章 18: Garlicia part 3/3: Execution
Fire quietly crackled in a giant fireplace encircled by masterful murals depicting lush trees and life-like animals. The flickering, golden glow gracefully illuminated the expanse of a medium-sized chamber, casting enchanting shadows. RicExquisite tapestries, adorned with opulent green and gold threads, draped elegantly across the walls, and animal pelts were layered over polished stone tiles of the floor, giving it a cozy and warm look.
Tia's nerves were getting worse and worse as she counted in her mind each minute until she would finally leave the world, trying to guess when was the right moment to strike. Still, outside, her cold, stone-like face didn't change—her legs crossed as she sat in a large armchair facing the fireplace.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, miss... What is your esteemed name?" The man, no youth, sitting in the neighboring chair, smiled at her.
She hated the man just on a glance—his mustache, blonde hair, and, at last, his smug face made her want to punch him and crush his nose, 'A slimy snake.'
"You can call me Tiariel." She gracefully twirled the richly red wine in her glass before taking a brief whiff as if verifying its quality, 'I can't smell any poison or anything unusual, but that doesn't mean it isn't poisoned.'
She only had to hold one more hour, and she would be back in the safety of her bed.
'I will kill this spoiled brat.'
Not knowing her thought, the brat kept devouring her with his eyes, roaming all over her, "I will say it only once, work for me. No, marry me! I am mesmerized by your beauty and talent, and your perfect eyes stole my heart!"
The glass of wine shattered, the red liquid spilling out, mixing with her blood as she crushed it with her own hand, cutting her palm in the process.
'It looks like you want to die sooner.'
On the pulse of her thoughts, the shards hurled through the air, akin to a relentless barrage of bullets, each one set on a course aimed directly at the trembling, panic-stricken young scion.
"Wha..."
At the last moment, a light flashed, and the ring on the boy's finger lit up with energy as a yellowy barrier of light materialized around him. The incoming shards collided with the barrier, disintegrating into a mesmerizing firework of shimmering sparks, dispersing harmlessly into the air.
<Basic Telekinesis V (41%)> --> 42%
'Shit, this brat is full of surprises.'
She leaped on her feet, her eyes already flaring with vortexes of energy swirling inside them.
"Guards! Guards!" The wet path formed on the brat's trousers as he paled in terror of narrowly avoiding a certain death.
'A pathetic worm not even worthy of his rank. I can see he didn't have to even lift his finger to get what he had, all obtained from the hard work of his ancestors.'
With a resounding crash, the doors were violently torn from their hinges, and an imposing force of over ten soldiers surged into the chamber. Each soldier donned a gleaming, meticulously polished plate armor, which caught the dancing flames of the fireplace and mirrored their light.
Their swords all pointed at her, no one daring to step closer and endanger the hostage.
Tia didn't wait for even a second, her hand drawing the large plasma pistol while the terrified boy rushed to the exit.
The blue lights lit up, one by one, alongside the pistol's barrel while electricity crackled around it.
The guards rushed all in, quickly moving to surround the running noble.
However, Tia's mind was faster as her hand shot forward and grasped the boy with invisible tendrils of force.
She threateningly closed her palm, and the spoiled brat's feet lifted from the ground as he levitated like in suspended gravity, ripples passing through the translucent barrier protecting him.
"Release the young master!"
"No, he was too arrogant."
She carefully aligned the holographic sight with the boy's head, her finger moving to press the trigger.
"Who dares to disturb the peace of my residence?!" Windows rattled in their frames, and the chandelier swayed with all the knights shaking as a voice thundered across the entire castle.
'At last, the true lord has arrived. I need to hurry.'
Tia briefly glanced at her energy reserves, and a smile crept onto her face, 'Only less than an hour remaining, and if I splurge now, I can probably vanish almost instantly.'
"Bye!" She pressed the trigger, and the brightest blue light she ever saw lit up in its barrel, half of the entire charge bar of the gun vanishing in a single go.
The bang reverberated through the room while a melon-sized blue orb of energy shot out and hurled across the room.
Before she could even blink, the shockwave of heat washed over her as the bolt hit the glowing barrier of light. The furs and tapestries along the way incinerated in the fiery inferno, the stone floor melted, and the boy's body shot and smashed against the wall.
"Help!"
A web of cracks spread through the barrier, the heat passing through and burning his skin. His painful shouts sent shivers down her entire body. Even she couldn't believe the immense firepower of her gun.
"For His Lordship!"
"Kill her!"
"Protect the young master!"
The knights threw themself against her, the clanging of the metal boots quickly approaching with more and more voices and shouts coming from the castle's corridor. The giant blades of their two-handed swords fell toward her, glowing with sparks of energy.
Tia put as much energy as she wanted, splurging it without any limit as she waved her hand to welcome them.
With a bang, all launched backward, the metal plates of their armor bending, caving, and creaking. With thunderous metallic bangs, they smashed into the walls, floor, and even the ceiling, blood flowing out of the gaps between the protective plates.
<Basic Telekinesis V (42%)> --> 47%
"Who dares to fight in my castle?!!!" A searingly powerful aura was quickly approaching, its strength palpable even through the countless walls between her and its source.
She aimed her gun once more at the already burned boy crawling to the safety across the floor like a worm, his cracked barrier already falling apart in motes of light.
"Die."
Once more, a brilliant light flashed, accompanied by a searing wave of intense heat that engulfed the room, causing the windows behind her to shatter under the force of the shockwave.
The berserk vortex of swirling blue plasma that surged with incredible power smashed into the boy before continuing and piercing through the wall behind him, creating a massive hole in the thick stone structure, revealing the startled maids and guards outside, their faces contorted with panic and disbelief.
Ding!
//
The quest was cleared!
Rewards: 2 x WP; Permanent link to the world: Garlicia
//
"Ahhh!" The rageful cry shook with the stone walls once more, the aura getting closer and closer with each passing second.
'Time to get out.' Tia closed her eyes and pulled all her remaining energy into every inch of her body. She let it go, and a shocking explosion of fire and raw kinetic force exploded out. The walls cracked, the pillars shattered, and surviving knights vanished in the vortex of spinning flames.
<Basic Telekinesis V (47%)> --> 52%
<Basic Pyrokinesis I (0%)> --> 15%
In a panic, her eyes shot wide open as a middle-aged man smashes straight through the wall, heading towards her like a human rocket, his entire body in expensive robes crackling with lightning like a human Tesla coil.
Beep!
<<<<<<<>>>>>>>
<Anouncement> Fixing the spacetime anomaly
<100%>
<<<<<<<>>>>>>>
Her vision turned black.
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