"Erik, you should rest a bit more." Seeing Erik open his eyes and shift slightly, Zoe, who always kept a watchful eye on him, quickly commented with a concerned tone.
"I can't rest any longer; I'm running out of time." Erik replied in a serious tone before downing a healing potion. Those words caused everyone's expressions to turn solemn, and at that moment, Elara spoke gravely.
"The calculations are more or less ready. But it's still hard to know if the spell will work as expected."
"It's a very simple spell; there shouldn't be many issues." Erik responded calmly as he sent a thin, solidified arm of Myst toward Elara to take the papers she was holding. Ethan added with a serious tone.
"We're ready too. We can deploy the formations at any moment."
"Perfect. How's the refinement circle coming along?" Erik asked as he began to flip through the calculations, to which Christine replied earnestly.
"It activates correctly, and in the basic tests I conducted, it shows no apparent flaws."
"Perfect." Erik nodded and turned to look at Tomás. "How confident are you in controlling the collapse of the ring?"
"50% at best. I've gone over all the calculations and assumptions, but in the end, it'll all come down to luck." Tomás replied after a small sigh, to which Erik nodded and, without taking his eyes off the calculations, spoke.
"Elara, I'm going to design the magic circle, and I want you to draw it with chalk on a wooden board. Meanwhile, I need two mages to prepare healing spells for me. I'll need every ounce of my mana and focus for this, so it's possible my body won't hold up."
"Understood!!" Elara and the mages announced in unison with solemn expressions, at which point Erik, still looking at the papers, continued.
"Zoe, I need you to lead two more knights and escort us outside the formations. Pick fast people—in case of an emergency, they need to carry the mages and flee back here."
Upon hearing Erik, everyone's eyes widened in surprise, and Zoe quickly retorted with a hint of panic in her voice.
"It's too risky for you to go out in your condition, Erik!"
"Yes, but it's riskier to test the spells and open the ring here. This place is the only thing we have to survive out here; we can't afford to risk it." Erik replied in a calm voice, leaving everyone speechless, their fists clenched in indecision. After a few seconds, Tomás spoke seriously.
"…Open the ring here, Erik. While it's true that without this place we'd die, without your black flames, advancing through these golem-filled corridors is impossible for us, which is also a guaranteed death sentence. In the end, any scenario leads to death, and you're already out of time, so let's not waste any more and open that ring as soon as possible."
"We're in this together, Erik. Either we succeed, or we die trying together." Chen added in a serious voice, prompting Erik to look at the others, focusing briefly on their determined, resolute expressions. After a few seconds, Erik nodded and spoke calmly.
"…Well, you've got a point. If this fails, I'm a dead man. Dying here or a few meters away doesn't make much difference."
"We're not going to die. You're Erik Verne, the most talented man in human history, surpassing even Master Eldurdóttir. If anyone can do it, it's you!" Christine cast aside her usual seductive demeanor and spoke with an incredibly serious tone, yet filled with a strange confidence. Elara nodded and added, avoiding looking at Christine.
"It's really annoying to agree with her, but she's right. Let's go all in—we're going to make this happen!"
"…Then let's get to work. Though I do need you to prepare materials to deploy concealment formations in case this fails." Erik replied with a slightly forced smile that, for some reason, made Zoe, Christine, and Elara smile as well, while filling the others with confidence.
"Leave it to us!" Chen quickly responded with enthusiasm as Ethan nodded.
…
With completely focused expressions, each person began carrying out their respective tasks, and soon everything was ready. At that moment, Chen and Ethan activated the formations. Looking even paler and more haggard, Erik walked with difficulty toward the formations, actively supported by Elara and Zoe. Meanwhile, Christine sat in front of the wooden board with the complex refinement circle drawn on it, and the others took their positions.
"The method will be as follows: first, I'll activate the spell to create the black fire and weaken the ring's structure. Then, we'll activate the refinement circle, and simultaneously, Tomás will attempt to control the collapse of the ring's inner space. Any questions?"
As he sat in front of a second wooden board with the spell Elara had drawn, Erik spoke in a slow, hoarse voice. Everyone else, already within the formations, nodded with serious expressions, so Erik nodded back, took a potion, and ordered in a rough voice.
"Let's begin."
With his green eyes fully focused on the relatively simple magic circle drawn on the wooden board, Erik placed his hands on it and activated his mana while Tiberius, at his shoulder, began to release dark mist. Under the expectant and solemn gazes of everyone, the magic circle glowed faintly, and soon two wisps of fire and darkness appeared floating in the center.
Not long after, the wisps elongated like serpents, twisting around each other until they fused into a single sphere of energy that soon expanded, revealing to everyone a beautiful black flame. Without wasting a moment, Elara, who was carefully holding a ring, quickly placed it right in the center of the magic circle, beneath the black flame.
Soon, the black flame descended onto the ring, which quickly shifted from a bright silver to a dull gray, while the elegant gem on its top darkened significantly. As Elara cast a healing spell with all her might on the increasingly pale Erik, he ordered seriously.
"Now."
With a swift motion, Erik extinguished the black flame and sent the ring to the center of the refinement circle using a hand of solidified Myst. Already prepared, the moment the ring touched the circle, Christine activated the refinement circle, which began to glow faintly as the ring gently levitated into the air.
At the same time, Erik turned to face Christine and placed his hands on either side of the refinement circle, beginning to control it carefully. Seeing this, Tomás quickly prepared himself, taking an attack stance and creating six small, brightly glowing magic circles around his sword. After a few seconds, Erik's hair lifted, and the star pattern in it shone brightly while Tiberius began to release dark mist.
"Now!"
