I Aggressively Stack Steel of the Heart in the Knight Order

A Tier Two Mage with exceptionally keen Perception peered across the ruin-strewn Tomb Treasure Vault. He vaguely made out the figure of Reinhardt standing in a breach in the wall and, pointing at him, shouted, ”The Ancient Black Box is in his hands—!”

The instant his voice fell,

six Earth Knights, flying just above the ground, shot forward, trying to be the first to reach Reinhardt and seize the Wizard’s Divine Artifact.

However,

as they drew closer to Reinhardt, a Destructive Suppression born from what seemed like an eternity of slaughter and bloodshed descended upon their Knight Perception, crushing their power.

The faces of all six Earth Knights contorted in shock!

’What terrifying Knight Power!’

And when one of them saw the severed head of Warlord Nico lying in a nearby corridor, his very soul trembled! He scrambled to a halt and began backing away in a panic!

”That Warlord... is actually dead?!”

GASP!

By now, the Tomb Treasure Vault had grown so dark it was difficult to see.

Hearing the Knight’s exclamation about Nico’s death, everyone was stunned, as if they couldn’t believe their ears.

’That was Warlord Nico!’

’One of the most powerful combatants in Baze World under Grand Lord Kles!’

’Dead... just like that?’

But when a Wizard cast a Lighting Technique, illuminating the vault, everyone saw him. Standing just outside the breach in the wall was a terrifying figure, wreathed in Blood Flame and holding a War Axe, looking for all the world like an Abyssal Great Demon that had just descended.

His terrifying eyes, burning with Blood Flame, suddenly snapped up to look at them.

An invisible, terrifying aura washed over them, making them feel as if a Black War Axe was already cleaving into their chests. It was like the silent stare of some horrifying creature. The pursuers who had just arrived were all frozen in place, not daring to make the slightest move, fearing death would instantly claim them.

At that very moment,

as everyone watched, a figure flew toward Reinhardt at incredible speed.

”If you want to save him, give me the Ancient Black Box now. Any later and it will be too late.”

It was Irenia, the Daughter of the Death Star.

The cunning Wizard had somehow used an unknown method to evade their Perception, hiding in the Tomb Treasure Vault the entire time.

For her to suddenly appear now and immediately demand the Ancient Black Box... if she hadn’t been an old acquaintance of Reinhardt, she would have been a corpse before she even reached him.

Reinhardt’s gaze passed over Irenia, landing on Agate’s body.

The Ancient Black Box, which resembled a multifaceted black cube, floated and slowly rotated beside his left hand, a steady stream of ethereal blue Energy flowing from it.

An intangible power of annihilation, obscure and indescribable, pulsed from it.

After a moment of silence.

”I hope you understand the price of a lie, Irenia.”

With his permission, Irenia brazenly took the Ancient Black Box from where it floated above Reinhardt’s palm, right under the greedy gazes of everyone present. She gave him a slight nod.

Then, she walked briskly over to Agate’s body.

A deep luster, like the stars of the cosmos, began to emanate from her long hair. She placed one hand on Agate’s head and the other on the Ancient Black Box, positioning it over his wound.

During this process,

one Wizard, unable to contain his greed, attempted to ambush Irenia with a Spiritual Storm and snatch the Ancient Black Box.

But Reinhardt’s terrifying form appeared before him in what seemed like an instant. He clamped a hand over the Wizard’s mouth and lifted him high into the air.

Only then did the Wizard realize what a terrifying being he had just provoked.

When the other Transcendents realized Reinhardt was now standing in their midst, they all looked as if they had seen a ghost. Their gazes, when they fell upon him, were filled with utter terror.

Not a single one of them had been able to track his movements.

’This means that if he wanted to kill us, we would have no way to resist!’

The leaders of the Oreno Family’s group and Lord Anatol’s vanguard team exchanged a look. They knew Reinhardt’s true strength far better than these unaffiliated individuals.

They immediately announced their withdrawal from the contest for the Ancient Black Box.

The Oreno Family’s leader even made a point to offer Reinhardt a gesture of goodwill before departing.

”The Divine Emperor’s radiance shines upon us. Emperor’s Vengeful Angel, the Oreno Family welcomes you at any time.”

Fear of death was one reason. Another was that for Merchant Families like theirs, they could fully accept the Imperial Administrative Region obtaining the Ancient Black Box—so long as it wasn’t Grand Lord Kles or other rival Merchant Families. This outcome wouldn’t affect their commercial territories; in fact, it might even bring them greater profits.

After all, the golden age for Merchant Families like them to amass vast fortunes had been during the reign of the Old Empire.

Most importantly,

the vanguard teams from these major powers had their own channels and understood the current war situation on Kemola.

This Tomb World was now a massive battlefield for the Space Dragon Race and the Demon Legion. If they didn’t leave immediately, then even if they paid a heavy price to snatch the Ancient Black Box from Reinhardt, they would only be taking it to their graves.

Seeing the two major powers withdraw from the contest, the other unaffiliated individuals could only give up as well.

Reinhardt had killed Nico and seized the Ancient Black Box from the Warlord’s hands. His strength was far beyond anything they could handle.

With the Oreno Family having interceded, Reinhardt merely stared at the Wizard who had tried to ambush them for a moment before releasing his grip and tossing him to the ground.

The Wizard, having narrowly escaped death, trembled like a leaf. He collapsed limply to the ground, not even daring to spare a glance at Reinhardt.

Meanwhile,

as Irenia guided the Ancient Black Box into Agate’s wound,

the next moment,

a ripple of ethereal blue Energy spread out from Agate’s body, slowly expanding outward like a wave in water.

Agate, whose heart and lungs had been destroyed, who had been completely dead, suddenly sat bolt upright with a deep gasp, as if waking from a nightmare.

His Mechanical Eye scanned his surroundings in a daze. His gaze then fell on the unique glow of Irenia’s long hair. After a long silence, he spoke. ”You put that thing inside me?”

Irenia, also quite surprised, stood up. ”You knew?”

Agate didn’t respond.

The fight for the Ancient Black Box had come to an end, but there was no time for idle chat on Kemola. After expressing their goodwill toward Reinhardt, the members of the Oreno Family rushed out, burning with impatience to leave.

The people from Lord Anatol were the same.

Even though they could sense the aura of a powerful Wizard’s Secret Treasure on Irenia, Reinhardt’s presence meant they didn’t dare waste another second. They left with great haste.

And so,

the swarm of pursuers who had just burst in now swarmed back out, as if lingering for even a second longer was a fatal gamble.

Silence returned to the Tomb Treasure Vault. Agate showed no joy at his rebirth. Instead, his expression was grave, and he remained silent for a long time.

He tightly clutched the Mechanical Order Faith Pendant hanging from his neck.

’Oh, God of All Machines... why could my soul not return to Your embrace?’

’Why?’

’Why must I endure this painful ordeal...’

’To sacrifice myself for victory was my honor as a Technician Soldier. But to be brought back to life by a heretic’s creation...’

Irenia, however, paid no mind to Agate’s thoughts. She simply walked up to Reinhardt, placed a hand on her hip, and calmly regarded the Imperial Knight who had once served at Frostfire Fortress.

”As you can see, I’ve shown sufficient sincerity. Shouldn’t you now consider fulfilling your end of our agreement?”

And just as Irenia embedded the Ancient Black Box into Agate’s body,

ethereal blue text from the system appeared in Reinhardt’s vision.