Earth's Greatest Magus

“Intruder at the Northern Gate!!”

The booming voice resounded through the central stronghold’s walls, sending panic tremors across the command center. One single enemy Cosmic expert had breached the outer perimeter, phasing past the wards like a phantom cloaked in obsidian energy. His presence was cataclysmic—spatial rifts bloomed around him with each step, disrupting the stabilizing formations of the wall. The defenders sprang into action, a squad of elite cosmic experts clad in silver armor, wings of ethereal energy flaring from their backs, streaked through the sky to intercept him.

Flashes of energy collided mid-air.

Emery saw one of the defenders scream as she got caught in a spatial ripple, her body folding in on itself before vanishing without a trace.

The intruder darted through their lines like a shadow, striking at the formation crystals embedded within the wall. One crystal after another shattered into shards of glowing glass, their failure causing the massive barrier above to flicker dangerously.

The defenders fought valiantly, and finally, the enemy was caught, slammed to the ground by a colossal force as the northern guardian wielding a massive sword descended from the sky.

BAAMMM!!!

The intruder’s body was crushed beneath the blow, warping space around him in one final pulse of resistance before going still.

Then came the roar.

The enemy’s main army has arrived—thousands of warriors surged toward the gate. Leading them were dozens of Cosmic experts, pooling their strength into devastating strikes. “REPLACE THE CRYSTALS! REFORM THE BARRIER!!” screamed the Guardian, and the stronghold’s last line of defense activated.

Four ancient towers, stationed at the cardinal corners of the stronghold, flared to life. Each tower was crowned with a massive guardian statue—one shaped like a roaring lion, another a blazing phoenix, the third a coiled serpent, and the last a colossal leviathan. Runes etched in ancient language ignited beneath them, lighting up the battlefield in a blinding celestial glow.

“SEAL FORMATION: SANCTUARY OF THE FOUR HEAVENS!”

A tidal wave of magic surged outward from the towers.

—The Lion’s tower let out a shockwave that severed enemy spellcasting, reflecting fireballs and death beams back toward their origin. —The Phoenix’s tower released golden fire that danced through the air, knitting the flesh and spirit of wounded defenders. —The Serpent’s tower twisted around the battlefield, wrapping vulnerable warriors in shimmering shields of serpentine light. —The Leviathan’s tower spat forth jagged bolts of divine energy, tearing through the ranks of the incoming horde.

Emery stood in awe at the formation’s splendor—it was the stronghold’s legendary seal formation, a divine fortress forged in an age long past. For a brief moment, hope flared in his chest.

But it didn’t last.

The three figures in black cloaks appeared above the northern wall, their power dark and suffocating. Each of them was a peak cosmic experts, their auras tearing the air apart as they raised their hands toward the fractured sky.

CRACK!

Reality itself screamed as a massive rupture split across the barrier, a jagged shatter of flickering energy visible to all. Their power tore through the barrier, and the gate exploded inward in a storm of metal, stone, and blood.

The northern gate collapsed.

Emery’s eyes widened as he watched the enemy pour into the stronghold like a black flood. They tore through the gaps, followed by shrieking magus and blade-wielding fiends.

The battle had moved inside.

“Master Alchemist! You need to move into the main keep now!” shouted the guard captain, his voice hoarse with urgency as streaks of fiery spellcraft lit up the night sky.

Magus-level enemies surged toward their section of the wall, attempting to destroy more of the protective crystals embedded in the fortress and unleash chaos upon the defenders.

Emery hesitated. He had no allegiance to this warfront, not truly. His heart held no ties to this crumbling stronghold or its desperate defenders. His goal remained unchanged: find the path home, and amid the chaos, he saw an opportunity to escape.

Rather than retreating to the main keep as ordered, Emery moved toward the battle.

He began casting his nature spells, summoning his Elysian Roots at will. Thick, glowing vines erupted like serpents, wrapping around the legs and arms of charging enemies, dragging them down, shattering their spells, or pulling them into the ground itself. With his enhanced power, not a single Magus-realm attacker could get within reach. They were flung back, entangled, or instantly dispatched.

His appearance on the warfield drew attention. One of the guard captains barked orders, and several defenders moved to protect Emery, the kingdom’s precious alchemist, flanking him with blades drawn and shields alight with runes.

It was meant as a blessing—an honor, even. But it only made him stand out more.

Sure enough, three cosmic experts’ enemies soon broke through the defensive lines, their auras blazing with corrupted energy. Their erratic gestures and hollow eyes revealed them as victims of the parasitic mind control. One of the corrupted cosmic experts slipped past the defender and charged directly at Emery.

The man’s eyes locked on Emery’s alchemy badge.

“Alchemist! I found you!!” the attacker roared in a guttural, inhuman voice. He twisted to signal others.

Emery acted before the cry could be completed. With one hand, he summoned a dense wave of water, and with the other, a blast of freezing wind. The two elements merged midair, slamming into the cosmic attacker and encasing him in a jagged prison of ice.

Without hesitation, Emery darted forward, his fist glowing with swirling energy as he struck the frozen tomb,

CRACKK!!

Shattering it. And the thing inside.

This was his power now, a power that could kill a cosmic expert in seconds.

But he has no time to celebrate, as a realization struck: the enemies were targeting alchemists. Without wasting a second, Emery slipped away from his escort, discarded his alchemical uniform, and cloaked himself in the guise of a common defender.

His aura dimmed. His divine sense stretched wide. He moved between clashing forces, keeping clear of any cosmic-level threats.

Then he saw it.

Beyond the collapsing inner gate, a narrow invasion opened into the scorched courtyard— he was ready to leave when he glanced at a vicious duel near. One between the guardian and the intruder. Flames burst from the guardian’s blade, cutting through the smoke and searing across the intruder’s cloak. For a heartbeat, the veil burned away.

And Emery’s breath caught.

That face.

He knew that face.

His heart thundered in his chest. To be sure, he called VIA to confirm. The result came instantly.

Identity match confirmed: Vayerel—

This was Rosin Karat Ally, who supposedly knew the way home.