The black-robed mage hovered in the air, watching in horror as the vivid expression on Alec's face faded to nothing—the flame of life quietly slipping from his eyes.
The king's sixth son had died right in front of him.
The black-robed mage's hands and feet turned to ice. Though his secret mission came directly from the Mage Association, even if he succeeded, the Association wouldn't go to war with the king over a mere Apprentice Mage. What awaited him was expulsion from the Association—or worse, execution by fire.
Ryan, meanwhile, felt incredible. A wondrous sensation flooded his entire being. He was full of power. Even more amazing, he felt a mysterious energy flowing into him from Alec—as if he were absorbing the boy's very life.
Ryan pulled his palm away from Alec's neck. A long, blood-smeared bone needle emerged from the wound. The needle was roughly the length from wrist to middle fingertip—perfectly sized to pierce a human throat.
'Is this my bone skill?' Ryan stared at the needle in his palm, dazed.
Strong Bone Carol arrived twenty meters away. He didn't attack immediately, instead eyeing the black-robed mage warily. The massive fire shield clearly intimidated him—and rightly so. Generally speaking, a Strong Bone was no match for an Apprentice Mage.
---
'Alec is dead?'
In River Valley Village behind the stone wall, the old man with the full white beard rose to his feet.
'Dead is dead. That boy was too competitive—a liability to the royal family. Better he dies on the battlefield than from poisoned wine in some palace scheme.'
'Still... the situation outside grows too complicated. I'd better intervene.'
He straightened up, preparing to deal with the two Strong Bones. But just as he moved, an unexpected change occurred. Without warning, the tip of a black dagger erupted from his chest. Red blood bloomed on his dirty mage robe like a flower opening to the sun.
"Shadow Assassin? So you really do exist!" Shock flooded the old man's face. Though he couldn't see his killer, he guessed the identity.
No answer. Only the dagger slicing sideways, cutting his heart in half along the rib gap—then withdrawing into nothing.
The old man crumpled into a pool of blood. Gritting through the agony, he touched the tip of his tongue to the roof of his mouth, now filling with bloody foam. A silent syllable escaped his trembling lips:
"Reveal."
The world dissolved. The house, the forest, the stone wall, the villagers, even the massive mountains surrounding River Valley Village—all vanished. Only two figures remained visible: the mage fighting on the wall, and the shadow that had just killed him. The shadow moved away from the mage, the distance between them growing.
The old man, intimately familiar with Shadow Assassins' methods, felt his strength finally leave him. But a bitter smile crossed his face.
'An assassination targeting only me? Then... it's alright. It's alright.'
---
The black-robed mage remained ignorant that he'd just lost a powerful protector. Shaking off the shock of the prince's death, he knew he had to retrieve Alec's body first. He still carried valuable mission items—lingering on the battlefield was unacceptable.
The Fire Shield floated behind him autonomously. The mage approached Ryan. Five fireballs orbited his palm, each capable of blasting Ryan to fragments.
Ryan had evolved a bone skill and was now a Red Bone—but against a mage, he stood no chance. He'd seen Red Bones obliterated instantly by this very mage. Now those deadly fireballs hovered above him.
Panicked, Ryan could only raise Alec's body as a shield. He didn't know if it would work—but it was his only option.
The black-robed mage couldn't strike easily. Leaving spell marks on Alec's body would destroy any chance of pleading his case—and guarantee a horrific death.
Glancing at the Strong Bone twenty meters away, the mage decided on an ultra-short guiding spell. He'd make the fireball curve around Alec's body and destroy this damned Red Bone.
"Flame—Veer—"
Two syllables out, and Strong Bone Carol beside him unleashed a piercing, inhuman shriek. The nearly ultrasonic sound slammed into the mage's throat, cutting off his chant—and damaging his vocal cords.
"Damn it—the Forbidden Wail!" The mage's shock was genuine. He'd assumed this Strong Bone, like most, relied on physical attacks. He never expected this rarest of abilities: sonic attack. Struck by the Forbidden Wail within twenty meters wouldn't cause severe injury—but it would temporarily rob him of the ability to chant.
The mage waved his hands continuously, machine-gunning dozens of fireballs at Carol. Though these chant-less instant fireballs lacked power, their sheer volume was impressive.
Strong Bones possessed formidable bodies, yet Carol still dared not meet the fireballs head-on. He dodged awkwardly while retreating, ordering all Battle Bones under his command to launch a full assault. He'd assessed River Valley Village's strength now—just one Apprentice Mage and twenty-odd apprentices. And that mage had lost his chanting ability. He could wear him down with skeleton swarm tactics.
Seeing the skeleton tide pressing forward, the black-robed mage remained calm. He produced a scroll from his bag, tore it open, and infused magic. Khaki light flowed from the scroll into the ground. The earth trembled—and a massive creature armored in rock crawled forth: a Rock Salamander!
Unable to establish a mental link through chanting, the mage could only command it verbally.
"Rock Salamander—push them into the wall!" The mage pointed at Ryan, still clutching Alec's body.
The dim-witted magical creature hesitated—then suddenly whipped its ten-meter tail against Ryan's back. Ryan and Alec hurtled over the wall and into River Valley Village.
