Burning Skeleton Knight

The direction of fate remained unchanged.

Ailin instinctively took two steps toward the camp, then suddenly stopped, hid in a waist-high embankment, and closed his eyes.

Compared to the Wild Hunt, who was driven nearly mad by the death of his companion, and other male wizards of varying quality, even those who did not intend to deal with Vilgefortz...

The source of magic, which is closely connected to the elements and magic power, also poses a considerable threat to Ailin, who uses illusion magic to become invisible.

Especially now that the male wizards have been scattered by fireballs, they could be discovered if they're not careful.

"Vilgefortz ..."

After activating the Primal Tongue, he called out in his heart.

Mother Nature's response was unusually aggressive compared to the past.

Almost the instant the Primal Tongue began to function...

"Hmph~"

Ailin couldn't help but let out a muffled groan of pain.

"... Kill them... Kill them... Kill them!!!"

A savage and brutal killing intent surged into his brain in an instant.

It was as if the flames had not only ignited the forest, but also set Ailin's nerves ablaze, making him furious and wanting to kill all the culprits who had destroyed nature.

Ailin suddenly opened his eyes, his whites bloodshot, as if he had seen his father's killer.

The illusion disguised in front of him twisted and distorted unsteadily.

"Buzz~"

The apprentice, Ailin, felt a slight tremor in his chest as a cool sensation surged into his mind, clearing his head.

The murderous intent that had been afflicting his heart immediately diminished.

"It's... it's a mirage pearl..."

Ailin took a breath, struggling to pull his thoughts away from his burning ramblings.

Even though he had completely withdrawn from it, a faint sense of destructive intent still lingered in his mind.

"Is this the way of the Druid?"

"While relying on the forces of nature, we are also profoundly influenced by nature because of our strong connection with it."

"No wonder there are extremist factions among those Druid; this influence is even more terrifying than bewitching magic."

Ailin patted his chest with lingering fear, conveying some praise to the link in his mind to the mirage pearl.

If it weren't for the mirage pearl, even if he wouldn't have gotten lost, the risk of being exposed would have been much greater.

"Thump!"

Suddenly, the sounds of battle echoed from the direction of the camp once again.

Amidst the familiar sounds of exploding fireballs and crackling as flames licked the trees, the occasional angry shouts of the wizards could also be heard.

"What happened?" Ailin jumped to his feet. "After those male wizards were blown away, they didn't run away, they actually dared to counterattack..."

"They're reckless..."

"Rumble~"

Thunder rumbled in the sky, interrupting Ailin.

Before anyone knew it, layers upon layers of dark clouds had gathered over the forest.

Amidst the gloomy clouds, a cold wind howled past.

"Buzzing~"

The Wolf Emblem throbbed violently within the breastplate.

Ailin looked up at the sky, following the intense fluctuations that almost distorted the air.

"Crack—"

Lightning flashed across the sky, and thunder roared.

Thick bolts of purple lightning fell to the ground like azure dragons.

The birch tree, burned to charcoal, swayed, its raging flames pressed tightly against the trunk.

The earth was trembling.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Lightning illuminated the entire forest, each bolt thicker than the last.

Even the smallest of them are several times stronger than they were when they were in the suburbs of Ard- Vengerberg.

"This is the real Alzure's Lightning Spell!" Ailin instantly realized. "Then... it must be Vilgefortz!"

The wizards in the Witcher world are different from those in Ailin's fictional works from his previous life.

They may learn many spells, but they will only truly master and use two or three in actual combat at most.

In reality, most wizards—especially the highest-ranking ones—are not combatants, but rather more like researchers, alchemists, or strategists.

At least that's the case in the Northern Continent.

Take Mary, for example.

Before encountering the Greater Griffin, the attack spells I knew were all basic beginner magic.

Francesca's mastery of so many spells is undoubtedly related to the fact that the Ion Siddi clan is small in number and has been in dire straits due to years of war.

Unlike Ailin, wizards don't use offensive spells much in their daily lives; a few defensive spells are enough for them.

After all, top-tier offensive spells aren't easy to learn; it's better to master one than to know several.

therefore.

Since no other male wizard used Alzure's Lightning Spell when they were inside the magical barrier, the mage attacking now is almost certainly Vilgefortz.

But why is Alzure's Lightning Spell suddenly so much stronger?

Ailin's eyes flashed, he checked his equipment again, thought of a route, and crouched down to quietly sneak towards the camp.

After crossing the gentle slope beside the stream, what comes into view is thick smoke with flickering flames.

