Speed Is King

"For me? As in, they want to capture me?" Jessica Sands half frowned half scoffed in disbelief. "They could try!"

"Jess, you're severely underestimating your worth AND the allure of that worth to the greedy and desperate denizens of the underworld. There are countless powerhouses without a shred of morality and with dangerously low levels of sanity out there.

The power of your Void Walker Clan can only deter so many, it can't scare away all of them.

There are others who would not fear an open war with your clan. And especially not with such a juicy prize for the taking!" Jul'Taras said seriously.

"I… I know." Jessica said with a tinge of alarm at Jul'Taras' serious demeanor. She had rarely seen Jules that way.

The last time she did, it was during her debut as a full fledged Elder Mage of the Elven Mages Guild. She was assigned the difficult and dangerous mission of quelling an uprising within a large solar system.

Over a billion rebels died by the time she was done, three days later.

"This couldn't be as bad as that crazy mission, right?" Jessica couldn't help but think to herself.

She totally had no idea that to Jul'Taras, the issue of her safety was much more important and serious than reaping the lives of a billion rebels!

"Even the simplest upgrade over a common Spell Framework is worth thousands of resource planets. Imagine how much your upgrade on the Reverse Time Walk is worth. Millions, maybe even billions of resource planets!

I have said this before, your little feat with the Reverse Time Walk had created massive shockwaves throughout the magical community.

The power of your last boon had far exceeded the boundaries that simple power boosts from artifacts could give. They are definitely suspecting that you've made some sort of breakthrough with the Spell Framework!"

"I know. I truly didn't expect Elliot would roll the maximum value of the Reverse Time Walk. What are the chances of that? But ultimately, it's my fault for stuffing so much power into the boons. I just wanted my creation to at least be applied in full, somewhere, you know?" Jessica sighed.

"Bright and fiery stars like you need a correspondingly powerful platform in order to shine safely. Without a proper and unassailable platform for you, any display of power would only serve to tempt others to steal you." Jul'Taras said.

"You need to immediately join a large faction and gain their complete protection! Only then can you reveal your power to the world. There are many things I want to tell you about joining factions, but it'll all have to way. Apparently, time is a luxury that we no longer have. The Demon Guards of the Ninth Heaven Mercenary Group are almost here! We need to prepare for battle." Jul'Taras ended her nagging session on a grim note.

"Right. We'll talk more later. For now, let's prepare to fight." Jessica Sands agreed.

"Demon Guards of the Ninth Heaven Mercenary Group?" Monkey King frowned. "They are extremely heavy weight. One of my clan's elders wanted the Patriarch to recruit them for our defense against the other clans, but the Patriarch didn't want to recruit such a dangerous group! Are you sure that they are here for Jessica? They could be here for the Forbidden Box instead."

"Jul'Taras doesn't question me when it comes to my claims about magic for the same reason I never question her when it comes to information. We never exaggerate, and we never say things that aren't absolutely true. If Jules say the Demon Guards are here for me, then they are here for me." Jessica Sands said calmly.

"I don't think the Gaming Commission's forces could last for five minutes against their onslaught, even with all the defensive mechanisms in place. We have to divert our bodyguards to bolster the defenses. If not, then they would be here within a few minutes and we would be giving up the advantage of fighting with the in-built defense system." Jul'Taras thought aloud.

"But they should know that you would do that. Why are they still doing it? Are the Demon Guards stronger than your bodyguards?" Monkey King asked them.

"Against just Jessica's, yes. But with mine, they should be evenly matched. However, I didn't make my arrival here a secret. They should know that I am here. And if the Demon Guards are still advancing in spite of that, then it could only mean two things.

One, they have a secret weapon which could turn the tide around. But I very much doubt that. My spies would have definitely informed me if that's the case.

Two, they are just a diversion… And if they are the diversion, then the real attack would be…" Jul'Taras' voice dropped low at the final sentence.

There was no need to explain the significance of that second scenario. Both Monkey King and Jessica Sands knew at that moment that they would have to fight very soon.

Against several, if not all of the Diamond Sponsors in that very room.

"We need to send our bodyguards to the defensive line. The Demon Guards may just be a diversion, but if left unchecked, they could very well end up being the real attack." Jessica Sands said seriously.

"I agree. We can hold ourselves here. Even if it's against the entire room, which I very much doubt." Jul'Taras nodded and said casually as though she was merely making a simple observation.

"Alright." Jessica nodded and blinked. "Done. They're off."

"Mine too." Jul'Taras said. "Well, now that the Demon Guards are out of the picture for the time being… What say you we do a little pre-emptive attack on the criminals hiding in this room?"

Jul'Taras' eyes glinted with a faint trace of bloodlust.

"Ooooh. I like that. We need to strike in an unexpected way in an unexpected time, and strike hard! Let's do that!" Jessica Sands approved of Jul'Taras' idea and immediately leapt up from her seat.

"What? We don't even know who our enemies are?!" Monkey King protested lightly.

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