Outside the Imperial Palace, Leon stood calmly atop Athena's dragon head, his gaze fixed indifferently on the familiar palace.
"It's been a long ti," he muttered, his eyes narrowing slightly.
It had been several months since he'd been exposed to the devouring poison and left the palace. Though it wasn't his ho, it held many mories.
Leon took a deep breath, suppressing his emotional turmoil, before whispering, "Once I kill Velix and strip him of power, my grudge will finally be settled."
Holding a grudge was draining, and he longed to end it as soon as possible. Only then could he focus on his true goals: engaging with the hidden races and preparing for the battle against the Evil God.
He looked down, then sat up slowly and patted Athena's head gently. "Athena, let's go down and et Velix inside. It's ti to settle this."
Athena nodded softly, replying, "Yes, Leon."
She then flapped her wings and began to descend but was abruptly halted by a loud explosion echoing from the palace ahead.
*Whoosh!*
Pillars of white light erupted from the four corners of the palace, piercing the sky. At the sa ti, a massive magic circle materialized above the capital, extending to the city's edge.
*Buzz!*
In an instant, the magic circle flared brightly, forming a solid, do-like barrier that enveloped the entire capital.
Leon's eyes widened, his heart racing.
"Not good! Velix is trying to isolate the capital and the Imperial Palace! We need to get inside now!" Leon shouted.
He imdiately summoned his holy power, bending his legs to leap forward, but was suddenly halted when Athena flapped her wings and flew backward. Explore more at My Virtual Library Empire
"Athena!? What are you doing!?" Leon exclaid, stunned.
"Don't be reckless, Leon. It's too dangerous!" Athena replied coldly, continuing her retreat.
*Whoosh!*
A red magic circle appeared above the Imperial Palace, glowing with light as it ford another barrier do around it.
Athena gradually slowed her movent and fixed her cold gaze on the red do.
"If you'd gone in earlier, you would've been seriously injured. The magic circle contains high-level and ancient magic, designed to prevent anyone from breaking in," Athena explained calmly, leaving Leon frozen in place.
He hadn't anticipated the presence of high-level and ancient magic embedded in the red do, and he felt truly regretful for having misunderstood her.
"I'm sorry, Athena. I was careless earlier," Leon said earnestly.
"It's okay, Leon. Don't worry," Athena replied gently.
Leon took a deep breath and gave a small nod. "So, what do we do now? Should we try to destroy the barrier's magic?"
According to ancient records, the capital of the Holy Empire of Elysium, Astralyn, was protected by nurous magic circles.
These were said to have been created by the Great Mages of Mankind from various eras, and the magic they harnessed was incredibly powerful.
Even ancient-level magic couldn't break them. Of course, that was just a rumor, as Leon had never seen these circles activated before.
Athena didn't answer imdiately. Her large red eyes studied the red do intently, as if analyzing the magic circuits within.
A mont later, she looked away and shook her head.
"No, Leon. Those magic circles can't be destroyed. They're embedded in the very structure of the capital. If we try to break them, the entire city will collapse," Athena replied seriously. "And the red do itself is extrely powerful. Even I would find it difficult to destroy."
Leon frowned at her first words but was stunned by the next.
"What do you an? You can't even destroy it?" Leon asked, disbelief clear in his voice.
Athena was powerful, and the nature magic she displayed in the previous battle against the black dragon was proof of that. Yet now, she was saying she couldn't destroy the red do—sothing Leon found hard to accept.
"Yes, I can't destroy it easily. To do so, I'd need to use extrely powerful nature magic. However, that would have a catastrophic impact on the entire capital. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say the result would be the complete destruction of the city," Athena explained casually.
Leon was stunned for a mont before sitting down helplessly. "If trying to destroy those magic circles ans destroying the capital, then it's better not to."
His reluctance to destroy the city was driven by the fear of future losses. Astralyn was a highly developed city, with infrastructure built over thousands of years.
If the city were destroyed, the cost of rebuilding would be imnse—and it would be sothing Arshley would struggle to manage.
"Well, don't worry too much, Leon. Activating those magic circles is definitely Velix's last resort, and maintaining them will drain a lot of mana. We just need to wait until he reaches his limit," Athena said in a reassuring tone.
Leon gave a small nod and asked, "How long do you think Velix can maintain those magic circles?"
