Chapter : 723

"That is a massive lore dump," Ken analyzed casually in his mind. He crossed his ankles. "The developers are mixing magic and technology. That always means the bad guys are part of a crazy cult. They love using ancient symbols. They wear dark robes. They chant very loudly. They have terrible fashion sense."

Sayma hit a few more keys. The digital tool beeped quietly.

"Forty percent," Sayma reported. She stared intently at the screen. "The firewall is attempting to block my access. I am routing the data through a secondary channel."

Princess Iris watched her Vice-Captain with trust. She did not rush her. She knew Sayma was a brilliant tactician. The entire investigation depended on this data.

"Take your time, Sayma," Princess Iris instructed smoothly. "We are safe in this room. The 4th Prince cleared the outer hallway. The guards are too busy dealing with his Vanguard unit. We have a clear window of opportunity."

Ken spun his office chair in a slow circle. He used his feet to push off the floor. He spun around again. He looked at the ceiling.

"I hope the cult does not have a giant laser beam," Ken complained lazily out loud. He stopped spinning. "Cults always build giant laser beams. They point the laser beam at the sky. It ruins the weather. It causes a massive storm. Then the heroes have to climb a really tall tower to turn it off. Climbing towers is the worst part of any adventure. There are too many stairs."

Naomi laughed again. She shook her head fondly. She liked listening to his silly video game theories. They made the scary situation feel normal. She felt very safe standing next to him.

"We will not make you climb any stairs, Ken," Naomi teased warmly. She patted his messy black hair lightly. "We will find an elevator for you."

"You are the best," Ken smiled a goofy smile. He reached for another gummy worm.

Sayma typed a final, long string of commands. She hit the enter button with a sharp, precise tap of her finger.

The blue loading bar on the screen jumped forward. It hit one hundred percent. A bright green checkmark appeared on the display. A pleasant, electronic chime echoed from the tiny speaker. Ding.

"I broke the lock," Sayma announced proudly. She took a deep breath. "The decryption is finished. The root data is accessible."

The entire 13th Unit gathered around the clean metal desk. Laxmi stopped pacing. Zinia turned around from the doorway. Risa stepped closer. Even Luna opened one sleepy eye to look at the screen.

Sayma opened the very first digital folder. A massive document filled the tiny screen.

Sayma scanned the text. Her dark eyes darted back and forth. She processed the information with blistering speed. She read the names. She read the dates. She looked at the signature stamps at the bottom of the digital pages.

A final source detail: the text here was copied from the author's publication without permission, and reading that chapter supports the writer.

Sayma suddenly stopped reading. Her hand trembled just a tiny fraction of an inch. She pushed her glasses up her nose frantically. Her polite face turned very pale.

"Princess Iris," Sayma said. Her voice sounded urgent. The polite tone was gone. "These are not just scientific notes. These are secure communication logs."

Princess Iris stepped right next to the desk. "Who are they communicating with?"

Sayma looked up from the screen. She looked directly at her Princess.

"The people running this underground laboratory are not normal imperial scientists," Sayma revealed loudly. She clicked her silver pen rapidly. "They are members of an extremist faction. They are a highly organized cult."

Laxmi dropped her jaw. The orange spark fizzled out on her finger. "A cult? Ken was right! They are a crazy cult! What is their name?"

Sayma looked back at the screen. She read the official signature on the documents.

"They are the Black Magicians," Sayma stated clearly.

The name hung heavily in the cool, filtered air of the server room. The 13th Unit gasped in shock. A cold chill ran down Princess Iris's spine.

The Black Magicians were infamous. They were legendary villains. They caused the catastrophic fall of the Bluemoon Kingdom. They used twisted, corrupted dark magic. They operated in the deepest shadows of the continent. Finding their name in a secret imperial laboratory was a massive, horrifying discovery.

Ken Eliot sat in his rolling chair. He held a green gummy worm halfway to his mouth. He blinked his sleepy dark eyes.

"Wow," Ken thought casually to himself. He popped the candy into his mouth. He chewed it lazily. "The writers actually brought back the main villains from the previous story arc. This is a very cool crossover event. The plotlines are merging. The stakes just got massively raised. I definitely need more snacks for this."

"The Black Magicians?" Princess Iris asked softly. She gripped her silver rapier tightly. "Why are they hiding in the 5 Wastelands? What do they want with the stolen artifact?"

Sayma opened the next digital file. She prepared to reveal the absolute, terrifying truth. She prepared to expose the ultimate master plan of the darkest cult in the entire world. The investigation was about to uncover a nightmare far worse than a simple giant monster.

---

Sayma typed on her small digital tool. She opened a new file from the decrypted folder. A massive, complex blueprint appeared on her tiny screen. The blueprint showed detailed drawings of giant machines and thick energy pipes.

The intelligent Vice-Captain studied the diagrams. She pushed her thick glasses up the bridge of her nose. She clicked her silver pen. Click. Click. Click.

"They are using the Solurius thermal energy," Sayma reported loudly. She looked at Princess Iris. "The giant mining rig above us is active. It is extracting the raw, toxic heat from the poisoned earth. The rig funnels the immense heat directly down into this laboratory."

Princess Iris frowned deeply. Her violet eyes searched Sayma's face. "Why do the Black Magicians need so much toxic thermal energy?"

Sayma opened another file. This file was a massive digital map. The map showed the entire continent. A bright red line stretched across the map.

"They are not keeping the thermal energy in this laboratory," Sayma explained clearly. She pointed her silver pen at the tiny screen. "They are transmitting it. They are using the stolen Ode to a Black Phoenix as a massive, magical battery. The artifact stabilizes the toxic heat. It allows them to route the energy across a vast distance."

Naomi leaned over the desk. She looked at the red line on the map. She spun her twin silver daggers.

"Where are they sending the power?" Naomi asked bravely.

Sayma zoomed in on the map. She highlighted a specific location at the very end of the bright red line. The location sat in the middle of a massive yellow zone.

"The power transmission is targeted at the western desert," Sayma stated politely but firmly. "They are aiming the energy directly at the desert city. They are targeting Albino."