Chapter 20: High Sister
The black mist from the Erebus Box indeed possessed immense resistance to magic, a fact already confirmed in the underground ruins of the Orc Royal Court. When the mist spread underground, aside from a few special spells, virtually no mage could contain its expansion. Thus, the group had to pay a certain price to seal it within a white crystal box capable of isolating all negative energy.
Where did this bizarre magic resistance come from? It was indeed a mystery. After the Imperial Royal Mage Association's Second Research Group obtained the right to study the Erebus Box, they had been trying to crack this puzzle, but unfortunately, months of effort yielded no results. Their only achievement was discovering that positive energy and Holy Light—energies with purifying properties—could slightly curb the black mist's spread and, to some extent, weaken it.
But no one would ever know that the black mist would become 'angry' when exposed to Holy Light.
Mist getting angry? Saying that sounds utterly absurd, but it was the truth.
In the year 833 of the Falling Stars Era, late one early summer night, on Truth Avenue in the Imperial Capital, near the Mage Association, the black sea of mist surged in fury, churning as if boiling. Layers of black waves, rising and falling as though alive, struck precisely toward Robzek's location.
The momentum of these waves was formidable, the force within them seemingly capable of shattering the entire street. The air was torn apart, producing piercing sonic booms that echoed repeatedly over the Imperial Capital, startling countless sleeping people.
"What a beast."
Robzek narrowed his eyes slightly. The Paladin's body and mind had long been honed to a transcendent level through prolonged combat and meditation. The moment the mist sea boiled, he was ready to counter the attack. Facing the supersonic wave of mist, the Ultimate-rank Paladin stepped forward solemnly, raising his left hand as sacred runes spun in his palm.
"Shield."
The concise, forceful words had barely fallen when a silver-white semicircular barrier rapidly expanded from him, enveloping both Robzek and the street behind him.
[Divine Word · Barrier]
The moment the black wave struck the light barrier, it was repelled by the blazing radiance. The countering Holy Light shattered the black mist into fragments, and violent shockwaves scattered in all directions, blasting large craters into the surrounding houses and streets. Hexagonal grids supported by runes layered across the barrier's surface, making it appear indestructible.
"Order the City Guard to evacuate immediately! This is no place for them!"
Within the barrier, the old mage barked orders, commanding the ordinary people still lingering nearby to flee quickly: "Cordon off the nearest three blocks! Send someone to notify Nostradamus and His Majesty!"
—Once those two stepped in, no matter how bizarre the black mist was, it would be thoroughly resolved.
The other mages heard the command and acted without hesitation, immediately dispersing the civilians and using spells to contact Nostradamus. Seeing this, the white-haired mage's expression relaxed slightly, but a lingering sense of foreboding remained in his heart.
The loss of control over the Erebus Box, like the previous demon summoning incident, was a serious error. The demon incident had led to several high-ranking officials in the City Guard and Imperial Guard being demoted or transferred to idle posts. This time, the Mage Association's mistake would cause even greater losses, and the penalties would undoubtedly be harsher. Perhaps several group leaders would be dismissed, and the association's budget would be slashed.
But the white-haired mage's concern wasn't about that. He wasn't part of the Second Group; their mistake had nothing to do with him, and even if punished, it wouldn't be severe. His foreboding stemmed from the strange, sacred singing that had come from the black mist earlier.
It wasn't a real sound but a psychic echo that resonated directly in the mind. For a voice to bypass the mental barrier of a Gold Peak Archmage and appear in his sea of consciousness, it warranted extreme vigilance.
"Ee—lah, ee—lah—"
As if answering the old mage's thoughts, a faint yet clear singing drifted leisurely from the black mist. Robzek and the old mage both widened their eyes, simultaneously feeling a chilling sense of crisis, yet unable to pinpoint its source.
"What is that sound—"
Before the puzzled words could finish, the Paladin maintaining the Divine Word Barrier suddenly experienced a mental lapse. He felt a strange voice whispering in his mind, as if from a great distance—fragmented and scattered, intermittent, as if narrating or praising. The singing seemed to be part of a sacred hymn, yet it brought no peace, only a twisted, dizzying nausea.
