The hallways of Vanir's magic centre did give off a mystical impression due to the opaque light of the glowing crystals. But truth be told, nothing quite compared to the grace of proper lighting, like incandescent lamps or something. Surely the coffers of Vanir's governing body could afford incandescent lamps, could they not?

But with the dim light still shrouded in darkness, the hallway was nothing short of an endless maze. Not only Alicia but Odelie, too, found her head spinning.

The radiance from the black wizard's projectiles did not help much, either. All those volleys were only aimed at the Magisterium's personnel, not as signposts. Yes, apparently a multitude of concealed mages still lurked within the shadows of Vanir's magical bureau. As the Magisterium wizards clashed with them, Alicia and Odelie found themselves forcibly estranged from their colleagues.

A number of masked wizards managed to elude the battle and pursued them. The plight worsened when too many Khaos champions appeared to besiege them in a magical museum chamber.

"Odelie, aren't there too many of them?" asked Alicia in a worried tone.

"Nonsense!" Odelie took out her Faith Catalyst anew. Alicia, who had not yet had the chance to observe it, now beheld upon the astrologist's ornate planisphere.

"F-Faith Catalyst!"

"Exactly!" Odelie and Alicia then turned their backs on each other. "Now we have two 'Orbs', don't we? Fighting these minions is a trifling matter!"

"If you're sure we'll win, t-then I should be too!"

"My favorite little sister is the smartest!"

The pair readied themselves with their respective spherical weapons. Both Alicia and Odelie shut their eyes to atttain complete synchronicity—one with the arcane Orb, the other with what she believed to be the Existence, the arbiter of destinies. Their harmony was such that they radiated a resplendent glow of stardust, each unique in its brilliance. Alicia's stardust possessed a vivid array of colours, while Odelie's celestial projection showcased sundry constellations, complete with their interwoven lines!

The villains were certainly loath to endure the girls spreading their charm any longer. They straightaway threw their hands at both girls. Alicia swatted those hands away with her orb and punched them in the stomach and ribs! On Odelie's front, the wizards had already commenced their assault with dark energy. With her Faith Catalyst spinning, a shield-shaped constellation materialised. Soon thereafter, an expanse of space emerged, acting as a protective barrier against the incoming projectiles.

"My turn! This is your destiny that The Existence has shown me! This is what the stars speak!" Odelie spun her Faith Catalyst again, and the space wall dispersed to some of the wizards. Unfortunate ones were immediately suspended in mid-air, merging with the constellations themselves!

Alicia saw that and shouted, "Awesome! Oh, clipe!" The streaking magical projectiles narrowly missed grazing her face as she swiftly evaded. Furious, Alicia drew the Arcane might with her right hand, then with her open palm, unleashed a surge of blue plasma towards her wretched assailant!

Odelie stretched her hand between the floating globe, and from the golden surface emerged yet another constellation. This time, it featured descending lines connecting to a sphere. What might be the significance of such imagery? A sign from the sky might be the answer.

A portal to the stars opened from above. Its form remained somewhat indistinct, akin to a pool of stagnant water. However, from within, a cascade of tiny stars breathed life into the showdown! The masked magi were scattered by the meteor shower! Especially for those who were still wrapped around the constellations, it was a cosmic torment of a thousand pinpricks. Alicia was not to be outdone either; she raised Orb and fired Arcane mortars at the malevolent mages by her side. Somehow, the two of them had become a formidable duo in the realm of magic combat!

"I can't believe you're such a great witch, Alicia!" lauded Odelie.

"Odelie, hold yer praise for now!" the bookworm replied. "There are still more of them!"

There were still a few conscious black wizards. The battle was indeed not over. But before Alicia could utilise another ultimate ability, a door behind them bewrayed on its own. An overpowering force from the door’s direction suddenly yanked the young lady towards it!

"Odelie!" screamed Alicia as she was dragged away.

"Oh, no, Alicia!" Odelie was about to reach out for Alicia's delicate hand but was instead met by the black mage's gloved grasp. Caught off guard, all the black wizards managed to restrain the astrologist's body, effectively rendering her nearly helpless.

***

Jubilant Jay, a shiny magic broom swept across the Mothman's face with its impassioned fibres. Bartholomew Strongbark also hindered his way, summoning the pillars of the foyer and ramming them into the insect mage from behind. Alas, the faithful sprinkhond abruptly appeared behind the Mothman. With razor blades on both forelegs, it dismembered the concrete chunks so that the Mothman felt nothing but a bath of sand.

Haddock and Bartholomew invoked the spell Static Ligaveris, about to cut the insect mage's front before being blocked again by his long chandelier sceptre. The three of them remained still, locked in a fierce struggle, their gazes unwavering.

