CHAPTER 65— The cave battle(5)
Rowan sprinted through the opening before the wall of Chimeras could close again.
His boots pounded against the stone floor.
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
Behind him, the gap created by Ashwin's Skybreaker Lance was already disappearing.
The surviving Chimeras scrambled over one another, reforming the living barricade.
Soon the path behind him vanished completely.
Rowan didn't stop.
He kept running deeper into the cave.
The sounds of battle gradually became distant.
The thunder.
The explosions.
The roars of Chimeras.
Everything faded behind him.
Until finally—
The cave opened into a wider chamber.
Rowan slowed down.
His breathing was slightly uneven from the sprint.
Sweat clung to his forehead.
His eyes immediately scanned the area.
And then he saw him.
A boy with Ash-grey hair stood at the center of the chamber.
His clothes were torn.
His body was covered in sweat.
One of his hand was soaked in blood.
Broken fragments of a wand lay scattered near his feet.
His arms were extended forward as if he were physically trying to push a wall or something.
Dark coloured mana was covering both of his hands.
The long strands of hair hanging over his face concealed part of his expression.
Yet even from a distance—
Rowan could see how exhausted he looked.
The moment Rowan stepped into the chamber—
The ash-grey haired boy looked up.
Their eyes met.
Silence followed.
For a brief moment, the entire cave seemed to grow still.
"..."
"..."
For a moment neither spoke.
A brief silence followed.
Then the ash-gray haired boy suddenly smiled.
"Oh... Looks like they managed to send someone here."
His eyes narrowed slightly as he studied Rowan.
The Ash gray haired boy looked closely.
Rowan squinted his eyes.
Both of them flinched.
Recognisation flared in both their eyes.
"You are one of those —?"
"Heyyy~ Buddy."
Rowan immediately flinched.
The casual tone caught him completely off guard.
The grin on the dark mage's face looked more like that of an ordinary teenager than someone who had just fought half of Grand Aetherion students.
"Yeah?"
Seris tilted his head.
"What were you saying?"
"You are one of those dark mages."
"Technically still am"
The grin widened.
Rowan didn't know why, but talking to him felt strangely normal.
Almost too normal.
Nothing about him matched the image of a dark mage Rowan had grown up hearing about.
No madness.
No sinister laughter.
No bloodthirsty expression.
Just...
A tired teenager standing alone in a ruined cave.
The thought bothered him.
A lot more then it should.
"What happened to Skybreaker Spellmaster?"
"He is outside."
"Still fighting Migl and Sani?"
Rowan nodded.
"Yeah."
The Ash-gray haired boy sighed.
"...Poor guys."
There was genuine sympathy in his voice.
Rowan froze.
The dark mage sounded more concerned about his spirits than himself.
The realization felt strange.
Very strange.
Seris studied him for a moment.
"What got you thinking so deeply."
Rowan blinked.
The question pulled him out of his thoughts.
Seris rolled his shoulders and winced slightly.
Clearly, the movement hurt.
"Listen! right now. I'm not in a very good mood. So I'm asking you politely. screw off."
Rowan stared at him in a daze.
"Come on. screw off already."
Rowan didn't know what to do.
He looked around.
The massive chamber felt eerily empty.
There was nobody here except the two of them.
Behind him stood a wall made entirely of Chimeras.
In front of him stood a dark mage.
A dark mage who somehow felt more approachable than half the students Rowan had met at Grand Aetherion.
His mind drifted elsewhere.
To the question that had been haunting him for months.
'Is it okay, if I ask about bhaiya now.'
Rowan thought as he looked at Seris.
Rowan doesn't know why but the dark mage is strangely being friendly to him for some reason.
'Could he know something about him.'
The possibility alone made Rowan hesitate.
Seris noticed his hesitation.
His eyebrow twitched.
"..."
"..."
For a moment neither spok as a long silence streched between them. Untill—
"Wow."
A voice suddenly echoed through the cave.
Both Rowan and Seris flinched.
Neither of them had spoken.
The voice came from elsewhere.
"Wow! What happened here?"
Another voice followed immediately after.
"No shit! This place looks like a graveyard."
Seris slowly turned his gaze toward the Chimera wall.
Rowan turned too, the wall of Chimeras still stood firmly. But the voices of multiple people were coming from beyond the wall.
---
"Wow, what happened here?"
Seraphine's voice echoed throughout the cave.
The crimson-haired girl stepped into the cave and immediately looked around.
Corpses were everywhere.
Broken bodies.
Scattered bones.
Burned remains.
The floor looked less like a battlefield and more like the aftermath of a massacre.
"No shit!"
Ritvik stared at the devastation.
"This place looks like a graveyard."
Seraphine nodded.
For once, she actually agreed.
Kaizen remained leaning against the cave wall.
