The situation instantly turned from bad to disastrous with the arrival of what had to be the fourth grand magus inmate.
The fact that the huge creature managed to kill the Grand Magus Warden in a matter of minutes resoundingly showed it was a force to be reckoned with.
After completely destroying the part of the floor it emerged from, the humongous figure turned its attention to the hovering Delbrand. A glint of hatred flashed across its eyes as it roared loudly.
"You will die here, Delbrand!"
At first, Emery had no idea who the figure was. But when he heard the voice and saw the familiar face, he quickly realized who the other party was.
He was the previous head of the Bloodline Institute and the former right-hand man of King Alduin of Zodiac City, Lord Esbern of the Goat bloodline.
The last news he heard about the man was that he was captured on charges and that he was the mastermind behind the bloodline's betrayal. Apparently, he had been imprisoned here all this time.
"Get him!"
The loud voice of the only female grand magus inmate resounded in the entire place as she threw a splash of lava capable of melting metals towards Headmaster Delbrand.
The molten liquid sped through the air, burning everything it touched including several unfortunate magus inmates.
Soon after, a number of magus prison guards arrived at Level 4 through the stairs. They were supposed to be reinforcement to help quell the chaos, but they all merely served themselves on a platter as one by one they became another unfortunate victim of the fierce battle currently going on.
Seeing the opportunity to gain their freedom, the other magus inmates started to rush towards the stairs, making their escape to the surface.
This action of theirs did not go unnoticed by Headmaster Delbrand. His eyes were shining brightly as he shouted loudly, "None of you will leave this place alive!"
The shout was quickly followed by a burst of terrifying spirit energy sweeping the entire floor, as a domain swiftly took form around the headmaster.
[Vapor Domain]
In an instant, the level was quickly filled with a combination of thick smoke and raging winds, so powerful they pushed both Emery and Annara onto the wall behind them unable to move. The same thing also happened to the dozens of magus inmates throughout the level.
Even the grand magus inmates were forced to use their respective spells to resist the domain and maintain their ground.
Not letting Headmaster Delbrand have his way, the three grand magus plus Lord Esbern all quickly prepared a retaliatory strike at the former. A powerful wave of tremors shook the entire area as these powerful figures were about to clash once again.
What happened next was too powerful for Emery to see. In fact, he didn't even think he would be able to hold on as the air pressure started to affect him.
Just as he was about to lose his consciousness, he heard a loud groaning sound in the air. He managed to retain his presence slightly, which allowed him to know that the sound came from the huge creature Lord Esbern had turned into.
Then, a moment later, another tremor struck. What's more, it was the strongest out of the ones that occurred so far.
The ceiling of the Level 4 prison finally collapsed with this wave, it was even followed by a beam of bright light.
When the commotion seemed over, and he opened his eyes again, Emery was surprised to see an opening where the ceiling had been. It was a large hole dozens of meters wide that directly revealed the vast expanse above.
The chaos happening quickly died down as everyone was entranced by the sight.
Such a sight was like a breath of fresh air to these inmates, who hadn't tasted an inkling of freedom for so long. Without further ado, those who survived immediately rushed to leave the prison.
Emery threw his gaze around amidst the chaos. He tried to look for Headmaster Delbrand, only to see the man was resisting being crushed by the half blood humongous arms.
"Headmaster!"
Though still weakened, Emery was ready to rush and help. But when he saw there were several magus standing in the way, he couldn't help but hesitate.
While he was deep in thought, he was surprised by Annara when she suddenly grabbed his arm and pulled him close. Before he could ask her what was wrong, she forced a pill into his mouth as she said.
"Cassian is incapacitated. This is our chance to escape. Let's go!"
The red-haired girl tugged Emery's hand, gesturing him to go. But then, the figure of the Shadow Magus appeared right in front of them. A vile smile could be seen on his face as he looked down at Annara.
"Hahaha, I knew you can't be trusted! You little bitch!"
As she assumed her fighting stance, Annara used her Bat Transformation and spoke to Emery with her eyes completely fixed on the magus' figure. "Quickly heal your body and get us out of here!"
After saying those words, her figure shot towards the magus. While Annara went to stop the Shadow Magus, the pill she fed to Emery swiftly dissolved and neutralized the poison in his body. He could clearly feel the weakness disappear while his power began to return.
However, Emery couldn't afford to smile as each second that passed weighed heavily on his heart.
In the distance, he saw how Headmaster Delbrand managed to force himself out of the creature's grasp, only to be ganged up by the other three grand magus.
As for Annara, her situation was no less precarious as she was certainly no match for the Half-Moon stage Shadow Magus.
Emery could clearly see how she was desperately trying to block the magus' attacks, only to be blown away.
Knowing he needed to act fast, Emery grit his teeth and hastened his recovery process, driving his spirit cores to work again.
As soon as he succeeded, he immediately cast [Spatial Gate]. The collapsed ceiling had unobstructed his Spirit Reading and he was able to aim straight for the surface.
"Annara, it's open!" Emery shouted as he rushed towards the red-haired girl.
She turned with a smile, but Emery's eyes widened. He was shocked to see sharp claws piercing her chest, blood pouring out like a river. Yet the smile still remained on her face.
"Go…" Her lips said that word without uttering any sound. "Go."
"No!"
Emery had prepared his heart to leave Headmaster Delbrand behind as he understood there was nothing significant he could do in the latter's fight, but there was no way he would leave her behind as well.
His spirit core exploded as he let go of his control over the portal he created and cast [Blink]. As he disappeared and reappeared, he furiously threw several [Omega Strike] in succession.
Emery didn't even check the results of his attack before pulling the red-haired girl into his arms and using [Blink] again.
She was trembling violently while her body was ice cold, blood pouring out of the gaping wound in her chest.
"What… am… I thinking. How naive…of me… I will never get away…"
Emery's grip on her tightened even more as he focused all of his concentration on escaping. He gave his all to escape from the Shadow Magus, but the man stuck behind him like a stubborn stain, not letting him go.
He could feel the fire of life shrink from the red-haired girl's body as she whispered more words. "But you… you… probably can… Your space… and gravity.. is the key…"
"Stop, don't talk anymore! Save your breath, we're definitely getting out of here!"
Clankk! Clankk!
Emery mustered all he had and tried his best to stop the Shadow Magus' attacks, a piercing sensation prickling his head as his mind was overwhelmed.
Then suddenly, a powerful wave of energy blasted from the grand magus battle, using this chance, Emery gritted his teeth and willed his spirit core to churn.
[Blink]
Appearing dozens meters away, Emery immediately tried to form another [Spatial Gate]. He was just a step away from completely forming the portal when the figure of the Shadow Magus appeared once again.
"Where are you going?! haha... no.. no.. You're not getting away!"
Seeing the sharp claws heading his way, Emery knew he would not escape unscathed. He was about to sacrifice his arm to allow him to escape when suddenly the red-haired girl in his arms took action.
She burst with the last bit of strength she had, using her own body to receive the magus' attack while simultaneously pushing him into the swirling portal.
"No!!!"
Emery could see her turning her head towards him, her lips mouthing another silent word.
"Thank you."
Her blood splattered onto his face just before the portal closed shut.
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