There were no Consortium Guild Mages around, which meant that the mana of the portal had either been of a low reading or had been literally nonexistent. Basically, a Dungeon Break should have been impossible. So what was happening?

  Merlin was lost for words as he stared down from the railings, the screams of people rushing into his ears as they scrambled for safety, having instantly figured out what was occurring. Most quickly pulled out their phones, obviously dialing the emergency line for the Consortium Guild, but Merlin was certain that it would take a bit of time before the Consortium Mages arrived. He fshed his gaze around, but he could see no one in the crowd to take control. In other words, there were no licensed Mages around.

  He reached for his pocket, feeling for his student ID.

  He was the only one who could take control of the situation. He was the only Mage present. But what could he say? And would he be able to handle the monsters that would spew out of the Dungeon alone—at least until help arrived? His tussle with Choi Sangook had drained him and he was not at a hundred percent. What would happen to him if he went down and tried to fight whatever Spawns emerged? Would he die?

  The rift of the portal crackled even more eerily, and it spread wider. In that instant the first monster appeared: a sparkling blue wyvern of jagged spikes and steam emanating from its mouth. More followed behind it, and in a couple of seconds, a squad had emerged. Merlin had never heard of a Dungeon Break on such a scale, and it seemed the people around were no different. The shock was at an enormous degree now, and the screams even louder. The wyverns were not so calm to watch their prey escape; they fpped their wings, soaring to the sky as they opened their mouths, revealing tongues as blue and cold as their scales. A puff of breath ter, and wherever the fky air that left their mouths touched turned to ice.

  They were Ice Wyverns, C-Rank monsters, and the worst possible matchup for Merlin at the moment. He would really die if he took them on all alone. However… He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists… He couldn’t just watch. As the only Mage present, it was his responsibility to protect the masses, even if it cost his life. And… he had been wanting to try something for a while now.

  “Janeth!” Merlin called as he swerved around. “Get out of here and find somewhere safe to hide! I’ll take—”

  The rest of his words caught in his throat, his eyes widening, as Janeth’s figure fshed through the air, her shirt now tied around her waist, and her hair fluttering in the wind. Merlin was still unsure of what he’d just witnessed, and was trying his very best to make sense of it, that he had almost missed her nding with the grace of a gymnast down below.

  He looked over the railings, and jerked back slightly at the look she wore. He had never seen her wear such an expression before. It gave him the vibe of a seasoned fighter, one who had seen countless battles, and was not afraid to risk their life.

  Merlin shut his eyes and shook his head. There was no way he was seeing clearly. But when he opened his eyes, the sight below had not changed. Janeth really was down there, and she was standing before the Ice Wyverns without even a tinge of fear etched on her face.

  What was going on?

  Janeth dipped her hand into her bag strapped across her shoulder and brought out what looked like the shabby hilt of a sword. She gripped it tightly, took a deep breath in, and, all of a sudden, the air around her shimmered with an ethereal glow Merlin had never seen before. It was warm and welcoming, but at the same time repulsive. It was an aura that discriminated between good and evil. And her action drew the attention of the Ice Wyverns her way.

  Merlin wanted to shout for her to get out of there. But… She looked unfazed, as though telling him personally that his worries were out of pce.

  “O great sword of Sigmund,” Janeth chanted, raising the hilt to her face, and Merlin’s brows arched downwards as her voice resonated through the air, “thrust into a tree by Odin, passed onto Sigurd, who, with thy aid, syed the dragon Fafnir with a single thrust, heed the call of this humble wielder and come to her aid. I call to you, legendary sword of the old gods: Gramr!”

  The world shook, but Janeth stood. Her breath remained just as steady as her poise, her fingers wrapped gently around the hilt she held, which now breathed a life of its own. A symphony etched itself around her, as the attention of all drew to her absolute presence. It was like a divine being had been born in that instant. And then the hilt she held quivered as its dull brown fshed into a bright bck color; scales grew out of it and stretched onto Janeth, climbing from her fingers and onto her forearm like critters chased out of their nest. Then the air stilled—all motion stilled—waiting both willingly and unwillingly in awe as a gleaming bde smoldered with red hot fmes grew out of the hilt.