However, thanks to Vilgefortz's Alzure's Lightning Spell, the gathered clouds did not disappear after the spell ended, but instead began to drizzle naturally with the howling wind.

certainly.

It's also possible that other mages used weather magic to change the weather, since the Mad Wild Hunt specializes in fire, and a humid environment and air will always reduce the power of Fire Magic to some extent.

However, the intense elemental fluctuations and billowing smoke made it difficult for Ailin to discern anything.

"...Dh'oine... Damn it... Tuvean y gloir... Sera... Dh'oine... You all deserve to die..."

We hadn't gone far in the thick smoke that obscured our vision.

The manic Mental Fluctuation emanating from the Wild Hunt reappeared in his mind. The same insane mental state as before made him breathe a sigh of relief, but also aroused his intense curiosity once again.

"Although he's still as manic as ever, his voice is so full of energy that it doesn't seem like anything serious has happened," Ailin stroked his short, bristle-like mustache. "How come these male wizards dare to act so impulsively?"

At first, he could still be curious and have wild thoughts, but as the roar of various spells on the battlefield drew closer, Ailin had no choice but to concentrate on the path beneath his feet.

In the forest, which had been baked to a crisp, the temperature rose sharply.

If it weren't for the Wolf School Master Set's ability to absorb ordinary flames on the ground, allowing him to focus on constructing the Mirage Pearl illusion, the disguise would have been exposed long ago.

Even so, it took Ailin a long time to walk less than a hundred meters, and he walked slower and slower, lower and lower.

The thick smoke had completely obscured the road ahead, reducing visibility to less than two meters.

Ailin could only rely on the guidance of fate and the roar of the wizards' spells to determine his location.

Interestingly, the positions of both sides didn't change much, almost like they were just standing still and attacking.

Is the power of the Wild Hunt's fireballs reduced?

Or were the wizards forced to remain stationary?

As Ailin was thinking this, his expression suddenly changed drastically, and he abruptly lowered his body.

"Call out!"

A piece of gravel the size of a human head pierced through the smoke and swept past his head.

Ailin touched his head, feeling a chill on his scalp, and after thinking for a moment, he simply crawled forward.

However, after crawling for only two meters, a chilling cold air swept over them.

In an instant, it was as if Ailin had crossed a barrier, and the view before him suddenly opened up.

With his neck as the limit, smoke and flames were all behind him; in front of him, besides the blackened birch trees, there was only the bare black earth and the four male witches standing on it.

Wrong!

Ailin narrowed his eyes, his azure pupils contracting.

I was lying prone on the ground, and my field of vision was a bit low, so I didn't notice.

The four wizards, including Vilgefortz, stood on a black carpet that had almost blended into the scorched ground.

Dense incantations and symbols of different colors were combined into an intricate ritual circle, which was somehow etched onto the carpet and was now shimmering.

Ailin recognized this ritual, the Magic Ritual.

[Name: Magic Ritual]

[Type: Magical Ritual]

[Requirement: Ritual Studies LV4]

Materials: Chalk*2, Glass*2, Sulfur*2, Magic Dust*1

[Function: Creates a magic circle that increases magic capacity, raising the maximum magic capacity of the first target to enter the circle, possess magical abilities, and focus on the circle, lasting for five hours.

The caster can also drain the power of the magic circle to obtain a proportional amount of the Fifth Element.

[Note: Every warlock who sets up a Magic Ritual is a glass cannon!]

"Damn, no wonder Vilgefortz's Alzure's Lightning Spell is so powerful..."

Ailin quickly looked around and then crawled to a slightly steep, shaded corner.

He finally breathed a sigh of relief after canceling the mirage and hiding himself in darkness again with "Night·Color".

The male witches were powerful because of the ritual carpet, made of some unknown material, which also prevented them from moving; they could only defend and attack from their current location.

But this still doesn't explain why they would launch an attack...

So what about the Wild Hunt?

Ailin squinted, turning his gaze toward the end of the Ice Spike, lightning, and hurricane, the source of fate's urging.

The violent elemental storm and the scorched birch trees blocked his view, and he could only vaguely see a ring of firelight in the dense darkness.

then.

He carefully moved northwards around the battlefield.

Just then.

Within the azure, earth-shaped barrier, the bearded sorcerer standing before Vilgefortz suddenly spoke.

"Where's Quinn? Why hasn't he arrived yet?"

Quinn ... that's the wizard's name... Ailin paused.

"Escaped? Seriously injured?" The triangular-eyed sorcerer, who had just unleashed his Ice Spike, asked viciously, "Or are you dead?"

"He's too close to the front row, and he's not specialized in defensive spells..."

