A surge of Mana rushed toward Raavan's body, flowing into his Core in preparation for an attack. After a moment of focus, a torrent of fire erupted from his hands, bathing a cone-shaped area in front of him in flames.
Zeke recognized the spell as [Salamander's Breath]. He had seen several Fire Mages use it in the Elementium. However, the sight before him was markedly different from what he remembered.
The torrent of flames was many times more dense than he remembered, and its size had nearly doubled in both length and width. Also, the spell seemed to have gained an additional quality that was hard to pinpoint. The flames seemed… hungrier?
Zeke didn't quite know what it was, but the fire appeared vastly more menacing than when the students had used the spell. The reason for this stark difference was obvious. It was the distinction between a True Mage and a Grand Mage. Zeke's eyes gleamed as he watched the fight. The display made him want to reach that realm all the more.
The Fire spell had completely swallowed up Vulcanos, shrouding his figure from head to toe. Even so, Zeke wasn't worried, well aware of how resistant the Chimeroi was against fire-based attacks. It had been an awful choice to use a channeled spell. Instead, a [Fire Lance] or [Exploding Orb] would have been far more effective.
A moment later, Vulcanos' pitch-black hands emerged from the flames, grabbing onto Raavan's forearms. The expression in the Fire Mage's eyes changed for the first time, and he gathered an even greater amount of Mana. However, before he could cast a spell, Vulcanos flexed his muscles. Raavan's arms broke like matchsticks, followed by an ear-piercing shriek. The pain had interrupted whatever spell he was about to cast, leaving the man dazed momentarily.
Vulcanos didn't miss this moment of weakness and threw another punch, knocking the wind out of Raavan and forcing him to his knees. The difference in strength between a human and a Chimeroi was immense, making the outcome of a physical altercation a foregone conclusion.
"Hurry up," Zeke urged telepathically.
Vulcanos kicked the man's head, knocking him out. In a swift motion, he heaved the unconscious body onto his shoulders and turned to run as the surrounding men quickly regained their wits. However, he couldn't even take a single step before an angry bellow shook the plaza.
"LET GO OF MY SON, YOU ANIMAL!"
The Archmage's cry resonated with such intense hatred that even Zeke, standing hundreds of steps away, felt a shiver run down his spine. He could barely fathom the impact on Vulcanos, who had been the recipient. Zeke searched for his figure, only to find him frozen in terror at the same spot.
"I command you to return to me," he ordered, exerting his authority as a Master to compel the Chimeroi into action. It proved effective, as Vulcanos took a hesitant step forward. Soon, he transitioned into a jog, then a sprint, determined and unimpeded. A fortunate consequence of the Archmage's shout was that his own men were too shocked to move.
"STOP HIM!" Mahesh's voice boomed with urgency. It was evident he desired nothing more than to rush to his son's aid himself. However, under Ravi's relentless assault, any such attempt would be tantamount to suicide.
His command came too late, as Vulcanos was just about to vanish into the lines of the Ember Scar Cartel. Zeke observed as the Chimeroi navigated through the masses of soldiers, steadily advancing toward his position. Good.
Zeke's gaze locked with that of the incensed Archmage. Ravi was still pressuring him, forcing him to cede more ground with every moment his attention was on his son. However, this much wasn't enough. He needed to push him further.
"First, I took your brother. Now, I'll take your son," Zeke sent telepathically before immediately cutting the connection again. That should do it.
"DON'T YOU DARE!!" the Archmage yelled.
Zeke smirked at him, wearing the cockiest expression he could muster, confident it would further enrage the man. Although he felt a twinge of discomfort about exploiting the man's love for his son, any lingering guilt evaporated when he remembered the true nature of Mahesh and his family.
He recalled how they had crippled Ravi's son alongside dozens of others. How they had killed the members of the Nair family to force their daughter into a marriage she resented. And then, he remembered how they had ambushed him out in the desert, leaving him broken and wounded, sure that he would not survive. The mangled body of the boy who guided them…
No, those people didn't deserve his mercy.
A flash of movement caught his attention as Vulcanos arrived next to him, still carrying the unconscious man on his shoulders. Zeke nodded at him, and the Chimeroi put the body down, holding him in place. It was time to put on a show.
Zeke took his time, meticulously crafting a blade using his Blood Magic, fashioning it to the length of his arm. Afterward, he performed a series of test swings, ensuring its efficacy. With deliberate slowness, he mimicked the motion of beheading a kneeling man, leaving no doubt as to his intentions. All the while, the Archmage was screaming at him, threatening, raging, shrieking.
Zeke nodded once, the expression on his face growing firm. He glanced at the distant Archmage for one last time before stepping next to the kneeling figure of his son. It was time.
Yet, before he could even raise the blade above his head, Zeke sensed a shift. An unprecedented surge of Mana converged toward the center of the plaza. Though it might have been his imagination, Zeke could swear that the temperature in Undercity rose by a few degrees as well.
A deafening explosion echoed through the streets, halting all fighting instantly. Every gaze fixed upon the man hurtling through the air at unprecedented speed. It was Mahesh. The Archmage had chosen to disregard his opponent, prioritizing the rescue of his son. His path took him straight toward Zeke.
However, before he could get far, a streak of lightning struck his unprotected flank, eliciting a short scream from the man. It had been a clean hit, marking the first severe injury either of the Archmages had taken during this fight. Mahesh didn't seem to mind it, though, as his eyes never left Zeke. The distance between them disappeared at an alarming rate.
