Chapter 399 - 302: Millicent and the Recusants

The leader of the Recusants had a nasty laugh, and his voice sounded like a file scraping against a metal plate.

Millicent paid no attention to his words, simply focusing on gripping the weapon in her hand.

Regardless of the circumstances, it was obvious that these people intended to attack them.

"Volcano Manor's guard dogs?"

In response to Millicent's remark, the leader of the Recusants shook his head and patiently explained, "They're not Volcano Manor's dogs. They're our private property."

Millicent paused, then swung her left arm, the blade reflecting the blazing light of the flames.

"Ah… no, sorry."

"Actually, I wasn't talking about them…"

The leader of the Recusants froze for a moment. The corners of his mouth twitched as he realized that Millicent had been referring to them instead.

Alexander looked at the wild dogs covered in hardened lava, then at the Recusants, and burst into laughter.

"HAHAHA! They've even got lava stuck all over their bodies."

"Did they learn how to roll around in lava by watching you guys?"

Unfortunately, Alexander's joke received no response. The first Lava Hound was already lunging at them.

Millicent took out her Fireproof Dried Liver and bit off a large mouthful, puffing out her cheeks as she chewed.

Slowly swallowing the liver, she stood in the lava, ready to fight alongside Alexander.

Her boots and trouser legs were quickly destroyed by the molten rock. Yet Millicent's bare feet remained unharmed, aside from turning slightly red.

Alexander was the first to charge at the hounds. His fists howled through the air, and every strike swiftly killed another beast.

The lava armor on which the hounds prided themselves was as fragile as paper before his attacks.

Millicent followed close behind, unwilling to be outdone.

A flash of light streaked from the blade in her left hand, tearing through the thick sulfurous mist and instantly slicing three hounds into scattered pieces.

Although she had lost the use of her dominant right hand and hoped to recover her strength by obtaining a prosthetic arm, Millicent refused to allow herself to stagnate.

Through extraordinary diligence and relentless training, she had begun learning the Waterfowl Sword style from scratch with her left hand. She had already made considerable progress.

She still couldn't compare with her former self at the height of her strength, but at least she could now put some of her physical abilities to use.

The Lava Hounds were quickly reduced to only a handful. However, just then, the two finally witnessed the Recusants' true killing move.

Hidden behind the pack, the leader of the Recusants raised his serpentine spear and drove its tip into the ground.

In an instant, Seethewater River erupted violently. The nearby rock formations began melting like candles, reverting to their original state as lava.

In ancient times, Seethewater River had not been nearly so merciful. The molten rock hadn't cooled to leave patches of solid ground where travelers could stand.

Ancient magma surged up from deep within the earth, and columns of scorching steam erupted one after another.

This was one of the ancient incantations that had once been used by the volcano, capable of restoring Seethewater River to its former, terrifying majesty.

Seeing their opponent unleash such a grand attack and transform the surrounding terrain, Alexander and Millicent immediately grew serious.

Patches had warned them beforehand that the Recusants of Volcano Manor were extremely dangerous.

The way Volcano Manor recruited its followers meant that those who joined were already strong enough to attract the attention of its recruiters.

Moreover, the Recusants were blasphemers who increased their strength through the depraved act of devouring the flesh of their own kind.

The blasphemers craved nothing but power. They wouldn't even spare those who belonged to the same faction of Volcano Manor.

During the Shattering, they rarely survived more than a few battles, so they never had much opportunity to distinguish themselves.

They had merely left behind a vile reputation among the people, associated with blasphemy, filth, and all manner of depravity. Most people considered them disgusting rather than dangerous.

However, the long period of stagnation following the Shattering had ironically given the Recusants an opportunity to devour one another and grow stronger.

The Recusants of Volcano Manor had continued increasing their strength, and their overall caliber was now far superior to what it had been in the past.

As a result, many of the Recusants still living around Volcano Manor were dangerous individuals who deserved to be treated with caution.

After all, any Recusant daring to operate near Mt. Gelmir was naturally among the most capable survivors of this system.

