「Well, that’s all the greetings for now. It’s time for you all to depart. 」

   Ardis declared that there’re no longer any room to talk.

「…………I-I see. It’s unfortunate that our talk was useless. 」

   The browless man acknowledged the failure in interaction after recovering from his shock. In the first place, Ardis haven’t had any intentions to talk with them, so his intention was useless.

   Taking a stance with his sword silently, the flying swords on his sides held back the other members around the room.

「However, we’ve no intentions to fight with you like this. 」

   As if together with the timing when the browless man said so, there was a change inside the room.

   It’s something invisible to the eye, it’s something most people wouldn’t even realize. But, only for a small portion, people who can sense mana will be unable to ignore it.

   Though, its influence is something that even someone who doesn’t have the ability to sense mana can see. The two flying swords that were at Ardis’s sides dropped on the ground as if the invisible persons holding them disappeared.

「Mana……, disappeared? 」

   The atmosphere that is normally filled with mana is now almost void of any.

「……No, they were forcefully ejected? 」

   Though the amount of mana in a human’s body differ from person to person, the mana that leaked out of Ardis were dispersed from the room in just a few moments.

   It is obviously an irregular phenomenon, something is definitely interfering with the natural mana flow.

「Oya, as expected. But what can you do even if you know? A sorcerer is just a plain human without mana. With a sorcerer like you as our opponent, of course we would have suitable plans. Although you might be able to wield a sword, won’t the people around here overpower you? 」

   The browless man who had regained his calm said so with an expression of looking at his prey. It’s a declaration that they had planned for this outcome from the beginning.

   In this situation, it’s still possible for Ardis to perform arts with the mana remaining in his body, but they will probably be dispersed before they reach the target.

   With how much mana Ardis possesses, it might be possible for him to forcefully push it through. But mana inside a person’s body is limited unlike the atmosphere.

   There’s no way for him to fight with his normal power. After all, the flying swords that were not at Ardis’s hands had their mana sources cut and could no longer serve a purpose.

「It’s too late to talk again even if you want to now. 」

   Seeing the flying swords on the ground, it seems like that was enough to give the browless man enough confidence. Having dropped his act from a moment ago, he is now speaking as if he has the rights to Ardis’s survival.

「You might’ve been able to get by ambushing with your sword magic till now but, now that you can’t use any magic, even you can’t possibly have any hands left. What a wrong choice to have turned on us. Our work was thoroughly disrupted by you, and also that matter with crushing our bases. I will make sure you have some lasting experiences before you die. 」

   As the browless man’s words finished, the surrounding members all took out weapons and came at Ardis at once.

「I don’t know if that’s a tool or your ability, but you have some interesting things. 」

   Holding 『Skies of Myriad Colors』 in his hands, Ardis prepared for the opponents.

「Well, not like it matters at all. 」

   Leaping in a straight line low to the ground, Ardis dodged an enemy that came from the front and laid him on the ground. Spinning around with the force to cut the others beside him, then, he severed an arm that came from behind.

   Kicking away the one screaming in pain, Ardis changed his position swiftly and aimed at another with his sword. Never stopping at one place, Ardis steadily decreased the number of enemies while causing injuries to the enemies and slowing them down.

「What are you all doing! He’s just a sorcerer without his magic! Pathetic! 」

   Though the browless man was yelling, it isn’t like he understood the 『Sorcerer without his magic』 is in fact a fully-fledged swordsman.

   Of course, the ones in this room aren’t the lackeys at the floor below. Ardis felt their strength as he approached them.

   But their opponent is just too bad. After all, their opponent is a monster that even an entire army didn’t dare to go against and could easily overwhelm any demonic beings.

   Even if they had many people, there’s only a few that can swing their weapon at a given time, even if his sword magic is sealed, Ardis still had much room to get by with just his swordsmanship.

   To take down Ardis in this state, they must’ve at least needed everyone here to be on a level like Ted from 『Bright Stars of White Night』 or Nicole who is the bodyguard of the merchant, Marrieda in Reiten.

   The attacks that the enemies dealt missed before they could reach Ardis. On the other hand, more blood is spilt whenever Ardis’s sword swung. Eventually, the window that connected to the outside world were covered in blood, losing its transparency.

「N-No way……」

   Because of that, the browless man had a green face again.

   By then, half of the browless man’s subordinates are already in a miserable state. The browless man must’ve realized his second failure, underestimating a sorcerer without his magic.

   Even while that happened, Ardis’s sword continued making blood splatter.

   Eventually, when only two persons are left in the room alive, Ardis walked on the ground that is filled with redness towards the sole survivor. Every step Ardis took, there was an unsettling sound of liquid splashing.

「Wha……. No, please wait……」

「Begging for your life? Here’s a line from you a while ago. ――It’s too late. 」

「Kuh……」

   Did he gave up seeing that Ardis would never spare a chance, the browless man’s face turned into a wry smile.

「Hnn, it’s up to here huh……. What a pity, the moment of my end. 」

   As he threw himself back to the chair, he relaxed his shoulders and sighed.

「Well, it’s fine. It’s a pity to not see your suffering face in the end. 」

「What do you mean? 」

   Ardis asked the meaning behind the browless man’s fruitless last words.

「It’s our job that we accepted, did you think we will back off just because of one failure? I bet that the lady is now already somewhere unknown and can never return. I won’t let you go when you’re ahead. 」

「……」

   Did his mood improve because Ardis didn’t say anything? The browless man turned around while licking his lips.

「Haha. What a wonderful feeling. What do they call this? Serves you ri――」

   But his words never ended.

   Ardis who had stopped listening cut off the browless man’s head. With the silent room now in a bloody stench, Ardis whispered to himself while the sound of a head fell on the ground was heard.

「Rona is beside her, so it should be fine but……. I should hurry back. 」

   Ardis had expected for another attack on Minerva. That’s why Ardis had left his most trusted partner, Rona back as a measure. Though Ardis didn’t think that Rona would be beaten by enemies at this level, there’s no reason to hesitate rushing back since his business is now over.

   At the same time, he wanted to find out what had dispersed the mana in the room just now. Since everyone in the room had already ceased breathing, Ardis guessed that the phenomenon is caused by a tool and not someone.

   Then there’s no other chances he can find it other than now. If he left now, there’s no guarantee no one will come before Ardis returned.

   A few moments when Ardis hesitated.

   It was not a long period.

   But, the situation suddenly changed to something as if laughing at Ardis, Ardis realized that something was attacking himself.

「What…… is this! 」

   Ardis experienced a strange sensation. It was as if something was sucked out from his body into somewhere, it was such a strange feeling.

「Pulling, me……」

   It was an unpleasant feeling as if something had reached somewhere deeper than inside his body. Ardis who couldn’t stand now had his knees on the ground.

   Though there’re many types of magic that can interfere one’s spirit, Ardis couldn’t recall any magic that exists that can cause such a sensation. As the surrounding scenery seemed to distort, Ardis heard something like metal ringing inside a pot.

「Don’t mess with me……! 」

   Is it the last ditch prank that the organization and the browless man left. Or is it an attack by a third party unrelated to them. Ardis didn’t have the time to verify that now.

   Only the feeling of his existence being thinned was felt. And while feeling somewhat of a nostalgic feeling around him, Ardis’s reigns on his consciousness released.