Episode 595

Pop!

By the time it regained its senses, the bloodsucker beast had already grabbed the student wearing the coat and lifted them up.

The bloodsucker beast itself was startled when it came to its senses.

How could it ignore blood full of infinite magic and become obsessed with a piece of clothing instead??

“Kyaaaaaa!”

“Is it here to dance?!”

Screams erupted.

Students started screaming at the sight of the bloodsucker beast suddenly bursting into the ballroom.

However, some students acted more efficiently with their time than screaming.

“It’s that monster, scatter!”

“Form up!”

Veteran students from each tower, including Lee Han, snapped the panicking students to their senses and responded.

They each spread out, took up formation, and began casting necessary spells to prepare for battle…

That required time.

A precious brief moment to prevent the monster from charging in and breaking their formation.

To buy that time, Lee Han launched the first attack.

In magic combat, the speed of casting was more important than power.

“Darkness, sweep forth!”

A wave of darkness broke out from the tip of his staff and surged through the air.

Lee Han already knew the bloodsucker beast’s regenerative powers were very strong.

Against a monster like that, the dark element, which could strike vitality itself, was effective.

As Lee Han’s wide area spell shot in, the bloodsucker beast darted away with quick movement. With a leap, it clung to a ballroom pillar, then leaped again to the ceiling.

But Lee Han hadn’t expected to catch the bloodsucker beast with just one attack anyway.

While the beast dodged the unfamiliar magic, Lee Han was already casting various enhancement spells.

-Spatial Perception-, -Gonadaltes’ Nimble Steps-, -Ogonin’s Veil-, -Baegrek’s Foresight-—with all that in place, Lee Han began conjuring a savage streak of lightning.

Given the bloodsucker beast’s regeneration, it could withstand a lightning spell like that. Knowing this, Lee Han kept one hand on his sword for the charge he expected.

-Be ready for a charge!

At Lee Han’s signal, Giselle and the White Tiger Tower students dashed over.

Meanwhile, the White Tiger Tower students, having cast their spells, pointed wooden swords, lengthened to the size of spears, at the bloodsucker beast.

The moment Wardanaz managed to bind the bloodsucker beast’s feet with magic, their magically sharpened long weapons would pierce its body.

-■■■■!

But the bloodsucker beast, even as it took the lightning to its body, neither charged in nor slipped out of their range with its usual speed.

Instead, it clumsily shielded the coat pattern of the student it was holding, as if worried it would be damaged.

“?”

Despite the chaos of the monster’s sudden intrusion, Lee Han immediately noticed the incongruity.

One of the most important things in magic combat was reading an opponent’s weakness.

Was this bloodsucker beast actually…?

“That thing wants Gainando’s coat! Attack the coat!”

“?!?!”

His friends were bewildered by what he said, but did as Lee Han instructed for now.

Lee Han was as baffled as anyone, but everything so far proved his guess right.

Why else would the monster, who’d entered for Lee Han’s magic, attack Gainando instead?

And a monster that had moved so nimbly when fighting the Death Knight was now acting so awkwardly.

There was only one answer.

‘Just what the hell did you use on that pattern, Gainando?’

To enthrall even a monster…

Whatever combination it was, Gainando had clearly made something truly bizarre.

Fwoosh! A mist of fire element filled the ballroom air and rushed in.

It was his friends’ completed magic.

Fire might be a weakness for regeneration, but there were limits.

The bloodsucker beast’s regeneration couldn’t be bested by firepower at this level.

However, the beast seemed mortally afraid the coat would be touched by flame; it swelled its muscles and flesh and altered its form to block the attack with its own body.

‘He’s right!’

‘Wardanaz was right…!’

Giselle cried out sharply.

“The creature is afraid of the coat being attacked. Stab it through!”

“Oh… Moradi. But what about the prince?”

“…It’ll block with its own body anyway, so don’t hesitate. Hit it!”

If the bloodsucker beast failed to block, it would hit Gainando, but Giselle thought this wasn’t something their friends could worry about when facing a monster so much stronger than themselves.

If you hesitated at your sword’s tip against such a beast…

“See! Even the prince agrees!”

‘He looks unconscious, though.’

Fortunately for Gainando, he foamed at the mouth and fainted as soon as the bloodsucker beast grabbed him.

That was how terrifying the creature looked.

“Acid, haunt like a ghost!”

Siana and Yoner summoned ghostly minions using potions as catalysts.

As the ghosts spewed acid and filled the ballroom, the bloodsucker beast swung its body in annoyance, creating a gust of wind.

Thunk!

Amidst the chaos, an arrow shot into its torso.

Ordinary arrows would be pushed out by regeneration, but this arrow sizzled and burned its flesh.

Adenart drew another breath and nocked another arrow onto the bowstring.

The magic pattern inscribed on the arrow glowed, and the spirit summoned at her side lent additional strength. The sticky alchemy solution on the arrowhead would melt flesh and fix the arrow firmly to bone.

She had one crazy friend beside her, but Adenart’s proficiency in so many magic schools was remarkable—a talent seen maybe once a decade. The various spell combinations she just displayed proved it.

“…Whew!”

With another successful shot, Adenart softly exhaled and searched for Lee Han with her eyes.

She was bothered by the earlier conversation, thinking Wardanaz might have misunderstood.

