Chapter 168: The Mansion Explodes

"You should see the sky."

Reinhard’s expression changed when he saw the prisoner’s smile.

His gaze shifted toward the small black crystal in the man’s hand. It was pulsing now, each flash releasing a wave of compressed Mana that Reinhard could feel even through the restraints surrounding the prisoner.

At the same time, several other Mana fluctuations appeared around the room, coming from the remaining A-Ranks.

They weren’t trying to escape or attack him.

They were activating something.

Reinhard immediately understood what was about to happen. "Everyone, move!"

He didn’t wait for an answer. Space distorted around him as he moved between the prisoners and his family, releasing a massive spatial barrier that enclosed Emily, Maki, Yuna, and Lily.

The captured A-Rank laughed. "You won’t reach Marvello."

Reinhard ignored him, focusing on the people behind him as the black crystal cracked and Mana erupted from it.

"This is bigger than a suicide attack," he muttered, compressing the space around his barrier.

Emily moved toward Maki as crimson and golden light flickered around her. Using her Space and Time abilities, she caught several pieces of debris tearing through the ceiling and suspended them in midair before redirecting them toward an empty section of the room.

Maki reacted at the same time, pushing another collapsing section away from the family with her spatial control. "The entire structure is destabilizing!"

Yuna’s Mana flooded the room as she grabbed Lily by the arm and pulled her toward the strongest section of Reinhard’s barrier, reinforcing the damaged structure around them. Lily stumbled before regaining her balance. "I’m fine!"

"Then help us keep it that way," Yuna replied.

Lily immediately scanned their surroundings and spotted a massive support beam splitting apart above Maki. "Maki! Left!"

Maki threw herself sideways just as the beam crashed down where she had been standing. She redirected the falling structure with her spatial ability, sending it into an empty section of the mansion.

The floor shook as the first explosion hit.

Fire, stone, Mana, and shattered furniture erupted through the room. Reinhard’s spatial barrier trembled under the enormous wave of force, and cracks spread across the floor beneath his feet as the windows exploded outward and the walls folded inward.

He gritted his teeth and reinforced the barrier. His S-Rank strength allowed him to hold the defensive space together, but he couldn’t simply erase the explosion. The force pressed against every layer of his barrier, threatening to crush everything inside.

"Reinhard!" Emily called.

"I’ve got it!"

He compressed the barrier further, forcing the explosion inward and preventing most of its destructive force from reaching his family. The mansion itself, however, had no such protection.

Another explosion tore through the eastern side of the building, followed by a third and a fourth. The walls behind them disappeared beneath successive waves of fire and debris.

Reinhard spread his Advanced Mana Perception throughout the mansion, and his expression darkened.

"There are more."

Maki looked at him. "How many?"

"Enough."

She understood immediately. "They’re destroying the entire mansion."

Unstable Mana signatures were scattered throughout the residence. The Baal strike force had planted devices in multiple locations, preparing to destroy everything around them if their mission failed.

"They’re making sure we can’t use the house for anything," Reinhard said.

Yuna glanced toward the teleportation room. "Teleportation."

"Exactly."

Another section of the ceiling collapsed, forcing Reinhard to expand the spatial corridor ahead of them. "We’re moving."

The family pushed through the destruction together. Reinhard kept their path open while Emily and Yuna protected the others from falling debris. Maki manipulated broken sections of the mansion away from their route, and Lily moved between them, warning everyone whenever another structural weakness appeared.

The halls collapsed behind them as furniture disappeared beneath stone and walls split apart. The garden was buried, and the front entrance became almost completely blocked. Every few seconds, another explosion shook the building.

Their home, which they had only recently returned to, was being torn apart piece by piece.

As they passed the kitchen, Lily glanced toward the refrigerator, now buried beneath a collapsed wall. The room where they had eaten together was gone, and Maki’s expression briefly changed when she recognized the remains of furniture they had chosen together.

Emily slowed for half a second, looking around at the destruction.

This had been their home. It was where they had returned after Elyndor, celebrated their victories, eaten together, trained together, and argued over food. After everything they had endured, they had finally begun building ordinary memories together.

Now those memories were buried beneath rubble.

Reinhard noticed Emily’s expression and reached over to take her hand. "We’ll rebuild it."

She looked at him through the dust. "You don’t even know how much it will cost."

Reinhard smiled. "I’m rich."

Emily stared at him before a small smile appeared on her face. "That isn’t reassuring."

"It should be."

