Advent of the Archmage

In actuality, their battle against the Necromancer began the moment they saw the Mage Tower. Herrera lived up to her name as Anthony's prized disciple. Although she was only one level higher than Link, her battle experience from nearly 20 years of magic research was not something Link could hope to match up to at this point. This was clear from the way Herrera fought. 　　

The thick white mist was making it difficult to determine the exact location of their enemies. While Link was blindly casting his spells, Herrera decided to cast a Level-2 True Sight spell to dispel the mist. What Link had often thought of as superfluous spells were actually useful in certain situations and the ability to maximize their potential was something he still had to learn.

Bryant once said, "There are no useless spells, only useless Magicians." Link could not agree more. 　　　　

It was neither an intense battle nor one filled with fancy spells. The only challenging part of the battle was the white mist which clouded their sense of direction. However, this could be potentially lethal from another perspective.

If Herrera and Link were ordinary humans with no magic powers, they would be completely helpless in this situation. This would hold true even if they had insanely strong Battle Auras. Hence, even if the kingdom had sent an entire army in an attempt to corner the Necromancer, the likelihood that they would even come close to his Mage Tower was close to zero. And that was the power of knowledge and experience.　　

Battles between Magicians were often a battle of both might and wit, as well as accurate predictions of the opponent's mentality. That was exactly what this battle was!

The appearance of undead Warriors meant that the Necromancer was finally showing his true colors. This undead soldier was a 15 feet tall giant with a thick exterior and insane strength. Despite being restricted by the holy aura, it still destroyed the Wind Fenrir in one hit. Following which, he charged straight at Link, swinging the wooden club it held fiercely at Link.

Link instinctively wanted to dodge the attack, but stopped himself from doing so. One should never follow his human instincts in a fight, especially if the opponent is a Magician. Instincts were far too predictable, and following them would often lead you straight into the opponent's trap.

That was also the reason why some ordinary humans were defeated by Magicians despite being extremely skilled Warriors or Sharpshooters with quick reflexes. They depended mostly on their instincts and brute force in a battle, causing them to fall easily into a Magician's calculations.　　　

The area behind Link was covered in a thick white mist. Link was almost sure that there were other undead Warriors waiting in ambush. If he were to follow his instincts and dodge the attack, he would be dead. However, he also had to fend off the incoming attack.　

Link swiftly dodged sideways to extend the time taken for the incoming attack to hit him. At the same time, he raised his matchstick wand and cast a Level-3 Edelweiss spell on Herrera!　　

Edelweiss was a Level-3 spell and had decent magical and physical defensive power. Although Link was currently in danger of suffering a lethal blow, he was less concerned with the dangers that were currently visible to him. This was because he could already accurately predict when the attack would hit him.

On the other hand, while Herrera looked safe at the moment, would his opponent really ignore a Level-5 Magician and go after the Level-4 one? This was impossible!

Link predicted that his opponent had already planned an ambush on Herrera while she was focused on dealing with the undead giant. He was merely waiting for the right time to strike and deliver a lethal blow.　

Link might just be overthinking, however, he would take no chances. His decisions at that moment truly revealed his potential and flair as a Magician.　　

Seeing that the Edelweiss spell was cast on her, Herrera was clearly surprised and shot Link a puzzling glance. The moment their eyes met, a mutual understanding was reached.　

Herrera did not have Link's exceptional ability to make instantaneous and accurate predictions in battle, but she chose to put her complete faith in him. 　　

She then concentrated fully on casting her spell She raised her crystal staff and pointed it at the undead giant, "Shining Net of Blades!"

As an Angel of Light, Herrera naturally had a gift for using light elemental magic. This was the gift that her race was bestowed with. 　　

Shining Net of Blades

Level-4 spell

Mana Cost: 330 points.

Casting Time: 3 seconds.

Effect: Accumulates the power of light elementals to create a net of extremely high temperature able to cut through most objects.　　

(Note: If the user is an Angel of Light, spellcasting time is reduced by 50%)　　

That meant Herrera could cast a Level-4 spell in 1.3 seconds. What a convenient gift.　　

A net shining in white light could be seen advancing towards the undead giant. It was extremely huge, leaving the undead no room for escape. When the net came in contact with its body, it cut through the flesh without any form of resistance, swiftly dismembering it.　　

