CHAPTER 83 - THE ACT IV
Turning my full attention to the man in front of me now being surrounded by the multitude of mana beasts, I only thought of a way to get the rest of the students away. Yet, something told me that I needed to resolve myself in fighting, these mana beasts were being controlled and if not manipulated by this man.
Claire eyed the orange haired man before retrieving her sword, engulfing it in flames and full sprinted towards the masked man.
The man disappointed by Claire's actions put down his arms and signaled the hooded guy next to him. "Take care of her, I have no time for insects like her." His voice was raspy, what's more he seemed to be angered by something or someone, his tone was directed to everyone present and even though it wasn't towards me, it felt like it was.
Claire and the henchmen went at it, fighting for their lives. The leader of the disciplinary committee had the upper hand against her opponent but the way he used mana was alien to us. It wasn't being commanded or willed but rather it felt like it was just there.
[Iceicles]
I felt the chill on the air behind me and moments later saw the handful of icicles fly past me and target the man Claire was fighting.
But the hooded man wasn't the only thing that we had to worry about.
"Go and party!" the orange spike hair man said in a happy tone lifting his arms once more like he was a king. "Go and teach them that they are not the pinnacle of this world!"
In that instance, all the mana beasts that were summoned by him began to run wildly around the academy. Slicing and killing those who were not on their side. The screams resonated all over the academy as students lost their lives and some didn't have that luxury and instead were chained before being killed or prosecuted by the male teachers who seeked the female students.
Claire noticed and roared, "Leave him to me, get the rest to safety!"
The rest of the disciplinary committee were hesitant for a second before following their leader's orders. I on the other hand wasn't part of their committee and instead I seek to help other students to safety. For a moment the pure panic didn't settle in and for a split second I thought that maybe I was able to get some recognition if I saved a couple of students, perhaps get confessed by a female student that I might save. But I scratched that thought instantly and began my path to save the ones I could.
"Boy!"
I turned to the source of the voice, it was a professor.
"Yes?!"
"Where is the DC team at?" Her eyes jumped from my left eye to my right eye hoping for an answer.
"Claire is fighting an intruder while the rest are helping the other students." I firmly said giving her some reassurance before running towards a student who had injuries beyond my assistance.
"Are you okay?" I simply asked, helping the elven student up from the ground before the Professor looked at me from on top of her griffin.
She took a moment and then ascended but before she did, she said, "Take the students that can't fight to the middle of the academy, there are healers stationed there. Help won't get here anytime soon so we must be the last line of defense."
I nodded hoping she had seen it before she left. As she crossed the corner library, I walked the injured student to the middle of the campus, where multiple students who studied and somewhat mastered their healing magic were taking care of the wounded. Besides them, a row of multiple students beyond healing laid there with their eyes closed.
I turned my head to the opposite side before handing off the student to a healer and then headed off to bring more students.
A barrage of monsters, perhaps C-ranked or lower, were picking on a trio of dwarven students. Seeing this, I ran towards the trio already activating my earthen element. I conjured a dome made of earthen affinity leaving the students protected for the time being before having stairs build up to the tallest mana beast and punching it straight on the head.
The monster jerked away before placing its red angry eyes at me, completely ignoring the students that I had sealed off their claws, and chased me as I became the distraction.
Behind the giant gnarl were smaller gnarls.
They are following the big guy! I thought to myself before conjuring a pillar with enough concentration of earthen elements to land a solid hit on its jaw. The next moment, the smaller gnarl that followed pretty close to the giant gnarl had let out a cry of pain before trying its best to catch up to me and kill me.
Crap!
Now I had to run twice as hard to keep this gnarl from killing me now.
I darted the fastest I could, using the affinity to my advantage the best I could, using every corner I could of the pillars that sustained the smaller buildings in the academy and yet these mana beasts still followed me to the ends of the earth.
That's when I was caught off guard by something blinding me, a glare, somewhere on my right where multiple or more mana beasts of some sort of snake-like animals were eating the corpse of an armored man.
The first thing that appeared in my mind was the weapon, a weapon that he or she had on them, where is it?
I panicked.
The feeling of dread slowly creeping up my spine as I felt the mana signatures of the beasts behind me trying to kill me as they emitted bloodlust.
