Chapter 26

Kwaaarrr-

Fiery red orbs blossomed around him one after another.

They shot forward as soon as they took shape.

Kwaaah! Kyaahh!-

Four fiery orbs collided with the wraith and exploded in succession.

The wraith screamed and evaporated.

Kwaaang!-

The two that missed hit the debris.

The front part caved in, and bone fragments flew in all directions, but the fallen pieces quickly filled the gaps.

But regardless.

“...”

Philip and Miguel stared at Ian with wide eyes.

Their gazes were filled with shock and disbelief.

“It can’t be...”

It was a natural reaction, after all.

Ian being a mage was something they had never even dreamed of.

“Are you done gawking? Snap out of it, you brats!”

Ian, who had calmly added this, turned around with a smirk.

He felt relieved after actually casting magic.

“Since I’ve already used it... might as well use it properly.”

Ian chanted and launched himself.

He clenched a fist-sized fireball in his left hand.

Kwajik- Pwoosh!

Another explosion occurred, the number of which he had lost count.

A ghoul knight shattered into pieces, and the surrounding skeletons were scattered.

‘Now everything makes sense.’

Maeve, watching Ian’s back as he charged through the gaps, recalled the dark mage’s whisper.

The red rag. Why hadn’t she even considered that it could be Ian?

It was just that it didn’t seem to fit his appearance.

Insight and knowledge. Discernment and foresight. A cautious and secretive nature.

Looking back, many of Ian’s mysterious aspects suited a mage.

Of course, mages were beings who carried all sorts of sinister rumors and anecdotes, and were the closest to madness.

But Maeve believed what she had seen and experienced herself more than those rumors.

She even felt a bit relieved.

The red mage she had been determined to find turned out to be Ian.

‘In the end, I’ll owe him again.’

In fact, she was already in his debt.

She had been prepared to exhaust all her holy power, but thanks to Ian, their progress had sped up significantly, and she no longer needed to struggle to hold back the debris.

The speed at which he advanced was much faster than it appeared, but it wasn’t fast enough to catch up with him.

Kii... Kiiit-

Now, the only enemy Maeve needed to be wary of was the enraged wraith that kept appearing and disappearing.

Ian’s attack had been so lethal that the wraith didn’t approach the group for a while.

It only circled around, emitting a disturbing breathing sound instead of laughter.

But Maeve was certain it would attack again soon.

It was still following them, after all.

She continued running without revealing her thoughts.

To make the wraith let its guard down.

Only then would it come closer.

That moment didn’t take long to arrive.

Kiiiiit-

The breathing sound above her head.

Maeve, who had immediately let go of her sword, caught the hilt of the falling blade and swung it upward in one fluid motion.

Flash! A blue line of holy power cut through the air.

The line pierced the wraith vertically.

The wraith’s hand, which had been covering its face, dropped.

Kyaah...

A hideous skull, covered in matted hair, split apart with a scream and crumbled into a pile of ashes.

“I’ve taken care of the wraith, Ian!”

Maeve shouted.

Ian, who had been running and scanning the surroundings, turned to look at her.

“Now, don’t lose sight of me! We’re approaching a fork in the road!”

“A fork...? Got it!”

Maeve tilted her head in confusion.

What puzzled her was that Ian spoke as if he had been here before.

Was this another of the many mysteries surrounding the mage?

But her new question didn’t last long.

“...?”

Ian’s defeated ghoul knight had caught her attention.

Ian didn’t even look back at the ghoul he had killed, but Maeve couldn’t just pass by the crushed ghoul knight.

‘Could it be...’

The form of the armor the ghoul wore was very familiar.

It was identical to the armor worn by the kingdom’s royal guards.

The necklace Ian had found at the stairs flashed through her mind.

The ominous thoughts she had tried to forget resurfaced vividly.

‘Could it be...’

Maeve, who had stopped, knelt down.

She grabbed the corpse with trembling hands.

The deer antler emblem engraved on the seam of the armor.

After frantically searching the corpse, a broken nameplate finally fell into her grasp.

With shaking eyes, Maeve confirmed the name engraved on it and finally lowered her head.

It wasn’t Vernon.

“H... Haha.”

A sigh, whether of relief or something else, escaped her lips.

At that moment, the essence in her bosom, which had been resonating, suddenly spread its magic.

