Greatest Legacy of the Magus Universe

"…Shut up."

Adam dragged his bloodied and battered body through the woods north of Ravenfell. His destination lay just past this stretch of land. He was to rendezvous with Berger and the rest beyond the woods.

However, despite receiving physical treatment from the herbalists back in the city, his body was too exhausted. Depleted of strength and stamina, the only reason he could move his legs at the moment was because of his sheer will.

In this great battle, he had been pushed to his limits, then pushed past them countless times. Now, only one final hurdle remained. Yet, his body refused to listen to him.

"I said, shut up!"

He gowled under his breath. He leaned against an ash tree, blood trickling down his mouth. There was no one around him who was talking to him. No, someone was trying to talk to him within his mind.

The Laughing God continued to whisper, mocking his predicament.

"Just… shut the fuck up!" He clutched at his head, groaning in pain. For some reason, the flaw of the Faceless Mask was intensifying. He wondered what the reason could be. And then, he arrived at one possible conclusion.

Did I overuse the lotus… too much?

He glanced at his trembling hands. He couldn't see a clear picture through his eyesight. Everything was cloudy and stained crimson.

Is that why the whispers are getting louder?

Yeah... likely.

He exhaled a deep breath, standing straight. He looked northward. A brutal and vicious battle was raging between powerful Mana Core Magi. That was his destination.

Will I even make it?

He had confidently told Berger about his plan, telling him he had it all under control.

But did he?

His lips quivered, and he found his resolve waver ever so slightly. But the next moment, his murky eyes gleamed with a cold light.

No, I must do it! If I don't… many people will die.

Old man might die…

I can't let that happen!

He looked at the ash tree he was leaning on, his lips curling into a faint smile.

"Great Mother… please give me strength…"

The leaves of the ash tree fluttered gently as a gust of wind blew by, seemingly encouraging the young Magi upon whose shoulders so much rested.

Then, he continued his slow, excruciating march towards the battlefield up north. And while he did, he slowly and methodically started to weave an extremely complex set of hand seals.

At the same time, in the depths of his clouded eyes, a divine light slowly flared to life. Soon, his dark pupils gleamed with the radiant pattern of the white lotus.

He was using illusion magic to conceal himself. Additionally, he was using yet another type of magic, one that he hadn't used before.

It came from the Devil of Secrets.

As Adam slowly made his way towards his destination, his footsteps ceased to produce any sound. Soon, the smell of his blood, the stench of his sweat, both faded from this world.

His figure then gradually dissolved into gray smoke, which itself soon vanished into nothingness. At last, even his mana signature and spiritual energy waves were completely concealed.

His presence… had become a secret.

***

After Cassius was killed, the Magi of Acadia did not have even a moment to celebrate that short victory. Because the other two Mana Core cultists and the six Rank 4 undead knights were already upon them.

Axar and Ramsey had turned into wrathful fiends as they led the undead knights into battle with their enemy. But now, the Acadian Magi had gained a slight advantage in their numbers.

With Berger and Blackie joining the fray, the battle now stood at five against eight.

Furthermore, there was also the latent threat of the Silent King, who was surely lurking somewhere in the vicinity, waiting for the perfect moment to drive his knife into the unsuspecting Magus's back.

One could even argue that the unseen threat of the Silent King was a greater danger to the Magi than the foes they faced openly. The visible enemy was easy to defend against, but an invisible one? Now, that was a very tricky and dangerous problem to deal with.

Moreover, with Cassius dead, his connection to his two undead knights was severed. And now, these two foul creatures were getting sluggish and restless. They were becoming easier to fight against. Only the other undead knights posed a little bit of trouble.

Slowly but surely, the Magi of Acadia were able to gradually separate the two remaining cultists from the undead knights.

The battlefield was now divided into two. On one side, Nylian and Balthazar fought relentlessly to keep Axar and Ramsey at bay. Spells of necromancy, wind, and flames clashed violently, forever scarring the earth below and tearing open the dark clouds above.

As the battle entered the final stages, both sides grew more and more dangerous. Throwing caution to the wind, they unleashed everything in their arsenals in a desperate bid to bring the other down.

Axar and Ramsey knew exactly what their enemies were trying to do.

If the Acadian Magi succeeded in somehow dealing with the six undead knights, then how long would it take for them to finish off the two cultists?

The air trembled with clashing forces, the ground split beneath their fury, and the very night sky seemed ready to collapse under the weight of their struggle. The two cultists desperately tried to get to the other battlefield, to prevent whatever it was that their enemies were trying to do.

Victory was no longer about strategy… it was about survival!

On the other battlefield, Gerald's mana reserves depleted rapidly, and his face paled in an instant as he wove a massive sphere of titanic chains, intent on binding the undead knights.

But the foul creatures refused to yield, thrashing and clawing in their struggle to break free. Yet, Berger and Blackie held them at bay, one using deceptive illusions, and the other with raw, predatory might.

And at last, through sheer resolve and combined effort, each staking their very lives on the line, Gerald, Berger, and Blackie were finally able to bind all six undead knights in chains!

Gerald turned to his pupil and roared, his tone laced with desperation and urgency:

"I can't hold on for too long! Whatever it is… do it now!"

Berger had an extremely grim look on his face as he frantically looked around the battlefield, searching for Adam. According to their plan, the raven-haired youth was meant to arrive the moment the undead knights were subdued.

Everything hinged on Adam's abilities and on the trust Berger had placed in him.

The chains rattled violently as Gerald coughed up a mouthful of blood. He collapsed to his knees, yet he kept his hands raised defiantly, steadily pouring mana into his spell.

He gritted his teeth as he looked at Berger. "I can't… hold… on..."

Berger's heart sank, and he couldn't help but wonder:

Are we going to fail?

And just as despair threatened to consume them, a bloodied figure emerged. Draped in tattered robes and wearing a black, pointed hat, he crouched atop the sphere of chains.

No one had sensed his arrival. The battlefield swarmed with Mana Core Magi, yet not a single one had detected his presence. Even Blackie had failed to catch his scent. No one saw him coming. Not until now.

Berger and Gerald were stunned, shocked beyond anything they could have imagined.

Adam's eyes blazed with an incandescent divine light as spiritual energy surged from within him, flooding into the chains. Then, he turned to Berger and offered a faint, weary smile.

"Old man… leave the rest to me."

And with that…

Adam and the six bound Rank 4 undead knights vanished into the depths of the spirit world.