Ludwig hurried up through the stairs, and burst through the door as fast as possible reached the desk and opened the drawer, finding an old diary. He quickly pocketed it into his storage ring and turned his attention to the bookcase. After a moment of searching, he found the hidden compartment and pressed it. The room immediately began to vibrate, magic circles springing to life across the walls and floor. Lines of magic crisscrossed the room like spiderwebs, attaching themselves to specific books and items. One by one, the objects turned into white light and disappeared.
This happened not only in Van Dijk’s office, but all over the tower.
A ring appeared in the compartment, and Ludwig picked it up, inspecting it.
[Mass Storage Ring]
Ludwig checked inside it and found a vast collection of Van Dijk’s books and materials. He realized this was a failsafe—a way to protect incriminating evidence in case of an attack. The ring had absorbed everything that could link Van Dijk to Dark Magic.
A portal suddenly opened in the middle of the room, its swirling energy promising escape. But before Ludwig could step through, a notification flashed before his eyes.
[You are in a hostile environment!]
Ludwig was about to ignore the notification, since he was already in a hostile environment. But this never happened before, he never received the same notification twice from the same thing.
Ludwig hesitated for a fraction of a second, his instincts screaming at him to move. He ducked to the side just as a fireball exploded where he had been standing.
“Fuck, I missed,” a familiar voice said.
Ludwig turned to see Sebas standing in the doorway, his staff glowing with residual magic. The man’s expression was twisted with malice, his eyes locked on Ludwig.
“Didn’t expect this one, you rotten pile of bones,” Sebas sneered, tapping his staff twice on the floor. Coiling vines shot up from the ground, lashing out at Ludwig, who barely managed to jump back in time to avoid them.
“You’re the reason this is happening!” Ludwig shouted, his voice filled with anger and realization.
“Too bad you won’t be alive to say it! Blame your own arrogance—you brought this on yourself, you fucker!” Sebas retorted, pointing his staff at Ludwig. Two more fireballs shot out, forcing Ludwig to dive and roll to avoid them. The fireballs blasted the nearby walls and into an unfortunate shelf. Many old books were turned to ash instantly, regretfully so.
“Explosive Mines!” Ludwig shouted, thrusting his hand forward.
“Contain!” Sebas chanted, and a blue spherical orb manifested around the explosive mine, suppressing the blast before it could do any damage.
“Don’t compare me with the students you fought, dumbass!” Sebas growled, raising his arm. “Latreanuvei!” A massive magical arm formed in the air, reaching out to grab Ludwig.
Ludwig reacted instantly, jerking his right arm to manifest his sword. He activated [Steadfast Leap], propelling himself across the room and landing near the office window. The magical arm slammed into the tower’s interior, shaking the structure violently.
“You can dodge well for a rat! But how long can you survive! Today you’ll die and get these grievances off the way.”
“You’re the one who’s incompetent for Van Dijk to take as a student,” Ludwig retorted, “Why blame me for your own lack of talent!”
“SHUT UP!” Sebas roared as he sent more magic Ludwig’s way who kicked the desk up to block it. Though sadly Van Dijk’s desk immediately turned to dust and ash from the magic.
‘Ludwig, is everything alright?!’ Van Dijk’s voice echoed in his mind.
‘No! Sebas is trying to kill me!’ Ludwig replied, his mental voice frantic.
‘Sebas? I see… Ludwig, I noticed you activated the failsafe. Did you collect the ring?’
‘Yes, I did.’ Ludwig replied in a strained voice, seemingly dodging through something.
‘Can you use the portal?’ Van Dijk asked urgently.
Ludwig took a second to reply, causing some anxiety in Van Dijk, ‘No, he’s blocking me. I don’t think I can use it. I’m stuck—he’s blocking the door and the portal…’
‘Door and portal… then Jump from the window, now!’ Van Dijk commanded.
Ludwig didn’t hesitate. Even if the fall killed him, he had souls to spare, he could come back and warn his master. With the knowledge he had now, he could at least avoid being caught by Sebas. He hurled himself out of the window, bracing for impact.
But instead of the ground, he found himself falling into a massive cloud of blackness. Bats—thousands of them—swarmed around the tower’s midsection, their purpose to instill terror in the paladins. The bats caught Ludwig mid-fall, their small bodies working together to carry him away from the tower and toward the academy grounds.
As Ludwig was carried to safety, he glanced back at the tower. Van Dijk stood at the center of the chaos, his aura radiating pure darkness. The paladins hesitated, their confidence shattered by the sheer power of the eight-circle mage.
But something else caught Ludwig’s eye. Amid the chaos, a small boy—no older than twelve or thirteen—stood among the paladins. Unlike the others, he wasn’t focused on Van Dijk. His eyes were locked on Ludwig, a faint smile playing on his lips.
[The Old One is watching!]
The child waved at Ludwig, his expression eerily calm, before turning his attention back to Van Dijk. Ludwig felt a chill run down his spine, but there was nothing he could do. The bats carried him away, leaving the tower and its defenders behind.
As Ludwig disappeared into the distance, Van Dijk’s voice roared across the battlefield, a final declaration of defiance. “Holy Order! If you wish for death, then come!”
The battle was far from over, but Ludwig knew his role had changed. He had to survive, to lay low, and to uncover the truth behind the Holy Order’s attack. The Black Tower was under siege, and Ludwig was now a fugitive in a world that had turned against him.
And all he could ask himself was, “What the fuck just happened?”