A foul odor was released into the air. Without the sustenance of magic, the flesh began to rot almost immediately. It was such a toxic compound to the point that it was corroding the ground beneath, making sizzling sounds and causing more white mist to appear. 　　

At that moment, the predicted attack on Herrera happened. It was slightly later than what Link expected. This should have been due to Herrera's exceptionally fast spellcasting speed. Judging from the normal time needed to cast a Level-4 spell, the time of the ambush was in fact timed perfectly.　

This undead was extremely frail and small compared to the giant. It was no more than four feet eight in height and held two daggers in his hands. Its speed, on the other hand, was extremely fast, and got within attacking proximity to Herrera in the blink of an eye.　

It was an undead Assassin.　

The only thing Herrera could do was to run forward. Under the effect of the Cheetah's Agility spell, she was traveling at an extremely fast speed and managed to put some distance between the attacker and herself. 　　

However, she was still slower than her opponent. The Assassin thrust the dagger fiercely forward, hitting the Edelweiss barrier. The impact of the attack on the magic force field created ripples in the air.　　

The Edelweiss barrier greatly reduced the attacking speed of the Assassin, but was nonetheless, not enough to completely stop the attack. If nothing was done, Herrera would suffer a stab through the heart in the next second. But she was not alone. Link, who was saved from the giant's attack, could now focus completely on saving Herrera.

Whistle of Death!　　

A sharp whistling sound pierced through the atmosphere. Link made use of the fire elemental energy stored within the Domingo Crystal to fire a Whistle spell every 0.15 seconds. He fired three consecutive attacks in less than half a second time.　　

The first attack hit the undead Assassin on the right shoulder.　　

Link chose his attacking spots very wisely. He did not opt for the frailer but thinner arms, which would have a high chance of missing, especially if his opponent was travelling at a fast speed. The shoulder joint was the fulcrum which would have to be activated to exert force. Hence, not only would it have the same intended effect, it was also a much larger target.　　

Boom! The whistle penetrated into the undead and ripped off its right arm with a fierce explosion.

In order for the Assassin to move at such a fast speed, its defense was heavily compromised. Without its right arm, the undead lost its power and was easily rebounded by the Edelweiss force field. Herrera was safe!　　

The second whistle penetrated into the center of its chest, the explosion propelling it in the opposite direction.

The third whistle, on the other hand, flew into the thick cloud of mist beside Link and revealed another incoming undead Assassin. Its speed was comparable to the one that ambushed Herrera.

If Link had chosen to dodge the undead giant attack by retreating backwards, he would have been done in. The Necromancer probably did not expect Link to dodge sideways instead, explaining the delayed deployment of this third undead Warrior.

The third whistle was also something that the Necromancer did not expect. Despite attempts at dodging the attack, the Assassin's right arm was still hit and ripped off by the explosion.

The Assassin continued to advance towards Link, despite the loss of an arm. This affected its balance and greatly reducing its speed. This gave Herrera and Link a lot more time to react.

Link fired two more Whistles. One flew towards the undead Assassin that attacked Herrera, this time destroying it for good.　

The other flew towards the Assassin heading towards him, hoping to once again reduce its speed. However, the Assassin was prepared this time. It successfully dodged the attack and headed straight for Link. Herrera immediately hollered, "Heat Ray!"　　　

This was an extremely powerful single target Level-3 spell. A white streak of light flashed across the horizon, penetrating through the undead Assassin's brain. 　　　

All undead had a soul flame located in their brains which kept them alive. The intense heat from Herrera's spell instantaneously destroyed the magic structure of the flame and rendered it into a pile of rotten flesh.

The battle was finally over.

This was the high-level battling style between official Magicians. It involved intricate calculations, physical strength and spellcasting techniques. Any mistakes or carelessness would inevitably result in death.　

This was on a completely different level than battles between low-level Magicians. 　　

Herrera was still gasping for breath when she took a glance at Link. She was amazed at his battle capabilities; her eyes shone with a gleam of respect.

No wonder he is the Chosen One. To be able to unbind oneself from the deathly chains of the enemy so efficiently—it truly is a wonder to behold, Herrera thought. 　

Shade was also taken aback, "This young man is something…Alright, I will challenge the extent of your power!"

It was not an easy feat escaping from the combined assault of his undead trio. However, he had thousands of undead Warriors at his command; he would slowly wither them out.