There!
My search for the weapon had been brought to an end. I had found the sword of the warrior but it was lodged on the back of the snake-like being. And if anything, taking that thing off an injured beast would be the least of my bad decisions here.
That's when I kept on running towards the dinning snakes-humanoid monsters. As I ran I could feel the ground shake because of the gnarls behind me just a few inches away.
The leader of the gnarls, took a swing at me now that he was close enough, raising its muscled arm up to the sky and slamming it down to the ground with enough force to perhaps give Arthur a run for his money. With that action, my feet ascended from the ground. I had felt my soul leave my body when I couldn't touch the solid ground no longer.
Yet, this was the perfect opportunity to take that weapon.
I swayed my arms in circles like I was about to fly, my feet mimicking my arms and my heart saying deep down that I could do this. That I was about to kill these mana beasts which I had killed before during my adventuring days and then wait for Director Goodsky to come back. That I was going to be able to be famous for killing these many mana beasts by myself and gain recognition for my heroic action.
A faint feeling that I had a smile over my face, was wiped completely by the immense force of mana radiating from the east where the Beasts Glades was located.
I turned.
Arms, legs, torso, chest, fingers, eyes…
all those parts of my body flinched hard enough that I had forgotten for a split second what my main objective was right now. I had forgotten my current task at hand and will possibly die.
Then I finally regained my composure, the hard and cold sensation of the hilt of the sword had brought me back to reality. When I pulled the blade out of the giant snake mana beast, I knew now that I had a chance in fighting back. I imbued mana into my sword, something that Luke had taught me, and got to a stance. I didn't know much about stances but I remembered what Arthur's and Luke's were and pictured one in mind.
I was surrounded now by the multitude of beasts.
Yet, the leader of the gnarls wasn't going to let any of these beasts take his kill. I had to use that to my advantage.
The sword that was on my right hand, faced the gnarl that I had enraged. My left hand was behind me already exercising mana, my left foot was behind while my right was in front.
My stance was a one sided look, weird but it felt comfortable.
The snake-like beasts rushed in towards me, their hands had claws sharper than a bear's ready to kill me but the gnarl grabbed their tails and slammed them to the ground creating a crater filled with their alien blood.
I stood my ground, still in my stance waiting for the gnarl to attack me. Its red eyes filled with hatred and revenge for the humiliation I gave him back there through the roof and I could feel it just a couple of meters away from him.
"Come on big guy." I slowly said, the confidence I once had as a little kid had returned to me and in ten fold.
Like he had understood my words, the gnarl began to run on its four legs to increase its speed, he had become much faster, if he had done that before I would be dead now.
The gnarl attacked, launching his big muscular arm towards me hoping that his long and sturdy black claws would hit me. In that singular moment I conjured the ground beneath me to push my foot up from the section of my toes while my heels dug into the ground. My balance was uneven and I fell backwards, avoiding the gnarl's attack.
I witnessed how the gnarl passed me with the lounge.
Quickly I got up using my earth affinity, picking myself up with a wall.
Holding on to the sword with both hands, I stood tall once again waiting for the next attack. I needed to find an opening to strike.
Instantly, the gnarl turned around and my eyes landed within his back where wings grew long enough to call him a giant bat.
"What the…"
In the air, the gnarl went forward towards me, both arms laid back and when he got close did he attack using both arms. I managed to block one arm with a wall earthen spell while the other I blocked and swung against it. Hitting his claws and creating sparks of what would only happen when you hit metal with metal I saw my opportunity to land a strike on the forearm of the beast and I took it. Evading the second strike, I slid down his arm, used another pillar spell below me to use as a momentum to push me upwards and I stab before slashing his arm off.
"RAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!"
The gnarl let out another cry this time of pain.
"There's more where that came from–"
"Enough!" A voice cut through mine, a familiar voice. "You played with your prey and now you got hurt, weaklings I swear. The High Sovereign must realize that these beasts have no brain and are only brawling. Well no matter, I am here to retrieve you boy, the High Sovereign awaits you."
I turned to the man with an arm glowing with fire, like it was an item or artifact gadget.
He was the one who set these beasts ravage the academy. He was the one who was looking for Luke. He is the leader of the terrorists.