Translator: CinderTL
Bang!
Roland effortlessly parried the attack from the small magitech construct, his expression remaining calm. With a slight twist of his wrist, he smoothly swung his sword upward.
Crack!
The blade sliced through the enemy's metal head like a hot knife through butter, severing more than half of it with a crisp sound.
The red light in the construct's deep-set eyes instantly extinguished, and its once agile body collapsed into a pile of scrap metal in the blink of an eye.
"Swift, strong, tireless, and impervious to pain... but..." Roland's gaze swept over the spear-like metal devices scattered on the ground, their surfaces faintly glowing. His anxiety immediately lessened.
"Aside from these somewhat clever hidden weapons, their attack methods are utterly unremarkable."
"Quantity aside, their threat level doesn't even match that of the chaos creatures from the outer planes."
After quickly assessing the capabilities of these small constructs, Roland informed his companions of his findings while continuing to advance.
He soon reached Reggie's side.
As Roland had anticipated, the Knight Academy mentor was now demonstrating power that clearly belonged to the Transcendent Realm. However, his destructive force fell far short of what Roland had witnessed from Gondar, roughly on par with Beckham of the Blackwater Territory.
Even so, Reggie's strength far exceeded what these small magitech constructs could withstand.
Combined with thousands of physically robust soldiers...
These metal constructs could only crumble into twisted heaps of scrap iron under the relentless assault of swords and blades.
As for the colossal magitech constructs...
Roland frowned slightly, gazing at the massive figures gradually approaching in the distance.
But before he could react, a blinding silver light suddenly tore through the air.
Whoosh!
In an instant, the once-imposing behemoth was cleaved in two at the waist.
Its massive remains crashed to the ground with a thunderous roar, sending plumes of dust billowing into the sky.
"Reggie! Over here!"
Hearing the familiar shout, Reggie didn't hesitate. He immediately ordered his troops to advance through the streets lined with crumbling walls and rubble, moving swiftly toward the source of the voice.
Within moments, they spotted a unit of soldiers being steadily pushed back by the relentless onslaught of magitech constructs.
Seeing their plight, Reggie swiftly ordered his entire force to charge in and reinforce the line.
The arrival of these fresh troops instantly stabilized the precarious battle line.
"Whew..."
Graham exhaled deeply, kicking aside the heavy head of a fallen magitech construct before striding forward.
"Reggie! You showed up just in time, you old dog. Otherwise... huh?"
Graham reached out to clap his old friend on the shoulder, but his gaze suddenly fell on the burly figure standing beside him.
"Roland? What are you still doing here?"
"Dean Graham..."
Seeing the Knight Academy Dean unharmed, Roland finally felt a great weight lift from his heart.
He immediately recounted his recent ordeal in detail.
Sensing the moment, Reggie seamlessly assumed command of the troops, creating space for the two to speak privately.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk..."
Perhaps buoyed by the arrival of reinforcements, Dean Graham's mood seemed to lighten. After hearing Roland's account, a mischievous smile crept across his face as he teased, "So, you really are cursed with bad luck, aren't you, kid? But..."
He turned his gaze toward the towering spire that pierced the clouds at the city's center, muttering to himself, "Demon Capital. Gilles, huh?"
Noticing the fleeting moment of distraction on Graham's face, Roland raised an eyebrow and asked, "Dean, have you heard of this magic city before?"
"Hmm... Decades ago, an old drunkard mentioned it. He claimed its ruler was named Schmidt. I originally thought..." Graham trailed off, shaking his head with a wry smile before quickly changing the subject.
"Kid, your judgment was decisive. If you hadn't suggested Reggie rush here with reinforcements, my soldiers would have been slaughtered in this meat grinder. When we return to the capital..."
He patted his breastplate.
"I will ensure you receive the reward you deserve!" Graham roared with laughter, wiping the grime from his sword with his armored gauntlet. His expression immediately turned serious.
"From now on, you and Reggie just stay here. The rest... leave it to me!"
Demon Capital Gilles...
This city, buried in the dust of history, was unknown even to the mysterious Purple-Haired Witch Vanessa and the long-lived elves Avril and Galvis.
Yet the Dean of the Knight Academy seemed to know something about it?
Roland's mind swirled with questions, but seeing Graham's reluctance to elaborate, he wisely refrained from pressing further.
As the Dean prepared to depart, Roland quickly asked about the current state of the battle.
Graham answered frankly, revealing the dire situation without reservation.
"We can't track the Lich's movements?" Roland frowned.
"Dean Graham, if you trust me, please wait a moment. I might..."
In such a perilous situation, Roland decided to reveal his abilities.
Moreover, after all they had been through together, he trusted the Knight Academy Dean implicitly.
After only a brief hesitation, he continued, "I have a way to pinpoint its location, or... its true intentions."
Graham's eyes widened slightly in surprise.
Their previous interactions had convinced him that this young man was no idle talker.
After only a moment's hesitation, he nodded in agreement.
Seeing the other man's assent, Roland didn't hesitate further.
After entrusting Graham with his safety, he slowly closed his eyes, sinking his consciousness deep within himself, desperately blocking out the battlefield's cacophony of clashing metal and piercing cries.
As the Focus trait activated, his immense mental power, nearing thirty points, extended outward like invisible tendrils, cautiously probing in all directions.
His perception pierced through shattered walls and twisted wreckage, sweeping across every inch of this ancient magic city.
Yet the magic elements permeating the city were chaotic and turbulent, like countless muddy, rushing streams colliding and merging into a powerful "magic background noise."
His mental power struggled through this chaotic sea, desperately searching for the faint negative energy signature of the Lich.
But it remained elusive, like trying to see a flower through thick fog, making it impossible to pinpoint its exact location.
"This won't work... the interference is too strong..."
Realizing that conventional mental perception was failing, Roland took a deep breath.
As his chest rose and fell, a completely different kind of power began to surge from the depths of his spirit.
Psionic Self-Shaping silently activated.
An invisible surge of psionic energy instantly reinforced his spiritual core and expanded the boundaries of his perception.
In that instant, his mental power, now infused with tangible resilience, became focused and sharp, like a precise probe capable of piercing through chaos.
He began patiently, methodically combing through the chaotic flows of magic around him, clearing "channels" for perception.
Under this heightened state of focus, amplified by psionic energy, while the Lich's exact location remained as elusive as a shadow in the deep sea, Roland detected a crucial anomaly.
The towering spire at the city's center.
Magic elements converged around it in concentrations far exceeding those elsewhere, forming a dazzling vortex of magical energy.
Yet Roland now clearly "saw" that these dense magic elements enveloping the spire were not being generated by the spire itself and radiating outward.
On the contrary, they appeared to be drawn in and concentrated by some external force.
These magic elements weren't surging toward the spire in a chaotic mass; instead, they formed three massive, condensed, and ceaseless torrents of magical energy, converging from three distinct distant sources before merging and pouring into the silent spire.
Realizing this, Roland's eyes snapped open, a sharp glint flashing in his gaze.
(End of the Chapter)
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