episode_0014

Amidst the ruins thickly covered by darkness,

Leo lowered his body in front of the abandoned mine entrance, holding his breath.

“……The location is accurate.”

He recalled the map imprinted on his retina and sent his gaze forward.

Ruden Mine Abandoned Station.

It was the place where the Imperial guards sensed magic and built a defensive line.

The cornerstone was buried right in its heart.

Hiding his body behind a rock, Leo adjusted the dagger at his waist.

A magic amplification position was grafted onto the dagger.

A dangerous device that could raise attack power to its maximum in a short moment.

Leo took a deep breath.

His chest trembled faintly.

‘This is where it really begins.’

Beyond the iron gate, two guards.

Beyond them, in the inner corridor, at least five or more.

And deeper still, one high-ranking sensor guarding the magic core.

Leo even swallowed his own breath, instantly drawing a breakthrough path.

Eliminate the first obstacle within 4 seconds,

Enter the inner corridor within 7 seconds,

And neutralize the sensor magic net within 10 seconds.

Not a moment of hesitation was permitted.

‘Going.’

He slightly lowered his body,

And leapt like a beast.

Before the first guard could even turn his head—

Leo’s dagger sharply pierced him.

“—!”

Quickly pulling out the dagger that pierced the neck,

Leo immediately grabbed the second soldier’s nape.

Activated magic.

‘Crackle’—

Electric magic briefly flashed and paralyzed the soldier’s nerves.

Both fell without a single sound.

Inside the abandoned mine.

Damp air and the smell of blood were mixed together.

Leo sprinted down the corridor.

Just before the detection sensors were activated,

He took out a small device from his waist and scattered it into the air.

“——Disperse.”

Magic disruption particles spread and distorted the detection lines.

Beep-eek.

Beep-eek.

Beep-eeeeeek.

Just before the warning sound rang out, Leo kicked off one wall and rotated.

The dagger thrown slicing through the air embedded itself in the detection equipment at the end of the corridor.

With a ‘thud’ sound, the equipment discharged magic.

A brief blackout.

In that gap—

Leo ran.

**

The internal defense team was already moving.

Soldiers wearing heavy armor,

He moved like a shadow.

The first soldier.

Standing next to the magic detector, he didn’t even feel Leo approaching.

Swish—

The sword flashed, slicing through the dark air,

And precisely impacted the soldier’s nape.

Not a single drop of blood splattered.

Nerve block.

Leo knocked him down and moved quickly.

But—

The moment another soldier saw an abnormal signal on the detector, the alarm rang out. Beeeeeeeeeeep!

“Enemy!!”

A shout that seemed to split the forest.

The soldiers simultaneously raised their weapons.

Leo raised his sword.

Magic-charged spears flashed and lunged towards him.

The first, the second.

Leo quickly twisted his body and dodged the attack.

The spearhead grazed his cheek and passed by.

‘I have to buy time.’

He couldn’t turn his gaze towards Lania.

He looked only forward.

Sword strike.

With one horizontal slash,

Two soldiers were simultaneously thrown back.

The remaining soldiers narrowed the encirclement.

“Narrow the encirclement! Surround him!!”

The commander’s shout.

He was wearing magic armor that was a layer thicker than the other soldiers.

‘Deal with the commander first.’

Leo briefly caught his breath.

Instantly raised his magic power.

The magic guidance device at his waist glowed red, granting speed to his movements.

Swish—!

Closing the distance in an instant,

He reached the front of the commander.

“Kuk—!”

Just as the commander was about to swing his spear,

Leo’s sword flashed first.

He precisely cut the nape where the flow of magic was entwined.

Bang!

The commander fell to the floor, his body hunched.

But—

The encirclement was still tightening.

“I can’t face all of them.”

Leo quickly retreated.

He turned his body and slipped into a dark vein crevice.

The soldiers chased him.

Bang! Bang!

Magic-charged spears shattered rocks, and the cracked tunnel shook.

But Leo

Even within that, precisely escaped step by step.

Like a black shadow.

If only he could return to Lania’s side,

All this fighting would have meaning.

‘Lania, hurry.’

He grit his teeth.

Behind him, a flash of blue magic.

It was a sign that Lania had begun the cornerstone restoration.

“Stop him! Protect the cornerstone!!”

The soldiers’ shouts shook the tunnel.

Leo charged again without an inch of hesitation.

A flame of magic bloomed from the tip of his sword.

One soldier.

Two soldiers.

Three soldiers.

Roughly knocking them down, he advanced.

His heart pounded like crazy.

His breath burst out roughly,

And his whole body was stained with blood and dust.

But he couldn’t give up.

If the cornerstone is restored—

The Anti-Empire lives again.

It can tighten the Empire’s breath.

That was his mission.

‘Just a little more.’

Leo swung his sword, squeezing out his last strength.

Holding shields, they filled the corridor and approached.

“Target spotted! Suppress him!”

The soldiers shouted in unison.

Leo did not hesitate.

Activating the magic amplification device on his left hand,

He kicked off the air and leapt up.

His black coat fluttered in the air.

In an instant,

A kick imbued with explosive force pierced the soldier’s shield.

“Ku-ack—!”

