The black arms gradually seized Darkness’s body, the remaining colors on her form swallowed by darkness.
Pulled by the black arms, she slowly sank into the shadow.
Liakade saw the situation turning dire.
She dashed forward, claws reaching for Darkness, who was being consumed at the center of the magic array.
But those black arms were uncannily agile.
As Liakade lunged for Darkness, several more arms shot up from underground, aiming to entangle Liakade’s hands.
Liakade inwardly cursed.
She instantly shifted her attack, grabbing at the black arms coiling toward her.
Yet, they twisted away like sentient vines, dodging her strikes with eerie movements, wrapping around her claws.
As they wound around her, Liakade felt weakness surge through her arms.
Her magic flowed away along the black arms.
At the same time, more arms lunged for her, even pinning her wings tightly, trying to drag her down as well.
Within Liakade’s senses, once these black arms grabbed her, she lost all control over the Wind Element.
“What the hell is this…”
Liakade had played through the original work countless times.
She knew nearly every enemy, stat, magic, and special ability.
But Darkness, a character absent from the original, had unknown magic.
Liakade knew that in normal circumstances, Darkness could indeed pull others into her shadow, but there were conditions—it had to be someone utterly unable to resist, whether due to a huge power gap, sleep, unconsciousness, or a willing surrender to Darkness’s shadow.
But now, the gap between Liakade and Darkness wasn’t that large.
She had no desire to enter Darkness’s shadow.
Yet these arms still pulled her in.
One of Liakade’s feet had already been dragged into the Abyssal Shadow.
She felt no pain.
No, to be exact, as she was pulled in, she lost all feeling in that foot—it was as if it had never existed.
The only sensation left was her magic pouring away within this black mire.
At this rate, she’d be completely consumed!
In front of her, only Darkness’s head remained above ground.
She cast Liakade a deep glance, not wasting a single word.
“Liakade!”
The three on the stairs cried out.
They began chanting in unison, fireballs and wind blades sweeping toward the black arms.
Yet the black arms shielded Liakade, not even Sistem’s wind blades could sever them.
“Damn it!”
Field leapt from the stairs, drawing the blade at her waist, trying to rush to Liakade by the edge of the magic array.
“Stop! You’ll be swallowed too!”
“But—!”
“I have my own way!”
Liakade shouted sharply at Field.
Once entangled by these black arms, one would lose their connection to the normal elements.
If Field entered, she’d have no chance of escape.
If she lost a foot or a leg because of it, it would be a lifelong disability for Field.
With that, Liakade bit through her own tongue.
If she couldn’t use normal elemental magic, then—
She’d control her own blood instead!
Previously, the Blood Blade Liakade unleashed was always released from her claws.
To manipulate her blood, she first needed it to flow.
Just like earlier in the canyon, when she’d deliberately let Darkness attack her, allowing her blood to be touched and then manipulating it to forcibly pull Darkness back from the shadow.
But now, these black arms hadn’t given her even a single wound—let alone a drop of her own blood.
Her control over the Wind Element was stripped away, unable to create a wound with it, and others’ attacks were blocked.
So Liakade could only bite through her tongue.
She spat a mouthful of blood.
Before the black arms could block it, the blood solidified into a Blood Blade, slicing open the artery on Liakade’s right wrist.
Blood gushed out, covering the black arms.
On contact, countless Blood Thorns sprouted, shredding the black hands entwining her right arm.
“Get away from me!”
With a swing of her right claw, now drenched in crimson, she cleaved through all the black arms wrapped around her.
Liakade spread her wings, trying to pull her right foot free, but found it stuck fast.
No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t break free of the shadow.
This wasn’t the time for hesitation.
Gritting her teeth, she severed her ankle, soaring high above the magic array.
“It hurts, it hurts, it hurts…”
Liakade felt tears prick her eyes.
If not for her unparalleled regenerative ability, she would never have given up her own foot.
She couldn’t understand it.
