Chapter 203

Kana knew it the moment the roar changed.

She was right.

The [Lich] had been restrained. Not by chains of steel or sigils carved into stone, but by will. Someone had been guiding it, throttling its rage, forcing it into caution. That was why in defensive instead of offensive. Why it had withdrawn instead of advanced.

And that someone was dead.

By her arrow.

The [Lich] roared again, and this time the sound was not merely fury. It was terror layered with hatred, an ancient voice scraping through the forest like broken glass dragged across stone. The language meant nothing to Kana’s ears, yet the meaning pressed itself directly into her bones.

She didn’t need to understand it. It was probably cursing now.

The forest no longer resembled a forest. Trees had been ripped apart, earth churned into scorched mud, snow boiled away by heat and mana. Several adventurers in the front line staggered back, blood streaking from noses and ears. One dropped to a knee, clutching his head as if the sound alone were trying to crawl inside.

Kana turned and ran.

She skidded to a stop beside Principal Light and the gathered students.

“We have no choice,” Principal Light said, voice carrying effortlessly over the chaos. “We must destroy that being.”

His eyes never left the battlefield.

“If it remains alive,” he continued, “it will hunt humans without distinction.”

The weight of that settled heavily.

“I will weaken it,” Principal Light said, loud for everyone to hear. “Only for a few heartbeats. When I do, you must go all out.” His voice hardened. “It has a core. It moves constantly within its body. We cannot detect it. You must strike everywhere..”

He raised his staff.

“[Chain of Agony].”

The ground screamed.

A massive chain of purple energy burst from the earth, snapping upward with brutal force and wrapping around the floating [Lich]. Runes flared along its length, biting into corrupted mana. The creature shrieked, its barrier warping, pulsing unevenly.

Kana didn’t know what the skill did, but it must be some sort of debuff skill.

The [Lich] retaliated.

Ice spears the size of tree trunks formed instantly and launched outward, followed by arcs of black lightning that cracked through the air like tearing cloth. Adventurer tanks surged forward, shields glowing, bodies braced as the attacks slammed into them with bone-rattling force.

The battlefield erupted.

Firestorms bloomed and collapsed. Lightning rained. Stone lances burst from the ground. Arrows streaked through the air in blinding volleys. Swords flashed, Ice formed and shattered. Kana caught a glimpse of Asha’s Ice Wall rising in defiance—then vanishing in a heartbeat beneath overwhelming mana of the [Lich] breaking it like it was nothing.

Frontline students strained at the back lines.

Professor Len’s voice cut through them, sharp and commanding, forcing the frontliners to stay put. Boris clicked his tongue in frustration, fists clenched uselessly. He had no way to reach it.

Shaun fired anything he could find from the ground relentlessly. Suri spamming [Lightning Bolt], jaw clenched, eyes burning. Valdis matched her pace stubbornly as if competing, sweat pouring down his face, his mana visibly thinning. If this continued, he would be the first to collapse.

Kana ignored them all.

She reached into her quiver and withdrew one of her most expensive arrows.

Boss-killing grade.

The shaft thrummed faintly, enchantments layered so densely they felt heavy in her hand. She nocked it carefully, movements slow, reverent. This was not something to waste.

[High Awareness] surged again.

The world narrowed.

Kana’s vision tunneled onto the [Lich]. Not its attacks. Not its rage. Its body. She watched observing the body beneath the cloak, the subtle distortions, the unnatural delays where energy bent and slipped, where the [Lich] core might be located.

…

The [Lich] was powerful. There was no denying that.

But even ancient horrors had limits.

Surrounded by more than two hundred combatants—adventurers hardened by years of bloodshed, academy students burning with talent, knights and two royal knights moving with disciplined precision—the monster could not fully unleash itself. Too many vectors of attack. Too many conflicting effects tearing at its control.

The battlefield had become a storm of layered intent.

Chelle Pint proved indispensable.

Every time she cast [Nullify Zone], the air around the [Lich] collapsed into unnatural stillness. Mana died there. Skills unraveled mid-formation. The creature shrieked in frustration as its spells fizzled into nothing, forcing it to abandon ranged annihilation and dive into close combat.

That was when the frontliners surged.

Professor Fin led them, Spear glowing faintly as he carved into the [Lich]’s body, sparks flying where steel met reinforced bone. Others followed, shields raised, weapons biting whenever they could. The damage was not decisive, but it was real.

Then Chelle would stagger back, face pale, hands shaking as she downed potion after potion.

Again.

And again.

Kana lost count of how many times she watched Chelle drain her reserves and rebuild them on sheer determination.

“That bony [Lich] thing is ridiculous,” Adam muttered, watching another barrage of skills crash uselessly against the monster’s defenses.

Rin exhaled sharply. “It’s bad. Really bad. My skill has no effect.”

Kana’s gaze flicked to the battlefield, thoughts churning. She remembered Roy’s necromancer—how it had unraveled, bones collapsing into dust after Elle York touched it with her skill. Disintegrated?

Kana moved toward the support line. The wounded lay scattered there, most of them adventurer frontliners dragged back by comrades. Elle York knelt among them, hands glowing faintly as she worked, her face drawn tight, lips pale. Kana could tell, she had already used her ability far more than was safe.

“Elle,” Kana said, lowering her voice. “I have a suggestion.”

Elle looked up, eyes tired but alert.

“Can you try using your skill on the [Lich]?” Kana continued. “You destroyed Roy’s bony summon, remember? If it works the same—”

Elle nodded slowly. “I’ve thought about it too.” She hesitated. “But I need to touch it. Directly.”

