The Black Stone Mining Area lay southwest of Blackstone City, spanning over a dozen mines and stretching across a vast landscape. The shallow veins had long been stripped bare, leaving the mountains hollowed out and forming a wide, concave valley. From the entrance, the land inside looked as if the earth itself had been flayed open—red-gray cliffs, lead-black stones, and twisted veins of rock scarred by years of excavation.
Abandoned mining carts and broken tracks littered the valley floor, rusted beyond repair. Once, the place had been a testament to ambition. The former lord of Blackstone City had poured immense wealth into developing the mines. Decades later, all that remained was ruin—a silent, desolate graveyard of iron and stone.
At the mouth of the valley, Rune and Magus stood side by side, surveying the bleak landscape. Behind them waited more than a dozen knights and a hundred soldiers.
Because of the importance of reclaiming the Black Stone Mining Area, Rune had mobilized nearly half the city's entire garrison. The soldiers' role, however, was not to fight. Their task was to guard the exit, secure the perimeter, and ensure a clear retreat route. The true fighting strength lay with Rune, Magus, and the twelve knights that accompanied them.
"Are you sure about this?"
A burly knight named Jorton muttered, eyeing the gaping mine entrance ahead. "I heard from some of the old soldiers that the Iron-Eating Beasts are monsters, Lord Rune. Just the dozen of us—won't that be too risky?"
The other knights exchanged uneasy glances. None dared say it aloud, but the thought echoed in every heart. Everyone in Blackstone City knew of the danger buried beneath these mines. Several former lords had tried to reclaim the area, and all had failed—each expedition ending in disaster and heavy loss. Eventually, people stopped mentioning the Black Stone Mining Area altogether.
So when Rune suddenly announced his plan to purge the Iron-Eating Beasts and reopen the mines, even his most loyal knights had been taken aback. If not for Sir Magus's confident assurance that he had a way to deal with the creatures, they would have objected outright.
Rune turned and fixed Jorton with a sharp glare. "If you keep talking like that, I'll ban you from drinking for a month when we return."
The big knight immediately fell silent. Wine was his greatest weakness; taking it from him was punishment worse than death. Rune's rebuke restored some order among the group, though his own heart was not entirely calm.
He had never seen an Iron-Eating Beast himself. If the stories were true—if these creatures were as terrifying as the veterans claimed—then this expedition might prove far more dangerous than he had imagined. Yet when his eyes met Magus's calm, focused expression, Rune forced those doubts aside. He had chosen to trust his brother.
Magus adjusted the scale armor he wore—a rare treasure, the only piece of its kind in the entire city. The armor had originally belonged to Rune himself. Before setting out, Rune had insisted his brother wear it, unwilling to risk Magus's safety. He had even handed him a longsword, though he knew Magus's swordsmanship was almost nonexistent. Still, a blade was better than bare hands.
"Let's move out," Rune ordered.
Torches were lit, and the group entered the yawning darkness of the mine. The soldiers remained at the entrance, guarding their line of retreat.
Into the Depths
The outer tunnels, where the shallow ore veins had been, were long since stripped bare. The miners of old had dug deeper shafts to reach the richer layers below, leaving behind a labyrinth of intersecting passageways.
Every few hundred meters, the group passed rusted iron hooks where oil lamps once hung. A knight refilled several with fresh lamp oil and struck a flame. One by one, the lamps flickered to life, their dim orange glow stretching into the distance and sketching a snaking trail of light deeper into the dark.
The deeper they went, the slower their pace became. The floor was uneven and slick, and in the flickering light, every step had to be taken with care. Even seasoned knights would rather move cautiously than risk tripping and tumbling into jagged rock.
The silence was oppressive. Only their breathing and the echo of boots on stone broke the stillness. The deeper they went, the colder the air became, a chill that seeped into the bones. In such a place, any ordinary man walking alone would likely feel his courage crumble to dust.
After some time, the tunnel walls began to change. One knight raised his torch and held it close, revealing a strange, dark sheen on the rock surface—metallic and faintly black.
"It's black-stone iron ore," Jorton said, his eyes lighting up.
No one needed him to explain. The discovery meant they were nearing the unmined layers—the same area where the miners of old had first encountered the Iron-Eating Beasts. Everyone's expressions turned solemn. The air grew taut with tension.
And then, from the darkness ahead, came a faint rustling—like claws scraping over stone.
"On guard!" Rune's voice cut through the silence. "Prepare for battle!"
Weapons rasped free from scabbards. The knights formed ranks, torches casting long shadows across the tunnel floor.
Out of the darkness, they appeared—sleek, feline shapes gliding soundlessly over the rock. The torchlight caught their bodies, revealing gray-black fur that shimmered like burnished steel and eyes that gleamed like molten gemstones.
Iron-Eating Beasts.
They looked exactly as described in the old bestiaries Magus had studied—graceful, deadly, and unnaturally silent. More and more emerged from the shadows until over a dozen crouched before them, forming a half-circle that blocked the passage. Beyond the ring of light, pairs of glowing eyes blinked in the dark.
"These beasts look hungry," muttered Brede, a giant of a man with a steel shield nearly as tall as himself. "Seems they want to keep us all here for dinner."
Brede was the strongest knight in Blackstone City after Rune himself—towering two meters tall, a shield master renowned for both his strength and stubbornness. He narrowed his eyes, gauging the monsters' aura.
"They're powerful, but not beyond a beginner knight's level," he said with a smirk. "That's something we can handle."
