Chapter 746: Entropy

Alexander took his stance, and Arthur could feel an aura around him. The stance should belong to an Art like the one Ilia Perli used, which Arthur inherited during the fight against Amelio.

The diamond sword glittered in the moonlight, its surface giving a soft blue hue that began to crawl over Alexander. Arthur then confirmed his suspicions about their abilities, as the blood chains that Erin Voldor used gave him the strength of a berserk fit for battle.

"And what is the reason that you are telling me all of this?" asked Arthur with confusion since he never asked this man questions but still received many answers. Alexander frowned before smirking.

"Isn't that the reason you started attacking us?" asked the Mansell Boss, lowering his stance. "Your grudge against my cousin and accusing Ilios in front of the whole world are enough to tell me of the reason you are here."

Arthur stared at the man with a blank face before he burst out laughing. The fact he made such a connection on his own and told him the information he didn't know proved he was inexperienced.

"And Erin Voldor is here, right?" grinned Arthur as he looked around but couldn't tell if someone was there. Finally, however, Oriole mentioned that someone Arthur knew was here. The possibility was high given the connection of the Mansell Gang to Erin Voldor, which Lyle said. "Is he waiting for me to let down my guard after defeating you so that he strikes?"

"There is no need for that since you are going down here," said Alexander Mansell before he shot toward Arthur, waving his diamond sword to slash him down. Arthur was unconcerned as he side-stepped and activated his Release rune, punching toward him.

His fist struck the man's chest, and a clinging sound echoed within the corridors. Arthur frowned as he could tell Alexander Mansell didn't even move by an inch, protected by his toughness barrier.

Alexander then slashed horizontally toward Arthur's neck, forcing Arthur to bend his knees to avoid it. Then, he punched the man's chin, but the same happened again. A resounding cling echoed, and Arthur found himself unable to harm the Mansell Boss.

The sword rotated and slashed toward Arthur's shoulder, seeking to sever it. However, Arthur's mana exploded as they boosted his stats, and he jumped backward, avoiding the sword in the nick of time.

The diamond sword struck the marble ground and slashed through it like butter. Arthur staggered back as Alexander Mansell pulled it out, smiling as he stared at Arthur.

"Erin told me about what you did in the trial. First, he said that you were dead before rising, golden lights exploding from your body. Then, you beat him to a pulp. Is that the same technique?"

Arthur ignored him while studying the blue hue around his body. Elements shouldn't act as buffs, so it made no sense to Arthur why he couldn't break through the blue hue. The only possibility he could think of is reversed induction.

A runic gate was what made runes capable of creating things out of thin air. If things got created of thin air using the elements, would that, in turn, create the runic gates and allow the user to induce a similar effect as the elements?

Another possibility was that Alexander used the element to defend against his attacks. However, that did not explain how Erin could get stronger. Unless… the blood chains were similar to doping by injecting his blood with stimulants.

"Are you scared, Arthur Silvera?" asked Mansell Boss as he took another stance. "Be careful, or the next strike might end your life!"

"Fools who run their mouths off wind up dead," said Arthur as he released his legacy rune, and the golden mana disappeared. "Your father should have taught you that information is power, especially against someone who can craft runes that render you useless."

"Is that so?" smiled Alexander Mansell as he paused his strike. "How about you go ahead and do it? I would like to see you try."

"Arrogance is a sin, but Ilios calls it pride," Arthur sighed as he raised his hands, writing runic lines that would disable his elemental gathering and toughness.

- Create – Kinetic Energy.

- Create – Force.

- Infuse – Molecules.

- Control – Molecules.

Arthur could feel his limits preventing him from creating a more powerful rune, but this way would do. He named it Entropy since it would increase the entropy of a given target and make its physical state unstable.

The molecules around the rune buzzed, and Alexander's face grew apprehensive. His sword started to shake, and so did the blue hue around him. Arthur smiled at him, wondering if this would cure his arrogance.

"I haven't fed this rune any mana yet," said Arthur, and the Mansell Boss was quiet. "Once I do, your cousin should come out too. Otherwise… you will die."

After saying as much, Arthur aimed the rune toward Alexander Mansell. His golden mana entered the rune, turning into kinetic energy and repelling force that infused into the molecules.

The world buzzed as molecules escaped from each other, making even air hard to breathe. Then, the surrounding elements in the air began to scatter away, making Alexander stagger back as his blue hue left his body.

"Transmutation means changing one element to another, making you guys the rulers of the physical world. However, if you cannot control the elements, what use would that transmutation bring?" said Arthur as he advanced.

True to his word, the diamond sword started to break down as Alexander Mansell couldn't control it. His arrogant face finally broke in sweat, fumbling while using his mana to regain control.

Arthur then walked toward him, whose face started bleeding colors. Alexander retrieved a sword from his storage ring and ran toward Arthur, slashing at him. Using two fingers, Arthur caught the blade and snapped it in half.

"You are far inexperienced to be the leader of this gang," frowned Arthur as unease filled his heart. The feeling from earlier should not be coming from this man since he was far too arrogant and immature. But, if so, what was it?

Arthur seized the man's neck as he flailed and struggled. Even though he was a deme-ranker, his main attribute was mana, so Arthur had no problem overpowering him.

"Are you the real Mansell Boss?" asked Arthur with unease, but the man simply struggled to break free. "It doesn't matter since you have to die."

Arthur clenched his hand, suffocating the man. His struggles grew frantic while his face turned a shade of blue. Arthur could see his eyes roll back as his struggle decreased, and in the end, he stopped moving.

"Is that it?" Arthur asked as he let go of the dead man and fell to the ground. Arthur stared at him for a minute, and there was no change.

In the end, he sighed and walked past him, arriving at the grand gate that led to the underground entrance. Arthur then placed his hand on the gates and was ready to push them open when the corridor lit up with lights.

The source of the lights came from behind him, so Arthur turned around to see what it was. Although it was sudden, Arthur could feel no threat of danger. However, what he saw shocked him to the core.

Alexander Mansell was turning into particles of light, dissolving into the air. He was not like the puppets, which dissolved into goo. Instead, he turned into light particles.

"What the hell is this?" muttered Arthur as he looked for Alexander Mansell. He expected this to be a ploy, using a clone instead of his actual body. However, there was no one. "Show yourself!" shouted Arthur.

"No need to panic," said a voice from an unknown source as the wall beside Alexander Mansell started to flap like a flag. Arthur prepared himself as the wall began to turn into a man who walked and stepped into the corridor.

"This is the last face I expected to see here," said Arthur while squinting his eyes. "I guess you do more than just bartending, huh?"

The wall, which turned into a human, spewed no other than the bartender Arthur met a few days ago. His ashen-colored hair and glasses were distinct from others, so he couldn't possibly misrecognize him.

"I run a few errands on the side," said the man as he crouched beside Alexander Mansell. "You did a number on my sweet Alexander Mansell. How can you be so cruel?"

"Cut to the chase. That was not a human, was he?" asked Arthur as he glared at the bartender. "Who are you, and what are you here for?"

"A lot of questions, but so little time. Furthermore, a wise man told me that fools who run their mouths off wind up dead," said the bartender as he placed a finger over his lips.

Arthur squinted his eyes at him while summoning his strongest rune, denaturing sharpness. It was similar to the Entropy rune but worked more on breaking the bonds. The man glanced at the dagger and raised his hands.

"It was a joke, Arthur Silvera. No need to be so hostile. My goal is to talk to you anyway, so calm down," said the bartender. "First, there is no real person named Alexander Mansell."

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