Maeve, who had been about to invoke holy power, hesitated.

It wasn’t the dark mage.

A familiar yet unfamiliar, contradictory presence of someone else.

“...?!”

Maeve’s head snapped to the left.

The purple eyes of countless undead.

Whatever was resonating with the essence was beyond them.

It seemed to be calling to her.

“...Sir! Sir Liurel! Maeve!”

Ian’s voice, imbued with magic, barely brought Maeve back to her senses.

Blinking, Maeve turned her head to the right, where the voice had come from.

The scattered remains of the undead.

Philip and Miguel, who were running over the debris.

And beyond them, in the middle of the corridor, Ian with wide eyes.

His voice continued.

“Be careful!”

“...!”

Maeve instinctively launched herself and rolled on the ground.

Chaaarrrr-

A pile of bones rained down on the spot where she had been kneeling.

The corpse of the ghoul knight was buried and disappeared in the debris.

The debris of death had already approached dangerously close.

“M... My Lady!”

Philip and Miguel, who had belatedly realized the situation, changed direction and ran towards her, almost rolling on the ground.

Maeve, rolling repeatedly, panted for breath.

Perhaps from the shock, the armor that usually felt like a second skin now felt as heavy as lead.

“My Lady...! Are you alright?”

Philip, who had grabbed her arm and helped her up, asked.

Miguel, supporting her other arm, looked at her.

“Surely you didn’t get injured again-”

Kugugug-

A familiar vibration drowned out his voice.

Philip, Miguel, and Maeve’s heads turned almost simultaneously towards the source of the vibration.

A stone wall was rising in front of the corridor where Ian stood.

Maeve’s eyes widened.

“Ian-!”

Ian’s figure was soon obscured by the wall.

Ancient crimson runes appeared in her mind.

“What the hell, damn it, you son of a...!”

While Miguel cursed, Philip, who had glanced at the debris, turned to Maeve.

“My Lady! What do we do now?”

Her stiffness lasted only a moment.

Maeve’s head turned to the left.

The only remaining path.

“...Follow me.”

Maeve, gripping her sword as if it would shatter, finally took a step.

There was no other choice now.

Whatever awaited them beyond.

***

“What did he see to do something like that...?”

Ian muttered softly, staring at the stone wall blocking his path.

Stopping right in front of a fork in the road was inexplicable, but Ian soon shrugged.

What’s done is done.

Besides, Maeve could survive for a while with Philip and Miguel.

“...If I finish this before it’s too late.”

Ian turned around without hesitation.

Beyond the corridor, dozens of skeleton knights in worn-out armor were watching him.

Of course, now that he was alone, the number of these enemies was meaningless.

Swoosh- Tatt!

Ian, who had been crouching, suddenly sprang forward.

Clang-!

Ian, who had deflected a sword strike from a skeleton knight with his mace, discarded the handle and ran without hesitation.

Stone sarcophagi lined up on either side of him as he passed.

Ian’s gaze soon fixed on a low dais beyond the burial chamber.

A stone statue of an elf knight, one knee on the ground and sword planted in the earth.

‘Looks just like in the game.’

Ian, dodging the skeleton knights, charged towards the statue.

And at an appropriate distance, he leaped.

Crack-

Ian, performing a mid-air somersault, landed on the counterweight of the sword embedded in the statue.

A moment later, the sword sank into the dais.

Click-! Kugugug-

The dais slid back, revealing a staircase leading deeper underground.

This was the hidden shortcut.

In the game, it was the exit used after defeating the dark mage.

The skeletons, who had been running, came to a halt.

Their glowing eyes flickered quietly.

Come in, they seemed to say.

Ian smiled confidently and leaped down the stairs.

The stairs, which initially ran straight, then turned.

As Ian rounded the corner, a section of the wall soon disappeared.

His field of vision cleared instantly.

A massive underground chamber.

‘I doubt even the king of Agel Lan knows about a place like this.’

As Ian descended the stairs along the wall, he surveyed his surroundings.

Spell circuits densely packed to the farthest reaches.

Massive pillars rising here and there, making the place look like a grand temple moved underground.

Indeed, it was.

This was the temple where the ancient elves worshipped the god of death.

The altar rising in the center of the spell circuits was proof.

On the altar, a broken statue and a massive throne made of various bones were placed.

And the one who had corrupted this ruin sat on that throne.