The Archmage aimed his finger at Zeke, unleashing a tiny yet swift Fire Arrow that streaked through the air swiftly. Before it could find its mark, Vulcanos materialized in front of Zeke, intercepting the attack with his own body. Though the spell didn't appear to be heavily imbued with Mana, upon impact with the Chimeroi's chest, he was violently propelled off the roof, disappearing from sight.
Zeke breathed a quiet sigh of relief when Akasha informed him that Vulcanos had survived the attack. Zeke had been lucky that Mahesh didn't want to risk an injury to his son. The Archmage had held back significantly.
Another bolt of lightning struck the Archmage's back, eliciting a mouthful of blood from him. Despite the injury, he pressed forward, his gaze locked onto Zeke with a promise of the cruelest death imaginable. With each passing second, he came closer, on the brink of reaching him.
He landed on a nearby roof, gathered his strength, jumped… and stopped.
It was a surreal sight. The Archmage hung suspended in midair, his momentum halted. Surprise appeared on his features, morphing from murderous intent to confusion, then caution. Yet, gravity seized him with relentless force before he could regain his bearings, hurtling his figure violently toward the ground. His body was betraying him, weighing a hundred times more than it was supposed to.
With a violent crash, he impacted the street with the grace of a falling boulder, the impact worsening his wounds. Mahesh glanced around with wild eyes, searching for his attacker. It didn't take him long to find the person responsible. The culprit behind the attack was a veiled woman hiding in a nearby alley. Her mastery over gravity was something not even an Archmage could completely ignore.
With a violent roar, he tried to shake the effect of the spell using his own Mana, but once again, things didn't go as planned. No matter how hard he tried, his body didn't listen to his commands. Mahesh couldn't move, and this time, it wasn't just because of the increased pull of gravity.
The two siblings, Kruul and Kraal, combined their powers with Gravitas' to hold the Archmage in place. Even through his fierce resistance, the trio was enough to bind his feet—for a moment.
Yet that was all they needed.
At that moment, the swirling mist atop their heads coalesced into the shape of a person. A white-haired Chimeroi appeared in midair, a massive bone spear clutched in his grip. Pulled by the massively increased gravity, Ash descended with the force of a comet.
With a face full of desperation, Mahesh forced his eyes to look up. His limbs were bound, his body heavy, and his flesh was injured. With a growing sense of dread, he locked eyes with the man who was about to take his life.
Death had come to claim him.
The spear struck Mahesh's chest with brutal force, piercing through his heart, spine, and a significant portion of the floor behind him. Despite the grievous wound, he clung to life, but it was a fleeting existence. His eyes flickered, teetering on the brink of extinguishing, when Zeke appeared before him.
"Will you let him go?" Mahesh rasped, his voice almost pleading. All traces of anger had dissipated, leaving behind only a man begging for the life of his son. Zeke didn't even have to think about it and shook his head decisively.
"I… see," the Archmage mumbled as he closed his eyes. His shattered heart had stopped, and no more blood or oxygen was reaching his brain. The man was dead.
Zeke drew in a single, deep breath.
While Mahesh may have been many things, a bad father was not among them. Zeke wasn't proud of how he had won this fight, recognizing his despicable conduct. But honor was something for the strong to worry about, and he wasn't strong—not yet, at least.
After that single moment of self-admonishment, Zeke cast away all distracting thoughts and began the task he had come to do. He entered his Soul-Sight and noticed that the man's Soul was already dispersing. If he didn't act, all Slaves of the Firebrand School would join their Master in death.
Zeke didn't even try to harvest the fragments individually, focusing solely on entering his elevated consciousness. The seconds ticked by as Zeke tried to mix his Mind and Blood Mana without success. His frustration mounted. When he had done it before, it had felt so effortless. What was different now?
Zeke attempted to shove his Mind and Blood Mana into the engraving on his Core, willing it to empower his thoughts. Then he stopped. No. This wasn't working. Something was different. It didn't feel like that when he managed to mix the two types the last time. What was it? What was missing?
Then it clicked. The order of events was wrong. Zeke vaguely recalled that the Mana had been combined before he attempted to cast the spell. But how? The only notable difference was the desperation he had felt at the time.
Desperation? Was it linked to his Intent? Could it be?
Carefully, Zeke focused on his Blood Mana. It was wild, untamed, and refused to stay in place for longer than a moment; such was the nature of Blood. Zeke imbued it with Intent. He thought of his veins expanding, blood flowing, and increased potency. It was the image he had always used to cast the spell.
Next, he focused on his Mind Mana. It was calm, cold, and inert. Mind Mana didn't react well to vague or esoteric images. Clear and detailed instructions were the only way to properly imbue Mind Mana. You needed to tell it what it was supposed to do, where, how much, how long, and how. If any of those parts were missing, the spell would fail. Zeke tried to imbue it with the same Intent as his Blood Mana, using vastly different instructions. He had become quite adept at handling his various Mana types, so the translation only took him a moment.
Done with his preparation, Zeke tried to bring the two streams of energy together. To his utter surprise, Blood and Mind Mana combined without the slightest resistance. Had it been this easy all along? He was so stunned that he almost forgot his purpose—almost.
He used his combined Mana to power the spell engraved on his Core [Perfect Body Control]. There was no need for any Spellform or the imbuement of Intent anymore, having skipped that step entirely. No, the moment the Mana touched the engraving, Zeke entered that wonderous state once more, and for the first time, he had done so through his own power.
A huge grin would have split his face if his Soul form could smile. Instead, Zeke got to work in silence, rescuing the Soul fragments before Mahesh's Soul fully dissipated. Meanwhile, he let his mind wander, fantasizing about all he would be able to do with this new influx of manpower.