Ten days had passed since the first battle, and the once victorious defenders of Glux'n now found themselves trapped within their own walls. The Tzae-Vaan had returned, this time with their full force, surrounding the capital on all sides. Their encampments stretched beyond the horizon, thousands upon thousands of soldiers, siege weapons, and war beasts prepared to crush the golden city. The war had escalated, and the true battle for Glux'n had begun.

  Juan stood among the front-line warriors, gripping his sword tightly. He had trained tirelessly over the past days, refining his barrier magic, pushing himself to new limits. Yet, despite his growth, he could feel the pressure in the air, the weight of the coming battle pressing down on his shoulders. He glanced around, searching for Frankfield, but as expected, the mage was positioned further back with the magic corps. This was war, and they each had their roles to play.

  The enemy struck first.

  The Tzae-Vaan siege engines roared to life, launching fiery projectiles at the walls. Some were repelled by powerful enchantments, but many found their mark, shattering stone and sending debris raining down into the city. The Glux'n defenders responded in kind, launching counterattacks with ballistae and magical bombardments. The battlefield erupted into chaos.

  Then came the charge.

  Tzae-Vaan cavalry, clad in mythril armor, surged forward like a tidal wave, their lances glinting in the sunlight. Behind them, ranks of spearmen, swordsmen, and their warlocks followed, their battle cries mixing with the thunder of hooves. Juan took a deep breath, his pulse steadying as the enemy closed in.

  "Hold the line!" a captain bellowed.

  The front-liners braced themselves, shields locking together as the cavalry crashed into them. Juan's barrier magic flared to life, forming a translucent shield that absorbed the force of a charging horse. With a swift motion, he redirected the energy, sending the rider flying backward.

  He wasted no time. His shield-blades manifested around him, slicing through the chaos. He moved like a storm, deflecting attacks, countering with precision. Every strike was calculated, every movement refined. His technique had improved, but the enemy was relentless.

  A powerful warlock emerged from the debris, his hands glowing with dark energy. He conjured spears of shadow and hurled them toward Juan. With a flick of his wrist, Juan summoned a barrier to block the attack, but the spears twisted mid-air, bypassing his defense. He barely managed to dodge, the searing pain of a near-miss grazing his arm.

  He needed to adapt.

  Recalling Frankfield's lessons, he modified his shields on the fly, curving their shape to redirect incoming attacks instead of merely blocking them. The next volley of shadow spears veered off course, spiraling away harmlessly. Juan countered with a barrage of shield needles, ricocheting them through the battlefield. Several found their marks, piercing enemy soldiers with pinpoint accuracy.

  But the battle was far from over.

  The Tzae-Vaan forces were pressing forward, overwhelming the defenders with sheer numbers. Siege towers rolled closer, filled with warriors ready to pour onto the walls. War beasts, massive creatures clad in spiked armor, bulldozed through the ranks, trampling everything in their path.

  A sudden explosion rocked the battlefield. A section of the wall crumbled, and through the breach, the enemy poured in like a flood. Juan barely had time to react before he was swept up in the chaos, separated once again from the main forces.

  He fought his way through the narrow streets, his shield magic keeping him alive as he weaved between enemy soldiers. The city was burning around him, the golden spires of Glux'n now cast in an eerie crimson glow. He needed to regroup, to find Frankfield, but every path was blocked by enemy reinforcements.

  Then, through the haze of battle, he saw it, a towering figure cutting down Glux'n soldiers like they were nothing.

  A Tzae-Vaan general had entered the fray.

  Clad in dark plate armor, the general wielded a massive warhammer that crackled with elemental energy. Each swing shattered the ground, sending shockwaves through the battlefield. Juan's breath caught in his throat. This was no ordinary soldier, this was a monster in human form.

  The general's gaze locked onto Juan.

  A cruel grin spread across his face. Without hesitation, he charged, his warhammer descending like a meteor. Juan barely managed to throw up a barrier in time, the impact sending him skidding backward, his arms trembling from the sheer force.

