Kapitel 288: Memory

Zelo exhales, clearly annoyed. "Ugh... everyone in your family is crazy," he mumbles, casting a magic shield just in time as Isabella launches a towering pillar of fire at him. "Don't disrespect my family," Isabella snaps back, her voice tinged with anger, her eyes blazing as she flicks her hand, sending a lightning arrow zipping towards him.

Zelo blocks the arrow effortlessly, his irritation growing. "Your family is fucking crazy, every single one of you is a monster when using magic. I've seen what your oldest sister can do... fuck, I'm pissed just thinking about it," he grumbles, recalling past encounters with a mixture of respect and disdain.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

-5 years ago

The scene is set in a dark, expansive underground plaza, a cavernous space carved beneath the city where illicit dealings and high-stakes gambling flourish. Neon lights flicker, casting eerie shadows across the faces of those desperate or daring enough to venture here. The air is thick with the scent of smoke and the murmur of hushed conversations, as figures clad in various garbs move stealthily among the stalls and back rooms.

Zelo, relaxed and oozing confidence, lounges on his signature plush couch. Dressed in casual yet high-quality clothing, his hair is slicked back, giving him an air of nonchalant authority. He looks up at the young lady standing before him, her presence commanding yet enigmatic.

The woman, with her dark purple hair flowing smoothly down her back, maintains an impassive expression. Her blue eyes, almost glowing in the dim light, fix on Zelo with an unsettling intensity, her soft pink lips parting slightly as she speaks. "This is a fair trade. If you wish to negotiate, you should bring more to the table," she states, her voice void of emotion yet resonating with an underlying threat.

Zelo laughs heartily, clapping his hands in amusement. "Hmhmhmhmhmhmhahahahaha," he roars, wiping tears from his eyes as his laughter subsides. "Okay, let me get this straight," he says, his tone shifting to one of mock incredulity. "You come to my place, unannounced, without paying the royalty fee everyone else pays, and you demand the flower lotus artifact everyone is trying to buy from me."

He gestures expansively with his hand, emphasizing his point. "And all you offer is a couple of platinum coins?" he queries, his eyebrow arching in disbelief.

The woman simply nods, her demeanor unchanged, her gaze steady and unnerving. "The platinum coins are a gift," she clarifies, her voice still calm but firm. "What I'm offering you is the right to stay alive another day," she states flatly, the implicit threat hanging in the air like a guillotine blade, ready to strike.

"Hmhmhmhahahahaha," Zelo covers his face with his hand, his laughter echoing through the underground plaza. Leaning back on his couch, he rests his head on his arm, looking up at the young woman with a smirk. "How scary. The daughter of Duchess Aurora, the child ahead of her time. You know, I heard you're the youngest graduate of the Academy," he taunts, his voice dripping with sarcasm as he observes her unchanging demeanor.

"It looks like I'm in quite a predicament, if I were to kill you, Aurora will come after me, right?" he taps his chin thoughtfully. "Hmm... I'm sure your accomplishments are overexaggerated, but I'd rather not fight a noble. So do me a favor and fuck off," he mumbles dismissively, waving her away.

She simply blinks and calmly lifts a finger. "I'm not here to fight you, I'm here for the artifact. The fact that I'm willing to show you mercy is already the greatest payment a wanted criminal like you can get," she states, her voice calm and collected.

Zelo exhales sharply, his amusement fading. "The artifact in question was found in an A-rank dungeon. Do you think some little noble girl who has never seen the world would scare me into giving it up?" he scoffs, laughter bubbling up again.

She blinks twice, then replies steadily, "How disappointing, I thought you would be a smart man." Standing up, she calmly points a finger at him. "As a noble person, as a citizen of the great empire, I, Elia, will now use my authority to prosecute and behead you," she declares, her voice firm yet eerily devoid of emotion.

Zelo smirks, rolling his eyes. "Oh brother," he mutters, lifting his arm dismissively. "Under what charges? I don't recall having a criminal record in the great empire that would allow you to behead me."

She reaches into her shirt and pulls out a binder filled with papers. "Illegally selling artifacts, magic weapons, drugs, strong herbs, mutated beasts," she begins, flipping the page with a flick of her wrist. "Murdering, stealing, protecting dangerous criminals, and working with felons. I can go on for hours," she mumbles, throwing the binder on the table, which flips open to display the evidence meticulously organized.

Zelo, flipping through the pages of the binder, feels a mix of admiration and irritation as his past deeds glare up at him, detailed and undeniable. 'This girl... where did she get this information? This is all I've done in the last month, I don't leave traces behind, so where did she get this information?' he wonders, his mind racing to find a loophole or an error.

"Hmhmhm, good job playing detective. However, you can't attack me here. You know how this place works. If you cause a scene here, those twisted fucks will kill you regardless of your backing," he says confidently, watching her closely.

She blinks, unaffected by his warning. "Indeed, it would be troublesome to deal with them, so let's go elsewhere," she states flatly. From her hands, a paper he hadn't noticed before appears, and she rips it before he can react. "Ugh... forced teleportation," he grumbles as his surroundings suddenly change, finding himself in a vineyard under a bright sky.

"You brought this upon yourself. This could have been easily avoidable if you cooperated," she tells him calmly as he surveys his new location, irritation bubbling under his facade of control.

