Ch.240240. Emotional

Whoosh!

As the Light Spirit King flapped its massive wings, a fierce wind accompanied by blades of light rushed straight toward the Black Mages.

An indiscriminate area attack.

The Light Spirit King was determined to finish off Dante’s Black Mages completely, even if it meant allowing some damage to the forest.

“Oops!”

However, what emerged was not a Black Mage but rather Jangroon, who appeared more like a warrior. As his spear struck the ground, a straight barrier of mana rose around it.

It was a rather orthodox and solid magic shield for someone known as an attack-oriented Black Mage.

“Pathetic.”

Erika extended her hand forward. A beam of light, different from the Spirit King’s area attack.

The moment it touched the barrier, it was quickly absorbed and began spreading inside.

Crack!

The barrier shattered easily like thin glass.

“Wow!”

Jangroon exclaimed in amazement as he blocked the Spirit King’s renewed assault with his spear. Some Black Mages less confident in their defense fell after taking the Spirit King’s attacks.

White smoke began to envelop them again. A different method from Jangroon’s obvious barrier structure. The Spirit King’s attacks that entered the smoke seemed to disappear somewhere.

“I’ll handle the Spirit King.”

The owner of that smoke, Luaness Luden Griffin, rose into the air. Emitting smoke from his entire body, he stared at the Spirit King with sharp eyes, and the Spirit King stopped its area attack to rise up with him.

‘I heard he was a Spiritmaster.’

When Luaness had lent his power at Greyford, Erika had been blocking Romuleus’s tentacles from the wall, so she hadn’t seen how he fought. At the moment, rather than a Spiritmaster, the smoke emanating from his body was simply strange and difficult to describe.

‘His style is very different from Deus.’

Thinking this, Erika immediately turned her attention to the other Black Mages. Gideon lying unconscious at her feet was cumbersome, but she had no time to protect him.

“Well, well, I didn’t expect you to break my barrier so easily.”

The large Black Mage Jangroon approached while spinning his spear. From his spear technique, Erika recognized that he was from the Han Empire.

‘The Han Empire’s spear techniques are troublesome to deal with.’

That empire had many masters, and especially since the martial god Han So primarily used spears, their spear techniques were a level above other countries.

And it wasn’t just Jangroon coming at her. Naturally, other Black Mages also began to pressure Erika.

She smoothly evaded the Black Mages’ deceptive magic. Meanwhile, she dodged Jangroon’s spear by using light to refract vision and disrupt his sense of direction.

‘The spirits are coming to help.’

The fierce battle between the Light Spirit King and Luaness in the forest sky was causing a commotion. Spirits and fairies who heard it began to lend their strength to Erika.

We’ll help you!

Stay strong!

Protect the forest!

“Thank you, little friends.”

It was time for the spirit magic she had mastered while with the Spirit King to shine. The spirits blessed by the fairies were even more powerful.

“Kuheu!”

Scorched smoke rose from Jangroon’s body as he took a direct hit from the spirit magic. Despite being hit by magic, he only felt a sting, but Erika coolly analyzed the situation.

‘The Black Mages in the back still aren’t moving.’

She could take down one or two Black Mages who had rushed in with Jangroon, but the ones who appeared to be the big shots were still firmly holding their positions.

As if gauging Erika’s magic.

“Huhahu! No wonder you’re the Spiritmaster’s fiancée!”

The first to start moving was the insect master Barkterus. Insects began to swarm toward the fairies supporting the spirits.

Of course, Erika wouldn’t just stand by. She quickly deployed her specialty shield, gathering the fairies near her to protect them.

Thank you!

We’re grateful!

The fairies’ whispered thanks. The spirits, further encouraged, began to assist Erika’s magic.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

A bombardment of light rained down. As Jangroon started to be pushed back, he began to get irritated.

“We’ve already lost two comrades to this woman! What are you all doing?”

When Jangroon questioned the other Black Mages who were standing idly, the disease master Becklin shrugged and answered.

“If I use my magic, everyone will die.”

Becklin was skilled at massacring large numbers, but he usually avoided one-on-one situations like this.

“……”

The corpse master Yoon simply stared at Erika without saying anything.

“Haah.”

Finally, the blood mage Pelestan stepped forward, loosening his thick shoulders.

“You said you’re an academy professor? I thought professors had retired from active combat, but you fight surprisingly well.”

Pelestan’s voice reached her, but Erika didn’t bother to answer and just calculated magic formulas in her head.

Aaagh!

I’m… dizzy.

Blood…

The fairies around Erika began to collapse one by one. When she realized what was happening, blood was being extracted from their eyes, mouths, and noses.

“Their small bodies make it quick to extract all their blood.”

The fairies’ blood floated up and gathered above Pelestan’s palm. It was only about the size of an apple, but considering the fairies’ bodies, it was an enormous amount.

The fairies inside the shield were affected. Even in this shocking situation, Erika tried to calmly assess the enemy’s magic.

“Hup!”

