Seeing Vicente's Magic Gem, Thirty-Three became even more curious about him, as his talent seemed ordinary for the level of power he had displayed earlier.

'How strange... There's something wrong with this boy.' She thought before she stopped looking at the Magic Gem on his forehead and took a closer look at the young man's features. 'I will remember you. Cesar probably isn't your name, but it will be hard for you to fool me now that I know what you really look like.'

She turned her back to him and tossed him a small card. "You can put your mask back on. When you leave Scott Province to get to know the rest of the kingdom or even the continent, use it if you're desperate enough to change sides.

My companions and I will have no problem accepting you into our group.

Anyway, if fate brings us together again, I'd like to fight against you. Right now, you're still weak, but I believe that with your abilities, this won't always be the case."

"I thank you, Miss. It would be an honor to receive instructions from someone of your caliber." Vicente said as the darkness in his surroundings diminished. He saw the woman walk away after leaving a spatial ring with him.

Sensing that she was no longer there, Torne said to Vicente. 'She is gone, master. You can rest easy. It seems she just wanted to meet you.'

'But why?'

'We can't be sure. But it's almost certain she felt something for you, especially your second magical form. As for what she wants, it can range from positive contact with a person who can help her in the future to a more malicious interest. This is not uncommon among Dark Path magicians.' Torne said.

'As much as I fight against the discrimination against Dark Path magicians, it is a fact that there are some terrible individuals on our path. Nothing can assure me that this woman isn't one of them.

In any case, you're right to want to become stronger. Gaining control over your second magical form should be your priority.'

Vicente took a deeper breath when he heard this. 'I will do my best. In the meantime, I hope she's not one of those difficult enemies.'

While thinking this, Vicente suddenly felt his short-range communicator call out.

"Boss, boss, we're under attack!" A soldier's voice, with various sounds of gunfire in the background, came on just after Vicente had put some of his mana into the small device.

"Shit!" He had already imagined that something like this might happen. He quickly picked up Sarah's wounded body, letting it float next to him as he made his way to his estate.

Being quite tired, he drank a restorative potion, leaving Layla behind.

...

At the same time as Vicente's departure, the situation at the Symons estate was not much better than the one he had just resolved before leaving for the Mazzanti estate.

During the early part of the Viscount's fight against his first opponents, Shelby, Molly, and some of her hired assassins arrived at the Symons estate.

They launched an immediate attack as soon as they realized the Viscount was occupied and only Acolytes were in the area to protect the relevant family members!

As the outer defenses of the estate fell and more than half a dozen people made their way into the building, Layla arrived to join the chaos.

Her job was simple, and she did it to perfection in the initial moments of the confrontation inside the Symons mansion.

Shelby wanted to kill Marcus, but she also wanted to wipe out the Symons family so there would be no one left in that house the next day to seek justice or revenge.

How could she do that with the many guards, level 5 Acolytes, and even level 7 and 8 Generals on that estate? Their group was good, but so was the Symons' group.

If they fought without outside participation, the result would be very even, and both sides could lose a lot in the confrontation.

Layla was there to be the balancing piece in this problem!

As soon as she got there, after separating from Vicente, she did what she had promised him and used her great speed to attack the House Symons men defending the place.

Her attacks were too fast for these "ordinary" people to keep up with. Once she entered the fray, it took only a minute for Shelby's assassins to do their work, eliminating more than half of the enemy.

Because of this, while several people were fighting around the compound, spreading screams of terror throughout the building, Shelby managed to find room to move toward Marcus!

Reaching the safest part of the estate, where Marcus and the Viscount's wife were, Shelby and Molly, both level 4 Acolytes, came face to face with the two level 5 Acolytes.

"Shelby? What are you doing here?" Marcus' mother asked in disbelief, knowing why her house was being attacked.

How could her future daughter-in-law be there?

But Marcus figured it all out, finally connecting the dots and seeing that his fiance wanted to kill him and was an enemy.

"Shelby, what the hell are you doing? Don't you know how important our union is to both of our families? Do you really want to go ahead with your plans because of some stupid ideals you have?" He asked as he stood in front of his mother, furious at this woman who had betrayed him and was trying to kill him.

"Wake up, you stupid woman! If you try to kill me, your Staples family of Millfall will be wiped out by the king in a matter of days! Everything you hold dear will disappear, and if you don't die, you'll have to live on the run for the rest of your lives!

Quickly, give this up and accept my seal of slavery. We'll get married and start a family. Then everyone wins!" He said as he gestured for her to come to him.

Hearing all this, Shelby clenched her fists in anger, the veins in her neck bulging. "Dream about it. It'll never happen, Marcus! Today, I will kill you... No, today I will destroy your filthy family! You should never have stood in my way, but since you did, prepare to die!"

"Die?" Marcus' mother finally understood. "Miss, do you think you can kill us? Just the two of you?"

Marcus couldn't feel threatened either, these women who were weaker than him and his mother. "I think you're overestimating yourself, Shelby. Think about it. If you don't give up now, I will have to act!"

At that moment, Shelby and Molly pulled two Mazzanti family guns out of their spatial rings and showed them why they had the guts to take on two people stronger than them.

"Oh, shit!" Marcus shouted, realizing the relationship between Cesar Mazzanti and these two too late.

"Goodbye, Marcus."

Bang!