Right in front of everyone's eyes, the man named Joker suddenly vanished. There was no flash of light, no ripple of mana, and no distortion of space.
One moment, he stood inside the transparent cube of condensed space magic. His painted smile was frozen beneath the faint silver glow of the barrier. The next moment, he simply wasn't there anymore.
The Governor of Luminos City blinked in disbelief.
For several seconds, his mind refused to process what he had just witnessed. His first instinct was to assume that Princess Riquel had dismissed the spell herself. Perhaps, the clown was transported somewhere else.
Yet, when he turned to look at her, the expression on the young princess's face froze his earlier thought. It was a shock. Her emotion was pure and unrestrained shock.
Princess Riquel stood motionless with her hand that was still raised in the casting gesture. Her normally composed expression had cracked, revealing something the governor had never seen from a royal family before. It was a confusion toward what had happened.
"I did not release him…" she said quietly, "I also did not transport him…"
The governor's throat tightened after listening the confirmation.
Inside the cube, there was nothing. It was just an empty air and that should have been impossible.
The cube was not a simple barrier. It was a prison that was formed by space itself. The interior space was folded inward and sealed. Even if the captive disintegrated into the dust, the particles should still remain trapped inside the boundary.
But shockingly, there was nothing. There was not even dust inside. It was as if the man had evaporated from the existence.
Princess Riquel stepped forward slowly.
Her hand moved and the cube shrank. The big prison of space compressed until it was no bigger than a glass box that was resting in her palm.
She stared into it but she still found nothing. There was no trace of mana and no remnant of a body. The space inside was perfectly empty.
Princess Riquel's fingers tightened slightly around the shrinking cube. Her gaze remained fixed on the small transparent prison as if the answer might suddenly appear if she stared long enough.
However, it did not. The answer was still implausible from the beginning.
Instead, an uncomfortable silence spread through the surrounding.
The guards who had surrounded the area earlier no longer spoke. Even the curious citizens who had gathered at a distance seemed to sense that something abnormal had just occurred. Their whispers gradually died down until the only sound left was the faint rustling of wind between the buildings.
The governor glanced at the soldiers nearby, "Did anyone see him move?"
The men exchanged uneasy looks. One of them stepped forward, lowering his head respectfully.
"No, Governor… He did not move…"
Another soldier nodded nervously, "He was still inside the cube one moment and then, he was gone."
The governor frowned deeply. That explanation sounded absurd even to his own ears yet there was no better description of what had just happened.
He had been watching the prisoner closely. There had been no spell formation, no movement, and no sign of resistance. The man had simply ceased to exist within the cube.
Princess Riquel slowly extended her senses again.
Her mana spread outward like invisible threads, brushing across the street, the rooftops, and the nearby alleys. Normally, even the smallest disturbance in space would leave a trace that she could follow.
But this time, there was nothing. There was no residue and no distortion. It was as if the man had never been there to begin with.
Her brows knitted slightly since this conclusion was wrong. Her space magic did not behave like this.
Even the teleportation required a spatial anchor and produced a brief fluctuation when the caster shifted from one location to another. Such movements could never escape her perception at such a close distance.
Yet, Joker had disappeared without leaving even the faintest ripple.
For the first time since arriving in Luminos City, Princess Riquel felt a small crack in her confidence. If someone could evade space magic so completely, then that person possessed a method that she did not understand.
Anything unknown was dangerous, very dangerous that could threaten her dominance. It could also threat the royal family itself.
The governor noticed the subtle change in her expression. A quiet unease settled in his chest.
If even a royal family could not explain what had happened, then the man called Joker might be far more troublesome than they initially believed. For the first time since she had mastered space magic, Princess Riquel felt something close to unease.
"How…?" her voice was barely audible, unable to convince herself through the reality.
Breaking a space prison was not impossible. If someone's magical power vastly surpassed hers, they could forcibly shatter the barrier. But if that had happened, the cube would have fractured.
The spatial structure would have collapsed violently yet the cube in her hand remained intact. It was such flawless phenomenon which meant only one thing.
The man had not destroyed the cube but he had escaped from it. The governor felt a chill crawl down his spine.
Space magic was the pride of the royal family. It was widely believed to be one of the most powerful magical attributes in the kingdom. For few centuries, no one had ever demonstrated a method to bypass it so effortlessly.
"Could it be a new type of dark magic?" he muttered.
Princess Riquel's eyes narrowed. The dark magic which was the word itself carried a weight of dread.
Only a handful of people understood its principles and most of them were dark wizards themselves. The art was notorious for its unpredictable nature. If Joker had used such magic, perhaps he might be able to but the thought quickly collapsed.
"I felt no mana fluctuation from him…" the princess said and her voice was firm, "If he had cast any spell, I would have sensed it."
The governor also had no answer. The silence stretched, and then, a slow clap echoed behind them. Both of them quickly turned sharply.
Not far away, standing casually as if he had always been there, was the clown-faced man named Joker.
He looked exactly the same. His white-painted face curved into that same mocking smile. The neat colors of his suit swayed gently as he tilted his head.
Princess Riquel felt her fingers tightened around the cube. He had reappeared and it was not inside the cube but behind them.
"How did you escape?" she demanded and her voice carried a sharp edge.
Joker tapped his chin thoughtfully, "Hmm… that's a secret..."
The governor stepped forward, "Did you use dark magic?"
Joker shrugged, "I don't think so…"
"Are you associated with the dark wizards?" the princess asked again.
Joker tilted his head again, "Of course not…"
Every answer was short and careless as if the entire situation was nothing more than a joke. The governor's expression darkened toward the man that showed no fear whatsoever.
