"Meow."

"Yes, I know. It seems like the rats have been getting bolder. It's a good thing I have the best predator for such an infestation, right?" Nick murmured, petting Talbot, who was hanging limply in his arms.

Being so far from the farmhouse was tough for a bound spirit. He could only sustain his presence thanks to direct contact with Nick; otherwise, he'd be yanked back to his anchor.

"Meow, meow," Talbot agreed, his eyes shining in the shade. He remained sharply focused on the narrow opening on the top floor of the building, where Nick could sense the two spies setting up.

Previously, they had tried to spy on the diplomatic talks using various magics, ranging from simple spells to complex summons, but he countered every attempt with ease.

He'd hoped his actions that day had been enough to warn them off, but it seemed like his absence the past few days had been interpreted as permission to set up more permanent monitoring systems.

In fact, Nick could sense the presence of a powerful artifact. In the ether, it felt like a sinister, oily cloud, clinging to all kinds of magic around it and blending in with the surrounding mana.

To his wind sense, it was just a brick—something that would be very easy to overlook, especially in a place like the Town Hall, where renovation work was already underway.

It is actually pretty clever. By the time the construction mages Dad is planning to hire arrive, it will have blended with the overall structure, making it impossible to notice.

And given the complete lack of anyone around the Town Hall, tonight was the best opportunity for them to get it in.

In fact, they probably could have just walked in through the main entrance, but it seemed the two were suspicious of the sudden stillness.

"I still think something is going on. This feels too perfect," the younger of the two muttered.

"You will never get anything done if you keep second-guessing yourself," the older one, the mage, replied. He was currently casting a much more complicated divination spell than before, probably to scan the town hall and confirm it was truly as empty as it seemed.

And to find the best place to put the brick. If I wanted seamless efficiency, I would put it in the basement, but I doubt they could get there unnoticed. The unused rooms that are being renovated will work just as well with a little more time, anyway.

Unfortunately for the two, they were looking in the wrong place. After all, he was standing behind them, not where they thought any guard would be.

"Meow," Talbot complained, wiggling his blue paws in the air.

"Yes, I know. You will get your fill, but I want to wait for the perfect moment," he replied, patting the cat.

He was telling the truth when he said he wouldn't need more than some silver, ashes, and quiet. Crassus' Privilege would work very well with just that, especially since he would supply desecrated ashes as one of the components and had found a spirit of innocence to sacrifice.

But he wasn't here just to do that. Relocating Talbot, and more importantly, having him serve as an anchor for the building's protections, would require much more than that.

Initially, Nick was prepared to supply the necessary power himself. He still had several monster cores he could use as fuel, and his reserves were quite substantial these days.

But since the perfect sacrifice had just so happened to present itself before him, who was he to refuse it?

He kept watching, waiting for the moment the men would let their guard down.

An intruder in a magical home had to watch out for many dangers, and more often than not, the risks far outweighed the benefits of looting even the richest families.

Nick had done the very same thing several times in his past life. Of course, the magic he faced back then was more limited, although still very dangerous.

One of the things he'd learned to watch out for was a seemingly unguarded house. As mana gradually disappeared from Earth's atmosphere, many mages had to resort to sacrifice to get the power they needed, and few things could provide more than offering someone willing to violate the sanctity of a home uninvited.

These spies, it seemed, knew just enough to be wary, but not enough to be wise.

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Nick finally saw them relax once the mage confirmed there were no guards left.

"I found a perfect spot. It looks like they are constructing a training room, so they will likely put protective spells there soon. The artifact will blend in well," the mage muttered.

"I don't get it. People have been working here day and night since the Shadow came. Why would they all leave today of all days?" The other asked.

"Who cares. The lord might have wanted the mansion for himself, or maybe he was in a good mood and sent them away early. It doesn't matter; we just need a few minutes, and we'll be gone."

Confidently, the two quickly walked out of the building and into the plaza, sticking to the shadows as they made their way toward the Hall.

Nick took advantage of their ignorance and jumped, using the wind to stretch his stride, until he landed on the Hall's rooftop.

From there, it was simple to slip in through a window he unlatched using telekinesis. Admittedly, doing so with Talbot in his arms was a bit more awkward, but the cat knew to stay still while he worked.

Finally, he headed toward the training room. Or rather, the chamber. It was on the ground floor in the Hall's northern wing, where once private parties had been held.

Nick didn't know when it was last used for its original purpose, but it didn't really matter. It was far enough away from the administrative wing that Eugene could train without disturbing anyone, and that was all that mattered.

Having taken a shorter route than the spies, he arrived before them and slipped inside, closing the door behind him.

Now for the fun parts.

Summoning wind blades to carve into the pavement was his go-to these days, but in this case, Nick didn't bother. Roman magic didn't rely on strict adherence to shapes, after all. It needed meaning, symbols of power.

