"We must flee!"
Eleris's cry snapped me, the Archduke, and Harriet out of our stupor.
Yes, escape.
If any of the falling meteors were of a seriously colossal size, we would have to worry about a planetary-scale catastrophe. However, even if they were not that large, it was clear that a tremendous disaster would sweep away everything in its path.
Where to escape and how to do so?
Long-range teleportation was impossible due to the barrier, and even if it were possible, there wouldn't be enough casting time. With hundreds of burning meteors raining down from the sky, tearing the earth apart, how could we possibly avoid them?
Could a barrier protect our bodies from the shockwave of the falling meteors?
Harriet clenched her teeth.
Not knowing what to do, but feeling compelled to do something.
A blue magical aura began to boil throughout Harriet's body.
Yes, casting magic as quickly as possible in this desperate situation was something only Harriet could do.
But how could one respond to this situation?
-Whoooom!
Countless rune symbols, as well as Harriet's necklace, were emitting intense light.
-Click
Not one, but five power cartridges.
All of them discharged fierce magical energy, replenishing Harriet's power.
Teleportation was impossible, but with the assistance of the power cartridges, could she use it? Was she trying to break the barrier and use mass teleportation instantly, moving us to the outskirts?
-Whoooom!
I saw the largest of the hundreds of falling meteors suddenly vanish.
A pitch-black circular rift had appeared in the meteor's trajectory, which I could see clearly.
Harriet had opened a portal the size of the meteor in its path, sending it somewhere else.
One meteor vanished.
"Ugh...”
Harriet continued casting her magic, teeth clenched, and sweat pouring down her face.
Following the disappearance of the largest meteor, the hundreds of other falling meteors one by one lost their light and vanished.
Harriet created portals in the sky.
Instead of withstanding the meteor impacts, she sent them elsewhere.
One by one, and then in dozens, the falling meteors disappeared before reaching the ground.
She calculated the trajectory of the hundreds of falling meteors and opened portals in their path.
A magic of overwhelming destruction, and a meticulously calculated response from a magical genius.
I realized I had underestimated the greatest magical genius in history.
If we were to escape alone, everyone else present would be exposed to the meteors.
Some would die, and among them would be innocent people.
Harriet was trying to save everyone from the disaster.
Through her years of research, she had mastered the portals.
She had come up with the idea of not withstanding the attack but erasing it, and she was now putting it into action.
I, Eleris, the Archduke, stared blankly as Harriet single-handedly erased the massive catastrophe.
"Ugh..."
But Harriet's mana was not infinite.
Even with the assistance of the power cartridges, she had to open hundreds of dimensional gates. She sent the falling meteors somewhere else, but even a genius's calculations eventually had their limits.
-Boom! Rumble!
Meteors that eluded Harriet's calculations fell to the ground one by one, and the power cartridges dangling from the necklace she wore were losing their light one by one.
Just like a dying battery, the power cartridges gradually lost their glow.
The Archduke, who had grasped the situation, placed his hand on Harriet's shoulder.
Magicians could use Siphon Mana to replenish their magical power. Just as Eleris had previously done for the magically exhausted Ellen in Darkland.
The Archduke shared his mana with his daughter, who was exceeding her own limits.
Even that would not be an easy task.
Using her own mana, the mana of the power cartridges, and the Archduke's mana replenished in real-time for casting spells.
But Harriet managed to do it.
With gritted teeth, she stared at the night sky, opening dimensional gates using the replenished mana, and erased the falling meteors.
The scale of the task was so massive that even with the Archduke's mana support, there were bound to be limits.
"Please... give it to that child..."
Eleris struggled to say so, and I immediately helped her to Harriet's side without further thought.
Eleris placed her hand on Harriet's shoulder and did the same as the Archduke. Harriet had no time to be taken aback. Her mind must have been on the verge of exploding with the urgent tasks at hand.
-Woosh!
Harriet, enveloped in blue light, began to erase the meteors.
As the two archmages' magical powers replenished her, Harriet quickly opened and closed dozens of dimensional gates. The meteors pouring out of the cracks now vanished before even touching the ground.
How much time had passed in this hellish ordeal?
-Rumble
As the cracks in the night sky disappeared like a lie, and the streaks of light from the falling meteors all vanished.
"Ha, hah... I did it... I did it..."
"Well done, my daughter."
Harriet, drenched in cold sweat, collapsed on the spot, and the Archduke, likewise nearing mana exhaustion, embraced her and slumped down.
Almost no meteors directly struck the ground.
Eleris, who had helped but could not fully understand the situation, stared wide-eyed at the exhausted Harriet.
