Chapter 57 Trial By Combat 2

At the Coliseum, the auction highrise stage was replaced with a stone platform for combat, and the two combatants faced each other. Ragnar, who had taken on the role of referee, stood between them: Daniel and Kyros.

"Since this is a trial by combat between a mage and a mundane man," Ragnar began, addressing Daniel.

"You cannot rely on the Hightower law to safeguard your soul and avoid enslavement in the event of your loss, despite your abilities as both a mage and an artificer. Do you accept the risk of losing your soul and becoming enslaved?"

"I accept," Daniel declared with a firm nod before walking to the other side of the stage to prepare himself for the combat.

Ragnar turned his attention to Kyros, who was still standing nearby. "And as for you," he said, his gaze piercing and full of disdain.

"As an Enforcer from the Hightower, you have made it difficult for a person who just became a mage who inadvertently infringed on the mage ID. You have made a mountain out of a molehill, despite the fact that he was willing to pay the fine," Ragnar admonished Kyros.

"Don't assume that you will always have things your way," he added, before walking away and taking up a position at the side of the stage.

After stepping back to a safe distance, Ragnar scanned both sides of the stage to ensure they were ready.

"Kyros Alchemont requested this trial by combat to prosecute the Magitek for violating the Mage ID card, overstaying in Tessia Kingdom, the realm of His Majesty Victor Justius, and for destroying all of the king's underworld businesses within Sector Alpha City," Ragnar announced.

Many guests who had lingered after the auction and the witnesses let out a chuckle. Victor's face darkened; it was considered shameful for any mage who couldn't protect their own businesses and had to involve enforcers from the Hightower.

"The outcome of this fight will only result in death," Ragnar continued, his tone grave. "If Kyros Alchemont dies, all of Daniel's crimes against the Hightower and King Victor will be resolved. If Magitek dies, his soul will be enslaved by the Alchemont clan as per the Hightower Law, which permits such actions against mundane men."

After a brief moment of silence, Ragnar scanned both sides again, then slowly raised his hand. "Let the battle..."

"Commence!" Ragnar shouted, slashing his hand down to signal the start of the battle to the death.

Kyros darted forward with a confident smile, eager to strike down the artificer before him. But Daniel was not defenseless. With a flourish, he opened his suit and unleashed a swarm of metal scarabs from his "Universal Pocket."

The sudden appearance of the tiny machines startled Kyros, causing him to panic and retreat to reevaluate his strategy. He turned to Ragnar with indignation, accusing Daniel of using an illegal artifact construct in the fight.

"Lord Stenmark! He's using the artifact construct to fight for him! Is this even allowed!?" Kyros protested.

Ragnar tilted his head in confusion, as if he had just been told the sky was green. "What are you talking about? He's an artificer. What did you expect? If you're not willing, why don't you create your own artifact construct to fight for you?" Ragnar smirked, his words dripping with sarcasm.

Hargrim joined in, adding fuel to the fire. "Yeah! If you're not willing, create your own damn artifact construct and let it fight for you, you dumbass!" He shouted from the sidelines, further enraging Kyros.

The swarm of tiny machines revolved like a tornado as they headed straight for Kyros. Each scarab had hidden tiny blades within all of its legs, which were typically used for cutting and working on artifacts. However, in times of need, they could transform into tools of murder.

As the swarm got closer and closer, Kyros activated his insignia that was hidden under his shirt and began his magic sequence.

A tempest blew around Kyros, shielding him from the huge swarm of tiny machines and their tiny blades. The swarm retreated but still grouped together like one big tornado surrounding the tempest shield.

Noticing that the swarm might not be able to penetrate the tempest shield, Daniel's mind delved into his mindscape, searching for the card that could make a difference in this situation. There was one card that could help him end this fight immediately.

Card Name: Piercing Through

Picture: A knight on horseback charging forward with his spear glowing with holy light, piercing through the chest of three zombies.

