Legacy of the Dark Sage

SIZZLE!

The moment the murky black substance got hold of Kyran, it sizzled and disintegrated.

Surprisingly, when it happened, Gael's skin turned a shade of gray and red-purplish veins appeared on his neck, which snaked through to his temples. Blood also oozed down from the side of his mouth as if experiencing a magic rebound after the murky black substance started to disintegrate.

Such a phenomenon was not surprising. The murky black substance was part of Gael's domain, and he could turn it into anything, from offensive to defensive maneuvers. He could even use it as storage to detain his enemies or protect and hide his allies. This was the move he employed earlier to save Deception while keeping Kyran in place.

If others only looked at the nature of Gael's Shadow magic, they would find it impossible for him to become a Transmuter. And the truth, Gael did think that way before. When he got promoted to a High Master, he aimed to become an Elementor. But after delving into his magic further, he realized that even though the nature of Shadow did not have any 'physical form,' as long as he could find a way to concentrate his magic in one point, he could use 'light' as a medium to let it take form. Even so, Gael did not possess an affinity for Light magic. But that did not stop him from understanding it. Through diligence, he finally learned how to incorporate 'light' into his Shadow runes, turning them into something that could have a definite form. Because of this, he made a breakthrough and finally achieved his domain, promoting him to a Magus.

Still, Gael's domain was not without fault. The greatest flaw of his domain was it's dependent on his own magic energy. He could replenish his magic energy by absorbing the natural magic energies in the surroundings. However, he would not be able to supplement it in his domain. He could supply his domain by constantly converting this newly absorbed magic energy and incorporating 'light' runes into them. Because of this flaw, Gael's domain could be considered limited. Once his own magic energy got depleted, he could not use it again. If he wanted to summon it again, he would need time to supply it with new magic energy with light runes. Of course, Gael had found a way to lower his domain's magic energy consumption, and that was by using his own life force. For short, his domain was connected to his life force. It was precisely because of this reason that when his domain suffered, he would also sustain damage, albeit a little.

Gael immediately blended into the murky substance and tried to erase his presence as much as possible before relocating to another position.

BAM!

Gael managed to escape just before Kyran's kick landed. The ground where the latter's feet landed exploded, turning it into another small crater.

Meanwhile, the first group from the Royal Army stationed in Thunknam Peak was already close to Noser. These officers were at the bottom tier of the Royal Army, with the highest rank being three Majors, with nine lieutenants, and several officers. They were the first to be dispatched after receiving the first distress call almost an hour ago.

Travel from Thunknam Peak going to Noser would typically take five hours. They could utilize teleportation tokens or ready-made short-range transportation arrays to reduce travel time.

Using teleportation tokens was out of the question, and the reason was apparent. They had limited supplies, and teleportation was done in a random straight line. As for the short-ranged transportation arrays, medium-sized to large-sized businesses had them. These arrays were usually used solely for transporting standard goods to nearby minor cities, with the farthest being a city called, Milldawn, which was fifteen minutes away from Noser. The Royal Army closely monitored these arrays, and the businesses were only allowed to use them once a month. However, due to the urgency of the current situation, coupled with the emperor's order, these businesses could only open these arrays and let the Royal Army pass through.

Nevertheless, these arrays could only transport fifteen to twenty people, and recharging took at least three minutes. It was the reason it still took them almost an hour to finally arrived in Noser.

As soon as this group arrived, they split into three groups, with one major leading three lieutenants and more than a hundred officers. One group assisted the local city guards and army officers in evacuating the residents, while the second group assisted the remaining local army officers in keeping the two beasts away from the residential district. The third group, which also consisted of the more experienced officers, went to find the main culprit of the disturbance.

All the officers came to a sudden halt after witnessing Gael, the very Grand Marshal of the Yflaen Empire, escape the attack of a man clad in dark purple armor.

They all felt their heart palpitate upon seeing the man in armor kick, which destroyed the ground as if it was made of brittle material.

Gael sensed the arrival of this group and decided to relocate near them. But then he thought against it, seeing how close they were to Kyran's current location. He chose to stay within his domain and observe. He also had to assess his next move properly, especially now that he discovered the latter also had monstrous detection skills.

