Something glittered.
Castro Delfio’s sword moved at a speed that was difficult for the eye to follow.
The distance was just right.
However, he had aura.
The blade, enveloped in a blue aura, moved and shot out an intangible energy.
Shhaaa!
A terrifying sound, like sharp blades pouring down.
The noise was so chilling that it made skin crawl.
Ian Oracle and Isera Hebraim instinctively formed runes. They were not ordinary either.
Zziing!
Soon, a thick shield unfurled, blocking the aura sword.
Crack!
It was by a hair’s breadth.
Had the casting been even slightly delayed, the sharp aura sword would have torn the two apart.
“You managed to block it? As expected of the rising stars from the Department of Magic!”
Though Castro’s attack was thwarted, he grinned.
His attack had not entirely failed.
The shield that Ian and Isera had deployed shattered mercilessly with a single hit from the aura sword.
“I held back my strength too much. You won’t be able to block the next attack, will you?”
His words were true.
The shield deployed by instinct operated at maximum efficiency.
If such a shield was easily broken, they wouldn’t be able to stop the next attack.
Ian responded.
“That’s only if we stay on the defense peacefully, isn’t it?”
“Hahahaha! What makes you so bold? As you know, the terrain is disadvantageous for you. Avoiding projection magic is simple. Besides, I’m not alone.”
Castro shrugged his shoulders.
Indeed, there were plenty of terrains around him suitable for hiding.
There were large rocks and, retreating a bit more, corners as well.
Ian still smiled.
“You’re not the same person who was startled at the sight of a 2-star monster bursting out? Did you sober up because you ate a poisonous mushroom out of hunger?”
“It seemed amusing upon reflection.”
With that, Castro once again imbued his sword with aura.
This time, it prepared to emit a much stronger aura.
Evidence of this was the rapidly changing air inside the windless dungeon.
‘This attack is dangerous.’
Ian judged as such.
Castro continued.
“This is not a crisis but an opportunity. A very good opportunity to disguise this as an accidental death… A four-star, no, even a 3-star wouldn’t be too much, right? Though it was embarrassing to be surprised, once I take care of you two, there will be no witnesses, making it very tidy.”
“Who is that unimaginably high-up person?”
“Why do you want to know? When you’ll be dead soon.”
“It’s a bit early to die yet.”
Ian quickly moved his hands.
His hands moved as if they possessed independent intelligence.
It wasn’t only his dominant right hand that was moving.
His left hand also moved rapidly, having put down his staff.
The surprising thing was that the movements of the right hand and the left hand were entirely different.
The right and left hands formed different runes.
“When did you learn that…?”
Isera could not hide her astonishment.
It was ‘double casting.’
Literally a high-level technique allowing for the casting of two spells at once.
Since it required casting two spells simultaneously, only high-circle mages could attempt it.
It wasn’t possible only with a high circle.
A complete understanding of activation principles and theory was necessary.
However, Ian’s unique circle array made it possible.
The problems of theory and dexterity were solvable with effort.
He had already reached a stage where he could use both hands freely.
“You had your reasons for running your mouth!”
Castro saw through Ian’s trick.
Though there was a smile on his lips, his brow furrowed.
Castro raised his sword high.
“Your little tricks end here!”
Then, the powerful sword energy was shot.
Swhoooooosh!
The sword energy flew with a force seemingly capable of tearing through space.
Simultaneously, Ian’s runes were completed.
Mana and aura were fundamentally the same type of energy.
Though completely different in the manner they were drawn upon, they stem from the same roots.
Thus, Ian thought.
‘Defending isn’t the only way. I have to counter it!’
Finally, Ian’s spell was completed.
『Lightning Spear.』
Ian chose a fast projectile.
The lightning spear, which had previously subdued a 2-star Lycanthrope in one strike, clashed head-on with the incoming sword energy.
KWAANG!
The cave trembled tremendously.
Dust and debris fell from the ceiling.
The outcome was unknown.
One could only know once the dust before their eyes settled.
But Ian did not let down his guard.
『Firebolt.』
The second spell, equipped with a new formula, fired in rapid succession.
A swift chain spell that allowed no gaps.
Boom!
The Firebolt that shot straight collided with something and exploded.
The shockwave erupted, filling the surroundings with dust once again.
“Hahahahaha! How delightful!”
A black figure surged through the dust.
It was Castro.
『Shield.』
Isera deployed a protective barrier.
However, Castro easily swung his sword, shattering the shield.
Crack!
“Ugh.”
Isera shuddered slightly.
The powerful impact transmitted at such proximity affected the caster.
Normally, one would cough up blood or collapse, but Isera stood firm.
The reason was separate.
Snap!
The moon-shaped pendant around her neck shattered into pieces.
The chain was completely broken, dropping to the floor.
“Huh? What’s this? An artifact, huh? Oh, right. You were nobles, even if only from a vassal state, huh?”
Castro sneered.
When the pendant broke, it released mana, pushing him back.
They bought a little time.
“Are you okay?”
“…….”
“Senior!”
Isera didn’t respond.
Though she seemed fine externally, her face was dejectedly staring at the ruins of her pendant.
Grrrr….
She gathered her mana.
And not just her magic.
“Unforgivable.”
Pure wrath was emanating.
It was the first time Ian had witnessed Isera so angered.
『Fireball.』
A massive fireball shot towards Castro.
But he easily hid behind a rock.
『Lightning Spear.』
A lightning spear imbued with divine wrath struck the rock.
Boom!
