Tier Two

Only one desk lamp was lit in the room.

The dim light and darkness wrestled with each other. Quill's hoarse voice and sickly smile flickered unstably, much like the faint light and shadow.

Seeing Quill, who should have been dead, alive and breathing before him, Sean's pupils constricted, his heartbeat momentarily stopping.

How is this possible...?

He had personally watched Kate's light spear pierce through Quill. The power of a Rank 5 was not something a mere doctor could withstand. He was certain Quill had been thoroughly dead then, so why was the other man, unharmed, waiting for him at the motel?

Resurrected?

No... not resurrected.

Sean sized up Quill, suddenly noticing a damaged puppet on the coffee table in front of him.

The puppet had a large hole in its chest, identical to the Quill killed by Kate.

This is...

"Puppet Technique?"

Sean suddenly realized. The Quill killed by Kate wasn't the real Quill, but a substitute!

No wonder, from the moment he'd pointed a gun at Quill at Floris Hospital, the man had given him that death-defying, crazy feeling, even pressuring him with his aura, making him feel invincible and breaking out in a cold sweat...

So, Quill was also a Wizard!

"Aren't you surprised, Mr. Sean?" Quill repeated the question.

He reveled in Sean's shocked expression; it gave him a deep sense of satisfaction.

"Mr. Sean is indeed intelligent to figure everything out so quickly," he said with a smile. "But as I said, I'm not stupid either."

Who says Witch Hunters can't be Wizards?

Rather, only Wizards are true Witch Hunters.

Quill knew that if Sean dared to go to the book signing, he must have had a fallback. With the precedent of Winston and the others from the Black Berry Rainforest, how could he not have made extra preparations?

The "Quill" at the book signing had been manipulated by him the entire time.

He truly hadn't expected Sean to be able to enlist Light Servant Kate, so the unexpectedness shown by the substitute back then was genuine. If he had gone personally, the outcome would have been dire.

Just as Sean had thought, ten of him combined wouldn't be a match for a Rank 5 Wizard.

But he hadn't gone.

Kate hadn't recognized him either.

There was a degree of luck involved – if the person Sean had invited wasn't Kate, but another high-ranking Wizard knowledgeable about Puppet Technique, his trick might have been exposed on the spot.

But there were no 'ifs'.

Often, luck was also a form of strength.

Without a doubt, Sean's trump card was huge, big enough to turn the tables. But Sean had played it too early, or rather, his trump card had been tricked out of him. Now, without the protection of the Light Servant, how could Sean win against him?

"I'm very sorry, Mr. Sean, I can't give you a choice this time."

Quill had changed his mind. He still admired Sean, but given Sean's potential and unexpected connections, he had to re-evaluate the threat Sean posed. The answer he got was – Sean must die.

Everyone who had helped Sean evade pursuit, everyone related to him, must die.

To annihilate them completely was the greatest respect for an enemy.

The temperature in the room dropped rapidly, filled with killing intent. Sean felt as if he had returned to the cold morgue of Floris Hospital. Quill stood up, the air around them growing thick, and the pressure surged towards Sean again like a tide from all directions, engulfing him and making him feel suffocated.

"Any last words, Mr. Sean?"

Quill took a scalpel from his pocket and wiped it gently. "As long as the content isn't sensitive or violates regulations, I can personally engrave your desired epitaph on your tombstone."

This hunting game, unique to him and Sean, was nearing its end. The hunter was, after all, the hunter, and the prey should obediently accept its fate.

Quill believed that no matter how unwilling or defiant Sean might be at this point, he wouldn't put up a fight. After all, they were both adults and should understand reality. In the face of facts, any argument was meaningless.

Just like when facing Kate, he hadn't put up any unnecessary struggle.

Sean agreed with Quill's assessment.

Facing a predetermined end, the more defiant one was, the more harsh words they spoke, the more like a clown they appeared.

He also admitted that Quill's move had exceeded his expectations. It wasn't that he hadn't expected Quill to be a Wizard, but rather that he hadn't expected Quill to practice Puppet Technique and deceive Kate, forcing a one-on-one life-or-death situation.

But the problem was...

"Are you so confident that you can definitely kill me?" Sean asked.

Quill countered with a smile, "Why wouldn't I be?"

Sean said, "You should have brought more people."

"I don't think it's necessary," Quill replied.

As soon as he finished speaking, the scalpel in his hand suddenly sprang out, shooting directly towards Sean's neck.

After just a few sentences of exchange, Quill already knew Sean wasn't going to surrender meekly, so there was nothing more to say.

There was no "three, two, one" this time, indicating Quill was truly intent on killing.

