Extra Of The Magus Academy

[Moments Earlier]

"Haaa… what an intense round."

Kellion was wheezing as he lay on the ground, completely exhausted. Sweat covered his entire body, even oozing to the floor as he glanced at Seth.

Unlike him, Seth was standing upright and had minimal drops of sweat on his body.

He breathed a little heavily, but nothing too serious.

As for Ash, who had served as a spectators for most of their fights, but also utilising his Spirit Arts to demonstrate a few things, he was the most lax out of the three.

Since he hadn't exerted himself as much as the two, he barely broke into a sweat.

The three remained in the room for a while.

Silent.

Then—

"ROOOOOAAAAAARRRR!!!"

The distant roar of battle shattered the quiet of the training hall.

Ash's eyes narrowed as he turned toward the source of the disturbance, sensing the surge of chaotic energy rippling through the night air.

Beside him, Seth and Kellion also stiffened, their expressions shifting from focus to concern.

A dark crimson glow flickered on the horizon, accompanied by the faint echoes of explosions and the unmistakable hum of high-tier magic being unleashed.

Seth clenched his fists.

"That's not normal."

"Yeah… and it's close." Kellion let out a slow breath.

The three of them stepped out of the hall, moving swiftly toward an open vantage point that overlooked the academy grounds.

What they saw sent a chill down their spines.

A colossal, writhing monstrosity towered in the distance, its shadowy mass of tendrils and glowing abyssal eyes an affront to reality itself. The Tainted Spirit had fully manifested, its presence warping the very air around it, causing the atmosphere to shudder with every motion.

A massive battle was already underway.

The four Head of Student Affairs, now in their Fusion forms, clashed against the creature with earth-shattering attacks.

Flashes of violet, silver, blue, and gold lit up the battlefield, their magic colliding against the entity in a relentless barrage. Yet, despite their combined strength, the Tainted Spirit endured, absorbing their attacks and growing stronger with each passing moment.

"That thing… what is it? It's fighting against the strongest mages in the academy and still holding its own?" Seth's breath caught in his throat.
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Kellion grimaced. "No. It's winning."

Ash's sharp gaze analyzed the scene.

The entire academy staff—once standing at the Head of Student's side—was gone.

Their souls devoured, their bodies reduced to lifeless husks. The battlefield was now reduced to a war of attrition, one where the odds were tilting against humanity's finest.

It was a disaster.

Seth exhaled, regaining his composure. "Should we—"

"No." Ash's voice was firm. "This isn't our fight."

Kellion shot him a look. "Are you serious?"

Ash nodded.

"We're students. If we get involved, we'll just be liabilities. The best thing we can do is follow the protocol and evacuate."

Seth hesitated, watching the distant battle.

His instincts screamed at him to act, to fight, but deep down, he knew Ash was right. If even the Head of Student Affairs were struggling, what could they do?

"Damn it. I hate when you make sense." Kellion groaned, rubbing his face.

Ash turned away from the scene, his mind already formulating their next move.

"Let's head back to the dorms. We regroup, stay out of sight, and wait for further instructions."

Seth and Kellion exchanged glances before nodding.

But just as they turned to leave—

A killing intent unlike anything they had ever felt crashed down upon them.

A figure landed just a few meters ahead of them, cracking the ground beneath his feet.

A low, guttural growl filled the air, raw and animalistic, filled with nothing but pure hatred.

Arius Inkwell.

But it wasn't the same Arius they knew before.

The man who stood before them was different—his once-pristine uniform was in tatters, his exposed skin cracked with dark veins pulsing with raw power.

His eyes, now a sickening blood-red, burned with madness.

"Grrrrrrr…"

His aura was unstable, his entire being radiating pure, violent intent. His body twitched unnaturally, like a puppet barely holding itself together.

Seth took an involuntary step back.

"What… the hell happened to him?"

"I don't know, but he's—" Ash tensed, already shifting into a combat stance.

Arius's lips curled into a twisted, unhinged grin.

His voice, once arrogant and composed, now came out as a feral snarl, dripping with bloodlust.

"I'll kill you all."

The air turned suffocatingly thick, an invisible pressure pressing down on them as the insane warrior lowered himself into an attack stance.

Ash's eyes narrowed.

Arius wasn't just hostile.

He was completely and utterly broken.

And he was coming for them.

