The barrier in the stairwell closed behind them once more. The path from the third floor to the top floor was smoother than they had imagined, and the barriers blocking their way were exceptionally fragile, as if whoever set them up didn't intend to delay them much here.
The top floor was much quieter than the floors below. The mana lamps in the corridor were all extinguished, leaving only the faint fluorescence emitted by the emergency magic circles on the walls. Lorraine led the way at the very front, keeping her footsteps light, and the four behind her held their breath in unison.
When the group reached the middle of the corridor, those voices suddenly flooded into Lorraine's mind.
Lorraine's mind-reading had never been under her control. Her psionic teacher had spent a great deal of time teaching her how to block these things out, and only recently had she barely managed to avoid listening to them. But the peace was short-lived; once she actively tried to listen, those voices would pour in like water breaking through a dam.
And now, the inner voices coming from deep within the corridor were clearer and more urgent than anywhere else.
“...Hold on... Just a little longer...”
“...Her mana is depleting... She's about to collapse...”
“...We have to kill her... We must...”
Lorraine's footsteps paused. Three different voices—two filled with killing intent, and the remaining one a young girl's voice, carrying an exhaustion that was on the verge of collapse.
That voice was very familiar. It was Her Highness Leonora.
“This way,” Lorraine whispered, gesturing behind her, before quickly heading toward the end of the corridor.
At the end of the corridor was a half-open door, with flickering light seeping through the gap. As they drew closer, the situation inside the room gradually became clear: in a spacious room, a familiar figure with short, light-golden hair was backed into a corner. The young princess was enveloped in a dark-red, translucent barrier, but its light had dimmed to the point of being nearly invisible. Two figures in black were surrounding the barrier, continuously launching attacks, and with every spell that slammed into it, the barrier trembled violently.
Lorraine let out a sigh of relief. She was still alive, and not even injured yet—at least, not before the protective barrier shattered.
In that single moment of distraction, a tightly closed door on one side of the corridor was suddenly pushed open. A figure in black darted out from behind it, staff already raised high, chanting a spell that was nearing its end.
Lorraine had absolutely no time to react before the lightning spell took shape. A thick bolt of lightning crackled toward her, moving so fast it was impossible to dodge. She instinctively raised her hand, before she could even gather any defense.
Suddenly, a flash of green appeared before her eyes. Several vines erupted from the cracks in the stone floor in front of her, rapidly weaving into a dense wall between her and the lightning. The lightning strike slammed into the wall of vines with a loud crash, sending debris flying as a scorched smell filled the air, but it was blocked in the end.
Irene withdrew her hand, which had just scattered seeds and was now empty. A lingering trace of fear remained on her face, but her hands did not stop. She threw several more seeds onto the ground, and even more vines burst from the earth.
Lorraine glanced at her and nodded. Irene's lips twitched slightly in response.
Lorraine drew the staff tucked at her waist and began to chant in a low voice.
She hadn't even grasped the basics of time magic yet—it was far too difficult, completely unsuitable for beginners. However, she could already manage short-distance blinks with space magic. Though each cast consumed a massive amount of mana, leaving her drained for quite a while afterward, she could still use it.
Her progress in psionic magic, on the other hand, was quite good. Aside from gaining a slight grasp on controlling her innate mind-reading, she could already unleash some mind-targeted attacks at very close range—such as shock, panic, or causing a casting mage's mind to go blank for a brief moment.
Separately, neither of these abilities was particularly impressive.
But combined, they were terrifying. A psionicist who could read your next move, blinking right in front of you before you even noticed her—this was a nightmare for any mage.
Especially when she had teammates, like now.
Irene controlled the vines, coordinating with the other three students to launch a frontal assault on the black-clad figure at the doorway. The vines whipped flexibly against the floor and walls, forcing the figure in black to constantly retreat. The spells of the other three students never stopped either; though their impact on the figure's protective barrier was limited, they at least drew his attention.
Lorraine quietly circled around from the flank.
The corridor wasn't very wide, but it was dark enough. Her footsteps were masked by the sounds of magic, and her shadow blended into the dark walls. As she approached, she counted the distance in her head. The figure in black was too busy dealing with the frontal assault to spare any attention for his flank.
Once the distance was close enough, Lorraine's mana surged within her body, and her figure suddenly vanished on the spot.
The instant she reappeared, she was standing less than an arm's length away from the figure's side.
The figure in black clearly realized something. Just as his staff was only halfway turned, Lorraine's hand reached out. 【Mind Shock】
An invisible shockwave released from her palm, striking the black-clad figure's mind directly. His movements froze instantly, and his chanting came to an abrupt halt. The mana that had been gathering halfway at the tip of his staff went out of control, exploding on the staff and sending sparks flying everywhere.
Seizing the opportunity, Irene's vines lunged forward, quickly wrapping around his entire body and binding him tightly. Small thorns sprouted on the vines; if he dared to struggle, the thorns would pierce into his flesh.
The figure in black struggled in vain a couple of times. Irene added a few more vines, binding him so securely that even his mouth was stuffed.
The battle ended faster than expected. Lorraine caught her breath for a moment, then walked toward the door. The light inside the room was still flickering, and the young princess's red barrier had grown even dimmer.
Lorraine reached out to push the door, but it didn't budge. Her fingers brushed against an invisible barrier that refused to yield no matter how much force she applied. Frowning, she tried blasting it with magic, but it still had no effect. Irene and the others tried as well, yet they couldn't even shake the invisible barrier.
“We can't break it,” Irene said, her brow furrowed as she slowly ran her fingers over the barrier. “The strength of this barrier... exceeds the casting level of all of us.”
Refusing to give up, Lorraine mobilized her mana and activated her blink once more. She chose a target point just inside the door, but with a flash of light, she slammed hard against the barrier and was bounced back, falling onto her rear with her head buzzing.
She tried a few more times until her mana was completely depleted, but she was bounced back every single time.
A sense of despair gradually spread among the group.
The situation inside the room remained clearly visible, which was the only thing Lorraine was grateful for. That barrier could isolate everything, but it could not block their sight. The young princess was backed into a corner, her red barrier now reduced to a paper-thin layer, so transparent that they could see her terrified expression, her face deathly pale and devoid of color.
Two figures in black stood before her. One of them raised his staff, a mass of pitch-black energy condensing at its tip before slowly floating toward the red barrier. The moment the two made contact, the barrier shook violently, visibly thinning by another layer.
How much longer could the barrier hold?
Lorraine didn't know.
She only knew that as she pressed her hand against the cold barrier, her palm could not feel a single trace of warmth. And just a few meters away from her, the princess who always silently cared for them was curled up in a corner all alone, unable to make even a sound.
Rate on N.U.
