Sword God in a World of Magic

The Mage King quietly waited for an answer.

Luckily, he didn't need to wait for long.

"Hey, Samuel. Nice to talk to you! How are you?" said a friendly voice coming from the Communication Crystal.

The Mage King gulped once. '"Not very well, sir."

"Oh? Are you having trouble? Do you need some help?" the friendly voice asked.

Samuel laughed bitterly. "Sir, I don't feel very well because I think I know why you are calling."

"We can talk about that after this. So, there are no problems at home or with your meditation? Everything outside of work is okay?" the person asked with a concerned voice.

"Everything's alright, sir," Samuel said.

"Good, good," the voice said. "Hey, listen, I've been hearing a couple of things, and I want to hear your side of the events. Could you tell me, from your point of view, what happened within the last hour?"

Samuel gulped another time. "Of course, sir."

Then, Samuel recited everything he had experienced.

"Good, good," the friendly voice said. "Now, I don't need to tell you that what you've delivered wasn't the greatest performance of your career, right?"

"No, sir," Samuel said quietly.

"You should know that, as the Judgment Palace, we represent a certain prestige. I know that this entire war business is quite complicated and that the Lightning Manor is delivering quite a formidable performance, but we can't have one of our Mage Kings be fooled by some warrior in the Sixth Realm. Do you get what I mean?" the voice asked.

Samuel wanted to protest and say that the opponent couldn't possibly have been fooling them. After all, the warrior had fought against someone with a fivefold Spirit Sense and a Death Affinity. It was already surprising enough that he had won. Samuel couldn't believe that all of this had been an act.

And yet, he couldn't protest.

Even though the voice seemed quite friendly and professional, all the Mage Kings knew the truth.

The person behind that voice didn't even know the concept of true empathy and respect.

He was simply talking in such a polite and friendly manner because this was the best way to get others to follow his orders.

He had no problem handing out compliments and having a bit of small talk if it helped him in keeping everything under his control.

Under this person, one would find oneself drawn to them.

The person was so charismatic, funny, friendly, and respectful.

The person would even listen to their trouble, give them emotional support, and give them a shoulder to cry on.

Yet, the people that truly knew this person could see the truth.

There was nothing.

There was no concern, disregard, love, hate, admiration, disdain, or care inside that person.

They were empty.

There was just nothing.

The person simply acted respectfully and nicely without meaning any of it and without caring whether the other person was happy or sad.

No one had ever seen this person be unfriendly and disrespectful.

No one knew how they were when they were mad.

Because no one that made them mad was still alive.

No one had ever seen them fight or kill anyone, but everyone knew whom they had killed.

They had killed many people, but no one had ever seen them do the deed.

Even more, no one had ever seen them sad, angry, or annoyed.

They were always nice.

There was always either a smile or a concerned expression on their face.

And yet...

This person killed people without any warning.

One moment, everything still seemed fine, and that person still appeared happy.

And the next, that person had killed the other person.

For seemingly no reason.

It didn't matter who it was.

They had even killed Mage Kings before.

And yet, there was nothing anyone could do.

After all, this was King Sanctified Death, the strongest Mage King.

The only people that could punish or suppress him were Mage Emperors, and they didn't get involved.

In the end, Samuel didn't protest.

"Yes, I know my mistake, sir," he said.

"That's good to hear," King Sanctified Death's friendly voice came from the Communication Crystal. "I know that you've done a lot for the Judgment Palace, which is also why I trusted you with leading the assault. I know that you are not someone that easily cracks under pressure, and I know that you are not being lazy."

"But the recent couple of minutes have been troublesome, Samuel. You know that, right?" King Sanctified Death asked.

"Yes, I understand, sir," Samuel said.

"Hey, listen, I really don't like this any more than you, but I think it would be better for everyone involved that you leave the frontline to one of our colleagues, okay?"

Samuel's heart rate increased.

Many people didn't know why King Sanctified Death had killed them, but all the Mage Kings knew.