Rarity: Common

Type: Quick Spell

Mana Cost: 1 Non-Element, 1 Wood

Description: Target creature gets +2/+2 and gains Penetration until end of turn.

Flavor Text: "Not so tough now, are you?" - Knight Captain Gerald.

Daniel reached into his "Universal Pocket" and pulled out a red metal scarab that he had specially modified. He quickly used the "Piercing Through" card on it before recalling his swarm back to his side.

Upon seeing the swarm return to Daniel's side, Kyros letting out a sigh of relief inside his mind while still maintaining his confident smile, knowing he could only maintain his shield for half an hour at most. If Daniel had not recalled his swarm, Kyros would not have known how to counter.

[Fool! As expected of an Artificer, he doesn't even realize that in a mage battle, wits and patience are also factors that decide the winner!] Kyros thought to himself, unable to suppress a smirk.

Suddenly, Daniel released the red metal scarab, which shot like a bolt of lightning towards Kyros' tempest shield. It penetrated the shield from front to back without a sound or a spark. The only indication of the scarab's existence was the slowly receding tempest shield and a palm-sized, red-hot hole on Kyros' upper torso.

"Hisss" Everyone took a breath of cold air after they saw what happened to Kyros.

Every Hightower Enforcer needs to be at least Master Rank Mage and the Master Rank Mage of the Hightower are different from the average Master Rank mage, their suit, cloth, and even the mage themselves were imbued with protection spells. Their suit could even withstand a high-caliber bullet from a sniper rifle! Let alone Kyros's tempest shield that could rip normal metal apart!

And that red scarab just penetrated both the shield and Kyros's body in one go without creating a fuss! How strong was that artifact construct!?

"I-Impossible... This can't be happening..." Kyros desperately tried to use his magic to preserve his life, but he realized that the magic Insignia on his chest tattoo was no longer there. He attempted to manually cast the spell, but it required more time than he had.

"You think I'm stupid enough to let you heal yourself while I stand around?" Daniel sneered sarcastically, waving his hand forward to signal his swarm to tear Kyros apart.

The swarm of tiny machines immediately received their master's signal and formed a single group, resembling a steel tornado as it revolved towards Kyros.

As death slowly approached, Kyros frantically tried to cast the spell, but his lack of practice made it clear that he wouldn't succeed.

"Lord Stenmark! I surrender! I give up!" Kyros shouted, but with half of his lung gone, he couldn't take a deep breath and felt like he was losing consciousness due to the disappearance of his heart.

Ragnar had heard Kyros' plea, but he pretended that the sound of the metal scarab tornado had drowned it out. He looked towards Daniel to see what he would do next - spare or kill - but there was no clear answer.

Daniel noticed Ragnar's gaze, but he didn't pay it any mind. He immediately commanded the swarm to tear Kyros apart. The swarm moved towards Kyros, picking him up and burying him within the metal storm. Countless miniature blades from the metal scarabs sliced through Kyros' skin and flesh, grinding his bones.

A deafening scream of agony resounded within the coliseum as the swarm pulverized Kyros piece by piece. The agonizing screams persisted for about twenty seconds before finally subsiding.

The only remaining trace of Kyros' existence was a large pool of blood and red biomass, as everything else had been turned into liquid and powder.

After Kyros had been eliminated, the metal scarab swarm and the red scarab returned to Daniel's "Universal Pocket," signaling the end of the trial by combat.

Observing this, Ragnar made his way toward the center of the stage and announced.

"Witnesses! With the death of Kyros Alchemont, the trial by combat has come to an end. Therefore, in accordance with the old law, I declare that The Magitek is absolved of all charges!" Ragnar's words were met with cheers and applause from the mages who supported Daniel or had bet on him.

Meanwhile, those who had wagered against him wore expressions of disbelief, as they had assumed Daniel would surely have perished. Some even had a look of existential crisis, questioning the meaning of life after losing their bets.