Because of this, a flaw appeared in the Holy Light's operation—a mistake that shouldn't have happened. A gap emerged in the otherwise flawless silver-white barrier.
The black mist, which had been scattered by the Divine Word Barrier, suddenly surged. It leaped over the gap in the barrier and seeped inside. Both Robzek and the white-haired mage seemed petrified, offering no resistance as they were swallowed.
"Group Leader Mu Er!"
"Lord Robzek!"
Other mages and church knights who had just arrived from nearby residences to assist witnessed this scene and cried out in unison. The young mage named Vera, who had just used the communication array to notify Nostradamus, stared in shock and fury at the black mist, which had now calmed after swallowing the two. His face was full of confusion and disbelief.
Mu Er, the white-haired mage, was the leader of the Royal Mage Association's Third Research Group and also Vera's mentor. The old man possessed strength nearing the Ultimate rank. While the Erebus Box's black mist was strange, it shouldn't have been able to so easily defeat a Gold Peak Archmage.
The church knights were even more astonished. Robzek was stronger than Mu Er, having reached the Ultimate realm. As a Paladin, his resistance should have been a notch higher than a mage of the same level. Yet both had been swallowed by the black mist without any resistance—it was almost unbelievable.
Even the monster army of the Plague Lands couldn't achieve that.
Hasty footsteps echoed from the other end of the street—the sound of nearby residents evacuating in a rush. Thousands of Imperial Capital inhabitants were roughly awakened from their sleep. Mages used spells to semi-force these people out of their homes, away from the dangerous black mist.
Under the protection of several church knights, a beautiful woman with platinum-blonde hair and eyes covered by a black blindfold arrived near Truth Avenue. Her presence revitalized the other bewildered church personnel, who had been lost after seeing Robzek swallowed by the mist. Finding their anchor again, the knights quickly gathered around the long-haired woman.
"Lady Sa Ya!"
A knight who had witnessed the Paladin's battle with the black mist and his subsequent swallowing bowed to the nun named Sha Ye. He reported briefly in a low voice: "Lord Robzek fought the black mist but unexpectedly failed. He has been swallowed and his whereabouts are unknown!"
"I know."
A soft, ethereal voice sounded. Sa Ya nodded slightly and replied calmly: "Maintain the scene. Don't let the black mist spread... Robzek is fine. His life flame still burns, steady as ever."
"Yes!"
Receiving the order, several church knights quickly moved to the edge of the black mist. By now, most of the civilians had been evacuated. The entire Truth Avenue, aside from the black sea of mist, was left with empty houses and pothole-ridden streets. They joined forces to set up divine arrays, though it might be futile, it would buy some time.
Meanwhile, Sa Ya silently turned her head toward the direction of the black mist. Though her eyes were covered by a blindfold, it didn't seem to hinder her vision. Staring at the calm black mist, the nun's expression shifted slightly: "Not an existence of the mortal world... The Erebus Box—what exactly is inside it..."
As space rippled, Joshua and Nostradamus arrived near the Royal Mage Association and saw this scene.
A massive, eerie mass of black mist, occupying most of a block, sat at the center of the street. It was hundreds of meters long and dozens of meters high. Though it appeared to be a wispy fog, it was actually a deep, bottomless aggregation of dark energy. Yet surprisingly, neither the warrior nor the old mage sensed any significant negative energy reaction.
Around this mist, over a dozen church knights and several association mages worked together to block it off from the surrounding streets. They were setting up arrays to confine the black mist within a certain area.
"...A bit big."
Joshua nodded slightly, admitting that the black sea of mist before him was indeed larger than he had imagined. Frowning, he said: "I originally thought, no matter how exaggerated, it would only swallow a few houses. Master Nostradamus, this is beyond the level of an experimental error."
—This was an experimental disaster!
"...How disgraceful! Where is Ha Su?!"
Nostradamus stared for a long moment after seeing it. He was very familiar with the terrain around the Mage Association, and one glance told him that the black mist had completely enveloped the entire Royal Mage Association. Having Joshua, an outsider, witness such a scene was a blow to Nostradamus's pride as the association's president. Fuming, the old mage barked: "That old fool! He causes such a huge mess and then disappears?! Disgraceful! He should resign from the association! And where is Mu Er? At this hour, he should be in the association too—why isn't anyone here?!"
