Embracing Magic - E.M Chapter 53 (Part 2)
The reason the commissioners came to their homes even while being pursued was to retrieve their lifelong possessions.
The commissioners had been planning their escape to another country for a long time. Over that period, they had dealt with most bulky items, leaving only valuable ones like gold and jewels in the warehouse.
“They’ll be out soon.”
“Elrov. Are you going to kill him today?”
“Yes. He’s going to die. Just wait for the other commissioners.”
Rodin carefully turned the doorknob of the main building. With a click, the door slowly opened.
The sudden sound of the door caught the attention of the trainees. But seeing nothing, they quickly lost interest.
Rodin slipped through the half-open door. He also closed the door carefully.
‘Does he not have family? No, they must have been sent to Melcos in advance.’
The commissioners had been preparing to leave the Riyaz Kingdom for almost a year. Their families had been sent to the port city Melkos long ago, ready to flee.
‘Elrov.’
Commissioner Elrov was in a dining room located in a corner. It was quite close to where Rodin was.
‘What is he doing?’
Commissioner Elrov was a wizard. At this distance, he should have sensed the mana from the invisibility spell.
Yet, there was still no reaction.
Curious about what he was doing, Rodin approached the dining room. It was a risky move, prepared to be discovered.
‘What?’
Commissioner Elrov was pushing a cabinet attached to the dining room wall. The cabinet rotated half a turn clockwise, revealing a large hole where it originally stood.
‘Is it a hiding place?’
The hole had stairs leading down. Although there were mana lamps on the walls, Elrov did not turn them on and descended.
‘Whatever it is. This is my chance.’
Rodin followed Commissioner Elrov down the stairs, sealing the entrance with a shield to block the sound from escaping.
“Hmm?”
Commissioner Elrov momentarily stopped.
“Wind Storm!”
Rodin cast his prepared 5th circle magic as soon as Commissioner Elrov hesitated.
“Argh!”
Commissioner Elrov, distracted by thoughts of what he had hidden underground, failed to detect Rodin’s approach in advance.
Upon safely descending, he sensed something behind him, but it was too late.
Rodin’s 5th circle magic, Wind Storm, made Elrov’s upper body a bloody mess. Elrov threw himself to the ground too late, and Rodin’s magic was not yet finished.
“Ice Spear.”
An ice spear formed in midair and flew at him.
Elrov twisted his body instinctively but not enough. The ice spear pierced his side.
“Who, who is it?”
“Fire Wall.”
Elrov, who had uttered a confused voice, took out and tore something from his pocket. It was a magic scroll.
Rodin reflexively created a wall of fire to block the front and simultaneously threw the artifact dagger he had completed the previous day at Commissioner Elrov.
Clang!
Flash!
“Ugh!”
A groan escaped Commissioner Elrov as a burst of light erupted. He instinctively bowed his head.
The knife Rodin threw was no ordinary weapon. It was an artifact completed previouslu, containing magic that burst into light upon impact.
Although it ended up being used on Commissioner Elrov first, it was originally intended to be used against swordsmen or shield bearers who instinctively deflect incoming objects.
Seeing Commissioner Elrov bow his head and close his eyes, Rodin quickly formed runes with his hands. He chanted and completed the formula calculation in an instant.
“Black Thunderbolt.”
A black lightning bolt pierced Commissioner Elrov’s crown. Commissioner Elrov, whose head was charred black, collapsed on the spot.
“Phew, was that my first real battle?”
There were some regrets, but also satisfying parts.
Although he dealt a critical blow first, he didn’t finish the fight instantly. With more focus, he could have ended it before his opponent created any distance.
However, what he was satisfied with was minimizing mana consumption.
He fought quite efficiently. The formula calculation during the battle was quick and accurate, and the hand runes formed with his fingers had no errors.
“Still, I caught him easily. I was lucky.”
Commissioner Elrov had no intention of sensing his surroundings. He had suppressed his mana sense.
For heightened senses to function properly, one had to maintain a posture of trying to sense something. It was no different from vision or hearing.
No matter how good one’s ears are, if their mind is elsewhere, they won’t hear the conversations around them well. The same applies to mana sense; one must try to sense their surroundings to feel the flow of mana.
Commissioner Elrov was preoccupied with thoughts of descending underground and neglected his surroundings. It was ultimately Commissioner Elrov’s mistake that he only noticed Rodin when he was within three meters.
“But why did he come here?”
Rodin retrieved the dagger thrown on the floor. Using magic hands, he moved Commissioner Elrov’s body aside and continued down the stairs.
“Hmm, this.”
A staff lay to one side. It was a high-quality magical equipment with a sky-blue body and a red orb embedded in it.
“It doesn’t suit me.”
Rodin, who used hand seals, did not fit with ordinary weapons. Unless specially crafted to allow the use of both hands, he had no intention of using it in the future.
“But it is a good staff.”
The red orb embedded in the staff exuded considerable mana. This level of magical orb must be quite valuable.