A bitter taste of blood touched her tongue.

Suddenly, a nosebleed was streaming down, and blood was clotting in her mouth, making her cough it up.

“Cough! Cough!”

A sudden dizziness hit her head so hard that she couldn’t stand and fell to her knees. She didn’t understand how or in what way her body was affected inside the shield, but it was clear that Erika was now facing her most critical situation yet.

Thud, thud, thud.

The fairies around Erika fell to the ground, dried up like husks. Erika struggled to avoid crushing the fairies’ bodies.

But her efforts became her downfall.

The dried-up fairy corpses rose again. They launched themselves at Erika like daggers, biting and clawing at her.

“Corpse… master!”

The fairies who had been fighting alongside her to protect the forest were now attacking her. The corpse master Yoon looked down at her and spoke in a raspy voice as if something was caught in his throat.

“Fairies use less mana but aren’t very efficient.”

They’re only good for reconnaissance at best.

That was all he had to say while desecrating countless fairy corpses.

“Huuuh!”

Erika gritted her teeth and deployed her shield again to push away the reanimated fairy corpses.

The blood in her body was still trying to move toward the blood mage, but she took a deep breath and clenched her fist.

“You didn’t cast anything on my body; you’re just making the blood respond.”

“Hmm.”

Erika realized that no magic had been cast on her body. The mage had used magic to gather blood from the surroundings, and Erika just happened to be in range.

Like butterflies and bees naturally gathering around a beautiful flower.

Erika’s blood was stirring as if it had a will of its own, wanting to go to that man.

“As expected of a professor, your interpretation of magic is quite fast and precise.”

If Erika had mistakenly thought magic was cast on her body and tried various counterspells, she would have just wasted mana and time.

The problem wasn’t with her but with that man.

Then Erika had only one thing to do.

Prevent the blood mage from using magic. With her remaining mana, golden light condensed at her fingertips, intending to kill the blood mage outright.

Her tightly clenched fist. The light was about to spread brilliantly, delivering a strike worthy of the Bright family name, but…

Boom!

It felt like the sky was collapsing.

The Light Spirit King crashed to the ground, emitting white smoke from its entire body.

Having lost its brilliance, only a faint, gentle light indicated that the Spirit King was still alive.

“No matter how great a being it was.”

Luaness slowly descended and stood on top of it, suppressing the smoke emitting from his body as he spoke indifferently.

“Living in peace in the forest has made it dull.”

Even the Spirit King was defeated. Erika was about to release the mana she had concentrated in her hand.

“Cough!”

A large amount of blood poured from her mouth, soaking her chin and chest. Erika’s blood rushed toward the blood mage Pelestan as if rejecting her.

It was over.

Dante’s power was stronger than expected, and the Spirit King and Erika hadn’t achieved much beyond killing a few Black Mages.

“Huh.”

In this situation, Erika clicked her tongue. How pathetic she looked.

“Before you came, I wanted to do something.”

“…Hmm?”

Erika’s casually thrown words bothered Luaness’s ears. Wondering what she meant, he immediately checked with Barkterus.

“There are no more warp gates, right?”

“Huhahu! None at all. Unless the Spiritmaster uses some teleportation technique, he can’t get here from Greyford.”

Some Black Mages clicked their tongues at Luaness’s obsessive checking, but it was that important to him.

However.

“Huh?”

It was like a trick from a horror story. Something stood there that hadn’t been there before, noticed by no one.

A purple door. It looked out of place in the beautiful natural landscape of Rometiu Forest, yet somehow it fit.

“What is that?”

When disease master Becklin bluntly asked, it opened with a creaking sound as if in response.

Step.

With quiet footsteps, a black-haired man with a cold impression walked out.

Spiritmaster Deus Verdi.

And three people following behind him.

Royal Guard Captain Gloria.

Magic Tribunal Judge Tyrn Ol Velocus.

The wolf who found freedom, Findenai.

The Black Mages who had held an overwhelming advantage until just now saw the tables turn in an instant.

“So this is how Learic designated the location.”

With the tense Black Mages before him, Deus turned to check the door again.

It was quite an arrogant situation.

In the midst of this, he noticed Erika nearly collapsing behind the door.

“……”

“He…llo.”

Thinking she looked terrible, Erika exhaled and spoke in a cracked voice.

“I always fail.”

Everything I thought I was doing for you. In the end, I’m just getting in your way.

As Erika muttered this, losing consciousness from blood loss, Deus knelt on one knee before her and carefully caught her.

“If you think it’s a failure, I won’t say otherwise.”

Erika Bright had acted on her own and come here. She seemed to have helped fix the shop’s door that he had asked Gideon about. That alone was enough help for Deus, but Erika had wanted to do more.

“But you gave me an opportunity.”

After carefully laying Erika down, Deus slowly stood up and coldly looked at the Black Mages.

“My fiancée is hurt, so it’s only natural that I should be angry.”

Yes, Erika had given Deus an opportunity.

An opportunity to act emotionally.