Dark Magus Returns

Chapter 1436: The Shadow in the Glass

Even mages from the Dark Guild wouldn’t have recognized these runes.

Kelly’s interest had been sparked the moment she found the book Sophie had been studying, the same one that had somehow turned her into a cat. It was from that strange text that she had first learned about the formation.

But that raised more questions than it answered.

This formation clearly hadn’t been set up by Raze.

Nor by any known members of the Dark Guild.

So then why… why was there a magical formation hidden inside a mirror, one that required the use of Dark Magic to activate?

“What do you mean?” Londo asked, furrowing his brow. “It uses Dark Magic? But there aren’t any mages in Centereal Academy outside the Dark Guild who would touch that stuff. The Grand Magus would never allow it. Are you saying we’ve just discovered something that doesn’t belong to them?”

Kelly kept her eyes fixed on the glowing lines of the circle, her fingers brushing over the edge of the mirror’s surface.

“No,” she replied softly, still deciphering the etched script. “Look… you said you’re decent with formations, right? So even if you can’t read this part, you should still be able to understand the framework.”

She traced a line with her finger, the glyphs shifting faintly at her touch.

“They’ve set it so that Dark Magic is the key. As long as someone channels even a small amount of it, the formation activates and unlocks access to whatever’s behind it.”

Londo stepped back slightly, eyeing the mirror with growing unease.

The idea of using forbidden magic to open something, especially inside the academy, was disturbing enough. But what unsettled him more was the idea that someone else had already done it.

The Dark Magus hadn’t created this formation himself.

But… he had

used similar methods in the past, scattering secret caches and hiding personal items throughout the academy, guarded with unique magical locks. It was a technique Raze knew well. And one that had been nagging at the back of his mind.

Because if someone else had managed to enter a hidden room that required Dark Magic…

Then someone besides Raze was using it.

“Wait,” Londo said suddenly, his eyes widening. “Now that I think about it, there was a cursed item among the artifacts that were handed out. It came from the Cerberus Guild. They’re directly tied to the Grand Magus, aren’t they?”

Kelly turned toward him, her expression sharpening.

“It’s possible,” Londo continued. “The item was low-level, nothing impressive… but if it had been enchanted specifically to react to Dark Magic, it could’ve served as a way in.”

Kelly nodded slowly, connecting the threads.

“Then there’s someone on the Grand Magus’s side… someone who can use Dark Magic.”

She had long kept an eye on Ibarin, suspecting that sooner or later, they’d find themselves on opposing sides. Given Raze’s goals, that day felt inevitable. But even so, she had never seen Ibarin use Dark Magic. Not once.

Still, it wasn’t the sort of thing one would just casually demonstrate in public, especially not in a place like this.

“I just can’t imagine Ibarin touching something like that,” Kelly muttered. “Not with all the eyes constantly watching within the academy. There’s barely a place left where someone could safely practice forbidden spells.”

“Well, whether it’s Ibarin himself or someone else, it doesn’t really matter,” Kelly said, brushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “They could have used an item, a conduit enchanted to store and release specific types of magic. If that’s the case, Ibarin wouldn’t even need to cast Dark Magic himself to access this place.”

She turned toward Londo, eyes glinting with satisfaction.

“I think we might’ve just found what we’ve been looking for.”

A smile tugged at the corner of her lips.

“I can’t believe it. They actually used Dark Magic to hide something like this. I guess they assumed no one else would dare touch it. That this place would stay sealed forever…”

Her voice dropped slightly, a whisper filled with irony.

“Little did they know, it’d be opened by the very people who want them gone.”

Without hesitation, Kelly extended her hand. She channeled the energy, pure, forbidden, and cold, and cast the Dark Magic directly into the runes.

The mirror shimmered.

Then rippled.

Her hand began to sink into the surface as if it were made of water.

“Mirror realm,” she muttered. “Interesting… I’ll admit, it is a pretty good hiding place.”

Londo stepped forward, preparing to follow.

The runes glowed again. He felt resistance at first, but when he channeled Dark Magic himself, the barrier opened. The spellwork was clear, only those who could wield the forbidden could pass through.

Even if someone saw them enter, they wouldn’t be able to follow.

Only those marked by darkness would be allowed beyond.

With that thought, the two pushed forward, and stepped through the glass.

They emerged on the other side… only to find themselves back in what appeared to be the academy’s library.

But something was wrong.

Very wrong.

Everything looked the same, and yet completely different.

The air had changed. The colors had bled out of the world. A pale gray and faint red tint saturated the room, as if life itself had been drained from the surroundings.

The shelves were mostly empty now.

Only a few scrolls remained, scattered and curled at the edges. Several cracked power stones lay in forgotten corners of the room, flickering faintly with dormant energy.

“It’s a mirror realm duplicate of the library,” Kelly said. “Looks like it was built purely as a storage space.”

She scanned the rows. “Which means there’s not much to sift through. We should be able to find what we need quickly.”

That was the good news.

Kelly also doubted anyone else in the entire academy could even enter this realm, aside from the Grand Magus himself.

So for now… they were safe.

“Let’s grab what’s useful,” Londo said, already moving toward one of the shelves. “And report back to Raze. Something tells me he’s about to have a very good day.”

The two split up and began their search.

It didn’t take long.

Just as Kelly had suspected, the hidden space was small and efficiently organized. Within minutes, they had gathered the scrolls and components Raze had been searching for.

Another piece of the puzzle had fallen into place.

Another thread of the plan… complete.

Still, as Kelly stood in the eerie quiet of the mirror realm, a strange thought crept into her mind.

Was today really going to be a good day for Raze?

She hoped so.

Truly.

But in a world like this, hope was never enough.

****

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