Zeke noticed it too late as he was grazed by it just as he was rolling to the side. Since the place is dark, Zeke found it hard to see the actual attack. He could only rely on his perception of mana so it was inevitable for him to dodge late.

The figure's attack didn't cause a serious injury to Zeke as he raced his thoughts for countermeasures. He looked back and noticed that the door behind him is still open as he sighed in relief knowing he still has room to escape. However, Zeke didn't wish to as he was curious about this whole place. To sate his curiosity, he had to fight his way there and this figure in front of him isn't an exception. Zeke regarded him as an enemy long ago ever since he heard the man's way of speaking.

Zeke willed all his fireb.a.l.l.s to charge straight at the figure after remembering the whole room's layout. Right now, he figured it would be better for him to fight in a dark area in hopes that maybe the figure couldn't see him much less. .h.i.t him with the strange Dark Slashes.

The figure saw multiple fireb.a.l.l.s coming at him and sneered. He waved his hand as a barrier made of dark element formed around him. The incoming fireb.a.l.l.s looked like powerless b.a.l.l.s of mana as it hit the barrier without even making a dent.

'A Dark Magician?'

Zeke instantly knew based from the kind of element of the figure's barrier. The initial attack he also received was black in color, signifying it's of the Dark Element.

After receiving the fireb.a.l.l.s, the man looked at Zeke's direction only to realize why Zeke launched all the fireb.a.l.l.s at him. He then made the barrier around him thicker as two black orbs swirled around in each of his hands.

"Bah! This is annoying. You're lucky we're in a dark room or else you're as dead as those skeletons!" The figure spoke loudly with annoyance and anger.

Hearing this, Zeke smiled. He knew his gamble worked and the enemy lost his vision while he still had since the figure had a torch lit up near him. Silently, he willed a surge of mana in a nearby cover as it formed into a [Fireball] the size of a fist. He was about to launch this empowered fireball but he instantly lost control of the mana as a black orb from the man's left hand went straight for the cover until it hit the fireball. The mana instantly dissipated as Zeke felt a headache.

It seemed like he couldn't completely conceal himself as the figure could also detect traces of surging mana in his surroundings. This meant that this figure should also be at least at the same level as Zeke in terms of Mana Core Tier or even stronger. Zeke instantly knew that for magicians of equal strength to fight against each other, one would need a trick to defeat the enemy. If both were to only launch spells against each other, both would only exhaust their mana quickly without dealing serious damage against the other. Of course, skill and mana application should also be roughly the same for this to work. Right now, Zeke had ample battle experiences but most of his experiences are with using a weapon. In terms of using magic like a magician, Zeke could only apply 10% of his overall combat experience in the fight.

After a while of trying, Zeke still didn't have any success. Every time he cast a spell, the figure would instantly shoot out a black orb towards it, shattering the fireball while also dealing damage to the surroundings.

"Ji Ji Ji Ji, What you gonna do now, boy? Are you gonna go back and cry like a child? Go on, go on, it's not only your luck but also your strength that's lacking today. Ji Ji Ji Ji, who would've thought a measly fire magician like you dared to compete against the prized Dark Arts of my Devil Darkray Clan. Your attacks are truly like an ant trying to topple down an Elephant. Even I pity you, ye know? Ji Ji Ji Ji." The man's mocking remarks slightly infuriated Zeke but creepiness and shock overwhelmed him.

When Zeke heard the words 'Devil', he instantly connected the dots. Based on the figure's aura and emotions exuded, Zeke could conclude that this fellow should indeed be a Demon, 'evil' and 'vile' beings that he heard from his father. If it weren't, then why would it exude natural negative emotion?

After knowing that the fellow is a Demon, Zeke immediately shed pretenses as he tried to launch [Fireball] after [Fireball] towards the figure who easily blocked it with his barrier. Since he knew the other side was not human or Dragonborn, Zeke felt like he didn't need to hold back anymore.

He stood up, lit a small fireball above his head as he looked at the figure standing far across him. The figure also saw Zeke's appearance as he too had a surprised look. He didn't think his attacker would be someone so young yet already quite powerful and shrewd.

