23:55 PM.
The Grand Ballroom was a sea of champagne and fake laughter.
On the main stage, High Councilor Vorn was giving a droning speech about "Unity and Prosperity," raising a golden goblet to the ceiling.
"Let this Winter Solstice mark a new era of peace between the Guilds!" Vorn bellowed.
The guests clapped politely. Seraphina stood near the front, her hand clutching the [Silent Night] pendant so tightly her knuckles were white.
"Five minutes," she whispered to Kael, who stood like a statue beside her.
Kael didn't look at the stage. He was scanning the room with [Mana Sense].
The colors of the guests were shifting.
The boredom (Grey) and lust (Pink) were fading.
In the corners of the room, among the waiters and the security detail provided by the Council, Kael saw sparks of Dark Red.
They are getting ready, Kael thought.
He tapped his ear, activating the communication link with Alfred (who was waiting in the car outside).
"Alfred, engine running. We might need a quick exit."
"Way ahead of you, sir. I have the perimeter sensors active. I am detecting a massive mana spike beneath the hotel foundation."
"Understood."
23:58 PM.
The lights in the ballroom dimmed slightly. The giant clock projected holographically behind the stage began its final countdown.
10... 9... 8...
Seraphina stopped breathing. This was the moment. According to the journal, this was when the "shell" was supposed to break.
3... 2... 1...
DONG.
Midnight struck.
For 99% of the people in the room, nothing happened. They cheered, clinked glasses, and hugged.
But for Kael and Seraphina, the world screamed.
WHOOOOOM.
A massive, invisible frequency of high-pitch mana blasted through the room. It was a command signal, designed to resonate with the Draconic Essence inside Seraphina and force it to detonate.
It hit Seraphina.
ZZZZZPT.
The [Silent Night] pendant on her chest flared with blinding violet light. It vibrated violently, sucking the entire signal into its vortex.
Seraphina gasped, stumbling back a step. Kael caught her arm.
"Hold it," Kael ordered.
The pendant grew hot, then cooled down instantly.
Seraphina blinked. She looked down at her hands. They weren't turning into claws. She checked her reflection in a window. No scales. No dragon eyes.
"I'm... I'm okay," she whispered, a smile breaking across her face. "It worked. Kael, it worked!"
But Kael wasn't smiling. He was looking at the waiters.
The men in the black vests had frozen. They were touching their earpieces, confusion written all over their faces.
"Target not responding."
"Signal confirmed but no transformation."
"The Vessel is stable. Repeat, the Vessel is stable."
Kael saw a man on the balcony—a high-ranking noble—tap his glass with a spoon. It was a sharp, dissonant sound.
The noble looked directly at Seraphina, his eyes glowing with that familiar Abyssal Red.
He moved his hand across his throat.
Plan B.
"Get down!" Kael roared.
CRASH.
The massive skylight above the ballroom shattered.
Dozens of figures rappelled down on black ropes. They weren't human. They were Chimeras—twisted fusions of men and monsters, grotesque and heavily armed.
At the same time, the "waiters" ripped off their uniforms, revealing tactical armor underneath. They pulled out mana-rifles and opened fire.
Not at the crowd.
At Seraphina.
"PROTECT THE EMPRESS!" a loyal guard screamed before being vaporized by a red energy beam.
Chaos erupted. The elite of society screamed and trampled each other trying to get to the exits.
"Kael!" Seraphina summoned an ice wall instinctively, blocking a hail of bullets. "They are attacking openly?! In front of the Council?!"
"They're desperate!" Kael shouted over the noise. "Their nuke didn't go off, so now they have to kill you the old-fashioned way!"
A Chimera landed on the table in front of them, crushing the champagne fountain. It had the head of a wolf and the arms of a gorilla. It roared, swinging a massive club at Seraphina.
Kael stepped in front of her.
He didn't draw his weapon. He stepped forward with his left foot and thrust his right palm forward.
[Skill: Void Palm]
Whomp.
His hand touched the Chimera's chest.
There was no sound of impact. The Chimera's chest simply caved in, its ribs and organs imploding into a singular point of gravity. The monster was blasted backward across the room, dead before it hit the floor.
"Move!" Kael grabbed Seraphina's hand.
They sprinted toward the side exit, weaving through the panicked crowd.
"Ignis!" Seraphina spotted the Guild Master of the Burning Spear. "Help us!"
Ignis was standing in the middle of the floor, surrounded by his own guards. He looked at the attackers, then at Seraphina.
He sneered.
"Looks like your enemies finally caught up to you, Seraphina! Good luck!"
Ignis turned his back, using his fire magic to blast a path for himself to escape, leaving Seraphina exposed.
"That bastard," Kael hissed.
Three assassins blocked their path. They were fast—speed-type hunters using daggers coated in green poison.
"Die, monster vessel!" the leader screamed, lunging for Seraphina's throat.
Seraphina raised her hand to cast a blizzard, but Kael was faster.
[Abyssal Frost Suit: Active]
[Shadow Step]
Kael vanished into the shadow of a fallen table.
He reappeared in the air behind the three assassins.
[Weapon Deploy: Venomous Shadow-Weave]
The chain lashed out like a viper. It wrapped around the necks of two assassins. Kael yanked them back, slamming their heads together with a sickening crunch.
The third assassin spun around, slashing at Kael.
Kael caught the blade with his gauntleted hand. The nanotech suit hardened, turning the blade aside.
"You call that a knife?" Kael whispered.
He touched the assassin's face.
[Recycle.]
"AAAAHH!"
The assassin screamed as his mana was drained instantly, leaving him paralyzed. Kael kicked him aside.
"We need to get to the car!" Kael shouted.
"We can't!" Seraphina pointed at the main doors.
A massive barrier had been erected over the exits. It was a [Void Lock]—a barrier that prevented teleportation and physical exit.
A slow clapping echoed through the screams.
From the hole in the ceiling, a figure slowly floated down.
He wore a mask made of white bone. His robes were embroidered with the Abyssal Eye. And the mana radiating from him was suffocating.
[Boss Alert]
[Target: High Priest Malek]
[Rank: S (Necromancer)]
Malek landed on the stage, crushing the Head Councilor beneath his boot.
"A pity," Malek's voice boomed, magically amplified. "We wanted a beautiful birth. A dragon rising from the ice. But if the shell refuses to crack..."
He raised a staff made of human spines.
The dead bodies of the guards and guests on the floor began to twitch.
"...then we will crack it with a hammer."
Hundreds of zombies began to rise in the ballroom.
Seraphina backed up until her back hit Kael's chest.
"Kael," she said, her voice trembling slightly. "That's an S-Rank Necromancer. And we are trapped."
Kael looked at the army of dead rising around them. He looked at the S-Rank boss floating on the stage.
He checked his System Points. [1,650 SP].
He checked his Inventory. [Necrotic Golem Core].
Kael smiled. It was a terrifying, feral smile.
"Hey, Seraphina."
"What?!"
"Remember when I said I was good at recycling trash?"
He deployed his Chain-Blade, spinning it slowly.
"This isn't a trap for us," Kael said, his eyes glowing violet. "It's an all-you-can-eat buffet."