"[Be careful, Master!]"
Merlin gasped and quickly leapt backward.
Boom!
A fireball as large as a tree struck the spot where he had been standing and exploded.
The ground was scorched, and the nearby trees burned, creating a terrifying scene.
Merlin landed on a tree branch and stared ahead cautiously.
'Is that man still alive? How is that possible?' he thought in shock.
"Hahaha!" A laugh echoed from within the raging flames. "Surprised, kid? You didn't expect me to still be alive, did you? How does it feel to be toyed with like that? Annoying, isn't it?"
The black-cloaked man emerged with both hands tucked into his cloak pockets. His eyes, hidden beneath the hood, glimmered playfully.
Merlin swallowed his surprise and asked coldly, "How did you come back to life?"
"Come back to life?" The man grinned. "When did I ever die? You're the one who's delirious."
Merlin glanced toward the man's corpse, but all he saw were tree roots.
"Substitution magic? Or… an illusion?"
