Ester's reaction was quite fast. He ducked forward abruptly, and the wind blade grazed his scalp, taking a few strands of graying hair with it.
Facing the golden spike piercing straight at him, his right hand swiped at his waist, and a pale golden light shield popped up. It was an instant-cast defensive spell stored in his waist pendant.
The golden spike collided with the light shield, emitting a screeching metallic grind. It veered off course, grazing his earlobe before gouging a deep, arm-thick hole in the lobby wall.
In the brief window of dodging both attacks, his left hand had already gathered mana again. A whip of fire lashed out from his palm, its tip exploding in midair into a chain of fireballs that rained down relentlessly on Wu Yao.
Wu Yao's brow furrowed in sheer distress. These defensive items, instant-cast spells, and mana-storing waist pendants were supposed to be her loot!
Every single one he used was one less treasure in her Inventory.
She had to load her save. She had to save her treasures.
This time, she didn't give Ester any chance to show off. A highly compressed Blazing Ray shot from her fingertip, piercing Ester's chest with absolute precision.
But the system did not pop up a kill notification for Ester.
【Killed Official Mage Pete. Experience +158】
Another corpse lay on the floor—the blue-robed mage Ester had casually pointed out at the very beginning.
A charred hole was burned through his chest, his eyes still wide open, a strange look of peace on his face, as if he had long known this moment would come.
Ester, meanwhile, knelt on the ground. His face was as pale as paper, and a trickle of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth, but he was still alive.
Wu Yao raised an eyebrow.
Ester clutched his chest, gasping for breath.
He looked up, the cracks finally showing on his once calm and composed face.
Still on his knees, he crawled forward a couple of steps and held out his hands toward Wu Yao, palms up in a completely defenseless gesture.
“Your Excellency—” His voice was hoarse and urgent, devoid of his previous composure and etiquette. “I surrender! I am the Master of the Tower of Stars. I have thirty years of treasures accumulated in my vault—high-level magical artifacts, rare potions, complete sets of elemental affinity training equipment, and even a set of barrier array diagrams handed down from the Silver Moon Era! I can give them all to you, if you will only spare my life!”
Wu Yao fell into thought for a moment.
Ester caught it.
He was all too familiar with this look.
In his countless dealings with nobles, merchants, and other mages, he had seen this look far too many times.
Once someone started calculating what benefits you could bring them, their stance was no longer one of pure hostility.
As long as you offered a lucrative enough price, they would choose a transaction over slaughter.
And transactions were his home turf.
He quickly adjusted his kneeling posture, keeping his vine-bound body in a humble yet somewhat dignified pose, forcing a look of sincerity onto his pale face.
“Your Excellency, I have run the Tower of Stars on the Plains of Truth for a full fifteen years. In these fifteen years, every move the Mage Association made on the Plains of Truth had to go through me. I can deliver all of this intelligence to you in advance.”
“And it's not just intelligence. The underground vault of the Tower of Stars holds a collection of confiscated forbidden books. Inside those forbidden books are barrier array manuscripts, potion recipes, and more. All of these will be yours. I can personally escort you to the vault and use my authority as Tower Master to unlock every single restriction for you.”
His tongue kept moving, his words growing smoother and more detailed by the second, as if he were no longer bound to the floor begging for his life, but rather pitching a meticulously designed business proposal to a major client.
“There is also the Sage Council! One of the topics for this month's Sage Council is a joint cleanup operation targeting the Path of the Silver Moon. I can send you a copy of the meeting minutes in advance. I can even—if Your Excellency requires it—spread misleading information at the meeting to redirect their attention in whatever direction you wish.”
Meanwhile, behind this uninterrupted speech, thoughts entirely contrary to his words were quietly churning in his mind.
As expected, she's just an ignorant sorceress.
Ester sneered inwardly. He knew what those sorceresses were like—young, powerful, and self-righteous, running rampant solely on their innate elemental affinity, yet completely clueless about the rules of the world.
They thought sheer power decided victory or defeat, never realizing that the true outcome was decided long before the pieces even touched the board.
As long as he walked out of this door alive, as long as he returned to the Tower of Stars, he had plenty of ways to make this arrogant sorceress pay.
Every Tower of Stars had dedicated hunting protocols specifically for High-Tier sorceresses. He could summon at least three Sages to cooperatively activate a forbidden-spell-level suppression array.
When that time came, this sorceress who currently stepped on his chest would kneel at his feet, paying for today's arrogance with interest in every drop of her blood.
“Your Excellency, I no longer have any loyalty to the Mage Association. They sent me to this remote place and forced me to hunt down a renegade mage, nothing more than because they felt I was an eyesore to certain people in the Holy City. I will no longer risk my life for them. I am willing to serve you, to make up for my past offenses, if you will only spare my life and give me a chance...”
Just as Ester believed his performance had moved her, Wu Yao flicked her finger. A golden blade shot out soundlessly, slicing through his throat.
Ester's smile froze on his face.
Even in death, he probably never understood why this sorceress refused to play by the rules.
【Killed Archmage Ester. Experience +1264】
【Obtained special token: Credentials of the Master of the Tower of Stars on the Plains of Truth x1】
【Credentials of the Master of the Tower of Stars on the Plains of Truth (Unbound): An exclusive token representing the authority of the Tower Master. The holder can freely enter and exit all areas of the Tower of Stars. Takes effect after binding with a drop of blood.】
Wu Yao looked at the item description with satisfaction, the corner of her mouth curling slightly as she casually tossed the credentials into her Inventory.
She had originally thought that if killing him didn't drop the token, she would spare his life to use him as a key.
But this game's drop logic really understood players.
Seeing that begging for mercy was useless, the other mages used their own means to break free from the vines and began to put up a tough front.
The Great Sage's grandson was the first to strike. Controlling two magic-sealing stones, he hurled them both toward Wu Yao.
The magic-sealing stones collided and exploded in midair, releasing a ripple of pale golden shockwaves. As it swept toward Wu Yao, it was blocked by a water shield she had raised in advance, causing no damage.
The other two red-robed mages moved at the same time.
The red-robed mage on the left was a grim-faced, middle-aged man. Grasping his staff tightly with both hands, he chanted a rapid incantation, causing a flame spear to condense above his head, its tip pointing straight at Wu Yao.
Rate on N.U.
