Alaric forced himself to his feet. His entire left side was a mass of agony.
Blood filled his mouth.
The four figures entered the classroom, spreading out to block any escape routes.
Think.
His mind raced through options.
[Dominion’s Gaze!]
He locked eyes with the nearest creature, pouring what remained of his willpower into the technique.
The creature flinched. Just slightly.
[Scorchblade Arts: First Form – Fla Blade!]
He lunged forward, targeting the montarily weakened creature—
CLANG!
His fla blade struck the thing’s arm and bounced off like hitting solid steel.
It backhanded him almost casually.
CRACK!
Alaric flew sideways, crashed into a desk, felt sothing in his shoulder pop wrong. He rolled with the impact, ca up gasping, vision swimming.
BOOM!
The wall exploded inward. Professor Kael charged through the breach, lightning crackling around his entire body in a brilliant corona.
"Thunderstrike!"
He thrust both hands forward, and a massive bolt of lightning speared across the classroom, striking two of the elite creatures simultaneously. They convulsed, their corrupted essence disrupting under the electrical assault, but they didn’t fall.
They turned toward the professor, barely slowed.
"Shit," Kael breathed. Then louder: "Run!"
But more corrupted figures were pouring through the breach behind Kael. Not elite units, but standard ones, six, seven, eight of them, drawn by the combat noise.
Professor Aldwyn appeared beside Kael, her earth essence forming barriers to funnel the incoming horde. "Too many! We need to—"
One of the elite creatures moved.
Not at Alaric. At the professors.
It crossed the distance in a blur and slamd into Kael before he could react. They went down in a tangle of limbs and lightning, crashing through another wall into the adjacent corridor.
Alaric tried to move toward them and was imdiately forced to dive as another elite unit’s blade-arm swept through the space where his head had been. The blade carved through a stone pillar like it was paper.
WHOOSH-CRASH!
The pillar collapsed, sending more debris raining down.
"Wind Shield!" Alaric’s hands moved desperately, creating a barrier of compressed air that deflected the worst of the falling stone.
But the creatures were closing in. Three of them now, coordinating, cutting off angles, herding him.
Just as he was about to get knocked out...
WHOOSH!
Nyra appeared in the center of the classroom like a ghost materializing from nothing.
One mont empty space. The next, she was there, her hand catching an elite creature’s descending blade-arm mid-swing.
CLANG!
The impact created a shockwave that shattered every remaining window in the room. Glass exploded outward in a glittering spray.
"Young master," Nyra said calmly, as if she wasn’t holding back a monster that could split stone. "Please retreat to the main hall."
"Nyra—"
"Now."
Shadows erupted from her form and coalesced into weapons, into shields.
Then she moved.
The elite creature she’d been holding tried to pull free, but her grip was absolute. She yanked it forward, off-balance, and drove her other hand into its chest.
CRUNCH!
The thing’s torso caved inward. Corrupted essence sprayed outward, hissing where it touched Nyra’s shadows, dissolving into nothing.
The creature collapsed.
The other two elite units attacked simultaneously, recognizing the threat.
Nyra t them both.
Shadow blades materialized in her hands, longer than swords, curved like scythes and she danced between their attacks.
CLANG-CLANG-CRACK!
One blade-arm deflected. A clawed hand redirected. Her foot swept low, breaking a creature’s stance, then her shadow-blade carved upward—
SLASH!
And separated the thing’s arm from its body. It shrieked, staggering backward.
But even as she fought, Alaric could see it: these things were strong. Stronger than the ones she’d faced earlier. They were pushing her, forcing her to move faster, strike harder, maintain constant pressure.
Not overwhelming her. But challenging her.
Making her work for every inch of ground.
The armless creature’s wound began to regenerate, corrupted essence knitting flesh back together with disturbing speed.
Nyra’s expression remained neutral, but sothing flickered in her eyes. Calculation. Reassessnt.
"Interesting," she murmured.
Then she attacked with renewed intensity, her shadows expanding outward in a do that engulfed all three remaining elite creatures.
The door behind Alaric opened.
He spun, essence already gathering for an attack.
And—
Elena stood in the doorway, smiling.
"Looks like your maid is busy, " she said, stepping into the room. "That ans it’s just you and now. Isn’t that nice?"
And lunged.
Alaric threw himself sideways.
ZAP!
Her hand missed his heart by inches, but her nails caught his side where he was already wounded, tearing through fabric and flesh.
Pain exploded through him.
He hit the ground rolling, ca up on one knee, blood pouring from the reopened wound.
"Oh, you’re fast!"
She moved again, appearing beside him.
Alaric’s hand shot up.
[Static Shock!]
Elena’s hand moved in a blur, and caught the lightning. Just... caught it. Like grabbing a physical object. The electricity crackled and sparked between her fingers, completely harmless.
Then she squeezed.
The lightning compressed, collapsed inward, and detonated.
BOOM!
The explosion threw Alaric backward. He crashed through a desk, wood splintering around him, and slid across the floor until he hit the wall.
His ears rang. His vision swam. Everything hurt.
While Elena walked toward him slowly, casually, savoring the mont.
"You know what my lady told ? She said you’re special. Said you’re her favorite toy. I didn’t understand at first..." She tilted her head, studying him like an interesting insect. "But I think I’m starting to see it. You don’t give up. Even when you should. Even when it’s obvious you can’t win."
Alaric forced himself to stand, using the wall for support. His legs trembled.
"Tell ," Elena continued, still approaching. "What makes you so interesting to her? The cold ruthlessness? Or is it just that you’re pretty when you bleed?"
She stopped three ters away, studying him like a specin pinned to a board.
Alaric’s hand moved.
Fire essence compressed into a bolt and shot forward.
Elena’s hand swept through the air, and a barrier of corrupted essence materialized. The fla arrow struck it and dissipated harmlessly.
"Predictable," she said flatly.
Alaric pushed off the wall, flas carrying him forward in a desperate lunge. His fist, wreathed in fire and what little lightning he could muster, aid for her exposed side.
Elena pivoted smoothly, almost lazily, and caught his wrist mid-strike.
CRACK!
She twisted. Hard.
Pain scread through Alaric’s arm as bones ground against each other. He gasped, tried to pull free.
Her other hand struck his chest with an open palm.
BOOM!
Corrupted essence detonated on impact, and he flew backward, crashed through what remained of a desk, and hit the floor in a tangle of splintered wood and agony.
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