Chapter 83: No More Running!

On a cold winter night, darkness fell unusually early. What was once a dim sky had now turned pitch black, enveloping everything in a dense darkness where one could hardly see their hand in front of them.

Count Selin quickly lit a candle. The faint flickering flame swayed in the wind, and everyone's gaze was filled with uncertainty, as both Merilon and the black-robed elder had vanished, leaving no trace.

Suddenly, a series of muffled sounds echoed. The previously empty space began to warp, and Merlin sensed that faint elemental fluctuation from Merilon once again.

It was the wave of dark elements!

"Swish, swish."

Two figures materialized from the darkness like specters, reappearing in the space that had been empty just moments before. It was Merilon and the black-robed elder.

Both appeared somewhat disheveled, especially the black-robed elder, whose face had turned flushed as he shivered uncontrollably.

"Cough, cough..."

The elder coughed violently, his face turning a deep crimson as if it would bleed at any moment, the sight chilling in the silent night.

"Dark magic… truly formidable!"

The elder stopped coughing, lifting his head slightly as he spoke, his voice tinged with a faint tremor. Merlin could feel the intense fluctuations of the elder's mental energy, accompanied by erratic elemental surges.

Among them were fire, earth, and wind elements—all components of the elder's spell models. They were nearly beyond his control, requiring him to channel mental power to stabilize them.

The battle between Merilon and the black-robed elder during their disappearance had evidently reached its conclusion.

"Old man, you're not bad yourself! I once killed a wandering mage, a first-level spellcaster; it was an arduous fight. I didn't expect you, a mere survivor of the 'Slaughterfield,' to be as formidable as that mage. But with your unstable spell models, you can hardly protect yourself. What will you do to shield Selin?"

Though Merilon's face was pale, his elemental energy remained strong, showing he hadn't suffered significant injuries. The black-robed elder, however, was clearly defeated.

With his unstable spell models, the elder had lost most of his combat power, much like Cook.

Merilon turned his gaze to Count Selin, a twisted smile forming as he stepped forward slowly.

Seeing Merilon approach, Miss Shelley, who had been lively and moving about in the hall moments before, now froze in fear, her lips pale and her face bloodless as she hid behind Count Selin.

But even with his countless knights and powerful elemental swordsmen, Count Selin now had no one left to protect him, no one who could stand against Merilon.

Taking a deep breath, Count Selin drew his sword, then pulled Shelley out from behind him, his expression complex as he looked at Merlin and said, "Mage Merlin, take Shelley away. She doesn't deserve to die here."

Count Selin cast a final, tender look at Shelley, then shouted at Merilon, "Come, Merilon! This is my castle, the castle of the great Count Kabbalo Selin! Here, no one defies my will. Your father defied me, betraying Pugas City, and he paid for it! Ha! Foolish Nelson, in the end, he knelt before me, begging for mercy like a coward…"

"But I, Kabbalo Selin, am no coward!"

Count Selin's face flushed as his sword emitted a radiant, earthy glow, enveloping his entire body.

To everyone's surprise, this noble, elegant Count Selin was a third-level earth swordsman!

"My father was no coward! Selin, you are the true coward. Ha! You want your daughter to escape? Then I'll kill her first!"

A savage smile twisted Merilon's face as his gaze settled on the frightened Shelley.

"Mage Merlin, quickly, take Shelley away. This is my last request!"

Count Selin's face showed a hint of desperation as he urged Merlin to go.

But Merlin remained motionless, taking a deep breath as he fixed his gaze on Merilon, who was drawing closer. In a calm voice, he said, "Count Selin, I'm sorry, but I can't fulfill your last request… I've just escaped the Kingdom of Light, endured countless hardships to reach Pugas City. I'm tired. I don't want to run anymore!"

Ignoring Count Selin's shocked expression, Merlin lightly touched the pendant on his chest, a quiet resolve settling within him.

"You?"

Merilon sneered at Merlin, letting out a low growl, "Out of my way!"

"Swish!"

With a wave of his hand, Merilon summoned a blaze before Merlin. Unlike Merlin's fireball, Merilon's fire magic was focused on creating a wide area of destruction.

The fiery wall spread across the space, leaving Merlin no room to dodge.

"Freeze!"

Unable to evade, Merlin decided not to. He had once fought Mage Jason, and that experience left him with a sense of strangeness—Jason seemed different from true spellcasters, unlike Merlin or Merilon and the other spellcasters from the Kingdom of Black Moon.

What exactly was different, Merlin still didn't know. It was just a lingering impression he had from his duel with Jason.

Now, however, facing Merilon, a true spellcaster from a formidable organization like the Abyss Fortress, Merlin felt a strange yearning. He longed to fight a real spellcaster!

"Crack, crack."

Narrowing his eyes, Merlin released a freezing spell into the flames before him. A cold wave surged through the fiery wall, covering much of the blaze in frost, even spreading a thick layer of ice across the ground.

As the fire dwindled in the cold air, Merilon's advancing steps slowed. His gaze finally fixed on Merlin, his brows furrowing in slight surprise at the sight of another spellcaster.

Still, his eyes held no hint of retreat!