Despite Quill's sudden attack, Sean was prepared. A golden circle formed in his palm again, and he flicked his hand, sending the flying scalpel back.

"Just as I thought." Quill tilted his head slightly, dodging Sean's counterattack. The scalpel grazed his cheek, cutting a few strands of hair before embedding itself in the wall.

He had guessed Sean knew some special magic. The flying knife was just a probe; next, he would let Sean truly witness his strength.

Quill's slender hands formed claws and lifted upwards as if playing a piano. Thin, transparent threads grew from his fingertips. The puppet that had been lying quietly on the coffee table suddenly grew larger, disappeared, and reappeared behind Sean almost instantly. On its way, it plucked the scalpel from the wall and plunged it fiercely towards the back of Sean's neck.

Even though Sean reacted quickly and dodged sideways, he was still stabbed in the inner shoulder. The scalpel cut through his skin, leaving a profusely bleeding wound between his neck and collarbone.

What was more deadly was that Quill himself had appeared before him.

The taut threads were as sharp as knives, reflecting a chilling glint under the light, as if slicing the air into pieces. It was only by sheer luck that Sean managed to repel the puppet with an elbow strike, slowing the threads' horizontal cutting speed, and raised his hand to block. He narrowly avoided this fatal blow, but was still kicked in the abdomen by Quill, sending him flying backward and crashing into the wall.

The Circle of Truth, which had deflected countless bullets, was directly sliced to pieces by the threads. This was no longer a matter of whether he could reflect melee attacks; the magic attached to the threads had exceeded the Circle of Truth's limits. Otherwise, even if it couldn't reflect, the Circle of Truth could have served as a defensive spell.

This attack gave Sean a clearer understanding of Quill—Quill was not only a Wizard, but his Magic had also reached Tier Two.

Similarly, through the shattered Circle of Truth, Quill also sensed Sean's Magic.

"Tier Two..."

"I must say, Mr. Sean, you are truly good at surprising people."

Despite calling it a surprise, Quill's tone held no joy. The smile on his lips turned extremely dangerous, and even more intense killing intent surged in his eyes than before.

After all, an ordinary Newborn Wizard might not even reach Tier Two after a year of arduous training. This was because Magic growth wasn't a cumulative process; it couldn't be achieved simply by spending time. Wizards had to find new, more efficient ways of self-devouring to achieve tier advancement.

Meditation might not be considered too difficult, but it was certainly not simple. Like Sean's little fan, who could create at least two types of magic potions for escape and explosion, indicating he had been a Wizard for some time, yet he was still only Tier One.

In contrast, Sean had entered Tier Two in less than a month since the Black Berry Rainforest incident.

Quill had never heard of such speed.

Even the Witch Hunters in his family, known as arcane geniuses, took at least half a year to go from Tier One to Tier Two, and that was with the full assistance of magic potions. He himself had taken two and a half years.

This further strengthened Quill's resolve to kill Sean.

This writer must not be allowed to live!

The terrifying promotion speed and Tier Two Magic were perhaps why Sean was so confident.

Unfortunately, it wasn't enough.

"Let me show you, Mr. Sean." Quill raised his fingertips again, and he and the puppet beside him emitted a grating sound. "Even among Tier Two, there are differences."

Sean's controlled magic was around 3.2 million, while his own had reached 9.9 million, just a sliver away from entering Tier Three. Not to mention, he practiced the Puppet Technique, which held an absolute advantage in one-on-one duels.

It was no exaggeration to say that three Seans wouldn't be enough for him to handle.

The facts proved this to be true.

Puppets don't "die." It had only been pierced through the chest by Kate and not completely destroyed, so it could still be used.

Quill manipulated the puppet, and two "people" bullied one Sean. Sean himself wasn't skilled in close combat; he hadn't had time to practice fighting techniques. Just as he got up from the ground, he was knocked down again. For a time, he was beaten so badly he couldn't even retaliate. He was covered in wounds, bleeding profusely, and looked utterly disheveled.

Yet, he hadn't completely fallen.

No matter from what angle Quill attacked, even coordinating with the puppet to execute combos outside the usual repertoire, he couldn't truly kill Sean. Sean always managed to dodge vital points in time, block with the Circle of Truth, or take hits on less important parts of his body.

"He's quite resilient."

Quill's killing intent grew stronger.

The more powerful Sean appeared, the less chance Quill would give him to turn the tables.

If he had only wanted to kill Sean before, now he wouldn't even leave a whole corpse, lest any unforeseen complications arise.

However, he was so focused on the fight that he didn't notice that the Magic within Sean was growing stronger bit by bit under the onslaught of his threads and scalpels.

