...

A few moments earlier...

​​

Bang!

Izroth narrowly evaded the spatial stream as it raced past him and into the ground. But, soon after, he inwardly furrowed his brows when he realized that something was off.

'Hm? Something changed.'

Izroth noticed that the power behind the spatial stream was diminishing. That was not all, but its speed was also declining with each passing second.

Up until a few seconds ago, the spatial stream's speed was on a steady rise; however, the number of holes in space encircling Izroth had decreased to less than 30% of their original number.

Furthermore, not too long ago, multiple fractures in space emerged near his location. Izroth did not know why, but somehow, the restrictive measures imparted by Dolos' Spatial Tempus magic was no longer present!

'If it's like this, then...'

Izroth's eyes scanned the room as if he were looking for something in the seemingly endless darkness.

'There.'

Woosh!

Just as Izroth found what he was searching for, a spatial stream rushed out from one of the nearby holes in space!

But, this time, Izroth did not attempt to avoid the incoming attack as he abruptly halted his movements. He then adjusted his stance to match that of his second sword form.

5 meters...

3 meters...

1 meter...!

Izroth took a single step forward as he waved his sword outward towards the spatial stream, using his second sword form's Sword Return to intercept it!

If it were before, Izroth would not have tried to counter the spatial stream as it could easily be regarded as the equivalent of an S-ranked skill in terms of raw power.

Without his Essence reinforcing his second sword form's Sword Return, it would be a foolish endeavor. However, with the amount of Essence Izroth currently had at his disposal, if he were to use it now, there would be none left by the time he confronted Dolos.

BANG! Shrieeeeek! Shrieeeek!

The instant Izroth's sword slashed into the spatial stream, it caused his arms to slightly tremble from the impact as a resounding screech rung inside his eardrums.

'It's weakened so much, but the destructive force contained within this spatial stream is not something I can afford to receive a direct hit from.'

Utilizing his Sword Return, Izroth managed to overcome the spatial stream and briefly gain control over it. In that split second, he could redirect it to any target of his choice!

Izroth twisted his body and swung his Sword of The Storm that carried the spatial stream on its blade's edge and aimed it at his left side.

Swoosh!

The spatial stream left Izroth's sword and soared in the direction of nothingness—at least, this was how it appeared to the bare eye. But, after traveling just four meters, the spatial stream slammed into something.

Crash!

The sound of the crash was fleeting as silence soon filled the room. Then, the neighboring space fluctuated, causing the holes in space within the vicinity to shut close. The only thing left behind was Izroth and a thin vertical line at the spot the spatial stream was destroyed.

Just now, with the aid of his Spatial Awareness skill, Izroth uncovered the most vulnerable point in the freshly fractured space. Once he determined that, it was only a matter of breaking it open wider. However, to do this, he required a skill capable of "cutting through space" so to speak, and the spatial stream suited his needs perfectly.

But, Izroth was curious as to what caused the sudden changes. Was Dolos merely redirecting his full attention to Aurie? Or, perhaps...

'Is he growing weaker?'

First, Dolos' Spatial Tempus magic restrictions had faded, and then the spatial stream lost its ferocious strength. One way or another, Izroth planned to find out.

Izroth approached the area where the line in space was located; however, it was no longer a simple line. In the span of a few breaths, it expanded to a size a bit larger than a person.

'I have less than 400 points of Essence remaining. It's not much, but it will have to suffice.'

Izroth glanced down at the medallion in his hand and placed it back into his inventory as he inwardly sighed in disappointment. He hoped that the medallion would serve some purpose, but it seemed that it was unreliable for the time being since he had no way to activate its effects.

'Maybe it did not feel the threat was great enough for it to act. Regardless of the reason, it looks like I won't be able to rely on it in the future. For now, I can only trust that this spatial tear will guide me closer to Commander Aurie.'

Without further delay, Izroth entered the broken space as it closed shortly after he stepped inside.

...

When Izroth walked into the spatial tear, he was delivered into absolute darkness. But, in a fraction of a second, he reached the other side of the spatial tear as the purple hue returned.

However, what Izroth did not expect was that the moment he exited the spatial tear, the first thing that entered his vision would be Dolos! Though, strangely enough, Dolos seemed not to have noticed his presence. It was unthinkable for a master of spatial magic to miss someone breaking through space right at their back. This confirmed Izroth's previous suspicions that Dolos was still in a weakened state!

Izroth's figure sunk into the darkness as he used Shadow Blending to reduce his presence and enter stealth.

If Dolos had not discovered him, then how could he not take advantage of this opportunity? He wanted to get a grasp on the current situation. Mainly, there was something Izroth wanted to confirm with his own two eyes.

'It's still missing. It seems they were telling the truth after all.'

When Izroth witnessed that Dolos' arm had not regenerated, he knew that his last attack was a success—but not in a way one would think.

After completing Resseki & Kiren's challenge, Izroth received a certain item as a reward called Resseki's Flawless Armament. This was not a physical weapon or magic item, but a trinket!

In RML, players could have up to two trinkets equipped at once; therefore, after reading over its abilities, he equipped Resseki's Flawless Armament.

In particular, one ability caught Izroth's attention, and earlier, he used Dolos in his Shadahi transformation state to test its effects.

'Although it worked against him, it cannot be said for certain that it would also be effective against a genuine Shadahi of equal or greater strength. Still, at the very least, it confirms that those brothers were speaking truthfully.'

One of the effects attached to Resseki's Flawless Armament was an active skill called Celestial Intent. In simple terms, it allowed the wearer to momentarily utilize something it referred to as Seed of Celestial Energy.

This Seed of Celestial Energy resembled the Celestial Energy Resseki spoke of in his recording; however, it did not appear to be authentic Celestial Energy. Nevertheless, it was enough to give Izroth an extra edge against the Shadahi's terrifying ability to regenerate.

Boom!

As Izroth observed Dolos, all of a sudden, the aura around Aurie exploded. At that moment, Izroth knew that it was time to make his move.

Woosh!

Izroth deactivated the effects of his Shadow Blending as an overbearing aura emerged from his Sword of The Storm.

"?!" Dolos sensed a sinister and oppressive intent appear seemingly out of thin air, and when he turned to see where it was coming from, the cold edge of a blade welcomed him.

"How-!" Dolos was dumbfounded when he saw a familiar figure creeping from behind the blade that was only millimeters away from his face. It was that Captain of the GSU! But, what were they doing here? Even if they could escape from their confinement, it should not have been this quick!

However, before Dolos had time to process what was happening, the sword's blade had already slashed into him. Izroth's First Baneful Sword: Destruction took Dolos by complete surprise. In that instance, he was distracted as his mind struggled to find an answer for how this person was repeatedly able to take casual strolls through his spatial restrictions!

There was no time for Dolos to react! Though it did not end there as a second wave of suffocating energy fell upon Dolos and, this time, it belonged to Aurie!

"Triple-Cross: Fatal Angelic Glissade."