The Mothman chirped to summon a spinkhond right behind the Magisterium officials. The grasshopper flapped its wings, blaring with excitement; fortunately, Broin was present and ensnared the spinkhond with his lustrous white vines. But wait, there remained one more grasshopper in the arthropod mage's retinue. Again, he buzzed loudly, followed by a harmonious stridulation from the colossal insect, as if in agreement. From a distance, Broin deftly redirected several birds towards the spinkhond.

Time to feast! A flock of birds tore into the giant locust's body. White slime spilt everywhere. At last, a proper meat after the hunger petals pilfered their rations. The fate of the other sprinkhond, which had only just been freed from the confines of the vine coil, was no less unfortunate. The nearest hunger petal extended its elongated form and crushed its being.

From the circular lenses of the Mothman's mask, he beheld the reflection of his loyal companion being lifted skyward and rent asunder by eagles and chickens. Before he could denote his wrath, his eyes switfly shifted to the airborne Broin in midair, about to crush his form with an immense wooden log!

The log turned out to be his own staff, magically sprouting hardwood fibres at its tip. A swift backward spin spared The Mothman from the impending blow.

Bartholomew, clearly impressed, interjected, "Old man! You should not have feigned a hunchback in the first place!"

"Hvað? I am a hunchback!" retorted Broin. "If it were not for the infusion of Arcane energy, how would I have hoisted that slab as I did three decades past?"

"Gentlemen...!"

Haddock's yell roused both of them as he pointed to the Mothman right in the colossal vortex, containing a thousand and one types of insect imaginable. Millions more were falling from the roofless palate. A cascading deluge of pests. The air reeked of their sundry pheromones. Swarms of cockroaches and scorpions occasionally fell to harass the birds, causing them to concede and flee the magical sanctum. The five hunger petals were overwhelmed by the plethora of prey. Even the gazillions of insects swarmed the entire tissue of the carnivore plants and preyed on the predators.

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The Mothman let out his raspy noise, echoing through the botanical garden. "Hnnnnggggg I shall infest this magic office, even the whole nationhnnngggg, with the insect pestilence! Everything I do shall be done until I find the girl and her Arcane orb hnnngggg!"

The timing could not have been dire! Just as the Mothman was unleashing his full potential, the Arcane might began to wane within each member of the Magisterium and the Edda Order. This was grave. They needed to find a means to channel their remaining Arcane might solely against the Mothman before they all succumbed to becoming a repast for the vermin.

"Grand Magus Haddock, I request that you wield the words of power and bid the mystics to craft a ward-weaved shroud around us," requested Elder Broin. "The druid's rod magic, though a shield, proves feeble against the wriggling foes of furrowed crevices."

"Ah... I understand." Of course, Haddock understood. What could a Grand Magus not understand? Haddock proceeded to summon his hovering wizard contingent and issued a resounding directive. "Gather forth! Assume a circular formation! Invoke the shield of protection!"

The wizards swiftly heeded the call of the Grand Magus. They assembled in a tight-knit circle, extending their slender wands betwixt their palms. Gradually, a safeguarding dome began to materialise, akin to a delicate bubble.

"No, Barthie, you will help me." Haddock pulled Bartholomew by the shoulders out of formation.

The deputy rudely shrugged off Haddock's touch. "Huh? What do you mean? Asking me for another collective suicide?" Barthie retorted with biting sarcasm.

"Hey, best friends live and die together!"

"You bastard! Do not dare to claim me as your best friend!"

Haddock summoned The Gay Jay, and said to the druids, "Barthie and I will distract that eccentrically dressed mage. Are you sure you can turn the tables?"

"Hold not a low regard for our ilk," declared Broin. "Our kinship with the natural realm runs far deeper and more profound than that of a mere wriggling-bond mage!"

"Huh, I like these guys."

From above, the Mothman attempted to dispel the magic barrier with a wave of insects. "Die!"

Countless insects scattered and died in the Arcane-coated shield while the druids concentrated their minds and prayed together. Haddock and Bartholomew took to the air and crossed paths with the Mothman once more. He formed a colossal fist of thousands of scorpions with their metasomas outstretched, then launched it at the two Magisterium champions! Haddock and Barthie swerved and swooped down, backhanding the mage with Arcane blasts!

Bartholomew entertained a notion. He took the liberty to destroy the magic building’s murals without damaging the supports so that the construction would not collapse. He paid no heed to the transformation of the once-beautiful paintings into decrepit ruins; even the murals depicting Vanir's revered trio of leaders suffered cruel mutilation. The talent to destroy things was coursing through the veins of this Vice Grand Magus. The falling debris made the work of the wizards more difficult due to their impacts on the magic shields, but at least the stone rain proved instrumental in crushing the repulsive insects scuttling across the ground.

The resounding thud of heavy rocks disrupted the solemnity of Grandfather Broin's prayers. Witnessing the wizard's blatant disrespect for the figures adorning the walls, he seethed with anger.