"Quinn is merely a teaching mage. The reason he can wear the black robe is because of his improvements in teaching methods, which earned him the appreciation of Dean Hen Gedimidis..."

"Miguel, you shouldn't have called him!"

"Quinn won't run away," the goatee-bearded sorcerer who wielded the hurricane added expressionlessly.

"It wasn't me who called him..." The wizard known as Miguel sighed, offering no explanation. "Never mind, it's my responsibility. I should have stopped him."

This time, the losses were truly devastating.

The seven intermediate wizards, each a core member of the Radical Faction, are proud of their status as male wizards and believe that magic transcends all worldly matters.

In fact, if he weren't a core member, he wouldn't have been able to summon him so hastily.

Now, not only have all the intermediate wizards been wiped out, but now it's possible that Quinn, the teaching wizard with an excellent reputation in the academy, will also be added to the list.

Miguel could hardly imagine what would happen if Dean Henry Gedimidis recovered and discovered that Quinn had a problem.

How much of a blow will they, the Glorious Faction, suffer?

Is it really worth paying such a high price for stolen materials that even the dean might not understand the purpose of?

Miguel didn't understand, but he had no choice.

Even the legendary Philosopher's Stone, said to be all-powerful, cannot turn back time.

"Quinn will be fine," he said. "Hang in there a little longer, that monster is almost done for."

The two wizards did not answer, but chanted the spell again in a voice as loud as a bell.

Vilgefortz remained silent throughout, as if he hadn't heard anything, and focused on casting Alzure's Lightning Spell.

"Boom—"

Another flash of lightning streaked through the clouds.

The blinding white light illuminated the entire forest once again.

After casting his lightning spell, Vilgefortz immediately glanced at the camp in the white light, seemingly unintentionally, before taking over Miguel's duties. He rested briefly while maintaining the magical barrier.

On the other side.

At this moment, Ailin also bypassed the charcoal wood that was blocking his view.

After the blinding lightning disappeared, the Wild Hunt appeared.

He is burning...

Literally, burning.

Clad in black iron armor, the Wild Hunt now resembled a massive torch, its blazing flames shooting straight into the sky.

The flames weren't some kind of magical barrier, but rather they shot out from every exposed gap in the armor—the wrists of the iron boots and gauntlets, the knees of the greaves... and of course, from the helmet.

The helmet no longer contained a hideous skull, but a face illuminated by distorted firelight.

Ailin couldn't see the face clearly, but for some reason, he felt that the face must be very handsome, just like the face of the Wild Hunt lying behind him on the ground.

For some reason, Vesemir's words teaching Mary the Flash Fire at the Temple of Melitele suddenly echoed in his mind.

Fire Element is one of the four elemental types, possessing the strongest destructive power among magic of equal strength, but it is also the most volatile and difficult to tame.

When you cannot control Him, He will control you; He will enrage you, ignite you, and turn you into a piece of firewood that screams for help but can only watch helplessly as its veins are seared and its flesh is charred.

But the Wild Hunt seems to have completely contradicted what Vesemir had originally said.

He spontaneously combusted, a classic symbol of the Fire Element going out of control.

But he did not die, nor did he even scream in pain from his flesh being burned.

He was merely using Mental Fluctuation to convey extreme anger, and extreme... sorrow...

"Whoosh~"

Several more thick Ice Spike pierced the air and fell from the sky.

"Ah--"

Wild Hunt roared and raised his staff.

The Ice Spike, radiating a chilling aura, vaporized in mid-air.

But the next storm, swirling with sharp blades, sliced directly into his burning body.

Ailin could observe that the skin exposed outside the armor had been cut, and the blood was vaporized the moment it flowed out of the skin, so it looked as if there was no injury at all.

However, the flames on his massive body were visibly weakening.

Ailin felt this was not a good omen, a good omen for the Wild Hunt.

As for why he never dodged...

Moving the gaze downwards, the female corpse of Iain El was unharmed, and the face beneath the helmet was even more exquisite than when she had just died.

"Rumble rumble rumble—"

Ice Spike, gale-force winds, lightning...

It's unclear whether the Wild Hunt, burning with the intensity of life, is like an act of defiance against the world for the sake of a corpse.

"No wonder the position hasn't changed, and the wizards dare to come back and hold out..." Ailin sighed. "They must have figured something out."

Ailin felt there must be a very clichéd love story behind this, but he didn't want to know.

Given his status as Ailin, the Wild Hunt deserves no sympathy for all the horrific atrocities he committed.

Even though I know it in my heart...

The burning joy that the mastermind behind the scenes was about to reap suddenly... wasn't so strong anymore.