The moment Filia and Frey remembered how people had always been mean to Vastor, their consciences went quiet and their anger flared. After that, they said no more and jumped on the ride.
Manohar’s Madness was the Mogar equivalent of a roller coaster, made fast and secure by air magic. The same spells that moved the carts also generated air cushions all around the ride so that even if someone fell off despite the safety harness, they wouldn’t get hurt.
On the top of the first climb, Frey was scared so he grabbed Vastor’s hand and albeit trivial, the gesture filled the Master with joy.
‘I know that I’m not worthy of being a father, but I swear upon the gods that I will.’
“Did you like it?” Vastor asked after the ride while casting a cantrip to settle the still wobbling stomachs of the kids.
“Yes.” Filia said, hugging him for both bringing them there and being so thoughtful that he always helped them before they could ask for it. “But I’m also quite annoyed.”
“Why?” Vastor asked in confusion for both her words and gesture.
“Because there are rides themed after a lot of mages yet there is none about you.” Filia pouted and Frey nodded in agreement. “You are an Archmage and a hero of the War of the Griffons. These people are a bunch of ingrates.”
The Master just laughed and caressed their heads, their recognition was the only one that mattered to him now.
At the end of the evening, after the kids had tried all rides at least twice and had eaten more sweets than it was healthy, it was time for the fireworks.
Ustar had magicos specialized in controlling air and fire magic that would conjure balls of fire and lightning. The low yet flashy tiers of magic would spread through the sky, taking the form of mystical creatures and legendary warriors.
Unlike regular fireworks, those cast by mages wouldn’t disappear quickly and could be moved around akin to living beings. The magicos exploited their powers to narrate short stories and epic fights, adding more spells for special effects when needed.
It wasn’t as accurate or detailed as Lith’s movies but having the whole night sky as the screen and the moon and stars as background still made it amazing for the kids. For the rest of the guests, instead, it was the closest thing to a movie theatre they would see their whole lives.
It was at that moment, when all eyes were looking up, that three figures approached the happy Vastor family. Between the crowd, the noise, and the blinding magical flashes from the fireworks, not even the Master’s senses perceived anything until it was too late.
The body odor of the mass of people around him clogged his nose while the mana from the complex network of arrays fueling the attractions blinded his mystical senses.
The undead had followed them via human thralls the whole night, making sure that Tezka the Suneater really wasn’t looking after the kids anymore. After more than one undead had come close to Filia and Frey and lived to tell the tale, they had enacted the final step of their plan.
The Warping Array lasted only for a split second and was timed so that it went off at the same time as two spells exploded to mimic the clash between Sylpha’s and Thrud’s blades during the Battle for the White Griffon.
When the flash faded, the Master and the kids were gone. While the Queen’s Corps cursed Vastor for ignoring their warning and going to such a security nightmare, the rest of the visitors were glad to have a bit more personal space.
The assassins of the Courts had planned the ambush even more carefully than the infiltration in the Verhen Mansion. Their previous attempt had been aimed at an isolated place whereas Ustar swarmed with guards.
Fighting there would have no chance of success since reinforcements would have arrived quickly and Vastor could have simply disappeared through the crowd with a Blink.
The undead knew that he was the only Highmaster of his generation and that someone like him would have no qualms about using civilians as meat shields. The children, instead, had proven to be time and time again the weak spot of an otherwise formidable opponent.
The assassins of the Undead Courts had brought them to an isolated area in the middle of nowhere exactly for that reason. With no allies and no place to hide the two kids, he would be forced to take his opponents head-on without tricks or cunning strategies.
The Undead Courts hated Vastor’s guts for the same reasons Filia and Frey loved him. He had humiliated Night and destroyed the undead army that had come one step away from conquering Vesta.
He had single-handedly killed dozens of elders of the Night Court during the assault on Lith’s home. Everyone who had faced him during the War of the Griffons was dead and his presence alone had cost them incalculable losses.
Killing him was a wet dream of the Courts, making up for all of their past defeats and even outshining the Horseman of Night herself. Vastor had received one of Orpal’s Past cards but the Undead King had never dared facing the old Professor again.
Now, however, he was caught in the middle of an ambush, surrounded by powerful enemies and arrays without his precious Highmaster armor and no time to prepare a spell.
As far as the Undead Courts knew, Vastor was a human fake mage so he was supposed to need both hand signs and words to chant even a tier one spell.
Four undead attacked in a square formation.
One charging at the Master from the front, another from the back, and two aiming at the children from the sides. The only difference between the attacks was that those aimed at Vastor were intended to kill whereas the children needed to be taken alive.
Yet Vastor had no way to know it and had to defend from all of the undead at the same time without dodging. Filia and Frey were clutching at his hands in fear and despite his best efforts, Vastor failed to get free of them.
The undead counted on it and exploited the situation by consuming part of the life force stored in their blood cores to enhance their mass, bringing it on part with an Emperor Beast.
Vastor activated the Spirit Barrier of his Dominator armor but teamwork plus the darkness and fire elements unleashed by the undead in the second line shattered it with ease.
He then tried to Spirit Blink but the undead had lain a space-compressing array that he failed to compensate for before it was too late. Blades hit him from the front while maces struck him from behind, making him spit out a mouthful of blood from his collapsed lungs.
The Blood Warlock in front of him charged himself with Blood Maelstrom, further boosting his physical prowess before throwing the Master away like he weighed less than a doll.
For all his power, Vastor was still a human with a mass that was nothing compared to an elder undead clad in dozens of kilos of Adamant.
