Several minutes had passed since the King had been escorted out of Buckingham Palace when the commander of the Guardian division arrived, armored in shining silver plate with a flowing crimson cloak. Six other Guardians followed closely behind him.
He first glanced at the palace, then at the fallen Guardian on the ground, and finally at the King. His voice rang out sharply:
"Remove all non-combatants from this place along with His Majesty immediately. This is for the protection of the Crown!"
The moment the order was given, the Guardians began pushing servants and civilians back. Several Knights stepped forward and declared:
"We want to help too!"
But the Guardian commander replied with cold authority:
"For now… you would only get in the way. Stand down!"
He turned back toward the palace, now engulfed in roaring flames.
One of the Knights clenched his fists, then turned to leave. The others exchanged glances and followed him.
As the Guardian commander stared at the burning palace, a flash of violet light suddenly caught the corner of his eye—hurtling straight toward them.
Before he could speak, three Guardians rushed forward and slammed their shields into the ground. Golden particles rose from the shields, expanding into a wide protective barrier.
But the instant the violet light struck the shields, a blast of purple and black smoke erupted. The golden particles shattered in the blink of an eye, and the three Guardians' defense collapsed completely.
The commander shouted:
"Get back!"
The three Guardians hesitated for a split second before retreating. A man in completely dark robes stepped into view. His black hat was embroidered with a glowing violet moon. Strands of black hair streaked with violet veins framed his face, and his violet eyes shimmered with fading light. A black-shafted spear with a silver blade etched in violet lines rested behind him, and an unlit lantern hung at his side. His expression remained completely emotionless.
The Guardian commander slowly lowered his head, then raised it again.
"I didn't expect such a formal greeting… Commander of the Night Explorers… Mr. Nathaniel Dorian!!"
Nathaniel adjusted his hat slightly and replied:
"You've never called me by my full name so formally before… Are you trying to pin some responsibility on me, Sir Cedric Moreau?"
Cedric slammed the tip of his sword into the ground.
"Enough… I just want to know why you are here. As you know, the protection of the palaces, the royal residences, and the King himself has belonged to the Guardians for years!!"
Nathaniel slowly turned his gaze toward the burning Buckingham Palace.
"It seems… you and your men… have been a little negligent this time!!"
Cedric was about to respond when the sound of slow clapping echoed through the air.
The Guardians instantly shifted into defensive stances. Even Cedric tightened his grip on his sword.
Nathaniel, however, didn't move a finger.
The clapping figure finally emerged from the thick smoke, stepping calmly onto the edge of the palace roof. He removed his hat, placed it over his heart, and gave a theatrical bow.
"Greetings… to all the honored guests!!"
Nathaniel glanced at Cedric.
"Do you know him?"
Cedric drew his sword a little higher.
"No. What makes you think that arrogant fool is anything like me?"
Nathaniel began walking back the way he had come.
"You're just as arrogant as he is!!"
Cedric opened his mouth to reply—when the ground beneath Nathaniel suddenly exploded.
Cedric smirked and turned toward the man on the roof.
"That was your doing… wasn't it?"
The man on the roof slowly lowered the card in his hand. The card cracked and crumbled into dust. He smiled and said:
"You may call me… The Magician!!"
Cedric was about to speak when The Magician suddenly leapt from the roof with astonishing speed.
The Magician glanced behind him mid-air, then looked at Nathaniel, who had extended his hand from the smoke of the explosion, as if trying to grasp something. The Magician landed swiftly on the ground and stared at him.
Meanwhile, Nathaniel said calmly:
"Why did you jump…?"
The Magician laughed.
"If I hadn't… my heart would be in your hand right now!!"
Cedric looked between Nathaniel and The Magician, then laughed and turned toward The Magician.
"You caused the explosion on the roof… So I think it's time we taught you some manners!!"
The Magician threw his head back and laughed loudly. He raised his right hand—five cards appearing between his fingers. As he calmed, four of the cards began spinning around him before vanishing into his sleeve. Only one remained in his hand.
