Boom!
After a deafening crash, Sphinger was sent flying once more.
And Grisa’s attack was blocked by the barrier yet again.
“Damn you! Cassim——!!!”
Grisa gritted his teeth and swung his wand once more.
Boom! Boom! Boom......
A relentless barrage of attacks slammed into the barrier.
“Sigh——”
Cassim let out a sigh,
glancing at Grisa, then at Sphinger,
and shook his head:
“You two are truly persistent.”
“Enough. I’ve wasted enough time on you......”
Rumble!
The ground trembled violently.
A tide of darkness surged forth from beneath the earth,
submerging nearly five hundred meters of forest in an instant—and sweeping Grisa and Sphinger into its depths......
When the tide of darkness receded,
Grisa and Sphinger were suspended in midair, bound by countless black chains.
“Ca......ssim......!!!”
Though stripped of all resistance, Grisa stared fixedly at Cassim, his gaze burning with hatred.
“Fear not—I won’t kill you yet. A-rank beings are far too precious. I’ll use you as the ultimate sacrifice, and make sure you fulfill your true purpose~!”
“You...... monster!!!”
Grisa ground his teeth so hard they threatened to shatter.
“Teacher Grisa——!”
At that moment, the voices of numerous teachers echoed nearby.
“You——”
Grisa’s expression changed,
and he shouted at the crowd:
“Don’t worry about me! Flee this place at once!”
“Never! We are of Manacos—we will never desert our own!”
“That’s right! We’ll fight him to the death!”
“Teacher Grisa, rest assured! Today, we’ll lay down our lives if we must to get you out of here......”
“You......”
Looking at them, Grisa was lost for words.
“How touching your courage is~.”
Cassim clapped his hands,
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“However, you’re far too troublesome to deal with—and killing you outright would be a waste~......”
From the forest behind Cassim,
dozens of figures emerged,
forming a semicircle to confront the teachers of Manacos.
“How about this~.”
“You might as well surrender quietly.”
“You’re dreaming!”
“We’d rather die than submit to you!”
“Let’s charge together and rescue Teacher Grisa first......”
Faced with overwhelming numbers, the teachers of Manacos showed no trace of fear.
“Is that so?”
“Yet you seem to have misunderstood something......”
Cassim spoke slowly,
“I am not asking for your compliance—I am——”
“Ordering it.”
“Attack!”
As soon as Cassim’s words fell,
a faint mist began to drift through the forest,
quickly enveloping the teachers of Manacos.
“Th-this is......”
The teachers realized the danger,
but the mist’s effects were far more potent than before.
They barely held on for a few moments before collapsing one by one.
“Cassim, you coward! Is this all you’re capable of—such underhanded tricks!?”
Grisa roared in fury.
“Hehe~.”
Cassim chuckled,
“You’re mistaken. This is not my doing~. Isn’t that right?”
“Ah...... indeed. I’ve grown quite adept at wielding such things.”
Seeing the figure step out of the mist, Grisa’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“It’s you——!”
“Why...... why would you betray the academy?”
“Hehe, Grisa—you ask such a foolish question. Everyone has their own ambitions. Who are you to judge another’s choices~?”
“Enough. We’ve wasted too much time. Now, if you’ll excuse me, it’s time for you to take your leave.”
“Cassim——”
A curtain of darkness blotted out Grisa’s vision, and his voice was swallowed by the void......
After seizing control of Manacos’ camp,
Cassim and his followers from Gulos set about their true task.
Hum——!
The interconnected magic circles spanning vast swathes of the Monster Great Forest underwent a drastic transformation,
shifting from protective barriers into a prison of unbreakable steel.
Moments later, a thick fog rose from the forest’s edge, creeping steadily toward its depths.
Squads of armed Gulos agents advanced alongside the fog,
and the hunt began......
...
...
Thud! Thud! Thud......
Heavy footsteps echoed through the underground cave.
A massive Mother Tyrant Giant Bear, carrying three humans and one cub on its back, marched along the upward-sloping path.
As the light ahead grew brighter, an exit came into view......
“There really is another exit!”
Staring at the cave mouth opening into a valley, Miko marveled at the underground cave’s labyrinthine complexity.
“This place...... it seems to be deeper in the forest?”
Alicia studied her surroundings carefully and reached a conclusion.
It was clear the Mother Tyrant Giant Bear had entered the cave from here.
“Hulim, which way should we go now——”
When Alicia turned to look at Hulim,
she found her staring intently at the sky.
“......Hulim?”
Alicia asked, confused.
“......”
After a long moment,
Hulim slowly lowered her gaze and said in a grave voice:
“Something is wrong.”
...
In the fog-shrouded forest,
a group of students ran for their lives,
glancing back over their shoulders as if some unspeakable horror pursued them.
“Ah!”
At that moment,
one student—distracted by looking behind—failed to notice the ground beneath his feet and stumbled, tripped by the vines of a carnivorous plant.
His companions rushed to his aid, unleashing magic to sever the vines coiled around his leg,
and urged him anxiously:
“What are you doing!? Now is not the time for accidents! Get up and run——”
Whoosh!
His words were cut short.
A magical attack suddenly flew out of the mist from behind,
striking him square in the chest and sending him flying.
The other students paled.
One of them made a split-second decision and shouted:
“Split up and run——!”
“Hmph! Split up?”
A voice drew near from the mist.
“Do you think that will save you~?”
As his words fell, the students—who had been about to flee in all directions—halted and retreated,
for figures had emerged from the fog on all sides, surrounding them completely.
“Run! Keep running!”
A black-robed figure stepped out of the mist, sneering at them.
“You seemed so eager to flee earlier~?”
“Do you really think we’d only chase you from behind!”
Trapped with no way out,
one student gritted his teeth and said:
“Damn it! We’ll fight them to the death!”
“That’s right!”
“We’ll never surrender!”
The students raised their wands, their gazes fierce as they stared down the black-robed figures.
“Hmph! Foolish children!”
One black-robed figure snorted,
“Teach these brats a lesson!”
The black-robed figures raised their weapons in unison.
But at that moment——
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh......
A hail of curved beams of light suddenly flew out from the deeper forest,
as if guided by some sort of ally recognition magic—they bypassed every Manacos student and struck the black-robed figures directly.
Bang! Bang! Bang......
The black-robed figures collapsed to the ground in unison.
“Ah——!!!”
Only one scream echoed through the forest, lingering in the air.
...
