Chapter 110: Chapter 110: System's Trap

"Keep attacking!" Tarec roared, his voice hoarse from the acrid smoke and mounting tension. "Concentrate your fire on a single target! We must break through their defenses!"

The summoners obeyed, unleashing a relentless barrage of fireballs. The air crackled with energy, filled with desperate shouts of exertion and the deafening roar of flames.

The heat was oppressive, sweat pouring down their faces, but still they fought on. Despite their fierce assault, Fathoran's soldiers stood firm, their formation an impenetrable wall of steel and defiance.

Tarec felt a cold stab of desperation as he watched the summoners around him begin to falter, their mana reserves depleting rapidly.

The once-vibrant salamanders on their shoulders now seemed to flicker and dim, mirroring their masters' mana exhaustion.

"We're running out of mana!" a soldier cried out, his voice cracking with panic. "We can't keep this up much longer!"

Tarec's eyes darted around, taking in the dire situation. They had expended nearly all their mana, yet hadn't managed to fell a single enemy.

The corridor ahead still teemed with Fathoran's forces, over 500 soldiers, their armor gleaming defiantly in the dying light of their attacks.

"Fall back!" Tarec ordered, the bitter realization of their failure weighing heavily upon him. "We need to get out and request reinforcements! This is beyond our mana capabilities!"

As the summoners began their desperate retreat, Tarec held the rear, ensuring no one was left behind. The sounds of their ragged breathing and stumbling footsteps echoed off the walls.

But just as they were about to reach the exit of the entrance hall, a dark figure plummeted from the ceiling, landing with inhuman grace to block their path.

Tarec felt his heart stop as he recognized the imposing silhouette.

Fathoran.

"Impossible!" exclaimed one of the summoners, terror evident in his voice.

Fathoran laughed, a sound that chilled the blood of all present.

He extended his free hand, and a black wall began to form at the entrance of the lobby, rapidly growing until it almost completely sealed the exit. Only a small hole remained at the top, barely enough to allow air in.

Panic seized the summoners. Some continued launching fireballs in a desperate frenzy, while others ran towards the newly formed wall in an attempt to break it.

Tarec, seeing the situation becoming increasingly desperate, shouted, "Concentrate your attacks on the wall! It's our only way out!"

The summoners obeyed, directing all their firepower towards the carbon barrier. For a moment, it seemed they might escape when the wall shattered under the rain of fire.

But Fathoran, without missing a beat, created another wall right behind the first. "You can try all day," he mocked.

As if on cue, Fathoran's soldiers who had been watching from the hallway launched their attack. Armed to the teeth and protected by their maximum level armor, they charged forward.

The summoners, with their level 3 armor and limited resistance of 30 points, fell one after another under Fathoran's precise blows.

Tarec managed to bring down the second barrier before seeing another erected and feeling the sharp pain of a sword piercing his armor. He fell to his knees, his vision blurring.

"You're brave," said Fathoran, appearing behind him. "Will you be the one to deliver my message to Elio?"

The memory of Mordred taking his son's life flooded Tarec's mind.

"No, rot in hell. You can go tell him yourself, you damned coward!"

With his last ounce of strength, Tarec launched a fireball directly at Fathoran's face.