2025-04-16 22:00:14Anthonius's manna prevents him from utilizing teleportation magic to transport the entire core investigative team to the outside of Euhron City. Javier advised his brother to take Alyosha, the team's front-runner, first, with him and the other essential members of the investigative team following.
Following Javier's advice, Anthonius went right away to the location that Dima had provided. The two of them had already reached the edge of Euhron City in ten seconds thanks to Anthonius' teleportation power. There was still silence in the morning air. As the ice crystals start to fall, the temperature abruptly lowers. This year's prolonged fall will soon give way to winter. The Mother River will be the sole river in Terra that flows year-round, as it has in past years, while the majority of the other rivers will freeze and have a thin layer of ice covering their surfaces.
Mother River is one of Terra's oldest rivers, with the majority of it subterranean. Its water, which is as transparent as glass, frequently fools the eye. Revealing a sandy bottom as white as snow, giving the impression to onlookers that the Mother River is a small body of water that is only one meter deep. The Mother River is the deepest river in Terra and one of the oldest rivers that flows continuously. According to reports, the Mother River can reach depths of up to 17 meters in some places and up to 30 meters in the deepest areas.
"Dima?" Anthonius quickly looked for Dima's location as soon as they reached the edge of Euhron City. Upon finding Dima's body parts nearby, Anthonius and Alyosha both froze completely. Slowly, Dima's severed hand became white. Then it broke apart and became snowflakes.
"He lost his left hand?!" With his sword and shield at the ready, Alyosha inquired, "Will it be alright?"
Alyosha instantly enchanted a protective barrier that covered both his and Antonius's bodies in multiple layers. Currently, Alyosha is solely in charge of the Crimson Knight, the young general, and his safety.
From the scabbard at his waist, Anthonius pulled out the metal blade made of orichalcum. Anthonius peered around cautiously, expecting a surprise attack similar to the one he had encountered at the Temple of the Dark Dragon with Omar.
"Dima can regrow his limbs. As long as there is snow or water around, the missing or severed body parts will grow back. We don't need to be concerned about Dima's health right now because the snow is falling heavily. For now, we should focus on ourselves. We can be certain that Dima is struggling against something strong if he has already lost one of his limbs!" As an alternative to worrying about Dima's safety, Anthonius advised Alyosha to exercise greater caution.
"It seems like he is fighting something! He's to the west... the pressure of his magical energy is unstable." As he gestured toward Dima's location, Anthonius spoke. "Behind the ruins of the third building from where we are standing!" Anthonius gave a more detailed explanation of Dima's position.
Then, Anthonius motioned for Alyosha to go ahead, and he did so. "I cannot detect the opponent that Dima is facing. This creature is not giving out any magical energy pressure. Is he human?" Since it was impossible for a human to cause Dima to lose one of his hands, Anthonius refuted his assumption. "Even though I cannot detect the magical pressure from this creature, I can assure you that this creature possesses excellent speed and attack capabilities. I am aware of this since protective barriers were consistently created using Dima's magical energy. A substantial quantity of manna is needed for the protective barrier spell. Dima may faint if the user keeps doing it for an extended period of time!"
Alyosha confirmed their plan of action by asking, "What should I do?"
"My mana hasn't fully recovered. I'll restore my manna while luring this creature north toward the Mother River. Make sure to remove Dima's body at that precise moment and create a barrier of protection. Because he has been using the protective magic barrier for too long, Dima appears to be running low on mana," Anthonius said, gesturing for Alyosha to approach Dima's location.
"Make sure you don't go too far!" Alyosha added, adding that the magic barrier only lasts for two minutes.
"Alright!" Alyosha's suggestion was accepted by Anthonius.
…
Both of them were startled to discover the grass beneath their shoes becoming a bright red as soon as they got to Dima's place. Dima's whole body gushed new blood, and the pure Orichalcum armor was all but broken. Alyosha waited for the young general to bring the bowl far enough away from Dima to allow him to remove the wounded body from the battlefield, while Anthonius hurried in the direction of the thing assaulting Dima.
The strategy of misdirection worked. Unbeknownst to Anthonius, he could simply increase his own magical energy while diverting the creature's focus from Dima. Thus, his magical energy's pressure overtook that of Alyosha and Dima. Then Anthonius used basic general magic to repeatedly strike the beast. In contrast, Anthonius would merely evade counterattacks. With the intention of draining the creature's mana, Anthonius staked a bet between them akin to a chase scene and tried to distract the creature to entice it to attack him.
"1.5 minutes have passed!" In the face of the creature's attack, Anthonius started to feel overpowered. "You seem a bit different from the last time we met at the Temple of the Dark Dragon!" Whispering, Anthonius said. "Did you steal every organ from the victims you killed?" The banshee-like thing that assaulted Anthonius and Omar at the Temple of the Dark Dragon is still vividly in his memory.
What Anthonius had just stated appeared to have no effect on the creature. The thing dripped blood and saliva constantly as it moved, its tongue dangling out. It had wild, curly hair that seemed to be acting on its own initiative. Anthonius was aware that the creature's hair could suddenly change into jagged metal blades that could cut through his body. Anthonius even questioned whether Alyosha's defenses would be strong enough to repel all of the creature's attacks.