'Wait,' Gael frowned slightly as he realized something strange.

Earlier, while observing the situation while his shadow summons held off Kyran, he was approximately two hundred meters away. As soon as his summons were destroyed, the latter came after him. It was the same when with the summons. Kyran had been relentless and did not stop until he destroyed them. There was not even a pause in his movements.

So why did Kyran not come after Gael when he escaped? Could it be that Kyran could not detect him while he was inside his domain? No, that should not have been the case. When his summons retreated to his domain, didn't Kyran go after them at once? Could it be because Gael erased his presence? Maybe? But what about Deception? When Kyran went after her, Gael had trouble detecting her because she could hide her presence well.

While Gael was caught up in these thoughts, the cloud of dirt from the explosion dissipated, revealing Kyran standing in the middle of the crater, unmoving.

Gael frowned at once and looked at the army officers standing only about sixty to seventy meters from Kyran.

'Why isn't he moving? Why won't he attack them?' Gael wondered while looking at the army officers.

Suddenly, a movement came from within the army officers. An officer in a red uniform dashed out while letting out a battle cry and ran toward Kyran.

As soon as the officer moved, Kyran also moved. He disappeared and reappeared before the officer, grabbing the latter's head and slamming it on the ground.

"AAAARGH!" The officer let out a pitiful wail before his head exploded, his body spasming for a moment before finally lying unmoving on the ground.

The officers who saw this were petrified. However, they were all soldiers, and after witnessing one of them die at the hands of a person who posed a huge threat to the citizens, many followed suit.

Five more officers dashed out while ten others scattered to surround Kyran.

Gael's brow furrowed because when these people moved, Kyran had not made a move. He only straightened and remained in his spot.

The fifteen officers roused their magic and summoned their magic arrays.

As soon as these magic arrays lit up, Kyran finally moved. He did not go to them but simply waved his arms. When he did, fifteen dark purple short blades appeared in thin air and instantaneously flew rapidly at the officers.

The officers were surprised and moved to evade, but they were too late. The short blades hit their head almost at the same time. They passed through the middle of their foreheads, leaving a vertical hole behind. No sound came from these officers and no blood; they simply fell dead on the ground. As for the short blades, as soon as they hit their targets, they dissipated into thin air, indicating that the blades were not weapons but made out of magic.

The rest of the officers gaped in fright. These officers did not make a move because they were afraid. On the contrary, they were the ones who realized something was wrong.

Initially, they came here after receiving a report that a man from the north had appeared and let loose his beasts. But from the scene where the man in armor forced the Grand Marshal to retreat, then his unbelievable speed where he disappeared and reappeared in front of the first officer that attacked him, most of them already realized something was not right. Finally, after witnessing the man summon those short blades without even summoning a magic array, they now understood what was wrong.

Summoning those short blades without magic arrays. Forcing a Magus to retreat. Dealing with the officers as if they were nothing but buzzing flies around him.

This man was not someone they could fight. As a matter of fact, if he had forced the Grand Marshal to retreat, then no one in the empire could fight him.

No!

Suddenly, the highest-ranked officer among them, the major, made a move. He was a soldier. No matter what, he vowed to protect the empire and its people, even if it meant throwing away his life. He might not be able to make any difference by attacking the man, but at least he could divert his attention away from the others.

"Do not engage and wait for the others!" The major shouted as he ran toward the man. As he ran, he spread his arms and summoned red magic arrays on his palms.

Crackle!

Time seemed to have slowed around the major. Not even a second had passed, and he could still see the man standing unmoving around fifty meters away. But then the man disappeared and was now in front of him, his hand inches away from his head.

The courage the major had mustered vanished at once. That was something fear could do. His magic arrays dissipated as his knees caved in.

But then something strange happened.

The man, whose hand was only an inch away from his head, had stopped moving.

This...?

The major fell to his knees and stared at the man in fear. But the man did not make another move. He only lowered his hand and stood straight.

From a distance, Gael's eyes flashed. A smile appeared on his face after discovering what was wrong.