Playing cards scattered through the air like a storm, swirling around Valentine in tight circles. Each card began to glow before expanding and forming multiple copies of the Masked Man, each holding an identical water blade, surrounding Valentine from all directions.
Valentine did not seem bothered. On the contrary, he was extremely calm. The first phantom lunged at him from the right, the blade thrusting toward his neck, but Valentine raised his arm and stopped the strike with the palm of his hand without moving an inch.
The next phantom attacked from behind, its sword swinging toward his side. He turned lightly, deflecting the blow with his elbow, then kicked the phantom and it vanished like smoke. Every phantom that attacked was blocked by Valentine with a single motion. He moved as if his body had trained for this battle thousands of times.
"Really? Is that all you have?" he muttered as he deflected another strike with the edge of his forearm, then twisted away to avoid a blade aimed at his chest.
At that moment, the real Masked Man charged from one side, striking hard toward Valentine's left flank. At the same time, the masked girl dashed from the opposite side, her curved dagger aimed at his other side.
A double strike, almost perfectly timed. But with a single movement, Valentine pivoted on his heel, dropped his body low, then leapt sideways into the air. Both strikes passed above him and collided into the wall behind. He landed lightly on his feet.
The Masked Man sighed in frustration, glanced briefly at the battlefield, then placed his hand on the masked girl's shoulder. In the blink of an eye, they vanished and reappeared beside me and the red-haired girl. He turned toward the red-haired girl and said,
"I will keep him busy for a while. Take this chance and run."
She shook her head firmly.
"I refuse. I will not leave you alone."
He gave her a short, emotionless look, then said,
"Staying here will change nothing except make things harder for me."
He then turned to the masked girl and said,
"Get her out of here."
But the masked girl did not move. She shook her head, then gestured with her eyes toward where Valentine stood. Silence fell. The Masked Man slowly turned his head toward Valentine, exhaling quietly. He seemed about to say something but did not. Valentine launched a sudden attack. The Masked Man blocked it quickly, raising his water blade in his right hand and parrying with steady force. He spoke in a mocking tone through gritted teeth,
"You always choose the perfect moment to interrupt, do you not?"
He shoved Valentine back, then unleashed a violent wave of water that slammed into Valentine and knocked him far away. He reached into his coat and pulled out another set of playing cards, tossing them into the air. The cards rose, spinning, then fused together to form a wide barrier.
How many of these cards does he have in his pocket?
As if reading my thoughts, he said without looking at me,
"I am someone who likes to be prepared."
The edge of the water blade vanished, leaving only a dark handle. The Masked Man turned toward me and tossed the handle in my direction, which I barely managed to catch.
"You will need this later," he said, making a casual gesture with his hand. Then he grasped the silver pendant hanging from his neck, pressed it between his fingers, and murmured,
"I wish this one to be taken from this place to the nearest safe point, with the least possible risk."
The surroundings around me began to shift. The walls rippled, and the world began to fade away. I looked at him. He stood there with no sword, his expression unreadable behind the mask, but he said,
"By the way, if you make it out, try not to get near the Bureau's agents. They are not very friendly toward absorbers. Oh, and run fast if you can."
He waved at me as if bidding farewell to an old friend and added,
"Good luck, miserable one."
Valentine tried to intervene. I saw him rush forward, breaking through the barrier, but everything had already vanished.
***
The Masked Man stood face-to-face with Valentine Crow. The Masked Man smirked and said mockingly while waving his hand,
"Looks like your plan did not go the way you hoped. Do not worry, it happens to the best of us."
Valentine's expression shifted for a moment. A flash of irritation crossed his eyes, but his features quickly returned to their false calm. He replied with barely restrained anger,
"What a noble sacrifice. Now tell me, are you ready to die?"
"Who said I will die?"
"So will you run? You cannot use the same trick you used to get your companions out. It does not work twice."
"Why are you so confident?" the Masked Man replied in a relaxed tone, hands clasped behind his back.
Valentine answered,
"I have precise knowledge of how system pieces work. I know their limits, when they function and when they fail."
"Mmm… seems you forgot a small detail. I did not absorb any authority."
"Trying to deceive me? It is impossible for an ordinary human to handle this many pieces."
"Believe it or not, I do not care much."
"I will believe you, masked clown. But tell me, if you have no authority and could have left from the start, why did you stay?"
"I saw all possible outcomes and chose the best one."
"The best outcome being that you die here?"
The Masked Man shook his index finger in the air like correcting a child's misunderstanding.
"It seems you have it backward. If anyone is dying today, it will be you, not me."
"You talk too much."
Valentine rushed toward him, but the Masked Man did not move. He stood completely still, arms folded behind his back, eyes behind the mask fixed on Valentine. Just as Valentine was about to strike, his body froze entirely. He tried to raise his arm, move his foot, even blink, but nothing worked.
