Sherman looked at Eustace and Philip, who were running away after he allowed them to leave. He couldn't help but realize how old he had gotten over the past years working as a bounty hunter.
'That fellow is only about fifteen or sixteen years old, but he actually managed to stop 50% of my full-force attack… What kind of monster did the Dark Arts Faction create this time? Did they forget how they were almost annihilated because of their experiment?' Sherman shook his head as he shifted his attention to the people behind him.
A cute and plump female Arcanist, followed by a dozen Radiant Knights, were rushing to the village.
Needless to say, the female Arcanist was Erika, his assistant. She had called for reinforcement since they were expecting to fight against the Masked Devil Incarnate.
"W-what happened here? Where's the enemy?"
Erika was shocked as soon as she saw the destroyed house and the fleeing villagers.
Sherman could only scratch his head and pointed to the spot where he attacked Eustace.
"They escaped." He said with an apologetic smile on his face.
Erika was speechless since she knew Sherman wasn't this type of person. If the enemies really escaped, he wouldn't just wait for her reinforcement and would've followed the Masked Devil instead.
Nevertheless, she didn't point this out as she looked at the area Sherman had pointed out.
It was devastated, and the surrounding was filled with rubble, but there was certainly a spot where the enemy caught or blocked Sherman's attack!
"The Masked Devil resisted your Unshaded Flair?"
Erika asked in surprise as she looked at Sherman to confirm her guess.
Sherman didn't answer, but he gently nodded and left the scene. It seems that he was no longer in the mood to chase their target.
Erika wanted to say something more, but a few villagers started surrounding them. In the end, they still caused trouble in the peaceful village, so she had to compensate them for all the damages.
'Masked Devil Incarnate… I didn't know you were that impressive. It's a pity I didn't see the battle.' Erika silently thought.
***
In the meantime, while they were busy at the village, Vale and Philip ran as fast as they could.
"Ugh…"
Vale felt a sharp pain in his chest where Sherman's ray of light had hit him.
He knew he was lucky to survive, but he also wondered how he had managed to resist such a powerful attack.
"Are you okay, Vale?" Philip asked, looking at him with concern.
"You took a direct hit from Sherman. I can tell that he's a Master Arcanist or even above that… How did you do that?"
Vale wryly smiled at this as he shook his head, trying to clear his mind.
"I don't know, Philip. I just…"
'I just focused on my Arcane Armor, Spell Dispersion, and Incorruptible Body. I guess they somehow worked together to protect me.' Vale wanted to say this, but his spells weren't spells he should be sharing with others.
First of all, the Arcane Armor was not a Dark Spell, and the other two were Spells from the Malefic Branch, which wasn't recorded in the Academy as 'Safe Spell to be Recorded" yet.
"I just did it… I was lucky that my physique wasn't the same as normal practitioners." He answered.
Philip nodded as he was really impressed by what he witnessed a while ago.
A dark aura was spilling out of Vale's body, and that must be one of his secrets. He didn't mind if Vale wanted to keep it a secret, so he replied with a smile.
"That's amazing, Vale. I guess you'll get more enemies in the Academy at this rate." Philip said with a joke.
Vale smiled weakly as he knew what he was trying to say. "No thanks, Philip."
"Ugh… But I don't feel very strong right now. I feel like I'm about to collapse." Vale added as he closed his eyes for a moment. He had already consumed several bottles containing his healing medicine, but they were ineffective.
Philip wrapped his arm around Vale's shoulder, supporting him. "Don't worry, Vale. We're almost there. We just need to get to the next city, and we'll be back at the Vermont Academy."
Vale looked up and saw the path ahead of them. The sun was still bright, and they could sense a few people hunting in the forest while some were traveling on their carriages heading to the next city. The beautiful scenery around them seemed lovely and was a nice place to relax, but unfortunately, they couldn't stop right now as Sherman might change his mind and chase after them.
"Come on, Vale. We can do this." Philip said, encouraging him.
Vale nodded as he looked behind them. "Should we try asking them to give us a lift?"
Philip also looked behind and used his Phantasm State. Unlike Vale, he doesn't have a spell that helps him detect the presence of Arcanists. However, he at least learned how to sense the presence of Mystical Artifacts.
He only sensed a couple of Regular Rank Artifacts inside that carriage. They were Talismans meant to drive away bad spirits and curses.
ραndαsΝοvεl.cοm They don't seem connected to their enemies, so after some hesitation, Philip agreed with Vale's suggestion.
He also realized that they are too eye-catching while running faster than horses. Furthermore, he couldn't use his Movement Spell for a long period, unlike Vale.
***
The Church of the Three Paragons was in a state of panic.
The Masked Devil, the mysterious Arcanist who had the power to summon a Heavenly Lightning, had successfully escaped after wreaking havoc in the castle.
They didn't care how he killed dozens of guards, priests, and knights… What mattered to them was that the Masked Devil had stolen the Divine Sword, a sacred relic that was said to contain the ancient power of the three paragons.
The Cardinals, the highest-ranking officials of the Church, had gathered in the Grand Hall to discuss the situation. They were all nervous and angry, blaming each other for the failure.
"How could this happen? Why was it even in the Coulston's possession?!" Cardinal Lucius, the leader of the Order of the First Paragon, shouted.
Cardinal Marcus, the leader of the Order of the Third Paragon, nodded. "Viscount Coulston had borrowed it a few days ago for a special mission. He pledged three of his mansion and all of his wealth if it was not returned in the stipulated time."
Cardinal Sophia, the leader of the Order of the Second Paragon, sighed. "It's obvious, Lucius. He was certainly called the Devil Incarnate for a reason. I heard he was safely using the Living Mask and Dagger without suffering any form of mind corruption. He probably used his devilish powers to resist. Lastly, he can use various mystical abilities because he has at least numerous Artifacts that are probably of Royal Rank."
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