Adenart wasn’t interested in Gainando’s coat.

She’d just found the pattern bizarre and novel, and purely out of academic curiosity wanted to know how it was made.

It must’ve been some Black Magic School secret; not that Adenart could have known it.

So she’d asked a trustworthy friend, only to be misunderstood like this.

-■■…

The bloodsucker beast sensed danger from the princess’s arrow.

It immediately turned to suppress her.

“Block it!”

Adenart’s followers moved in front and activated their magic.

No matter how low-circle the defensive spell was, if stacked in layers and completed solidly like this, it was not easily broken.

Though usually they only burdened the princess, at times like this their loyalty was unshakable.

Sensing this aura, the bloodsucker beast gave up its assault and turned target again.

“Well done!”

Lee Han called out to the followers.

He had to keep pressuring and agitating the bloodsucker beast. If the followers had gotten scared and backed down, the creature would’ve charged them.

“No need to worry on this end, Lord Wardanaz!”

“Good! I feel secure!”

With that, Lee Han moved rapidly elsewhere.

Since things were handled with the princess’ group, he had no reason to stay; besides, standing still vs. a fast enemy like the bloodsucker beast was risky.

“……”

Even after successfully chaining her spells, Adenart blinked, having her credit stolen by her followers.

She swung her staff, smacking their backs.

“Ow, princess. Why…”

“You’re blocking my firing line! Move!”

“Oh… what a blunder, I’m sorry!”

Crackling!

‘Just a little more time…’

Seeing the bloodsucker beast hesitate, stuck like a donkey between two haystacks, Lee Han thought they might have an easier time than expected.

The creature cared far too much about Gainando’s coat.

Afraid of damaging it, it couldn’t go on the offensive, only hesitating and blocking.

With time, the students were at a huge advantage.

The Death Knights would arrive soon.

-■■■■■■■■!

“Wardanaz!!”

His friends screamed.

Suddenly, as if making up its mind, the bloodsucker beast dropped its previous attitude and charged Lee Han in a frenzy.

It shot forward so fast it was hard to react—but Lee Han wasn’t fazed.

-Baegrek’s Foresight- alerted him to the creature’s moves a second early.

Ironically, the bloodsucker beast was harder to deal with when its movements were unpredictable.

With such a straightforward charge, someone as ready as Lee Han could…

Thunk!

-■!

…counter it like this.

Pivoting like a bullfighter, Lee Han stabbed Morningstar into the bloodsucker beast as he dodged, turned his staff into a Lightning Spear and jabbed again. The monster howled savagely.

He didn’t stop there. Waiting Giselle and the White Tiger Tower students all rushed in, slashing the beast’s body in an instant.

“…?!”

That’s when Lee Han realized something was wrong.

The beast wasn’t holding Gainando anymore.

‘No way?!’

He looked quickly—a hunk of flesh near the monster’s tail lay at the back of the ballroom with the unconscious Gainando.

Before attacking Lee Han, the monster had deliberately chopped off its tail flesh and tossed it aside.

Sssss—

The monster, now badly mauled by Lee Han and the tower students, did not instantly regenerate.

Instead, it began to regenerate from the chunk of flesh at its tail.

‘We’ve been tricked!’

Like a lizard escaping by dropping its own tail—a trick the beast had used when fleeing the Death Knights.

By severing a part of its body and regenerating from there.

In a flash, the beast finished regenerating, picked up Gainando again, and dashed out through the ballroom entrance. The hastily disrupted encirclement failed to stop it.

“Chase it!! It’s got Gainando!!”

The students panicked and ran after it.

To be outwitted by a monster like this!

• * *

‘Damn. This is bad…’

Lee Han sprinted at the front, full of worry.

Inside the ballroom, even though it was big, the beast’s movements were limited by the walls.

If you formed proper ranks, the beast couldn’t move freely.

But outside, it was different.

The beast could use hit-and-run tactics at speed, taking students out at will.

“Ahsan, get the Death Knights! We need support!”

“Go, got it!”

“Don’t chase blindly. It’ll charge back at us…”

Before he could finish, the beast, now at a distance, tossed Gainando up into a tree and charged back viciously.

The blow Lee Han had dealt had hurt; its movements were different now. It leapt onto a tree, then twisted itself on a branch, moving erratically.

Unlike before, his precognition failed. Struck hard by the beast’s kick, Lee Han went flying.

“WARDANAZ!!!”

“I’m fine, hold formation!”

Coughing, Lee Han called out to the students running up.

He’d managed to shield himself with various spells and drawn up his power, so the blow wasn’t severe.

But being hit at all was the big problem.

It meant he’d lost the time to chant, and the enemy had gained the initiative. Plus, the creature was attacking cunningly.

It didn’t just try to finish him, but checked his state and retreated, wary.

A truly sly and cautious monster.

‘I need to buy time, no matter what.’

Even if it meant facing disadvantage in close combat, Lee Han decided to strike back and win time to chant again.

He might not match the beast’s speed, but if he kept taking hits, his foresight would become more accurate.

Just then Ahsan returned.

“WARDANAZ!!”

“Ahsan!”

At this moment, Lee Han was genuinely glad to see Ahsan. He looked over.

The Death Knights were coming up behind…

…no, they weren’t.

Behind Ahsan, it was the giants who were running up.

“……”