"I have to clean up this huge mess! What use are you all?!"
A young mage setting up an array diagram sensed the noise behind him. He turned around and was so startled that his staff fell to the ground. But ignoring that for now, he quickly ran toward Nostradamus.
Seeing the young mage, Nostradamus's expression improved slightly. When the other reached him, the old mage asked sternly: "Vera, what's going on? When you reported to me, you didn't say the black mist had spread this far! And where is your mentor, Mu Er?"
"President! I don't know either!"
Though nervous and flustered, the young mage's report was still coherent: "I was conducting an experiment with my mentor when suddenly a loud crystal-shattering sound came from the underground second laboratory. My mentor thought something was wrong, so he terminated the experiment and told me to go check. The result..."
"The mist was spreading, right."
Interrupting Vera, Nostradamus turned to look at the black mist. His eyes narrowed, and his expression turned somewhat grim: "Ha Su must have violated the experimental regulations. Right, the time limit is almost up. If he doesn't produce results soon, his prestige will plummet—a short-sighted fool!"
"Continue," he nodded, signaling Vera to go on.
"Yes!"
Swallowing, the young mage recounted the subsequent events: how Mu Er gathered all the other mages still in the association, terminated experiments, evacuated quickly, and led the effort to block the mist's spread. But due to the mist's magic resistance, the results were minimal. As the situation worsened, Robzek, the leader of the church delegation, arrived and helped Mu Er temporarily suppress the mist.
At this point, Vera's expression showed confusion and disbelief: "Lord Robzek had completely suppressed the black mist. Holy Light did have a restraining effect on it. But then the mist suddenly erupted violently and counterattacked against my mentor and Lord Robzek—and then, then the two seemed to turn to stone and were swallowed by the mist!"
The final part of his account was somewhat vague. The young mage's tone suggested self-doubt, as if he thought he had seen an illusion. But both Nostradamus and Joshua, who had been listening quietly, understood why. It was indeed an incredible event. No one would expect an Ultimate-rank Paladin and a near-Ultimate Archmage to fall to a strange patch of black mist.
And without any resistance.
—This thing is quite formidable.
Joshua nodded thoughtfully. He turned to look at the calm sea of mist, thinking that its abilities didn't quite match the few mist-related powerful monsters he remembered from his memories. Those monsters, though strong, were nowhere near this level.
But that one glance made the warrior pause. He seemed to notice something, then his expression shifted slightly as he stared solemnly at the bottomless darkness.
Nearby, Vera and Nostradamus continued their exchange. After confirming several details, the old mage took a deep breath: "Living mist... It seems we were all wrong. The Erebus Box isn't a container for ancient racial sacrificial relics. It's like a Lich's phylactery—a vessel carrying a part of that ancient—evil being that was sacrificed."
When he said 'evil being,' Nostradamus paused briefly but then firmly defined it: "It has caused great destruction, even resulting in casualties among the leaders of the Second and Third Groups and the church delegation leader Robzek. If necessary, it can be destroyed."
"No."
A soft voice came from behind the old mage: "They are not dead. Neither Lord Robzek nor the mages you mentioned are dead. Their life flames are still strong, merely shrouded in a layer of shadow."
Surrounded by several knights, the woman with platinum-blonde hair walked slowly toward Nostradamus and Joshua. Her eyes were covered by a blindfold, yet her face was precisely aimed at their location. The nun shook her head slightly and said: "This mist, though strange and highly corrosive, cannot so easily kill those experts. If we act quickly, we can still rescue them."
"...Graden Monastery, Second Combat Nun Order, High Sister Sa Ya."
Recognizing her identity, Nostradamus dispensed with formalities. Now was not the time for etiquette. He asked directly: "The church delegation leader Robzek has also fallen into the black mist, but judging by your expression, you don't seem very worried."
Pausing for a moment, the old mage rephrased his question, frowning seriously: "In other words, do you have a solution for the current situation?"
Sa Ya nodded gently, about to speak, when she suddenly turned her head toward the old mage's side.
Toward where Joshua stood.