Cold serrated teeth tore through the psychic barrier, piercing uniform and flesh. Warm blood sprayed out, instantly staining Marco's back crimson.
Marco's entire body stiffened. He turned his head slowly in disbelief, met by Buer's featureless, indifferent face.
"Buer, you..."
Marco's voice was raspy and broken. The searing pain in his chest intertwined with the shock in his heart, leaving him almost unable to breathe. He truly could not comprehend why a fellow comrade of the Heretic Inquisition, a partner who stood side-by-side against Chaos heretics, would suddenly turn traitor and thrust a blade into his back.
Buer withdrew the blade and sneered. "Old Ma, oh Old Ma. It seems your reactions are even duller than I anticipated. The one truly cooperating with Lacy... is me."
"We are both defenders of the Empire. Fighting Chaos is our duty. How could you betray the Bureau?"
"Defenders? Duty?"
Buer laughed out loud as if he had heard the greatest joke in the world. The laughter echoed across the empty plaza, tinged with madness and mockery.
"Marco, you're too naive. This so-called 'duty' is nothing more than a shackle the Inquisition uses to bind you and me. You have no idea how powerful the forces of Chaos truly are. Only by cooperating with Lacy can I obtain true liberation."
As the words fell, Buer snapped his fingers.
The grey-robed figure that had been confronting Marco previously—its rigid body began to move once more. Suddenly, the figure's entire form disintegrated, transforming into a streak of light that returned to Buer's body. The moment the light entered Buer, his aura underwent a drastic change.
The deep blue purification energy that originally swirled around the chain-blade was instantly replaced by dense, purple-black Chaos energy. The energy tumbled around him like a living creature, and even his eyes took on a faint purple glow.
"Do you see it now, Marco? This is the power of Chaos. It makes me stronger. That grey-robed puppet was merely a clone I refined using the secret arts of the Lord of Change. It could stall you while hiding my Chaos energy—simply perfect."
Marco staggered back two steps. Blood continued to gush from the wound in his back, soaking his uniform. His already pale face turned ghostly white, and his breathing became weak and rapid. The golden psychic energy in his palms fluctuated violently but could no longer condense into form. He could only stare at Buer with eyes full of disappointment and rage.
"You... you planned this from the very beginning. You deliberately had Gary divine Lacy's location to lure us here?"
Buer nodded. "A correct guess. At least you have some brains left. Gary is far too trusting; I only needed to use a little Chaos sorcery to make him perform the divination exactly as I wished. He doesn't even know that the 'critical clues' were all illusions I deliberately planted in his mind."
He paused, a cruel smile curling his lips. "I expect that before long, your little companion will be killed by the Gary I'm controlling. Enough talk. It's time to send you on your way."
Before the words had fully faded, Buer raised his hand. The chain-blade revved again, its humming teeth carrying dense Chaos energy as it swung violently toward Marco's neck. His movement was fast and ruthless, showing no mercy.
Squelch!
With one swing, the head fell.
Warm blood erupted, splashing across Buer's face. He didn't care in the least, even reaching out his tongue to lick the blood from the corner of his mouth. Marco's head rolled onto the ground, eyes wide open, still retaining traces of resentment and disbelief.
Lacy, half-kneeling before the pedestal, watched Marco's fallen corpse with no emotion on his face, as if he were looking at an insignificant piece of trash. Then, his gaze shifted toward Buer.
"Buer, well done. I didn't expect your art of deception to be utilized to such a degree, leading your colleague around in circles."
Buer wiped his face and turned back. "Compared to your plan for world destruction, this is just a minor trick. The Heart of Soul-Devouring is nearly complete. Is it time to fulfill our agreement?"
Lacy ran his hand over the pulsing dark green heart on the pedestal. The dark red energy from his fingertips intertwined with the green light of the heart, and the blood-colored glow of the sacrificial array grew even more intense, nearly enveloping the entire plaza.
Lacy smiled. "My friend, I naturally won't go back on what we agreed. Once the Heart of Soul-Devouring fully awakens and helps me complete my Ascension, I will help you strip the Imperial Brand from your body. I will let you fully control the power of Chaos and escape the shackles of the Bureau."
"Hmph. It better be so." Buer gripped his chain-blade tightly, the purple Chaos energy flowing over the teeth. "I've killed a colleague and become a heretic in the eyes of the Bureau; there is no turning back. If you dare to deceive me, I will drag you down to the grave with me even if it takes everything I have."
"Save it, Buer. You're in no position to negotiate with me." Lacy's tone suddenly turned cold, and the dark red energy around him surged. "Don't forget, you were the one who begged to cooperate with me, and I gave you the chance to break your chains. Once I obtain the power—as the prophecy foretells—and ascend to become the true World Destroyer, let alone stripping a brand, it wouldn't even be impossible to help you become a Chaos Lord. But before that, do what you're supposed to do. Clean up all the meddling vermin."
Buer sighed. "Fine. I'm going." He picked up his chain-blade and walked toward the southern side of the plaza.
Meanwhile, on the southern side of the abandoned plaza.
Byrne was panting heavily. A short distance away on the ground, Gary lay unconscious.
Earlier, just as Byrne had emerged from his hiding spot, he had run straight into Gary. Initially, Byrne thought Gary was there to rendezvous and pincer Lacy. He was about to call out when he was startled by the eerie purple light in Gary's eyes and the Chaos aura surrounding him. The feeling was very similar to the grey-robed figure Byrne had seen in the playback images.
Gary had then attacked him like a madman. After a fierce struggle and considerable effort, Byrne finally managed to knock him unconscious. Having recovered some strength, Byrne walked over to Gary and pressed a hand to his forehead. After probing with psychic threads and confirming there was no residual Chaos energy inside Gary, he breathed a sigh of relief.
Whoosh!
At that moment, the sound of breaking wind came from behind Byrne. Startled, he reacted almost purely on instinct, rolling to the side. He didn't even have time to look back; he could only hear the sound of the ground shattering behind him.
After rolling several times, Byrne managed to steady himself. He immediately pulled out "Black Fire" and fired several shots back toward the source of the sound. Unfortunately, these hasty shots had no killing power against Buer; he blocked them all easily with his chain-blade.
"Heh. Quick reflexes. You actually managed to dodge my surprise attack."
Seeing Buer, Byrne asked in confusion, "I didn't expect you to defect. Where is Captain Marco?"
Buer chuckled. "Marco is already dead. I'm sending you to meet him right now."