Rookwood only felt that the energy from the Secret Vault, which had been surging like a great river and supporting his frenzied attacks, disappeared. He had to cut off the magic power supply to his Charm, although the energy previously infused within him was still abundant. However, losing the continuous replenishment made him feel an intense unease.
"Roar—"
Perhaps sensing the change in energy fluctuations, Norbert let out a low growl, its massive head fixed on Rookwood as dangerous red light brewed deep in its throat. A scorching sulfuric breath spread, clearly intending to incinerate the pesky insect that repeatedly attacked its master.
"Calm down, Norbert."
William raised his hand, gently patting the hard scales on the Fire Dragon's neck, soothing it in a low voice, "This guy still has his uses, I need him alive. He's not as durable as that golden statue before. If you accidentally kill him, where am I supposed to go to find task guidance?"
Upon hearing this, Norbert snorted with a fiery snort of discontent but still obediently lowered its head.
"Die!!"
Suddenly, taking advantage of William's distraction, Rookwood let out a venomous hiss, his magic power furiously operating within. Though he lost the Secret Vault's logistical support, the power he could wield at this moment was still considerable—
He forcefully swung his Magic Wand, sending a thin, black and sinister ray resembling a snake's flicking tongue silently towards William's heart.
However, William had long anticipated this move.
Just as the black ray was about to strike, his figure blurred for an instant, leaving behind a faint afterimage. The ray pierced through the afterimage, hitting the rocky wall behind, silently corroding a bottomless little hole.
In the next moment, William's true form appeared three feet away on open ground. He casually patted non-existent dust off his coat, his voice filled with undisguised disappointment, "I thought you'd have something new, but it's still the same unpresentable trick, Victor, not a bit of progress."
He said this without a blush or heartbeat, as if he wasn't the one who had launched a sneak attack five minutes ago.
William's words seemed to flip a switch, igniting the fear and resentment that had accumulated in Rookwood's heart for a century. He frantically waved his Magic Wand, unleashing a dazzling array of but no less sinister spells like uncontrolled fireworks, wildly showering towards William—
"Too slow."
William sidestepped, a corrosive beam of purple-black light grazing his nose as it flew past, striking the rock wall behind him with a sizzling sound.
"Not enough force."
He casually flicked his Magic Wand again, deflecting a Stunning Spell aimed at his knee, which then collided with the ceiling, shattering a small piece of stalactite.
"The angle is off by three points."
He slightly tilted his head, another Killing Curse with a piercing scream skimmed past his ear.
"The movements in this spell are too redundant, I stopped using it as soon as I became an adult."
He even had time to critique a complex spell structure attempting to bind his hands and feet. A flash of light from the tip of his Magic Wand caused the chain to disassemble mid-air.
"Shut up! Shut up! You damn bastard!!"
Rookwood roared like a cornered beast. The prolonged, crazed output and intense anger caused his magic power to waver violently, affecting his emotions under William's deliberate provocation. His hood had slipped unnoticed, revealing a face twisted in rage, making it look grotesquely hideous.
Sweat, tears, and blood trickling from his nose smeared his face, except for those pure black eyes burning with frantic flames.
"You think I wanted this?! It's all your fault! It's all your doing!"
Rookwood shouted, his words pouring out uncontrollably like a breached flood, "Your spell killed me outright, with no room left. I had to hide like a stray dog in the gutter, relying on that damn Soul Artifact to survive—"
William deftly dodged a Stunning Spell, commenting blandly—
"Soul Artifacts again? An overplayed old trick, did their creator run out of imagination? Can't they come up with something new?"
"I endured it—for nearly fifty years! Hiding under the rocks of the Hebrides Islands like a rat, not daring to make any move...until...until I confirmed that you, the demon, were truly gone, wiped out by time! Only then did I finally breathe fresh air—"
His spells became increasingly chaotic, but his desire to vent grew stronger, as if trying to release all the suppressed feelings of a century at once, "I was cautious, not rebuilding forces in the United Kingdom. I found the 'Poacher,' that group of strength-obsessed fools! It took me decades of infiltration and climbing..."
A hint of realization crossed William's eyes. He appeared in another position like a ghost, continuing to guide—
"And then? This doesn't seem like what you said; you came to provoke me on your own—"
"Then..."
Rookwood's voice suddenly faltered, and the next moment, extreme pain and struggle appeared on his face. In those pure black eyes, another consciousness seemed to be churning madly, preventing him from saying more, "I... met... Him... no... I can't..."
Just when he was about to utter the critical name, the dark light in his eyes bubbled violently like boiling tar. His entire facial skin began to distort and stretch unnaturally, as if countless tiny bugs were wriggling under his skin. His blood vessels bulged, turning into a terrifying black, and his body inflated like a balloon—
William's pupils constricted, and his relaxed demeanor disappeared.
The next moment, he rapidly flicked his Magic Wand, several silver-white sealing Runes shot towards Rookwood like lightning, attempting to stabilize his about-to-collapse body.
However, it was one step too late.
"Poof—"
Like a filthy bag forcibly burst open, Victor Rookwood's body exploded in front of William, not with the expected blood and flesh splattering, but replaced by a thick, inky black mist swirling and twisting, emitting a nauseating aura of decay and resentment—
At the core of the mist, a profoundly agonized and indistinct human face was faintly visible, emitting a silent shriek.
Then, in the next instant, the mist billowed and dissipated. William's soul-controlling spell landed on nothing, causing him to exhale in resignation—as he had focused on guiding the other to speak the information, he overlooked these details. Had he prepared in advance—
But after this scene, he mostly understood that there was clearly another mastermind behind this guy.
Another familiar nesting doll situation... but who's behind it this time?
William pondered as he put away his Magic Wand, slowly turning around, his gaze sweeping over the chaotic altar.
Those Ashwinder members, drained of emotions, still stood like puppets, their eyes vacant. At the other end of the altar, where the two "goddesses" Athena and Hera had just stood, they were now nowhere to be seen.
Looking at the empty altar, William wasn't angry. Instead, his lips curved into a meaningful grin.
"Trying to run again, little mouse?"
He said softly, the yellowish firelight flickering on his profile, "But this time, it won't be so easy to find a new hole."