The slender Rune Chains were like hairs against the enormous Manxter serpent, but under the chains' restraint, the giant snake was helplessly pinned in place, unable to move.
"Charge!" Jackson roared, his longsword blazing with bright light.
On the other side, the gray-robed figure threw back his cloak, revealing a half-beast exterior, and began rapidly chanting a spell.
Roar!! The remaining monsters sensed their progenitor was in danger and threw themselves recklessly toward Raelin and the others.
"Die!" Raelin flung several fiery-red Explosive Potions, reducing the remaining monsters to ashes.
"For Manxters, the eyes are their weak point — even more effective than striking the heart!"
Raelin let out a wild shout and began chanting a spell of his own.
As the ancient Byran incantations, mysterious and desolate, echoed through the cavern, a vast mass of thick, black oil materialized around Raelin.
The black oil coiled around Raelin, occasionally bubbling with the sound of something being corroded. As the incantation continued, the oil shifted and reshaped itself, finally taking the form of a black lion's head.
"Go!" Raelin pointed with his hand.
The black lion's head let out a roar and flew toward the top of the ensnared serpent's head.
Thwack! The lion's head sank its jaws directly into the Manxter's bloodshot eyes.
Hiss!! The giant serpent thrashed its body in agony, letting out pained shrieks. Wisps of red smoke continuously rose from where its scales met the Rune Chains.
"Hurry! I can't hold on much longer!" Meierfeile had completely abandoned his previously scholarly composure, roaring with desperate urgency.
The black lion's head continued gnawing at the serpent's head until it finally melted completely, becoming a pool of black oil that spread across the top of the giant snake's skull, covering both of its eyes.
"Now!" Raelin's eyes lit up as he drew out a test tube. Inside, a vivid red liquid shimmered with a dangerous glow.
It was an Explosive Potion, but noticeably larger than the previous ones.
The muscles in Raelin's right arm bulged as he hurled the potion vial directly onto the black oil.
Boom!! A massive fireball erupted, engulfing the Manxter serpent's entire head in blazing flames.
The great serpent kept shaking its head, like an enormous torch blazing with fire.
Even the Rune Chains surrounding it emitted groaning sounds of strain, as though they could barely hold.
"Corrosive Abyss Oil from underground, combined with an Explosive Potion refined and optimized by the Chip — together the attack must have reached a power of at least degree nine!"
Blue light flickered constantly in Raelin's eyes as he recorded the data from the explosion.
"Hah… hah! That last blow has already shattered most of Manxter's defenses. If we're going to kill it, now's the time!"
Raelin gasped violently, his face deathly pale, looking as though he had completely exhausted his spirit and mana. He stumbled back several steps.
In the space concealed beneath his sleeve, hidden from anyone's view, a brand-new Explosive Potion identical to the one before had already appeared in his palm.
Raelin never placed all his hopes on others — especially not at the final moment.
And just then, the half-beastman had already finished his spell.
"Power of the Ancestral Totem, manifest as frost and grant me the might to slay Manxter!"
The half-beastman completed his spell and tapped the tip of Baron Jackson's greatsword.
Ssssh!!!
A layer of white frost suddenly crystallized across the surface of Jackson's blade. The frost gathered thicker and thicker, until it completely encased the entire sword. The greatsword swelled in size, transforming into an enormous ice blade!
The half-beastman had actually used a rare weapon-enhancement spell!
"According to the Chip's scan, Baron Jackson's greatsword now possesses the power of a low-level Magical Item!"
A sharp gleam flashed through Raelin's eyes. "Quite an impressive spell — it even seems to incorporate some enchantment techniques!"
Jackson had clearly worked with this half-beastman many times before. He had been silently channeling his strength the entire time, and once the greatsword had fully transformed into ice, he let out a fierce shout, raised the massive blade, and swung it down at Manxter's neck.
The sword, as if carved from enormous crystal, under the continuous eruption of Baron Jackson's Great Knight power, struck directly into the serpent's charred neck.
Psshh!!!
Scalding blood gushed out continuously. A wide wound appeared below Manxter's head, already more than half a meter deep — white bone was visible within. The great serpent let out a thunderous roar and slammed its head forward with all its might.
Boom!!! Baron Jackson was sent flying backward, a dent already forming in the armor across his chest.
The great ice sword fell to the side, plunged straight into the ground with half its blade buried deep.
Clang, clang, clang!!! The ice continued to disintegrate until finally even the steel sword itself shattered into countless iron fragments that scattered across the ground.
"It seems this spell isn't without its flaws!" Linley still had the composure to observe other parts of the battlefield.
Meierfeile's face was flushed red at this point: "I can't hold it anymore!"
Crack, crack, crack!!! Under Manxter's relentless thrashing, the Rune Chains binding the great serpent finally all shattered. As the price, dozens of wounds that reached deep past the scales appeared across the serpent's body.