FSHUUUUU

The night air was thick with malice, suffocating and oppressive. Dark energy pulsed around the battlefield, a tangible force that made the very air feel heavy.

In the center of it all, Arius stood—no, loomed.

His once-proud form was now a grotesque fusion of man and corruption, his red eyes gleaming with insanity as his body twisted with dark power.

The Tainted Spirit had fully consumed him.

A guttural snarl rumbled from his throat, the sound more beast than man. His presence alone made the ground tremble, cracks splintering beneath his feet.

Then he lunged.

WHOOOSH

Arius vanished in a blur of shadow, reappearing right in front of Kellion with terrifying speed. His clawed hand lashed out to grab him—

BOOM!

Kellion barely dodged, throwing himself to the side as the ground where he stood exploded, sending stone and debris flying.

A crater smoked beneath Arius's outstretched fingers—had that hit, it would have ripped Kellion's very soul from his body.

"Keep your distance!" Ash commanded, already moving. "Don't let him touch you!"

Kellion rolled to his feet, gritting his teeth.

"Yeah, I figured that out—"

Arius was already on him again.

This time, he slammed down with both fists, the air distorting from the sheer force.

A wall of azure flames erupted, intercepting the attack—Seth.

The blast sent a shockwave through the battlefield, ripping through the stone floor and forcing Arius to stagger back, his skin crackling from the heat.

But he was unscathed.

Arius grinned. "Is that all?"

Then, with a flicker of motion, he swiped the air.

A black wave of corruption shot toward them, its very essence screaming as it tore through the atmosphere.

"Scatter!" Ash barked.

All three dodged in different directions, the dark energy erupting behind them in a pulse of pure death, the ground it touched turning into a lifeless husk.

"This is insane—he's shrugging everything off!" Kellion grimaced.

"He's absorbing the energy of everything he touches," Ash said, his mind racing. "Even Seth's lightning barely fazed him."

Seth narrowed his eyes, his body crackling with electricity. "Then we don't let him absorb it. We overwhelm him."

Ash's eyes gleamed. That was it.

He turned to both of them. "Listen. We attack in waves. Nonstop pressure. He won't be able to absorb energy if he doesn't have time to recover."

Kellion smirked.

"Now that's a plan I can get behind."

They moved as one.

Kellion was the first to strike, slamming his fists together as his entire body burst into flames.

"Come on, you bastard!"

With a roar, he sent a towering inferno spiraling toward Arius, the sheer heat warping the air.

Arius sneered and punched through it.

But the flames weren't the attack.

The moment his vision was blocked, Seth appeared behind him.

"Thunderfang!"

A storm of electric blades rained down on Arius, each strike crackling as they tore into his flesh.

Arius roared in pain, staggering—his first sign of actual damage.

Ash saw his opening.

He moved like a phantom, weaving through the battlefield. As Arius reeled from Seth's attack, Ash raised his hand, his fingers forming a complex sigil.

The air around him shifted, an unnatural force spiraling outward.

Arius's red eyes snapped toward him.

Too late.

"[Banishment]."

A pulse of golden energy exploded from Ash's fingertips, slamming into Arius's chest.

Arius screamed.

The Tainted Spirit inside him convulsed, its form flickering violently, as if struggling to maintain control.

"NOW!" Ash shouted.

Kellion and Seth unleashed everything.

Kellion's Infernal Burst—a flaming explosion that shattered the earth.

Seth's Azure Judgment—a heaven-splitting lightning strike that blinded the sky.

The combined impact hit Arius dead-on, sending a titanic shockwave through the battlefield. The sky lit up, the sheer energy turning night into day for a brief moment.

The explosion sent Arius flying, his body slamming into the ground with bone-shattering force.

Silence.

The dust cleared.

Arius twitched, barely conscious.

Now.

Ash appeared behind him, his hand already moving.

His fingers traced one final sigil.

"Severance."

He touched the back of Arius's neck.

A golden light flared.

Arius let out an unholy shriek, his body seizing violently as the corruption inside him was forcefully expelled.

The Tainted Spirit howled, its form disintegrating, its dark energy scattering into nothingness.

Arius's body jerked once—then collapsed.

Motionless.

"Haaa…"

Ash exhaled, his body tensing as the last remnants of the fight dissipated.

Seth let out a slow breath, his body crackling as he released the last of his stored energy.

Kellion wiped sweat from his brow. "That was ridiculous."

Ash's gaze lingered on Arius's unconscious form.

They had won.