Struggling as a Villain

There was no possible way for Emily to descend to the lower floors unless she wanted to have the forces chasing her and the cameras pointed at her. The security of every floor was quite strict, and the number of surveillance cameras made it nearly impossible for one to exploit any blindspot.

There is a shortcoming with Emily's barrier and that is the necessity of visuals; she cannot maintain her barrier if it's not within her vision. As such it becomes impossible for Richard and Laila to proceed towards the lower levels.

However, based on the information, Richard received from Laila, he knew he might be facing a situation like this.

Lost on choices, Richard said, "Laila, you are up."

Laila stepped forward, her eyes narrowing as she raised her hands. The air around her shimmered faintly as her mana spread outward, taking control of the invisible gases in the air. She focused, pulling and separating specific molecules, gathering them into a dense, flammable form.

The atmosphere grew heavy as if the air itself was holding its breath. A faint smell, sharp and unnatural, began to fill the space. Laila clenched her fist, and the concentrated gas started moving. With precise control, she guided it forward, spreading it through the area like an unseen fog.

Her mana pulsed, stirring the currents around her. The gas swirled silently, weaving between obstacles, filling every crack and crevice. Laila's expression was focused, her hands moving in smooth, deliberate motions as she ensured the gas saturated the target zone completely.

Once the whole floor was enshrouded, Richard told Emily,

"Erect a barrier....now!"

A single spark of flame was all it took before a huge explosion occurred throughout the floor—reaching each corner and enshrouding every soldier present on the floor.

*ALERT* *ALERT*

The alarm began to blare, and the loud cries of the soldiers echoed on the floor.

Emily and the other two were protected by the barrier so they didn't feel the burn before Richard told them,

"Head back to the ground floor and meet with Ben! I will be back."

Emily held his hand and hurriedly told him, "Please stay safe, Richard."

The redhead smiled before assuring her, "Don't worry."

...

Flames were spreading rapidly, and Laila was doing her best to prevent the soldiers from extinguishing them by continuously spreading the flames.

Richard exploited the chance and descended to the lower floors.

"Hey, you...!" A soldier, who was ascending, spotted him mid-flight.

Richard raised his hand, and before the man could have activated his skill, his body was completely enshrouded with flames.

Without wasting another moment, he darted down the stairs, his movements sharp and deliberate. The crackling of flames above drowned out the chaos as he descended into the lower levels.

"Stop him!" a soldier yelled, appearing at the stairwell.

Without hesitation, Richard extended his hand, releasing a pulse of flames. The fire engulfed the man in an instant, cutting off his shouts as he fell.

Two more soldiers rushed up from below. One raised a glowing arm, preparing to unleash a blast of magic, but Richard was faster. He swept his hand in an arc, sending a wave of heat that scorched the air. The soldier stumbled, his magic fizzling out before he collapsed.

The second soldier leaped forward, a barrier of light forming in front of him. Richard smirked, his ether flaring. With a flick of his wrist, he sent a concentrated fireball straight at the barrier. The heat shattered it like glass, sending the soldier flying back against the wall.

More footsteps echoed from below. A group of three soldiers rounded the corner, their weapons glowing with energy. Richard didn't slow down. He thrust his palm forward, and a spiral of fire erupted, twisting through the narrow staircase like a serpent. The soldiers cried out as the flames consumed them, leaving only silence behind.

He continued downward, his focus unshaken. Another soldier appeared, swinging a blade crackling with electricity. Richard sidestepped the strike effortlessly, his movements fluid. Before the man could recover, Richard grabbed his wrist and ignited it with a burst of fire. The weapon fell with a clatter, and the soldier collapsed in pain.

'I can feel it...' With every floor, Richard was feeling the presence clearer. However, he still was unsatisfied and wanted to verify it by himself.

"Ah!" Suddenly, he had to halt as he reached the deepest floor of the fortress and was met by a crowd of more than five hundred soldiers filling up the whole floor, all prepared to take him down.

"Stay down, kid, and this will be over quickly for you." The soldier at the front suggested. Richard recognized him—he was the same asshole who touched Emily.

Richard's eyes turned cold as a golden bo staff appeared in his hand, crackling with energy that made the floor quake.

The room fell silent as Richard's gaze burned through the ranks of soldiers. His grip on the golden staff tightened, sparks of heat dancing across its surface. The soldier at the front stepped back instinctively, his bravado vanishing under Richard's murderous intent.

"You should've stayed far away from her," Richard said coldly, his voice cutting through the tension like a blade.

The next moment, he slammed the staff into the ground. A pulse of ether exploded outward, sending tremors through the floor. Soldiers staggered, clutching their weapons as an overwhelming wave of heat began to rise.

"Kill him!" The leader screamed, his voice cracking in desperation.

They charged.

Richard moved like a storm, his staff spinning in fluid arcs. The first soldier's head snapped back as the staff collided with his jaw, shattering bone and sending him flying into the crowd.

Before his body hit the ground, Richard thrust the staff forward, releasing a stream of flames that consumed the next wave of attackers. Their screams filled the air as flesh burned and melted away, their armor glowing red-hot before crumbling.

A spear flew toward him. Richard sidestepped, twisting his staff with precision to deflect it midair, sending it spiraling into another soldier's throat. Blood sprayed like a fountain as the man collapsed, his gurgled cries drowned out by the roaring inferno.

Richard jumped high; his legs curled before he threw his bo staff through the crowd, the purplish current burning the flesh and leaving only the bones of those who came into Ruyi Bang's contact.

Richard was restless, his fist burned with the fury. Anything he touched, turned into ashes. Those soldiers who once were fighting him were not trying to escape.

Their retreat was futile.

Richard raised his hand, and the golden bo staff snapped back to his palm, crackling with ominous energy that made the walls tremble. He spun it once, the flames licking hungrily at the air around him, before slamming its end into the floor. A shockwave erupted, ripping through the room with an unrelenting force.

The soldiers screamed as the ground beneath them cracked and erupted in fiery geysers. Molten stones shot upward, engulfing the fleeing men. Their bodies convulsed as the lava consumed them, melting flesh and bone into indistinguishable pools of ash and gore.

One soldier, desperate, raised his weapon—a massive energy cannon. "Fire!" he roared, his comrades rallying behind him. A brilliant beam shot forward, slicing through the smoke and flames.

Richard didn't flinch. With a flick of his staff, the beam split in two, harmlessly scorching the walls beside him. He moved faster than they could process, closing the distance in an instant. His staff slammed into the man's chest, caving it in with a sickening crunch. Blood burst from the soldier's mouth as his lifeless body crumpled to the ground.

Another minute it all took for Richard to clean up the rest of the mess, and he stood atop the piles of dead bodies with his hands supported by his beloved staff.

In a corner, the same soldier who touched Emily was crying and quivering—seemingly thinking that Richard could not see him.

Richard drew closer to the man before poking him with his staff, "Oi."

"Hiickk!! Please don't kill me! I beg you, please!" He was groveling, head planted on the ground as he begged for mercy.

Richard squatted before suggesting, "If you pluck your eye and ear it, then I might think to let you go."

The man flinched hearing that before he fearfully looked at Richard.

The redhead snarled, "Guess you can't do it." Without another word, Richard stabbed his hand inside the man's chest and plucked out his still-beating heart.

Vitality from the man's eyes disappeared before he fell to the ground, the horror from his face not disappearing until the end.

Richard got up and searched for the place from where the source of Aembr was arriving.

Making his way through the door, he came across a cell that was made just for a single person.

Richard's breath was caught in his throat as he saw her.

Rena.

However, even before he could have called out, a voice interrupted him,

"You are earlier than I anticipated."

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