Daneel had been holding his breath this entire time, hoping that nothing would happen.

He had thought that he was some hotshot who could defend himself because he had reached the Peak Warrior level, but he realized just how much of an ant he was after witnessing that display of power.

Although Ashah.e.l.l had used it against him, too, before, this was nothing like that.

No, Daneel could tell that it wasn't some simple spell that could be avoided using some kind of means. It was something so much more, and even though Daneel couldn't tell exactly what it was, he knew that he stood no chance.

So, right now, he threw away all remaining thoughts he had about probably facing Ashah.e.l.l.

Using someone else to remove this threat was best.

Calming down, Daneel realized that it had already been 10 seconds since that moment when the sun had blackened, so he quickly asked Drakos to use that spell to let him eavesdrop again.

As he blinked, the image around him changed, and it as if he was back at the same spot he had been 10 seconds ago.

The Mad Doctor was still floating in the air looking like a corpse, and his Madness Domain was still active.

However, Ashah.e.l.l seemed to have cleaned up. The wounds he had sustained were no longer visible, and he also seemed to have had a change of clothes.

Everything else looked the same, and Ashah.e.l.l seemed to be waiting for something.

3 seconds later, a figure appeared between him and the Mad Doctor.

At the same moment, Ashah.e.l.l turned around and kneeled to the figure.

This was an old man who was wearing maroon robes. He had a short white beard which seemed to be immaculately trimmed, and his white hair fell to beneath his shoulders.

His robes were old school, reminding Daneel of the Kings he had seen in a few textbooks on Earth. There was a scarf of sorts which was around his neck, with his left hand raised to chest level on which the long end of the scarf was draped on.

All in all, he looked to Daneel like one who had just walked out of a court a few centuries ago.

He had an ancient look to him, as if he had existed for a very long time, and this was exacerbated by his eyes, which spoke of such wisdom that couldn't even be fathomed by mortals.

However, now, those eyes were filled with disappointment.

"Ashah.e.l.l. Why am I not surprised?"

His voice was deep, and when Daneel heard it, even though he wasn't at the location, he felt as if it had some kind of hypnotic tone to it, almost as if it were designed to make anyone who heard it obey and go along.

"He broke the laws, so I was just meting out the punishment. I received-"

"A report from one of your contacts. I know. But he was wrong. The Mad Doctor wasn't the one who gave the Echer seeds before, and he certainly isn't using them now."

"What? How? He is trustworthy! I was just-"

"He received information from someone else, and because of a few coincidental reasons, the report was sent forward to you by a mistake by one of his staff."

"A mistake?! But I didn't know! I just wanted to-"

It seemed that interrupting someone was the favorite pastime of this aged man, as he continued doing it without giving any hint of stopping it.

"Mete out justice. Child, the age of a single hair follicle of mine is longer than what you've spent on this continent. You knew that you would not be blamed too much if you did things in this way, as everyone already knows about how…sentimental you are about the continent. I've traced everything that's happened, even though you went to great lengths to hide the traces. You destroyed the Mad Doctor's backups, so there is no concrete proof about anything, and especially about those incidents that you covered up. Your aim was to get away with killing him, after making sure that there was no proof against you to further increase our suspicion that you've struck a deal with the Church. You think you've succeeded, right?"

With everything exposed, Daneel could see Ashah.e.l.l hold his breath.

Clearly, this Hero, whoever he was, had been able to find out everything in minutes.

Daneel thanked the stars that he had a Hero-level Mind Control spell that couldn't be detected by this man, because if that were not the case, even more stuff would have been revealed by now which would definitely have led to his capture and eventual death.

Daneel had been the one to make that 'mistake' happen coincidentally by Ashah.e.l.l's informant using Mind Control, in the same way that he had set everything else up to make this fight happen.

After giving a pause, the Hero continued.

"Wrong! I knew that you might try something like this, so I set up special formations to detect trinkets like these. That's how I was able to come so fast. The Mad Doctor will live, and although he will be in a coma for a considerable amount of time, he will still be able to serve this continent when the time comes. You, though. You thought you were so smart. But for once, the Mad Doctor was smarter than you. You deleted his backup, sure. But you couldn't find this."

As the Hero unveiled a data cube from beneath his robe, Ashah.e.l.l's eyes widened oh so slightly, displaying his shock for the world to see.

Impossible! That guy had made another backup?!

Seeing this, despite the tension of the situation, Daneel couldn't help but snicker.

It was he who had made that backup and placed it in such a way that the Hero would be able to find it.

After all, if he had started scheming anyway, why not see it through to the end?

Of course, the Mad Doctor would be the one taking the credit, but the end result was what was most important.

Especially after that incredible power display, Daneel really, really wanted Ashah.e.l.l to be put away.

Thankfully, for once, it seemed that his schemes were going to pay off in the way he had expected them to.

"It's over, Ashah.e.l.l. I've seen what coverups you've done. The only reason you're still alive is that some on the council have stated that you might be being framed. Only because of that possibility, you will be locked in the best prison we have, until such a time when your guilt or innocence can be proven. Don't bother wasting your breath. The decision has been made. Let's go."

With the last sentence, Ashah.e.l.l was forcefully dragged away in an instant by that Hero, who vanished too, letting the sun s.h.i.+ne again.

As for the Mad Doctor, he had been taken away too, but in a much gentler manner.

As the Madness Domain finally disappeared, Daneel heaved a huge, huge sigh of relief.

Well, the Mad Doctor wasn't dead, but he had practically gotten everything else he had asked for. Ashah.e.l.l was going to rot behind bars, so he would no longer have to worry about that pertinent threat at least for the time being.

However, right now, as the Mad Doctor would be in a coma anyway, it was time for some good ol' looting.

Regaining his enthusiasm, Daneel chuckled and made his way back to the Sect before discreetly entering the Mad Doctor's house again.

If the kind woman who had raised him in the orphanage back on Earth got to know that he had become someone who delighted so much in looting, she would definitely have been quite disappointed.

The guy was in a coma, so he wouldn't miss them. Even if he did, Daneel could handle that later, as Drakos had just told him that with that amount of injuries, it would definitely be at least 6 months to a year before he got revived.

First, Daneel packed away the piles and piles of Ker Gems and the Ker Root, before getting to the really good stuff.

To the back of the vault was a mottled diary, which seemed to have been written by a madman.

Oh, right- that madman was the Mad Doctor.

As he quickly touched it, Daneel got a notification from the system which made his face light up with a smile.

['Mad' Champion Path Obtained.

Type of Champion Path: Original

Level Limit: Peak Eminent Champion

Achievement Unlocked: Large Strides.

Large Strides: By obtaining your first Champion Path just months after advancing to become a Warrior, you have qualified yourself to receive this achievement which commends you for the quick progress that you are making. Congratulations!

10,000 EXP Awarded.]