a sudden halt, his spiritual sense detecting Rosen setting up a sniper cannon. He didn't dare gamble on whether Rosen could unleash another devastating attack like before. If he could, continuing to flee would only make Fritz an easy target.

Unable to enter the Spirit Realm and faced with the threat of another virus bomb, Fritz made a decision. He turned back, determined to kill Rosen first. The universal antidote would suppress the virus for half an hour—plenty of time to kill Rosen and retreat to the city for treatment. Fritz doubted Rosen would use another virus bomb in close combat.

Fritz charged at Rosen, but Rosen quickly retreated, seemingly trying to avoid a confrontation. This convinced Fritz that his choice was correct. However, as Fritz pursued, he unknowingly stepped into a space trap.

Rosen had anticipated this. He knew the Rose of the Pauper would leave Fritz in a vulnerable state but not completely incapacitated. Instead of a direct confrontation, Rosen used human psychology to lure him into a trap. When people feel cornered, they tend to act recklessly, and in this Sequence 6 versus Sequence 7 situation, Fritz was likely to choose a fight.

The space trap activated, teleporting Fritz directly into the Gallery Maze, leaving him trapped in a deadly maze.

Fritz knew how dangerous the Void Gallery could be, so he quickly pulled out his prized Flame Demon Horn, a one-time-use Sequence 5 transcendent artifact. Sacrificing 5 points of his spiritual strength, Fritz summoned two peak Sequence 6 Flame Demons, their fiery presence boiling the water within the gallery maze.

Under Fritz's command, the Flame Demons unleashed their molten fists, destroying the walls of the maze. Using his Fate Script, Fritz wrote a new play, casting himself and the Flame Demons as the main and supporting characters, treating the Gallery Maze as the backdrop for his drama. The script provided him with a direct path to the core of the gallery.

The Gallery Maze, designed to confuse and trap enemies, could not function effectively under the forceful advance of the Flame Demons. Fritz ignored its complexity and simply had the demons smash through the walls, advancing in a straight line. Within ten minutes, he would reach the core of the gallery.

At that moment, Rosen realized the vast difference between fighting a Sequence 6 noble and a Sequence 6 Crypt Demon Lord.

He began setting space traps along the direct path between two points. As soon as one of the Flame Demons stepped into a trap, they would be teleported out of the Void Gallery.

But Fritz was experienced and had anticipated this. He hid inside the mouth of one of the Flame Demons, protected by his Fire Element Barrier. This way, if the Flame Demon were teleported, Fritz would be taken along with it.

"Flame Demon No. 1 has Fritz in its mouth, so I'll teleport Flame Demon No. 2," Rosen thought.

But just as Flame Demon No. 2 was about to step into the space trap, Gray Mouse stopped Rosen abruptly.

"Teleport Flame Demon No. 1!" Gray Mouse shouted urgently.

Though confused, Rosen trusted Gray Mouse and changed the teleportation target. The moment Flame Demon No. 1 stepped into the trap, it was teleported out.

Looking outside the Void Gallery, Rosen saw something strange—Flame Demon No. 1 hadn't spat out Fritz.

Rosen finally understood—he had almost fallen for Fritz's trick.

Fritz had made it seem like he was hiding in Flame Demon No. 1, luring Rosen into teleporting the wrong demon. But if Fritz had truly been hiding in one of the demons, he would have made it impossible for Rosen to tell which one. By allowing Rosen to see where he was, Fritz tried to manipulate Rosen's decision and escape.

It was a simple trick—one that nearly worked.

On the surface, Earl Fritz had hidden himself inside Flame Demon No. 1, but in reality, he had secretly transferred himself to Flame Demon No. 2 using a concealed method.

If Flame Demon No. 2 had been teleported away, Earl Fritz would have already escaped successfully.

Fortunately, Gray Mouse, with its vast experience, saw through Earl Fritz's deception, causing him to lose one of his valuable Flame Demons as an ally.

Inside Flame Demon No. 2, Earl Fritz glared down at the Fate Script in his hand, nearly crushing his Fate Pen in frustration. According to his script, Rosen wasn't supposed to see through his plan.

Now, with only one Flame Demon left, breaking through the Gallery Maze's core became twice as difficult.

Calculating the time left on his antidote, Earl Fritz realized he was running out of options and teetering on the brink of desperation.

Without hesitation, he burned his Fate Demon's supernatural bloodline, preparing for one final gamble.

The Fate Demon was a high-ranking demon capable of developing unique abilities. Thanks to this bloodline and his Playwright extraordinary sequence, Fritz had access to a special power called Wager of Fate.

This ability allowed him to lock onto two targets using the Fate Script, after which both parties would wager their lives.

Since Playwrights were not skilled in direct combat, Wager of Fate had become Earl Fritz's most reliable ability, helping him turn the tide in several desperate situations.