"Just avoid it as much as possible, without launching a counterattack that will deplete my mana," said Anthonius.
When Anthonius saw Alyosha, he grinned. Then Anthonius motioned for Alyosha to seize the creature before him.
Understanding the significance of Anthonius' signal, Alyosha launched an attack right away to enrage the creature in front of him, but the creature did not move in response to Alyosha's attack. The thing didn't move; it just stayed where it had been. Another set of the creature's light white eyes continued to stare at Anthonius.
Anthonius exclaimed, "Damn!" as if he had become the creature's primary prey.
Following Anthonius's escape from the creature, Alyosha followed, persistently attempting to get the creature to attack him. thereby giving Anthonius a chance. Anthonius became aware that the magic barrier that protected him was progressively eroding. Anthonius chose to assault the beast after realizing he could no longer play cat and mouse. Anthonius whirled and was about to strike, but he was startled by a metal blade.
Luckily, Anthonius was able to avoid it, but his magic barrier had stopped working altogether. Anthonius had a wild idea all of a sudden. Anthonius planned to use Rain Arrow to use up all of his manna in one blow. Anthonius is well aware that this might put Alyosha and himself in jeopardy. But Anthonius had a feeling he wanted to make sure of something about the monster he now saw.
Anthonius stepped back instantly. To apply Rain Arrow, he jumped back a few paces and then gradually fashioned a magical bow. Anthonius believed that using a bow, even a magical one, would make it easier for him to use Rain Arrow, even though it is a non-chanting attack magic that can be employed by any wizard regardless of the primary weapon.
"Rain… Arrow…!" Anthonius pointed the enchanted arrow at the heavens. Shortly after he let go of his magical bow's string, a loud, piercing sound was heard. And the vanishing magical bow.
Suddenly, the area was enveloped by dark clouds. Anthonius, meanwhile, sat feebly at the same moment. Alyosha knew that something terrible was going to happen because of the pressure of the overpowering magical energy above them. With the intention of removing Anthonius from the scene, Alyosha sprinted with all his strength in the direction of his body, but Anthonius resisted.
"Watch him!" exclaimed Anthonius, unable to move on his own. His voice even sounded so feeble because he had completely lost all of his mana. "He's not moving, is he?" Anthonius, he murmured.
"Yes," Alyosha replied, still keeping a close eye on the thing in front of them. "Does he intend to withstand all the attacks you give? What sort of assault was that? Even the sky grew dark." Anthonius had just shown Alyosha the attack, and Alyosha wanted to know more.
"Rain Arrow. The magic is really a very basic universal attack. Even a 10-year-old child could do it!" Anthonius exclaimed.
The creature in front of them remained motionless and continued to gaze at the sky. A needle-like item soon showered down on the area. When Alyosha saw that the rain of needles had punctured his pure orichalcum shield, he took a step back while carrying Anthonius's body.
"You are crazy!" Alyosha exclaimed.
The barrier of amethyst crystal gradually encased the creature's body. The same gems of amethyst that were discovered on each murder victim. The thing in front of them is now obviously the same one that has been murdering the witches in Terra for a long time.
"We're going back!" said Alyosha, but once more Anthonius resisted Alyosha's attempt to remove his body from the location.
"Pay attention to the amethyst crystal protective barrier on that creature!" Anthonius saw the barrier of crystal that surrounded the creature's body.
"Repeatedly...!" It shocked Alyosha. The rain of Anthonius's needle-sized arrows caused the amethyst crystal, which is a combination of the fabled magic and an antimatter shield, to gradually break. Despite the creature's constant reinforcement of its protective barrier, some pieces even started to break.
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The creature doesn't appear to be moving from its spot. Although the amethyst crystals that covered the creature's body were constantly eroding, the creature genuinely paid attention to Anthonius's Rain Arrow. Alyosha, who had successfully moved Anthonius's body away from their former battlefield, saw this but said nothing, staying hidden.Anthonius asked Alyosha, "Can you hide your magical power for as long as possible? The creature will target someone with the greatest magical power in this area.""I can." Alyosha instantly concealed his magic, though it might not last long."Even if you walk in front of it, as long as you don't have any magic, the creature won't be able to find you. We return to Fort Solfini right now. That is the nearest safe place we can reach." Anthonius advised Alyosha to go back to Fort Solfini."Are you sure?" Alyosha questioned doubtfully as he observed the creature that had only moments before attacked them. "I might not be able to face it. You and Dima hav
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Short-term withdrawal
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Examination
The creature doesn't appear to be moving from its spot. Although the amethyst crystals that covered the creature's body were constantly eroding, the creature genuinely paid attention to Anthonius's Rain Arrow. Alyosha, who had successfully moved Anthonius's body away from their former battlefield, saw this but said nothing, staying hidden.Anthonius asked Alyosha, "Can you hide your magical power for as long as possible? The creature will target someone with the greatest magical power in this area.""I can." Alyosha instantly concealed his magic, though it might not last long."Even if you walk in front of it, as long as you don't have any magic, the creature won't be able to find you. We return to Fort Solfini right now. That is the nearest safe place we can reach." Anthonius advised Alyosha to go back to Fort Solfini."Are you sure?" Alyosha questioned doubtfully as he observed the creature that had only moments before attacked them. "I might not be able to face it. You and Dima hav
