No one present understood Su Mo's final words. Even Erica and Tohsaka Rin didn't grasp the meaning behind those two titles. However, Su Mo offered no further explanation.
He had said what needed to be said; anything more would be too far beyond their current comprehension.
And so—
SCHLICK!
With a casual flick of his wrist, Su Mo plunged several golden swords directly into Doni's chest and abdomen, applying a secondary seal to the Authorities within him.
Then, he casually forged a set of blood-red chains, binding Doni's body tightly and completely silencing his magical energy. Even the body of a Godslayer would be absolutely incapable of breaking free under these conditions.
Only then did he turn back to face Erica.
"Take him to the underground prison."
"...Yes!"
After a moment's hesitation, Erica nodded immediately.
She had long been aware of Su Mo's plans and wasn't surprised. But the one being bound, the King of Swords Doni, was thoroughly confused.
Sensing a bad premonition, he shivered, then desperately craned his neck.
"Hey, hey, hey! My dearest friend, I think I just heard something about an 'underground prison.' You've got to be joking, right?"
He stared frantically into Su Mo's eyes, desperately hoping his fantasy would come true.
Unfortunately for him...
"My Lord, of course, is not joking with you!" Erica shook her head, then offered some well-intentioned advice. "Don't worry. As a valuable test subject, as long as you cooperate with Lord Su Mo's experiments, he won't harm you... probably."
Erica's intentions may have been good, but upon hearing her words, Doni's face instantly turned green.
"Test subject?"
Even he knew that "test subjects" didn't exactly have human rights. What's more, Erica's uncertain tone was absolutely terrifying.
What did she mean, "probably"? Could something involving his life be treated so casually?
"It was just a challenge, do you have to be so ruthless? I didn't even get to start fighting! We're both fellow Godslayers, this is going too far!"
Not even Marquis Voban or Cult Master Luo Hao were this cruel. At worst, they'd just beat him half to death.
Hearing Doni's accusation, a foxy smile appeared on Erica's face. She pointed to the massive chasm that cut through the earth and sea not far from them and casually made an excuse.
"You came to my Lord's territory of your own volition and caused such destruction to his turf. How could we not administer some punishment?"
At first glance, this reason seemed quite persuasive. An instigator, no matter what kind of counterattack they suffered, shouldn't have any grounds for complaint.
However...
"If I remember correctly, isn't Italy the territory under my command?" Doni said, his gaze somber. The expression on his face could be translated as, "Do you really think I'm an idiot?"
"Ah, well!"
Only then did Erica remember that this guy was, in fact, the nominal co-ruler of the Southern European magic associations. So from another perspective, this conflict wasn't the King of Swords challenging the new king, but the new king seizing the King of Swords' territory.
Viewed that way, it seemed they were the ones in the wrong.
Seeing Erica flustered, Su Mo, standing nearby, leisurely added a supplement.
"Regardless of how you put it, the victor has the right to dispose of his spoils of war, does he not?"
"..."
With that, Doni fell silent. He identified more with the logic of a warrior than the logic of a king. To him, Su Mo's words were irrefutable.
A few minutes later, the other members of the Copper Black Cross finally arrived late to the battlefield.
Staring at their own leader, the King of Swords, bound hand and foot and completely powerless, and then at the new king, calmly watching the waves nearby, all the magi were stunned.
In such a short time, before they could even evacuate the civilians, the battle was already over?
And the loser was the senior King of Swords?
Looking at the traces on the battlefield, apart from that one sword scar, there were no signs of a clash. It was highly likely there hadn't even been a prolonged struggle.
What was going on? Was the new king really this powerful? Not even Marquis Voban could have achieved such a swift victory against the King of Swords!
Overwhelmed with shock and terror, they wavered for a few seconds before ultimately choosing to obey Erica's command. They dragged their former leader, the King of Swords, to the previously cleared-out underground prison as if he were a pig being led to slaughter.
In any case, the King of Swords had never shown them much kindness or loyalty. Being replaced by a new king made little difference to them. It just meant switching their allegiance. With Erica acting as a bridge, they didn't need to worry too much.
As a precaution, Erica accompanied the transport, escorting Test Subject No. 1, the King of Swords, to the underground prison.
Su Mo, however, did not go with them. As per their prior agreement, after dealing with this little bit of trouble, he needed to make a trip to the Nasuverse.
Tohsaka Rin: "Lord Su Mo, I'm ready!"
Tohsaka Rin: "Are you coming over now?"
Su Mo: "Yes."
After a brief exchange, Tohsaka Rin gritted her teeth and spent the majority of the points she had saved up to send Su Mo an invitation.
Soon, Su Mo responded to the invitation. The group stream's screen quickly switched to the Nasuverse.