Marvel Magic Case Files.

Chapter 74 The Final Room

Joan of Arc's appearance put Salomon on high alert. Strangely, her attention was entirely focused on Bayonetta, and she didn't even glance at Salomon or Ceresa behind her.

Hatred, regret, and a host of other complex emotions shimmered in her eyes along with the angel's emblem, and even the fierce wind and rain outside the corridor could not extinguish that burning passion.

"You've been so slow. I've been getting impatient. You've come this far, that's enough. You've returned to your former self." Joan of Arc raised her pistol and said to Bayonetta, "Let our age-old duel end here."

Bayonetta pushed up her glasses with the muzzle of her gun. Since Salomon returned to Kamar-Taj, Joan of Arc had clashed with her several times. Each encounter brought back long-lost memories for Bayonetta, and also reminded her of her forgotten abilities, such as the ability to transform into animals. Yet, she remained unable to discern the true purpose of this fellow witch before her.

But an enemy's friend is also an enemy, whether she is a witch or a sage.

"Sage Lumen, another observer who checks and balances the witch. There is an inviolable commandment between us: the union of light and darkness will bring disaster to the world. But five hundred years ago, the birth of a child blatantly violated this commandment—that child was you, Bayonetta." A strange light shone in Joan of Arc's grey eyes as she spoke. "The ensuing disaster plunged both races into a vortex of chaos, the aftershocks of which can still be felt today. You are a hybrid of light and darkness, the true center of chaos. To allow you to continue living would bring unbearable risks! When the 'Eye of the World' falls into our hands, the power of creation will awaken. Therefore, the left eye, our race's precious left eye, must never fall into the hands of others!"

Salomon and Bayonetta both knew what Joan of Arc was saying. The sage Baldr's goal was quite clear: to obtain Bayonetta's left eye in order to awaken "the Creator Jubilee." However, Joan of Arc's attitude towards Baldr's subordinates was very unusual. She seemed to not want Bayonetta to continue forward, because she did not want the witch's left eye to fall into Baldr's hands.

Salomon listened silently to Joan of Arc, while simultaneously pondering the Sorcerer Supreme's intentions.

It's understandable for a team to have a traitor, but Baldr couldn't possibly be unaware of Joan of Arc's attitude towards angels, yet he still allowed her to act freely. This means that the Lumen Sage was confident that Bayonetta would eventually hand over her left eye to him, and the key to this plan was Ceresa, who had only recently appeared by Bayonetta's side.

The Sorcerer Supreme insisted on sending Seresa to Bayonetta. Does this mean that the Sorcerer Supreme had foreseen the failure of Baldr's plan, and therefore generously sent Seresa back? Or did the Sorcerer Supreme place a spell on Seresa, so that when Baldr tried to use Seresa to activate his hidden hand, it would be countered?

"Bayonetta, it's time to end all of this!" Joan of Arc walked forward, stepping on the shards of glass. Her high heels crunched as they shattered the glass, while outside in the corridor, a sudden gust of wind arose.

An angel with a halo of four elements appeared next to the building. This angel had no head, neck, or feet, only a pure white face carved from marble on its chest. It had two extremely thick arms, at the ends of which were not hands, but four flexible tubes. The connection between its shoulders and body shone with light.

This is the angel of Temperance, representing the element of wind in the four cardinal virtues. Bayonetta had encountered this angel before arriving at Sun Island, and more than once. Now, this angel is unhappy with Joan of Arc's interference, and it hastily slammed its massive arm down into the corridor.

"Boya!" Bayonetta shouted, but Salomon did not stiffen as the enormous creature rapidly approached.

"Roger that!" He bent down and scooped up the terrified Ceressa. At the same time, Phoenix spread its wings and took to the air, the corridor filled with orange-red flames. With Phoenix's loud cry, the Angel of Temperance and Joan of Arc slowed down slightly. Salomon raised his hand, grabbed one of Phoenix's claws as it flew towards him, and disappeared from the spot.

This was Phoenix's spell-like ability. Under its influence, Salomon and Ceresa entered a hazy, gray world. Here, they could see the outside world, but everything was blurry and the colors were mixed. The arcane mage lightly tiptoed, and he and Ceresa floated up. The little girl looked around in surprise, hugging her doll and cat tightly, burying her face in Salomon's arms. It was clear she wanted to cry, but she held it back.

Phoenix spread its wings and floated above Salomon, the flames burning on its feathers driving away the wandering ghosts in this plane. Then, Salomon, clutching Phoenix's claws, returned to the real world, appearing not far from the fallen arm of the Angel of Temperantia, while Bayonetta and Joan of Arc had already leaped out of the window and were exchanging fire in the building's shattered stairwell.

Seeing Salomon reappear after narrowly escaping death, the Angel of Temperance casually waved his hand again. The enormous, alien arm smashed through the twisted metal window frames and the stone statues in the corridor, sweeping across the entire passageway. Phoenix, carrying Salomon and Ceresa, flew up and suddenly vanished, reappearing in a corridor on a higher floor.

Faced with such a powerful Temperance Angel, Salomon was naturally no match for him, but he didn't need to engage in a direct attack. Phoenix possessed a spell-like ability to deal with these extradimensional beings, though it would require some preparation time. Therefore, under Salomon's instructions, Phoenix flew out of the broken window to draw the Temperance Angel's attention.

