Three young women were running through the hallways of the compound in a hurry. The vibrations that shook the place and the continuous loud noises coming from outside only made them quicken their pace even more.
Even though Klea was still unwell, she gritted her teeth and forced her body to keep up with the two females running in front of her. She didn't want to appear inferior nor be a burden.
It didn't take long for them to reach the first floor, where they then quickly headed in the direction of Arcana and Tyler Haze's group had gone, that should be the nearest of the two groups.
However, their faces changed when they got closer to their destination. Even though they hadn't arrived, they could hear a fight happening nearby.
Realizing where they were headed to, Annara decide to speak her mind,
"I understand we can't leave this place right away, but do we really have to go this way?"
The place Annra mentioned was some kind of indoor arena, half a mile wide with the floor covered in dirt. Silva quickly realized it must have been the place where the acolytes were forced to fight.
At this time, Silva could see that Arcana's group seemed to have joined forces with several other acolytes. Amongst them, from afar, she could recognize the famous Nephilim Princess, Jinkan Nephilim.
There were a total of forty of them and they seemed to be fighting against a group of Nightwalkers numbering around two dozen.
"We have to help them!" Klea said, followed by her entering the arena without waiting for the two to respond.
Her action naturally brought a frown on the serpent girl's face.
"Huh! I should have tied her up instead."
When Silva turned and looked for the other person, Annara, she had a dumbfounded look when she saw that she had gone missing.
"Dammit! Where did she go?!"
Unable to find the crimson-haired girl, Silva returned her attention to the arena and couldn't help but be anxious when she saw the person she had just saved was about to join the fight.
Gritting her teeth, she entered as well. But as soon as she neared the field, Silva quickly realized there were a few magus figures present in the area. All of them were watching the arena from the shadows of the stands.
"This is definitely a trap! That stupid kid Arcana!"
Even though the acolytes seemed to be winning, knowing better, Silva quickly shouted loudly to tell them to escape.
"Hurry! Get out of this place you fools! This way!"
At the same time, The acolytes appeared to have won the battle and killed all the incoming nightwalkers. Jinkan Nephilim, who appeared to be leading the group, must have noticed the hidden magus as well, hence as soon as they were finished the Nephilim princess followed Silva's advice.
However, as soon as they started moving towards their escape, four dark-robed figures emerged from the shadows and blocked their exit.
All of them were half-blood magus figures, the bat bloodline with one of them possessing strength at the Half Moon stage. A man known as Gorro, a criminal whose face was known for his involvement in the Golden City's bloodbath and subsequent prison break.
They were part of Zenonia's bat coven and Klea quickly recognized three of them as the exact ones who attack the academy and had killed her friends, Sigurd and Aiko. Her eyes reddened as she recalled the sight of their dead bodies.
"You are going to pay for killing my friends!" Klea shouted.
Her sudden outburst naturally caught their attention and one of them recognized her.
"That's the acolyte being kept in the master room. If she is here, then that means the third brother has been killed!"
Silva casually answered, "You mean the one guarding the door...? Yes, he's done for"
Those words quickly turned the savage-looking magus even more ferocious. Like wild beasts, they bared their sharp teeth as they glared at Klea and the others, ready to pounce and ravage them to the last morsel of flesh.
At this moment, her eyes completely focused on the four half-blood magus, Jinkan stepped up in front of the group and calmly said, "Don't falter. If we work together, we can definitely defeat those four."
Even though the half-blood magus could be as troublesome as the elves, it did not mean they were helpless. There were several top acolytes among their ranks, after all. They could really have a decent chance.
However, as if he knew what they were thinking, Gorro gave a wicked smile as he said, "No no... As much as I wish to devour all of your blood, our master has prepared something else..." The smile on his face widened eerily. "Trust me, it's going to be fun."
The moment after he said such words, Klea and the others were startled when several gates around the arena suddenly opened. Their bodies couldn't help but turn tense when they saw twenty figures come out from the gates. They were all wearing dark robes and white masks, but strangely none of them were at the level of a magus.
Looking at the erratic gestures of the newcomers, Jinkan looked at Gorro and said, "Another one of your creatures? If so, then I'm afraid to disappoint you; we have killed dozens of them in this arena."
But to her surprise, the magus chuckled at her words. After a while, he finally stopped and stared at her saying, "No, no... You seem to have misunderstood something here. They are the improved version, or rather, the epitome of what is considered the true Nightwalker."
Before Jinkan could respond, he took out a small tube before placing it in his mouth. A screeching sound of whistle could be heard in the air, which were immediately followed by the 20 masked figures charging at the acolytes.
Even though his acolytes had the advantage in numbers, turning the battle against the masked figure into two on one from the start, they still had to be careful as the other party was said to be much stronger than the Nightwalkers they had faced before.
Hence, it was truly fortunate that the acolytes held captive together with Jinkan were mostly privileged acolytes.
"Do not be afraid! We can certainly defeat them!" Jinkan shouted as she attacked one of the so-called improved Nightwalker.
As soon as the battle restarted, apart from Gorro, the three half-blood magus also sprang into action. The three of them were all heading in the same direction, seeking to exact revenge for the death of one of their brothers.
Seeing this, the acolytes' side did not remain idle either. Silva, Jinkan and Tyler Haze; they each went ahead and dealt with the half-blood magus, while Arcana took over the support role by using his mental attacks from a distance.
With his multiple use of [Eye of Mistra] Arcana was able to stun the half blood magus and create an opening for the other three.
"Well done! Keep doing what you did!'
On the other hand, Klea took one of the masked figures as her opponent, releasing a rain of chain lightning at it. It didn't take long before she realized her opponent was indeed not ordinary.
Unlike the Nightwalkers whose attack methods were very primitive, these masked figures, which were claimed to be the true Nightwalker, were capable of wielding weapons. Not only that, they were also able to cast spells.
The one she was facing against in particular was wielding a dagger and could cast a spell that made his presence hidden within the shadows.
After several clashes with the masked figure, Klea turned pale. Her strange behavior was not due to her opponent's prowess, but due to something else entirely.
She immediately cast her new spell [Wind Shard], that aimed not just to inflict injuries but also restrict the target's movements. With the masked figure's legs bound by the formless gusts, Klea then cast [Thunderbolt] and fired it directly towards the former's mask.
CRACKK!
The lightning not only made the figure take a few steps back, but also split the mask in half revealing the face hidden beneath. Staring at that half-grotesque face, Klea could finally see who she was fighting with.
It was none other than her dear friend.
"Chumo!"
Before long, everyone realized who they were actually fighting against. It turned out that all twenty masked figures were Magus Academy acolytes, or to be more precise, their classmates and friends.
It dawned on them they must decide whether they could kill someone else to save themselves.
Gorro broke into a maniacal burst of laughter and he was extremely amused by the current situation. His eyes narrowed into slits as he relished looking at the expressions on the acolytes' face. As for Silva, the trouble made her immediately report her situation to Emery and the others.
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