His shoulder was bandaged.
His face looked exhausted.
Yet his eyes remained focused ahead.
"Didn't you said someone was fighting inside?"
Seraphine turned back looking at kaizen.
Kaizen didn't answer. Instead, he simply pointed forward.
Everyone followed the direction.
Then they saw him.
There. At some distance was someone fighting.
Ashwin.
The silver-gray-eyed mage stood alone amidst the ruins.
Thunder and wind swirled around his wand.
His spells continued to fire. Yet compared to earlier—
They seemed slower.
Less explosive.
Less overwhelming.
The reason was obvious.
Ashwin looked exhausted.
Sweat covered his face.
His clothes were damaged.
His breathing was slightly heavier than normal.
Yet despite everything—
He was still fighting.
"Who is this lunatic even fighting..."
Seraphine narrowed her eyes and leaned forward.
"The air?"
"...And here I thought you were supposed to be smart."
Ritvik replied instantly.
Seraphine turned, A fireball clearly on her hand.
"You little—"
But then she paused as the luminous blue ring around Ritvik's eyes caught her attention.
Understanding dawned.
She immediately activated Aether Sight herself.
The moment she did—
Two spirits became visible.
One flame spirit.
One water spirit.
Indeed, He was fighting spirits. And the spirits too, looked equally or more exhausted then him.
Yet they continued fighting.
A moment later—
Another barrage of thunder-clad wind struck the two spirits.
The spirits staggered.
Their forms flickered violently.
And that's how, The spirits who were already exuaseted slowly started disappearing after the long fight.
Ashwin slowly lowered his wand and stood still, breathing steadily as the spirits disappeared.
Silence settled across the cave. For several seconds, nobody moved.
Then the Sanctum students immediately rushed toward him.
Kaizen reached him first.
He threw one of Ashwin's arm around his shoulder to support him.
His clothes were slightly damaged.
Sweat covered parts of his face.
Yet his expression looked as calm as ever.
The two spirits he had been fighting were now nowhere to be seen.
"Ashwin!"
Kaizen immediately stood up.
Relief flashed across his face.
"You are still alive."
Ashwin glanced at him.
"...What were you expecting then?"
Kaizen immediately coughed.
"Nothing, yeah! no surprise actually."
Ashwin looked completely unconvinced.
Nearby, several students visibly relaxed after seeing him.
Many of them hadn't realized how tense they had been until now.
Then—
Clap!
A sharp sound of clapping drew their attention.
Clap!
Clap!
Clap!
A slow applause echoed through the cave.
"Okay... okay... okay..."
Seraphine stood there clapping at first then with her arms crossed.
"If your touching reunion is over then tell me,"
She tilted her head.
"Where is the dark mage?"
A berife pause followed.
"Or have you already killed him."
Ashwin looked at her with dull, uninterested eyes as he then turned to kaizen.
"Who brought her here?"
"She just came along."
Both spoke quietly with each.
Neither sounded particularly happy about it.
Seraphine's eye twitched.
Several nearby students immediately looked away.
Then one of them spoke.
"Yeah! What happened to the dark mage?"
The question instantly grabbed everyone's attention.
Ashwin turned forward.
"He is still alive."
The atmosphere changed immediately.
"What?"
"He survived?"
"After all that?"
Several students looked genuinely shocked.
Ashwin simply nodded.
"Where is he?" Seraphine asked.
Ashwin tilted his chin forward.
"Right there."
Everyone followed his gaze.
Then they saw it.
The massive wall of Chimeras.
A grotesque barricade made from dozens of monsters fused together.
"Fuck what the?"
"That's disgusting."
"Seriously, what the hell is that?"
Even Seraphine looked mildly disturbed. "Damn that looks gross."
Ashwin pointed toward it.
"He is right behind that thing."
"Alone?" Kaizen asked.
"No, I have send someone there." Ashwin replied.
"It shouldn't take much time since the dark mage is exhausted."
A few students exchanged glances.
Ritvik immediately straightened, his gaze locked onto the wall.
'Rowan must be behind that wall too."
Relief washed over his face, atleast now he knew where Rowan is, but there was still one thing going on his mind.
'Will he even be able to kill that dark mage'
The thought bothered him for a second before—
Suddenly his eyes twitched, his lips pressed in thin line.
Seraphine had noticed his reaction.
"What?"
Ritvik didn't answer, his eyes remained fixed on the wall.
It felt like something had moved.
A twitch.
A ripple.
A subtle shift running through the Chimera barricade.
His eyes widened.
Suddenly—
The entire wall moved.
Every Chimera composing the barricade came alive at once.
The structure dismantled itself instantly.
Dozens of Chimeras launched themselves toward the students like arrows released from a bow.
"FUCK— WHAT THE?!"
