112- Rhys Comes Well Prepared


    "This...!" Daphne''s eyes shed with a hint of disappointment.


    She hadn''t expected Rhys to pull out such a crystal ball,pletely shattering her chances of following him.


    She didn''t refuse to use the crystal ball orin about the quality of the view within it, as that would have been unreasonable.


    She understood very well that Rhys had already done too much for her, going above and beyond what was necessary.


    While Rhys himself might not care about his own sacrifices, Daphne''s upbringing made it impossible for her to ept such generosity without feeling uneasy, and she certainly couldn''t take advantage of Rhys''s kindness.


    Sometimes, in the quiet moments of the night, Daphne would feel a sense of panic: she couldn''t understand what Rhys was after by doing all of this for her.


    Daphne even thought that it would be easier if Rhys one day asked for the Greengrass family fortune—it would at least put her mind at ease. She wouldn''t even mind giving him half of it.


    If Rhys knew what she was thinking, he would definitely suggest that Daphne stop being his student and learn from Gryffindor, as that is exactly what that fucker did, wasting his own money from the missions on booze while relying on his three friends for life expenses.


    Once Daphne epted the crystal ball, Rhys adjusted the monocle on his eye, making sure it fit more snugly. This lens would reflect everything Rhys saw back to the crystal ball, providing Daphne with a "live broadcast."


    At the same time, the ground beneath his feet softened, bing a mixture of liquid and solid, just like the quicksand that had appeared in the dungeon earlier.


    This time, Rhys was well-prepared and wouldn''t be as helpless as he wasst time.


    With his preparationplete, Rhys, along with the patch of quicksand beneath him, silently slipped into the corridor around the corner—where Ravenw awaited.


    After the corner, a downward passageway led to a vast, open tform. At the center of this tform, Ravenw''s ghost was controlling her physical body, locked in battle with a monstrous creature.


    The scene was almost identical to what Rhys had witnessed thest time, except the creature she was fighting was different.


    It was a massive, transparent dragon, with an asional sh of silver across its scales, affirming its existence. With each movement, the air around the dragon would tear with ck cracks, and whenever it breathed, a narrow dimensional rift would appear in front of Ravenw, forcing her to either change her position or use other spells to mend the ruptured space.


    ''A space dragon? How did this thing end up here?'' Rhys was astonished to witness a space dragon, a creature he had only heard of in legends.


    They hadn''t sealed such a creature in the dungeon because it would have been an unrealistic task. Space dragons are natural masters of spatial magic, simr to house-elves, capable of Apparating almost anywhere.


    Sealing such a creature was far less feasible than figuring out how to kill it.


    This dragon might have been attracted by something or perhaps stumbled upon this ce by ident, only to be caught by the patrolling Ravenw.


    In the battle with Ravenw, the space dragon appeared to hold an unbeatable position.


    Whenever Ravenw attacked, the dragon would simply open a spatial rift in front of itself, absorbing all the attack spells into the fissure. It could even reopen the rift near Ravenw''s body, returning her attacks to her in their original form.


    However, the situation quickly changed: Ravenw raised her wand-wielding hand, pointing it straight at the space dragon''s head, while her other hand traced a semicircle in front of her, forming a protective shield to deflect the various attacks that the space dragon redirected toward her.


    The space dragon, as usual, created a spatial rift along the path of the spell, ready to absorb and transfer Ravenw''s attack.


    But this time, no visible spell emerged from the tip of Ravenw''s wand. It was as if she was merely intimidating the space dragon, raising her wand and then lowering it without casting anything.


    The space dragon seemed slightly perplexed, but in the next moment, it let out a cry of agony.


    "RoooOOaarr!"


    Its scales flickered with silver light. As it exposed a weakness, Ravenw swiftly waved her wand, and dozens of spells struck the dragon, tearing its body apart. Silver blood and scales scattered everywhere.


    Rhys''s brow furrowed: this was Ravenw''s unique soul-targeting attack, something that ordinary spatial rifts could not block. After taking that hit, the space dragon''s soul was likely torn apart.


    The space dragon was indeed unlucky. Normally, its innate talent for spatial magic would have made it nearly invincible, but it had the misfortune of encountering Ravenw, who was extremely effective against it.


    Grievously wounded, the space dragon didn''t hesitate for a moment. It immediately tore open a massive spatial rift behind itself and retreated into it, attempting to flee. Just as the rift was about to close, hundreds of wind des rushed into the gap.


    The rift sealed shut, but the air was filled with the sound of the dragon''s pained screams, andrge amounts of dragon blood, mixed with bits of flesh and scales, rained down onto the ground.


    While Ravenw was busy battling the space dragon, Rhys retrieved a set of potions he had specifically prepared for Ravenw. Seeing that she had sessfully driven the dragon away, he was about to seize the opportunity tounch a surprise attack on her.


    But to his surprise, Ravenw, having just defeated the space dragon, immediately looked up at the spot where he was standing without a moment''s hesitation.


    Rhys: "???"


    He couldn''t understand why he had been exposed, but years of battle experience left no room for unnecessary thoughts.


    He immediately manipted the mud, raising a wall of sludge between him and Ravenw, and submerged himself into the mire.


    <strong><em>Woosh! Boom!</em></strong>


    The next moment, the wind des struck where he had just been.


    The mud wall he had summoned held for only an instant before it was sted back into a shapeless mass. The residual force of the wind des carved marks into the wall, leaving traces of Ravenw''s lingering magical power.


    Ravenw seemed to have the upper hand, but the ground near the tform had turned entirely into a quagmire after this round of attacks.


    Rhys emerged from the swamp, flinging a series of potion bottles toward Ravenw''s position.


    These bottles, of course, posed no real threat to Ravenw. They were shattered mid-air by her wind des, their contents spilling onto the ground.


    What followed was almost like a game of "whack-a-mole" between Rhys and Ravenw. Rhys would asionally pop up from the mire to toss a few potion bottles, while Ravenw would effortlessly shatter them and counterattack with wind des.


    However, those wind des, capable of slicing through dragon scales and cleaving iron and stone, were nearly powerless when they hit the swamp. All they managed to do was ssh some mud, their strength entirely diminished.


    Even more astonishing, as the wind des entered the swamp, their magical energy was rapidly assimted by the mire, bing nourishment for the quagmire and causing it to spread even faster.


    When Ravenw had first defeated the space dragon, Rhys'' quagmire had only upied a corner of the tform. But after just a brief exchange, the swamp now covered nearly a fifth of the tform, and the entire corridor outside had turned into a marsh.


    The spilled potions on the ground were quietly taking effect...


    _______


    <em>Read 12 Chapters ahead of SH at my Patreon!?</em>