Chapter 126
Cassius’s ridgeline-like back stiffened upright. He hurriedly covered his wound with his sleeve and turned around.
There stood Eki, staring blankly up at the dragon hearts tangled together. Cassius’s heart dropped to the bottom.
“Eki, why are you—”
“What is all this?”
“Wait, don’t come any closer!”
He raised his voice in a near growl. Startled, Eki hesitated as if frightened.
Cassius quickly gauged the distance between the blood array and Eki. Vast magical power was flowing around the magic circle, so an ordinary human could be seriously injured. Eki seemed to realize this as well, swallowing hard and standing in the doorway as she slowly looked around.
“There was something like this under our tower?”
“…I told you to wait. Why did you come in?”
“I had a bad feeling. Not just worry, it felt like the luck potion was warning me…”
That was the moment it happened. Stone dust rained down over their heads. At the same time, Eki and Cassius tilted their heads back and saw the bricks subtly warp around the center of the ceiling.
What followed happened in an instant. The ceiling collapsed toward where Cassius was standing, and countless stone fragments crashed down on him.
“Master!”
BAAAAMM! A tremendous roar rang out. Eki screamed and swiftly deployed a shield. A transparent membrane blooming from her fingertips enveloped Cassius and even covered the blood array. Never since she was born had she cast magic with such speed and desperation. Eki realized she had succeeded in the long range shield spell Cassius always nagged her about, but when shattered bricks came pouring down onto her shield with a crash, her face drained pale.
Before long, the ceiling completely collapsed, burying not only the pile of dragon hearts but also the spot where Cassius had been standing under stone debris. Eki rushed toward him.
“Master! Master! Are you okay? Are you safe?”
The warning she’d felt from the luck potion earlier was gone. It seemed it had warned her to prepare for this very moment. Still, with an anxious heart, Eki clawed away at the fallen bricks. Dust clung to the white coat Cassius had wrapped around her, and cuts formed on her slender fingers, but she didn’t stop moving.
Then, from deep within, Cassius’s voice answered.
“Damn it… Eki, I’m safe.”
“R-Really? You’re not hurt anywhere?”
“I’m not.”
After hesitating, he added,
“…Thanks to you.”
Thank goodness. Just as tears welled up in Eki’s eyes, he snapped his fingers. A thunderous sound followed, and the bricks covering the area all shot upward at once. It was an astounding buoyancy spell.
As Eki gaped, the dragon hearts protected by Cassius’s shield were revealed beneath. It seemed he’d chosen to shield the sacrifices of the barrier array rather than his own body.
However, unable to endure the magical power pouring out from the blood drawn magic circle and the dragon hearts, Eki gagged and staggered back. She braced herself against the wall, her face turning bluish pale.
“Eki, are you alright?”
“Y-Yeah, I’m f-fine…”
She wasn’t fine. Eki’s vision began to spin. After deploying such an intense shield spell and being swept up in massive magical power, her head was dizzy.
Unfortunately, Cassius couldn’t move yet. He still hadn’t finished repairing the blood array.
“This time, stay still. I’ll finish quickly and come to you…”
But Eki couldn’t hear the rest of Cassius’s words. Unable to endure the churning in her stomach, she finally collapsed sideways.
“Eki!”
The last image Eki saw was Cassius turning toward her, his face even paler than her own.
❖ ❖ ❖
And when she opened her eyes, surprisingly, a face she didn’t particularly want to see was right in front of her.
“Hello, Miss Eki. How are you feeling?”
“…Association Head Ikelid?”
Eki frowned and looked around.
The unpleasant smell of mana stones and the sound of potions boiling somewhere. And familiar seal patterns. This was a magical ward for mages. And one attached to the Gailard Association headquarters.
“W-What. Don’t tell me this is the capital?”
“You catch on fast.”
“What happ— ugh!”
Eki tried to sit up, but a wave of dizziness hit her, and she pressed a hand to her forehead. Perfectly timed, Ikelid held out a packet of powdered medicine.
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