Athena paused for a mont, her red eyes narrowing as she stared at the Imperial Palace. "About fifteen minutes, maybe twenty-five at most."
"Long enough, huh?" Leon rubbed his chin, then nodded slightly and closed his eyes. "No problem. We'll wait. If Velix manages to last longer, I'll just chalk it up to luck."
...
Outside the capital, the rebel army, engaged in battle with the monsters, was shocked to see a massive magic circle appear in the sky.
Before they could react, a do-shaped barrier materialized, enveloping the entire capital as if to isolate it.
"Damn it! What's going on? Why is there a do over the whole capital?" One soldier slashed at a monster approaching from his left but then froze, staring at the sight.
His comrades were equally astonished, exchanging puzzled looks with one another.
"It's a barrier magic designed to protect the capital from enemy attacks. Holy Emperor Velix must have been desperate and activated it to hold us back."
Albert's voice cut through the confusion, and many soldiers finally understood the origin of the do.
"In that case, does that an we can't enter the capital at all?" one soldier asked, stabbing a monster in the heart before turning to Albert, uncertainty in his eyes.
Albert drew his sword and swiftly cut down the three monsters lunging at him from the right, left, and front.
He then glanced at the soldier and nodded slightly. "It seems that way. The barrier do is incredibly powerful, and I've heard that even ancient magic can't break it."
His words left the soldiers around him dumbfounded, exchanging looks of dread.
anwhile, Valen and Luna, who were still fighting monsters nearby, couldn't hide their shock at the sight of the white do.
Luna struck a monster lunging at her from the left, then locked her gaze on the towering barrier do.
"Is this Velix's last resort?" she murmured.
She had read about the powerful magic circles that protected the Imperial Capital and the palace from enemy attacks. Now, seeing them in person, she could feel the sheer horror of the barrier.
"Do you think we can destroy it?" Valen asked, his curiosity piqued.
Luna shook her head. "No, we can't. The barrier do is ancient magic, seeded by the Great Mages of Mankind from different eras, and it's extraordinarily powerful."
"Oh?" Instead of being deterred, Valen's spirit seed to flare. "Well, now I'm even more eager to try."
As soon as he finished speaking, Valen's holy power erupted, creating a massive storm around him.
Luna imdiately called upon her own holy power to brace against the powerful waves radiating from Valen, staring at him in disbelief.
"You insane fool! Do you really plan to attack it?" Luna demanded angrily.
"Hehehe! Of course! I'm dying to see how strong this barrier really is," Valen replied casually.
Without another word, Valen vanished from sight and reappeared right in front of the do's barrier.
The entire army watched in shock as his figure hovered above the sky.
"Isn't that Spear Hero Valen? What is he doing?"
"Could he be trying to destroy the barrier?"
"I think so."
Many soldiers speculated, trying to guess Valen's intentions as he appeared before the barrier do.
Valen floated proudly, holding the Holy Spear of Soaring Dragon in his right hand.
"I want to test the strength of this barrier magic," he declared eagerly.
*Buzz!*
The Holy Spear of Soaring Dragon glead with a fiery red light, spreading over his entire body.
Valen now looked like a fire god descending from the heavens, ready to scorch everything in his path.
"Hero Technique: Breaking The Limit!"
The red aura flared even brighter, and Valen thrust his spear toward the barrier with incredible speed.
*Bang!*
The impact of the attack produced a deafening explosion, but the barrier remained completely intact.
*Bang! Bang!*
Valen's figure vanished and reappeared at different points along the barrier, delivering blow after blow. Yet, just like before, the barrier showed no signs of damage, leaving Valen both stunned and frustrated.
"Tsk! This barrier really is as strong as Luna said," Valen muttered. "But I refuse to believe it can't be destroyed!"
He vanished again and appeared a hundred ters away from the barrier.
His eyes blazed with white light, and the Hero's Destiny ford on his forehead, glowing brightly.
Valen raised the Holy Spear of Soaring Dragon, preparing his next move.
"Hero Technique—"
Before he could finish, a sharp shout echoed in his mind.
"Valen, you idiot! What the hell are you doing!? Don't you dare attack the barrier!"
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A/N: Ahem! I originally planned to update two chapters, but I just rembered I have sothing to do this weekend. So, I can only update one for now.
As a little compensation, I'll give a free monthly code to my wonderful and handso readers. Here's the code: .
Thank you!
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