Night fell over the city with the kind of stillness that never felt natural Mila sensed it first Her magic tuned to subtle currents picked up a faint disturbance outside the stall The rune lines on the doorway flickered barely visible but clearly wrong

She whispered urgently
Something is interfering with the protection grid

Rinna grabbed her hammer ready to strike at anything foreign Evan checked the teleport circle Loras secured the storage room The atmosphere filled with tense waiting

A sudden crack echoed behind the stall A burst of purple light flashed across the back wall Mila ran toward it tracing the rune trail then gasped loudly
They broke the outer runes Someone is inside the barrier

Before Evan could speak the front door slammed open Two masked figures cloaked in violet shadows entered Their steps silent their magic sharp They moved with the precise confidence of trained agents

The Free Traders League had sent assassins not to kill but to dismantle their systems

One attacker threw a rune disruptor toward the stove The device pulsed like a heartbeat ready to detonate into a magic null field Rinna leapt forward swinging her hammer smashing it mid air Sparks exploded across the room

The second attacker cast a distortion spell toward the teleport circle attempting to scramble coordinates Mila countered with a shield of steady white light her voice trembling but strong The spells clashed sending waves through the floor

Evan’s instincts from years of crisis management kicked in He grabbed the emergency rune board pulling it open revealing anti interference sequences meant for magical safety inspections He slammed it onto the counter and activated it

The board lit with blue flame instantly stabilizing half the room’s magic flow slowing the attackers’ spells

Loras shouted as he blocked the back door
They are trying to reach the rune core

The rune core the heart of the entire stall If they cracked it even partially the shop would collapse and the Guild would deem them unsafe

The attackers moved faster One raised his hand gathering violet energy Mila shouted warning but Evan intercepted grabbing a metal tray and using it as a crude shield The violet blast hit the tray launching Evan backward He crashed into the wall gasping for breath

Rinna roared with fury and rushed in breaking one attacker’s arm with a hammer swing The man screamed a muffled cry through his mask

The second attacker activated a teleport escape spell but Mila snapped her hand forward guiding a locking rune that froze the spell mid formation Only the League’s strongest sorcerers could break such a bind

The trapped attacker looked at her with shock Mila whispered
We stabilize flames We can stabilize anything

But then a deeper voice echoed from outside
Enough

Everyone froze as Hadrion stepped into the stall His violet cloak flowed like living smoke His smile cold and amused

He looked at Evan
You refused alliance You chose structure over freedom Now you must accept consequences

Evan stood despite pain
This is not freedom This is sabotage

Hadrion walked slowly fingers brushing the air
Innovation cannot serve two masters The Guild will choke you with rules and you will beg for release

Rinna glared
We will never serve the League

Hadrion chuckled
You already do not understand One spark of fear One crisis Too much paperwork You will see the Guild’s chains soon enough And when you tire of suffocation you will come to us

Evan answered
We will build our own path

Hadrion’s smile vanished replaced with cold irritation
Then the League will burn the path beneath your feet

He snapped his fingers The two attackers instantly dissolved into violet smoke pulled through a teleport channel Hadrion stepped back fading into the shadows his voice echoing

This was the League’s warning Next time we will not leave your systems standing

Silence filled the stall The floor scorched the air thick with leftover distortion Mila knelt beside Evan inspecting his injuries Rinna repaired the cracked rune plate Loras double checked storage and the teleport pad

Mila whispered
They will come again We need stronger defenses

Rinna nodded
And stronger allies

Evan stared at the ruins of their stall then spoke with quiet determined force
We rebuild tonight Not tomorrow Tonight We do not give them a single hour of weakness

They worked until dawn Mila rewriting the protective grid Rinna reforging metal plates Loras polishing stations Evan drafting a new system Crisis Fortification Standards Version One

By sunrise the stall was stable again
But the message remained clear
The League would not stop

And neither would Arcane Flavor