173 - Truly Hell

The temporary magic barrier was as feeble as paper before the peculiar dagger.

But this momentary pause, this fleeting apparition, was enough for Lynn. With a forceful push from his right foot against the ground, leveraging the reactive force, he swiftly leaned back, evading the dagger aiming for his neck. He tumbled backwards, landing along with the chair, and rolling away to create distance.

Yet as Lynn rose to his feet, he couldn't locate the enemy. The lounge was empty as if everything before was a mere illusion.

Some form of visual deception magic?

Without hesitation, Lynn cast a Mage Shield upon himself. Simultaneously, the elusive danger approached again, this time from his side.

Phosphorus - [Resistance Ring]

Focused entirely this time, Lynn retaliated almost instantly. He didn't know where the attack originated, but he didn't need to.

Intense flames surged around him, engulfing everything without escape. The ground cracked layer by layer, the scorching heat engulfing all within its reach.

The [Resistance Ring] was one of Lynn's achievements in the field of force-field magic, belonging to the high-tier third circle of magic. Although this single strike consumed a quarter of Lynn's magical power, its effect was significant. The proximity left no room to evade; the terrifying phosphorus fire quickly adhered to the assailant...

Piercing screams and wails echoed in the lounge. Amidst the flames emerged the figure of a middle-aged mage, his body engulfed in fire, phosphorus devouring his flesh. He futilely slapped his body, resembling a dance in the inferno.

As Lynn suspected, this kind of magic merely deceived vision, not truly disappearing.

Relieved, Lynn soon noticed the mage, now consumed by flames, dropping a weapon. It wasn't the dagger but a short sword.

Lynn's pupils constricted; a wave of dread washed over him. This meant there was not just one attacker.

The Mage Shield, shattered once again as Lynn realized this. Fortunately, the deflection field worked, narrowly averting the sudden attack.

The peculiar dagger appeared only in the moment the Mage Shield shattered, then vanished again without a trace.

But the lack of visual confirmation didn't nullify other senses.

Lynn's index finger trembled faintly in the air, emitting barely detectable magical waves that rapidly spread in a circular pattern. Upon collision with obstacles, these waves rebounded, identifying the only object shifting its shape within the room—undoubtedly the first assailant.

However, contrary to Lynn's expectations, the attacker didn't approach but bolted madly towards the outside. Clearly, consecutive failed attacks coupled with the companion's tragedy made them reconsider.

Thinking of escape now? Too late.

Lynn adjusted the vibration frequency of the magical waves, aligning them with the assailant's brain frequencies.

Unlike his encounters with Elok and others, Lynn held nothing back this time. This unique and imperceptible attack immediately took effect. The fleeing assailant, feeling as if their brain were about to explode, collapsed in distress. Unable to sustain the magic, they soon materialized.

Only then did Lynn discern the attacker—a man in a gray robe, gaunt-faced, sparse and unkempt hair, sunken eyes, prominent cheekbones, hands clutching his head, a visage twisted in agony.

In the next moment, four ice blades materialized from nowhere, pinning his limbs.

Ceasing the resonance magic, Lynn approached, retrieving the peculiar dagger. Gazing at the gray-robed mage, immobilized on the ground, he coldly inquired, "Name, identity, and what's your reason for attacking me?"

The mage showed no intention to reply, his face filled with a mix of fear and confusion, seemingly yet to recover from the bursting pain that seemed to explode his brain.

"Fine, I'll have a look myself." Lynn disregarded extravagant interrogation methods, placing his hand on the mage's head, activating the psychic magic obtained from Ladek.

[Memory Retrieval]

This psychic magic searched relevant memories within a person's mind. It usually worked best against significantly weaker opponents or those mentally unstable. Clearly, this was an opportune moment.

However, the moment Lynn touched the mage's memories, the man's pupils widened, body trembling uncontrollably. Before Lynn could react, he collapsed instantly, lifeless.

Another soul-binding similar to before?

Frowning, Lynn, familiar with such circumstances, recalled a similar incident while interrogating Nour, the wizard's apprentice in Iyeta Harbor.

The ability to engrave a soul-binding in a formal wizard's mind, causing instant death while disrupting their memory, required expertise in psychic magic.

The flames ignited by the Resistance Ring, the piercing screams, were unmistakable in the silent estate. Barely a minute had passed since the attack began, and the door was already violently thrust open.

"Professor Lynn, I heard an explosion and screams. What happened?" Phillip and Kevin rushed in first, visibly relieved to find Lynn unharmed.

"I'm not sure. I was about to rest tonight when these two attacked me." Lynn gestured towards the corpses, sounding perplexed.

In his days at Greenville, it seemed he had only offended those divination scholars. If they were to act, it should have been before the verification of the Universal Gravitational Theory.

Surely, it couldn't be because his math problems were too challenging, causing someone to impulsively attempt his demise?

Phillip and Kevin glanced at the attackers—the first pinned to the ground by Lynn's ice blade, the other reduced to a charred mess by the scorching phosphorus fire, long devoid of life.

Exposed skin tore apart in struggle, and blood vaporized, leaving holes where fingers once clawed. A horrific sight, with remnants of phosphorus flames incessantly consuming flesh as fuel, strengthening themselves...

This was the hellfire, wasn't it?

Phillip and Kevin recalled the tale of the "Hellfire" that Laut had mentioned when Lynn first arrived at the Iyeta Academy. At that time, they hadn't taken it seriously, but witnessing the gruesome demise of this attacker made them realize the terror of such flames, truly deserving of the name "Hell."