Harriet de Saint Owan, who was once preoccupied with casting fireballs at orcs, had now saved us all from disaster.
I did not save Harriet.
Harriet saved everyone here.
It was Harriet who fulfilled my wish that no one from the Empire, nor my faction, would die.
The colossal moon appeared and vanished, and the meteors rained down only to disappear.
Luna Artorious had returned, but if the one who cast the spell could continue the battle, it wouldn't make sense.
Thus, the battle seemed to be drawing to a close.
—---
From the moment the sky opened up and the meteors began to rain down, the battle had essentially come to a standstill.
When a magic referred to as the divine magic of the gods, which only appears in myths, was cast, not only the Imperial Army but also the Council and the Black Order launched massive defenses.
Everyone felt a sense of despair from the overwhelming and vast magic, tense and on edge.
There was no way anyone could survive the hundreds of meteors sweeping across the earth.
But all of the meteors disappeared due to the intervention of the unidentified magician.
And the mage who had cast the massive meteor summoning with the intent to kill everyone present:
Archlich was left in a state no different from an empty shell, crumpled on the ground after paying the price for casting such a spell.
It was a magic he used, having lived for an immense amount of time and accumulated tremendous knowledge and power, which he hoped would bring about the destruction of everything.
There was no need to mention the strength of Archlich, who had cast a magic that neither ordinary humans nor immortal beings could cast.
However, it was thwarted.
By the hands of a magician who had not yet reached the age of twenty.
"Heh, hehehe... Hehehehehehe..."
Thus, Archlich could only let out a low and eerie laugh, devoid of all energy.
Sensing the end of the huge calamity, the forces of the demon world and the Imperial Army also released their barriers.
The two groups faced each other with Archlich lying in the middle of the battlefield.
Unable to distinguish friend from foe, they had clashed, but Saviolin Turner knew Archlich was at the heart of this battle.
She was prepared for death, but her startled heart could not calm down entirely.
She had suspected something unusual from the murder at the palace, but everything Turner encountered here was a first in her life.
Archlich.
The vampire pack.
The moon growing bizarrely large.
And the meteors pouring from the shattered night sky.
One after another, incredible events unfolded that even the experienced Turner could only be astounded by. They were incidents that would be a lifetime story for someone if they encountered just one, yet they had happened several times over the course of a single night.
'Too dangerous... This place is far too dangerous.'
If all the forces present here were to die, the Empire would lose more than half of its power.
Each of the Imperial knights and mages present held a significant place in the Empire's strength.
Archlich, who had summoned the meteors, was incapacitated, but the identity of the vampire pack remained unknown.
Fortunately or unfortunately, the vampires and the robed group had prioritized attacking Archlich rather than focusing on the Imperial Army.
And so, despite their exceptional skills, no casualties occurred beyond minor injuries. It was because everyone engaged in the battle with caution.
The knights and mages present understood that hurting or killing themselves would ultimately harm the empire, so they acted accordingly.
Saviolin Turner did not know how Archlich's meteor had been thwarted.
However, it was not a measure taken by the empire.
If it was a measure taken by the opponent...
Facing them would mean taking on excessive risks.
They couldn't afford to lose the empire's greatest strength in a battle against unknown entities without being fully prepared.
"That man is a traitor to the empire and a prime criminal suspect we must apprehend. I will not pursue you if you withdraw quietly. Step back."
But orders were orders.
Saviolin Turner had received the command to capture Roswin.
So, they had to take Roswin into custody.
"I won't ask who you are or what you do."
While it was highly likely that they were the demon king's kin, Saviolin Turner made the maximum concession. They couldn't understand why the demon king's kin would be chasing Archlich either.
No, it was Roswin who came to this place, and they were already here.
Why?
Saviolin Turner's questions only seemed to multiply instead of being resolved.
An elderly vampire in a suit, leaning on a cane, stood at the forefront.
Even amid the fierce and violent battle, the old vampire maintained a clean appearance, with not a speck of dirt on his bowler hat or collar.
The old vampire gazed at the fallen Archlich.
"Lukren."
As if uninterested in Saviolin Turner, the old man focused solely on Archlich.
"Have you come all this way to boast that you can wield mythical magic?"
The old man shook his head.
"It's certainly impressive magic, but it was blocked, and even if it hadn't been, what reason do you have for doing something that would only lead to your demise along with ours?"
Antirianus seemed genuinely puzzled by the situation.
"Antirianus..."
The fallen Archlich spoke with a cracked voice.
"Do you desire Akasha...?"
At those words, Antirianus smiled faintly.