The shield was torn, and the soldier was smashed into the wall.

Without landing, Leo rotated and stabbed another soldier’s waist.

‘Ssslrk’—

The blade slid, cutting through bone.

“Y-You bastard!”

The one remaining soldier fired a red magic bullet.

A bullet condensed with powerful explosive magic.

Leo quickly twisted his body to dodge the bullet.

At the spot where the explosion occurred, rock fragments and blood splattered.

But Leo did not retreat an inch.

Rather, using the smoke from that explosion—

He instantly obscured the sight of the remaining soldiers.

[I can’t see—!]

[Where did he go?!]

Chaos.

It was a short moment, but a fatal gap.

Leo cut across the smoke, instantly piercing the neck of the remaining soldier.

The corridor had turned horrific.

Smell of blood.

Cracked walls.

Fallen soldiers.

But Leo had no time to stop.

“……1 minute until the cornerstone.”

There was no time.

The final barrier.

In front of the heart, a high-ranking sensor armed with magic was waiting for him.

He was wearing a long robe,

And a magic spear resided in his hand.

“Traitor.”

His voice was cold and expressionless.

“Do not defile this place.”

Leo did not answer.

Instead—

He drew up the magic power in his entire body.

Crackle, cr-cr-crackle.

The air trembled.

“——Solely for the objective.”

With a brief monologue,

He kicked off the ground and charged in.

The spear flew like lightning.

Leo twisted his body and narrowly dodged it.

The magic spear, grazing him as if brushing his fingertips, tore his clothes.

A single drop of blood scattered in the air.

But he did not hesitate.

First strike.

Second strike.

Third strike.

Three exchanges.

Leo evaded, parried, and counterattacked.

A breathtaking exchange.

Magic power cut the air.

The corridor cracked, and the floor split.

The high-ranking sensor swung his spear again.

In an instant, Leo reverse-rotated his magic amplification dagger, altering the trajectory.

“——It’s the end.”

A short magic pulse.

Leo’s dagger tore through the sensor’s defensive magic.

“Ku-ack…!”

The sensor fell to the floor on his knees.

The cornerstone was before his eyes.

A giant crystal emitting a subtle blue light.

Leo caught his breath.

Although his whole body was covered in wounds, he smiled.

“Now… I restore it.”

He connected the equipment onto the cornerstone,

And inserted the core crystal.

For a brief moment, the blue light flickered—

The cornerstone gained life again.

The Anti-Empire’s breath began to beat again.

But Leo knew.

From now on is the real thing.

That the Imperial reinforcements, reacting to the noise, were already rushing here.

Leo left his final instructions on the cornerstone,

And began to retreat, leading his tired body.

And—

Somewhere,

He felt a faint but familiar presence.

‘……Sierra?’

He furrowed his brow and hastened his steps.

There was no time to look back.

Only forward.

Only for survival.

Black smoke spread into the dawn sky.

Amidst the sound of explosions hitting his ears, Leo kicked off the rubble and sprang out.

“Enemy spotted! Shoot!”

Soldiers wearing dark Imperial military uniforms shouted.

Instantly, magic bullets poured down like rain.

Leo lowered his body and rolled away to one side. At the red flash that grazed his toe tips, his heart pounded like crazy before his sweat could even cool.

‘If I’m pushed back, I die.’

Leo grit his teeth and drew his sword.

He spread mana throughout his body, prepared to overload his magic circuit.

Clang!!

He parried the spear of the first soldier who rushed in and counterattacked.

The sword tip dug into the soldier’s collarbone, and he screamed and fell.

“Surround him! Don’t let him go!”

Soldiers swarmed in from all directions.

Leo took a short, ragged breath and changed position.

As soon as he felt the presence of an enemy trying to get behind him, he twisted his body to dodge the spear blade, and directly plunged his elbow into the attacker.

“Ku-ack!”

As the soldier collapsed, two other soldiers simultaneously swung their swords.

Leo forced his body to twist and escape between the flashing blades.

Blood splattered.

He couldn’t tell if it was his own or the enemy’s.

“Damn it……”

His breathing grew rough.

From behind, he heard the charging sound of a magic cannon.

‘Fast…!’

Leo urgently focused mana into his arm and stepped hard on the ground.

Just before the explosion, he jumped forward as if being repelled.

Kwaaaang!!!

Leaving the spot where the explosion occurred behind him, Leo barely managed to roll his body.

Heat and fragments grazed his back.

“Narrow the encirclement! Do not ever lose him!”

The soldiers narrowed the distance.

His breath was gradually being choked.

One, two.

When sword strikes came in, he reflexively parried and blocked.

However, blades grazed his shoulder and cut into his thigh.

His clothes were torn, and blood seeped out.

‘No, if I’m caught, it’s over.’

Leo grit his teeth and ran again.

But his body grew heavier the further he went.

His arms and legs showed dull reactions.

Fatigue, bleeding, magic consumption.

‘I have to endure.’

A magic bullet exploded again.

Leo held his breath and hid his body among the rubble of the ruined building.

But the soldiers did not miss his movement.

“Encirclement complete!”

The soldiers surrounding him were all holding magic weapons.

Leo held his sword, panting, and muttered.

“…Come at me, all of you.”