Elegy from Another World

The decision has been made, and there is no more hesitation.

I took a deep breath, and the remaining magic within me surged wildly at an unprecedented speed. An invisible, disintegrating force field, distorting the surrounding light, instantly unfolded around me, enveloping me completely. This was the strongest defensive and offensive technique I could currently employ—any matter that touched the force field would be disintegrated into dust invisible to the naked eye.

"I have to be quick!" Only one thought occupied my mind. Facing thirty well-equipped warriors, a direct confrontation was futile. Our only chance of survival was to eliminate Xiao Bei's master before they did, seizing control of the labyrinth's core!

Ignoring the maze's structure, I charged straight towards the core area along the shortest path I could remember. The disintegration field was like the most ferocious battering ram; wherever it passed, warm flesh walls, writhing tentacles, and even supporting structures turned into dust and splattered tissue fluid upon contact, carving a straight, burnt-smelling path through the maze.

Three minutes felt incredibly long in this life-or-death race against time. I finally reached the last, thick barrier of flesh in the core area. Just ahead lay the very spot where I had been instantly subdued last time.

"This time... I will never make the same mistake again!" I forced myself to calm down and quickly thought of a solution. That man's speed and strength far exceeded that of an ordinary person; there was almost no chance of a direct confrontation. But humans... ultimately have instincts.

I quietly gathered magic behind me, compressing a large amount of air to an extreme degree, forming an unstable, high-energy cloud. Psychological knowledge flashed through my mind: when humans encounter extreme fright or sudden situations, they experience a brief "freeze reaction," where the brain needs time to process the unexpected information, and the body stiffens for about 0.5 to 3 seconds.

"Now!"

I suddenly released the compressed air mass towards the flesh wall in front of me!

"boom--!!!"

With a deafening explosion, the thick wall of flesh shattered into pieces as if blown by explosives, fragments and slime shooting backward! Amidst the billowing smoke and blood mist, I saw the blurry figure standing before the pink crystal—Xiao Pei's master, the former knight commander. Just as I expected, this sudden and utterly brutal method of breaching the wall clearly exceeded his expectations, and his movements froze for an extremely brief moment!

opportunity!

"Kill!!!" I roared, channeling all my will into my right arm. My entire right arm was instantly enveloped in dense, disintegrating magic, radiating an ominous glow. The muscle fibers trembled slightly from the extreme energy injection. I hurled it forward like a javelin!

A dark beam of light, condensed to its extreme and distorting space, tore through the air and struck the stiff figure with pinpoint accuracy!

"Pfft—!"

There was no earth-shattering explosion, only a soft, eerie tearing sound. A beam of light swept past, silently cleaving the man's body in two along the midline, the cut as smooth as a mirror. The beam's momentum didn't wane, annihilating a large section of flesh behind him as well.

But that's not enough! The vitality of the Demon King's apostles cannot be judged by ordinary standards!

I moved with lightning speed, instantly leaping to the side of the mangled body that had been cleaved in two but was still standing. My left hand was already gripping a blazing short blade formed from light magic.

With a swift stroke, I chopped and minced the remains further, until they became an unrecognizable pile of flesh!

Finally, I opened my left hand, and blazing flames erupted, completely engulfing the pieces of flesh and blood on the ground, burning fiercely! The high temperature scorched the air, producing crackling sounds and the stench of burning protein.

I gasped for breath, staring intently at the pile of remains gradually turning to ash in the flames, confirming that there was no sign of life returning. Thanks to the body's innate "eternal burning" characteristic, which transforms all pain into pure pleasure, the physiological damage to my right arm caused by overusing magic did not bring any pain. Instead, I felt a strange, surging, and exhilarating sensation.

"Phew... all done..." I relaxed slightly and withdrew the disintegration force field around me. Although my right arm was slightly numb due to energy overload, it did not affect my movement.

Now, the most important target is the core! I turned around and rushed towards the altar without hesitation, my eyes fixed on the pink rhombus-shaped crystal that was quietly floating.

I reached out my left hand, trying to touch the crystal. Just as my fingers were about to touch it, the crystal seemed to lose its buoyancy and suddenly sank! An astonishing weight came over me, and I almost dropped it. I could only quickly wrap my magic around it and barely manage to "move" it off the altar.

Just then, a slender tentacle trembled and hesitated as it slowly reached out from the fleshy wall beside me and gently pierced my ear canal.

Xiao Bei's shocked and incredulous voice immediately exploded in my mind: "[Lizia! What are you doing?! You killed him?! Do you even know...]"

"There's no time to explain!" I interrupted it rudely, my tone urgent. "I'm saving you! Quickly figure out a way to move the core of the maze away! Get out of here!"

"But... once the core leaves the altar, some of the labyrinth's functions will..." Xiao Pei's voice was filled with confusion and anxiety.

Before it could finish speaking, the heaviest door in the core area, accompanied by a heavy scraping sound, was slowly pushed open a crack from the outside! The Hero Squad... they arrived too quickly!

"It's too late!" I practically roared at Xiao Bei, watching the figures and cold light flickering behind the crack in the door, "Use your tentacles! Envelop the crystal! Protect it! I'll hold them off!"

I assumed a fighting stance, using magic to barely hold the heavy core to my side. The flames in my left hand reignited, even though I had very little magic left, but my eyes were filled with determination.

Xiao Bei seemed to want to say something more, her voice trembling with tears: "Lissa, you…"

"Stop talking nonsense!" I shouted sharply, interrupting its attempts to dissuade me. "I'm immortal anyway! Let me fight until the core is safely transferred!!!"

With that, I mustered my last strength and prepared to launch a desperate charge against the surging enemy.

However, at this tense moment, when war seemed imminent, a voice filled with surprise and uncertainty rang out from the group of fully armed soldiers at the entrance, echoing clearly in the silent core hall:

"Huh? You...you're Liscia?"

These words struck me like a thunderbolt from a clear sky, freezing me in place and leaving my mind blank.

How...how did they know my name?!

Before I could react, the voice became even more excited, even tinged with surprise: "My God! It really is you! Don't you recognize me? I'm the survivor you rescued from those bandits back then! You've forgotten?!"

"ah?!"

"ah?!"

Almost simultaneously, the little paradox in my mind and I exclaimed in disbelief and astonishment.

This sudden revelation of his identity caused the already tense situation to veer off in an entirely unpredictable direction.