Even while standing in front of the princess of the kingdom, he behaved like a performer who was amusing himself.
Princess Riquel studied him carefully.
His body language was strange and relaxed, too relaxed that she wondered what gave him such confidence.
Most criminals trembled when confronted or captured. Even powerful wizards showed their caution when facing space magic.
However, Joker had never shown even the slightest hint of anxiety as if he had always known the cube would not hold him.
"You are mocking me…" she said coldly.
Joker placed a hand over his chest dramatically, "Mocking? No, no… I'm just enjoying the show."
The governor felt his patience wearing thin, "Enough of your games… Who are you really?"
Joker yawned, an actual yawn that felt when the event was too boring. He stretched his arms lazily and began walking in a slow circle around them while humming softly.
Princess Riquel did not move. She was watching him carefully since there was something wrong. Something she could not yet understand but her instincts warned her not to act rashly.
Finally, Joker stopped walking and he glanced at the sky as if he was checking the time.
"I think it's time for me to leave..." he waved cheerfully, "If you want to catch me again, maybe bring someone stronger next time."
"Wait!" Princess Riquel shouted.
But the moment the word left her mouth, Joker vanished again. There was no sound, no mana, and no distortion. It was just an empty space.
She immediately expanded her senses yet the result was nothing. The man had truly disappeared.
The governor slowly exhaled and his mind was racing. He really wondered who was that man.
His target seemed to be the dark wizard yet if someone possessed the ability to bypass space magic so easily, the implications were terrifying.
For few centuries, the royal family's dominance had rested partly on the superiority of space magic. If another power existed that could neutralize it, then the balance of the kingdom might change.
Several factions would rise. Some would support the throne while the others might see an opportunity to rebel. The governor suddenly realized how dangerous this knowledge could become if it was spread.
*****
Meanwhile, far away from the commotion, Baston exhaled in relief since everything had worked wonderfully.
After launching his surprise attack on the dark wizard, he had deliberately left the puppet disguised as Joker behind. The puppet had been captured exactly as he expected.
From the beginning, the plan had never been about winning. It was more about buying the time.
While the princess and the governor focused on chasing the puppet, Baston secretly controlled another puppet to carry the old book away from the battlefield.
By the time the authorities began searching the area, the real him was already far from the danger. His puppet had played its role perfectly.
The rat puppet that had been following the two powerful figures earlier had transformed into Joker at the perfect moment, creating the illusion that the clown could appear and disappear at will.
To the outsiders, Joker would seem like an unfathomable existence. A mysterious man who could defy space magic itself. It was exactly the reputation that he wanted.
Inside the safety of the old book, he quietly withdrew the puppet the moment it became inconvenient.
Now, the disguised puppet continued walking through the streets like an ordinary passerby. No one paid attention to it. Eventually, the puppet turned into a quiet alley.
The surroundings were deserted and he stepped out from behind a corner. With a brief thought, the puppet dissolved and the old book returned to his hands.
Just like that, the exchange was complete.
Baston adjusted his clothes and walked out of the alley as if nothing had happened. A faint smile appeared on his face.
The quest was finished and the combined magic he had used earlier had exceeded his expectations.
By merging ice magic and flare magic together, he had created a piercing attack that was powerful enough to break through the spatial cube and kill the dark wizard instantly. Though it was hard to stabilize, it was worth of his time.
The perfect result from the old book had given him another puppet. It was a new asset added to his collection.
However, the day's events had exhausted him.
There were too many unexpected variables that had appeared. When he finally returned to the inn, he collapsed onto a bed.
He considered going to Paradise Resort to check on Luke but the distance was far and without a noble present, the guards would never allow a mere servant inside.
Besides, Viktor and the dark wizard were both dead. If his guess was correct, Luke should be safe. Still, one question remained.
What had happened to the fake Viktor?
If the controller died, what would happen to the puppet that he controlled?
While he was pondering, the answer arrived sooner than expected.
"Tok… tok… tok…"
Someone knocked on the door. Before he could respond, the door opened.
Luke stepped inside and the noble boy looked perfectly fine. There was not a scratch on him.
Baston blinked since he had expected there were at least some signs of battle but Luke's clothes were clean. His hair was neat as if nothing had happened at Paradise Resort.
"What happened after I left?" Baston asked cautiously.
Luke dropped onto the couch and sighed, "After you left, Viktor approached me and he challenged me with the excuse that I had humiliated his servant."
Baston raised an eyebrow, "He cared about his servant?"
Luke laughed, "Of course not... It was just a poor excuse to fight."
"What happened then?"
Luke leaned back, "I won…"
"So easily?"
Luke shrugged, "I didn't even get the chance to do much."
Baston frowned slightly, "What do you mean?"
Luke's expression turned strange, "The moment the fight began, Viktor suddenly went mad."
"Mad?"
"He started screaming then his body collapsed..." Luke stared at the ceiling, "And just like that, he died."
Baston nodded slowly. It was exactly what he expected.
Once the controlling person died, the puppet would lose its connection. Without the controlling magic, the body simply shut down. To the outsiders, the death would appear mysterious.
Luke turned his gaze toward Baston, "Now, it's your turn… What happened on your side?"
Baston felt a slight headache forming.
Explaining Viktor's death would be easy but explaining the appearance of a dark wizard in Luminos City, that was more complicated.
If the truth came out, Luke might start asking questions. It would be the questions that he could not answer honestly. And about Joker, that name would soon spread throughout the city.
He rubbed his forehead. Perhaps, the safest choice was to reveal only part of the story.
Just enough truth to satisfy Luke but not enough to expose the deeper secrets.
After all, some mysteries were far more useful when they remained unsolved.