  Merlin was dumbstruck. He knew what she held. Everyone who had a modicum of knowledge on the Cataclysm and what it had brought to earth did. It was an attuned artifact. And only one group of people in the world used such a weapon.

  Janeth…is a Warrior?

  She took her stance, a hand tucked behind her back, one leg shifting forward as another remained behind. It was an elegant pose that reminded Merlin of a fencer.

  “Here, boys!!” she voiced. “Mind leaving the ones who can’t defend themselves alone?!”

  The Ice Wyverns didn’t seem like ones to back down from a call to fight. Their gazes had been on her ever since she had made herself known, and they were more than happy to engage her. They fpped their wings and screeched, and without any more hesitation, breathed ice her way.

  Janeth took a step back, not breaking her stance, even at the bombardment of ice breaths that threatened to freeze her if they made even the slightest of contacts with her. She thrust her bde in front of her, and the breaths were instantly vaporized. The sight reinvigorated the people around as their pale faces had light returned to them.

  Merlin still couldn’t exactly expin what was happening; it felt like the Janeth he had known all this while was a lie, but he knew now was not the time to either be amazed or confused. It did not matter who she was, there was no way she could take on the beasts alone. And even if she could, the people around still needed help with evacuating. They could be caught in stray strikes.

  He grabbed the railing bar, strengthened the muscles of his legs, and flung himself over. The air brushed against his skin as he dropped to the ground, his toes quaking for half a second. He took one more gnce Janeth’s way and saw her cleave another ice breath in half, and assured himself that she would be fine for the time being. He hurried towards those who were yet to move far away from the battle scene.

  “Please, you guys take a step back… Even further would be better,” said Merlin to the few he saw still standing frozen in a cluster. They looked like they were college students.

  “A-Are you a Mage?” one asked, shivering.

  “Yes,” said Merlin. Technically, he was. “Now, please get back.”

  “Then where are the rest?!!” another roared. Merlin jerked back slightly, stunned at the outburst. “Do you think only both of you can handle those beasts?! We’re all gonna die! We can only run so far.”

  Merlin took a deep breath and exhaled. Getting furious here would only do nothing but fuel the fright they were feeling.

  “If you guys don’t move away from the range of battle, it’s only going to restrain us from fighting to our full power. So, please, take a step back and let us worry about the monsters. Backup is also on the way.” Merlin wasn’t sure about the st bit of his words, but it was only to be expected that help would be arriving.

  “You’re an Academy student, aren’t you?” another asked. “You look young.” Merlin did not reply. He was now getting tired of this. He needed to get back to Janeth and lend her a hand. “Oh, Jesus. We’re gonna die. All we have to help us are Academy students. Where are the Consortium Mages?!”

  Merlin gnced over his shoulder; Janeth was still doing her best to hold back the wyverns, but his theory proved correct. She had begun to move backwards and sideways, her poise faltering in between, showing that she couldn’t handle them alone. He turned back to the college students before him.

  “If you want to remain here, in the heat of battle, then the floor is all yours. But know you’ll have no one but yourselves to bme if something comes your way and impales you in the process.”

  “H-Huh?!”

  “I’m saying that if you don’t want to die, then you need to regain control of your shivering legs and move to the other side.”

  The college students rattled their teeth, but were wise enough to not continue arguing and acting stupidly. They finally found the courage to run away.

  Merlin turned towards the monsters then and activated Reader Mage, but not in the usual way he did. He compressed his mana to his hands, wrapping his fists in a blue ball that quickly transitioned to a red hot energy reminiscent of a ball of fire as he slowly sent waves of his body heat into his mana. This way he would regute how much body heat he channeled out of his body. And, besides, the more he moved, the more heat he would generate. This way he was killing two birds with one stone.

  Time to put that boxing training into actual practice…

  He dashed forward.