“It’s… over, right?” “Leif, you shouldn’t say things like that.”

That’s basically a resurrection incantation.

“Gasp! I-is it really!?”

Leif clapped her hands over her mouth, as if trying to take back her words. I leaned on her for support as I waited for the wave of nausea to subside, and then gently let her go.

“I’m just kidding. But seriously, our teamwork was amazing. That attack had some real power.” “Undine did most of the work.”

Despite her modesty, Leif beamed with a shy grin. Leif Yousglimpt, 18 years old, still at the age where praise makes you feel good.

I cautiously approached the psycho's limp body, ready to teleport at any moment.

I borrowed Leif’s staff and poked at the corpse.

“Yeah, he’s definitely gone.”

No movement at all.

I tossed the staff aside and flipped the body over with my hand.

A gaping wound in his stomach continued to gush blood.

I rummaged through his clothes, but all I found was a book and a ring. Should I strip him of his clothes too? They do look pretty decent...

'Not a good idea.'

Carrying around blood-soaked clothes wouldn’t be practical. Plus, it would just add unnecessary weight to our load.

I pocketed the book and the ring, handed the staff back to Leif, and asked her:

“You okay?” “Well, I did feel a bit nauseous, but I’m fine now!” “No, I mean… about that.”

She had killed someone.

Even if that person had been a psychotic serial killer trying to murder us, once the thrill of battle wears off, the reality of killing someone can still hit hard.

But surprisingly, Leif seemed calm.

Or maybe it wasn’t that surprising. Leif has always been the kind of person who gets things done when it matters.

She was the one who suggested forming a team in the first place, and when Ray tried to distance herself, it was Leif who stepped in to mediate.

“I’m okay. How about you, Roman?” “I’m fine too.”

I wasn’t the one who directly killed him, and even if I had been, this wouldn’t have been my first time.

‘When I was on the trade route, bandits attacked us, and I fought alongside the mercenaries.’

Surviving that was probably a miracle.

I didn’t even know how it all went down. I just killed people and somehow made it out alive.

“Shall we get moving again?” “Wait a second.”

Just as I was suggesting we move, Leif hurried off somewhere.

She went to where the bodies of the psycho’s victims were lying.

Leif summoned Undine to cleanse their bodies, then carefully closed their eyes with gentle hands.

After a short prayer, she dashed back to me.

“Okay, let’s go.” “…Yeah.”

§

Fortunately, no more skeletons appeared after we left the cavern.

Maybe the skeleton was never meant to harm us, but to lure us into the cavern where the psycho was waiting.

‘It was pretty weak.’

The skeleton was a herder. The psycho waiting in the chamber was the hunter.

But that means there’s more than one hunter. The guy Leif and I encountered wasn’t skilled in necromancy.

‘So maybe there’s a separate hunter and a separate herder.’

Leif left Undine to watch our rear while I kept an eye on the front. As we moved forward, Leif called out to me.

“Roman.” “Yeah?” “You’re not going to ask?”

“Ask about what?”

“That… you know.”

Is it bothering her?

I guess if I had revealed something I considered a weakness, it would be more unsettling if no one mentioned it.

“Elves aren’t a big deal. I’ve even talked with an elf before. Heck, I’m doing it right now, aren’t I?” “I’m… not an elf.”

Leif spoke quietly.

“I’m a half-blood.”

Slowly, she was about to start her confession.

But Leif’s story didn’t continue.

The intense wave of magic carried by the wind from the distance pulled us in before she could go on.

“We’ll talk about it when we get out of here.” “…Okay!”

We quickened our pace.

And we weren’t the only ones.

Soon after, at a fork in the path, Leif and I ran into another pair—a man and a woman—rushing toward us from the opposite direction.

“A demon warlock?” “Ah! That’s the guy Alejandra’s interested in.”

A brown-haired man and a woman with gray-black hair.

Though their hair colors were ordinary, the fact that the woman was taller than the man made for an unusual combination that was easy to recognize.

“Alejandra’s team.” “You two got separated too, huh? Good timing, so did we.” “…Amaia, be careful. They could be enemies.” “You scared?”

“That’s not what I meant…! Ugh, never mind.”

The brown-haired guy muttered under his breath, calling her a ‘wild beast.’

If he’s that shaken up, he’d lose his mind if he ever met our real beast girl.

Amaia, chuckling, turned serious again.

“You ran into someone too, right? I smell blood on you.” “You too?” “Take a look.”

Amaia showed me the bloodstains on her clothes.

“You guys got separated too, right? Let’s travel together.” “Those two are just dead weight.” “Juan, shut up for a bit.”

Whether it was because of rank, Juan immediately clammed up and turned his head away.

“So? What do you think?” “Fine. Let’s move together.”

The enemy of my enemy is my friend, as they say. Right now, the priority isn’t the bet—it’s finding Ray and getting the hell out of this underground death trap.

“Let’s be clear though: we’re not taking orders from each other.” “If that’s how you want it.”

And just like that, an impromptu party was formed.

§

The finish line of the trial and the center of the underground level.

That place had become a complete war zone.

The walls and floor were covered with the marks of destruction. Blood was splattered everywhere, as if someone had painted a mural with it.

The noise was deafening. Magic clashed violently. Explosions shook the space.

And the skeletons rattled.

All of it coexisted in one place, turning the cavern from a trial site into a battlefield.

“Ugh…!”

The groan came from Ray, escaping through gritted teeth.

She had seen an opening and attacked, but the recoil was ridiculous.

It wasn’t an automatic magical defense.

Before Ray’s magic, Argentus, even made contact, it was repelled.

With the ambush failing, it was the enemy’s turn to strike back.

