Operation (7)
Professor Rapens's Motion Delay spell shattered almost immediately.
It was because the charging watcher's movements were far more ferocious than anticipated.
Target's activity level is excessively high.
Resisting special spell Motion Delay.
The creature wrenched itself free from the focal point of the professor's magic, diminishing its power.
But I had already cast Time Dilation on the watcher's heart.
"Kuh…."
Its movements were slowing.
No living thing was immune.
If the heart stopped, the body couldn't move.
It could only draw on the energy already circulating for a brief moment.
In that instant, the watcher's eyes blazed crimson.
"Graaaah!"
As if determined to end it in this fleeting moment, it twisted its entire body, broke free of the magic, and lunged at me.
A strange voice rang out right then.
"Die!"
The Red Ghost girl.
Her small frame was hurtling toward the watcher's massive bulk.
I had sensed her approach long ago, so it wasn't surprising.
But I hadn't expected her to launch such a bold assault.
I'd thought she'd at least pretend to fight.
Does she have what it takes to intervene?
Contrary to my concerns, the Vampire Choker performed spectacularly.
It shoved back the watcher—who had even given the werewolf-transformed Obri a hard time—in one go.
With a heavy thud, the two tumbled entangled across the ground.
The watcher snarled.
"What the hell is this?"
The fight devolved into total chaos.
Professor Rapens looked visibly flustered at the sudden sight of two Red Ghosts clashing.
Then the Red Ghost girl shouted at me.
"Hey! Run! This guy's not someone you can handle! Hurry!"
"…?"
"I told you to fight the watcher! This is the power you gave me for that!"
"…."
There seemed to be a slight misunderstanding.
I'd assigned her the role of bait, but she thought she was the hunting dog.
Perhaps it was the budding effect of my awakening Dominator Trait.
"Get out of my way!"
In a flash, the watcher unleashed a burst of superhuman strength, shaking her off and leaping upward.
Professor Rapens cast a second Motion Delay and hurled Gale Daggers, but—
"Screw off!"
Target's activity level has been enhanced.
The creature plummeted abruptly from midair, evading the spell.
The blades sliced futilely through empty space.
Instead of me, the watcher thrust its claw toward the Red Ghost girl.
"Ah, perfect. Just in time. I'll start with you…."
"Aaaack!"
Vampirism.
Devouring the power latent in an opponent's blood was lethal in itself.
Without control, it could drain life in seconds.
And the vampire gained the opposite benefit….
I can't just let that happen.
I decided to deploy a dual spell, accepting a slight reduction in Time Dilation's potency.
The perfect magic for this bold foe choosing to feed mid-battle.
Attack spell Flame Bolt deployed.
It was as if a golden bolt of lightning struck from a clear sky.
A thunderbolt of pure flame.
A spell that incinerated a pinpoint area, perfect for hitting a target glued to its prey.
The brilliant yellow blaze slammed straight into the watcher's head.
Whoosh!
"Graaah…!"
As with vampires, flames were one of the prime weapons against Red Ghosts.
Struck out of nowhere, the watcher retracted its fangs and recoiled.
"Ow, it hurts! Stings! So hoooot!"
The Flame Bolt leaped to the Red Ghost girl too, eliciting a shrill scream.
But it was far better than being drained dry and dying in agony.
"You damned bastard…."
"Kirian! Fall back!"
Professor Rapens barked at me and chained his spells.
He bound the creature's ankle with a third Motion Delay, then unleashed the advanced attack Spear of Sanctity to finish it.
But the watcher nullified the professor's magic in an absurd way.
It sliced its own torso in half, shed the binding like shackles, and flew straight at me.
That's insane.
Should I shatter the Hundred Spirit Orb?
But an idea flashed through my mind.
I opened my Transcendent Eye to full capacity and began analyzing its principle.
Blood flow circulates through shadows.
Cannot be damaged by conventional means.
Black shadows rose from its severed waist.
They functioned like veins, supplying energy.
And the source was, naturally, the heart.
"I must taste your blood."
The watcher's crimson glare flashed as it closed in.
"It might even elevate my pure blood…."
A sinister laugh, as if it had already captured me.
But I had finished my calculations and prepared my third spell.
Special spell Time Dilation activated.
This time, I targeted its heart again.
But simply halting the heart's motion wasn't enough.
I need to stop something more fundamental.
My true target was the shadow embedded in its heart.
Its innate Red Ghost ability.
I wondered if it was possible, but if I projected unique factors onto the mana circuits captured by my Transcendent Eye and crushed their magical function—
Mana circulation delayed.