King Sanctified Death killed people that he had once led, invested in, or something similar before they had become useless.

King Sanctified Death was like a ruthless and efficient businessman. As long as something kept paying dividends, he was happy and treated it well. But as soon as there appeared a significant loss, King Sanctified Death would rather get rid of it since he viewed this as a sign of things to come.

Every person in the world was just an object to King Sanctified Death, and if they didn't help him become richer or more powerful, there was no reason for these objects to exist anymore.

He didn't hate them or despise them.

It just wasn't the best idea to keep them around anymore, which was why he got rid of them.

It was a necessary evil.

So, when Samuel heard that King Sanctified Death pulled him away from the frontlines, the fear and anxiety in his heart shot through the roof.

"I understand, sir," Samuel said. "I've committed a grave mistake today, and I am deeply sorry. I will do my best to repay everything as quickly as possible. There are still other areas in which I can be useful to the Judgment Palace. Is there anything where you want me to help out specifically, sir?"

"You know," King Sanctified Death said with his friendly voice, "I think you've been a bit overworked recently. You had this entire investigation thing going on, and I essentially pulled you out of that and pushed you to the front lines. I think you're a bit too stressed and need some time to relax."

"So, why don't you take a century off?"

A dark feeling of doom appeared in Samuel's heart.

"Sir! I can assure you that I do not need a break," Samuel shouted with an urgent and almost pleading voice. "I can go back to my investigations! I can also just create Rank Eight Mana Crystals! Please, there must be something that I can do to rectify my mistake!"

"Hey, Samuel, I know that you feel guilty about this entire thing, but this was your only mistake. Humans make mistakes. It happens."

The dread in Samuel's heart intensified.

King Sanctified Death hadn't said "first" mistake.

He had said "only" mistake.

"I know that you're all stressed out now because of your little accident, but it's fine," King Sanctified Death said. "Just take a century off, and you will see that your concentration and efficiency will return to heights you wouldn't have believed. Just relax, okay?"

Samuel's breathing intensified.

"Sir, I'm scared," he said.

"What? Why?" King Sanctified Death asked with concern. "Is everything alright?"

"Sir, I fear that I might not see tomorrow," the Mage King said.

"Why would you not see tomorrow? Is there something you didn't tell me, Samuel?" King Sanctified Death asked in concern.

Samuel remained silent for a second.

"I fear that I have become disposable," he said.

"What? No! Of course not, Samuel!" King Sanctified Death said. "You're one of our Mage Kings! We can't just get rid of one. That would weaken the entire Empire."

"I think you're just a bit too stressed. Just ignore this entire war for the next century and relax. I will deal with everything, and as soon as you feel good again, you can come back and help. If you want, you can also return a couple of decades early. I wouldn't decline a couple of helping hands."

"Just leave the frontline and relax, okay? Just do it for me," King Sanctified Death said.

"Yes, sir," Samuel said quietly.

"Great! Then, have a nice vacation, Samuel! I'm looking forward to your return!" King Sanctified Death said.

"Thank you, sir. I'll relax and come back in a century. Then, I will rectify all of the mistakes I've committed."

"Glad to hear! Have a nice day!"

"You too, sir."

And then, the connection was cut.

But Samuel didn't feel calm.

At this moment, his fear and terror reached new heights.

Nothing King Sanctified Death said could be believed.

He lied without any sign, reason, or indication.

Everything he had said could be a lie just to stop Samuel from fleeing to the Lightning Manor in a panic.

It was very possible that King Sanctified Death would kill Samuel as soon as he came anywhere near the Judgment Palace.

Samuel didn't know what would wait for him.

Would he survive?

Would he die?

He had no idea.

Eventually, Samuel slowly took to the sky and flew back to the Judgment Palace.

At the side, the other Mage King just watched Samuel with a disdainful smirk.

This was what this rat got for trying to take her job!

She hoped that King Sanctified Death would kill him.