Chapter8-Something Evil

Not far from the small building, Nathan materialized out of thin air. 

A tiger-striped lion cat sprang from his embrace and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

It was the Revealing Dust that had broken the Invisibility Spell.

Behind him, Wales, accompanied by several members of the Clark family, was in hot pursuit. Among them was that second-generation elementalist.

This scene made Nathan furrow his brow.

Wales, with eyes red with fury, covered dozens of meters in an instant, swinging his hand forward as he did so.

A fireball shot from Wales' hand, its searing heat arriving in a flash.

The fireball, a tier-2 spell, had sufficient range but was not lethal. 

It seemed more intended to disrupt Nathan's escape than to harm.

Nathan watched the oncoming fireball, a thought crossing his mind as he instantly conjured a roaring flame shield.

The fireball collided with the flame shield, creating a deafening boom and sending sparks flying in every direction.

Nathan felt as if he had been struck by a giant boulder, his body involuntarily stumbling backward.

With his chest heaving and a sweetness rising in his throat, he fought the urge to vomit.

Ignoring his discomfort, and taking advantage of the brief respite before the next attack, he turned and ran like a startled rabbit.

With the flame shield bolstering him, his body felt lighter than usual, and his speed increased dramatically.

Nathan had never been to this core area of the Clark estate before, but he was confident that once he crossed a few more courtyard walls, he would find his way to the outside.

Leaping dozens of meters in a single bound, he cleared a broken wall and found himself in another courtyard. 

Nathan dashed in, scaling the wall ahead. Beyond lay familiar territory.

Glancing back, he saw the Clark family members entangled by a group of armored guards.

Only the second-generation elementalist and Wales continued to charge towards Nathan.

Trailing them, a city guard clad in scale armor was clearly faster. 

This man was none other than Aaron.

Aaron raised his longsword and leaped towards the second-generation elementalist, striking down at him.

The elementalist countered by summoning an earth elemental shield, absorbing the blow.

"Be careful, my lord!" Aaron shouted, slashing again before urgently calling out to Nathan.

Just as Nathan was about to jump down, he suddenly found his ankles ensnared by wildly growing vines.

He was immobilized in an instant.

As Wales rapidly approached, a dark red fireball materialized in his palm.

Aaron immediately abandoned his assault on the elementalist, sprinting across half the courtyard to strike at Wales.

Ignoring the flame blade hurtling towards him from behind, Aaron roared "Blood Aura!" A wave of bloodthirsty intent surged from him.

Wales spun around, unleashing a tongue of fire at Aaron.

Aaron bellowed again: "Evil!"

A massive, shadowy black scorpion materialized behind him, its venomous stinger arching threateningly as if ready to strike.

Aaron then thrust his longsword, guiding the scorpion's tail. 

It collided with the dark red flame tongue.

A thunderous explosion echoed through the air as flames scattered in all directions.

At that moment, the flame blade struck Aaron's back, emitting a dull thud.

Aaron spat blood, his vitality sharply diminishing.

Another flame blade flew towards him.

Just as Aaron was about to turn and face it head-on, he suddenly felt lighter, his body warming up.

A flame shield had been cast around him!

"Thank you, my lord!" Aaron exclaimed, revitalized. 

He swung his sword at Wales once more.

Wales let out a furious roar, unleashing a second flame tongue.

Meanwhile, in his other hand, he stealthily unfurled a scroll!

Nathan could not afford to look back. 

The effort of casting the flame shield had drained him, and with gritted teeth, he launched a fireball at the vine's roots.

The fireball struck the wall with a thud, instantly withering the vines. 

Nathan hurriedly tore the vines from his ankles and prepared to leap to the outer courtyard.

Suddenly, Wales raised his hand, crushing a scroll. 

A blinding light burst forth from his palm.

Nathan's eyes felt as if they were pierced by needles, his vision turning into a white blur.

"Damn, a flashing spell!" someone yelled. "Retreat!"

The sound of weapons striking the wall followed.

With a crash, the wall collapsed.

Nathan plummeted, landing hard on the ground.

Ignoring the pain, he scrambled to his feet and ran, but he had barely taken two steps before a powerful force struck him, sending him flying.

