Quinn's face contorted with rage as he bellowed, "You used a relic!"

Lucas nonchalantly shrugged and replied, "What's the big deal? Don't accuse me of being unfair. After all, aren't you Quinn Darkstar, the one they call the Calamity Bringer? This is merely a testament to your might!"

Before Quinn could speak further, Lucas willed mana into his legs and dashed at the necromancer, closing the distance between them in a mere second.

Cling—!

Lucas swung his spear at his opponent's face with great might. Quinn, however, raised his hands and deftly blocked the spear with his twin daggers.

Using quick footwork, Quinn slipped away and swiftly ducked down.

From his crouched position, he thrust his dagger upward, intending to stab Lucas in his throat – an unguarded part that his golden armor wasn't covering.

Ting—!

"....?!"

But unexpectedly, a sharp metallic sound echoed through the air and a searing pain shot through Quinn's hand. It was as if he had attempted to penetrate a thick metal wall rather than stab through flesh.

'What?!' he thought before quickly coming to a conclusion. 'His armor! It's negating the physical damage I deal!'

Quinn's conclusion wasn't far off. Lucas' armor was, in fact, capable of rendering any outside attack thrown at its wearer to one-tenth of its original strength.

"Nice try but" Lucas spoke and quickly put away the spear in his hand into his smart bracelet while also grabbing Quinn's hand, which held a knife to his throat, with his left hand. "You can't win."

As he said that, Lucas swiftly slipped his right hand under Quinn's arm before pulling him towards himself, putting Quinn off balance.

Lucas then turned his body towards Quinn and used his opponent's arm as leverage before bending his own body to flip the necromancer over his shoulder.

Thwack—!!

With a flawless Judo throw, Lucas slammed Quinn crashing onto the cold, hard concrete.

"Khaaaa!" Quinn's breath escaped through his lips in a loud gasp, and the impact left him dazed as the world momentarily turned upside down.

Utilizing this chance, Lucas summoned his spear and lifted it high, preparing to strike Quinn with deadly force.

Thruck—!

But as he struck down his spear, it met nothing but the ground since Quinn quickly rolled out of the way, missing a deadly strike by a hair's breadth.

"Haaa! Haaa!" huffing and puffing, Quinn tried to get up on his feet but it was hard for him. He was barely able to keep his eyes open when all he wanted to do was rest.

"Really? You are the Calamity Bringer?" Lucas taunted as he watched Quinn struggle to stand up straight. "And you think you're stronger than Nero when you can't even defeat me? Pathetic."

"Hahaha!" instead of the reaction that Lucas expected, Quinn broke out in a fit of laughter. "You have to sedate me to even match me in combat and even then you have to use a high-grade relic! You think–"

Before he can go on with his rant, Lucas cuts him off. "So? The heavens blessed you with strength and I was given intelligence. Am I wrong to make use of what I have?"

Quinn remained silent for a moment before chuckling and jerking his head. "Oh, really? Alright then, let's curse the heavens for this!"

With a sudden outburst of dense, ominous energy, the shadow under Quinn's feet manifested in the physical realm.

Standing beside him, a humanoid figure composed entirely of dark violet shadows materialized. The figure appeared to be a young girl, roughly 12 or 13 years old, judging by her size.

Comprised entirely of darkness, the girl's long black hair flowed down her back, and her eyes consisted of two glowing purple voids.

"So you have finally decided to bring 'her' out, huh?" Lucas sighed, knowing that the Necromancer wasn't going to admit defeat.

The shadow minion that had made its appearance was special to Quinn in more ways than one.

Her name was Shiya and she was Quinn's dead lover.

He met her when he was forced to go to the Northern Border.

There, at Istana Military Camp, he met a group of orphans who were also forcefully sent there, much like him, and she was among them.

After a series of events, they became close. But one day, when a strong vampire attacked their camp, Quinn had to watch Shiya die in front of him.

However, unable to let go, Quinn trapped a part of Shiya's soul within his shadows, bringing her back to life as his shadow minion.

"Gaaaaaaaur!" the girl opened her mouth and let out a beastly scream, her vampire-like fangs slightly visible to Lucas.

Yes, when Shiya died, she was turned into a vampire. As a result of it, when Quinn trapped a fragment of her soul to make her his shadow minion, she came back as a vampire-human hybrid.

So how is that a bad thing?

Well, despite being a product of Quinn's Necromancy, Shiya was partially turned into a vampire before her death. And it is an undeniable fact that all vampires are bound to the Vampire Monarch.

Since Shiya was partially turned into a vampire before her death, there's a strong possibility that the Vampire Monarch will be able to control her when he awakens in the future.

So having a pawn within the human border that the Vampire Monarch could use to create opportunities to invade is certainly not a pleasant thought.

It's a ticking time bomb.

That's why if academy officials ever learn about this matter, they will either demand Quinn to release Shiya's soul and let her pass or kill Quinn himself.

Dying doesn't scare Quinn, a necromancer who has walked on the edge of living and dead his entire life but losing Shiya again does.

That's why when Lucas tried to threaten Quinn using Shiya, the necromancer was furious.

In all honesty, he'd never have summoned Shiya if it wasn't for the fact that without her, Quinn was certain that he would lose this battle with Lucas.

Of course, he decided to stay cautious and not let Shiya use her vampiric abilities. But even without them, she was his strongest shadow slave.

With her by his side, Quinn knew not even the gods could defeat them.

"Now, whatever happens, don't accuse me of being unfair," Quinn said, eyeing Lucas with a smirk plastered on his face. "You are a descendant of the prestigious Morningstar family– the one they call Wolves Of The West. This is merely a testament to the name that you hold."