He went straight to the center of the lobby where all the people died and closed his eyes. He concentrated and gathered his mana. A wave of mana suddenly swept the entire place and he did not stop sending his mana off. The mana looked like it was pulsating and then he saw it, a red thread.
Astrophos did not waste time and covered the red thread with his own mana and slowly pulled it towards him. The red thread started to disappear but the mage was able to identify its mana signature and once the mage who used the mana appeared again, he would know who it was. After that, he was also able to feel some traces of not mana but energy that was not that of a human.
This signature must have been from Fhin. He opened his eyes and he gave the room one last look before he turned around and went back to where the others were. Hero Arcaine was anticipating good news and he was not disappointed.
Since they were all mages, Astrophos was able to share to them the mana signature of the mage that used fire to burn the manor. Now that they have gotten a clue, Hero Arcaine made a vow to catch the culprit and bring more prestige to his name. The four of them then went on separate directions to find the owner of the mana signature.
This news reached the king and he was glad that the mages from Ginehart were competent. He grinned because now he won't be worried that much. Once those nobles come and demand for him to take action, he would have something to say to them.
Just as he predicted, several nobles requested to meet him. They were ushered to one of the meeting rooms inside the palace. They were whispering with each other as they waited for the king to arrive and when he came, silence swept through the room.
They waited for the king to sit down before they had the courage to ask him anything. The king patiently listened to their complaints and worries without giving an input because they did not give him the chance to do so. During their whole tirade, the king remained silent to the point that he was about to fall asleep.
When they noticed that the king was not speaking, their chatter slowly died down. They looked at the direction of the king and waited for him to speak. King Orpheus raised his brows when they suddenly stopped speaking.
"I thought all of you will continue until the end of the day. I even thought that I must have been a decoration in this place." He remarked when they were all looking at him.
The nobles felt ashamed after the king's words. They did not mean to chatter all over and ignore the king, they were just overcome with the indignation they felt after they heard the news. Some of them bowed their heads and refrained from talking.
"There's no need to worry because I've already deployed people to look after the matter. They've already found a clue so all we need to do is be patient and wait for the result. In the meantime, all of you should fortify and strengthen your defenses." The king informed them and also reminded them of what they should do.
"How many days should we endure before they can catch those people? If this continues, we nobles will leave the capital until the matter is settled," one of the aristocrats asked.
"That's up to you. The movements of those bandits are not within my control so I am not sure when. I'm doing my best so you should stop complaining to me and start taking care of yourselves. You are not the only one I am thinking about because as the king, I am also thinking about the other citizens of this kingdom." It was both a reminder and a warning that if they continue with this kind of attitude the king would ignore them.
The room fell silent after the king's words and when he noticed that no one was going to speak he finally stood up and left the room. The nobles did not object when the king left the room. After that, they left and returned to their own homes.
Astrophos and his companions scoured the whole city to look for the mage but the sun started to set and yet they haven't found any traces of them. They decided to wait for the night to come because they might strike again. They regrouped and waited for the bandits.
Just as midnight struck, Astrophos felt the mana signature pulsating. He stood up and nodded at his companions. He led the way as they ran around the city as they followed the mana signature until they arrived at a manor once again. The fire just started and the bandits were still there to watch it grow before they left.
"You won't get away this time," Hero Arcaine muttered in excitement when he saw that the bandits were still there. He released his weapon and was ready to attack without waiting for his comrades to even speak.
The hero launched himself towards the bandits with his weapon. He was mid-air when he activated his holy magic and embedded it on his sword. He swung down the broad sword on his hand which caught the bandits and the mage with them off-guard because Arcaine used stealth. They managed to dodge but when the sword touched the ground golden chains materialized and flew out to capture the bandits.
The bandits were caught by the chains as it coiled around their body to restrict their movements. Even the mage was caught on it too. Arcaine grinned because he finally captured them easily. He started to laugh and spoke smugly.
The three mages who came with him stood on the side with different expressions on their faces. Lieutenant Leif looked at the man beside him, "What are we going to do now?" he asked.
"Let him be," Astrophos sighed. "We already did our part. I'm sure that the young master will be satisfied with this. For now, let's stay on standby just in case a fight will break out."
Both Leif and Nina nodded their heads in agreement. Their instruction was to help the Hero Association gain prestige so they wouldn't interfere and would only come in when the situation becomes dire. They watched as the man happily walked around his prisoners whom he had pulled to one corner.
Astrophos knew that Fhin would not go down without a fight so they need to wait for a bit. Hero Arcaine turned around and walked to where the three mages were. "Thank you for your help. Once the soldiers are here, you can go home and rest for the night."
The three of them nodded and the hero once again walked towards his captives. He was grinning because he felt elated at the additional achievement he did. Before he could fully relish on his victory, he heard a loud crack.
In front of his eyes, the holy chains that were binding the bandits broke and were rendered useless. He did not think twice though in releasing another set of chains but before these things could touch the bandits, they were already at different locations. This time, they did not run and collectively attacked the hero.
The mage used her magic to try and burn the hero. She scattered threads of red mana around the whole place which will trigger an explosion once the hero touches them. This effect will also happen to the bandits if they touch the threads.
This did not matter to them though because they were wearing clothes that could protect them from that. With their weapons, they attacked the hero with stabs and swinging their swords. There were some of them without weapons and were using their fists.
Arcaine wasn't fazed though and even with more of them coming towards him, he readied himself and held his sword tightly. The moment they were at a distance that his sword could reach, he swung it in a circular motion which effectively wounded and pushed back the bandits. The attack triggered the threads to explode.
Bodies flew away from the explosion and landed on the ground. This opportunity was taken advantage of by Fhin who continued to attack the hero. He was using his fists and feet to attack the hero which was becoming effective because Arcaine couldn't swing his sword.
Fhin did not stop attacking as he pushed back the hero, triggering more threads along the way. His clothes that were protecting him were starting to wear out and his skin started to turn red. Even the hero's body wasn't that much better. Blisters started to form in their skins after being subjected to high heat for so long.
Arcaine gritted his teeth and endured so when he couldn't take it any longer, he used his strength to forcefully push back Fhin. The counter attack worked as Fhin lost his balance at the sudden action from his opponent. Arcaine took this chance to reposition his sword and swung it again towards the man who was about to fall down on the ground.