The flame shield shattered, a wave of heat spreading across his back and engulfing his body like scalding oil. Nathan cried out in pain.

"Run, my lord!" Aaron's fierce roar was followed by the crisp sound of weapons shattering, painfully ringing in the ears.

Then came Wales' furious roar and the roaring of flames.

Three seconds later, as his vision cleared, Nathan scrambled up and dashed forward.

Just as he crossed a threshold, he saw Alex and several direct family members materialize in front of him.

"Nathan, you're done for!" Alex's voice was filled with grim determination as he pursued.

Nathan crushed an earth shield and enveloped himself in another flame shield. 

He changed direction, weaving his way towards the side of the courtyard.

Suddenly, two direct family members appeared around the corner in front of Nathan.

Nathan pulled out another scroll, clutching it in his hand as he charged forward.

The two ahead seemed prepared, launching a fireball and a flame blade directly at him.

Nathan crushed the scroll, creating a stream of water that cascaded from mid-air, perfectly blocking the incoming spells.

The fireball was instantly extinguished, but the flame blade pierced through, striking the earth shield with a dull thud.

Gritting his teeth against the impact of the flame blade, Nathan dashed past them.

"Over here, my lord!" he heard someone call out just as he exited. It was Homer, accompanied by a dozen armored guards blocking the doorway.

Nathan let out a sigh of relief, silently praising Homer's shrewdness and reliability.

"Where are the others?" Nathan hurried over.

"I've sent them to call for reinforcements from the city defense," Homer said with a wry smile. "Our small group is no match for these madmen."

"You've done well, Lord Homer. I must make my escape now!" Nathan patted Homer's shoulder and turned to leave.

"Nathan! You won't get away!" Alex's furious shout echoed from behind as the two sides clashed.

"It's fine, go quickly! This guy's gone mad," Homer waved his hand, drawing his longsword and positioning himself at the doorway.

Two minutes later, Nathan emerged from a portal only to realize he had circled back.

In front of him lay the ruins of the small building, its collapsed bricks and a scatter of white bones.

Looking at the bones, Nathan chuckled bitterly.

Today's turn of events had completely blindsided him. 

His initial plan was merely to provoke Alex into action, giving him a reason to take control.

He hadn't expected to stir up such a hidden menace, driving Alex Clark completely mad.

"If I had known, I would never have embarked on this dangerous venture."

At this moment, the area was deserted, the path leading to the mansion's main gate eerily empty.

Nathan didn't linger, hurrying towards the gate.

Suddenly, from the corner of his eye, he thought he caught a glimpse of a blue light but saw no one.

"Eris?" Nathan called out softly.

There was no response.

Then, he saw a cyan tornado rapidly approaching the small building from the sky, a figure seemingly atop it. 

In an instant, it arrived in front of the building.

Nathan felt a sense of foreboding. 

He recognized that tornado – it was the signature spell of Alex Clark's master, the court magus Reno.

A middle-aged magus in a dark green robe stood on a roaring, ten-meter-high mini-tornado, pointing at Nathan.

"So, you're Nathan? Quite audacious!" The tornado seemed to amplify his voice as it buzzed in sync with his words.

A powerful pressure descended, and Nathan staggered backward.

Suddenly, a blue portal appeared in the sky, and Eris emerged, stepping through air. 

Her beautiful eyes twinkling, she laughed, "He is my junior. Are you really going to bully the younger generation, Lord Reno?"

The tornado roared in response, "Bully the younger generation? Look at what he's done! Does he think the Clark family has no one left?"

"Heh, why don't you look at what the Clark family has done? Can't you see these bones scattered everywhere, Lord Reno?" Eris retorted sarcastically.

"Hmph, you ask what I see?" Reno moved, and the tornado thundered over the ruins, swirling around. 

Instantly, it sucked up all the bricks and bones, grinding them into dust with its friction. 

"I see nothing!"

Reno snorted coldly, the tornado humming, "And you, despicable wretch, even if you are a disciple of the great Milo, I must seek justice for the Clark family today!"

With those words, the tornado furiously spiraled towards Nathan.