  This wasn't a fight he could win through brute strength.

  He needed to think, to strategize. His shields weren't just for defense, they were a weapon. He had to use them creatively, to outmaneuver his opponent.

  As Juan faced the Tzae-Vaan general, he could feel the sheer difference in their strength. The towering man wielded a massive warhammer, its weight alone capable of crushing him entirely. Each swing sent shockwaves through the ground, creating craters in the dirt. Juan barely dodged, relying on his agility rather than strength. He attempted to strike back, sending his piercing shield needles toward the general's exposed areas, but to his horror, they simply bounced off. The general's armor was unlike anything Juan had encountered, mythril, enchanted with a powerful and unknown magic.

  Gritting his teeth, Juan realized he couldn't win through sheer force. He needed a plan. His thoughts raced, recalling his past battles, the dragon, the iron magus, and the slimes he had observed in Frankfield's village. Slimes could multiply without losing their main body's energy, so what if he could apply the same principle to his shield magic? Could he seal the general away, just as he had attempted with the dragon?

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  As the general lunged, Juan backpedaled quickly. The enormous warhammer came crashing down, barely missing him as he rolled to the side. His muscles screamed in protest, exhaustion setting in, but he couldn't afford to stop. If he made even one mistake, he would be nothing more than a stain on the battlefield.

  Then, that idea struck him. He placed his index finger above his eyelid and his thumb below, summoning a droplet of mana-infused water in front of his eye. His heart pounded as he focused every fiber of his being on the spell. He had never tried this before, but he had to believe in it. Magic was only as strong as one's imagination and understanding of how it worked. He had both.

  As the general raised his hammer once more, Juan roared, "LOCK!"

  The air around them distorted. A translucent barrier expanded outward, warping around the general's massive frame. It was like an invisible cage, shimmering with raw power. The general snarled, trying to break free, but the harder he struggled, the tighter the seal became. It wasn't just any shield magic, it was an entirely new spell, something never seen before.

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  But the cost was immense. He felt the majority of his mana drain away, leaving him barely able to stand. His limbs grew heavy, and his vision blurred. He collapsed to one knee, panting. Three-fourths of his mana, gone. He was defenseless, unable to fight anymore.

  All he could do now was rely on his shield magic to hold, keeping himself protected while the battle raged on around him. For the next fourteen hours, he remained inside his shield, hiding his remaining mana to avoid detection. He was completely drained, unable to move.

  Then after 15 hours, the war was over.

  Frankfield, with his overwhelming magic, had turned the tide. His light beams had scorched the battlefield, annihilating an astonishing 257,895 out of the 400,000 Tzae-Vaan soldiers. Glux'n had emerged victorious, and Juan's barrier-seal had not broken.

  As Juan finally collapsed from exhaustion, he knew one thing, his power was evolving, and the battlefield had only just begun to witness the extent of his potential.

  The war was over. The battlefield that once roared with the clash of steel and the cries of men had finally gone silent. Glux'n had emerged victorious, and the mercenaries who had fought for the kingdom were paid their fair share. But among them, one warrior stood above the rest, Frankfield Lightspawn-no, Frankfield "The Light of Glux'n" Lightspawn. His name now echoed through the kingdom, sung by bards and whispered in awe.

  With 257,895 confirmed kills, he had become a legend, a symbol of devastation for Glux'n's enemies. And the king, true to his word, offered Frankfield everything promised, the gold, the mythril, the solarite, the concubines, the statues in his honor. Yet, to the astonishment of all, Frankfield refused it all. Instead, he had only one request. the royal grimoire, the one containing forgotten light spells that even he had never imagined.

  The king, though surprised, granted Frankfield's wish. He had earned it. The grimoire was older than the kingdom itself, holding secrets lost to time, and now, it was in the hands of the most powerful light mage the kingdom had ever known.