With a charming smile, he whispered:
"Wholeness."
The card in his hand cracked and shattered.
Nathaniel reached toward The Magician again—but The Magician vanished from his position and reappeared behind Nathaniel in an instant. Before Nathaniel could react, The Magician grabbed Nathaniel's face and slammed his head into one of the Guardians' shields with brutal force. The impact was so fast that neither Cedric nor any of the Guardians could even flinch.
The Magician retreated with the same blinding speed. Cedric stared in shock at Nathaniel's unconscious body on the ground, then turned back to The Magician.
The Magician vanished again—reappearing behind Cedric. Cedric dodged to the side just in time. The Magician's hand struck a Guardian's shield instead, cracking it. He was about to speak when he suddenly found himself surrounded by three Guardians and Cedric.
Cedric raised his sword to strike—but when the blade came down, The Magician had already disappeared.
The Magician's voice came from above:
"You're all… a little slow!!"
But suddenly The Magician froze in mid-air, as if something had seized him. He was violently yanked toward Nathaniel.
Nathaniel—who had been lying unconscious only seconds earlier—rose slowly to his feet.
"That was… a good hit!!"
He smirked and charged forward. Leaping directly in front of The Magician, he drew his spear from behind his back in one fluid motion and struck. The Magician managed to twist at the last moment, so the spear only grazed his side.
Before he could speak, Nathaniel kicked him hard in the chest, sending him flying across the palace courtyard.
Nathaniel landed gracefully and glanced at Cedric.
"You're still weak…"
Cedric smiled.
"At least I didn't get knocked out by the first blow!!"
They were about to speak again when they saw The Magician slowly rising from the ground. Blood dripped from his body and clothes, and his head was stained red.
The Magician merely raised a single card between his fingers and whispered:
"Lady of Roots."
At once, thick roots burst from the ground beneath his feet. They twisted upward around him, wrapping his body layer by layer until they formed a massive bud of tangled roots.
Nathaniel lowered the butt of his spear against the ground and was about to speak when a sharp cracking sound echoed through the courtyard.
The roots surrounding The Magician suddenly shattered.
Fragments scattered across the scorched earth as The Magician stepped forward from the center of the broken shell.
The blood was gone.
The tears in his clothes had vanished.
Every wound on his body had disappeared.
He stood there exactly as he had before the battle had begun.
The Magician tilted his head toward the sky and began to laugh—louder and louder—until he was practically screaming:
"This is… my stage!! This is my performance!! You spectators… should not interfere!!"
Nathaniel and Cedric stepped back—when The Magician suddenly shouted again:
"This time… I'll show you a real show!!"
Two cards flew out of his sleeve. He caught one and declared:
"Symphony of Balance!!"
He hurled the card. It flew forward, cracked, and shattered. A luminous copy of Cedric's armor and sword formed and rushed toward The Magician.
The moment it reached him, the armor pieces locked into place and became solid. The Magician now possessed an exact replica of Cedric's armor and sword.
Cedric's eyes widened in shock. Nathaniel stepped back slightly.
The Magician pointed the copied sword at Cedric and drew another card.
"The Sovereign…"
This card shattered even faster than the others.
A brief silence fell.
Cedric decided to attack—when lightning suddenly erupted from the ground around him, surging outward. The bolts grew stronger and wider.
The Magician snapped his fingers. The lightning reversed, rushing back to its origin point. The ground trembled violently—then a massive explosion tore through the courtyard.
A blinding flash of white-violet light erupted, followed by a deafening roar that shook the air. The shockwave hurled debris and shattered stone in every direction. A towering pillar of fire and thick black-purple smoke billowed upward, swallowing the night sky. The heat was so intense that even the Guardians instinctively raised their shields to protect their faces.
When the flames and smoke finally parted, only scorched black earth remained where the courtyard garden had once been—no grass, no cobblestones, nothing but charred ruin.
The Magician calmly leveled his copied sword at them all and said in a mocking tone:
"Spectators who interfere with a magician's performance… must be removed!!"