"Of course! Where are you staying? I'll come to meet you in person and apologize for canceling on you so suddenly," Silva replied.
"It's fine, you don't need to worry about that. As for the hotel, I'm staying at Solar da Glória Hotel. You can visit me there," Envy said with a cold smile.
"Thank you! I'll come by and bring you a gift as well," Silva said.
"Oh, I can't wait! What's the gift? Can you tell me?" Envy asked, faking curiosity and friendliness.
"That's a secret! See you soon!" Silva replied, before hanging up.
At this moment, Envy watched on the screen as Silva instructed her subordinates to investigate the hotel Envy had just mentioned. After receiving confirmation from them, Silva paused briefly before giving another order.
"Bring more firepower. Lock down the hotel and the surrounding area. You can use the unicorn horn from the vault as the core for the bound field. No matter the cost, we must kill her here," Silva commanded.
As Envy observed this display of ruthlessness from someone she once considered a friend, she slowly closed her eyes. The last remnants of hope she had for Silva faded away. With a deep sense of disappointment and any remaining hesitation gone, Envy reopened her eyes. But this time, they held only a cold, ruthless gleam.
"Such a pity... I was actually enjoying her company," Envy muttered, her voice tinged with mild regret. From this moment on, she no longer saw Silva Encantada as a friend, but as a threat that needed to be removed.
— Evening - Solar da Glória Hotel —
In downtown, the area surrounding the Solar da Glória Hotel was bustling with life. People had just gotten off work and were enjoying the evening—heading home, grabbing dinner, or diving into the start of their nightlife.
Unbeknownst to them, a group approached the hotel. These individuals, either armed or mages from various nearby families, had been summoned by the head of the Encantada family. They surrounded the area but didn't enter the hotel, blending in with the crowd as people went about their routines.
Silva Encantada stepped out of a car parked in front of the hotel and made her way toward the VIP lounge on the rooftop. The Solar da Glória Hotel, owned by a mage family with many mage shareholders, naturally offered exclusive services for their kind. The VIP lounge was one such area, reserved strictly for mages.
Silva, accompanied by her entourage, exited the elevator and headed straight for the lounge. The doors opened, revealing Envy in a purple dress, perfectly matching her high-society status, as she casually stirred her martini.
"Envy! Ha~i! Long time no see!" Silva greeted warmly, embracing Envy. The two hugged, laughing and chatting like close friends who hadn't seen each other in ages.
Meanwhile, outside the hotel, the once-crowded streets began to empty. Fewer and fewer people could be seen in the vicinity of the hotel. Slowly, people from within the hotel started leaving as well. From a bird's-eye view, it would be clear that both cars and pedestrians had started avoiding the area within a one-kilometer radius of the hotel, with the hotel at its epicenter.
"What are you talking about, Ms. Envy? We're mages. We are practical and logical beings. The only reason I approached you was that you were the most powerful witch in the world! Your influence would benefit the Encantada family, which was still weak back then.
That's why I spared no effort in becoming your friend and ensuring the world knew about our connection.
It was a wise decision, too. Almost no mage dared to cross the Encantada family, fearing your influence. But as you know, no alliance lasts forever. Pity..." Silva smirked before swiftly drawing a dagger and stabbing it into Envy's neck.
Blood spurted, and the dagger lodged into Envy's neck bone, stuck hard and stopping in its tracks. But Silva didn't care—Envy was already dead.
Leaving the dagger embedded in Envy's neck, Silva stood up and turned toward her waiting entourage.
"Take Envy's corpse to my Sanctum Sanctorum. The soul of the world's most powerful witch is priceless. We need to bind her soul to serve the Encantada family," Silva ordered.
But suddenly, her subordinates' faces paled as they pointed behind her, terror in their eyes.
Noticing this, Silva quickly turned—and to her horror, Envy had stood up, staring at her as if she were already dead. Without hesitation, Silva retreated and cast a fireball, aiming it directly at Envy.
Boom!
The fireball exploded, engulfing Envy's body in flames. Her clothes, skin, and muscle were consumed by the intense heat.
Seeing this, Silva smiled. The poison she had laced in Envy's drink was specifically designed to weaken powerful mages, preventing them from gathering mana. The ingredients were extremely rare, and using it against Envy, the world's strongest witch, had seemed a perfect plan.
But... contrary to her expectations, a black, feminine-shaped endoskeleton emerged from the fire, menacingly glaring at the room.
Without warning, it sprinted toward Silva, delivering a punch that knocked her unconscious in a single blow before striding toward the nearest target. Silva's bodyguard pulled out a gun and fired rapidly at the SD-I Series Adamantine endoskeleton.
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The killing machine's fist plunged through the bodyguard's chest, destroying his heart and killing him instantly. The mages in the lounge began casting spells, trying to stop the machine, but it charged at them. It struck one of their shields with a powerful punch, and a hidden compartment in its arm opened, releasing a barrage of shrapnel.
Though the shield didn't crack under the shrapnel, it flickered as the mages felt the mana in the lounge drain to a dangerously low level—so much that they could no longer cast any magic.