"Honestly, you nobles are the worst, so full of yourselves. Goddammit, this is annoying," he mutters, reaching into his pocket and lighting a blunt. With a casual flick of her finger, she casts a spell. 'Burn,' she thinks, and a magic circle appears, dropping a sphere of flames that quickly dries out every plant in sight.

"Oh shit, I wish I had sunscreen," he smirks, puffing out smoke just as the sphere explodes with a resonant "Boom."

"Come on, kid, I've been fighting for years. What are you doing?" he exhales, his tone mixing derision with a challenge.

"How fascinating," she responds calmly, her intrigue barely coloring her monotonous voice. "I heard you had an interesting attribute... You are a threat I need to take care of," she adds, though her expression remains impassive.

"I don't plan to stay, see ya," he says nonchalantly, hitting his blunt before lifting his finger. The ground shakes, breaking apart, the wind goes wild, and the vineyard quickly becomes a scene of destruction, the heat intensifying rapidly. 'He's not controlling the earth but the wind,' she concludes calmly, looking up to see a huge figure made of earth surrounded by raging wind.

"Good luck with my pal, kid," he yawns, turning around to leave. But as he does, BOOM, he snaps back to see a gush of electricity rushing through the area. The giant figure is pierced with a massive spear made of purple crackling lightning.

Her blinking intensifies, the purple lightning reflecting off her stark blue eyes as she calmly pulls on her white glove. "I am not a 'kid', I'm trying to remain respectful, but you're making it difficult. I should deal with you before you run off," she murmurs, her voice low but clear, as she shapes her finger into a precise gesture.

Zelo looks around, puzzled by the sudden shift in the atmosphere. "Huh... what is this..." he mutters under his breath. Above and below, three immense magic circles materialize, instantly unleashing massive chains of lightning that form a cage around them, trapping them both inside. The chains pulsate continuously, their motion relentless.

At the center of their enclosure, a sphere forms—dark and pulsating with energy. "This is a basic spell my mother created. It's very useful at dealing with problematic people like you," she states calmly, hands clasped behind her back as she steps closer. "The great thing about this spell is its resistance to attributes."

As she advances, Zelo glares at their surroundings, his mind racing for a solution. 'What is this? Let me try it,' he thinks, lifting his finger to cast a magic circle. Instantaneously, the ground beneath them explodes, shattering into pieces. "F-fuck, what the fuck," he grunts, pain shooting through him as lightning strings latch onto him, sending bolts of electricity coursing through his body. 'The second I acted, the spell—no, the second I circulated my mana outward, it detected it and attached itself to me, disrupting my cast.'

As the dust settles, the ground remains destroyed, and the lightning chains continue to move, clearly visible now. "There's no point in such a move; we're completely boxed in. Mother would never leave any possible weak points in her spells," she declares, floating in the air at the exact same position as before the ground upheaval.

"Shit... I guess the rumors were true, your family is full of monsters, huh," he says, a smirk playing on his lips despite the circumstances.

"Monsters..." she pauses, her expression momentarily softening before hardening again. "No, we're blessed," she corrects him, her tone imbued with both pride and a trace of bitterness.

"I don't like killing, that statement earlier can still be retracted," she mumbles, standing a mere foot away from Zelo, her presence commanding despite her calm demeanor. She extends her hand authoritatively. "Hand it over," she states simply.

'Ugh... just my luck. I might be able to break out, but... it's not worth the effort,' Zelo thinks resignedly, his hand slowly reaching into his pouch. He pulls out the artifact with deliberate slowness. "Here's the deal, I'll give it to you, but you won't come after me," he proposes, attempting to negotiate some semblance of safety.

She takes the artifact, her grip firm. "Rest assured, you won't be causing any more problems," she responds coolly, her assurance leaving little room for argument.

He raises an eyebrow, wary. "What are you—" But before he can finish his sentence, she taps on the artifact, channeling mana into it before tossing it back at him. "What are you—" he starts again, only to be cut off as the artifact glows a light pink and melts into his skin, the process happening so quickly he barely has time to react.

"I see... that's how it works," she murmurs, rubbing her chin thoughtfully, her gaze intense as she observes the artifact's integration.

"What the hell did you do?" Zelo asks, confusion and fear mixing in his voice as he begins to realize the seriousness of his situation.

She snaps her fingers, and the magical cage around them disperses into thin air. "Try using any spell over rank 4," she instructs casually, jotting down notes in a small notebook she produces from her sleeve.

"Huh, what?" he says, lifting his finger to cast a spell. As soon as he tries to form a magic circle, he grips his neck, his other hand clenching into a fist as he struggles to breathe. "I—I can't breathe... What the hell did you do to me?" he gasps, his voice cold with rising panic as he grabs her by the collar.

"It's a sealing artifact. I wish to learn how they work," she explains nonchalantly, pushing him away with ease. Her eyes betray no emotion, her actions methodical and precise.

'This bitch really just used it on me? What the fuck is wrong with these nobles,' he thinks furiously, his mind racing as he tries to assess his dwindling options.

She then blinks, looking up thoughtfully. "My apologies, but you are a criminal, so it's alright. By the way, I heard you did some nasty stuff to elves, so I promised them I'd hand you over," she states matter-of-factly, her voice even as she activates another spell.

Before Zelo can react, he's enveloped in a swirl of magic, the world around him blurring as he's teleported away. He finds himself suddenly standing in the elvish capital, guards already waiting with weapons drawn, their faces stern and unyielding.