Chapter 93

The moment Lugard dove into the teleportation array, Faltima shouted.

"Teleportation!"

The world went black in an instant.

The place they arrived at was a mixed forest near the capital. Unfortunately, this was the limit of what could be achieved with human power, unlike ordinary teleportation arrays.

Still, Faltima had lost most of her magic and was suddenly overwhelmed by a sense of exhaustion.

But—

She couldn't afford to collapse just yet.

(Where is Lugard—?)

Leaning on her staff, Faltima looked around.

There was no sign of the tall, muscular man.

"Lugard!"

Faltima shouted.

Her voice echoed in vain.

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"What is this place...?"

Lugard couldn't understand the space that stretched before him.

Black.

The surroundings were enveloped in pitch-black darkness. There was no ground. Lugard was floating in the darkness, unable to move freely due to the lack of a reference point.

In a sense—restraint.

At that moment,

"A human. You stink and are weak."

A pair of eyes floated up.

"Are you the sacrifice?"

Another pair of eyes floated up.

"You'll disappear soon. Just bear with it for a while."

Another pair of eyes floated up.

In an instant,

A blinding light appeared before his eyes.

"Whoa!?"

Lugard involuntarily let out a cry and covered his face.

A shining white dragon appeared before him.

Three heads extended from the dragon's body. Although Lugard couldn't tell the differences in the dragons' faces, at least the colors were different.

Blue, silver, and gold.

The three colored faces looked down at Lugard.

(—This is—!?)

He shuddered.

His spine froze—no, it felt as if his heart was being gripped by a dead hand.

Lugard had a premonition.

Of his own death.

A primal fear shook him to his core. His heart screamed.

There was no way he could survive!

"Yes, you are of the darkness."

The blue head said and closed its mouth.

A blue light leaked from the closed mouth, growing in size and intensity by the second.

"We will purify the darkness with our light."

The silver head said and closed its mouth.

A silver light leaked from the closed mouth, growing in size and intensity by the second.

"I will tell you as many times as you need. The darkness cannot defeat the light."

The golden head said and closed its mouth.

A golden light leaked from the closed mouth, growing in size and intensity by the second.

Lugard tried to move his body but—

He couldn't.

He was floating in a space of 'nothingness.' There was no ground to stand on, no water to swim through.

In a place with nothing—

There was no way to move.

(…What should I do—!?)

Lugard panicked. He tried to find a way out. But he found nothing.

All his options were exhausted.

Even the Lugard from before the academy, who had not yet exhausted his magic, would not have been able to resist the dragon before him.

The light leaking from the dragon's mouth reached its maximum brilliance.

"Farewell."

The blue dragon's mouth opened wide. Deep in its throat, a blue light, like accumulated magma, was waiting to be unleashed.

"Farewell."

The silver dragon's mouth opened wide. Deep in its throat, a silver light, like accumulated magma, was waiting to be unleashed.

"Farewell."

The golden dragon's mouth opened wide. Deep in its throat, a golden light, like accumulated magma, was waiting to be unleashed.

Silence.

Silence.

As if to tear through the brief moment of stillness—

Boom!

Three beams of light were expelled from the three mouths. The light, aimed without error, engulfed Lugard.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Seared by the scorching light, Lugard screamed.

Lugard's body disintegrated at the molecular level—

Lugard woke up.

It was a dim place, but a normal one. He felt the cold stone beneath his back, and the ceiling was visible in his field of vision.

A ceiling he recognized.

"Where is this—?"

He knew it but couldn't understand, so he couldn't help but ask.

It was the temple, the base of the darkness.

He reflexively sat up—definitely a familiar building.

Lugard looked at his hands. They existed. He touched his face and body with those hands. They existed.

He was alive.

He had returned to the dark temple alive.

He thought he had been swallowed by the breath of the three-headed dragon and died.

(…What is this…?)

There was a tap of a cane.

"Hehehehehe, it was a close call, indeed."

Lugard turned his eyes toward the source of the voice and saw a small, hooded old man—Hermite—standing there.

"…What happened?"

"Well… From the residual magic, I deduce that you were teleported to the lair of the Divine Dragon King. It was probably the divine magic spell cast by Carail."

"…So it was Carail after all…"

"There, you suffered a severe blow, but before you died, the power of the Dark Mask activated."

"The power of the mask?"

Lugard touched the mask covering the upper half of his face.

"Hehehehehe, did you think it was just a meaningless and tasteless mask? It's a good thing you had it on."

"What is the power of this mask?"

"When the wearer is in mortal danger, it teleports them to the Dark Temple."

"Ah."

So it had that effect. He had thought it was just a meaningless and tasteless mask.

"A useful ability. Does it mean I won't die?"

"Yes. But the effect is now lost."

"…Lost?"

"Teleportation requires a vast amount of dark power. The Dark Mask had accumulated this power over a long period, but it was expended in this incident. Consider it a one-time use."

Lugard understood.

Now it was truly just a meaningless and tasteless mask.

"I used my trump card here. What a waste."

"Hehehehehe, no, no. It was to protect your life. As long as you are safe, that is all that matters."

Hermite changed the subject.

"—So, how was it? Your return to the academy after so long?"

"Well…"

Reflecting on it, the result was disastrous. The power of the Dark Mask was used up, and the Darkin Slave was broken—

Even with such sacrifices, he did not obtain the Mark of Darkness.

The only thing he gained was information.

The white arrow mage who defeated the emblem master.

Albert Luminous.

A friend from Lugard's student days resurfaced in his mind.

At that moment,

"Guh, ah—!?"

A groan escaped Lugard's lips. Pain shot through his entire body. Even the stoic Lugard, a warrior, could not endure the intense pain.

He instinctively put his hand on the bed.

"What is this…?"

"Probably the aftereffects of the Divine Dragon King's breath."

"…The Divine Dragon King's? But the Dark Mask… avoided it, didn't it?"

"The breath of that dragon is so terrifying that it can burn even the soul. The mask couldn't completely avoid the damage to your soul."

Lugard's consciousness flickered.

His breathing was heavy.

It felt like the darkness of the bottom of a well was enveloping his consciousness, as if all his cells were exhausted from repeated training.

"A long sleep is necessary… It will take time for your soul to recover."

Hermite's voice sounded muffled.

"…But, it will take some time for the moment to be ripe. Rest for now, my lord. Have a good dream—"

That was the last thing Lugard heard.

His consciousness slipped into darkness, and his exhausted body collapsed.