At the time, however, Alexander and Millicent hadn't paid much attention to the warning.

Only now, after seeing opponents whose strength was comparable to their own, did they realize just how unexpected the situation was.

Millicent carefully observed their enemies and determined that the leader was no weaker than either of them.

The other six were slightly weaker, and they seemed to be keeping a wary eye on the man at the front.

Millicent gradually reached a conclusion.

Although their opponents were powerful, they were still a far cry from the Royal Revenant they had encountered in Liurnia last time.

The only real problem was that the terrain was extremely unfavorable to her.

However, as long as they finished the fight quickly and didn't let the effects of the Fireproof Dried Liver wear off, the two of them should be able to handle their opponents.

The temperature continued to rise, leaving Millicent little time to think. Their enemies' next attack was already underway.

The other six Recusants began chanting incantations in unison. Working together, they summoned lava that gradually condensed into spears and shot toward the pair.

As if they wanted to create a counterpart to weapon skills such as Ice Spear, the Recusants had developed a technique of their own: Magma Shot.

It was a unique incantation, distinct from both sorceries and weapon skills, and more akin to an unconventional form of incantation magic.

It was also a special technique that could unleash its full power only on Mt. Gelmir. When several people cast it together, its power increased even further.

Alexander made his decision immediately and charged toward one of the Recusants.

Millicent lowered her body and advanced behind Alexander's enormous jar-shaped frame.

Since the enemy faction was poorly coordinated and its members were wary of one another, they clearly weren't going to devote themselves to protecting their comrades. Each was fighting for himself.

Several Magma Shots grazed Alexander's body, carving into its surface with a sizzling hiss.

But the distance had already closed, and the two attacked simultaneously.

A heavy iron fist slammed down. Blades flashed through the air.

Two Recusants fell into the lava in an instant, filling the air with the charred stench of roasting meat.

Just as Millicent had expected, their opponents didn't care in the slightest about the deaths of their comrades.

But their enemies hadn't simply stood around waiting to be attacked, either. They had already been preparing their own techniques.

Countless streams of lava surged out from beneath the spears the Recusants had plunged into the molten rock, blasting upward into the sky.

Millicent turned her blade toward the sky, only to realize a moment later that this wasn't an attack she could block with a sword.

The blasphemers' flames traced bizarre arcs overhead before breaking apart into countless burning projectiles.

Magma sorcery: Gelmir's Fury!

Alexander immediately stepped forward to shield Millicent.

Although Alexander's short legs often got him stuck in holes, they had one major advantage: his center of gravity was low, giving him excellent stability.

He spun his jar-shaped body like a whirlwind, instantly deflecting most of the molten projectiles.

Nevertheless, some fragments of lava penetrated his defense and struck Millicent.

A searing pain spread through her left shoulder. Before her blood could even drip from the wound, the intense heat had vaporized it into a mist of blood.

Millicent frowned as she examined the wound, whose edges had already begun to char slightly.

If she hid inside Alexander's body, she could avoid taking any damage at all.

Unfortunately, that trick wouldn't work in a volcano. The lava was simply too hot. If she climbed inside, she would be steamed alive.

Fortunately, Alexander was tough enough to withstand the molten rock, and his combat ability remained completely unaffected even while fighting in the lava.

Millicent assessed how much time remained before the effects of the Fireproof Dried Liver wore off. Enduring the pain, she raised her weapon once again.

They had to finish this quickly.

—

Lucian followed the traces of the battle and flew toward them.

There was no helping it. Their enemy had used terrain-altering magic, and the lava in that area was glowing unusually brightly in the night.

Since Lucian happened to be nearby, he decided to take a small detour and see what was going on.

As it turned out, he found Millicent and Alexander still in the middle of a battle.

Lucian rubbed his chin and tilted his head.

"What a coincidence?"

They had mentioned their plans to visit the volcano the last time they met, but he hadn't expected their schedules to line up so perfectly.

