As we stepped into the next room, the air immediately thickened with latent magic. Before us, fourteen massive golems stirred, each one carved from enchanted stone, holding weapons ranging from spiked maces to razor-sharp halberds. The faint hum of runes along their joints signaled immense power and resistance.
Salazar's lips curled into a grin. "This should be fun," he said, drawing his wand. I mirrored him, raising the Elder Wand with precision.
The first clash was instantaneous. Spells flew in a blur—black curses, icy shards, bolts of lightning. The golems absorbed most of it. Their magical resistance was higher than expected, but that only made the fight more satisfying.
I concentrated, shaping a sphere of water and spinning it like a drill. The orb rotated at a terrifying speed, forcing itself forward until it pierced the chest of one golem. Stone shards exploded outward as the construct crumbled. My eyes locked on the heart of the shattered golem, a small glowing stone pulsing with magical energy.
"Salazar, aim for the cores! That's the weak point!" I shouted.
He didn't hesitate. Dark energy lanced from his wand, piercing another golem squarely through its chest. The stone shattered into fragments, flying across the floor. I unleashed a storm of black lightning bolts, disintegrating three more golems in rapid succession.
Salazar followed up with a shattering curse and dark hexes, obliterating another. I manipulated gravity, compressing the air around a massive construct until it crumbled beneath its own weight. Every attack was precise, calculated, and brutal.
"Keep moving!" I barked. "Don't let them regroup!"
The golems struck back, swinging weapons with astonishing speed. I narrowly avoided a spinning mace, using my cat-like reflexes to duck and weave around the deadly arcs. Salazar blocked a halberd strike with a protective shield, muttering, "These things are stronger than I thought!"
After what felt like hours, though it was likely only minutes, all fourteen golems lay in rubble. We had managed to salvage a few cores, but most had been damaged beyond repair. Still, the fragments glowed faintly—enough to study, enough to replicate some of their enchantments in the future.
Breathing heavily, I wiped a smear of soot from my face. "Not bad. Definitely a workout."
Salazar smirked, brushing off dust from his cloak. "For once, I actually enjoyed a fight that didn't involve someone trying to kill us with forbidden magic."
I chuckled, carefully collecting the remaining fragments. "These will be invaluable for research. Imagine the constructs we could create using this knowledge… with souls, cores, or fragments. The possibilities are endless."
Salazar's grin faltered slightly as he looked down the corridor ahead. "Don't forget, this is Herpo's tomb. What's waiting next will probably be worse than stone soldiers."
I nodded, securing the fragments in an expanded bag. "I wouldn't have it any other way. Let's move. I want to see what traps he set for anyone foolish enough to follow us here."
With wards up and spells ready, we stepped deeper into the tomb, already anticipating the next challenge. Every step was dangerous, every corridor a potential death trap—but that thrill, that edge, was exactly what kept us alive.