"They couldn’t have picked a better time.” Lamille clicked her tongue and distanced herself from the enemies.

“Spread out and get your barrier ready!” Leonard commanded. He then cast body enhancement spells, also known as buffs, to himself.

Body enchantment spells shared the same purpose as vis: empowering one’s physical ability. The former was easy to learn and maintain but fell off at a high skill level and vice versa for the latter.

Kane had initially avoided learning buffs since he could use vis instead, but it seemed he had to learn them sooner or later.

The Lumetraxes hurled fireballs toward Kane and others. They hit nobody but the ground. The spreading flame, however, touched his and Lamille’s barrier. Their aura wavered.

“These aren’t ordinary Rank 1 Fireballs…” muttered Kane. The attack had drained almost one-third of his barrier strength.

“Execute plan A!”

Another fireball coming toward them at Leonard and Kane. They swerved and dodged the fire before lunging at respective enemies.

“Go forth, Anastasia!” Lamille flung her doll. It transformed into a black giant teddy bear, towering above everyone before dashing toward the last unoccupied enemy.

"O water spirits, lend thy power!" Placing his palms on the ground, nine water snakes arose and coiled around him.

"So, that’s their signature spell,” said Kane.

Signature spell is a unique spell to the user. Most of the time, they’re either self-made or inherited whether by their parents or other sources. Its strength would evolve alongside the user and much stronger than using ordinary spells. No unique spell is completely the same.

He had seen various signature spells from other mages, but not everyone managed to develop their own. Watching them in action, Kane too wanted his own signature spell someday.

Leonard entered the melee range first. The Lumetraxes unsheathed their serrated insect arms and flaunted their carapace fortress. The closest one to him raised its blade.

“[Sword of the Sun: Light Slash]!” Leonard’s Rank 2 sword emanated white light, enchanted by spells.

He unleashed a flurry of cuts, fracturing its armor. Paste green blood and flesh spilled on the floor. However, it wasn't enough. The enemy swung its blades repeatedly as Leonard clashed against them.

“Their armor is hard to destroy!” he shouted.

That was to be expected. Not only the Lumetraxes boasted high offense capability, but they also had formidable defense despite not having any barrier and agility. They would almost always wipe the floor with newbies, especially the foolhardy ones. Fortunately, they lived deep underground and were rare, so the chance to encounter them was unlikely.

“You’re using a sword, not a hammer. Aim for the gaps,” said Kane calmly.

“I’m trying!” Leonard gave an excuse.

Well, swinging with precision certainly required high skill proficiency, even harder at nimble targets. Couldn’t blame him.

Kane walked toward one of them. The Lumetrax swung its blade. Kane side-stepped and closed the distance easily. Casting several [Lesser Firebomb] and [Flaming Hand] at the same time, he caught the bombs and jammed it inside its ugly mouth before stepping back. It exploded, scrambling the Lumetrax’s squishy head. Its brain and other organs splattered onto the floor.

Meanwhile, everyone was immersed in fighting their enemies. Leonard was still defending himself while the giant teddy bear stalled the other Lumetrax. Hymar finished casting his spell and let loose his slow-moving water snakes.

They seemed to be able to manage themselves. Time to move on to the nearby crossroad and deal with more of them.

---

Currently, at the Eight Shrouded Stars base, a multi-stories tower was built on the mountain peak. The sheer height even penetrated the clouds. The orange tower could be seen from afar when the sky was clear.

Alwan sat on the tower’s balcony, gazing at the participants and others below. Resting beside him, a slender woman clad in a yellow garment poured mead into a mug. Forming a stiff smile, she served the beverage. Alwan cracked an eye-to-eye grin after gulping down his drink.

“Look at those dumb fools, entering a meat grinder just to get rewards. Not only have they paid money, but I’ll also get the orbs for nothing! What a splendid plan! Ahahahaha!” He guffawed. When his laughter settled down, he turned toward the woman. "Don't you agree, Failwei?"

“I do agree, Master.” She nodded.

“We should’ve done the plan sooner otherwise we wouldn’t have to spend our resources to treat the sect members,” he lamented.

“…” Failwei kept her mouth shut. She had warned Alwan to not send more disciples due to the danger yet he didn’t listen. Correcting him would earn her a punishment.

*Tak!* Alwan slammed the empty mug on the table. “Bring me another!”

“Yes, master.” She stood up and entered the inner building.