The power brought by the first use of Forbidden Meditation required the body to adapt. He had to overcome the body's self-protection mechanisms. The wounds Quill inflicted on him were, in a way, helping him unleash this power.

And so.

At a certain moment.

Sean, who had been taking a beating, suddenly looked up at Quill and spoke in a hoarse voice.

"You're right."

"Even among Tier Two, there are differences."

His hair was already matted with blood and sweat, messy, but his eyes shone like stars in the night sky—this wasn't an exaggeration or a metaphor. A hint of gold truly appeared in Sean's dark pupils.

It was a small dot formed by the aggregation and overlap of countless characters.

"Putting on a show."

Quill narrowed his eyes and unleashed a barrage of killing moves.

But this time, his attacks didn't land on Sean.

Golden symbols and letters suddenly floated in the air, stringing together like chains, binding him and the puppet in place.

Quill instinctively tried to break free with brute force.

The best way for a high-tier Wizard to deal with a low-tier Wizard's control spells was to overpower them. As long as there was enough Magic, no restraint could be unbreakable. But as he attempted to shatter the chains with violence, he was horrified to find that their strength far exceeded his expectations. With his Magic nearing Tier Three, he couldn't even break half a link.

The threads that should have been unbreakable snapped the moment they touched the chains, leaving no trace behind.

This is a spell a Tier Two Sean can cast?

What was even harder for him to comprehend was that upon closer inspection, the chain was made up of inequalities. Letters and symbols strung together, posing him a... math problem?!

"if... f'(x) ≥ 1/4, f(2) ≥ 0, x ≥ 3... max{f(x)}=?"

Quill: "???"

An intensely absurd thought enveloped him.

It felt as though if he could just provide the answer to this problem, he could break free from the chain's restraint.

But the problem was...

He was a doctor!

He was a Wizard!

He was a Witch Hunter!

Which of those professions looked like they would know how to do this kind of math problem??

"Surprised, Mr. Quill?"

This time, it was Sean who asked.

He got up from the corner, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, his eyes filled with mockery. "Thought I could only reflect bullets?"

Quill was speechless, his smile gone from his face, replaced by profound shock and confusion.

Why had Sean's Magic suddenly surged?

Why did the spell manifest in this way?

Why was he, while fighting, being forced by Sean to solve a math problem??

He had so many questions, so many that even though he knew Sean wouldn't answer, he couldn't help but ask in a dry, disbelieving voice, "How... how did you do it?"

"You don't need to know," Sean sneered. "I preferred you when you were still arrogant."

Sean hadn't even touched him, but Quill felt as if he'd been slapped. His face burned with pain. For the first time, his composure faltered slightly in front of Sean. Gritting his teeth, he said, "You think you've won?"

"What else?" Sean replied. "You can't even solve such a simple problem. Did you even go to college?"

Quill: "Shut up!"

The words seemed to hit a sore spot.

As a member of the Floris Family, of course he had gone to college, and his grades in all subjects were excellent.

Except for math.

Sean hadn't expected Quill's reaction to be so intense. It seemed there was a story there, so he added another blow. "I'll give you a chance. Solve it in five seconds, and I'll let you go."

This was obviously a lie. At this point, neither of them could let the other go. They both knew this in their hearts. Even if Quill solved this problem, there would be another.

But Sean insisted on saying it.

The more frustrated his enemy became, the more satisfied he felt.

Seeing Quill's expression of bearing immense humiliation, Sean felt much better.

And once he felt better, it was time for Quill to depart.

Puppet Wizards below Tier Five could only have one puppet. He was certain this was Quill's true body.

This time, he would personally avenge Chris.

And the innocent girl downstairs.

A fierce glint appeared in Sean's eyes. He opened his palm, and a golden tetrahedron hovered above it, countless formulas and functions flowing within, radiating the brilliance of knowledge.

"I told you, you should have brought more people."

Not to increase your chances of winning, but to send more lives over.

Quill's single life wasn't enough compensation.

Sean tossed the Cone of Truth, imbued with enough Magic to kill a Tier Three Wizard, towards Quill's head. The tetrahedron, which had been small enough to hold in one hand, suddenly enlarged, spinning slowly like a rolling guillotine blade, capable of crushing all "wrong answers."

Quill knew he was unlikely to survive the night, but he had no regrets.

Instead, at the brink of death, that unsettling smile appeared on his face once more.

"Want to know why I didn't bring more people from the hospital?"

"Because you—Mr. Sean, you were never our family's target. You were just my personal target."

"To put it bluntly, you're not worthy, not qualified for my family to make a move."

"But your friends are qualified."

"Like the Light Servant, and also..."

"Your Miss Flame Crow."