Black Magia exploded out of the enraged Fallen and shook the air.
She glared hatefully at Seventeen.
"You'll pay for their deaths.", she spoke in a voice dripping with venom.
Seventeen noticed the rampaging black magia and inspected the barrier.
He was amused.
'The barrier is struggling against her outpouring magia.'
Keeping an eye on the raging Fallen, Seventeen increased the strength of the barrier by manipulating the magia around him.
Soon the violently pulsing barrier stabilized.
Following an angry burst of black magia the Fallen leader appeared in front of him, her polearm aimed right at his heart.
In a flash of sparks, Seventeen blocked the strike and was pushed back by the sheer force of the impact.
But before he could recover, the Fallen unleashed a fury of attacks at him.
Seventeen narrowed his eyes and began to parry all the attacks.
'The paths are changing. Just like Jade. This young lady is a master polearm user.'
Seventeen increased his speed and soon the ground began to break apart and the trees were getting shredded around them.
Both jumped away and clashed again, creating a shockwave that cleared the area around them.
Magia and black magia collided in flashes of blue and blackish purple as the two opponents clashed all over the mountain, each impact clearing a whole new section of the forest blanketing the lone mountain.
Soon the sea-facing side of the mountain was pockmarked with patches of destroyed forest as the violent battle reached the base of the mountain near the coast.
Steam rose out of the Fallen's mouth as she took deep breaths while glaring at Seventeen with rage.
Seventeen, on the other hand, was thinking of what to do next.
(You know? Perhaps it was not a good idea to kill her subordinates in front of her.)
'I had no choice, Prime. When a Fallen enters their true state, their black magia becomes unstable and most Fallen become uncontrollable monsters of raw power.'
'The subordinates of Red Eyes here were among that major category of Fallen but Red Eyes is strong enough to stop their rampage and restrain them until they return to normal.'
His face turned serious, 'Unfortunately, I cannot wait for her to restrain them here while hundreds of students are on the other side of the mountain.'
'I just cannot take that chance.'
He gripped Nyx and entered a stance with the black blade pointing at the Fallen.
He could see that she had recovered her breath.
Seventeen's eyes narrowed when he saw her taking out a vial of liquid black magia.
"That's not a good idea.", he said as she popped open the vial and brought it to her lips.
"Don't worry. Unlike those three, I am well in control of my true form.', she said and emptied the entire vial in a single gulp.
The raging black magia coming from her body subsided and her presence suddenly stopped bearing down as the Fallen began to sway on her spot.
Seventeen kept his eyes on the Fallen, ready to act at the slightest hint of an attack.
He barely saw the next attack.
The Fallen vanished in front of him and his eyes widened in disbelief.
"What the?"
(On your left!)
Instinctively he guarded his left side with Nyx just as a powerful blow made his entire body tremble.
Before he could react, the presence that attacked him disappeared. The only thing he saw was the tip of a polearm vanishing away into shadow.
Just as the polearm disappeared...
(Behind!)
Seventeen quickly turned around and parried another powerful blow from the same polearm. This time it was stronger than before and almost knocked him to the ground.
Again, the polearm vanished into shadow after the attack.
(Her attacks and shadow travel have become extremely quick!)
'Indeed.", Seventeen deflected a barrage of attacks from multiple directions at the same time, the force shattering the ground beneath him.
'But even with that boost from black magia, she was only able to jump from mid-level CAT 1 to high-level CAT 1. She couldn't even touch the realm of CAT 0.'
(Makes you want to appreciate the Cardinals.)
In the category system, CAT 0 is a unique realm.
For most of Humanity, high-level CAT 1 is considered the limit of growth as warlocks. Beyond that is a massive wall that is nigh impossible to cross.
But for those who persevere and climb the wall by surpassing the limits of their bodies and minds, be it man, elf, or demon, entering the realm of CAT 0 upon crossing the wall is in simple words, transformative.
The power of a CAT 0 warlock is on a whole new level from the power of the strongest CAT 1 warlock.
It is the gate that will open the path for Humanity to become existences on par with the mighty dragon lords, the mythical dragon gods, and even the Arken gods.
Dragons and Vahari are born with massive Reserves and powerful Mindscapes but their CATs are determined from birth and remain unchanged for the rest of their long lives.
But Humanity consisting of mankind, Elven kind, demonkind, and other races is different.
Perhaps as compensation for their comparatively shorter lives and smaller Reserves, they have the potential to grow past the CAT they are born with.
But reaching the gate is not at all easy, after all, it is a massive wall that is almost impossible to cross.
Even with accepting black magia into their bodies, only a handful of Fallen was able to surpass CAT 0.
And those handful of Fallen are the ones regarded as the Fallen lords, CAT -3 beings on par with the dragon lords who rule the hellish plains of Ethereos.
(Looks like she's not on the path for the power of Fallen Lord any time soon.)
Seventeen dodged another string of attacks and blocked one that came from above, the force pushing him down into the ground and creating a crater under his feet.
The Fallen disappeared into shadows but not before he had a good look at her.
Unlike the other two, she had undergone little change. Except for glowing red eyes, markings around her eyes, and blackened hands, she still looked like her normal self.
'I think drinking that black magia may have made her more hot.'
(Really?)
'Hey! It was a compliment!'
Seventeen suddenly felt a change in the magia surrounding him.
The shadows rippled and began to rise around him, becoming solid. Soon he found himself surrounded by numerous writhing tentacles of shadows.
They shot toward Seventeen who jumped high in the air. That was when he sensed a presence above him.
He twisted in midair and parried another powerful strike from the Fallen. The force of the clash sent him hurtling to the ground.
Right at the writhing shadow tentacles.
Just as he was about to experience a serving of angry tentacles, he flipped around and extended his arm to the ground.
{Code Cancel}
The thrashing tentacles of shadows immediately dissipated into particles of black and grey and Seventeen landed gracefully on the ground.
"How?", he heard a bewildered voice behind him.
Seventeen turned around to see the Fallen looking at him with utter shock.
"How did you cancel my Writhing Roots?", she demanded and assumed a defensive position.
Seventeen gave her a calm smile, "A little trick of mine."
The Fallen looked at him with incredulous anger and let out a frustrated yell.
She quickly switched stances and unleashed her presence for a second.
Right after her immense presence disappeared, Seventeen noticed that her body was now covered with a purple aura that glowed menacingly.
As he watched, shadows crept around her and swirled around her polearm.
In a matter of seconds, the Fallen's weapon was coated with intense shadows that swirled like raging flames.
'That doesn't look good at all.', Seventeen thought as he analyzed this change.
(That's a crazy amount of magia-)
Before Prime could even finish his sentence, the Fallen appeared before Seventeen and executed a downward slash with her polearm.
Seventeen reacted on pure instinct.
He immediately stopped holding back and leaped backward, barely avoiding the polearm surrounded by swirling shadows.
The blade of the polearm struck the ground and decimated the earth. A powerful shockwave ripped across the base of the mountain.
Rocks and dirt rained down from the devastation and Seventeen stared at the huge crater that was formed right where he stood a second ago.
(She compressed her presence and unleashed it from the tip of her polearm. Her shadow attribute enhances her speed and further amplifies her already powerful attacks.)
"That is a genius move.", Seventeen muttered and narrowed his eyes.
He saw the Fallen staring back at him with her red eyes glowing with power and unhinged rage.
"I suddenly have the urge to talk this out.", Seventeen grumbled.