At this moment, three Recusants were still surrounding Millicent and Alexander. All of them were wounded.

Alexander had sustained a few more injuries, but he still looked to be in pretty good condition. He had suffered almost no serious damage.

Millicent was in much the same situation. Her injuries were only minor, and she continued fighting nimbly with her weapon in hand.

However, her entire body had turned red from the heat. She was sweating profusely, and her already lightweight clothing had become completely plastered to her body, making her look exceptionally delicate and alluring.

Even without his intervention, the two of them would probably have managed to overcome this ambush without any serious trouble.

But he had just mastered some new sorcery. How could he not give it a try?

Besides, with Millicent looking so vulnerable, Lucian couldn't very well let those Recusants keep staring at her.

Lucian raised his staff and locked onto the Recusants below from beyond their field of vision.

Ever since his bones had completed their transformation into glintstone and he had learned Comet Azur, Lucian's understanding of sorcery had undergone a complete metamorphosis.

At this moment, he could clearly sense the faint points of starlight floating above the lava river.

They were ancient starlight that had fallen upon the Lands Between long before the age of the Erdtree.

Right now, those stars were flowing around the tip of his staff in rhythm with his breathing.

Lucian let out a long breath and smiled with delight.

"This feeling really is wonderful."

Whoosh!

A Comet shot across space at tremendous speed, streaking toward the distant Recusants.

Now that he had mastered even the most profound form of comet sorcery, Comet Azur, Comet was practically basic knowledge to Lucian.

The spell pierced through the sulfurous mist billowing from Seethewater River and struck one of the Recusants squarely.

The Comet came hurtling down from the sky without warning, like a satellite-based orbital cannon.

The Recusant who was hit was a tough bastard. A hole nearly larger than his entire body was blasted through him, yet he didn't utter a single sound.

The remaining two Recusants felt their hearts seize at the sight of their comrade's gruesome fate.

The one who had previously led the group turned viciously toward the only 'comrade' still alive beside him.

That bastard clearly possessed strength comparable to his own, yet he had deliberately mixed in with the others, waiting for an opportunity to ambush him.

Originally, the leader had planned to send the others forward to fight and exhaust their enemies. After the battle, he would devour them all together.

But the bastard hadn't cared about that plan at all. He had simply dragged out the fight, hoping to claim the leader's head as well.

And now, look where that had gotten them.

The five expendable nobodies were dead, a new enemy had appeared, and it seemed they were genuinely going to die here.

Why couldn't he just lie down and die like everyone else?

With much the same thought running through their minds, the two Recusants somehow reached the same conclusion at the same time.

They turned and fled.

Using a technique that allowed them to move through the lava, they instantly opened up a considerable distance between themselves and Millicent and Alexander.

However, faced with an overwhelming disparity in strength, how could they possibly escape death?

A flash of purple gravitational ripples swept past, and the ground beneath their feet began tilting toward a central point.

As Lucian altered the terrain, Seethewater River was completely overturned.

The previously level lava began rising as the surrounding land was lifted, pressing down toward the two Recusants until it finally swallowed them whole.

By the time Lucian restored the terrain to its original orientation, not even scraps of the Recusants remained.

Millicent and Alexander were utterly stunned by the transformation before their eyes.

Only a moment ago, they had been locked in a tense battle. In the next instant, the entire situation had changed dramatically.

A powerful stranger had suddenly intervened, and their enemies had vanished without a trace…

This should have been a good thing, but neither of them had the slightest idea what had just happened.

It wasn't until Lucian descended from the sky and landed in front of Millicent and Alexander that they finally saw who had intervened.

Smiling, Lucian greeted them.

"What a coincidence."

Millicent flicked the blood from her blade. The glow of the lava made her face alternate between light and shadow.

"…What a coincidence."

Seeing Millicent drenched in sweat from head to toe, Lucian conjured a storm of ice around his hand.

The surrounding lava instantly solidified into stable rock, and the temperature dropped to a normal level.

Lucian casually took out a robe and draped it over Millicent's shoulders.