A few days ago, when Master Hades gave the order to deploy half of the Guild's upper echelon for this operation, Zoldier had a premonition—a feeling that his own life might soon be coming to an end.
He had only experienced this feeling once before, a long time ago. Back then, he wasn't the goat-like monster he is now; he was a human, pure and simple.
Twenty years ago, Zoldier was a young man working as a butler for the Heartfilia family, the biggest railway magnates in the Kingdom of Fiore. He was highly trusted, especially by the mistress of the house, Layla Heartfilia.
Layla was once a truly gifted Celestial Spirit Mage, possessing three Gold Zodiac Keys. When she retired from the magical world, she entrusted her three keys to her attendants. Zoldier received the Capricorn Key, and the spirit's name was Capricorn (Caprico).
Seven years ago, in order to open the Eclipse Gate, Layla gathered all the holders of the Gold Zodiac Keys. Zoldier accepted the invitation without a moment's hesitation and offered his key. However, because the Aquarius Key was missing, Layla used her own life force to fill the void. She eventually succumbed to Magic Deficiency Syndrome and passed away.
He avenged his mistress, returned the Aquarius Key to Layla, and finally left, taking Capricorn with him.
Afterward, he joined Grimoire Heart.
To build the Guild's high-tier fighting force—the Seven Kin of Purgatory—Master Hades specially taught him the Lost Magic: Human Subordination.
This magic allows the user to turn humans into their personal puppets, completely obeying their commands. In ancient times, it was called the "King's Magic." The only restriction was that it couldn't be used on "non-human" targets.
But Zoldier broke that taboo. People who blindly chase power are often a little unhinged. Zoldier wanted to completely control the Celestial Spirit who had followed him for three years, so he used Human Subordination Magic on it.
That day was the first time he felt that life-threatening sense of impending doom.
And the subsequent development was practically the same as dying: he completely merged with Caprico, becoming the goat-like monster he is today.
And now, it's happening a second time!
"Why... why hasn't this feeling gone away?" Looking at the magic academy that had already been reduced to ruins, Zoldier felt his anxiety grow. "Are we about to face some kind of powerful enemy?"
"No... Grimoire Heart is invincible!"
Despite his best efforts to convince himself, Zoldier was still uneasy and gathered his subordinates.
Soon after, four monsters walked up: Akatz, the rooster monster who uses Egg Magic; Yumaz, the samurai gorilla who uses Letter Magic; Mylz, the dog-headed ninja who uses Vibration Magic; and Hartz, the poisonous snake mutant who uses Poison Gas Magic.
In the Guild, they were considered elite Vanguard members, with power second only to the Seven Kin.
"Lord Zoldier, what are your orders?"
Zoldier watched his subordinates assemble, and his anxiety slightly lessened. "Have any of you encountered anyone particularly strong?"
The four exchanged glances and replied, "Nope, boss!"
"Everyone we've fought was completely pathetic. Is this really that famous Magic Academy?"
"Too weak. We haven't met any opponents at all!"
The monsters sneered arrogantly and mocked freely, showing no respect for the long-standing, ancient academy.
Hearing his subordinates' cocky remarks, Zoldier felt that unsettling feeling in his gut get even worse.
"From now on, we move together. The moment we get our hands on the target, we retreat immediately!"
Though they couldn't figure out why their boss was acting so strange today, the monster minions quickly agreed. "Got it, boss!"
It had been over two hours since the operation began. The remaining forces stationed at the academy had completely lost the will to fight, so the group was no longer in a hurry to destroy buildings or cause distractions. Instead, they began the final phase: rooting out survivors.
The five non-human-looking figures proceeded in a group, slowly advancing over the academy's ruins. They didn't miss a single corner, even digging out dying people buried in the rubble, barely holding on to their last breath, just to kill them. It was utterly deranged and horrifying.
Putt-a-dat-a-dat...
Akatz's attack was like a furiously firing machine gun, unleashing a volley of egg-based bullets that pierced through dirt walls and shattered stones. For him, "hitting a rock with an egg" was no longer a path to self-destruction.
"Seriously, are there still people alive here? We almost missed them!"
After a barrage of explosions, the egg bullets blew open a hidden refuge. Underneath the cracked earthen wall was an old man, already bleeding from the head, protecting three or four children in Demisol Academy student uniforms.
Exposed, the children couldn't stop themselves from trembling. Their dull eyes revealed helplessness, despair, and hatred.
The old man knew death was imminent, but he wanted to buy a little more time for the children behind him. He yelled with forced bravado, "You fiends! The Headmaster won't let you get away with this!"
"Hehehe!"
"What's a mere Headmaster?! We've deployed almost half the entire Guild's strength for this operation!"
Unlike his subordinates, who were eager to boast about the Guild's power to the weak, Zoldier was in no mood to linger. He only wanted to complete the mission and leave as fast as possible; his sense of danger was intensifying!
So, he spoke coldly, "Stop wasting time. Finish them off quickly, and let's move on."
His four subordinates instantly acknowledged the order. "Right away, boss!"
"Egg Burst!"
"Solid Script: BOOM!"
"Vibration Wave!"
"Poison Mist!"
Four different but equally lethal spells struck out simultaneously. They were incredibly fast and extremely powerful, about to hit the group of survivors.
The old man gritted his teeth in despair. "Damn it! Is this the end?"
Just as the crisis reached its peak, a beam of pure white light descended vertically from above, hitting the four spells with pinpoint accuracy.
"Shatter!"
A cold shout, laced with fury, was clearly audible, startling everyone present!
BOOM!!!
The white light slammed down, setting off a massive ball of magical energy. The immense power contained within the sphere easily disintegrated the four attacks, stirring up huge clouds of smoke and dust, completely blocking their vision.
"W... were we saved?"
The old man and the children murmured in disbelief. Before they could fully register what happened, a gentle force pushed them away from the immediate area.
With the sudden turn of events, a loud alarm rang in Zoldier's heart. He demanded, "Who's there?!"
He's here! The source of that intense premonition! It's this person! Is he going to put me in a near-death situation again?
Zoldier wanted to retreat, but he felt he couldn't lose face in front of his subordinates, leaving him trapped.
Facing the unknown enemy, the five monster figures guarded themselves, raising their alertness to the maximum, scanning their surroundings with their magic ready to fire.
"Pierce!"
Out of the smoke, two more beams of white light suddenly attacked, swift as the wind and fast as lightning.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two breaking-the-sound-barrier noises rang out simultaneously. The dog-headed ninja and the snake-headed man didn't even have time to defend themselves or scream. They were instantly pierced by the magic, each having a twenty-centimeter-wide hole blown through their bodies!
"N-Nani?!"
Warm blood splattered onto Akatz. The rooster monster gasped in shock, shaking off the blood-stained white chicken feathers from his body.
Realizing his teammates were dead, the samurai gorilla made a snap decision, swiftly brandishing his katana to write a massive character for "Clear" in mid-air, attempting to sweep away the smoke and restore vision.
"Solid Script: Clear!"
However, before the script could be unleashed, another identical spell struck, smashing the newly formed text to pieces!
"Detonate!"
Following the sharp yell, there were two more colossal blasts.
BOOM! BOOM!
"Ughh—!"
This time, the victims were the samurai gorilla and the rooster monster. They managed to scream, but they still couldn't defend against the unknown enemy's magical assault. After two cries of surprise, they were blown to smithereens, their bodies a bloody mess!
Listening to the continuous screams of his four subordinates, Zoldier felt even more panicked. "What's wrong? What's happening to the four of you?!"
Soon, the smoke and dust cleared, revealing the blood-red scene on the ground.