But as they pursued Ray, their attack was blocked by a shield of magical swords flying in from the side.

“Be careful!”

Arthur shouted.

With a flick of his hand, the magical swords aligned themselves and began to dance in unison.

Arthur’s spell, Thousand Blade.

It formed and controlled countless magical swords at will, making it a versatile magic for both offense and defense.

Among the training center’s personnel, Arthur was undeniably the strongest. And he had the most battle experience by far.

Which meant no one understood the current situation as clearly as Arthur did.

‘This is dangerous.’

Judging by the magic, the enemy was a necromancer. And a highly skilled one at that.

The fact that the combat instructor, Davenport, was barely holding on without even being able to counterattack was evidence enough. If it weren’t for the trainees supporting him, Davenport would have already been a cold corpse lying on the ground.

Blood was dripping from the wound in his abdomen. He may have launched a surprise attack, but there was no way a seasoned fighter like Davenport would fall for such a sloppy move.

That alone showed how formidable the necromancer was.

“Hng!”

Fwoosh!

A gust of wind, engulfed in flames, swept across the battlefield, wiping out the necromancer’s summoned minions in one go and heating the air in the cavern.

“Annoying.”

The voice, shrouded in deep darkness beneath a hood, muttered a spell.

“Witness your death.”

The necromancer cast one of the most dangerous spells in one-on-one combat—Manifestation of Death—aimed directly at Alejandra.

Just before the curse overtook her senses, a mirror appeared in front of her.

Chiiing! Crack!

The mirror’s symbol is reflection. The necromancer’s curse rebounded without reaching Alejandra.

However, fully reflecting the power of the curse was impossible, and the mirror cracked.

“I won’t allow that.” “...Interference.”

The necromancer’s gaze shifted from Alejandra to Arthur.

Floating around him were several mirrors, forming a protective shield around his body—Fiona McManus’ signature spell.

‘Now!’

Seizing the opportunity while the necromancer’s attention was on Fiona, Arthur struck swiftly.

Shhh-thunk!

The magical swords dissolved and reformed into a single giant sword.

And the massive sword, swiftly reconstructed, fell toward the necromancer.

Boom!

A thick cloud of dust billowed into the air.

This was Arthur’s strongest blow. He had fused 15 of the 16 magical blades he could wield into one colossal sword.

‘That should do it….’

“Well done. The observers' reports underestimated you. You’ve exceeded expectations.”

The necromancer’s voice came from behind a wall of bones that had blocked the attack.

‘It’s impossible. We need to retreat.’

There was no one present who could deliver a stronger attack than Arthur.

Davenport was more specialized in defense than offense. Even if he had some hidden trump card, his current condition made it impossible.

Ray’s magic could potentially deal a lethal blow, but she couldn’t even get close.

‘But retreating isn’t an option either.’

Something. Something needs to change.

But where?

The outside is cut off, and the instructor is incapacitated. Of the four people here, Arthur judged that they were the strongest of the trainees.

Bringing anyone weaker would only burden the group.

He could think of a few other people who could help, but they weren’t here.

He had sent out other trainees to find them, but there was no sign of them returning anytime soon.

‘If the giant sword method doesn’t work, I’ll switch to the split sword technique to confuse him with multiple attacks….’

“What are you doing, idiot!”

Ray’s sharp, harsh voice snapped Arthur out of his thoughts.

‘Damn it….’

This was Arthur’s biggest flaw, as his mentor had pointed out many times. Despite his brilliant combat intelligence, he had a tendency to get lost in thought during battle.

Now alert again, Arthur quickly surveyed the situation.

All the mirrors had been used up defending the others, leaving Fiona with only one remaining mirror—cracked from defending Alejandra earlier.

It wouldn’t hold.

And now, a bolt of dark purple lightning was crashing down toward Fiona.

It was a strike charged with far more magical energy than anything the necromancer had shown so far, as if this moment had been what they were waiting for all along.

‘So Fiona was their target all along.’

Arthur should have stopped it. He, Davenport, and Fiona were the only ones capable of casting defensive spells.

With Davenport engaged up front, Arthur should have been the one to defend Fiona.

‘If I switch to shield sword mode….’

No, it’s too late.

Arthur’s battle instincts were already telling him that it was too late to block the attack.

No one could stop it.

Not Arthur, not Fiona, not anyone else.

‘The defense is collapsing… is this the end?’

That thought crossed everyone’s mind.

But then, something appeared out of nowhere.

The variable Arthur had been hoping for.

The last chance to turn the tide.

Crackling!

The lightning, failing to meet its target, struck the ground, scattering in all directions.

And the flash of the lightning illuminated the face of the new arrival.

Someone with hair even darker than the necromancer’s hood.

Roman.

§

“You alright?” “Huh? Oh… yes. I’m fine.”

I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to teleport with such precision, but it worked out.

Without even checking on Fiona, I turned to face the front.

I kept my magic power elevated, ready to teleport again at a moment’s notice.

“You should drop your magical defenses for now. They could interfere with my teleportation.”

Just like with Leif earlier, teleporting someone else comes with challenges. If they resist by rejecting my magic, the spell might fail.

Fiona nodded and immediately lowered the magical energy surrounding her.

“Is that… a new spell you created?” “Thanks to you.” “……….”

Fiona suddenly fell silent.

Was she deep in thought? Or maybe, like with Leif, she was in shock.

“More importantly, who is that?”

Fiona opened her mouth again in response to my question.

“He must be a cultist of the Abyss. Those who worship the Abyss and conspire to bring about the destruction of cities and the downfall of the factions…”

I see.

That explained why they were willing to go to such reckless lengths.

And it also meant that there was no room for negotiation with them.