Hooded and cloaked.

Brimming with flowing magic.

“To actually make it this far... I’ll give you credit for your audacity, red rag.”

A voice like metal scraping echoed.

While emitting streams of purple light, the dark mage slowly rose.

“But don’t expect your pitiful tricks to work here...”

The voice, which had been leisurely, suddenly cut off.

The dark mage’s eyes flickered.

Kwaaaaa-

A flame, reminiscent of a dragon’s breath, engulfed the entire altar.

Kwaaarrr-

The flames, which seemed capable of melting the altar, eventually subsided after a while.

Through the thick smoke, Ian’s figure, with his left hand extended, became visible.

Steam-like heat radiated from the essence in his hand.

“Do you have no learning ability...?”

To still babble after experiencing it.

Just as Ian muttered with a sneer.

“Y... You insolent...!”

Purple light burst through the smoke on the altar.

“Daring to interrupt me again!”

The dark mage, emerging from the smoke, rose.

His robe, now tattered, revealed his true form.

“Don’t think it will be the same as before! Your crude spells won’t work on me anymore!”

“Talkative. For a failed lich.”

Ian sneered as he scanned the mage.

Despite his grotesque appearance, with a mummy-like body and extra bone arms sprouting from his shoulders, he looked much more pitiful than in Ian’s memory.

In the game, the mage had six arms and a large essence embedded in his forehead.

“Y... You scum!”

The dark mage, as if struck at a vulnerable point, erupted in anger.

Purple magic spread behind the altar and was sucked into the raised magic staff.

A massive wraith began to form behind the mage.

A physical wraith, opening its mouth, lunged at Ian, who was already charging towards the altar.

“I will thoroughly make you realize how insignificant you are! Endless suffering will follow!”

The dark mage raised his magic-infused left hand.

Pssss- Fssss-

Skeletons, like a scene from a horror movie, crawled out of the ground.

Larger and longer than humans, they were the ancient elves’ bones buried in the cool underground.

Though surrounded instantly, Ian’s gaze remained calm.

‘He seems weaker than in my memory. Is it because the mutation isn’t complete?’

The dark mage in the game could fly, cast various spells and summonings, and had a complicated pattern.

But he had low health and was vulnerable to physical attacks.

If you could get close, he was surprisingly easy to kill.

Given his current incomplete state, it would probably be even easier.

“Scared? It’s a pity you’re already frozen. The fear is just beginning.”

The dark mage extended his magic staff.

All the undead in the chamber began to charge at Ian.

“Maybe the opposite? Bastard.”

Ian’s eyes turned red again.

The essence in his hand spun, and numerous fireballs simultaneously erupted around him.

Dancing flames.

This lower-level red magic, which he had learned up to level 2 without much thought because it was easy to use, had its number of flames greatly increased when amplified by the essence.

The disadvantage of difficult aiming was irrelevant this time.

The enemies were everywhere.

Kwaaahhh-

The charging skeletons exploded upon contact with the flames.

Scorching heat and shattered bone fragments flew in all directions.

Ssshhh-!

Ian leaped through the gaps.

Seeing him charging towards him, the dark mage sneered.

“It won’t work, I told you.”

He swung his magic staff, emitting purple magic.

A wall of wraiths, screaming, formed along the path of the magic.

Kyaahh-

The wraiths’ screams burst from the wall.

Ian, who had thrown a fireball at the ground, did so immediately after.

Pwoosh-!

The fireball exploded shortly after being thrown.

The recoil sent Ian’s smoke-shrouded body soaring higher into the air.

“What...?!”

The dark mage, who hadn’t anticipated this, let out a metallic sound.

In the meantime, Ian, who had leaped over the wraith wall, spun in mid-air.

His eyes, which glowed with a grayish hue.

His body, wrapped in wind, spun like an arrow towards the dark mage.

A new mace, now in Ian’s right hand, extended towards the dark mage’s head.

The dark mage, who had hastily retreated, covering his face with his four arms, couldn’t outpace Ian.

The wind gathered by the mace spun fiercely.

Kwajik-!

The dark mage’s shoulder, along with two bone arms, shattered completely.

“K- Kyaahh-!”

The dark mage, arching his body like a bow in mid-air, screamed.

Ian, who landed on the altar with a roll, clicked his tongue.

“Missed. Damn.”