Kana followed her gaze to the battlefield.

The [Lich] hovered in midair, cloak snapping wildly as it hurled arcs of lightning downward, black and violent. Ice formed and shattered in its wake. Getting close would be suicide.

Kana frowned, mind racing.

“That’s… going to be a challenge,” she admitted.

She had fired arrows already.  They had done something—she was sure of it—but not enough. The [Lich] was still standing. Still raging. It’s HP would probably be something she couldn’t imagine.

Kana’s fingers tightened around her bow. She switched to a lower grade of arrows.

….

Almost no one knew how much time had passed but all their efforts were not in vain.

“The monster is running!”

The shout tore through the battlefield like a snapped wire.

Kana looked up just in time to see it happen. The [Lich] rose higher into the air, its cloak tattered, mana leaking from its body. Then it turned its back on the chaos it had wrought and fled, drifting at first, then accelerating, groggily but decisively, towards the opposite way.

It was retreating.

Kana did not hesitate.

“Principal,” she said as she sprinted toward Principal Light, already fitting an arrow to her bow. “I’ll chase it. I’ll keep my distance and fire when I have a clear shot.”

Principal Light met her eyes for a single heartbeat, measuring resolve against danger. Then he nodded.

“Remember,” he said firmly, “under no circumstances do you get close to the [Lich]. It has the ability to self-destruct.”

“I won’t,” Kana replied.

She launched forward.

Adventurers broke from formation, only the fastest reacting in time. A royal knight surged ahead. Kana ran among them, boots pounding frozen soil, breath steady as [High Awareness] unfurled around her like an invisible net.

She kept the [Lich] at the very edge of it. Close enough to feel its presence, to be able to track it. Far enough to not notice her.

Trees blurred past as she leapt from root to branch, vaulting fallen trunks, using the forest itself as a ladder. The [Lich] floated above the canopy, its mana flickering like a wounded flame. It was still flying. That meant it still had reserves.

Good, Kana thought grimly. Then I just have to outlast it.

Mana-based creatures were dangerous while empowered. But when drained, they were most vulnerable. The problem was her stamina. Will she be able to hold out till then?

The chase stretched on.

Minutes became hours.

The first to fall back were the heavily armored adventurers. One by one, they slowed, cursed, then stopped entirely, leaning against trees, gasping. Kana did not look back. She could feel the [Lich] glancing over its shoulder, checking the people who were still chasing.

The forest thinned, then thickened again as the southern paths wound deeper into the wild. When the sun finally climbed overhead, blazing through gaps in the canopy, Kana realized with a start that half a day had passed.

She could now feel the burden from her body, her legs burned. Her breath came sharper now.

Ahead of her, a familiar figure bounded across the ground with unnatural ease. The lower half of his body had transformed, muscles elongated, joints reshaped for speed. Kana could not tell which beast it resembled, only that it was built for pursuit.

The man slowed on purpose, falling into step beside her.

“As expected,” Artin said lightly, glancing at her. “You’re still chasing.”

Kana managed a breathless huff. “Why don’t you just attack it?” she said. “You could transform into something powerful bird.”

Artin chuckled, though sweat darkened his brow. “And burn through my mana in minutes? No. I’d fall before it did.” His gaze flicked skyward, where the [Lich] drifted onward, slower now. “I’m waiting. Same as what you’re planning.”

Kana nodded. “Monsters can’t regenerate outside their dungeon,” she said. “That thing’s running home.”

“Exactly,” Artin replied, expression sharpening. “And if it reaches its dungeon, we lose it.”

Kana tightened her grip on her bow, eyes never leaving the floating silhouette ahead.

They would not let the [Lich] return to recover.

......

Kana had always trusted her stamina. It was one of the quiet certainties she carried, like the weight of her bow or the rhythm of her breathing.

But now… doubt crept in.

They had been running for a full day.

No pauses. No shelter. Just the endless churn of forest and dirt beneath her feet. From time to time, Kana tore a strip of beef jerky with her teeth while moving, chewing mechanically as she ran. A stamina potion followed, bitter and sharp, poured down her throat without slowing her pace.

Still, her legs screamed.

Should I give up? The thought slipped in.

Kana forced herself to glance back.

Artin was still there.

He was running, yes, but the difference was clear now. His movements had lost their spring. The transformation in his lower body flickered slightly, unstable. Dark shadows pooled beneath his eyes, his face drawn tight and pale. He had been chasing enemies the night before Kana along with the students started the patrol. He probably didn’t have much time to rest.

Then it happened.

Artin’s foot caught on an exposed root.

He stumbled, momentum betraying him, and rolled hard across the forest floor before coming to a stop.

Kana skidded to a halt. “Are you okay—”

“Don’t stop!” Artin barked, his voice rough but forceful. He pushed himself up on one arm, glaring at her like she’d committed a crime. “Continue chasing. That monster is almost out of mana.”

Kana hesitated for only a breath. 

Then she reached into her pouch, pulled out several stamina potions, and hurled them toward him in a clean arc. The bottles clinked as they hit the ground near his hand.

“Don’t die,” she said shortly.

Artin let out something that might have been a laugh.

Kana turned around and ran.

Ahead of her, the [Lich] wavered in the air, its flight uneven now, mana bleeding away like sand through broken fingers though Kana couldn’t tell how much mana did the [Lich] left in its mana reserves. Kana locked onto it with [High Awareness], ignoring the pain, ignoring the fire in her lungs.

Just a little more, she told herself.

Chase until it falls.

Post note:
Have a great week ahead! (panting heavily)
Hope you enjoy the chap! 🙂