But the grievously wounded Manxter only seemed more ferocious, the red in its serpentine eyes burning brighter than ever. Its tail lashed out with lightning speed, and by the time Linley reacted, he realized one person was missing — the half-orc who had been standing off to the side was already wrapped in the serpent's coils.
"No! Save me!" The tail constricted tighter and tighter, the massive serpentine body nearly swallowing the half-orc whole with only his head still visible. "City Lord! Baron! Save me!"
Jackson at this moment lay crumpled on the other side, unconscious, his fate unknown — completely unable to answer his subordinate's cries for help.
Crrrk!!! The piercing sound of cracking bones rang out endlessly. The half-orc's pleas rose to a shrill pitch before gradually fading into silence.
Linley's eyes were locked on the great serpent that now appeared on its last breath. Several brightly colored potions appeared in his hands.
Boom!!!
A massive dark shape lunged toward him. A yellow vial in Linley's hand shattered, and a layer of yellow luminous film materialized in the air, enveloping his entire body.
The tremendous force sent Linley flying, slamming him into the rock behind him. Clumps of earth rained down from above, and a deep crater had even formed in the rock at his back.
At the same moment Linley was sent hurtling backward, a violent burst of crimson flame spread across the serpent's tail, and multicolored lights bloomed continuously across its body, accompanied by Manxter's agonized hissing.
The yellow luminous film cracked into pieces and dissipated directly into the air.
Linley stood completely unscathed, watching the scattered yellow sparks drift away, a pained expression crossing his face.
"For
Among Zero-level Spells, defensive models were inherently scarce, and they were particularly impractical. When an apprentice came under attack, there was rarely enough time to chant a spell incantation.
As a result, when Wizard Apprentices dueled, the one who was hit by a spell first was almost always the one who failed — or died.
This situation wouldn't improve until one reached the stage of a full Wizard.
In addition, there was one other option — relying on special items, such as Magical Items or artifacts capable of instant-casting defensive spells.
But even for full Wizards, such high-grade defensive items were extremely rare, and they seldom ended up in the hands of apprentices.
Just like the apprentices who had come with Rein and the half-orc from earlier — none of them carried any defensive items. At most they wore leather armor, which offered absolutely no resistance against magical attacks.
In fact, a single casual roll from Manxter could crush them into pulp!
"According to academy records, a few Wizard Apprentices die at the hands of Knights and Great Knights every year, but once one becomes a full Wizard, there has never been a single case of dying at the hands of a mortal!"
And this vial of yellow potion was Rein's latest experimental breakthrough — the Tirf Spiral Shield Potion!
This potion had already surpassed the realm of basic potions — it was classified as a low-level potion, and even among low-level potions, it was famous for being extraordinarily difficult to brew!
Its effect was to generate a one-time magical defensive barrier capable of withstanding any physical or magical attack below ten degrees!
It was only through the substantial fortune he had accumulated from selling potions, combined with the Chip's continuous calculations and experimentation, that Rein had finally managed to produce two vials.
And the Magic Stones he had spent in the process exceeded one thousand!!!
"This kind of potion is truly not something ordinary people can afford. Any full Wizard's offensive power exceeds ten degrees — the Tirf Spiral Shield Potion is only useful at the apprentice level at most. But each vial costs at least five hundred Magic Stones, and even heirs of major families absolutely couldn't afford it!"
But for Rein, who possessed the Chip — and who was already an Apothecary on top of that — the Chip could increase his success rate. Once he gained enough experience, he could drive the cost of the Tirf Spiral Shield Potion down to around two or three hundred Magic Stones. Still expensive, but acceptable as a trump card.
"Rein!" Meierfeile's eyes went wide. "You... you're alright?"
"Mhm! I wasted a vial of defensive potion I paid a fortune to acquire." Rein's expression was dark, looking as though the loss was causing him genuine anguish.
"This damn beast — I'm going to slaughter it!"
On the other side of the battlefield, the Manxter giant serpent had first been hit by Rein's compound spell attack, then nearly decapitated by Great Knight Jackson.
After that, it had forcibly broken free from Meierfeile's life-saving Rune Chains, and finally been struck by Rein's potion attack. Now it lay on the ground covered in wounds, looking half-dead.
The serpent head that had been held high all this time now lay helplessly on the ground, its forked tongue flickering out, blood continuously streaming from its neck.
"With injuries this severe, no matter how tenacious a serpent creature's vitality might be, it's definitely on the brink of death!"
Meierfeile gritted his teeth and fired another green triangular spike, which embedded itself directly into the giant serpent's eye.
Splat!!! The serpent's eye was finally pierced, and a stream of red mixed with yellow liquid sprayed out, translucent and thick with a glistening sheen.