Back on Earth, she’d been afraid of even injections, yet after coming to this world, every time she fought strong enemies, it was hands, feet, or being pierced by something.
Now, Liakade was even used to pain.
Perhaps that powerful regeneration provided some psychological comfort—at the moment of separation, her blood burned, erasing the pain.
But why did she always lose hands and feet, while her teammates got away with light wounds every time?
“Field! Get up! It’s too dangerous down here!”
There was no more time for Liakade to consider.
With Darkness sinking completely below, the aura from the magic array continued to surge.
Suspended in midair, Liakade reached out to Field.
Field grasped her hand tightly, and Liakade quickly pulled her up.
“Get to the ground! The stairs aren’t safe either!”
Liakade urged everyone anxiously.
Though she’d never seen this magic, as someone who knew the original work, she understood that every sub-BOSS villain—like the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon Race—had their own ultimate moves.
Darkness, being one of the Four Heavenly Kings, would be no exception.
Such magic was immensely powerful, with massive collateral in enclosed spaces—this was why Liakade hadn’t wanted to fight Darkness during the day, fearing the final strike would endanger other students.
From the current state, this move of Darkness was meant to swallow everyone, including herself, into the shadow, stripping their elemental control and draining their magic.
To be completely pulled in meant death.
Even the prelude to such a spell could cause devastating damage.
And based on the underground aura, this magic was far from simple.
Everyone hurried to the first floor.
Under normal circumstances, the Teaching Building should have been empty, so they didn’t have to worry about others being caught in the aftermath.
However, staying in the building seemed dangerous now.
If Darkness’s magic destroyed the structure, they’d be buried in the rubble—no further action from Darkness needed.
“She… what the hell is going on!?”
“It didn’t work… Why?”
Field was stunned by the power of Darkness’s magic, while Alice whispered in disbelief at her own attack’s ineffectiveness.
“This must be Darkness’s final killing move.”
After getting everyone out of the Teaching Building, Liakade pulled the other three further back.
She didn’t want anyone else hurt.
She’d rather be injured herself than see her friends harmed.
“Korim once said this is an Ultimate Magic unique to High Demons.
Even if the caster survives, they’re crippled—an attack that sacrifices life itself.”
“There’s magic like that…?”
Sistem was somewhat shocked.
It seemed their understanding of the Demon Race was still lacking—they had never seen a High Demon before.
Even in the records about the Demon Race, information was sparse.
The last confrontation had been a thousand years ago, and since then, the Demon Race hadn’t set foot outside the Magic Domain, centuries of peace causing humans to lower their guard.
Liakade shielded the others behind her.
At this moment, she could only hope that Darkness’s Ultimate Magic wasn’t something like a massive explosion.
Otherwise, with Darkness’s magic capacity, she might blow up half the academy.
But on second thought, that didn’t seem right.
Ultimate Magic of the Demon Race was tied to their nature—Shadow Magic was inherently low in destructive power, more about strange mechanisms.
Its ultimate form shouldn’t be large-scale destruction.
Thick clouds blocked the moon, casting darkness over the earth.
That eerie aura from earlier grew fainter.
Liakade focused intently on the entrance to the Teaching Building, not daring to let her guard down.
Since her right foot hadn’t fully regenerated, she could only flap her wings and hover in midair.
Time passed, and the Teaching Building remained silent.
Darkness’s presence had vanished completely.
Liakade was puzzled.
Could those black hands have been Darkness’s final magic?
She admitted they were powerful—absorbing magic, stripping elements—but as an Ultimate Magic, it felt lacking.
Just as Liakade was doubting, the next moment, she suddenly lost balance.
“Splat––”
A burning pain shot up from her back.
Liakade instantly lost all sensation in her wings, plummeting from midair.
“Liakade!?”
Sistem stared in shock.
Alice covered her mouth in panic and fear.
Field screamed Liakade’s name in anguish.
In that empty place, devoid of any other presence, Liakade’s wings had been severed, without warning…