"Oi, foul Black Wizard! What manner of mischief are you brewing? Cease your senseless desecration of this edifice! How dare you lay waste to the hallowed depictions of Njord and his kin! Long you wish to bury us beneath the debris?

Bartholomew only sneered. "Ungrateful fossils. I hate these people!"

Not only being destructive, Bartholomew might be ace at creating things. With a swing of his wand, he chanted the Anima-dator.

And lo-and-behold! The scattered debris coalesced into a gargantuan automaton!

"Stupendous! Classic Barthie with his automaton! Come, cripple that mage bastard!" Haddock shouted in delight.

The automaton did not need to heed Haddock's advice, as it was in its nature to pummel the giant insect tornado! Bartholomew's creation did not need to swiftly vanquish the Mothman; the ongoing spectacle served as a perfect diversion while the druids below continued their unyielding recitations.

The Mothman grew increasingly vexed, unleashing his entire swarm upon the towering stone monolith. But to no avail, the hard rock felt nothing and was not affected by anything. So long as the mana flow connected it to Bartholomew, it would persist in its task: crushing the tsunami of insects with unwavering resolve.

As the stone behemoth occupied the tempestuous tornado of vermin, the druids concluded their prayers. They had all firmly aligned themselves with nature.

Or rather, harmonising with the insects.

The giant stone automaton stopped its fray as the once-buzzing multitude fell into a hushed stillness. All the six-legged ones slowly turned their gazes to the gas-masked practitioner. The ceaseless buzzing emanating from his throat appeared to be ignored.

"What is this hnnggg? Don't just see me, my little friends, chew on those damn wizards!"

Yet, the insects veered off course, hastening to sink their fangs into the Mothman's vulnerable lower abdomen within the swirling vortex of vermin!

“Wretch!”

Unfathomable was the sensation of being pierced by millions of insects. With a sudden flourish, the Mothman unfurled his expansive wings and escaped the clutches of the insect tempest. Even in flight, he wavered precariously through the air, for the venom already coursing through his veins. It was then that Haddock seized the opportunity, hurtling his lightning-infused javelin through the incantation of "Fractionem Tonitrua Custos," impaling the chest of the insect mage. A sight of pure enchantment unfolded as the Insect Man plummeted from the heavens, a luminous spear crackling with sparks embedded within his chest. He crumpled amidst the traitorous insects that began to envelop his form.

"Do not allow those pests to consume him! We must extract something from him," Broin ordered.

"It's useless!" said Bartholomew, as he and Haddock slowly landed. His wand had already flickered a lethal spark, only to have the druids hinder his way to the Mothman. "You won't get anything out of this black mage!" he fumed. "You've handled this before. Surely you are aware of the potent enchantment that prevents any information from escaping their minds?"

"Aye, we are well aware of such a truth. We must make an attempt regardless. Who can say if there be even the faintest flicker of a miracle hidden within this very moment?"

One could not discern the thoughts of these druids; they persisted in devising foolish decisions, mused Bartholomew. What was expected of the Mothman? To reveal intel about him and his cabal? When would they learn not to let a dangerous wizard like him have even a second to breathe?

He was right. What an idiotic decision. The mage should have been killed on the spot. Neither the druids nor the wizards could see the actual face behind the insect mask. And none thought that he had a better tolerance for millions of toxins compared to them. Seeing those advantages, the semi-conscious Mothman melted into thousands of cockroaches and disappeared among the ocean of arthropods. Once again, the treacherous mage eluded their grasp, slipping through their fingertips.

"What did I tell you?" Bartholomew massaged the bridge of his nose. The druids felt foolish. At least they retained a morsel of self-awareness, a flicker of shame.

"Alicia!" Haddock's mind snapped back to the Divine Grace bearer. "Blasted, we need to find her immediately!"

"Oh, Oherr, what ordeal is this again?" Broin, the elder druid, felt overwhelmed by the mounting challenges. "They will face difficulties navigating their way through Vanir's magic office. We must part ways and forge our separate paths!"

No response echoed forth. The Magisterium and the druids embarked on separate paths in their quest for the Child of Miracle.

Those Magisterium mages who followed Haddock chanced upon the sight of the wounded Odelie Verdandi, her steps faltering. A host of black-clad sorcerers had already fallen beneath her feet. When the clairvoyant found the young Grand Magus’s figure was about to embrace her, she let herself fall.

"Odelie, hang on in there! Where's Alicia?" the Grand Magus implored.

"D-don't mind me... Alicia..." Odelie gestured weakly towards a door that the Child of Miracle had traversed earlier through paranormal means. Shortly after, Odelie fell into a stupor.

"Don't just stand around, you fools! Search the entire building for the girl!" Bartholomew barked his orders at the others. The wizards divided into groups, entering the designated door before dispersing into the unknown depths. []