A Gunslinger’s System in a World of Magic

Sitting in the chest was a crest-like object gilded with silver edges that surrounded the centerpiece; A purple gem that glowed and pulsed with a strange energy. It pulsed in a uniform rhythm like a heartbeat.

The moment his hand touched it, Angus felt energy driving through him and hitting hard at the very essence of his existence as though aiming to break him apart.

It was rejecting him.

Angus smiled at the energy repelling his touch but he had expected it and was prepared. As powerful as this Item was, it did not actually have sentience which meant, a simple ritual would suffice to quell its resistance. Angus put the item back into the Chest and produced a dagger to cut open his palm and drip his blood onto the pulsing gem.

The bond of a Vyker to its creator is sacred and must be protected. Vykers defend their creator with their lives because should their creator die, their reason to live dies along with them.

Worse yet is, for a Vyker with no living creator, they can still feel the full might of their abilities tucked away somewhere but unable to reach it.

It's like infinitely stretching their hands towards something they would never be able to touch again. To find a way to break his bond with his Creator and free himself to use the abilities she had granted him was all Angus had been striving for since her death.

And he knew, to do that, to commission an item or any service that could allow him to break the bond would require money which he did not have. The annals of his Creator's wealth were already stripped away in her final days.

He also knew he couldn't possibly do it alone which led to the eventual creation of the Dionisio Gang.

It took half a decade to track down one such item that could help him achieve his goal and to learn that it had been commissioned by the Lord of the Black Manor, Maude Aleric, did not deter him.

And now, here it was; Vinculum— The Bond Maker/Breaker.

A powerful item that could not be acquired by wealth alone and would still require more wealth than Angus had ever had the privilege of seeing in all his life put together.

'Theft truly was the only way,' Angus thought and chuckled to himself.

Indeed, theft was the only way. Either he robbed the treasury of two Noble families or he intercepted a single Chest during transport. The latter seemed far easier.

The gem absorbed Angus' blood and the pulsing grew even more intense as Angus, once again, reached into the Chest to pull out the Item before placing it against his chest.

The item's silver edges began to grow silver tentacles that spread across Angus' chest, digging into his flesh. And with every pulse of the purple gem, a strange power pulsed through Angus as well.

At first, it was painful and caused him to arch his back, spread his arms out, and look up at the ceiling while gritting his teeth but then it brought a feeling of relief. The restraint that had bound his potential was finally melting away bit by bit.

Angus slowly fell backward and sat on a chair in the meeting room with his hands gripping the armrests. An hour or so passed as Vinculum assimilated with his body and its tendrils spread its reaches deep inside his body and melded somewhat with his Nervous system. Truly binding them as one.

When the process eventually ended, Angus opened his eyes and his pupils now glowed a faint violet as he let out a breath before it became a laugh that became a hearty cackle.

He raised his hand and marveled at the return of the strength he had lost surging in him, renewed. His Mana reserves were back as they were before his Creator's death and seemed even more buoyant.

The purple gem pulsed along with his heartbeat like a sign of the completed assimilation.

"It's done," Angus said with a delighted grin, and then his ears twitched and he angled his head in a way as though detecting something.

At first, Angus wondered if it was the return of the others who had been gone for a day already but that thought left when he could feel an unmistakable animosity from the coming mob.

"Doran."

Angus' grin didn't leave his face but it gained an edge as he stood to his feet, walked to the meeting room door, and pulled it open so he could descend the steps and walk out of the Mansion and face their 'visitors'.

•••

Good ol' Joe was outside directing Chores as he always did and was the first to look toward the sound of multiple horse hooves thudding toward the Hadron Mansion Compound.

It took only a second for him to realize the numbers of this bunch surpassed that of those who had left the Gang on a job yesterday and he immediately started running back, stumbling a few times and crashing to the ground but even then, he continued to yell,

"It's an attack!!! Get your weapons!!!"

The 'Chore group' dropped whatever they were doing at once and ran to wherever they had stashed their weapons but even as they ran, horses leaped into the Hadron Mansion's compound and shots were immediately fired.

"ACK!!!"

The sounds were almost unanimous as bullets pierced through the bodies of multiple members of the 'Chore group', causing their backs to arch or striking them with enough force to send their faces slamming into structures, at best leading to fractures and at worse completing what the bullet already started and killing them.

"SPARE NONE OF THEM!!!" Doran Langlot yelled at the head of the riding group as his horse rode in circles like he was looking all over the mansion for someone.

He pulled out his revolver. It was a bronze weapon that looked like it was gilded with gold but it was iron like the rest of the weapon. Just painted to give it a dignified look.

It worked.

The gun looked like the weapon of a Leader and with the cocking of the hammer and a precise aim, Doran fired and planted a bullet in the head of a Dionisio Gang member, killing him.

"HAHAHAHAHA!!! You heard the boss!!! Spare no one!!!" Colm yelled as five Langlot Gang members got down from their horses and charged toward the large door that led into the Mansion proper.

"Give them no chance to get away!!!"

The Vykers were still on their Horses and were at the very back of the attacking Gang mob. They didn't think this bunch was worth their time and if the rowdy Langlot bunch slaughtered their way through the Mansion, they would have an easier time leaving no stone unturned to find the Chest.

The five Langlot Gang members kicked open the Mansion's large but decrepit door and stormed into the Mansion proper.

However, they hadn't gotten more than five steps in when they came upon Angus.

The Dionisio Gang leader's purple pupils glowed as he took easy steps toward them. His shirt was open enough to give a clear view of the purple gem pulsing against his chest with tendrils stretching out all around it.

Angus had the Chest under his arm and met them with a smile,

"Go back," he said gently.

A wave of magical energy blew from him and it was like strings wrapped around the arms and legs of the Langlot Gang members as they began to walk backward out of the Mansion. One step at a time.

"What— what is this?" One asked as he and the others strained against the magical hold but with no success.

Angus said nothing and just followed them as they continued to take backward steps until they were past the door and back in the Hadron Mansion compound.

"Stop. That's good enough," Angus said and the five stopped walking but they continued to strain because the strings on them were not yet gone.

"Good," Angus said with a nod and he glanced over at Doran Langlot and Colm O'Hearn and then back to the five in his hold.

"Now turn to your Leader and blow your brains out," he said.

"Angus!" Doran yelled.

Angus simply smiled as the five, eyes bugging in horror, raised their guns to their heads and squeezed the trigger.

*Bang!*

*THUD!*

All five fell at once with gaping holes in their heads leaking brain matter. Their ends completely at their own hands, controlled by the words of a Spellbinder.

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