Leon glanced at the ice crystal mirror floating in front of him—used for observing the corridor’s blind spots—and his lips curled into a playful arc.
"Think I can't see just because I don't stick my head out? Naive."
He still only extended his right hand past the doorframe.
This time, his five fingers spread wide, his fingertips dancing rapidly in the void as if he were playing an impassioned piano concerto, wantonly scattering lethal notes.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—Bang! Sizzle!
【Fireball】, 【Frostbolt】, 【Wind Blade】, 【Arcane Missile】...
A series of multi-colored, light-dappled low-level spells—or rather, cantrips—that weren't even at the 【Transcendent】 level, poured out like cheap fireworks. They formed a dense barrage, cascading chaotically into the corridor!
The energy levels of these spells were extremely low, consisting entirely of cantrips or first-circle spells. After the frantic volley, the total mana consumption wasn't even a fifth of the previous 【Flame Storm】.
They didn't deal much damage, but they were highly insulting and, above all, incredibly annoying.
"Waaagh!"
"Fuck! What is this?! My eyes!"
The two Black Tail Gang thugs charging at the front were instantly hit in the face by this sudden barrage of magical fireworks.
Sparks exploded against their crude wooden shields. Before the heat could even fade, frost began to congeal on their eyebrows. Immediately after, wind blades sliced through their trouser legs, and arcane missiles pelted their foreheads like hailstones.
"Dammit! What kind of formation is this?!"
The werewolf Kofman was also startled by this chaotic display, nearly turning to run.
He swung his scimitars to parry a few times, only to realize they were all just harmless trash spells.
"Fuck! Scared the hell out of me!"
He roared, "They're all just cantrips! He's bluffing! Push forward! Hold your ground! He's almost spent!"
Hearing this, the lackeys had no choice but to brace themselves. They used their small round shields—no bigger than pot lids—to protect their faces, enduring the dense "magical fireworks" as they howled and continued to advance.
However.
"Aaaaah!!"
A shrill, agonized scream suddenly tore through the noisy corridor.
An inconspicuous cyan wind blade, devoid of any flashy light effects, had somehow blended into that colorful display of fireworks.
It was silent and stealthy, yet it struck at an extremely tricky and sinister angle!
Pfft!
The thug charging on the far left, along with his pathetic wooden shield, was sliced diagonally from his right shoulder to his left hip like butter by this high-energy 【Enhanced Wind Blade】 that had been compressed to the extreme!
His upper body slid off.
Scalding blood and organs spilled out with a wet thud, splashing all over the companion behind him.
That companion didn't even have time to register what had happened before he was knocked down by the mangled corpse. Immediately after, his limbs were precisely frozen by several 【Frostbolt】 shots that had already predicted his landing spot.
"Dammit! You cunning bastard!!"
Kofman's eyes nearly split with rage as he cursed inwardly.
What kind of greenhorn was this? This was clearly an experienced little wretch!
Playing the pig to eat the tiger, are we?!
A small flicker of unease rose in Kofman's heart, but he suppressed it.
After all, the arrow was on the string and had to be fired! There was no turning back now, and... the corridor was almost at its end. He was less than ten meters away from that door!
"Charge!"
Kofman grew desperate. He violently kicked the backsides of the two dazed, blood-soaked lackeys beside him, sending them flying forward like sandbags to act as meat shields to draw fire.
"Hold it!"
While those two were drawing Leon's barrage, Kofman's legs suddenly exerted power, propelling him forward like a hunting leopard!
The two scimitars he had been holding danced in front of him, creating two impenetrable walls of cold light that parried several stray missiles.
Immediately after, he leaped into the air!
Shhh—!
His sharp wolf claws dug deep into the wooden crossbeams of the ceiling. He hung there like a giant inverted spider, using the steam as cover. With a few bounds, he silently reached the top of the ruined doorframe!
He intended to drop from above and decapitate the mage before he could react!
However.
Through the reflection of the ice mirror and the sound of breaking wind—still clearly audible amidst the noise—Leon had already seen through every one of his opponent's moves.
"Heh, not bad."
Leon withdrew his "piano-playing" hand.
He didn't panic. Instead, he snapped his fingers.
Crack!
A wall of solid ice, twenty to thirty centimeters thick and emitting a bone-chilling mist, rose from the ground, instantly sealing the ruined doorway shut!
But this wasn't for defense.
Without even looking at the ice wall, Leon pulled Lucrezia back two steps, taking the opportunity to absorb another 20% of her mana.
He raised his right hand, aiming his palm at the ice wall. Taking a deep breath, he began to chant loudly in an extremely exaggerated, rhythmic tone, as if performing an operatic aria:
"O flames of the... uh... that... Red Lotus? Yes, flames of the Red Lotus that incinerate all!"
"Hearken to my... ahem, ancient summons!"
"Gather here... and uh... become... er... the judgment that destroys all..."
Leon's voice was as resonant as a bell and carried immense penetrating power. To increase his credibility, he even added a charlatan-like quiver to his final syllables, making it sound like the final swan song of some constipated archmage.
"Huh?"
Lucrezia, hiding in the corner, suddenly had her eyes light up. Her heart raced.
Why did he suddenly start chanting? He’s even using an incantation?
This level of pressure... these lines... could it be that he's about to cast a legendary forbidden spell?!
The girl's mind was already filled with images of world-ending destruction. She was so excited she almost jumped up to applaud.
However, in the next second.
Her keen red eyes blinked in confusion.
Something was wrong...
As someone with a formal education, she instinctively sensed the mana flow in the air.
There was absolutely none of the violent mana fluctuations that would cause the world to change color?!
Besides... when did his mana become enough to cast a forbidden spell?
Is it fixed? No... and he didn't drain my mana either?
Listening more closely to that incantation...
Why was it so stuttery? He couldn't even keep the rhymes straight... Was this 【Pyroblast】?
Not quite... this... this sounds more like he's making it up as he goes! Hey!
What on earth is this guy doing?
Lucrezia was completely thrown off by Leon's bottomless display of antics.
Outside the door, on the ceiling.
Kofman, who was hanging there preparing to break through the wall, heard that familiar, long, and pressure-filled chant.
His pupils shrank violently, and then a cruel, ecstatic sneer crossed his face.
These lines... these fluctuations... it was the incantation for 【Pyroblast】!
As a 【Heroic】 rank rogue who had spent years living on the edge of a blade, he was all too familiar with the tactics of mages.
A big move of this level required a casting lead-in of at least five seconds! And he couldn't move during the process!
Is this your trump card?
Five seconds? Hahahaha!
Kofman laughed maniacally in his head.
Too slow! Too slow! You're dead, kid!
You think this flimsy ice wall can stop me for five seconds? You're severely underestimating me!
Kofman knew very well that to break through this hastily condensed and relatively thin ice wall, he would need 1.37 seconds at most!
The remaining 3.63 seconds would be more than enough for his scimitars to slit that idiot mage's throat ten times over before he finished that long, stinking incantation!
Even if the opponent forcibly interrupted the spell, the agony of the backlash would cause him to stiffen instantly. In that moment, even if Kofman had to tank a counterattack, it would be enough to slaughter him!
Die! 【Shadow Strike】!
The green light in Kofman's eyes flared.
His right-hand scimitar was suddenly coated in a layer of ominous shadow energy. He plummeted from the ceiling like a bolt of black lightning, slashing fiercely toward the ice wall!
Rate on N.U.
