Chapter 94: The Mage’s Revelation and the Rising Threat

Even with two Gold-ranked swordsmen stepping in, the situation did not improve.

Instead, the coordinated attacks of the three Death Knights were so powerful that we began to be pushed back.

The three Death Knights moved as if they were one.

Their three swiftly swinging blades simultaneously executed both offense and defense.

Tera’s greatsword was massive.

When she swung it with all her strength, the narrow corridor barely contained its range.

If she extended her arms fully, her blade frequently scraped against the dark corridor’s walls and floor.

In other words, I couldn’t swing my sword alongside Tera.

Unlike the Death Knights, who attacked in perfect unison, Tera and I had to take turns striking and retreating in a coordinated rhythm.

Clang!

The clash of swords generated a fierce shockwave. A cloud of dust surged into the air, but there was no time to linger.

Swish!

A blade cut through the empty space, its movement as swift and precise as a snake’s tongue.

Tera quickly stepped in to cover my opening, driving back the Death Knights with a heavy swing of her sword.

Boom!

To make matters worse, new enemies began to appear at the far end of the corridor—an army of the dead, their skeletal forms gleaming white in the dim light.

I shouted as I saw them approaching.

“Tera! Hold on for a bit longer!”

“Ugh!”

I immediately retreated and accelerated the spin of the circle.

With a sharp whir, the nature of the mana enveloping my body began to shift.

There was no time to hesitate.

This was not the artificial dungeon created by the Laoum royal family for the Third Prince.

I had to take responsibility—this situation was my fault.

My mistake had dragged everyone into this unknown dungeon.

These three Death Knights, shrouded in sinister mana, could not be defeated by swordsmanship alone.

If we had been fighting in a wide-open space instead of this cramped corridor, things might have been different—but there was no point in such meaningless speculation now.

“Seris! How much longer?!”

Tera, holding back the three Death Knights alone, shouted urgently, her face pale.

Not yet—I needed more time. I had to focus my mana until the transformation within my body was complete.

“S-Seris…? What’s that on your head…?”

I ignored Alfonso’s voice from behind me. My transformation had advanced enough for others to notice.

Sharp fangs brushed against the tip of my tongue, and the horns sprouting from my head cast long shadows under the flickering lamp light.

The secret I had concealed was now exposed. I could feel the adventurers’ gazes shifting uneasily.

Humans instinctively reject what is different—and they would be no exception.

As my physical transformation reached its peak, I concentrated all my mana in a single point.

As the scorching energy gathered near my solar plexus, I exhaled softly, releasing a faint ember.

Fwoosh—

“I… I can’t hold on any longer!”

It was time. Everything was ready.

I stepped forward toward Tera, who was still fighting fiercely.

No signal was needed—a Gold-ranked swordsman would sense my approach.

Realizing my intent, Tera swiftly withdrew her blade and retreated.

“W-What’s with those horns…?”

Her gaze briefly fixed on the horns atop my head, but I had no energy to answer.

If I opened my mouth, the fire within would burst forth uncontrollably.

Fwoosh—!

As I exhaled, the heat in my breath ignited into flames.

At that moment, I unleashed everything I had been holding back.

A torrent of fire, the same flame that once scorched the world, erupted in a straight line, consuming everything in its path.

Kwooooom!

The crimson blaze shifted to bright orange, then to an intense blue, as the temperature soared.

The corridor began to melt from the sheer heat, but the Death Knights were still moving.

Frowning, I pushed my firepower even further.

Kwooooom—!

As the breath’s temperature continued to rise, the blue flames began to pale.

The white-hot fire soon became a searing line of destruction, burning away the ominous mana surrounding the Death Knights.

With their protective mana stripped away, the ancient knights’ decayed armor began to melt.

As the armor disintegrated, the figures beneath were revealed—former knights denied the peace of death.

When the eerie light faded from their eyes, their skeletal remains vanished in a flash of white light, leaving not even a trace of ash behind.

The corridor, once illuminated by the breath’s radiant flames, was slowly swallowed by darkness again as the last ember faded from my mouth.

“Haa…”

I let out a deep breath, expelling the residual heat from my body.

The air shimmered as if warped by the intense temperature.

Despite having destroyed the three Death Knights, no one spoke.

The oppressive silence weighed heavily over the corridor, still warm from the lingering heat.

I brushed my hand over my head, feeling the sharp presence of the horns now fully exposed.

Curiosity. Awe. Shock. Fear.