Erik announced forcefully, and in that instant, the gem on the ring fractured, and what seemed to be a dark hole formed in the space just above the ring. Simultaneously, Tomás moved, unleashing a slash so fast that none of those present could see it, leaving a clear line of light in the air, which caused the 'hole' to tremble.
But after a few moments, the 'hole' expanded abruptly, and several objects shot out of it at high speed, so fast that it was hard to even discern what they were. Having been prepared, Frank quickly raised his staff and conjured a sort of wind net that contained the escaping objects, preventing damage.
As the joyful and hopeful eyes of those present turned toward Frank, Erik coughed up a thick stream of dark, heavy blood and then collapsed backward, devoid of strength.
"Erik!!!" Elara screamed in panic and began casting healing spells with everything she had while Zoe rushed to catch Erik's head. Tomás quickly ordered in a solemn voice.
"Cast spells! Keep him alive at all costs!!!"
With the order, all the mages, including Christine, grabbed their staffs and began casting healing spells. Meanwhile, Zoe, overcome with panic, brought a healing potion to Erik's lips and spoke in an almost tearful voice as sheets of paper filled with dense notes rained down on the group.
"Please, Erik, don't do this to me... I know you can do this, please..."
For her part, Hiyori, outside the formations, looked at Erik with a deep gaze that combined disbelief with a tiny hint of admiration. The boy wasn't just a monstrous genius; he had impressive guts. He was definitely destined for great things.
(What a shame… Another genius will fall.)
Hiyori let out a small sigh before lying down and closing her eyes, resisting the temptation to retain even a sliver of her memories upon leaving.
…
After taking the potion Zoe offered him, Erik, so pale it was hard to believe there was blood running through his veins, turned to look at Frank. At that moment, he noticed a potion bottle suspended in the air. Seeing the iridescent liquid inside, Erik reached out with the scarce strength he had left, as even his heart was stopping.
"What do you want, Erik?! What do you need?"
Overcome with panic, Zoe asked while holding Erik in her lap. Meanwhile, Elara, with tears welling up in her eyes, quickly scanned the surroundings until her gaze landed on the items Frank was carrying, prompting her to shout urgently.
"Frank! Bring the potions you're carrying!"
"I'm coming!!!"
Frank nearly jumped at the call but quickly set the items on the ground, grabbed the potion vials, and leapt toward Erik. Landing on his knees beside Erik, Frank, holding dozens of bottles in his arms, asked in a panic.
"Which one do you need, boss?!"
Unable to speak, Erik stretched his hand toward the iridescent potion among the bottles. Zoe quickly reached for it, opened it with her teeth, and brought it to Erik's lips while asking urgently.
"Is this the one you need?!"
Without waiting for Erik's response, trusting only in the way the young man looked at the potion, Zoe made him drink it, at which point Erik closed his eyes.
"Erik!!" Zoe and Elara shouted in unison while Christine, completely pale, clutched her chest, and the others clenched their teeth tightly.
But before the tears on the girls' faces could fully fall, a strange pulse of mana emanated from Erik, and soon all the Myst in the area went wild. As if he were a vacuum, Erik began to consume all the Myst around him. At the same time, Erik's hair regained its former shine and even began to glow more brightly, while the others felt his strength increase significantly.
"What a waste of a potion…" As the others looked at Erik with barely contained excitement, the starry-haired young man commented in a soft, somewhat regretful voice before sitting up.
But before anyone could say anything, a 'missile' of blue hair crashed into Erik's chest, leaving him no choice but to open his eyes and look somewhat confused. As if to give him no time to react, two more 'missiles,' one of black hair and one of golden hair, collided with his shoulders.
"Thanks for the warm welcome, I guess."
Looking at the trio of beautiful girls clinging to him while crying, Erik could only comment with a somewhat helpless smile, at which point Tomás stepped forward and asked with a relieved smile.
"How are you? Was that the solution you were talking about?"
"No, this is more of a temporary solution; you could even call it a waste. It was a magical empowerment potion personally crafted by my master…" Erik replied with a small sigh, causing the others to widen their eyes in surprise before looking at the potions in Frank's hands, who seemed to be holding a toxic item weighing hundreds of tons.
"It wasn't a waste; it was to save your life. I'm sure Master Eldurdóttir would think the same."
Elara, the first to regain her composure, stepped back a little from Erik and commented in a tearful voice while wiping her tears. Zoe also pulled away from Erik and spoke with a voice full of relief and happiness.
"Yes, Erik, your life is worth more than any potion…"
"I suppose that's true too…" Erik commented while looking at Christine with questions written on his face, as she still clung to his chest, trembling slightly.
"But you say it's temporary. When the effect wears off, will you return to your previous state?" At that moment, Ethan asked while looking at Erik with undisguised envy. Erik shook his head and explained.
"Not exactly. My condition will improve since, more than just boosting power, the special thing about this potion is that it's an incredibly powerful 'intelligent' healing potion. So I'll get better, but the empowerment also causes damage, meaning the effect duration will be shorter, and my condition will still be bad after it wears off."
"The solution you're talking about, is it something more definitive?" Elara asked while pushing Christine away from Erik, who nodded and explained while subtly trying to distance himself from the blue-haired girl.
"Yes, it's something my masters devised for a situation like this, so it'll bring me back to at least 80-90% of my best form. Enough to cast spells and fight without complications."
"Then let's get to work and open that ring as soon as possible!" Zoe quickly commented while ruthlessly shoving Christine away from Erik, who replied while looking at Frank.
"First, let's check what came out of the ring. Depending on what's there, I can make some calculations, and if my memory serves me right, there were some pretty interesting things in that ring that could help us a lot."
***
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