Rune exhaled slowly. If Brede's assessment was correct, their chances were good. Over a dozen beginner-level beasts were dangerous but not unbeatable for a team of seasoned knights. The greater problem would be keeping the creatures from escaping once the fight began.
They had no more time to plan.
The Iron-Eating Beasts struck first.
With a chorus of low snarls, the creatures lunged from all sides, claws flashing in the dim torchlight.
The Clash
The tunnel exploded into chaos—steel against claw, roars against shouts. The confined space amplified every sound until the mine itself seemed to tremble.
Brede met one of the beasts head-on, raising his shield with a thunderous impact. The blow hurled the creature backward, slamming it into the rock wall so hard that dust rained down from the ceiling.
But to his shock, the beast simply staggered to its feet, shook its head, and charged again, barely injured.
"Tch. Harder than stone, are you?" Brede growled.
All around him, the knights fought desperately. Swords infused with fighting aura bit into their foes, but even with enhanced strikes, the blades left only shallow cracks across the beasts' armored hides.
Rune alone, wielding the full might of a High-level Knight, was able to inflict serious wounds. His sword glowed faintly with inner energy, each swing carving deep gashes through the monsters' defenses. Even so, the fight was grueling.
Were it not for the narrow tunnels restricting the beasts' movements—keeping them from using their full speed and agility—the knights would have been quickly overwhelmed.
The battle ground on. Sweat mixed with dust. The air filled with the stench of iron and smoke. What had seemed a manageable fight quickly devolved into a desperate struggle.
And then, quietly, Magus stepped forward.
The Magus Acts
He began to chant—soft, precise syllables unlike any language the knights knew. His right hand rose, fingers weaving strange sigils in the air.
A ball of greenish liquid light gathered at his fingertip, swelling to the size of a fist before shooting forth with a sharp hiss.
The glowing orb struck one of the Iron-Eating Beasts squarely in the face.
Szzzzz!
A violent hissing filled the tunnel as smoke erupted from the creature's head. The smell of burning metal and acid filled the air. The beast shrieked, rolling wildly across the ground, its claws raking at its own melting face.
The knights froze for a heartbeat in stunned disbelief.
Even Rune turned to stare.
They had all felt how hard these monsters were—bodies tougher than forged black-stone iron itself. Yet in a single instant, the green liquid had eaten through that armor like wax under flame.
It was the spell Acid Splash, one of the most basic attack spells known to wizardry—yet its power was terrifying. Even a drop the size of an egg was said to be enough to dissolve a grown man completely, leaving not even bones behind.
The Iron-Eating Beast, struck full in the face, stood no chance.
Rune reacted instantly. His sword flashed, driving straight into the creature's corroded wound. With a burst of strength, he twisted the blade, and the beast's head exploded in a spray of smoke and blood. The body collapsed with a heavy thud.
Silence followed—just for a breath.
Then every knight turned to stare at Magus, awe and fear mingled in their eyes.
They had all fought beside Rune for years. They had faced monsters, raiders, and wild beasts. But none of them had ever seen such destructive power condensed into a single gesture, a single word.
The Iron-Eating Beast's skull had been harder than steel, yet half of it had dissolved in seconds.
If such a spell struck a human being…
The thought alone sent chills down their spines.
Rune met his brother's eyes. For a moment, even he, a man who had never known fear on the battlefield, felt a flicker of something like it.
Is this what a wizard truly is?
Magus lowered his hand, the faint green glow fading from his fingertips. His face was calm, expression unreadable. The tunnel still echoed faintly with the hiss of acid eating into stone.
Around them, the surviving Iron-Eating Beasts hesitated. The sharp instinct of predators told them what their limited minds could not—this prey was no ordinary foe.
Rune lifted his sword again, voice firm. "Don't stop! Press the attack!"
With renewed courage, the knights surged forward. The beasts, shaken by the display of power, faltered. Rune led the charge, cutting down another that tried to retreat into the dark. Brede's shield smashed two aside, pinning them against the walls, while Magus's voice rose again in strange syllables.
Another sphere of acid formed—then another. Each found its mark with unerring precision, melting armor, fur, and flesh alike. The confined tunnel became a nightmare for the Iron-Eating Beasts.
In mere moments, the tide of battle turned completely.
When the last beast finally fell, the only sound left was the hiss of dying flame and the knights' ragged breathing.
Rune lowered his sword, chest heaving. Around him lay the bodies of the Iron-Eating Beasts, their once-shining hides now scarred, blackened, and half-dissolved.
He turned once more to Magus—his younger brother, his calm, quiet companion—and for the first time truly understood the gap between their worlds.
Knighthood relied on strength, training, and aura. But what Magus wielded was something else entirely—something older, stranger, and far more terrifying.
Power born of magic.
"Magus," Rune said softly, his voice echoing faintly in the tunnel. "Just now… that was—"
"Only a simple spell," Magus replied, brushing a streak of soot from his sleeve. "But it will do."
Rune looked at the smoking corpse nearby, its head half-melted to slag, and could not help but laugh—a low, breathless sound. "A simple spell, you say. If that's simple, I'd rather never see what you call powerful."
The other knights, too, could only stare, wordless. Their faces were a mixture of reverence and disbelief.
None of them would ever forget the sight of that green flame and the way it had turned iron and flesh alike to vapor.
Is this what a wizard is? Rune thought again, the question echoing in every mind present.
In the dim light of the mine, the answer seemed obvious.
Yes.
This was a wizard.