“Hmm, what a fine woman. Shame she belongs to the Gaxanor nobility. If not, I’d do her.”

He exhaled deeply. “And luckily for me, The Circle is nowhere to be seen!”

“I heard everything, moron.” A deep ethereal voice ridiculed him.

“Who’s there!?” Alwan jumped out of his seat.

“You aren’t worthy to know my name. All you need to know is that I am representing The Circle.”

“The Circle? Hmph, this is a prank, isn’t it? It’s not funny! Come out whoever you are!” He walked around, checking the corner.

All of sudden, enormous pressure pushed Alwan down. He dropped to the ground as though he fell from high ground.

“Still think this is a prank?”

“I-I-I believe you! M-make it stop!” He cowered, unable to speak coherently.

The force ceased. Alwan gasped for air. His breathing was erratic. He then prostrated. “O mighty Archmage of The Circle, please forgive me for offending you.”

“Not merely an Archmage. Grand Archmage. A word difference but a quite substantial difference in power.”

“G-G-Grand Archmage!?” Bullets of sweat formed on every pore of his skin. A legendary existence that only appeared once in a century had visited his humble sect.

Normally, Alwan wouldn't believe anyone claiming that title no matter who, but in this situation, he had no choice but to give the benefit of doubt.

“Now, choose your words carefully, otherwise not only I will kill you, but I might also—”

Massive multiple magic circles manifested, covering the sky. Many curious spectators looked up and discussed what they saw with others.

“Accidently put another mountain on top of your mountain.” He threatened gleefully.

“This massive scale of magic… it’s a Rank 7 spell!” Alwan gaped in awe, trembling. “I-I’ll tell you everything I know! Please don’t destroy my sect… please! They’re precious to me!”

“Answer my question. How did the portal appear?”

“It just appeared out of nowhere!”

“Tell me more.”

“It was the middle of the night. One of our members heard a loud crash around the mountain, so we immediately went there to check it. T-there was a child around nine or ten, I think. When we approached him, he suddenly created a portal and escaped there!”

“Then, what?”

“W-we have investigated the realm and found the abundance of Lumetraxes, so we tried to hunt them and take their orbs—”

“I’ve heard enough. Bye.” Maur then flew away, erasing his presence.

“…What?” Alwan was left confused as he leaned on the chair, letting out all the breaths he held. He pinched his cheek just in case he was dreaming. His hands kept shaking as he recalled the experience.

“That was close, but… what just happened? What is the Grand Archmage doing here? Or was it truly one? Judging the sheer power…”

Suddenly, the door slammed open. “Master! Is everything alright!?” Failwei rushed toward him.

“Yeah… no problem.”

---

“One down!” Leonard saw the burnt corpse that was killed by Kane. “Hymar, target their necks!”

“On it.”

The snakes were divided into two directions: at Leonard's and Lamille’s summon’s. They opened their mouths and bit the Lumetraxes’ necks, stunning them. Leonard stabbed the bug's throat. It writhed before dying.

On the other side, Lamille finished her spell. An elaborate magic circle appeared beneath the Lumetrax. It tried to flee, but the giant doll held its limbs. A pillar of black flame burst forth. When it was over, all that was left was a charred bug and the doll.

“Great job, everyone.” Leonard sheathed his sword. “Especially Lamille. You already mastered [Abyss’s Pillar].”

Lamille giggled. “I’ve been training hard for the past few weeks.”

“It would be better if you… warned me first before… you burn my darlings,” said Hymar.

“I didn’t ask for your help,” said Lamille. “But, fine. I’ll consider your advice.”

“Where is Kane?” asked Leonard.

“I saw him going… over there.” Hymar pointed at the three-way intersection.

Lamille shifted her eyes. “Did he run away?”

“I very, very much doubt it.” Leonard shook his head. “Wait, I heard noises coming from that direction! Let’s go!” He then dashed toward the previously pointed direction, followed by the two.

Upon taking the corner, they stopped, petrified as if they turned into a stone.

A plethora of decapitated Lumetraxes and their severed heads littered the corridor. The smell of burnt meat permeated the air from their cauterized necks.

In the distance, Kane could be seen fighting the two remaining Lumetraxes, or rather, dancing around them to the Class-S students’ eyes. He avoided incoming spells and attacks by hair’s breadth before cleaving their heads with a pair of burning axes. Finished killing all of them, he stood still, catching his breaths. He turned his head toward them, revealing a wicked grin yet cold eyes.

“You’re too slow.”