The Town Falls

Dago guessed that the reason Blood Grime Esog had nearly wiped him out in his Mental Space was probably related to the beastskin scroll he had obtained earlier. He had stupidly read its name aloud back then and been marked by it.

It seemed he would have to properly talk with the people from the Duskblood Council about Blood Grime Esog in the future.

He took out the beastskin scroll from his storage ring. After gritting his teeth and steeling himself, he decided it would be best to burn it. Who knew whether he would encounter something like that again when he entered his Mental Space in the future?

As for the spells recorded on it, Dago was somewhat reluctant to part with them, but he chose to give them up for the sake of his life.

His Mental Space already had so much messed-up nonsense going on. A few more incidents like that, and he might as well ascend on the spot.

Under the scorching heat of the kerosene lamp, the beastskin scroll took a full half hour to burn completely into ashes.

Dago clapped his hands, then began practicing his Meditation Technique with satisfaction, converting and accumulating mental power to replenish his Soul Body.

He summoned the system panel to check the results of his training over the past five days.

[Universal Wizard Meditation Method(Metamorphosis 7310/10000);Ice Crystal Cannon(Metamorphosis 4197/10000);Resonance Art(Metamorphosis 4280/10000);Detection Technique(Metamorphosis 1857/10000);Potion Brewing(Beginner 18/1000)]

During this period, Dago had devoted more of his energy to the spell Resonance Art, even more than Ice Crystal Cannon.

Ever since moving into town, the progress values had grown especially slowly. Mainly because when he trained in the meditation rooms at the Wizard Hall, he did not dare use Ice Crystal Cannon to blow things up.

Although using a weakened version could still earn progress values, it was incredibly slow—so slow that it only increased by a point after roughly three to five uses.

This ended up benefiting Resonance Art. Basically, every time he restored his mental power through meditation, the spell he practiced most was this one.

The ice-element skin created by Resonance Art had become tighter and more orderly as the skill progressed. It was deeper and more restrained, its overall color leaning closer to blue.

Thinking of this, Dago could not help admiring the genius who had invented this spell. How was this even a spell? It was practically a body-strengthening technique.

What ordinary wizard had a physique and body as good as his? Besides, Dago had barely exercised at all. It even made him want to practice mundane combat techniques.

Once he became a Formal Wizard and could fly, how would he be any different from a mini Superman?

Still, any wizard he could engage in close combat with now was basically the sort of small fry that a single Air Cannon could take out.

In any case, this spell had great potential, and Dago thought highly of it.

He took out an old brass pocket watch and checked the time. It was already eight at night. Dago filled the bathtub with hot water and climbed in.

Tonight was another night claimed by the cold.

Light snow drifted outside. The cold cut to the bone, yet steam billowed inside, and white mist condensed on the glass windows.

Dago lay in the bathtub with his eyes closed, quietly enjoying the pleasant moment.

"Boom, boom, boom, bang, bang!!!"

A series of muffled sounds rang out in the distance. Dago raised his head and listened carefully. They mainly came from the north and east sides of town.

This had become commonplace over the past few days, indicating that the Duskblood Council had launched another fierce assault against the hired wizards' defensive line on the outskirts.

The sounds of spell explosions continued without pause for a full thirty minutes.

Those Blood Servant Wizards from the Duskblood Council are attacking especially fiercely tonight. Usually, they retreat after attacking for around ten minutes.

Dago thought to himself, sensing that something was wrong. He took out the wizard robe from his storage ring and looked it over.

This wizard robe was no ordinary item. It actually had the [Cleansing Rune] and [Wear Resistance Rune] inscribed on it. As expected of a young master from a wizard family.

However, before he could finish putting it on, a tremendous boom swept past the Wizard Inn like a hurricane, shaking dust loose from the ceiling.

Dago hurriedly put on the wizard robe, then headed toward Selena's room.

He had heard this explosion clearly. It had not come from far away—it had erupted inside the town. Something was really about to happen this time.

He pounded hard on Selena's door, only to find that Selena was already fully armed inside her room.

Gripping his wand, Dago left the Wizard Inn with Selena, only to see raging flames in the north of town dyeing half the night sky red.

At that moment, an even more violent rumble rolled over from somewhere both near and far.

"Rumble!"

Dago suddenly looked over and saw a massive fireball several hundred meters away. The instant it struck a house, it set the entire building ablaze.

His expression froze. Immediately afterward, several hired wizards came running from ahead in a bedraggled state, their faces filled with ghostly terror.

"Black-Robed Wizards! Black-Robed Wizards from the Duskblood Council are inside the town, killing people and setting fires everywhere!"

"The town has fallen! The Black-Robed Wizards are here!"

The hired wizards shouted wildly as they ran.

In an instant, the civilians crowding the streets to watch and inquire were thrown into chaos, scattering in all directions.

Dago listened to the continuous explosions around him, along with the faint cries for help and screams drifting through the night.

After thinking for a moment, he coated the soles of his feet with Air Bullets and leaped onto the tallest roof, standing there to survey the surroundings.

Under the flickering firelight, hired wizards and civilians fled in panic everywhere. Bloodshed and slaughter accompanied the chaos.

Dago's gaze suddenly sharpened. Enhanced by Detection Technique, he clearly saw a black-robed figure several long streets away, riding a Shadow Leopard as it bounded and darted through the streets.

As the black-robed figure moved, he scattered green spheres of energy from both hands. Like a death god calling names, any hired wizard who came even slightly close was killed the moment he was targeted.

In the brief time Dago watched, the Black-Robed Wizard had already taken the lives of seven or eight hired wizards.

"You're courting death!"

A nameless fury rose from Dago's heart. He raised his hand and condensed an Air Bullet, aiming it at the black-robed figure.

With a "whoosh!!", the Air Bullet shot rapidly toward the Black-Robed Wizard.

"Bang~~" The Air Bullet struck the ground three meters beside the Black-Robed Wizard. The resulting air blast sent both him and the Shadow Leopard flying.

The Black-Robed Wizard fell onto the icy ground, quickly got up, and whistled. The Shadow Leopard swiftly returned to his side. He mounted it in one smooth motion and rapidly approached Dago.

Soon, he appeared on a rooftop four or five houses away from Dago.

The Black-Robed Wizard was tall and thin, his entire body hidden beneath the robe, making his face impossible to see.

His cold gaze landed on Dago. Their eyes met, and neither spoke.

They faced each other in silence as pale moonlight spilled over the snow-covered streets, carrying not a trace of warmth.

The civilians who had packed their belongings and prepared to flee had just stepped out of their homes. Seeing the two confronting each other atop the roofs, they suddenly had no idea what to do.

One by one, they stood frozen in place with terrified expressions, too afraid to move.