---
A few minutes earlier
Rowan and Seris still stood facing each other.
The strangely casual atmosphere from moments ago had completely disappeared.
The cave had become quiet.
Too quiet.
The battlefield outside, which had been filled with endless explosions and roaring Chimeras only minutes ago, had suddenly grown quiet.
No thunder.
No screams.
No crashing spells.
Nothing.
Only the occasional drip of water echoing from somewhere deep within the cave was heard.
Seris glanced toward the direction of the distant battle.
A faint smile was still on his face.
"They finished outside."
Rowan frowned.
"You can tell?"
"Pretty easily."
Seris shrugged.
"The explosions stopped."
His voice was calm.
Almost casual.
Yet Rowan noticed the subtle tension hidden beneath it.
His gaze shifted back toward Rowan.
"And if they're done outside..."
His smile lingered for a moment before becoming slightly bitter.
"Then they'll come here next."
The words hung in the air.
Neither spoke.
The reality of the situation was obvious.
The battle outside was over.
That meant every student still capable of fighting would eventually gather here.
And when they did—
This cave would become Seris's grave.
Seris knew it. And didn't pretend to bother otherwise.
A faint sigh escaped his lips.
Then he lifted his bloodied hand toward Rowan. The blood on that hand had already dried up and soon The dark-purple mana surrounding his fingers stirred.
"I told you to screw off."
His smile returned
"But it looks like you have a little hearing problem."
The scattered bones lying across the chamber suddenly trembled.
Crack.
Crack.
Crack.
Rowan's eyes widened.
The bones began pulling themselves together.
Dark mana wrapped around them like threads.
Within seconds—
A Chimera took shape.
The creature rose directly in front of Rowan.
It's twisted body looked like several monsters had been stitched together without any regard for logic.
A wolf's skull.
Lizard-like claws.
A distorted spine protruding through its back.
Dark-purple light flickered within its hollow eyes.
The creature released a guttural growl.
Rowan instinctively tightened his grip around his axe.
"Have fun playing with it."
The Chimera lunged.
Its claws ripped through the air.
Rowan immediately jumped backward.
The claws slammed into the ground where he had been standing moments earlier.
Stone shattered.
Dust exploded outward.
Rowan landed awkwardly and quickly regained his footing.
His heart pounded.
The Chimera turned toward him again.
Ready for another attack.
Meanwhile—
Seris barely paid attention to that fight.
His eyes remained fixed on the distant Chimera wall already trying to decide his next move but then—
"Khk—"
A sharp pain erupted inside his chest.
His body stiffened.
One hand immediately covered his mouth.
A violent wave of nausea hit him.
The metallic taste arrived a second later.
Blood.
His eyes widened slightly.
He could feel it rising from his throat.
Warm.
Thick.
Ready to spill out.
For a moment, his body desperately tried to force it out.
But Seris clenched his jaw.
'No! Not now.'
He swallowed.
The blood slid back down his throat.
The taste remained.
A dark red stain lingered at the corner of his lips.
"Ugh..."
A pained groan escaped him.
His breathing became heavier.
His vision blurred for a moment before stabilizing.
The dark mana surrounding his arms flickered.
For the first time since the battle began—
His control slipped.
Only for an instant.
But it happened.
Seris lowered his head.
His shoulders rose and fell unevenly.
'I can't believe it...'
A bitter laugh echoed inside his mind.
'Have i reached my limit? Am I too exhausted that I can't even burn my mana core anymore.'
The thought was almost absurd.
Earlier, he had been prepared to sacrifice everything.
His mana.
His body.
His future.
Even his life.
Yet now his body was so exhausted that it refused to cooperate.
Every vein on his body felt like it was on fire.
Every breath hurt.
Every movement felt heavier than the last.
And still—
He remained standing.
Slowly, Seris lifted his head.
The pain remained.
The exhaustion remained.
The certainty of defeat remained.
Yet the look in his eyes never changed
There was no trace of hesitation, Only stubbornness remained.
A stubbornness that refused to break.
A stubbornness that refused to surrender.
A smile slowly spread across his face.
Small.
Tired.
Yet genuine.
"Still..."
His voice came out rough.
Barely above a whisper.
"I'll fight until the bitter end."
Dark mana surged once more.
The glow surrounding his hands intensified.
The air inside the chamber grew heavier.
The massive wall of Chimeras trembled.
One twitch.
Then another.
Then—
Every Chimera composing the wall came alive at once.
Dozens of glowing eyes opened simultaneously.
A horrifying chorus of growls echoed throughout the cave.
The entire barricade unraveled.
And then—
The Chimeras launched themselves forward.
Like arrows released from a bow.
The tidal wave of monsters were now coming to crash towards the students beyond the wall.
The final battle had begun.
---
CHAPTER ENDS