Chapter 050. The Master of the Underground City (3)

The feeling of dryness in my mouth was overwhelming. On top of that, my trembling arms and legs were a clear expression of how tense she was right now.

'What have I done!'

Beatrice could hardly believe the reality unfolding before her eyes.

The fact that an archmage from the Age of Magic had created a 'prison' with teleportation magic in the underground dungeon of the academy, and that a Lich sealed within that prison had awakened along with numerous minions... it felt like a cruel joke that was hard to accept.

"What are you doing? You need to cast magic."

"..."

Beatrice was taken aback by Veris, who maintained his composure even in this situation.

The Lich, already considering them prey, stood atop that towering building, looking down at them with gleeful eyes.

Just look at the Death Knights slowly closing in on them.

Unlike the Death Knight that had fought Veris before, they were clearly under the control of that Lich.

─Wooooo!

But Beatrice was no ordinary mage either. After entering the underground, she took out her staff for the first time and began to chant her spell.

The opponent was strong. The numbers were overwhelmingly in their favor.

Just the Death Knights visible before her numbered over ten. To wipe out these relentless foes, she needed to give it her all.

"O true flame, breathe life into the ancient!"

Beatrice's specialty was fire magic. Without a moment's hesitation, she poured a significant portion of her mana into this spell, her clear voice resonating throughout the area.

Clap clap clap clap!

Whether he understood her serious intent or not, Veris was clapping beside her. Beatrice, trying hard to ignore him, continued her incantation.

"Descend upon this place and incinerate our enemies!"

The Death Knights, noticing her large-scale spell, began to charge at her, weapons in hand. But who was Beatrice?

An elite mage of the Magic Tower, a mage who wielded the 'Circle' at the cost of her emotions.

Soon, a massive amount of mana flowed from her chest into the Circle, and finally into her staff.

───Woooo! Kwaaaang!

And then erupted a festival of blazing red flames.

A magic so intense it could burn everything away, a vast spell blossomed from her fingertips.

"Impressive! As expected of you, Beatrice."

Whether he understood her serious intent or not, Veris was nodding and giving a thumbs up even at this moment. Naturally, Beatrice could only sulk at that sight.

"This is a dangerous situation! I can't defeat all those Death Knights by myself! This is no time for jokes!"

"That's true. But we need to share the experience points. We should have a little time to cheer you on."

Beatrice, frustrated by Veris's incomprehensible words, clenched her small fist and pounded it against her chest. It was that frustrating.

─Chiiik!

Beatrice's fire magic boasted quite an impressive firepower.

The evidence was clear as one of the Death Knights' weapons began to melt away upon being hit by her magic.

But soon, trouble arose. A few Death Knights, having broken through the wall of flames that had dominated the area, swung their ominous weapons at Veris and Beatrice.

"Eek!"

It was an agile movement that even she couldn't sense. Beatrice couldn't help but let out a sharp scream in surprise.

Thud!

─Swoosh!

But the first to react was Veris.

Even if the Death Knights were one of the rulers of the dead, they were currently being controlled by that wicked Lich.

Thus, such an attack on the mage fell well within Veris's expectations.

[ Strong. This will make for excellent material. ]

The Lich's voice, filled with admiration, pierced through the flames that were burning the city from afar.

"Talking big, aren't you?"

However, despite the Lich's remarks, Veris merely chuckled.

Unfortunately, all the strong beings in this world have such personalities. What was the past sword demon like? Was he not a fool who couldn't even handle mana properly despite his fame?

"I-I'm okay now."

Beatrice, cradled in Veris's arms, spoke in a trembling voice. The reason she was safe from the recent attack was that Veris had embraced her and cut down a few Death Knights.

Nodding, Veris gently released her. If she could still use magic, there was no need for him to restrict her actions.

"Can you use that magic again, like just now?"

"...I can do it two, no, three more times."

"That should be enough. The efficiency isn't great, but the performance is solid."

Beatrice made a puzzled expression at his confident answer. Enough? No matter how powerful her magic was, she couldn't possibly kill all the Death Knights with just three spells, could she?

"Now, hurry and cast it."

"...What?"

"Cast it. That spell from just now."

Beatrice felt a wave of panic. She knew it too. The mages who had fallen from grace during the Age of Magic were Liches. She understood that the need for magic to kill a Lich like that was extremely low.

But... didn't that mean this man had to fight the Lich alone?

"Ha."

Beatrice let out a small sigh. She had realized her own meager power.

