Reckoning (5)

Back in the chamber hidden deep within the mountain which jutted out into the sky, Vincent wore a dark expression as he used his mana to create several sparks beside his body which grew, forming a flaming armour of luminescent flames.

Channelling his mana with even more speed, he hurled two fireballs in the direction of the golem. Since golems were enormous creatures, their major advantages lay in strength and defence, whilst their speed and power were lacking.

So Vincent felt the best course of action in the fight was to bombard the golem with spells as fast as he could.

Tanking the fireballs with ease, the golem simply regenerated any damage which it received. Biting his lips, Vincent's thoughts rampaged in his mind as he searched for a solution to his current predicament.

'Things can't keep going like this! I have to find a way to nullify the regeneration ability of the golem, then after that, it will be easier to vanquish it as it is just a slow-moving piece of stone. Since it formed the golem due to a formation, the way to cut off its power supply to regenerate itself is to attack the eye of the formation.'

Formations were part of the auxiliary category alongside the concocting of potions and smithing, where the weapons used in combat were forged.

Each one of these had its own occupations, with all three having a similar status in which nobody dared to offend them.

There wasn't one hardest path above all, as each field required large amounts of hard work, blood, sweat, and tears to succeed. Even then, it might not work out if you don't have the right aptitude for that specific field.

Looking toward one of the servants behind him, Vincent barked out orders as he threw a round disk toward the person.

"Find the eye of the formation quickly. I will distract the golem for as long as I can, so get to work!"

Fumbling with the disk, the servant, who was a formation master, imbued his mana hastily into the round disk as his nerves threatened to disrupt the concentration required to complete his task.

"Proliferate under the heavens, bloom into existence. The inferno's rage. Meteoric Ignition!"

This time upon activation of the spell, Vincent used a fifth of his remaining mana to imbue the attack with awe-inducing might.

Similar to the previous activation, two blazing meteorites manifested into existence beside him as he commanded them via his mental energy to wreak havoc on the stone monstrosity.

WHOOSH-!

WHOOSH-!

BANG-!

Once again, the golem tanked the attack as its granite body crumbled before restoring itself, appearing as if it didn't even experience a scratch.

Responding with a blow of its own, the golem roared as it moved. It stomped forward, sending a web of cracks across the floor, shaking the ground with its every step.

Punching downwards, the great power behind the strike propelled its speed as Vincent gritted his teeth and moved to protect the servant who was holding the round disk.

It preoccupied the servant in his own world as he tried to decipher the location of the elusive eye of the formation, so he failed to sense the incoming blow.

Sending bursts of mana into his legs to increase his pace, a burst of orange flames appeared beneath Vincent's feet, propelling him near the clueless servant.

Carrying the servant in his arms, Vincent escaped the trajectory of the attack. Unfortunately, the other servants failed to move their bodies, which were frozen stiff with fear as the terror in their eyes grew.

PUCHI-!

PUCHI-!

The remaining servants, apart from the formation master, were mercilessly executed. The only sign of their former existence was the small bloody pups of flesh which splattered all over the cave walls, producing a gruesome sight.

Seeing the others killed in such a violent way, the formation master struggled not to empty the contents of his stomach as he shakily spoke, handing the disk back to Vincent.

"Y-Young master! I-I have f-found the eye of the formation!"

"Well done. Now join your companions in death!"

Throwing the servant in his arms like a rag doll in the direction of the golem, Vincent ruthlessly used him to stall for the time he needed to destroy the eye of the formation.

If not for that dammed eye, the fight would not have been prolonged for such a lengthy time.

The desperate pleas of the servant fell on deaf ears as he witnessed the golem raise its herculean granite leg and stomp downwards, crushing him into the afterlife.

Using the small respite, Vincent sped toward one of the pillars which held up the stability of the chamber. As he neared the pillar using the jet of fire beneath his feet, he conjured multiple fireballs and hurled them straight toward the vertical column.

WHOOSH-!

BANG-!

Colliding with the stone pillar, the blazing mass of heat sent cracks which spread across the granite as it eventually crumbled into small pieces of rock.

As the chamber shuddered with its stability in question, the bright light which covered the golem receded.

Sensing the source of its vitality being cut off, the golem issued an enraged roar as it swung its fist to flatten Vincent into meat paste.

Hiding a smirk which threatened to appear, Vincent rapidly retreated to prepare the casting of the spell which would ensure his victory.

Taking a deep breath, the ambient mana in the air rushed toward him like moths to a flame as the pressure surrounding his body doubled.

As the pressure generated from casting the spell rose and rose, the rumbling of the chamber increased in intensity as the loose rocks in the ceiling were dislodged.

Crashing into the rocky terrain, the small stones created a hazardous symphony of death.

Gazing at his enemy, two bright fires lit up in Vincent's eyes as his blond hair flared up, flapping around wildly. A bright pillar of fire erupted from his figure as the blazing flames which formed his armour, fused with the attack he was preparing to summon.

"The herald of crimson, the ever-lasting star of destruction. Burn ablaze and scatter the ash! I summon thee. Fire beam!"

Raising his arm, Vincent aimed the palm of his hand in the direction of the stone giant as a compressed beam full of pyromantic might shot out with great speed.

The golem, after sensing Vincent's intentions, hurriedly formed an attack of his own as a stone fist and a concentrated beam of fire met.

BOOM-!