Chapter : 32

  Instead, the instant the roaring fire got within three inches of Ken’s lifted finger, it just... vanished.

  There was no explosion. There was no smoke. There was no magical clash. The fire didn't get blocked by a shield; it simply ceased to exist. It was like someone had blown out a candle, but on a massive scale.

  Zefar froze. His cruel smile fell off his face. His hands were still stretched forward, but there was absolutely no magic left in them. The balcony was suddenly cold and quiet again.

  "What... what just happened?" Zefar stammered, staring at his empty hands in total shock. He tried to pull on his mana again to create another flame, but his body felt completely empty. It was as if his magic had been turned off by a simple switch.

  "You talk too much," a voice whispered.

  The voice did not sound like the goofy, loud boy who had been making silly cat faces a second ago. It was incredibly deep, echoing with a dark, terrifying calmness. It sounded like a god speaking from the shadows.

  Zefar looked up.

  Ken was still standing there, but he looked completely different. He wasn't wearing his black cloak or his mask—he was still just wearing his messy servant uniform—but his entire aura had changed. The lazy, sleepy look in his eyes was completely gone. His dark pupils were wide, cold, and completely empty of any human emotion. He looked at Zefar not as a person, but as a bug on the bottom of his shoe.

  Before Zefar could even take a step back, Ken simply pointed his lifted finger directly at Zefar’s forehead.

  "Mental Trauma," Ken whispered softly.

  Suddenly, Zefar felt a massive, invisible pressure slam directly into his brain. It felt like a giant iron hammer had crashed into his skull, but without any physical pain. Instead, the attack hit his mind directly.

  Zefar’s eyes rolled back. His legs completely gave out, and he collapsed onto his knees with a loud thud on the hard marble floor.

  He was no longer standing on the balcony. Inside his mind, Ken had dragged him into a terrifying psychological illusion. It was an advanced application of "Anime Logic" magic, creating a domain of pure, absolute fear right inside Zefar's head.

  To Zefar, the beautiful night sky instantly turned pitch black. The marble floor vanished, replaced by a dark, freezing ocean of black water. He felt an unbearable, crushing weight pressing down on his shoulders, pushing him deeper and deeper into the dark. He opened his mouth to scream, but no sound came out. He couldn't breathe. He felt like he was drowning in pure darkness.

  Every single bit of pride, arrogance, and ego that Zefar had built up over his entire life was instantly shattered into a million tiny pieces. In this mental realm, he realized exactly what he was. He was an ant. And he had just picked a fight with a dragon that could swallow the entire world.

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  The absolute, paralyzing fear gripped his heart so tightly he felt like he was going to die right there on the spot. He was gasping for air, choking, tearing at his own throat as tears streamed down his face.

  Back in the real world, only two seconds had passed. Zefar was on his knees, staring blankly ahead, hyperventilating, and shaking so violently his teeth were chattering. Tears and snot were running down his expensive uniform. He looked absolutely pathetic.

  Ken looked down at the shaking, crying noble. Ken did not smile. He did not feel bad for him.

  "Come here," Ken ordered coldly.

  Ken didn't walk over to Zefar. He didn't want to waste the energy to take those few steps. Instead, Ken used a high-level gravity spell. He simply flicked his wrist.

  Instantly, the gravity around Zefar shifted. The screaming noble was violently yanked forward across the smooth marble floor, sliding as if he had been pulled by an invisible truck.

  Zefar slid right to Ken’s feet. Before Zefar could even try to push himself up, Ken reached down and grabbed Zefar directly by the throat.

  With zero effort, Ken lifted the fully grown man off the ground with just one hand.

  Zefar dangled in the air, kicking his expensive shoes wildly. He grabbed Ken’s wrist with both hands, trying desperately to pry the fingers away so he could breathe. But Ken’s arm felt like it was made of solid steel. It did not budge a single millimeter.

  Zefar looked down into Ken’s face. He finally understood. This boy wasn't a peasant. This boy wasn't a joke. The goofy smile and the crooked tie were just a disguise. This person was a total monster. He was a force of nature that no Prince, no Princess, and no Senator could ever hope to stop.

  Ken’s eyes were cold and terrifying. They locked onto Zefar’s panicked, crying eyes, piercing straight through his soul.

  "Listen to me very carefully," Ken whispered. His voice was so quiet, yet it carried the heavy, absolute authority of 'The Sovereign.' It was a voice that commanded reality itself to obey.

  Zefar stopped kicking. He just hung there, choking, listening with absolute, terrified focus.

  "You think you are powerful because you wear nice clothes and throw little sparks of fire," Ken said slowly, his grip tightening just a fraction of an inch. "You think you own the world. But the truth is, you are nothing. You are a noisy, annoying insect buzzing around my head while I am trying to relax."

  Zefar let out a weak, pathetic whimpering sound.

  "I came out here to enjoy a snack," Ken continued, his tone completely flat and merciless. "I did not come out here to play your stupid political games. I played the fool for you. I gave you a chance to walk away. But you just couldn't let it go, could you?"

  Ken leaned in a little closer. The sheer, overwhelming aura of Ken’s sealed magic leaked out just a tiny bit—just enough for Zefar to feel the true, ocean-like depth of Ken's power. It felt like standing in front of a giant, roaring tidal wave that was about to crash down on him.

  "This time, I will let you go," Ken whispered, his voice dropping to a deadly chill. "Consider this a lucky break. But if you ever try something like this again... if you ever bother me, if you ever look at my team the wrong way, or if you even breathe too loudly in my direction..."

  Ken's eyes narrowed, flashing with a dangerous, dark promise.

  "...I will not just kill you," Ken stated clearly. "I will erase you. I will destroy your entire bloodline so thoroughly that history will forget your family ever existed. Do you understand me?"

  Zefar could not speak. His throat was completely blocked by Ken’s hand and his own paralyzing fear. But he nodded. He nodded frantically, over and over again, moving his head as fast as he could. Tears were streaming down his face, dripping onto Ken’s hand. He was completely, entirely broken.