The Mighty Mage
Chapter 254: Unfamiliar Aura

Chapter 254: Chapter 254: Unfamiliar Aura

Even before dying the 6 parasites couldn’t believe that they died by just a single attack!

The first figure lowered her hand and the white magic circle dissipated into the air. She dusted off her cloak and smirked under her mask.

"Too easy," she muttered.

The second figure pushed off the wall and approached the fallen parasites, nudging one of the bodies with her foot.

"You always have to show off, don’t you?" she teased

"Someone has to do the work," the first figure replied, glancing around to make sure there were no more immediate threats.

"Besides, we don’t have time to waste. If she’s going to show up anywhere, it’s here."

....................

In an underground tunnel.

A few men dressed in green uniforms were reporting to another man with black hair and red eyes.

The man with black hair and red eyes had a sharp aura around him. His authoritative aura was enough to scare anyone.

With his sharp gaze, he asked,

"Are you sure the artifact is stored right under Magic School Academy?"

"90% yes General Gu." The subordinate reporting to General Gu hurriedly told.

"Why only 90%?"

The subordinate instantly felt cold sweat dripping from his forehead and hurriedly informed,

"General Gu all the people who have been sent to spy there have been caught hence we aren’t sure whether that place truly has the artifact or not but the parasites are protecting that area as if some treasure is being stored in that place."

"You’re telling me that you can’t be sure if the artifact is there, yet the parasites are guarding it fiercely?" General Gu’s voice was cold.

The subordinate swallowed hard, nodding quickly.

"Yes, General. Based on the movements of the parasites and the intensity of their defenses, we believe it’s the most likely location. But... there’s been no confirmation."

General Gu’s expression darkened. His hand clenched into a fist.

"I don’t like probabilities. I need certainties."

The men in green uniforms exchanged nervous glances, but no one dared to speak.

After a moment of silence, General Gu turned toward the map spread out on the table in front of him.

It was a detailed layout of the Magic School Academy and the surrounding areas.

His red eyes flickered as they traced the paths, entrances, and potential weak spots.

He tapped his finger on the part of the map that represented the underground tunnels beneath the academy.

"If the artifact is truly there, then we need to strike fast," he said finally, his voice calm but deadly.

"The longer we wait, the more time the parasites have to strengthen their defenses."

One of the subordinates hesitated before speaking.

"General, the parasites are not the only issue. The main problem is the super-rank mages that have been held hostage.

"If the parasites somehow knew about our plan, they would use the hostages as leverage," the subordinate said, his voice trembling slightly.

"I know."

General Gu’s plan was clear, his voice steady as he laid it out.

"We’ll split into two groups. The first group will stage a full-scale attack on the parasites to draw their attention away from the artifact.

Meanwhile, the second group will infiltrate the underground tunnels and destroy the artifact before the parasites can react."

His red eyes flickered with cold intensity as he continued,

"The key is misdirection. The parasites will expect us to focus on their defenses, not the artifact. We need to give them a reason to believe that’s our primary target."

The subordinates nodded, their tension easing slightly now that they had a clear plan.

"General, what if they don’t think about counterattacking and instead continue to focus on protecting the artifact?"

"That’s a possibility," General Gu admitted.

"But that’s where we take advantage of their paranoia. They’ll be so consumed with defending the artifact that they’ll become blind to the real threat."

He leaned over the map once more, pointing to various points where he anticipated resistance.

"The first group’s assault will be aggressive enough to make them think it’s a full-scale attack.

They’ll be forced to divide their forces, weakening their defenses around the artifact. That’s when the second group strikes."

"But what if they still don’t split their forces?" another soldier asked, a note of concern creeping into his voice.

"If they keep all their defenses concentrated on the artifact, won’t that make it harder for us to infiltrate?"

General Gu’s red eyes gleamed as he considered this.

"If they don’t split, then they’ll be ignoring the first group entirely. And that would be their mistake." His voice dropped lower, more dangerous.

"If they refuse to move, we’ll simply change the tactics. Instead of directly destroying the artifact, we could use the chaos to put one or two spies in the crowd and retreat.

Or we can..."

General Gu put forth many new tactics which calmed the soldiers to a certain extent.

"We only need to ensure that there is no variable in the plan." General Gu said seriously.

As a person who always plans ahead, the thing he hated the most was variable...

.............

A woman covered with a black cloak and mask made her way through the narrow alley. She kept muttering to herself,

"Please! Please don’t reach before me! Please!"

Since her face was covered with a mask no one could know how she looked but one thing was for sure...she was panicking.

As soon as she reached toward the center of the city she saw the two white figures.

The woman hurriedly adjusted her mask and cloak, took a deep breath to calm herself down, and muttered,

"I am sorry for taking away this opportunity from you, but I hope you will understand me...my dear future roommate."

With that, the woman calmly walked out, instantly attracting the attention of the two figures standing in the center.

The first figure turned toward the second figure and asked,

"Hey isn’t she the first person to arrive here...does that mean she is..."

"Shut up." The second figure scolded the first figure before turning towards the woman,

"Miss, can you tell me who are you and why are you here."

The woman in the black cloak acted as if she was suspicious of two of them and asked,

"Who are you? And why are you asking such questions to me?"

The first figure rolled her eyes and muttered,

"Pretentious."

The woman hidden in a black cloak clenched her fist but she didn’t argue with the first figure.

The second figure glared at the first figure as if asking her to shut her mouth and then turned towards the woman in a black cloak,

"Um...Miss, we are just some of the humans who have barely survived and trying to find our way out. Could you please lead us out?"

The woman in the black cloak pretended to hesitate and asked,

"Can you first prove to me that you are indeed human?"

The second figure nodded in his heart. The potential candidate indeed wasn’t dumb!

"Sure. I will make a light scratch around the tip of my finger.

The second figure extended her hand, revealing the tip of her finger.

She slowly drew a small dagger and made a shallow cut, allowing a few drops of red blood to well up on her fingertip.

"See?" she said calmly, holding her hand out for the woman in the black cloak to inspect. "We’re human, just like you."

The woman in the black cloak watched the blood drip, her gaze narrowing beneath her mask.

After a moment, she nodded slowly, her voice cold and calculating.

"Fine," she muttered. "But you better not be lying. I don’t trust easily."

The first figure, who had remained silent after being scolded, crossed her arms and gave a knowing glance to her companion.

She leaned in slightly, whispering, "Why does she seem more suspicious than we do?"

The second figure ignored the comment and turned back to the woman in the black cloak. "We understand your hesitation," she said carefully.

"But we’re all in danger here. The parasites are everywhere, and if we don’t stick together, none of us will make it out."

The woman in the black cloak looked between the two figures, her heart racing beneath her calm exterior.

She had to maintain her composure and had to keep playing along. She couldn’t afford to give away her real intentions.

"Alright," she finally said, stepping closer to the two figures.

"I’ll help you. Since I want to save this city."

This made the second figure confirm that he had found the right candidate, even the first figure hesitated a bit.

Just as the second figure was about to ask the woman to follow him, they heard the sound of footsteps.

The woman who was wearing a black cloak and mask panicked and hurriedly said,

"We should leave! Parasites maybe-"

But the first figure stopped the woman in black-cloaked and said,

"Shut up."

She could sense an unfamiliar but familiar powerful aura.

Even the second figure paused and soon, they saw another woman in a black cloak and a mask with red eyes walking towards them.