Episode 719
“No!”
As Junon’s sword swung towards Matana’s neck, Laila screamed.
In that instant, something suddenly leapt between the two.
Crackle!
Just as Junon’s blade was about to strike, a girl enveloped in a violet current blocked both Junon’s sword and Matana’s evasive maneuver.
The unexpected arrival was Lara, one of the triplet guardians of Pannotia.
Holding Junon’s sword and Matana’s leg, Lara spoke in a monotone voice.
“Threat detected. Neutralizing threat.”
Immediately, the violet energy transformed into chains and shot towards Junon and Matana.
Screech!
The powerful chains of magic wrapped around the frenzied Matana.
But Junon, with the agility unique to vampires, rolled across the ground, evading the magical chains.
Whoosh!
The violet chains rose again where Junon had been, but he deftly dodged them all.
He quickly regained his balance, stood up, and assumed a combat stance with his sword.
Watching him, Lara extended her hands.
“Neutralizing threat.”
As Lara fully unleashed her power, violet currents flowed from her body, and a strange magical circle appeared on the ground.
Whoosh!
Hundreds of chains erupted from the floor.
With her boundless magic, Lara could deploy a wide-range magic circle in a short time.
Sensing the threat from the chains targeting him, Junon leapt into the air.
Whoosh!
The chains, as if alive, pursued Junon.
Clinging to the ceiling, Junon raised his sword and assumed a dragon-slaying stance.
Boom—
He then forcefully pushed off the ceiling, charging towards Lara.
Dragon-Slaying Technique
Chapter 6, Verse 2
Piercing the Dragon’s Heart
Junon’s swordsmanship, as he rushed towards Lara with fierce speed, was far beyond a student’s level.
Lara reached out towards the approaching Junon.
The chains crackled with violent violet electricity.
Crackle!
The electrified chains tried to seize Junon, but he continued his charge, sword raised, towards Lara.
But then, suddenly—
Clang!
With a dull thud, Junon’s sword flew from his hand and embedded itself in the ceiling.
Claire had appeared out of nowhere, deflecting Junon’s sword with her mace, while Luther grabbed him by the neck, halting his advance.
Claire clicked her tongue at Junon, who was restrained by Luther.
“You fool. You should assess your opponent before charging in. If you’d kept going, Lara’s magic would’ve obliterated you without a trace.”
Luther nodded in agreement with Claire’s words.
“Kids these days really are fearless. But triggering Lara’s neutralization warning is quite the feat.”
Junon struggled to break free, but escaping Luther’s firm grip was impossible.
Claire sheathed her mace and looked around, clicking her tongue again.
“Richmond really went all out with the preparations. At this rate, someone’s bound to get hurt…”
As she grumbled, Claire suddenly sensed something off about Matana, who was restrained by Lara.
“What is this? Could it be…?”
Just then—
Rumble!
The entire dungeon shook, and something rose from beneath the ground.
Claire and Luther were both startled by the sudden change.
“What is this…?”
What emerged from the dungeon floor was a wall of bones.
The sturdy, sharp bones interlocked to form an impenetrable barrier.
Seeing this, Claire incredulously grabbed her mace and tapped the bone wall.
“What the hell is this?”
Luther swung his sword at the bone wall and shook his head.
“Are we in the middle of a war we didn’t know about?”
After observing for a moment, Luther approached Claire and whispered.
“Professor Claire, did Professor Richmond mention anything about this?”
Claire shook her head at Luther’s question.
“Not at all. He just told me to keep the students safe…”
Something flashed through Claire’s mind.
“Could it be?”
Claire was one of the few who knew Richmond was on a secret mission assigned by the headmaster.
If the bone wall, which she hadn’t been informed about, was installed throughout the dungeon, it might mean something had happened to Richmond.
Claire gritted her teeth and raised her mace.
“Professor Luther, I need to check on something. Please look after the students here.”
Luther nodded in understanding.
Immediately, a holy aura surged from Claire’s mace.
“Haaah!”
Claire swung her mace with all her might at the bone wall.
Boom!
The tightly interlocked bone wall shattered, leaving a gaping hole.
Claire quickly entered the hole.
She was determined to find Richmond and figure out what was going on.
Seeing this, Laila also tried to lead her team through the hole Claire had made.
But Luther blocked her path.
“Stay put. It’s not too late to move after we know what’s happening.”
Feeling treated like a child, Laila clenched her teeth in frustration, but she couldn’t defy him and had to sit back down.
Beside her, Junon, with an unreadable expression, and the still-unconscious Matana, bound in chains, struggled.
Guardian Lara was muttering something repeatedly as she looked somewhere.
“Anomaly detected. Anomaly detected. Neutralizing threat.”
Watching this, Laila swallowed hard, her expression complicated.
“What on earth is happening here?”
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Claire smashed through the bone walls with her mace, heading towards the control room where Richmond was.
“Professor Richmond!”
Reaching the control room, Claire called out Richmond’s name at the door.
But the door showed no sign of opening.
After calling a few more times, she was about to smash the door with her mace when she sensed something.
Whoosh!
Claire leapt to avoid an attack.
