The sharp, metallic ring of steel clashing against dark mana echoed endlessly off the damp stone walls of the Clock Tower courtyard. The night air was thick with the scent of ozone and burning stone as Arthur held his ground against the rushing guard, his iron blade vibrating violently under the immense impact of a heavy, corrupted halberd. His muscles screamed in protest, his arms ached down to the bone, and his stamina gauge flickered a dangerous warning red in the corner of his peripheral vision, but he refused to yield an inch of ground. He couldn't afford to fall here,not when Vesper was standing right beside him, and not when they were so close to exposing the true rot festering within the heart of the academy.Beside him, Vesper moved like a streak of silver lightning cutting through a storm. Her hands, wreathed in roaring, concentrated crimson flames, struck the second guard's heavy plate armor with concussive, bone-rattling force. The sheer kinetic shock of her strike sen