Chapter 23: In the Palace (1)

The sight before them was truly horrifying. Numerous palace guards had been reduced to corpses, lying scattered throughout the palace grounds.

"I’ve got a really bad feeling about this." For the first time, Philip said something like that.

The night breeze, mixed with the strange aura emanating from the palace, made them feel uneasy and anxious.

The farther they walked, the more palace guards they found lying lifeless on the ground. Eventually, they arrived at the main entrance, where the doors were slightly ajar.

"I’ll open it."

Aelin slowly pushed the main doors open. The interior of the palace was so dark that they could barely see anything inside.

"Ugh, it’s way too dark," Magnus remarked.

Without much hesitation, Philip stepped into the palace’s main hall. Suspicious of the place, Haruki opened his system.

"It’s too dark. I need a skill or some kind of magic."

Haruki’s gaze shifted slightly when he noticed that the system shop was selling Light Magic. Without a second thought, he purchased it.

\[MAGIC PURCHASED\]

\[900 COINS DEDUCTED\]

"Thank goodness I got some coins from the system by killing those soldiers earlier."

Haruki then turned back toward the front and raised his hand to about stomach level. A faint light appeared before gradually forming into a sphere roughly the size of his hand.

\[LIGHT MAGIC ACTIVATED\]

"Let me light the way."

Everyone was slightly surprised to see Haruki use Light Magic. Philip, who had been walking ahead, slowly turned around.

"Huh?! Why didn’t you use that earlier?!"

"You were the one who rushed ahead first, anyway."

Philip was a little annoyed, but starting a fight over something so trivial in their current situation would accomplish nothing.

With the light from Haruki’s magic illuminating their surroundings, everyone began to feel a little more at ease.

"But that strange aura is still here..." Magnus muttered as he looked around.

Aelin examined the entire hall and noticed that several guards and nobles were also lying lifeless on the ground.

"There are still plenty of rooms in this palace... We need to split up."

Haruki and Philip seemed to accept Aelin’s decision, unlike Magnus.

"W-Wait! W-Wouldn’t it be better if we stayed together?"

"Huh? But we can investigate the palace much faster if we split up," Haruki replied.

"Heh~ Are you scared, Magnus?~" Philip teased.

"I-I’m not!"

In the end, they all decided to split up to investigate the palace and search for King Arcane.

Before they went their separate ways, however, Haruki used his system to transfer some of his Light Magic to each of them.

"Ugh... This is worse than being chased by those dormitory students," Magnus complained.

They climbed different staircases, and one by one, each of them came across a door.

"Huh? I’ll just break through it," Philip said.

Philip slowly opened the door. The room beyond was extremely dark and freezing cold.

The same thing happened in the rooms entered by Haruki, Aelin, and Magnus.

"Huh? Trying to scare me with some cold air?" Aelin remarked from her own room.

In another room, Haruki also felt the chill. Slowly, the light produced by his magic began to fade.

"I have a feeling something unpleasant is about to happen..." Haruki muttered, managing only a bitter smile.

Meanwhile, Magnus found himself in another cold room, making him even more frightened.

"Ugh, I hate the dark."

Then, torches suddenly lit up in each of their rooms, illuminating their surroundings.

The four of them, each in a separate room, began to hear the sound of approaching footsteps.

Suddenly, figures resembling soldiers appeared before them. Their bodies shimmered with a brilliant icy-blue glow, and each one held a sword. They looked like replicas of soldiers made entirely of ice.

"Looks like I’m getting a little workout," Philip said with a grin.

In Haruki’s room, he seemed rather reluctant to fight the ice soldiers.

"Tch, guess I have no choice..."

His dagger materialized in his hand, accompanied by faint electrical sparks.

In another room, Magnus smiled slightly as he drew the sword hanging at his waist.

"Thank goodness it’s bright in here. Now I can actually attack you!"

Magnus’s expression turned serious.

"Huff... So, we have a little game here," Aelin remarked before unleashing her Root Magic.

The ice soldiers launched their attacks, but all four of them successfully blocked the initial strikes.

Haruki was about to use Gravity Magic when he activated his Blade Recall skill.

The four of them managed to defeat the ice soldiers. However, three portals suddenly appeared near them, releasing dozens more ice soldiers.

"O-Oi! There are even more of them than the people who chased me back at the dormitory!" Magnus exclaimed.

...

"Looks like things are getting interesting," Philip remarked.

...

"What the hell did I do to deserve this?" Haruki muttered.

...

"Bring as many as you want!" Aelin declared.

Despite their mixed feelings about the situation, they continued advancing.

They began unleashing their magic and weapons with overwhelming force.

One by one, the ice soldiers shattered like ice struck by a hammer. They continued fighting relentlessly, and slowly, beads of sweat began to form on their foreheads.

...

Meanwhile, at Lukas’s location, he was still battling Azrath.

Their fight was incredibly brutal, with their movements resembling flashes of lightning clashing against one another.

"You’re pretty good, you bastard," Lukas remarked as he continued swinging his sword.

"Oi, Lukas! Look around you! Everything is practically in ruins!"

"Why do you keep protecting this place?"

Lukas remained silent, continuing to swing his sword at Azrath.

"I believe this kingdom can become a kingdom that treats everyone fairly!" Lukas shouted before charging toward Azrath to launch another attack.

"You’re better off just dreaming. Look around you!"

Lukas simply smiled before responding with unwavering confidence.

"Idiot. I’m sure my three foolish students can handle it."

The clashes between the two grew louder and more intense. Meanwhile, throughout the cities, more and more people were falling, whether they were nobles or ordinary citizens.

...

[YOU HAVE RECEIVED 100 COINS FOR KILLING THE ICE SOLDIERS]

"Heh~ All right! Now I’m getting fired up!" Haruki exclaimed.

In Magnus’s room, he used Enhancement Magic, making himself faster and allowing him to fight even more aggressively. Aelin was also using her Root Magic more frequently.

Meanwhile, in Philip’s room, he was beginning to grow exhausted. The ice soldiers continued to emerge as long as the portals remained open.

"Huh, looks like I’ll have to use my magic."

A bluish aura began to envelop Philip’s entire body, signaling that he was about to unleash something.

"Rift Magic... Rift Step."