And what better symbol of power could there be than the residence of a noble home? Though the Hall had not yet been fully converted, the change had already been announced, and so in the people's minds, it had become the place where their lord would reside. That was more than enough for his purposes.

"Meow?" Talbot asked, curious about when he would get to play his part.

"Soon," Nick answered. The moment the two spies entered, he would unleash the spirit guardian, but to prevent the slingshot effect, he first needed to do something.

His dagger released a contented hiss as he pulled it out, and Nick could feel it almost shiver with delight as he pressed it against his palm.

There was a small resistance, and then blood gushed out, splattering on Talbot, who yowled in annoyance. "Sorry, but you need to stay connected to me, and this will give you permission to fully manifest in the material world."

That seemed to be enough to calm him, as the cat went still and his eyes flashed with a dangerous gleam.

Nick gently set his companion down, patting him on the head one last time before slipping further into the room where the shadows would hide him.

Conducting two rituals at once would have been impossible for the old him, but it had become something of a bad habit these days.

Still, most of the work would be handled by Talbot. He only needed to direct the magic and ensure the right spiritual weight was applied to each action.

Closing his eyes, Nick expanded his senses and started tracking the spies' path. They were getting close now, and the dirty, oily feeling of the brick made his skin crawl.

I'm pretty sure that's a demonic object. Maybe not directly from hell, but it's cursed something fierce. If I was hesitant about killing them before, the thought of them putting that thing in my family's home certainly changed that.

That just added another layer to the whole situation. Not only were the spies breaking into his home, but they were doing so with the intention of cursing his family.

It didn't matter that this particular curse was probably meant to monitor them rather than harm them. It was still a curse and would have unintended consequences down the line, whether they intended it or not.

Crassus' Privilege was a Vestal spell, and as such, it rejected any form of rigid control. It only required righteous anger, betrayal, and a lot of fear. Being intoxicated would have been even better, but there was a limit to how reckless even he could be.

Righteous anger, Nick had in spades. Here were two men who plotted against his family, uncaring of the consequences of their actions.

Betrayal stemmed from their intrusion into a private space. It would be finalized when they entered the chamber with the intent of corrupting the entire Hall.

And finally, fear. Fear would come.

By lining the edges of the room with sacred ash, he created a sanctuary whose breach would add an extra layer of protection to the entire ritual, this one from divine forces.

There were no exact words for him to chant, but he still began a litany, feeling that it would add to the atmosphere.

"For help is quick to come in Rome,

You just need to pay the price.

Crassus' men will go to any lengths,

For the sweet taste of gold,

So that their master might delight.

For whence hatred comes from,

Does fear and power build,

For Crassus is a man who fears none,

As the power of the Vestal Virgin shades him."

The moment the chamber's door cracked open, and the two spies stepped inside, their fates were sealed.

The door slammed shut with a bang, startling the two.

"Fuck!"

"A trap!"

To their credit, they didn't hesitate, both clearly experienced enough to expect something to go wrong at any moment.

Unfortunately for them, they weren't facing a mortal enemy. The thrown knife sank into the far wall after passing through its target, while the fireball the mage summoned fizzled out inside Talbot's maw.

Now a giant striped tiger with molten silver eyes and ghostly energy radiating from his form, the spirit guardian wasted no time pouncing.

The younger spy, a rogue by the looks of it, leapt away, trying to sprint toward the door. The mage stayed rooted in place, either confident enough in his skills or aware he wouldn't make it there anyway.

It didn't matter. Talbot swiped with his claws, and the mage was liberated of his head. In the next instant, he was upon the rogue, biting down with his fierce fangs and swallowing half a man in one go.

Silence filled the chamber for a moment before Nick seized every strand of mana, fear, and despair in the air, and directed his will to forge them into a single spell, using the spirit of innocence as both catalyst and forge.

Talbot was at his side instantly, already in his spirit form, and without being told, leapt into the mass of mana, immediately gobbling the pink mist that was what remained of the poor spirit.

Nick's eyes took on a golden glow as he seized the immense power unleashed by the sacrifice, preventing any of it from escaping.

Slowly, he teased out thin filaments, spreading them around the chamber to reinforce the structure and give it resistance to foreign mana.

Crassus' Privilege was little more than a form of domain, though it lacked divine qualities. Nick took greed and arrogance that once shook the heavens and turned them into their opposites. He wrought his love for his family into the magic, using Talbot's experiences as the Crowley's guardian to lend more significance to those emotions.

By the time he had used every last drop of mana at his disposal, the chamber was nearly too bright to look at with his spiritual sight.

Talbot reformed beside him, now wearing a little golden ribbon around his neck. "That was well done, I say. A little gamey, but I don't mind it every now and then."

Nick turned to face his friend with an amused expression. "I will make sure to feed you better spies the next time."