Wizard Bloodline

In a few quick steps, Ronan covered over ten meters, spotting Old Wills, Vinicia, and Barry standing tens of meters away, watching him with concern, not yet having fled. Ronan, anxious to get them moving, opened his mouth to urge them to run, but was immediately locked onto by a chilling, powerful mental force.

His heart tightened as he turned to see the black-robed man watching him coldly, eyes devoid of emotion, as if observing a bug desperately trying to escape.

The man was chanting, strange syllables escaping his lips. In the midst of the battlefield, littered with limbs and gore, fragments of bone floated toward him, assembling into a bone spear. Blood-red runes danced along its shaft as it aimed at Ronan, causing a sharp, needle-like pain in his brow.

"I can't let him complete this spell! If he does, I'm dead!"

Ronan's pupils contracted, a voice screaming in his mind.

"I must interrupt his casting!"

He reached a decision swiftly.

Wiping the blood and sweat from his face, Ronan gritted his teeth, his usually handsome features twisted in determination.

"Hum—"

[Energy Missile]!

With the spell's incantation, he resonated with the energy particles, forming a massive blue-black orb before him, which he fired at the black-robed man with intent.

As the missile launched, Ronan staggered slightly, his remaining mental energy nearly depleted by the casting.

The blue-black orb surged forward with terrifying force, kicking up a gale as it rushed toward the black-robed man.

Ronan expected at least a flicker of emotion from his opponent, but the chanting man didn't even blink.

As the orb neared, a tall, pale figure shrouded in dark mist leapt out to intercept it.

"Boom!"

The explosion sent the skeletal warrior reeling back, its body absorbing the full brunt of the missile. The decayed shield had shattered during a previous attack; now it relied solely on its bony frame.

The energy tore through its chest, ribs shattering and scattering, yet the green flames in its eye sockets persisted. Within a breath, it steadied itself.

The skeletal fragments were drawn to the black-robed man's spell, hastening the completion of the bone spear.

"Damn it!"

Ronan cursed, frustrated by the black-robed man's undead minion, which fearlessly absorbed damage, allowing its master to cast spells unperturbed.

If not for his dual training in body and magic, the skeletal warrior alone would have been a significant challenge, although it was already proving troublesome.

Desperate, Ronan retrieved the drowsiness potions he'd gotten from Sean, downing two vials in quick succession.

Then, drawing a dagger, he drove it into his thigh with force.

"Ugh!"

The instant the blade pierced flesh, Ronan grunted, veins bulging on his forehead.

The sharp pain extinguished the drowsiness that threatened to overwhelm him.

The self-inflicted wound restored his mental energy to full capacity.

Wasting no time, Ronan, his mind replenished, cast another [Energy Missile].

"Two more shots... Regardless of the outcome, I need to turn and flee immediately!"

A thought flashed through his mind as he released another missile.

Ignoring the result, he suppressed the nausea from casting backlash, preparing to launch another missile.

But before he could utter the incantation, his mental energy surged unbidden.

Strangely, a mysterious resonance occurred.

Ronan paused, bewildered by the inexplicable change. The next moment...

His mental energy poured out like water from a breached dam, depleting entirely within breaths.

"Ah!"

Ronan cried out, clutching his head in agony.

His face contorted in pain, veins standing out on his forehead, as his hair lifted as if caught in a breeze, some strands turning from chestnut to gray.

Fighting the sensation of his skull splitting open, Ronan saw erratic energy streams converging before him.

Ripples of light distorted his vision, the air collapsing inward.

An indescribable, unknowable aura spread, forming an unearthly force field.

Within the force field, a pure black point emerged.

It resembled a micro-black hole, rapidly drawing in all light and energy particles.

Through the haze of his pain, Ronan noticed the chanting had ceased at some point.

Instinctively, he glanced toward the black-robed man, seeing only a stunned figure standing still.

The spell, which had filled Ronan with dread, remained incomplete, the bone spear hovering unfinished.

Yet the black-robed man had halted, his gaze fixed on Ronan.

His expression was peculiar—shock, disbelief, confusion, awe—as if witnessing the impossible in an impossible place at an impossible time.

He was utterly transfixed.

"Extraordinary... Domain?"

Ronan barely caught the man's murmured words, seeing him shake his head repeatedly, muttering about impossibilities.

Despite feeling like his head was about to shatter, Ronan couldn't spare any thought for the black-robed man's ramblings. He focused all his remaining strength, raising a finger toward him.

"Go."

Guided by his will, the black point, swirling with the terrifying aura, flew forth, obliterating everything in its path without a sound.

"Thud!"

Exhausted, Ronan collapsed to one knee, drenched in sweat, his mind a blank, reduced to instinctual, ragged breathing.

The [Cleanse] rune on his gray robe activated, a faint, smoky red mist rising from him.

Silence descended over the battlefield.

Time seemed to pause completely.

It wasn't clear how much time passed before Ronan, struggling to stand, triggered several figures to snap out of their daze and rush toward him.