Turning around, she was shocked to see students wielding weapons, exuding killing intent towards her.
“This is…”
The students had the same branded mark on their foreheads as Matana earlier.
Claire realized the students were being controlled by a demon.
And she understood what secret mission Richmond was on.
“A mission to capture a demon, huh.”
Demons that infiltrated the material world were notoriously elusive, making them difficult to find.
Now she understood why Richmond hadn’t told her everything.
Claire pointed her mace at the students and spoke.
“Whoever this demon is, they picked the wrong person to mess with.”
Whoosh!
A holy aura surged from Claire’s mace.
The demon-possessed students charged at Claire.
Screech!
Claire unleashed the light from her mace towards the students.
Boom!
A massive storm of light swept over the students.
Amazingly, the light seeped into their bodies, evaporating the demonic energy within.
Sizzle!
Soon, the brand on the students’ foreheads faded and disappeared without a trace.
Thud!
The students, freed from the brand, collapsed like puppets with cut strings.
Claire quickly checked on them, confirming they were merely unconscious but unharmed, before rushing towards the control room again.
Crash!
With a powerful kick, Claire shattered the control room door and charged inside, mace raised.
“Richmond!”
If the demon’s influence had reached the students, Richmond would be in danger too.
As she expected, the control room was filled with demon-possessed students.
Screech!
In the center of the crowded control room stood a figure in a robe.
Seeing this, Claire shouted.
“Professor Richmond!”
Just as she was about to charge with her mace—
Sizzle—
A mist began to emanate from the robed figure.
Wherever the mist touched, frost formed.
Crack!
Students close to the mist found their feet frozen, unable to move.
Screech!
In an instant, dozens of students were immobilized, frozen in place.
Claire was taken aback by the unexpected situation.
“Professor Vane…?”
As if to answer Claire’s suspicion, the figure in the center of the control room removed their hood, revealing not Richmond, but Vane, the Elemental Lich with jewel-like eyes.
Professor Vane, floating in the air, approached Claire, surprised.
“Professor Claire? How did you get here?”
Vane hovered closer to Claire, who was on guard with her mace.
“I came to rescue Professor Richmond, who seems to have fallen into a demon’s trap.”
Bain was taken aback by the revelation.
“What? A demon’s trap?”
“Didn’t you know, Professor Bain? Isn’t that why you’re here?”
“No, I was told by Senior Richmond that if I stood guard here, I’d get some ice-element beast bones…”
Claire clenched her teeth at Bain’s words.
“Damn it, then where on earth is Professor Richmond now?”
Rumble!
The entire cave shook violently once more.
Thud!
Just then, an artifact rolled to Claire’s feet. It was one of those relics that students could earn points for if they excavated and brought it back. Claire picked it up, initially thinking nothing of it, but a strange feeling compelled her to examine it closely. That’s when she discovered a cleverly hidden spell.
“That damned demon.”
Upon closer inspection, she realized the artifact was cursed to enslave any student who touched it to the demon’s will. The demon had turned Richmond’s carefully planned dungeon expedition into chaos for its own gain.
‘If all the students who found artifacts are in this state…’
Ensuring the safety of the Pannotia students was paramount. Claire quickly gathered her thoughts and turned to Bain.
“The artifacts the students found are cursed with demonic spells.”
Bain’s eyes widened in shock at Claire’s words.
“What? How could that be… Senior Richmond must have prepared thoroughly.”
“I’m not sure how it happened yet. But first, Professor Bain, let’s go rescue the students.”
With a sense of urgency, she summoned a holy aura to dispel the demonic curses from the students. After laying the unconscious students in a row on one side of the command room, she and Bain left to save the others.
Unbeknownst to them, a small insect clung to the wall, observing everything.
Creak!
The insect, having witnessed the scene, quickly scurried away.
A red-haired boy slowly sat up in bed.
Creak!
An insect on the back of his hand seemed to be transmitting a message through a series of deliberate movements. The boy nodded at the insect.
“So, Richmond sealed the dungeon himself? He’s made a grave mistake.”
Through the insect, he was aware of the situation inside the dungeon, including the fact that the professors and students were trapped inside.
Brushing the insect off, he smiled and murmured to himself, “Looks like it’s time to make my move.”
The boy rose and left the infirmary. He had stayed behind at the school, feigning illness to avoid participating in the dungeon expedition that involved the entire student body. Yet, the aura emanating from him was far too intense for someone supposedly unwell.
Waiting for him outside the infirmary were none other than the guardians, Rami and Luda. A demonic mark was clearly etched on their foreheads.
The red-haired boy nodded in satisfaction at the sight of Rami and Luda.
“It would have been nice to have one more, but two will suffice for now.”
With the two guardians, who possessed limitless magical power, the boy headed somewhere specific: the principal’s office.
As the reincarnation of the demon Astaroth, his target was none other than Principal Arina Lubern.
‘Once I have the principal, Pannotia will be mine.’
Pannotia, the fortress with the strongest natural defenses on the continent, was the perfect nest to nurture his power while protecting his vulnerable reincarnation.
Astaroth ran a hand through his red hair and muttered, “Not just this world, but even the demon realm will kneel before me.”