The Runic Alchemist

Mira had grabbed both Damian and Royce, sprinting so fast toward the mountain that Damian's cheeks billowed from the force of the wind hitting his face. He fought against the urge to pass out, determined to stay alert till he finished his job.

Soon—thankfully before the beast finished whatever it was doing—Mira reached the mountain's base. Damian immediately activated the single spell he'd stored in his ring with a lot of mana, creating a wormhole that opened just shy of the cliff they had left from before, though it led to a nearby ledge that would suffice. Mira threw both him and Royce through the portal and then leaped in herself. They landed sprawled across the flat surface. The ring's activation had cost Damian some mana, and despite his best efforts to resist, his vision began to blur as exhaustion overtook him.

All he remembered in the intense headache was the enormous explosion that echoed from the beast's direction, the forceful rush of air, and the sudden brightness illuminating the night sky—before everything went black.

****

Mira stared down at the colossal explosion that now dominated the valley below. It was massive… and beautiful..

Whatever their little monster had done, it had worked wonders, far better than she had expected, leaving the giant beast vulnerable enough to seek its own end rather than endure further suffering.

But the two beastmen...

"Farewell, good friends. Your people will never forget your sacrifice… and neither will I," Mira whispered. She hadn't even noticed she was crying until the tears blurred her vision, dripping from her cheeks onto the earth below.

Royce approached her and held her close, a bit awkwardly. The noble brat had certainly grown in these past days, and Mira was grateful for it. Though she found it strange to feel this way about a stranger, she was glad to have someone beside her after spilling more blood in a single day than she'd ever thought possible.

Now, even their mightiest warrior was gone. But they had survived…

And not just survived—they had accomplished something that would be written in songs. They had killed an Emperor-ranked beast, a feat that would be an honor even with a team of twenty-five seasoned second-rankers and ample preparation. And they had managed it with only a handful of second-rankers and mostly first-rankers.

Honestly, Mira had trouble deciding who was more terrifying: the beastman pugilist who could rival, even surpass, a transcendent seed like Xavier—the indomitable shield—or the boy who matched them with strength barely at the first rank. She still couldn't determine what class the "little monster" belonged to, but she suspected he was another one of those legends yet to be born, about which she had read stories of in her village and learned their great deeds in the academy.

It was a relief that he was on their side. Mira would have been sorely disappointed in Lady Vidalia if she had allowed such a generational talent to slip through her fingers—or worse, punished him for a crime barely worth noting.

"What is that...?" Royce murmured, snapping her back to attention. She looked up from his embrace, and Royce, suddenly self-conscious, let her go. She smiled as she followed his gaze, watching a bright light streaking toward them from the distant forest's edge. Another monster, perhaps? Had it come from the direction of the villages they had saved?

No… it was moving too fast for any monster.

Without Maximus's strange spell, Mira could barely make out the figure. But then a voice resonated, making her blood run cold. Emerging from the dense cloud of the beast's explosion was a towering figure, huge and moving on four legs.

Could the beast have survived? That couldn't be possible… could it?

No, this creature was smaller.

"Fuck! That's the white tiger… that bastard actually made it through the explosion?" Royce's voice was laced with joy, his words far from gentlemanly, though Mira couldn't help but smile at his enthusiasm. He only lost his composure when truly excited—or furious. His reaction alone showed her how thrilled he was to see their comrade alive, it matched hers.

The tiger, however, was in a very bad shape: half of its body was burned and charred, with patches entirely missing. It staggered a few paces from the explosion's origin before dispersing in ethereal particles, and from under its mouth, Kazak's body fell, unconscious.

Was the tiger moving on its own? Wasn't it just a skill? Did it possess a will independent of its master? Somehow, it had survived even without Kazak. This went far beyond any simple skill or technique.

"It's coming toward us," Royce observed, pointing to the bright light hurtling in their direction.

Mira peered at the fast-approaching light, squinting as it drew nearer. The figure was now little more visible, weaving through the smoke and debris. She realized in shock, "They're people… humans… two of them… Who could fly like…"

"Commander!" Royce exclaimed, voicing her thoughts.

She had come. Both of them. The other one must be Bonecrusher.. What happened..? Had they won? Was the war truly over? Was this a dream..?

If it was, she never wanted to wake up.

Royce cast a light spell to signal them, and Mira saw it work as the larger figure lifted someone from the ground, then both flew toward them. She'd only ever seen the two third-rankers from afar, their commands relayed through Lord Tristan back at camp. Her heart raced as they descended on the small cliff, but she felt an overwhelming sense of relief that the weight of decision-making no longer fell on them.

Mira gazed in awe at the pair as they landed on the cliff. The woman, with an ethereal beauty surrounded by glowing orbs of light, was the commander. Behind her, Bonecrusher—a towering, muscular, handsome figure in his uniform—held the unconscious Kazak on his shoulder. Up close, they looked like marble statues come to life. She'd heard that third-rankers possessed a supernatural beauty because of their increased charm stat, yet seeing it first hand was an entirely different experience.

"Are you the one called Royce? You were in charge here, correct?" Bonecrusher's voice was deep and commanding.

"Yes, my lord," Royce replied, bowing in respect, and Mira followed suit.

"Then tell us… What happened here? And who is this beastman? Why is he emanating a transcendent aura?" Bonecrusher asked. Royce's face paled as he attempted to answer, his mouth opening and closing as he struggled to find the right words.

"Before that… Do I sense Captain Maximus's mana here? Where is he?" The commander's voice cut through, her eyes fixed on the cave behind them, where Maximus lay unconscious, recovering his mana.