Chapter 203

The Dark Paradise was the domain of Novius, where everywhere moved according to his wish, thanks to the dark mist. 

There were many ways to destroy the Dark Paradise according to Novius' teachings, but it wasn't easy to pull off those other ways since they involved using immense Power to destroy the domain of Darkness. 

According to Novius, a person could potentially destroy the Domain of Darkness by using a destructive Domain Spell of their own which was even more powerful. Unfortunately, there was no way for Gabriel to cast a more powerful domain. 

The only Domain spell he knew was the Paradise of Darkness, and even with the help of Ancestral Staff of Darkness to overcome the gap between their strength, his Domain could at most equal the strength of Novius' Domain which wasn't enough to destroy it. 

Another way to destroy the Domain was by using a High Tier Spell of Light that could counter the Darkness, but neither he had that much strength nor could he use the Element of Light. Even his Element of Necromancy wasn't allowed, and he was going to stick to those rules. 

"If I can't destroy this, then I need to protect myself! Even if it's him, he shouldn't be able to cast it for long since he's restricting himself to the spiritual energy he would've had when he was alive."

Only one minute had passed since the battle began, and Gabriel was already forced to stop since a wall made of mist covered both of them inside a Giant Dome.

The Domain of Dark Mist even covered the sky, creating a Dome, entrapping Gabriel, leaving no way out. He could either move closer to the walls that were made purely of darkness, or he could stay where he was and mount his own defense. 

"Feel like a trapped prey yet?" Novius asked as he walked closer to Gabriel, seemingly in no hurry at all. 

"Dark Manifestation."

Gabriel didn't get distracted by Novius' approach. In his mind, he was very clear as to what he had to do. 

"Hmm?" Novius smiled, noticing the spell that Gabriel had cast. "Dark Manifestation... A spell that makes you completely invincible for a short time. Too bad in the Manifestation Phase, you can't attack either. Are you trying to bid for time?"

It was a battle where both opponents knew each other's skills. Generally, the mystery about another person's spell was what created a huge difference since there was no way for every Mage to know the exact same spells except in this one case here since Gabriel learned everything about Dark Spells from Novius. 

Since Novius taught him these spells, even he knew that this spell was Defensive. Until the effect of Dark Manifestation lasted, Gabriel couldn't even be touched. He was no less than a spiritual manifestation of Darkness at the moment. 

"I see. So you're waiting for me to run out of my Spiritual Energy, aren't you?" Novius asked, realizing just what Gabriel was planning. "An advice for the next time when you're fighting real enemies... You should never make your strategy that obvious."

Even at this time, Novius found a teachable moment for Gabriel. 

"Remember the first spell I taught you?" He asked. "You could've used the Dark Spectral to distract me and then used the Shadow Dispersal to hide in the shadows."

"That would've served two purposes. It would've given you time to hide and think about your next step. And it would've kept me guessing as to what you were planning since that certainly would've signaled to me that you were planning to sneak attack. I would've had a harder time guessing your real intentions."

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Novius was very analytical of Gabriel's strategy since he really wanted Gabriel to learn something from their battle if it was their last battle. 

Gabriel clenched his fist. It wasn't as if he hadn't thought of this idea before. The problem was that those two spells were mid-tier spells that consumed more energy with time.

The only thing he wanted now was to protect himself while saving as much of his energy as he could for when it was the time to strike. 

He could keep the Dark Manifestation for as long as he would've been able to keep the Shadow Dispersal with less energy consumption. That's why he didn't care if he exposed his strategy. Sometimes it was much easier to go the straight route than taking a complicated route. 

Even if he had followed the strategy suggested by Novius now, it wouldn't be long before Novius had realized that he was wasting time for now. It was just delaying the inevitable, so he just let it come to the open right away. 

Novius raised his right hand, casually waving his finger. A dark spear shot straight for Gabriel's head. 

Gabriel didn't mind, remaining in his spot. He didn't even flinch as the dark spear passed through his head like it wasn't real. That was the magic of Dark Manifestation! 

He was invincible for now, even though he couldn't attack either. This also gave him some time to think about his next plan. He was safe for now, but not long. 

'If I'm not wrong, he should be able to keep Paradise of Darkness for close to an hour at most. But surviving an hour with the Spiritual Energy I have... That will be the real challenge...'

He couldn't even use the Divine Barrier of Darkness since its effect could be negated by the Dark Manifestation of Novius as well. That spell was out of the question with a Dark Mage who knew Dark Manifestation. Fortunately, Dark Manifestation was also a spell that Cylix had created with his own understanding of Darkness. 

He hadn't taught this to anyone, even on the outside. Most of the people didn't even know about the existence of a spell like that, which was of mid-tier but made a person undefeatable, at least for a few minutes. 

'Soon, the effects of Manifestation will be over, and I'll be attacked from all sides...:

Gabriel could already see the Dark Mist around him intensifying as he thought about his next step. Even Novius was quite amused, waiting to see if Gabriel could pull off a surprise. The chances of success for him were nil, at least in this situation. 

'The only option you have now is using the Paradise of Darkness..." Novius had a smirk on his face as he guessed Gabriel's next step as well. It was a game of chess for them where both sides had the same players. How they used those players was what changed the outcome... 

In this game of chess, none of the two wanted to lose!