The entire city pulsed.
Not like a living place…
but like an artificial mana mine, breathing in rhythm with him.
Ethan took a deep breath.
"Great…" he muttered. "I'm going to have to spend a lot of mana."
Sienna's eyes widened. She rarely saw him go this far.
"Oh no…" she said tensely. "You're not going to melt the whole city, are you?"
"I hope not," he replied. "I need to condense as much as possible."
The staff began to glow.
Not an ordinary glow.
It was far too intense.
The air grew heavy.
The temperature rose rapidly, as if the space around them were being compressed.
Baron Guld's eyes widened.
"What is this…?" His voice trembled. "That heat… that flame…
WHAT KIND OF MAGIC IS THIS?!"
Ethan raised the staff calmly.
"You're going to be the first to find out."
The tip of the staff ignited.
Not with ordinary fire.
It was that same vivid red flame he had used before—only now extremely condensed. An energy so dense it didn't burn.
It erased.
Ethan pointed at the first pile of gold.
"Ignis Blake."
FWOOOSH!
The flame engulfed the mountain of coins.
It didn't turn to ash.
It didn't turn to smoke.
The pile simply… ceased to exist.
Guld froze.
"N–NO!!
MY GOLD!!
MY ESSENCE!!"
His body locked up, rigid like a cornered animal.
But Ethan didn't stop.
He turned the staff slightly.
"Next."
FWOOOSH!
Another mountain of coins vanished.
"STOP!!" Guld stumbled backward. "STOP!!
YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!!"
His voice faltered.
"THAT GOLD IS MY LIFE!!
IT'S MY POWER!!
IT'S EVERYTHING I AM!!"
Ethan didn't respond.
He simply turned the staff once more.
FWOOOSH!
The third pile was erased.
The entire plaza lit up with red and gold reflections.
The people around stepped back—not out of fear of Ethan…
but at the sight of the Baron, the man they believed invincible, falling into panic.
Guld trembled.
"NO… NO…
IF I LOSE EVERYTHING…"
He swallowed hard.
"I DISAPPEAR!!"
His gaze swept over the remaining piles. Not for wealth.
For survival.
Then something changed.
His eyes lit up with a twisted realization.
"I… I need to use everything…"
He began to laugh. A broken, desperate laugh.
"IF I DON'T SPEND IT…
YOU'LL ERASE ME ALONG WITH MY GOLD!!"
He staggered toward the front of the massive golden building.
Coins, bars, and jewels began to vibrate, responding to his fear.
"TOTAL EXPENDITURE!!"
"COMPLETE CONVERSION!!"
"ABSOLUTE ABSORPTION!!"
The coins rose.
The jewels melted in midair.
The bars vibrated like bells.
And then…
All the city's wealth was sucked into his body.
CLANG.
CLANG.
CLANG.
Each impact sounded like a hammer striking incandescent metal.
Guld's skin hardened.
Shone.
Turned into living gold.
System Warning:
Baron Guld has consumed the zone's economy.
Defense and Resistance attributes have exceeded class limits.
Marcus raised his shield instinctively.
"This isn't normal magic…" he murmured. "He's turning into the gold itself."
Elenya narrowed her eyes.
"No," she said firmly. "He's becoming pure greed."
The Baron spread his arms, laughing as the metal climbed his neck, erasing any trace of humanity.
"I AM VALUE!!
I AM POWER!!
I AM FORTUNE INCARNATE!!"
His voice echoed across the city.
When the transformation ended, Guld no longer looked human.
He was a living statue.
A grotesque fusion of man, wealth, and obsession.
Golden fissures pulsed between the metallic plates of his body. The ground around him gleamed, as if it could turn into gold at any moment.
Jay swallowed hard.
"Okay… he got stronger than I expected."
Sienna crossed her arms.
"Still just a walking golden pig."
But Ethan stepped forward.
The flame at the tip of the staff began to compress.
It didn't spread.
It folded inward.
Layers of mana forced the vivid red energy into itself, spinning, being crushed, growing denser and denser.
Within seconds, it looked as if a small sun had been imprisoned at the tip of the staff.
The light pulsed.
The heat warped the air.
The ground beneath Ethan's feet began to crack.
Guld's golden eyes locked onto him.
"YOU… SORCERER…
YOU TRIED TO DESTROY MY WEALTH."
His voice rang like a cracked bell.
"SO I WILL TURN YOU INTO DUST!!"
He raised his arm—now a colossal golden blade—and the ground began to transform into metal, advancing in waves.
Ethan tightened his grip on the staff.
"I need time," he said, not looking away.
His tone was calm.
But absolute.
Jay planted his shield into the ground.
Marcus moved to the flank.
Elenya nocked her arrows.
Sienna stayed beside Ethan, grimoire open.
Emanueru was already forming blades of light.
There was no room for error.
Guld advanced, each step cracking the pavement.
"YOU WILL NOT TAKE WHAT IS MINE!!"
The first blow came down like a hammer.
Jay blocked it—and was thrown backward.
Marcus struck at the golden joints.
Emanueru rushed to heal him.
Elenya fired—the arrow opened only a fissure.
Sienna summoned wolves to slow the advance.
No one spoke.
No one wasted breath.
It was pure combat.
Direct.
Synchronized.