[Fate Script: Wager of Fate]

[Main Characters: Earl Fritz, Earl Rosen]

[Wager: The life of both parties]

[Wager Method: Both…]

Initially, Fritz had planned to write that both he and Rosen would suffer equal damage and see who would die first. However, his Fate Perception warned him that such a method might lead to his own defeat.

[Wager Method: Both parties will suffer equal spiritual damage and see who dies first.]

Fritz added the word "spiritual" to the wager. Even if Rosen had methods to heal physical injuries, there was no way he could instantly recover from spiritual damage. Only demigods possessed the means to heal spiritual wounds.

However, dealing spiritual damage to himself was a high-risk strategy, one that would "kill a thousand enemies but cost him eight hundred in return."

Nevertheless, Fritz was confident in his victory since the spiritual strength of a Sequence 6 should far exceed that of a Sequence 7.

Once the Wager of Fate was finalized, Earl Fritz didn't hesitate—he committed suicide on the spot, severing his own head and deactivating the Fire Element Barrier, allowing himself to burn to death.

As he died, Fritz began his rebirth within his Divine Domain.

At the same time, although physically unharmed, Rosen suddenly felt his spiritual vitality plummet, dropping to the level of a Sequence 8. He had no idea what had happened, but he noticed that Flame Demon No. 2 had suddenly gone berserk.

Under what circumstances would a Flame Demon suddenly lose control?

The most likely explanation was that Earl Fritz had died.

He had likely chosen to die and respawn within his Divine Domain to escape the effects of the Rose Virus. However, such a move was usually unwise.

While it was true that Divine Domain Lords could be reborn in their domains, each resurrection drained their spiritual vitality. During this process, the Divine Domain would become anchored in place, unable to move, forcing the lord to rely solely on their Divine Domain for protection.

At this moment, Rosen realized that he could enter the Astral Realm via his own Divine Domain and launch an assault on Earl Fritz's domain.

Fritz had already lost many of his elite forces, leaving his Divine Domain weakened.

In a Domain War under these conditions, Fritz would have to be insane to risk such a gamble.

Sensing his spiritual vitality drop further, Rosen understood that Fritz had somehow inflicted the same spiritual damage onto him.

Without hesitation, Rosen entered the Secret Study, and as soon as he did, the force draining his spirit ceased.

Simultaneously, he sent out his Self-Portrait Clone, preparing for a Domain War with Earl Fritz.

Rosen had only read about Domain Wars in books and had never experienced one himself.

A Divine Domain Lord existed in the real world while their Divine Domain simultaneously existed within both their Sea of Consciousness and the Astral Realm, with the Sea of Consciousness being primary and the Astral Realm secondary.

Wherever the Divine Domain Lord moved in the real world, their Divine Domain followed.

However, when a lord entered their Divine Domain, it would leave the Sea of Consciousness and fully exist in the Astral Realm. Even a Divine Domain Lord couldn't physically enter their own Sea of Consciousness—it was akin to the paradox of a god creating something they themselves couldn't lift.

Now, since Earl Fritz was in the process of resurrecting, his Divine Domain had left his Sea of Consciousness and anchored itself in the Astral Realm.

With this in mind, Rosen directed his Self-Portrait Clone to enter his own Divine Domain and observe the Astral Realm beyond.

Sure enough, not far away, he saw a patch of white fog—the spatial barrier surrounding Fritz's Divine Domain. Breaching this barrier would allow Rosen to enter Fritz's domain.

Rosen immediately anchored his Divine Domain to his Self-Portrait Clone. As the clone stepped forward, the Divine Domain moved with it, perfectly synchronized.

After advancing a few hundred meters, Rosen's Divine Domain was within striking distance of Fritz's.

The Brilliant Lighthouse at the edge of Rosen's domain charged up and fired a continuous beam of light toward Fritz's Divine Domain.

The white fog-like spatial barrier trembled under the assault, soon pierced by the Brilliant Beam.

As Rosen pushed forward, the two domains collided, joining at their edges.

Compared to Rosen's domain, Fritz's was underdeveloped. Although Fritz had more citizens, his Divine Domain only contained three structures: a castle, a wizard tower atop it, and a barracks producing unknown military units.

Under the relentless barrage from the Brilliant Beam, the wizard in Fritz's tower retaliated with Chain Lightning.

While the domains exchanged attacks, Rosen slipped into Fritz's domain using Shadow Sneak.

Had Fritz been alive, Rosen would have been immediately detected upon entering his domain.

However, Rosen crept all the way to the elemental barrier surrounding Fritz's castle without encountering any resistance from Fritz's citizens.

With Holy Fire in his hand, Rosen touched the elemental barrier, beginning to dissolve it.

Once the barrier was breached, Rosen slipped through, heading directly for Fritz's castle.

His objective was clear: kill Fritz while he was still in the process of reviving. Ending the Domain War early would prevent a costly, drawn-out battle.

Rosen had no desire to "kill a thousand enemies and lose eight hundred" in the process.

(End of Chapter)