The Legendary Mage (Alavin) novel Chapter 215

On the third morning, Elder Connas and his weary band of adventurers arrived at Azure Mountain.

After six grueling days and nights of relentless pursuit, their spirits were worn thin. The first two days were fueled by purpose and direction, but as time went on, their search became chaotic and haphazard, and they were flitting about like headless sprites. The most infuriating part was that from beginning to end, they hadn't caught so much as a glimpse of Alavin.

It wasn't until yesterday morning that they considered the possibility that Alavin hadn't actually fled that night. They had assumed he had escaped, and in their fervor, they had chased phantoms for a hundred leagues, leading their hunt in the completely wrong direction. Meanwhile, Alavin likely watched them leave like they were fools, then casually circled around, arriving at Azure Mountain ahead of them.

The more they thought about it, the more plausible it seemed; otherwise, they wouldn't have lost track of Alavin so completely.

Today, on the outskirts of the mining district, they faced the reality when they were met by Alavin himself, who hadn't fled at all. They had been played, and quite thoroughly at that. The cunning whelp was certainly too sly.

"Elder Connas, you lot are too slow. Did you run into trouble on the road?" Alavin greeted them with a smile, flanked by five hundred guards of the Mallister family.

Adirich bristled at the sight of Alavin's smiling face, fighting the urge to slap him right there.

Elder Connas' face was stern as he rebuked, "Who permitted you to leave early? What if you had encountered danger? How would we explain that to the Commander?"

"I was longing for home. It won't happen again."

"And where is Elder Vandill? Why did you come alone?" Elder Connas asked coldly, not ready to give up. As long as Alavin was within Cloudveil Woods, there was still a chance to strike. Next time, he would not let Alavin succeed.

"There was... an accident. Elder Vandill made the ultimate sacrifice."

"Damnation! How dare you jest about such matters?" Elder Connas was furious.

"No jest. You should see for yourself."

"Your audacity grows. Step aside!"

With a cold snort, Elder Connas strode past Alavin, but stopped in his tracks a few steps later. The clearing ahead was filled with bodies, covered in white and black shrouds, easily numbering seven or eight hundred. Elder Connas' mouth hung open in shock.

Adirich and the others followed, equally stunned by the sight before them.

Alavin approached one of the bodies and lifted the white shroud. "This is Elder Vandill."