Earth's Greatest Magus

The battlefield was a chaotic maelstrom of destruction. Fires burned across shattered streets, while panicked screams of civilians echoed through the air, mingling with the deafening roar of clashing spells. Emery had done his best to keep the raging orcs and relentless dark elves away from the innocent, but the danger was far from over. The civilians remained trapped in a nightmarish crossfire, caught between the furious battle of magus-level warriors and the overwhelming might of a grand magus duel.

Even if Emery succeeded in locating the artifact disrupting his spatial magic, he would still need at least half an hour to teleport the 300,000 civilians to safety. Meanwhile, a single misfire from the ongoing grand magus duel could kill tens of thousands in mere seconds.

A solution burned in his mind, and as if on cue, the assassin’s dark elves burst through, they darted toward him. Blades forged of dark steel gleamed in their hands, their edges promising a quick and brutal end.

With a burst of power, his [Soaring Wings] ignited, golden feathers shimmering as they unfurled. He shot into the air, breaking away from the chaos below, his figure streaking across the sky like a comet.

“He’s running away!” one of the dark elves shouted, “Do not let him escape!”

The Hasashi assassins surged forward in pursuit. Even the female grand magus, Sylrith Moonveil, abandoned her stalemate battle with Major Zoller to chase after Emery. Her goal was clear: Emery was their primary target, and nothing would stop them from claiming their prize.

Emery’s jaw clenched as he glanced back at the chaos below. By drawing Sylrith and her assassins away, he drastically reduced the threat to the civilians. But now, the pressure weighed entirely on him.

An opportunity came to mind, If he could get far enough from the artifact’s disruptive range, he could teleport himself to safety. Unfortunately, he had only managed to cover about ten miles when his path was abruptly blocked.

A dense, churning cloud of grey smoke coalesced ahead, spreading like a thick veil across the sky. Emery’s instincts screamed a warning as the ominous mist solidified into a barrier, cutting off his escape.

The smoke coalesced into a dense cloud, and out of it emerged Sylrith herself. She carried herself with a predatory grace, her smirk a chilling promise of pain. A dozen of her elite assassins also closed in from behind blocking Emery’s path.

“You’re not going anywhere!” Sylrith declared.

Emery sighed, a glance back toward the distant battlefield confirmed what he suspected: Major Zoller had made no effort to follow Sylrith or support him. “That Nephilim bastard… I knew it,” he muttered under his breath.

With Twik and Livi preoccupied with ensuring the civilians’ safety, Emery was left to face the dark elves alone. He braced himself as Sylrith began chanting in the ancient elvish tongue.

“Nim ar menel, lasto i nauth nîn,” she intoned, her words laced with power.

A deep, resonating rumble rolled through the sky as the air itself seemed to distort. Massive heat waves churned the heavens, twisting the once-clear clouds into a malevolent storm of grey. The ominous mist descended like a shroud, blanketing the battlefield in oppressive gloom. Emery felt the shift immediately. The atmosphere grew heavier, almost suffocating, and his wings struggled against the strange, unnatural currents in the air

[Cloud Wave Prison]

The thick mist served two purposes: it drastically restricted Emery’s mobility, reducing the effectiveness of his aerial maneuvers, and it disrupted his spirit reading. The divine senses he relied upon to track enemies and anticipate attacks became muddled, leaving him vulnerable. It was a carefully crafted domain, one that played to Sylrith’s strengths and turned the battlefield into her playground.

“Your soul attack won’t help you here!” Sylrith’s voice taunted from within the swirling clouds.

Emery turned toward the sound, but before he could pinpoint her location, a sudden shift in the air sent a chill down his spine. He barely managed to twist his body as the attack came, but it wasn’t enough. Razor-sharp claws raked across his back, tearing through his defenses and sending a jolt of pain through his body. “ARGHH!!”

The blow tore through his defenses. Gritting his teeth, Emery stabilized himself mid-air, refusing to fall victim to panic. The twilight transformation was already active and his wings shimmered faintly in the dim light, their enhanced strength keeping him aloft despite the oppressive currents. But the grey mist made every movement feel like wading through thick, choking tar.

Emery summoned the [Elysian Armor], fortifying his defenses further as he tried to adapt to the battlefield’s oppressive conditions. Sylrith moved like a shadow, her mastery over the Hasashi dark elves’ unique techniques, wielded an aura of sheer dominance. Her power, equivalent to that of a two-cosmos human grand magus, was bolstered further by the malevolent artistry of her domain. She didn’t just fight—she controlled the battlefield itself. Emery had already taken a dozen blows that slashed through his defenses like paper. The claws of her attacks were sharp, precise, and unrelenting, leaving deep wounds that even his robust regenerative abilities struggled to mend. He poured his energy into reforming his Elysian armor after every strike, each attempt barely keeping him from succumbing to the relentless assault. Despite his attempts to counter, Sylrith always stayed a step ahead, striking from unexpected angles and vanishing into the clouds like a ghost.

Through sheer will, Emery forced himself to remain calm, even as frustration and pain gnawed at his resolve. His mind raced, analyzing the rhythm of her attacks. However, the disorienting nature of the cloud prison made it difficult to pinpoint his opponent’s movements.

There had to be a pattern, a weakness—some way to turn the tide. Finally, It was VIA that provided the solution. The artificial being detected subtle vibrations within the clouds, pinpointing Sylrith’s movements with precision. Armed with this newfound awareness, Emery prepared his counterattack.

The next time Sylrith struck, Emery was ready. He channeled his khaos energy into a [Void Blade], its edges crackling with destructive power. As her figure lunged at him from the fog, he swung the blade with all his strength.

SPLAATTT!!!

Emery felt the satisfying resistance of flesh as the weapon tore through Sylrith’s form. Blood splattered across the misty battlefield. But then the bloodied form disintegrated, dissipating into wisps of grey smoke that merged seamlessly with the surrounding mist.

A sinister chuckle echoed through the cloud prison, coming from everywhere and nowhere at once. Sylrith’s voice, mocking and triumphant, filled the air.

“Hahaha! You think it’s that easy to kill me?”