The rays emanating from the face of the Angel of Temperance, embedded in his chest, followed Phoenix's flight path, slicing through thick ground and walls, carving a curved arc across the building. Meanwhile, he was carrying Ceresa, running up the stairwell, waiting for Phoenix to prepare his spell, only to bump into an unexpected person.

"Luca!" Salomon raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised. "You're still alive!"

"How could I possibly die in a place like this! And what's going on? What's causing all this destruction?!" Luca complained loudly. The attack of the Angel of Temperance smashed through a floor, and Luca unfortunately became collateral damage. Luckily, he escaped unharmed thanks to his own little invention—the gadget that could launch a grappling hook. He said, "I even saw a huge bird flying outside, engulfed in flames! If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I would have thought I'd gone mad!"

"An angel, very large. And that big bird was summoned by me, it's a phoenix." Salomon didn't stop, and Luca quickly followed.

"What are you going to do?" Luca followed Salomon up the small stairwell. "Although I've never seen that thing before, judging from your tone, you seem to have a way?"

"Hmm!" Salomon didn't waste any words, mentally estimating the time. About a minute later, he and Ceresa kicked open a small door to an emergency exit and rushed into the upper-level corridor of the Isabel Building. The windows here were also shattered by the previous explosion. Phoenix, who had been circling the Isabel Building, flew vertically up along the surface of the building after receiving Salomon's telepathic message, with the Angel of Temperance following closely behind.

Salomon leaped from the window, only to be grabbed by Phoenix, who flew up and pulled him towards the Temperance Angel. Phoenix chanted an incantation, and the surge of magic in the aetheric plane, despite the angel's strong conviction, instilled in the Temperance Angel a fear of death. Just then, Phoenix's spell-like ability activated, and with a faint explosion, the massive Temperance Angel vanished instantly.

This was a combination of the first-circle spell "Inflict Fear" and the fourth-circle spell "Exile." To ensure the success of Phoenix's Exile, Salomon deliberately took a risk, all to weaken the Temperance Angel's will. Clearly, his risk was worthwhile; the Temperance Angel was successfully exiled to Jubilee's realm. However, the spell's effect lasted only a minute. After that, the Temperance Angel would return, and Salomon could only quicken his pace.

Phoenix flapped its wings vigorously, carrying Salomon and Seresa as they flew rapidly close to the surface of the building, landing at the very top of the Isabel Building, near the bright white sphere floating atop its tip. This sphere was the core of the Isabel Building, and the white band of light surrounding Balda's room was actually a physical entity called the Path of Psychic Energy. The end of this path was a portal leading to the sphere.

Phoenix landed on the Path of Psionic Energy with Salomon and Seresa, stepping steadily onto the band of light. Perhaps due to the magic used to build the path, the strong winds from above had no effect on the pedestrians, preventing Salomon and Seresa from being blown off.

"Daddy!" As soon as she entered the room, Ceresa called out to the man sitting in a high-backed chair on the other side of the spherical room. She stretched out her two chubby hands, and the plush toys and cat fell to the ground. The man wore a white robe with gold trim, and a gold mask covered the left half of his face.

Salomon had expected that Badr was Ceresa's father, so he wasn't surprised.

"I didn't expect the Mage Order to arrive first," Baldr said. "However, those battles weren't prepared for you, so your presence here is understandable. Are you here to celebrate the Creator's awakening?"

"Baldur, do you really think Jubilee is allowed to rise again on Earth under the Sorcerer Supreme's control?" Salomon held Ceresa tightly, trying his best to keep the struggling little girl away from the dangerous figure.

"Even the Sorcerer Supreme cannot contend with the Creator!" Baldr slowly rose from his chair, a massive, faintly glowing disc of runes rotating behind him, illuminating his surroundings, but his face remained shrouded in shadow. "Those who follow in the light cannot escape the desolate darkness born from the shadows; the closer they get to the light, the stronger the darkness becomes. We will forge a new world, one filled with order, where all chaos and disorder will be destroyed! Come, my daughter!"

There's really nothing to say to the fanatics. Salomon looked at Ceresa, who was struggling in his arms, hesitated for a moment, and then, as the Sorcerer Supreme had instructed, placed her on the ground. The little girl picked up the cat and the doll and ran towards Baldr. At the same time, Salomon stopped Phoenix behind him, halting its attempt to capture Ceresa.

"You've taken good care of my daughter." Baldr picked up Seresa and said, "You see, the Sorcerer Supreme had you send Seresa here, which means he agrees with my actions, doesn't it? Everyone longs for a perfect world, even the Sorcerer Supreme."

"Who knows?" Salomon was very nervous, not only because he was worried that Baldr would hurt Seresa, but also because he was worried about whether the Sorcerer Supreme's backup plan would work.

"Please be patient, my guest. A seat has been prepared for you. Please watch as this world is reshaped. I must thank the Mage Order for covering up Sun Island, which saved me a lot of trouble." Baldr bowed his head, holding Ceresa, and said, "You will be a witness, and your identity dictates that you will become a member of the new world."

"Please do as you wish." Salomon sat down in the chair in the room and quietly pulled a piece of parchment from the scroll box.

Next, it was just a matter of waiting for the Sorcerer Supreme's plan to take effect. His pet was also in Ceresa's arms, so if anything unexpected happened, he could still cast a spell and use his pet to transfer the magic to bring Ceresa back.

I forgot to ask for your votes.

(End of this chapter)