?"That… That's the container that houses a divine heritage!" Peniel exclaimed when she saw the glowing mechanical sphere.
"You… Impossible! Why can't I sense you?" Jack asked. Master might be outside the range of normal mana sense, but Jack's mana sense had a wider range due to his mana affinity talent. Yet, he didn't sense Master's presence.
"You… You can do mana concealment?" Jack came to a realization.
Master simply grinned at Jack's question. He was indeed using mana concealment, even if not as advanced as Jack who could do it when attacking.
"But… Aren't you still over there?!" Jack pointed at the battle on the wall.
Jack had asked Hollow Girl to make an illusion copy of himself to fool the enemies about his presence when his clones ran out of duration, but he had arrived at the cage faster than planned. His clones were still a few minutes away from their duration. Even now, one of his clones was still battling Master in the sky above the capital's wall.
Master's grin turned wider. "Do you seriously think you are the only one who learned the Magic Clone spell?"
"You… You have the magic clone?" Jack asked.
"I have had that spell for a long time already. I simply never used it. Same as my mana concealment. All is to ensure that my enemies aren't aware I have them. It has finally paid off."
"Magic clone has a duration. When did you…," Jack realized it then. It was when Master was sent crashing to the ground by his seemingly normal attack. Master must have created his clone when he hid among his zombie soldiers on the ground.
"You've planned this…?" Jack asked.
"Of course. Why do you think I put the hostages out in the open like this?" Master replied.
Upon hearing the answer, Jack understood then. When Master came out to propose a duel, that was not his true intention. His true purpose was to inform Jack where the hostages were.
"I… I can't move!" Red Death exclaimed. She had been trying to attack Master since Master showed himself, but the weak feeling caused by the glowing sphere was getting stronger by the second.
Not only she. Jack, Leavemealone, and Jeanny were in the same situation.
"What did you do to us?!" Jeanny asked Master.
"What should have happened during the convention," Master answered.
Peniel cast her group fast heal, hoping it could negate whatever status effect afflicting the four, but it didn't change anything. Peniel even tried using Invulnerability on Jack, but Jack still felt weak all over his body.
"It's useless," Master said to Peniel. "Nothing can oppose the effect of this divine container. Unless a God interferes, it will carry out its intended function."
"What function is that?" Jeanny asked.
While Jeanny was asking Master questions, Jack was leaning on the balcony's railing. He could hardly move, but his condition was better compared to the other three whose bodies were completely stiff. Perhaps this was due to his high stats. He was forcing his body to go over the railing. If he could distance himself from the divine container, he could probably free himself from its effect. Falling would be a good way to put a distance.
Unfortunately, Master saw through his attempt. Master cast Hell Whip. The energy whip coiled Jack's body and kept him from falling over.
"What did you do to that divine container? It shouldn't have this kind of effect," Peniel uttered.
"It's not," Master answered. "I used a combination of alchemy and blacksmith to craft it into its current state. I was required by this world system to use many legendary-grade materials so it could function the way I required it to. The most problematic material was, of course, the divine container. I needed to raid a divine faction whose God had been erased."
"The Council of Virtus…? That's the reason you attacked that council!" Jack made a realization.
"That's correct," Master confirmed. "Fear might have sent his cult to attack the Council of Virtus for the divine heritage, but my purpose was entirely different."
"Did you enter the Council of Charites looking for another divine container?" Jack asked.
"You are correct again. Unfortunately, the container was gone. Otherwise, I would have had two chances to use this. I don't have to go through the trouble of getting you all together like this."
"Why do you need us together? What does that thing do?!" Jeanny asked again.
"What do you think it does? What do you think I desire the most?" Master returned Jeanny's questions.
His question gave the four an uneasy thought. As their faces showed expressions of recognition, Master turned to the glowing sphere and said, "… Any seconds now."
The glow of the divine container abruptly intensified. The glow erupted until everything around was covered by a blinding light. Within that world of pure white, they felt something penetrated their bodies.
"Aaaahhh…!!!"
All four of them screamed out of intense pain. They felt someone or something clawing inside them. They felt their flesh and bones getting pulled out of their bodies. They felt as if their souls being ripped apart.
Their screams lasted for what felt like an eternity. Under the agony, they didn't care what happened to them. They just wanted the pain to stop.
All of a sudden, it did.
The light vanished. Jack was on his hands and knees, panting. He looked around. He found the others were all down on the floor. The pain was gone, but its lingering feeling was still there. The worst thing was, he felt empty.
'No…,' He thought. He knew what this feeling of emptiness meant. He looked up.
The scene he saw was what he dreaded. Floating above Master's hand were four items. Three spheres emitting three different elements and one book. Two of them were the things he had seen before, Lightning God Sphere and the Book of Creation. From the elements of the other two spheres, he could surmise that they were Fire God Sphere and Ice God Sphere.
The four items vanished as they entered Master's inventory.
"Mission accomplished," Master said.
"Grrhh…!" Jack forced himself to stand up. The weakness caused by the divine container had begun to wear off. He could slightly move again. His weapons appeared in his hands.
"Return them!!" Jack exclaimed.
Master snickered from the demand. Master took his gaze away from Jack and looked at the battle ahead. He seemed to be contemplating.
Jeanny and the others rose. They all equipped their weapons. They still felt weak but they were ready to battle Master.
"I might still be able to win this battle… but I don't see the need to take the risk," Master said. A dark oval thing the size of a man appeared behind him.
"Dark portal!" Peniel recognized the dark oval thing. It was the same spell possessed by Arlcard.
"I've already got what I want. This country is yours."
With those words, Master disappeared into the dark portal.