The Masked Man approached with his hands in his coat pockets. When he stood directly before Valentine, he leaned slightly and whispered in his ear,
"Did I not tell you the one dying today is you, not me?"
"What did you do to me, you bastard?"
The Masked Man pointed to his wrist where he wore a dark leather glove, inscribed with slightly lighter-colored symbols.
"Calm down, it is quite simple."
The glove began to emit a faint glow, and in the next moment, a transparent chain appeared. It was wrapped around Valentine's body, surrounding him from all sides. The ends of the chains were connected to the scattered playing cards around the area.
"Authority of Law."
"Yes, Authority of Law. It took some time to prepare, but it worked as it should."
"But that is impossible. How can you handle using this many system pieces?"
The Masked Man raised his index finger to his lips.
"That is a secret."
He lowered his finger and added seriously,
"Now, before I make you pay for everything you have done, there is some information I need from you."
"Make me pay for my actions? What a twist. I did not think you were one of those heroes who talk about justice and punishment."
"I do not believe in justice nor claim it. But you hurt someone dear to me."
"Oh, so all this is for her? That little red-haired girl. Valeria, is it? Do you know who her father was? He was an inspector in the Bureau of Public Investigation. I killed him with these two hands. He screamed a lot before he died."
At that moment, the Masked Man's glowing glove emitted a faint sound, and the transparent chains around Valentine tightened.
"Well done, Valentine. You have just ensured that your death will not be quick."
The Masked Man raised his hand high and muttered,
"Rule one: you cannot lie to me in this place. From this moment on, every word from your mouth will be the truth, and nothing but the truth."
As he finished speaking, the chains around Valentine glowed with golden light.
"Now tell me, why are you doing all this?"
"All what? It would be nice if you were more specific with your questions."
"Your experiments, the tampering with bodies. You know exactly what I mean."
"Oh yes, the experiments. They are my attempt to comprehend the Authority of Madness more deeply. And to try to preserve what remains of my sanity, so to speak."
"Comprehending the Authority of Madness? Are you not supposed to act like a true madman? Slaughter, laugh, drown in blood?"
"Seems you know someone else who has the same authority, which explains a lot. But you are mistaken. The core of the Authority of Madness is the same, but the ways of comprehending it differ from one bearer to another."
"How did you get it?"
"From a bartender in a tavern. He sold me a system piece carrying the Authority of Madness."
"Do you expect me to believe that? Everyone knows system pieces are not sold by bartenders."
"And those words are coming from the boy carrying an absurd number of system pieces? Do not be naive. You know I cannot lie right now, do you not?"
"Unfortunately, yes."
"Now it is my turn to ask questions. How did you find this place?"
The glove on the Masked Man's hand glowed, and though Valentine tried to resist, he eventually said,
"I tracked those fools who transport children from the slavers to here. It was not a difficult task."
"A simple but effective method, I admit."
"Tell me, what do you know about the Seven?"
"Seems you know a lot, boy. More than someone your age should."
"I just have a very strong curiosity."
"I do not know much. No one does. Everything said about them is just rumors."
"Tell me what you know. Rumors are useful too."
"The Seven are a group of lunatics. They follow neither human logic nor law. But they possess enough authority to move cities or bury them. It is said they were formed around two thousand years ago. Their leader is said to have been present when the Medgar Empire was just a small kingdom at its beginning."
"A monster who lived for two thousand years? Are you serious?"
"Just rumors, as I told you. But with certain authorities, living thousands of years is not impossible. Now my turn to ask: how do you carry so many system pieces without collapsing?"
The Masked Man was about to answer, but before he could speak, the transparent chains around Valentine began to fade. Valentine regained his freedom, and as soon as he did, he smirked and said,
"Seems you do not want to share your secrets. I thought we were becoming friends?"
The Masked Man replied, taking a fighting stance,
"Some secrets are better left as secrets."
He prepared for any attack, but Valentine did not strike. Instead, he gave a short laugh, turned his back, and said,
"Not worth the risk."
He then withdrew from the area, but the Masked Man did not pursue him. He could not. His body staggered, and he collapsed beside the wall. He tried to support himself with his hand but could barely lift his head. The heavy use of the Wave Blade had weakened his bones and muscles more than expected, and transporting Valeria, the masked girl, and the little boy to safety had drained what little remained of his physical strength. Binding Valentine with the Chains of Law had been the final straw. He had reached his absolute limit. He thought as he struggled to breathe,
"If Valentine had decided to stay and fight, this would have been my end."
Throughout the confrontation, he had been pushing himself beyond his limits, hiding his weakness behind a mask of false strength. The truth was his body was slowly collapsing. Luckily, Valentine had withdrawn. If he had not? The Masked Man smiled faintly before leaning his back against the wall and letting his eyelids slowly close.