"Prepare for a world of hurt!"
I instantly activated [King's Aviation] to it's maximum and stomped the ground toward Erik. With the speed 20x a normal human I arrived at my destination almost instantaneously.
"Good speed." Erik spoke calmly.
He sidestepped effortlessly and spun his staff with force at my back. I activated [King's Aura] and increased gravity to slow down his movement.
"Nice!" I exclaimed
It worked perfectly and I was able to evade with [Kings Aviation]. Using my spells in tandem allowed me to use a versatile style of attack. I decided to attempt the first set of movements in [Joryoku Brachium]; [Void Step].
I devised this move in the forest when I made my first breakthrough to 20x gravity. It appeared in my head as if it were a part of me.
After evading Erik's staff, I twisted my lower body and prepared a devastating hook aimed at Erik's solar plexus.
I was already well aware of his fighting capability so I used this as a feint and decreased gravity around my other fist to deliver a straight punch to his chest.
*BOOM*
The punch created a small shockwave and sent Erik flying backward like a rag doll.
"Void step." I spoke nonchalantly. The victory was mine.
I decreased gravity to its maximum nearly breaking my limits. It was around 23x at this point and spectators could barely see my after images. I appeared behind him before he could fall and reach the ground with a few seconds to spare.
"It's my win." I called out to him before delivering a fully powered fist straight into his back with the might of 20x the gravity.
"Urgh!"
He coughed out blood and due to the equivalent force that had been generated from both blows, he didn't travel far the second time but it definitely left him In a grave state.
"Winner, Magni Aphelion!" Orsted called out before anyone could even react.
The spectators went quiet and stared at the scene before them with their mouths open.
"This…this is the power of a gravity mage!" I screamed in my head.
*Sigmund's POV*
"Captain, the town is just up ahead!" Jorgund informed me.
A serious tone took over the squad of mages. They had been joking around but now that the mission had started they all realised peoples lives were at stake.
"Alright we've gone over our roles. Jorgund, you go ahead and scout the perimeter and look for any suspicious activity. Draco, with me and Fey keep a good distance."
"Yes sir!" The three mages replied respectfully and dispersed.
"What do you think happened here?" Draco asked me.
The village was empty. We strolled a few metres with out guard up, passing by numerous houses and taverns. There were no sign of any type of life. About thirty minutes passed of us just walking and entering houses to investigate.
"It's like everyone just…vanished." I finally spoke. "There's not even any sign of struggle. Perhaps the towns people vacated the area?" I suggested.
"That can't be the case, there was clothes and food still in every house we entered. Why would they leave all of their belongings?" Draco rebutted.
"Captain! Captain, I've found something. There's an inn filled with dead bodies. There was no blood or any scars on the bodies of the victims. They look like they just died on the spot!" Jorgund returned exasperated.
"Take me to them." I replied calmly.
'Just what is going on?' I spoke in my head.
We travelled to the inn Jorgund had told me about and his account of the situation was pretty accurate; there were around ten dead bodies that had fallen dead on the spot. Some looked like they were eating and some were just standing at the bar.
"From the lack of decay on these bodies, they had to have died today. The culprits are either within this town still or can't be that far away. The problem is the danger of this mission just went up. What kind of spell causes instant death?" Sigmund analysed the situation out loud for the others to hear.
"Sigmund, I mean captain. I told you about how I've done extensive research into the 10 great families and the true magic they wielded."
I nodded.
"Well, there was one particular family of true mages that caused the demise and scatter of the rest of the families. The true death mage clan with the surname Shinosoré.
I've read about the effects of True Death magic. Without strong enough mana the victims will die instantaneously without fight. This spell is more effective on non mages. As you can see everyone that died here lacks any spiritual essence.
This might be the work the of a true death mage." As Draco revealed the information, silence befell the inn.
"Call for back up, tell them the situation. We will proceed ourselves and retreat if it gets too dangerous. Let us pray this is not the work of a True Death mage." Sigmund ordered.
*Magni's POV*
After training today and my glorious victory the other elite members looked at me with more respect than they initially had.
I made it back to my dorm and laid down on my bed. I opened a book on the theory of magic and immersed myself for a few hours.
I realised I had to view magic like a science and continue to explore different ideas and theories to expand my mind.
Only then would I be able to fully utilise the magic I was blessed with.
*Knock Knock Knock*
"Magni, your being summoned to the training Grounds." A messenger shouted and left immediately to call the next person.
"At this time? What could it be?"
I quickly made my way to the training ground and saw 4 members of the elite squad standing in line with Orsted at the front line a commander.
"Finally Magni your here. We have a mission." Orsted explained.
"What mission?" I couldn't help but show the excitement of my face.
"The same mission as your brother. It seems the mission he was assigned was above his pay grade and he needs an elite teams back up."
"Sigmund? Wait what happened!?" I shouted.
The smile vanished from my face and was now filled with worry.
"…"