Magician From the Past

Ethan's Imprisonment

Chapter 5

"Must've been some fight, huh? The mana residue here is crazy," an agent of the Magic Federation remarked as they arrived at the battle scene, inspecting the ruins of what was once Victor's estate-now reduced to rubble.

"Captain! We've found bodies," a woman's voice rang out loudly. Musa approached, his eyes filled with grief as he saw Elaine, his mother, lying dead next to the alchemist king. Elaine's hair had turned gray, though her face still looked young. "She must've burnt her life force," Musa said, pulling himself together. They needed to investigate what had happened.

"Then this must be him, huh?" Rage filled Musa's eyes as he looked at the man who had taken away the innocent mother he once knew and killed off his sister and father. Comfort ran through his heart now that the culprit was caught.

"Scan the rest of the area and find Victor. His company was drained of all valuables, and some of their servers were destroyed. We have to find something," Musa commanded. His team gathered around him.

At that moment, after resting his tattered body from fighting the mutant summons created by the alchemist king, Ethan stirred. Having visited Elaine's memories, he awoke, moving the rubble and catching the attention of Musa and his team. They took defensive positions as Ethan staggered into view. Not only had he used a lot of mana in battle, but he had also employed an advanced Rune of memory on the remaining 25 surviving subjects of Elaine, activating a timed memory spell. Exhausted and battered from the fight, what Ethan had done was no simple feat.

Walking behind a boulder, separating himself from Musa's team, Ethan activated a small dimensional pocket, concealing the storage talisman-like card that carried the spoils Shayne had gathered while ransacking Black Wind and Frost Pharmaceuticals. The spoils were divided among the 25.

"Halt!" Musa commanded as Ethan appeared, a weapon directed at him. Ethan stood, showing his front to Musa, his hands barely raised due to fatigue.

"Who are you? Where do you come from? And what were you doing here?" Musa asked.

"We were just doing some light cleaning, but things got slightly out of hand," Ethan replied. His appearance clearly indicated he had been involved in a fight.

"You call this light cleaning?" A subordinate of Musa challenged. "Though you look like a child, don't think we'll go easy on you." She cast a spell, binding Ethan with vines.

"Well, I guess things did get out of hand, but we were just trying to clean up a bit," Ethan rhetorically answered, engaging the woman.

"Enough! We'll take him into custody for now," Musa declared. "Do you have something to do with everything that happened here?" he asked Ethan, who remained silent as they led him, still cuffed, to the ship they had arrived in.

After a thorough search, they found only a few salvageable documents and no other survivors. The bodies were taken away, and they left, carrying Ethan for interrogation.

The dimly lit room echoed with the sound of footsteps as Captain Musa paced back and forth. Across the table sat Ethan, his eyes a storm of frustration and unreadable emotions. The cold metal chair seemed to mock them both, its unforgiving surface a stark contrast to the warmth of their past.

"What the hell is going on? It's been two days now," Musa finally spoke, his voice edged with impatience. Ethan bound by cuffs inhibiting him from releasing mana to cast spells. They seemed inconsequential against the weight of his silence.

"You've caused quite a mess," Musa began, his voice low. "Victor's empire crumbled, and innocent lives paid the price."

"It seems so. I'm slightly proud," Ethan retorted, his gaze flickering toward the two-way mirror that separated them from unseen observers. The interrogation room held secrets, and the glass reflected his own defiance.

"I did what needed to be done," Ethan replied, his voice devoid of emotion. "And what was that?" Musa leaned in, his knuckles white against the edge of the table. "Why did you attack Victor's estate? What were you after?"

Ethan's gaze remained fixed on the mirror. "Sir, the results just returned," a voice spoke telepathically to Musa, grabbing his attention. "His mind is protected by a strong 200-character spell made of only Advanced runes. We can't use any memory magic on him."

Musa's jaw tightened. "It took four years to draw each Rune," Ethan said, pride evident. "It's something I'm proud of, though I did use a lot of mana stones in the process." His admission caught Musa's attention.

"Were you working with her?" Ethan's eyes bore into Musa's, as Musa diverted the conversation. "Elaine found me when I was lost and had nowhere to go. She made me what I am."

"And what is that?" Musa pressed.

Ethan's lips curved into a bitter smile. "I was a pawn," he stated. "A pawn with one purpose: revenge, something you could not accomplish."

Musa clenched his fists. "That's a lie."

"Am I?" Ethan's gaze shifted to the ceiling. "If you were a mere pawn, then why are you alive and Elaine dead?" Musa followed.

The door creaked open, and a guard entered. "Captain, we've gathered all the documents and analysed them. Nothing substantial. Just a few documents tying Victor to the alchemist king. Nothing about the boy."

Musa's frustration boiled over. "Damn it," he said. "You can't do much to me, can you?" Ethan's calm demeanor unnerved him.

"He's toying with us," Musa stated, more to himself than anyone else. "Even with the little evidence here, you're still going to spend time in prison." He left the room, leaving Ethan to his thoughts.

And so, the decision was made. Ethan was led to a cell, his cuffs replaced by a prison cell enforced with mana suppressant runes. The case concluded, Victor's involvement with the alchemist uncovered, yet nothing tied Elaine or Ethan to the surviving experiments.