Chapter 25
Boooooom—
A massive tremor shook the earth.
Explosions echoed relentlessly across the battlefield.
Azek had already been by Methilia's side for an unknown amount of time.
The sounds of battle never ceased—if anything, they only intensified with each passing minute.
A faint unease tugged at his heart.
Methilia's contamination was visibly worsening by the minute. Her breathing had become labored. Veins burst beneath her skin, and black blood seeped against the holy barrier.
Elion burned it away instantly and continued channeling healing spells into her body—but healing magic did not work against contamination.
Boooooom—
Another blast shook the academy.
And all of sudden Methilia began thrashing violently.
Ashvile restrained her limbs while Diaz tried to suppress the tremors, but to no avail.
Did they find the source? Is that why she's reacting like this?
Azek wondered.
Suddenly—
He felt a pulse.
Something scratched from inside him, as if trying to claw its way out.
His breathing quickened.
His body heated up.
Closing his eyes, he focused inward—toward his mana core.
Black roots writhed within, attempting to overwhelm the blood-red roots that restrained them. Every explosion outside triggered another violent surge inside him.
Though he had expelled the mana poison, remnants still lingered. And now those remnants were threatening to break free trying to take control.
Is it connected to the source?
He pondered.
A small flicker of mana rushed inside without any notice and sparks generated before going out.
His poison core became silent like it got a whiplash.
The resistance was still there but now it didn't pose as much of threat unlike Methilia who was deteriorating at speed visible to naked eye with each passing minute.
He thought again and again and an idea came to his mind.
But it was hypothetical, he didn't have enough evidence to back it up.
It was highly likely it will get shot down before he could even explain it properly.
What should I do?
His thoughts became clear soon.
He slowly stood up.
"Where are you going?" Ashvile asked sharply.
"East Tower."
"The principal ordered you to stay here."
"I know. But there's something I need to check."
Before Ashvile's veins could fully bind him and before Diaz's spell could land—
Mana erupted beneath Azek's feet in a flash of blinding light.
He twisted mid-air, dodging both spells by a hair's breadth, and launched himself like a rocket through the window toward the East Tower.
Mana burned rapidly under his feet. Ashvile's spell chased after him but stopped midway—more likely because Diaz halted her.
"Our priority is stabilizing the situation here and restraining Methilia," Diaz said firmly.
Ashvile hesitated, then withdrew her spell.
Azek landed hard on the ground and sprinted toward the East Tower.
Boooooom—
Another tremor nearly knocked him off balance.
After steadying himself—
He saw it.
The source.
…
Albert stared at the abomination before him—something beyond words.
The entire basement floor was fused into writhing masses of living flesh. Grotesque limbs and blinking eyes protruded from every surface.
It devoured its own tissue and expelled monsters endlessly.
At the center remained a massive, unmoving eyeball. Around it, an amalgam of living flesh twisted and pulsed.
The growth had consumed the basement and was pushing upward toward the ground floor, spreading outward like parasitic branches.
Albert felt his blood run cold.
How were they supposed to eradicate something that regenerated by consuming itself?
Boooooom—
Stone spears struck in rapid succession. Chunks of flesh and blood splattered everywhere.
A fragment landed at Albert's feet.
It was still alive.
Wriggling.
Searching.
A chill ran through him. He immediately incinerated it to ash.
"Back up!"
Theodore's amplified voice thundered across the battlefield.
Professors canceled their spells and retreated in perfect coordination.
Booooooooom—
The ground convulsed.
Massive mana roots burst from the earth, wrapping around the fleshy mass and tightening with crushing force.
Explosions detonated across its surface.
Yet monsters continued spawning near the central eye—only to be crushed and replaced again in an endless cycle.
Even Theodore's spell failed to damage the source.
Boooooom—
Serbian's stone spears rained down directly onto the eye, but newly spawned creatures intercepted the attack, sacrificing themselves.
It was protecting itself.
A chill swept across the battlefield.
An intelligent monster.
That was the worst-case scenario.
"Snap out of it!"
Theodore's voice jolted the stunned professors as another blast shattered the basement floor on one side.
He cast spell after spell without pause.
The urgency snapped them from paralysis.
Six professors spread out in a hexagonal formation.
Flames surged between them, merging into a colossal explosion.
They retreated immediately.
Another six replaced them.
Lightning and stone descended in a devastating storm. The blast ruptured eardrums.
Booooom.
Another.
And another.
Gasps filled the air.
Mana reserves were burning away like rapid ammunition. The assault had continued for thirty uninterrupted minutes.
Yet—
The eye remained untouched.
The spawn rate had slowed. The monsters were malformed.
But the core showed no damage.
Magnus had exhausted much of his holy power. The bishops were on the verge of collapse.
Albert scanned the battlefield.
Can we really survive this?
Only Theodore and Serbian continued fighting relentlessly.
Then—
He saw it.
The central eye began to glow.
Mana surged violently toward it.
Their instincts screamed.
Run.
Albert looked at the forming spell.
A helpless sigh escaped him.
Then—
A thin, radiant thread spread across the basement, glowing brightly.
It multiplied.
Divided.
Until only countless luminous beads remained suspended in the air.
Mana trembled with excitement as blinding light filled the chamber.
The luminous beads descended and plunged into the living flesh.
It did not explode.
Instead—
Wherever the light touched, flesh dissolved into pools of blood.
Life was drained to its core.
The mass decayed rapidly.
All eyes turned toward the caster.
Azek stood behind them.