chapter 55
Phew.
Azek took a deep breath.
He was getting ready for the most intricate spell he had ever attempted.
Earlier, he had successfully pulled off mana explosions with very small, excited mana bullets. He had attempted it relentlessly with various mana inputs and had experimented with the minimal mana needed for an explosion bullet.
Now he had a rough idea about it, so he was trying to pull off mana bullets bigger than before.
Although it would still take some time before he got the knack of the spell completely, he was already satisfied with his current progress.
A gentle breeze blew, and mana gathered in thin strands. The whole forest area became covered with this thin veil of mana.
It continued getting layered, making a finely knit net, only sparing the monster area.
But Azek didn't stop there. Mana crystals continued getting crushed one after another, and layers spread far and wide.
Now every being was in contact with this veil.
He opened his eyes. Four bullets hovered in front of him, their size small, only around half a centimeter.
He motioned with his fingers.
They started rotating.
The eel-like monster jerked its head towards a certain location.
Azek was currently underground, with only a thin surface of earth separating him from the monster.
The monster found him in seconds.
But it was too late.
The bullet was already in front of its eye when it moved its head, directly piercing and exploding.
The monster let out a terrible screech and ran on all limbs towards Azek's direction.
Azek shot up from underground. All three monsters launched their attacks simultaneously.
A sturdy boulder covered Azek's figure completely, drawing all attacks. The monsters were caught in a trap as they tried to rush towards Azek.
Explosions went off, and they got chained in metal vines while earthen spikes continuously blocked their way to advance.
The eel literally broke the chains surrounding itself in half a second, but during that time, another bullet had already lodged through its neck and another into its hind limbs.
The excited mana rapidly cut into flesh, splattering everywhere.
The opening gave Ryan a chance to launch his spell. Metal spikes hidden in earthen spikes got mixed into the spell and shot from the earth, directly lodging into the monsters' bodies.
Screeeeeeeeech!
Loud screams shot through the air as they got electrocuted by a lightning spell through the metal spikes.
Grrrrrrrawwwww!
Immediately, every spell and spike got shattered, and the monsters went into a frenzy.
But before they could advance, another plethora of spells bound them in place.
Azek got another opening and started his full assault. Bullet after bullet shot through the air. Blood and flesh splattered everywhere.
Crack.
Boom.
Lightning, wind blades, metal spikes, fire spells—all sorts of explosions happened on weakened areas, further weakening the monsters' defense.
Wind blades cut through the skin of the eel relentlessly.
Parcival was currently working with the mages to take down the monsters. Cold sweat dripped down his face.
He wanted an opportunity, but nobody was letting up.
From the start, he had felt that they weren't fighting intelligent monsters but only high-grade ones due to the efficiency of the wounds apparent on their bodies.
But Parcival knew better than anyone else that it was all because of Ryan's effortless commands and Azek's ability, which was working wonders.
Ryan was clearly taking advantage of this fact to the maximum.
He was ruthless in this sense, directly putting a first-year on the front line, but he had to admit that it was effective.
Azek had cut into flesh with spells, and the mages, instead of mindlessly attacking, only targeted the area where wounds appeared, significantly damaging the monsters' ability to counterattack.
They had hindered their movement effectively, so from the start, it had been relatively easy.
What do I do? he thought.
Sreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeech!
A loud scream resounded, and the eel monster directly abandoned all defense and started creating spells despite getting bombarded from all directions.
The circle completed instantly, and black fire arrows launched everywhere.
Ryan shouted, "Dodge!"
Everyone put their shields up, and nobody tried to take it head-on.
Zew.
One unlucky mage got pierced.
The fire burned, and his whole leg started turning black at an alarming speed.
He screamed in pain.
Ryan looked in that direction, but nobody was near the mage to help. The shield crumbled. Another arrow pierced his body.
Ryan closed his eyes.There was no saving him now.
His jaw tightened.
While maintaining the shield in front, he conjured a small mana spell. Two arrows shot out.
Puck. The mage's head got severed, and the second arrow lodged into the mana core, exploding inside diffusing the possibility for mutation.
The mage died instantly.
Ryan's cold command resounded throughout the battlefield:
"Absolutely don't get hit by the black arrows or any spell the monsters launch. Only dodge. If you get hit, your life won't be guaranteed."
The mages, who had become a bit complacent, were jolted awake. One of their own died in an instant.
They were fighting intelligent monsters, and they had to put their lives on the line.
Spells from all directions got launched in unison as if to show the resolve of their masters.
The eel monster got bombarded with mana nonstop.
Boooom! Booooom!
The explosions didn't stop for quite some time. When the dust settled, the eel had holes throughout its body, but another circle had already formed in front of it—a bigger one.
But before it could start raining arrows again, a small explosion went off at its heart. Parcival had launched a wind blade which directly exploded the mana circle.
But the sound of explosion he was expecting didn't come.
Hmm?
He narrowed his eyes. The monster's head went off suddenly, and it crashed to the ground.
Its mana circle had already been broken.