Chapter 200: A Narrow Escape

Mazarino's Arcane Echo was a Six-Ring Spell the Traveling Mage had devised himself. It allowed him to forcibly recall spells by destroying his own Magic Items. By using this method, he could replenish and cast any spell from his Spellbook below the Sixth Ring in an emergency. The lower the spell's Ring Position, the more spells he could recall at once.

For a Mage who spent years wandering through various planes, this spell was practically a second Spellbook, so long as he was well-prepared.

Unfortunately, Mazarino had used up nearly all his Magic Items in the two previous battles. Now, aside from hoping Ron could quickly find his Magic Staff—which had been lost who-knows-where—the only thing left to do was prepare to run for it.

The Undead Creatures here were clearly guarding this monument. As long as they ran far enough, the creatures wouldn't give chase.

"Old-timer, over here!"

With just two minutes to spare before the Force Field Wall imprisoning the Death Knight collapsed, Mazarino's Magic Staff, his companion for over a decade, was finally back in his hands. But this final reunion was to be a farewell to his old friend.

With a CRACK, the Elder Mage snapped the Magic Staff in two over his thigh. Mazarino took a deep breath and, timing it perfectly for the final six seconds before the Force Field Wall vanished, cast another spell. The Death Knight was imprisoned once more before it could even take a step.

"Go do what you need to do!" Mazarino's eyes were bloodshot, his voice hoarse. "Don't let her sacrifice be in vain!"

"Her?" Sera had already pried loose the first stone brick from beneath the monument. Hearing him, she turned back in confusion.

"My Magic Staff!" Mazarino stomped his foot and raised his hand to cast Strike Undead. "Stop staring and dig!"

The Force Field Wall couldn't be affected by Dispel Magic. Sensing that something was wrong, the Death Knight had already begun directing the other Undead Creatures to surround them.

"Water Creation Magic! Water Manipulation!" Ron exhausted the last charge in the ice-blue Gemstone, conjuring a massive wave in the depths of the dense forest where not even a stream could be found. The lighter-bodied among the swarming Undead Creatures couldn't keep their footing and were swept far away.

"You have quite a few treasures on you, my Lord," Mazarino said, glancing in amazement at the Gemstone in Ron's hand. "If we're short on time in a bit, can I use that?"

"It's part of a set," Ron replied, curtly rejecting the proposal. He turned to look at Sera and the others digging frantically. "Unless they want to build a mausoleum for a single fragment, twenty minutes will be enough."

In reality, the people of the Farama Kingdom hadn't even prepared a coffin for a piece of their queen's remains. Just as the second ten-minute period began, Silvia's Mage's Hand touched something hard.

"Found it!" The group worked together and immediately unearthed the stone casket buried beneath the monument. "Damn it, it won't open! There's a seal on it!"

"Give me some time," Yelena leaned down, placing her hands on the stone casket. "I should be able to break it!"

"There's no time for that!" Ron glanced at the increasingly agitated Death Knight inside the Force Field Wall. "Take the casket and get ready to leave. We can deal with it when we get back!"

"Does that Death Knight look like it's going to give us time to break the seal?!"

Sera smacked away Yelena's still-reluctant hands, scooped up the stone casket, tucked it under her arm, and broke into a full sprint back the way they came. The others didn't dare delay, scrambling to their feet and fleeing into the distance.

"My Lord, you go first," Mazarino said, backing slowly away from the Force Field Wall at a normal walking pace to ensure the spell didn't dissipate prematurely due to his own haste. 'Don't worry, don't worry... I'll be 'letting you out' in just a moment...'

ROAR! At last, the Force Field Wall could hold no longer. The enraged Death Knight burst through its prison. Raging flames and black smoke erupted from its dark armor and greatsword. Now free, it was like a Prisoner desperate for revenge, eager to quench its fury with the blood of the living!

"Stop gawking and run!"

Ron grabbed Mazarino, who was still reeling from the magical backlash, around the waist and shot into the air, diving into the distant woods just before the Death Knight's Blazing Flame Slash could hack them to pieces.

The clearing behind them had exploded into chaos. Even though the stone casket they guarded was gone, the numerous Undead Creatures were still bound to that land, unable to leave. The continuous sounds of cracking bones, heavy impacts, and pained howls filled the air—the Death Knight, in its impotent rage, was venting its fury on its own minions.

"That was close, so close," Mazarino said as he scrambled up from the muddy ground, frantically patting his head and back. "Is my head still on? It's still on, right?"

"I was carrying you when I ran. I'm still alive, so how could anything have happened to you?" Ron sat down on the ground, annoyed. He yanked off his robe—the back of this Magic Robe, which the merchant in Rose City had claimed was impervious to fire and water, was almost completely burned away. Even his own back was scorched.

That was just from a glancing blow. If it had been a direct hit, Ron doubted even Victoria's Resurrection Magic could have brought him back.

"That's good, then." The Traveling Mage let out a long breath, then suddenly broke into a foolish grin. "Lads and lasses, you'll have quite the story to boast about in the future!"

"To steal something from right under a Death Knight's nose and get away safely—do you have any idea how lucky you are!"

"That's almost as difficult as escaping from the lair of an adult Giant Dragon!"

Mazarino looked excitedly at the youngsters, only to find them just looking at each other, not showing any signs of excitement.

"Don't tell me..." The Traveling Mage had a bad feeling. "You haven't actually been to an adult Giant Dragon's lair, have you?"

"An ancient one, to be precise," Ron said with a twitch of his lips. "And that dragon is dead."

"We couldn't even handle the 'watchdog' it left behind," Aive said with a shrug, her armor clanging. "Between the two, we honestly can't say which was easier to deal with."

"Ugh, why are you all dwelling on that!" Delaford impatiently snatched the stone casket and began trying to open it with lockpicking tools. "Come on, let's see how we can get this thing open!"

"How about I bite it open?"

"Aren't you afraid of getting a mouthful of corpse oil?!" Aive speechlessly lifted the goblin up. "Didn't you hear Silvia and Yelena just now? It has a Magic Seal on it, so physical methods definitely won't work!"