  Meanwhile, Juan lay in bed, recovering from the war. The immense drain on his mana had left him exhausted, but he was alive. He had done it, he had not only survived but contributed. He had defeated a Tzae-Vaan general. He had sealed away a being of near-monster strength. He had proven to himself that he wasn't just some coward running from debt. And yet, in his heart, he couldn't help but feel that he was still a stranger in this world.

  As days passed, Glux'n showed unexpected mercy toward the remaining Tzae-Vaan territories. Despite the enemy's aggression, the kingdom spared them, not wanting to waste more resources on conquest. The war was over, and the people of Glux'n wished to rebuild rather than destroy.

  After a few more days, Juan had fully recovered, and together with Frankfield, he traveled back to Frankfield's village to rest and reflect. The village, a peaceful settlement not far from the capital, was a place of golden fields and shimmering rivers. The people welcomed their hero, their native son, with open arms. But Frankfield hardly spent any time celebrating. He was too engrossed in the grimoire.

  For days and nights, he poured over the ancient text, absorbing its knowledge. Juan, still getting used to life after the war, spent most of his time watching slimes and learning about magic. He had discovered something powerful, something no one had ever done before. If he could refine it, make it more efficient, then maybe-just maybe he could become someone truly extraordinary.

  Then one night, Frankfield came to him with something that made his heart race.

  "Juan, listen to this," Frankfield said, holding the grimoire open to a specific page. His normally calm blue eyes were filled with something Juan had never seen before, genuine excitement. "This spell... it shouldn't exist."

  Juan raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

  Frankfield tapped the page. "This isn't elemental magic. This isn't just light manipulation. This is something else entirely."

  Juan leaned over and read the words aloud. "Gate of Luminance?"

  Frankfield nodded. "It's a portal spell. A spell that can connect to different dimensions, different universes."

  Juan's breath caught in his throat. He stared at Frankfield, his mind racing. "Wait... you're saying... I could go back home?"

  Frankfield slowly nodded. "If we can master this spell, then yes. We can open a portal to your world."

  Juan shot up from his seat, his Spanish accent thickening with excitement. "Ay, hombre! Why didn't we find this earlier?! We gotta learn it, right now!"

  Frankfield smirked. "It's not that simple. This is beyond even what I've done before. If we mess up, we could be torn apart, lost in the void forever."

  Juan's excitement was immediately replaced with nervous laughter. "Ehhh... Maybe we take it slow?"

  And so, they trained. Every day, for two years, Juan and Frankfield practiced the magic. It was unlike anything either of them had ever attempted. Juan had spent so much time refining his shield magic that adapting to a new form of magic was difficult, but Frankfield guided him, pushing him to his limits. They experimented, failed, adjusted, and tried again.

  As the months passed, their progress was undeniable. Frankfield could create small rifts, temporary holes in space that lasted mere seconds. Then, they expanded them, stabilizing them with mana, making them last longer. Juan, despite still having his signature arrogance, grew more serious. He had a goal now, a real goal. He wasn't just surviving. He wasn't just gambling his way through life. He was preparing to return to his world.

  Finally, the day arrived. The moment of truth.

  Juan and Frankfield stood in a clearing outside the village, the grimoire open between them. The air was thick with tension. They had never attempted a full-scale portal before. This would be the culmination of all their training.

  Frankfield took a deep breath. "Alright, Juan. Are you ready?"

  Juan smirked. "No. But let's do it anyway."

  Frankfield chuckled, then raised his hands. "Let there be light."

  A golden glow surrounded them as he began the chant. Juan followed suit, adding his own energy to the mix. The air shimmered, reality bending and twisting. The mana surged through them, forming a shape in the air, an archway of pure radiance. The portal began to stabilize, the image of another world flickering within.

  Juan's heart pounded. He could see it. He could see his world.

  But then-

  CRACK.

  The portal trembled violently.

  A gust of force erupted from within, nearly knocking them off their feet. The grimoire's pages flipped wildly, as if caught in a storm. Something was wrong.

  Frankfield's eyes widened. "Juan, get back!"

  And then-

  Everything went white.