Another explosion shook the mansion, and Reinhard tightened his grip on her hand. "Come on."

They continued moving until the explosions finally stopped. For several seconds, nobody spoke as smoke filled the air and dust settled over the ruined halls.

The family emerged from what remained of the main structure. The Ashcroft residence was barely recognizable. Large sections of the mansion had collapsed completely, the garden was destroyed, and several rooms had become nothing more than piles of stone and broken furniture.

Lily coughed as she surveyed the ruins. "They really blew up your house."

Reinhard stared at the remains for a moment. "I’m sending them the repair bill."

Lily looked at the destroyed mansion again. "I don’t think a repair bill is going to fix that."

"Fine. Replacement bill."

Emily covered a small smile while Maki shook her head. "You’re remarkably calm for someone who just lost his mansion."

Reinhard turned toward her. "I’m not calm." He gestured toward the rubble. "I’m mentally calculating how much money I’m going to make them pay."

Lily laughed despite herself, but the moment passed when Emily suddenly looked toward the teleportation room.

"Wait."

She moved through the rubble, and the others followed her.

The teleportation array had been destroyed. Its intricate runic structure was cracked into dozens of pieces, the central components shattered, and the remaining Mana channels flickered weakly before going dark.

Emily stared at the ruined array. "We can’t teleport."

Maki crouched beside the remains and examined the damage. "It’s completely destroyed."

"Can you repair it?" Yuna asked.

"Not quickly. The central structure is gone."

Reinhard looked at the ruined array. Their fastest route to Marvello had just disappeared.

Yuna reached for her communication device. "I’ll contact Aurelius security."

Nothing happened. She tried again, but there was still no response. Maki checked another channel, only to encounter the same silence.

Reinhard pulled out his phone. There was no signal.

Maki’s expression grew serious. "The communication network is still down."

"Marvello?" Yuna asked.

"Nothing."

Lily looked between them. "So we can’t teleport there, and we can’t even warn them."

Reinhard turned toward the distant horizon. "Then we’ll have to get there ourselves."

Only then did he check the rewards he had received.

[Reward Calculation Complete.]

[Reward Granted.]

A series of notifications appeared before him.

[Legendary Reward Granted: Mana Flood ×3.]

[Effect: A consumable relic that releases an enormous quantity of Mana-infused water when thrown. Upon activation, the relic unleashes a flood comparable to a large lake.]

Reinhard moved to the next notification.

[Additional Reward Granted: Magic Paper Bombs ×1,000.]

[Effect: Consumable magical paper bombs that detonate when activated. They can be thrown individually or in large quantities.]

[Additional Reward Granted: Enhanced Emperor’s Insight.]

[Effect: The perception range of Emperor’s Insight is expanded to the size of multiple buildings. It can now detect Mana-bearing objects, including vehicles, weapons, relics, and defensive equipment.]

[Additional Reward Granted: 10 Years Mana Infusion in Heavenly Pillars.]

[Effect: Two additional Heavenly Pillars are filled. Heavenly Pillars grant Reinhard a 500% overall enhancement when activated.]

Reinhard felt two more pillars inside him fill with dense Mana. He briefly flexed his fingers before continuing.

[Additional Reward Granted: 10 Years Battlefield Warfare.]

[Effect: Grants ten years of accumulated battlefield experience, including large-scale combat, urban warfare, battlefield positioning, enemy formations, evacuation, and protecting allies during prolonged conflict.]

[Additional Reward Granted: Mana Barrier Scroll ×20.]

[Effect: Creates a temporary Mana barrier capable of protecting a small group of people from incoming attacks.]

[Additional Reward Granted: Mana Chain Relic ×10.]

[Effect: Creates Mana chains capable of restraining and suppressing weaker targets.]

[Additional Reward Granted: Emergency Spatial Beacon ×5.]

[Effect: Creates a spatial signal that allows allies to locate the beacon and establish a rally point even when normal communication systems are unavailable.]

Reinhard’s attention reached the final reward.

[Additional Reward Granted: Knowledge — Fastest Route to Marvello.]

[Effect: The surviving Ashcroft vehicle is currently the fastest available method of reaching Marvello from the Ashcroft residence. Attaching an appropriate amplifier to the vehicle will reduce the travel time by 50%.]

Reinhard glanced toward the ruined garage.

So we’re driving.

The notifications disappeared, and he turned toward what remained of the garage. Most of it had been damaged, but one vehicle had somehow survived the explosions.

Lily stared at it. "You can’t be serious."