Target's magical abilities suppressed.
Temporarily neutralized.
I could dismantle the Red Ghost's power.
It had exposed its shadow so blatantly, after all.
I poured everything into Time Dilation—
Thud.
Its claw finally reached my chest.
But its ambitious plan to taste my blood evaporated.
The watcher clutched its own throat with trembling hands.
"Guh…!"
It collapsed, eyes bulging.
Nirvana's hilt was in my grasp.
An improved sword technique surfaced instinctively.
New Infinite Tool Sword.
Specifically, the Gale River Sever stance.
A swift counter that instantly returned an incoming attack.
Of course, my opponent hadn't landed a proper strike—
Slash!
Its extended arm dropped futilely, its throat severed in a breath.
I thrust the blade deep into the falling body's center as it grazed past.
Three strikes in the blink of an eye.
Thud.
"Grrraaah…."
Black shadow crept from the neck's stump where its head had rolled.
Blood Qi, the Red Ghosts' energy.
It had charged confidently on that power, but it became its downfall.
Blocking the Blood Qi's flow at the source rendered even its vaunted regeneration useless.
Of course, if I lifted Time Dilation, it would revive.
But abilities like this lose effect dramatically when disrupted.
Decay and necrosis progressed over time, demanding more energy to reverse.
It would worsen exponentially.
Especially with a blade in its heart, it couldn't muster half its recovery.
My prediction proved spot-on.
Special spell Time Dilation ended.
Spells using eternal factors consumed immense mana and couldn't last long.
Yet the watcher didn't rise.
"Grrrrraaah…."
Even without Time Dilation, it only writhed, head and arm severed, blade in heart.
Gazing down, I muttered unwittingly.
"It really looks like a bug."
"This damned blood clot…."
The watcher glared at me, linking its torso and head with pale shadows.
Only its eyes lived.
I pressed Nirvana's tip to it and spoke.
"Tell me more about that 'pure-blood Red Ghost' you mentioned. What does it mean that you're the vampires' nemesis?"
But it didn't answer.
Instead, it convulsed, rallying Blood Qi as if to rise again, screaming hysterically.
"Curious? I'll tell you! It means the plan is proceeding flawlessly! We'll put you beneath our feet, you lowly— Graaaah!"
Fwoosh!
It couldn't finish before flames engulfed it.
Professor Rapens's flames from afar.
"Don't give a downed foe time, Kirian. Especially Red Ghosts—they recover in a blink."
With the leader down, the battle ended swiftly.
The Red Ghosts, picked off one by one by Professor Kuger and the trainees, scattered in all directions.
Confirming the situation, Professor Rapens approached with a deep sigh.
"Why the interest in pure-blood Red Ghosts, Kirian?"
"Does curiosity need a reason? That's not like you, Professor."
"Hah."
He chuckled dryly at my retort.
Then he pulled something from the watcher's ashes and spoke.
"Pure-blood Red Ghosts literally have high-purity lineage. They're created by receiving blood from the Red Cartel's 'leaders.' And they leave this behind."
A red gem.
It gleamed with a chilling luster, as if filled with blood.
"This is a Bloodstone. Only found on higher Red Ghosts. A skilled enchanter can process it into potent mind-affecting potion material."
Professor Rapens tossed it to me casually.
I caught the Bloodstone and stared at him.
How does he know so much?
As if reading my mind, he smirked.
"What? Suspecting me too?"
"No, not that…."
"The Empire's greatest enemy is the Red Cartel, so the Imperial University has researched them thoroughly. That's how I know."
I supposed that made sense.
Regardless, the empire had purged the vampires 500 years ago.
A major achievement of that emperor.
Now their self-proclaimed heirs ran rampant.
And the empire wasn't safe from their 'hunts' either—
It was understandable they'd pursue eradication relentlessly.
I nodded slightly at Hierniorn's words from my shoulder and turned.
Amid the strewn wreckage, one surviving Red Ghost caught my eye.
"Nyahaaaah…."
"You look fine. Get up already."
"Fine after being drained? Hey, I nearly died! I did what you told me!"
The Red Ghost girl.
Her survival complicated things slightly.
Hunting Red Ghosts with a Red Ghost had been my plan alone.
My senior roommates might recognize her face.
Fortunately, everyone's attention was elsewhere.
The sky.
"Uh, up there…?"
"It's flying?"
From the violet dusk sky, a meteor shower streaked.
Something unidentified trailed a long white arc toward us.
Eventually, the light descended to the ground.
It was Rohbark.