A mix of emotions filled the gazes directed at me. I met those stares calmly, without flinching.

“Ahem…”

The silence was finally broken by Alfonso’s awkward cough.

Dusting off the black ash clinging to his clothes, he approached me.

“Th-Thank you, Seris.”

I looked up at his dazed face. What did he want to say?

Unlike the others, his gaze didn’t fixate on my horns or my eyes—he was observing me as a whole.

His eyes moved quickly as he read the shifting atmosphere among the adventurers.

“Who would have thought… that you were a mage?”

“A mage…?”

“Were you really a mage?”

“That powerful flame couldn’t be explained by anything else but magic…”

At Alfonso’s words, the adventurers began whispering among themselves.

The hostility that had filled their gazes started to fade, like dying embers.

“The change in your appearance must also be related to magic, right?”

“…”

I trailed off and gave a slight nod. I had used mana to perform the mystical feat.

Broadly speaking, even breath attacks fell under the category of magic. So, I didn’t deny it.

Ordinary adventurers naturally lacked deep knowledge of magic.

The Mage Tower monopolized all magical knowledge and never released it to the outside world.

Because of that, no one realized my magic was different from that of regular mages.

Alfonso had set the stage. Although he acted as the party leader, everyone knew he was the third prince.

His words carried a different weight.

The party members began to accept me as a mage.

The intense heat filling the corridor was enough to melt the soles of our boots.

Until the temperature dropped, we couldn’t move forward, so the party naturally took a break.

Everyone found a suitable spot to sit and rest but kept their weapons in hand, ready to respond to any threat.

A quiet tension lingered in the air, stretching through the corridor. As it did, Tera stealthily approached me.

“Hey.”

“Yes?”

“Can I touch your horn?”

“My… horn?”

I reached up to touch the horn protruding from my head.

Since I hadn’t stopped channeling mana, the horn still remained. My sharp fangs and the elongated pupils, like those of a monster, also hadn’t disappeared.

“Uh, sure.”

There was no particular reason to refuse.

The horn didn’t have any nerve endings. I lowered my head slightly to let her reach it.

“Wow…”

Tera smiled in fascination as her small fingers curiously poked and prodded at my horn.

About an hour passed.

That was how long it took for the intense heat to cool enough for us to walk.

Just as we were about to resume our dungeon exploration, a voice called out from behind.

“Um, Mage.”

“Yes?”

“Do you… have any magic that can get us out of this dungeon?”

“Escape magic?”

The adventurer who asked swallowed dryly and nodded. I furrowed my brow at his question.

The number of spells I could use was limited.

Spatial magic like Blink or Teleport was far beyond my comprehension—I wouldn’t even dare to attempt them.

The closest thing I had was a spell called Guiding Star, which showed the shortest path to a destination.

But in a maze-like dungeon, it wasn’t particularly useful.

“I’m not sure.”

“Ah, I see…”

Though they tried not to show it, disappointment spread through the adventurers.

They had built up their expectations on their own and were now disheartened just as quickly.

Given their lack of knowledge about magic, it was an understandable reaction.

“Let’s move out.”

The party resumed their slow advance through the dungeon.

There was no need to worry about traps—every trap in our path had melted along with the corridor.

We walked for a long time through the melted passage before finally encountering an intact section of the corridor, untouched by the flames.

The adventurers’ eyes turned toward me, their anticipation clear.

It was time to meet their expectations.

It was a crude method, but with the Gold-ranked ranger dead, this was the only way to ensure the party’s safety while escaping the dungeon.

Kiing!

My mana circle spun rapidly in my chest, igniting another blaze.

As the gathered flames pooled near my diaphragm, I released another massive burst of fire.

Kwaaaaa!

The searing white flame cut through everything in a straight line, melting the corridor walls.

As the blackened walls crumbled, another set of barriers appeared beyond them—and I melted those down as well.

I repeated the process until the flames finally died out.

“Cough…!”

I let out a rough cough, feeling a sharp pain in my throat as if I had caught a cold.

Two consecutive breath attacks were my limit. My once-abundant mana was nearly depleted.

“Incredible… Absolutely incredible…!”

Alfonso clapped his hands, clearly pleased. The party settled down once more, waiting for the burning corridor to cool.

As I lay on the melted floor, focusing on restoring my mana, I felt it—a massive surge of mana rising from the depths of the dungeon.

It was coming toward us, carrying the weight of countless deaths.