Lucifer

Beside me, Val pulled a small, silver radio device from her inner pocket. She tapped in a secure frequency code, speaking into the receiver in a low, authoritative voice.

"Team Four, proceed to cavern sector sub-seven. Secure five hostile human remains and isolate the area. Run a full spiritual trace on their mana pathways before disposal."

A crisp, professional voice responded instantly through her earpiece. "Understood, Captain. Perimeter team is moving in now."

She tucked the device away, turning to me. "Even dead bodies can yield critical intelligence. My analysts will extract their soul signatures and cross-reference them with the global database. We will know who funded this attack within twenty-four hours."

"Good work, Val," I said with a nod, shifting the heavy blue mana core to my left arm while carrying the sensory-jamming spear in my right.