The First Magic World War

"Proof of War!?"

Aubrey Barrington Atwood and Vini Yarsaenu exclaimed together. Aubrey Barrington Atwood was also a high-order knight and naturally knew that the Proof of War was one of the most difficult of the Eight Great Knights' Certificates to gather. Although Vini Yarsaenu was not a knight, she also knew how difficult it was to obtain a knight's certificate, and gathering the Proof of War was even more challenging.

Anne's cousin, Krel Brittany, and Taoles's brother, Ebner Sumei, were both seventeenth-rank knights, but neither had been to a battlefield nor experienced war, and therefore lacked the Proof of War, missing the step to the Sacred Order by a hair's breadth.

Charles's heart trembled slightly. He had long used the secret technique of the Great Philosopher of the Human Race, Protagora, driving the Quickness Rune in his left leg, channeling Blood Flame Qi, infusing it with the remaining four Bloody Vortices, and increasing his speed by forty percent; he could not push it any further.

Although Charles had mastered four Bloody Runes, relying on Insight, Blood Flame Qi, Quickness Technique, and Angel's Thorn, giving him battle prowess akin to a mid-level transcendent, he was still several notions short in a duel with a genuine high-level transcendent.

Harriet used pure Fighting Spirit, and Charles could still cope relying on Quickness Technique and Angel's Thorn, but once his opponent mobilized the Proof of War among the Eight Great Knights' Certificates, Charles would not be foolish enough to continue clashing head-on.

He retreated without hesitation, retreating into the ruins of Machu Picchu. Explore stories at empire

Harriet's Radiant Fighting Spirit also underwent a transformation, faintly enveloped in a layer of bloody aura, and he followed closely with large strides, convinced that Charles could not escape from his clutches.

Harriet wielded his military saber with grandeur, and Charles fought while retreating, occasionally leveraging the Blood Flame Qi to remotely strike with his alchemical staff. The battle quickly shifted deeper into Machu Picchu.

Aubrey Barrington Atwood and Vini Yarsaenu, as witnesses, sprinted forward to keep up with the two.

Silvie also wanted to follow them, but she had not yet developed Fighting Spirit and lacked the acceleration; how could she keep up with four transcendent beings?Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Especially since three of those four were high-level transcendent.

Although Charles was not a high-level transcendent, with Quickness Technique and Protagora's secret technique, his speed was unmatched by ordinary high-level beings.

Soon, Silvie Martin lost sight of everyone. After running for a while longer, she realized she had lost her way, and her heart began to fear slightly.

She shouted a few times, then worried about disturbing Charles, she dared not shout anymore. After searching the vicinity, she realized every path was unfamiliar, not at all the way she came, and soon she couldn't even determine the direction.

Aubrey Barrington Atwood and Vini Yarsaenu fared slightly better than Silvie, but they too soon lost sight of the two duelers and quickly lost each other as well.

Aubrey Barrington Atwood was an experienced old detective. When he found himself alone, he suddenly snapped to realization, slapped the ground, leveraged the residual wave of Fighting Spirit to perceive his surroundings, revealed a startled expression, and exclaimed, "It's a labyrinth!"

"Why would there be a labyrinth here?"

"Even if Machu Picchu fortress was occupied by some powerful creature, it couldn't have formed such a complete labyrinth in such a short time, could it?"

Aubrey Barrington Atwood, capable of forming the Lively Horse Society and a man of great decisiveness, turned around without hesitation and sprinted, even though the paths in front of him were unpredictable. Yet, with his experience with labyrinths, he finally escaped Machu Picchu half an hour later.

Aubrey Barrington Atwood had just rushed out of the Machu Picchu fortress, and as he looked back, his heart pounded with fear, and his eyes revealed a deep wariness.

Vini Yarsaenu quickly sensed that something was amiss. Her response was much more relaxed than her companions', as this was the specialty of Fairy Cat Magic. She cast the Cat Transformation Spell and turned into a famously agile desert cat, leaping onto a nearby building and soon disappearing amidst the ruins of the fortress.

Charles had to focus entirely on his battle with Harriet, unable to spare any attention to manipulate the labyrinth. Although Aubrey Barrington Atwood had managed to escape, Charles felt a slight regret but couldn't do much more.

Harriet employed the Proof of War, and the blood-colored military banner that unfurled behind him weakened his enemies and amplified his own powers. The Radiant Fighting Spirit tainted with blood possessed a strangely captivating quality.

With every clash between Charles's alchemical staff and his opponent's saber, the Bloody Glory within him would boil like a frenzy, causing his heart to flutter and a sense of disgust to emerge.

After exchanging a few more blows with Harriet, Charles took a deep breath, spun around, and disappeared.

Having honed his skills in the military for many years and experienced dozens of battles, Harriet had developed an unparalleled confidence. No matter what tricks Charles had up his sleeve, Harriet believed he could cleave through them all with his saber.

Where his saber pointed, the blood-colored military banner behind him rolled out, rippling outward, and indeed it immediately located the "target".

Harriet thrust forward, clashing fiercely with a rapier. A powerful energy rebounded against him, and he exclaimed in mild surprise, "Charles! Have you actually been holding back?"

He swung his saber backward with a loud cry, "Even if you have yet more tricks, you are doomed in this battle."

A rapier swung out, counterattacking fiercely with sharp and vicious swordsmanship and robust Blood Energy, unafraid of the supernatural effect of the Proof of War. The person wielding it was none other than Lord Leo.

Lord Leo didn't care to know who Harriet was, considering they were all people from Fars, it made no difference if he killed him, no need to ask for details.

Only then did Harriet realize that the person attacking him was not Charles, but a nobleman from Baron. His mind quickly turned, guessing the "truth," and he shouted, "Charles! You truly are shameless, conspiring with the people of Baron, acting as a lackey for the Vampires."

Charles activated the Bloody Glory, suppressing the annoyance caused by the Proof of War, and shouted back, "My real name is Qian Nan, and I am indeed a person from Baron."

"To die at the hands of a royal from the Arthur family is indeed a fortune accumulated over many lifetimes."

Harriet cursed Charles for his shamelessness, but Charles didn't pay much attention to him and took out the Anti-Space Sniper Rifle, readying a Magic-Breaking Bombshell Bullet.

As a High-Level Transcendent Knight, Harriet's instincts blared a warning. He hastily dodged to the side as a streak of fire grazed past him and struck the ground, blasting a deep crater.

Taking advantage of the moment, Lord Leo launched a series of swift sword strikes, and Harriet, sweating profusely, was placed on the defensive.

Both being High-Level Transcendents, with Lord Leo's remarkable swordsmanship and mastery over the Mysterious Secrets of the Arthur family, and Harriet's solid and intense Radiant Fighting Spirit and sharp swordsmanship, they were a good match for each other, a meeting of equals. But with Charles lurking nearby and wielding a formidable weapon like the Anti-Space Sniper Rifle, Harriet was thoroughly outmatched.

Lord Leo felt confident, having defeated this human champion within twenty moves.