Mrs. Frock's chimeras were held down by shadows as they tried to prance on Richard. His shadows barely held them down, but it was a waste.

Mrs. Frock flicked her wrists again as mana seeped out of her. She seemed to have issued an order of sorts. With that simple movement, Richard felt his magic weakening against the immense strength of the chimeras.

Their transformation had deepened.

Richard knew it wouldn't be a simple win from the start, but things were more dire than he thought.

Richard changed his grip on his wand and swung it to the side. More magic circles formed in front of the enemies.

If he couldn't hold them back. Then, he had to get in the first attack.

The binds holding the chimeras down broke apart. A man with the head of a lion jumped out. His shadow coursed over the street under the watchful eye of the flames burning the city, and along with his shadows, another shadowy figure wriggled.

A spear formed out of the shadows of the buildings and dashed at the Chimera's shadow. It stabbed into the Chimera's side.

The Chimera's eyes widened as it felt a sharp pain in its sides. With its beast-like reflexes, the Chimera rolled to the side and barely avoided the attack.

Richard clicked his tongue. This was going to be a real threat.

A crunch resounded as Mrs. Frock bit another of her nails off.

"You use shadows well, boy," she said.

"I learned it from my fiancée."

"Is she around? She'll be good nutrition too."

"Hah..." Richard scoffed, his eyes glancing over the enemies again. "If she were, she would have ruined all your plans long ago."

Mrs. Frock crunched another nail. With that as a signal, the Chimeras changed their stance.

The battle truly began.

The six chimeras dashed through the sides and the streets as they circled Richard. Magic seeped out of their bodies as they heightened their transformation to the maximum.

Attacks flew in from all around Richard in the wide, empty street. He backstepped and swung his wand. Butterflies of mana emerged from his fingers and fluttered straight to the chimeras' eyes.

At the same time, shadowy hands emerged from the ground. A chimera mixed with a harpy flapped her wings and shot needles of wind at Richard.

Richard jumped back—a single needle grazed his clothes—as the shadowy hand grabbed the Harpy and smacked her to the ground.

Already, behind him, another Chimera had raised its hands.

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Flames seeped out of the Chimera's arms. Richard didn't even know what Mrs. Frock had made it with.

Once more, butterflies flew out of Richard's hands and smashed into the Chimera's face. Richard used the chance to slip by and darted to the side—

"GAH!"

A sharp pain scoured through his sides. His clothes had burnt through, and his skin was melting. A chimera with the head of a snake, a Lamia-chimera, had shot a ball of acid right at him.

The Chimera prepared to attack again, her mana coalescing at her mouth. Richard flicked his wand, and a hand appeared from her shadows. It gripped her feet and dragged her to the ground.

The Chimera's acid crunched in her own mouth as a feral scream left her.

"Looking away!?" A scream tore through again as the Lion-Chimera once more attacked Richard.

It was terrible. The onslaught of attacks continued from all directions. Richard parried and tossed the chimeras away, but they all came back.

His butterflies were good for distraction, and his shadows to counter them, but Richard had nothing strong enough to stop all these enemies in their tracks. With each passing moment, the injuries piling on him increased.

His skin melted from the sides. Blood seeped out of his back that had been gouged out by attack after attack. A few feathers were lodged in his feet while signs of being punched and battered littered his body.

If this continued, Richard would not win. His injuries would lead him to defeat. He had to do something to stop the chimeras now, but without any strong attack that could tear through those things' defenses.

Richard's eyes narrowed. If he couldn't break through the Chimeras, then he didn't have to. There was someone else here, defeating whom would give him a chance to escape if not victory.

He was going to bet everything on the next move.

Richard lowered his stance. As ethereal circles littered the street, he squeezed out every drop of his mana.

The Chimera tried to jump in again, but a bulwark of shadows formed on both his sides. Hands extended out of the tall wall and stopped the chimeras in their tracks.

Without sparing them a glance, Richard dashed off. He ran straight into the middle of the shadow walls, his eyes fixed on Mrs. Frock.

"Y-you! Mad fool!" Mrs. Frock's face scrunched in disgust as Richard ran closer. She bit through her nails until blood covered her lips. She reached into her back with her other hand and pulled out a pistol.

A long pistol with a shot already loaded in it. Her hand trembled as she aimed for Richard, but the man ran undeterred.

A pistol, he could stop that much. Mrs. Frock knew it too, and so she bid time to ensure a perfect shot.

That's when it happened.

A needle of air shot straight at Richard and stabbed into his feet. Richard's face twisted as he looked to his side.

All this while, the other Chimeras had stopped moving. The mana Mrs. Frock had been supplying them with focused on a single chimera, the harpy. And the result—a single needle breaking through the spell that Richard had made with all his strength.

That single needle was enough.

Richard stumbled; his body lost balance as he flailed to the side. The spell he had set up crumbled at once as he lost his focus... his chance.

Mrs. Frock smiled, her teeth extended all the way to her ears. The trap had worked, her enemy had faltered, and her son's nutrition was secured.

"You fool!" Mrs. Frock screamed. Her finger wrapped around the trigger.

Slowly, she pulled it back. Her eyes, the gun's nozzle, all of it was pointed at Richard's head. The trigger moved with her finger.

Two horses ran in from the side and rammed into Mrs. Frock, trampling over her. The lady fell to the ground and rolled away as the hooves of the horses crushed her hand.

The horses and the carriage they pulled came to a screeching halt.

"Oh, fuck... oh shit..." The carriage driver held his head and groaned. He slowly looked at the other side of the road and found a familiar face.

Richard, too, was shocked at the sight of the driver.

"Jackie...?" He muttered.

"V-vice principal!?" Jackie replied.

"He's here? The Vice Principal?"

"The glorious second leader of the glorious Glorenstein?"

"Who did you say? Oh, I am so screwed. I never should have gone out to party."

More heads popped out of the carriage. Professor Barnum, Professor Jim, and Student Jeremy were sitting at the back.