It soon dissipated as another two black orbs appeared on both hands. He then threw both orbs at Zeke, one aiming at the [Fireball] while the other one towards his body. Zeke didn't dally as a faint white glow enveloped him while blocking the other orb with his palms full of Light Mana. He then held both arms in front of him as he directly received the brunt momentum of the orb. Although the force was tough and hard to stop, it was thanks to the light element that his hands are still uninjured. However, the figure saw this with a shocked and solemn expression. However, he didn't see the light element and only a.s.sumed that Zeke received it through his bare hands alone.

"Ji Ji JI Ji, to be able to receive that, It seems you're strong too. Fine, looks like this trip with Master ain't that worthless after all. Ji Ji Ji Ji Ji, do your best to entertain me!" The figure laughed while also throwing black orbs at Zeke's body. Since Zeke's body was shrouded with a faint mana layer, the man could now sense Zeke's current position. He then immediately formed another two while throwing it at Zeke.

Zeke knew he wouldn't win by relying on this way so he immediately willed 12 more spears made of fire to aim at the figure in different directions. Unfortunately, the barrier the figure conjured protects him from all sides, so the spears weren't able to hit the figure. However, through this discovery, Zeke now knew what to do.

The figure only looked at the direction Zeke is at with disdain. He had absolute confidence seeing as the attacker's strength couldn't even dent his barrier so he fired his black orbs at spots where there's a mana fluctuation. He noticed to his surprise that instead of fleeing, Zeke actually took the initiative to charge forward seeing as the mana fluctuations get nearer and nearer at him. He sneered as he even sped up his barrage of dark orbs at Zeke. Unfortunately for him, he couldn't rely on his vision and he could only attack in random spots so he was consuming a large amount of mana without even having an a.s.surance that he damaged the enemy. Gradually, his originally annoyed att.i.tude became angry then became furious and indignant. If this was a normal fight, he felt he could obliterate his enemy with his Peak Tier 2 Magic.

Suddenly, Zeke sensed mana fluctuation in front of the figure as a large amount of mana surged there and gradually formed a big orb. This...o...b..exuded a terrifying aura that made Zeke s.h.i.+ver for a bit. He realized that the figure in front of him seemed to also know how to compress man for a bit considering he could fit all that mana in an orb that is only slightly bigger than his [Fireball]. His eyes grew solemn as he figured he needed to end the fight quickly or else he would be a moving target. Faint traces of electricity appeared around his feet as he rushed madly towards the figure. His figure streaked in a straight line as a ball of fire gathered in the middle of both his palms as he compressed more mana inside the small [Fireball]. With just a few seconds, Zeke covered the distance between the two of them as he readied to throw his [Fireball]. Seeing this, the figure sneered as he too prepared to launch the ma.s.s of Dark element in front of him. Seeing his own orb bigger than Zeke, he smiled coldly as he released it while Zeke was within an arm's reach. He took delight upon seeing the enemy get blown to bits but he was also slightly surprised about the attacker. Zeke looked like he was younger than a teenager at most as his facial features are very attractive and charming even with all the filth smeared. He shook his head and thought that this attacker of his was only just a kid who had good looks but bad at fighting. However, the next set of events made his facial expression contort into that of shock, confusion, as well as anger.

"SIKE!"

A loud shout could be heard by the figure as the man in front of him shouted and smiled coldly at him.

When both spells were about to hit each other in front of Zeke who didn't have any protection besides a faint trace of mana surrounding his body and the figure who had a high-powered barrier surrounding him, both of the spells suddenly dispersed like sand getting blown by the wind. Not only that but he saw his own barrier getting dissolved along with a spear stabbing straight through him, piercing his throat as blood gushed down like a fountain. The figure looked at the smiling Zeke with confusion and anger as he clutched the spear impaled through his neck. He wanted to know what happened to get him killed like this. Just a few moments earlier, he had all the momentum and forced Zeke into running around as he bombarded him with spells in the dark, but now, he was defeated and killed by the same youth whom he belittled earlier. Much worse, he would die without even knowing who killed him and how he did it.