Besides the new spell formula, Isera’s mana was no joke either.
As stones flew about, creating dust, a surprise participant entered the scene.
“Nyaooong!”
A cat materialized, extending its claws.
The claws, sharper than swords, targeted the exposed back of Castro’s neck.
『Die!』
“Tch!”
The cat had waited for this moment.
Rather than awkwardly assisting, it judged a sure strike was better.
The attack targeted an awkward angle difficult to dodge.
Castro sensed he could not avoid it.
Instead of countering, he pressed his blade to the ground, spinning his body in a peculiar fashion.
Swipe!
A long scratch was drawn across his cheek as the focus misaligned, red blood splattering. However, it did not cut his neck.
『Hmph! Lucky fellow!』
“You mongrel cat!”
『How dare you spew your dirty mouth? I am a great spirit!』
The cat’s claws were up again, rushing in, but Castro easily blocked it with his sword.
At that moment, an unexpected killing intent surged from behind.
Castro’s pupils widened.
“This damn—!”
Though weaker than Castro’s, a vividly blue sword energy was aimed right at his back.
It was an entirely unforeseen attack.
KWAANG!
Having barely swung his sword to avoid death, Castro gritted his teeth.
“You piece of trash! Have some sense! Attack me? You never abandoned that despicable nature of yours crawling at the bottom, huh!”
The one who launched the sword energy was Roche.
Thanks to him, Ian, Isera, and Goyang managed to recompose their formation.
Roche gazed at Castro with an indifferent expression.
“I understand now. You do not fight for His Majesty the King or the kingdom.”
“What kind of nonsense are you spouting? We are cadets! Living and dying on orders is our—!”
“Whose orders?”
“…….”
“Not answering proves that it isn’t a rightful order. Isn’t it?”
Roche once again gathered aura into his sword.
In Ian’s hand was an electric whip.
On Isera’s staff was a grand fireball, and at their feet, Goyang prepared to spring forward.
In an instant, the battlefield reversed, and Castro was cornered.
‘Damn it! If only that guy just held his position, I could’ve easily killed those bastards!’
Facing two and facing three were worlds apart.
Moreover, Roche possessed reliable skills.
‘I didn’t verify enough! I should’ve been more cautious! Damn it!’
However, it was not his orders.
The mistake was from above.
As this thought occurred, he felt an overwhelming despair washing over him like a tidal wave.
“Once you get out of here, you will be expelled! This is your last chance! Put away your sword! No, attack them!”
“I cannot follow that order.”
“You’re not the only one who’ll get hurt! Your family—!”
“Silence.”
Assuming a sword stance, Roche felt Castro’s apparent murderous intent directed at him.
“It is better to lay down the sword than to commit an injustice. You don’t have to worry about my family. They will be pleased with my choice.”
“You insolent—!”
“That is true chivalry. Brace yourself.”
Roche charged forward.
Castro, barely managing to raise his sword to defend, found it impossible to withstand the combined attacks of Ian and Goyang.
Clang!
Crackle!
Clang! Clang!
Swish!
“Arrrrgghhh!”
Castro howled.
Blood flowed freely from his wounds, and the spot hit by the electric whip was charred black.
His stamina was gradually depleting.
The aura that exuded like the deep blue ocean had already lost its brilliant shine.
Woosh!
At that moment, Isera’s fireball shot forward.
The fireball narrowly skimmed Castro’s head and struck the ceiling of the passage behind him.
Bang!
Rumble…
“No!”
A critical blow befell Castro.
His heart wasn’t pierced by a sword, and his neck wasn’t wrapped by an electric whip. Instead, collapsed stones had completely blocked his way out.
At the same time, Castro lost all will to fight.
“Senior.”
Ian signaled with his eyes.
Isera nodded.
Both of them simultaneously stretched out their hands, pouring out pure magical energy to its maximum.
Mana collided with mana, forming a single point.
And onto that small point, massive energy gathered.
Whooompf!
“Guh?”
Castro, hitting an invisible force, flew towards the wall.
Only after flying dozens of meters did he finally crash into the wall.
“Gahhh!”
He coughed up blood and lost consciousness right there.
With that, the battle was over.
‘That was close.’
The exhaustion of magical energy was extreme.
Castro had held on desperately.
In a long battle, mages are at a disadvantage.
As stamina drops, the consumption of magical energy increases at that rate.
Ian retrieved a mana potion from his pocket, handing it to Isera and drinking another himself.
Kindly, Isera shared half of her potion with Goyang.
“Baron, are you all right?”
Roche approached and asked.
Ian, having emptied his potion, nodded.
“Thanks for helping. Had it not been for you, things might have taken a bad turn.”
“No need for thanks. I merely did what one aspiring to be a knight should do.”
“Now, we need to wrap this up, right?”
Ian took a sturdy rope from his bag.
After enchanting it, he tightly bound Castro.
“Unfortunately, we have to postpone conquering the dungeon. We need to hand him over to the Academy and investigate.”
“Will that be okay?”
“Probably not.”
If the orders had come from a high level, they could issue a cover-up or retaliate.
“Still, we can’t get him taken down here. We have to see it through to the end. We need to find out who gave the orders.”
“Understood.”
“Don’t worry too much. I’ll make sure nothing happens to you, Roche.”
“I am fine. I was prepared for this.”
At that moment, Isera approached, still bearing a face full of simmering anger.
It was one thing she couldn’t tolerate—the broken pendant.
Snap!
“Ahhhh…”
Crackle!
Isera continued the electric shocks until he begged for forgiveness.