"Eisen De!"
"That useless Richard Madden!"
The leader of the Witchcraft Practitioners gritted his teeth the moment he saw Eisen De. A small part of his fury was directed at Richard Madden.
Most of it, however, was directed at the leader of the South District Shepherds standing before him.
The Shepherds regarded the Witchcraft Practitioners as mortal enemies.
Likewise, the Witchcraft Practitioners considered the Shepherds their sworn foes.
Whenever the two sides met, they fought to the death.
As the leaders of their respective factions in Ai City, the hatred between the Witchcraft Practitioners' leader and Eisen De could be traced back to before the Darkmoon Pact was signed.
Although the Darkmoon Pact kept them in check, their hatred had never disappeared.
On the contrary, like strong liquor, the longer it aged, the fiercer it became. It was as though venomous insects were gnawing at their hearts, leaving them unable to eat or sleep in peace.
Naturally, their conflict had moved from the open into the shadows.
Just like this time.
Richard Madden was a pawn belonging to him, Mazim.
He had originally hoped to use that pawn to ambush Eisen De at a critical moment. But the unexpected intruder in the North District had drawn the Shepherds' attention. To keep the Philosopher's Stone from being discovered, he had been forced to expose Richard Madden ahead of schedule.
He had never expected Richard Madden to deceive them for long.
He knew perfectly well how terrifying his old opponent was.
What he hadn't expected was that Richard Madden would be so useless he couldn't even buy him a single night.
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became.
His enemy stood before him.
The Philosopher's Stone lay behind him.
Mazim didn't hesitate. He raised a hand, sending a dozen