"Idiot!" The mage cursed under his breath. The last thing he needed was Alec's body broken in two—it would only amplify the king's fury.
Glancing back briefly, he saw both Alec and the Red Bone land and lie still. Villagers watched from a distance. The mage assumed the Red Bone couldn't survive such force, so he didn't bother retrieving the body. Instead, he focused on commanding the Rock Salamander, now surrounded by Battle Bones. He only had two such summoning scrolls—mishandle this, and the two Strong Bones might actually trap him here.
The mage never saw the white-bearded old man lying in the dark corner. As an Apprentice Mage, he'd rarely encountered Archmages—the continent's peak power. He didn't know his mission was important enough to warrant an Archmage's secret protection.
Battle Bones were far stronger than Red Bones—but against the Rock Salamander's formidable defense, they were inadequate. Their bone weapons couldn't penetrate its stone armor, and even when they found gaps, their reach couldn't harm the magical creature deeply.
On the wall, the magic apprentices shook off their panic and began methodically launching spells. Their magic proved lethal to Battle Bones. The battle reached another stalemate.
---
Ryan lay on the cold stone ground, Alec's bloody corpse pressing down on him. Villagers' whispers and curses drifted from nearby. If not for his blood-soaked skeleton appearing truly fearsome, those peasant women clutching hoes might have rushed him already.
Then—vast "power" flooded him again. Stronger than before. Ryan felt it repairing his broken leg bones and spine. He raised his head, tracking the source—and saw the white-bearded old man lying in a pool of blood.
'Killing humans... makes me grow?'
The realization crystallized instantly. He'd first felt this strange power beneath the stone wall, when all surrounding skeletons had died—the dead militiamen's power flowed into him. Later, the black-robed mage's wounded shoulder, then Alec's death—all absorbed by Ryan. And now this dying old man transmitted even vaster power.
'Killing is my path to growth.'
Ryan watched his bone needle slowly lengthen, nourished by the power, and confirmed the truth.
---
Strong Bone Carol retreated swiftly, satisfaction coursing through him. He hadn't expected the stupid Apprentice Mage to actually chant magic within his range. The Forbidden Wail only harmed mages mid-chant—he'd approached cautiously, waiting for a mistake. He never dreamed success would come so easily.
'That cute little one is interesting. Should I consider promoting him?'Carol thought of Ryan—the Gray Bone who'd killed Alec. That act had provoked the Apprentice Mage into taking the fatal risk of chanting.
Danger!
In his complacency, Carol suddenly sensed something wrong.
Having retreated across the valley, unease gnawed at him. Augustus—the other Strong Bone who'd come with him—was gone.
The Battle Bones under Augustus's command charged desperately; clearly, he'd ordered a full assault. But Augustus himself had vanished.
Carol scanned the gradually quietening valley. Strong Bones weren't so easily dealt with. Could Augustus have been dragged away by some beast without a sound?
Then—an ice web, nearly invisible in the night sky, descended upon him.
By the time Carol noticed, he already felt the cool silk threads settling on his shoulder.
"AHHHHH!" Carol's piercing scream launched a visible whirlwind of sound, blasting the ice web skyward. But one corner clung to his left arm. Freezing temperatures quickly cracked the bone. Before Carol could register the pain, he heard a CRACK—his entire left arm shattered and fell.
"Battle Bones—protect me!" Ordering nearby Battle Bones to defend him, Carol retreated in agony.
But his attacker gave no chance to escape. An arrow with a crescent-shaped head flew true, nimbly drilling into Carol's throat, locking his cervical spine, and dragging him back over ten meters to pin him against a massive tree. A skeleton's cervical spine was its vital point—once locked, all strength fled. Carol couldn't move.
Three young humans emerged. One wielded a massive axe, smashing approaching Battle Bones to fragments like a steel whirlwind. His exquisite axe-work and calm demeanor marked him as a veteran warrior. Carol's heart sank.
'Bone Hunters.'
The handsome archer approached Carol, smiling faintly. "Strong Bone—there's no Dark Crystal in River Valley Village. That was just bait to lure you here."
Carol's jaw worked silently. The dark red light in his eye sockets flickered rapidly. *If there's no Dark Crystal, why is there a mage in the village?*
"Ace, you talk too much. Just extract his bone soul!" The blue-haired youth waved impatiently. An ice knife, glowing with blue light, flew from his palm and neatly bisected Carol's skull. Inside the bowl-shaped cranium, a dark red light pulsed.
All three youths' eyes lit up. The bone soul was a valuable treasure.
"Ace—you want to help that mage?" The blue-haired Howard sealed Carol's bone soul in a transparent crystal, then noticed the archer staring toward the battlefield.
"How many good things could one of the empire's mages possess? I've no interest in helping him." Ace's eyes flickered with killing intent. "I'm wondering about that abnormal Gray Bone. If he survives this battle, he'll likely become a Red Bone."
"Red Bone?" Howard laughed mockingly. "What's a Red Bone? Even a Battle Bone can't match Rick's axe. We just took down a Strong Bone—easily."
Ace shook his head slowly. "A black flame—even still weak—is terrible."