To put it bluntly, she did not have the strength to defeat that Lich. She knew she was not in a position to worry about others.

"I'll go."

Then, Beatrice began to chant again, her clear voice resonating as she unleashed several large-scale fire spells.

While they didn't completely eliminate the Death Knights, they certainly inflicted significant damage on their weapons and armor.

"I-I'm at my limit now..."

"Good job."

Veris, who had pushed Beatrice to use her magic to its limits for her 'boost', looked at her with a satisfied gaze.

There was little reason or obligation for him to nurture her. But as a companion, he thought that if he took care of her, something would come of it, a rather peaceful and calculating thought.

"Then is it my turn now?"

Veris swung his sword once, shaking off the ashes that had been stirred up by the fire magic.

With Beatrice already exhausted and panting heavily, he was being forced to act quickly.

──Grrr!

With a terrible sound, the Death Knights began to charge at Veris.

Perhaps the flames of magic had lost their power to harm them, their movements were incredibly ferocious.

But who was Veris? Even if he wielded an old, dull iron sword, he possessed a strength that could not even be compared to that of the Death Knights.

──Woooo! Whoosh!

A white light gathered in his sword, and soon unleashed a brutally powerful slash.

A simple technique of channeling mana into the sword and releasing it. But the result far exceeded common sense.

[ ...Huh? ]

The Lich let out a foolish sound, which was quite uncharacteristic of its terrifying appearance.

It was such an absurd and ridiculous scene.

"Lately, I'm feeling down. I got my skills a long time ago."

"..."

"If I kill you, will I gain a passive skill?"

Veris, who had obliterated four Death Knights with a single swing of his sword, showed no signs of hiding his gloomy mood. Witnessing his overwhelming power, Beatrice's eyes widened in shock.

'W-What? That wasn't his full power?'

Having witnessed the overwhelming numbers of skeletons during the first seal's release, and now seeing the second release with the Death Knights and Veris fighting up close...

At that time, she had thought that his strength would be similar to that of the Death Knights after exchanging blows several times...

He was strong. Strong beyond the limits of what the word 'common sense' could express.

Beatrice realized once again that Gunther's words were completely true. This man was strong. Perhaps he was the strongest person in this empire, or even on the entire continent.

'M-Maybe I really should become a maid.'

Her heart raced so loudly that she feared Veris, standing with his sword ahead, might hear it. Beatrice clutched her heart and gazed at his back.

'A shining... person.'

The one she had seen as a child radiated a brilliant light that was hard to describe. To become someone worthy of that light, she had headed to the Magic Tower.

In the process, she awakened her Circle, and her devastated heart naturally led her to define Veris's heart and think of distancing herself from him.

'No...'

Beatrice realized.

She did not dislike that man. In fact, she had worked so hard, to the point of bleeding from her eyes, to become someone who could match him.

Realizing that forgotten past made her feel lighter all over. No, it wasn't just a feeling; her body truly felt invigorated.

─Bang!

"...Huh?"

Beatrice's face turned to confusion at the sound of something breaking.

A sudden, strange sensation. It could be expressed as something that had bound her breaking free from her heart and body.

Thud.

Beatrice raised her staff towards the Lich, who was observing the situation from afar, not the Death Knight blocking Veris's path.

What she desired was simple.

To escape this terrible sealing site safely with him.

"O three lights that illuminate the sky..."

"Magic?"

Then Beatrice began her incantation. Sensing the sudden unexpected action, Veris seemed to notice the anomaly and distanced himself from the Death Knights, landing beside her.

"Turn the lives of our enemies into nothingness."

The short incantation came to an end. A sense of profound loss filled her as the mana, completely exhausted, began to gather towards her staff, not a single drop remaining.

In that phenomenon, Beatrice's eyes sparkled. A user who had lost all their mana would typically lose consciousness and fall into a state of mana exhaustion. But right now, her mind was clearer than ever.

Beatrice was casting magic without the help of her Circle. She was even unleashing high-level annihilation magic that she had challenged throughout her time in the Magic Tower!

'Ah...'

Beatrice realized.

For some unknown reason, her Circle had shattered.

But what filled that loss was an emotion so tender it could bring tears to her eyes. She didn't even know what to call that emotion.

────Piiiiiing!

Three orbs appeared in the void where nothing existed.

Each orb, red, blue, and white, resembled the sun, moon, and stars that illuminated the sky.

"Eternal annihilation."

The spheres slowly, then rapidly flew towards the Lich atop the tower.