Ashen Dragon

Charlotte carefully observed the magic array, whispering, "This should be the task item we were looking for."

He raised his magic wand, murmuring a spell in a low voice, and a faint radiance of spellcraft appeared.

[Dispel Magic]

However, against the complex array, this Third-Tier-Level Dispel Magic was useless, merely wasting a spell slot.

"Beep beep, beep beep—"

Just then, the sound came from a device placed by the players with magic coins near the secret room's entrance, flashing red lights continuously.

Moon, stationed at the entrance, warned, "Our early warning technique has taken effect! It's an extremely intense fluctuation of spatial magic! Spellcasters from the Thrace Kingdom will be arriving soon!"

Charlotte hurriedly asked, "Didn't you cast a space blockade?"

Moon shook her head and answered, "It won't last long. The opponent's spatial magic energy level is too strong, likely up to eight.

Even if it's a scroll made by Lord Ramp himself, it can only last about three minutes. We must evacuate quickly!"

"Give me two more minutes. If we still can't open this secret compartment, we will initiate group teleportation!"

"Yes, President."

Charlotte couldn't help but curse inwardly, "Thrace people have come so fast. We've wasted too much time. And we finally found important intelligence..."

But he no longer had time to complain. At that moment, all he could do was stare at the magic array, hoping to find a solution.

"Quick, we're running out of time. Think of a way to deal with this array..."

"Boom!"

Before Charlotte's stunned gaze, the Sky Flying Witch used her wand like a club and smashed it hard against the nearby wall.

Debris flew everywhere; the wall was smashed open, revealing a large hole. The Sky Flying Witch, like a demolition worker, forcefully broke in from the side, extracting a hot, black metal box.

Holding the black box and covered in dust, the Sky Flying Witch complained, "What's there to think about? Just smash through the wall."

"Ah... you're much more resourceful."

Charlotte's mouth twitched slightly but quickly took the box, then signaled to Moon by the door, "Quick, we've got the item! Get ready for group teleportation!"

"Okay!"

Moon, decisively, took out a pre-prepared scroll, activated it, and immediately, the scroll burst into a dazzling light that enveloped everyone.

"Tie Dan, come over here."

Charlotte commanded.

The activated armor moved with heavy steps to Charlotte's side, included as an "item" within the teleportation range. After all, it was high-end combat power picked up for free, why not take it.

Once in Anzeta, it would be completely their territory. Even if the activated armor went berserk, it wouldn't cause much disturbance.

Charlotte also quietly opened the somewhat hot metal box, and inside lay a torn parchment—which seemed like... a contract?

The text was written in black and red blood, exuding a faintly evil aura, and the content of the contract was too blurry to discern, with only one signature visible.

"Zareel?

Who is that? I feel like I've heard this name somewhere."

Charlotte stroked his chin, muttering to himself, when the space in front of him suddenly started to churn violently, and then, like a pane of glass, spider-web-like cracks appeared.

A burning longsword extended out from the spatial rift suddenly, followed by the sound of broad wings beating, feathers whirling in the air, and a thunderous bellow.

"How dare you!"

"You dare attempt to assassinate a noble of Thrace! This is a disrespect to His Majesty Wilhelm!"

The players all cast their gazes over, only to see a handsome man with wings and clad in silver armor appearing before them; behind him, an old man dressed in an ornate red robe and holding a scepter, exuding an aura of mystery.

"Strike them down! These intruders are trying to escape!"

The Red Robed Mage raised his Scepter, and a powerful surge of magical vibrations spread outward. Invisible chains rose up around him, as if intending to lock down the space itself.

"Despicable Mortal, meet your doom!"

The man suddenly waved his wings, raising the Flame Longsword in his hand, ready to strike.

A wild wind swept through, the mere aura emitted by the Angel Divine Descendant causing players to tremble.

Charlotte looked at the two figures that had suddenly appeared and her expression drastically changed: "Damn, Angel Divine Descendant, Archmage... Bright Moon, tear the scroll quickly!"

"Understood!"

Bright Moon clenched her teeth, pouring all her focus into the [Group Teleportation Technique] scroll, finally activating it completely.

"Whoosh—"

Accompanied by a strong surge of magical fluctuations, in the very last moment before the spatial chains closed—several players holding Magic Coins, together with their Activated Armor, vanished on the spot.

Before leaving, Charlotte smirked smugly and waved at the rapidly approaching Angel Divine Descendant.

"Fools of Thrace, this is the route of my escape!"

"Swish—"

The Flame Longsword swung through the air, the powerful slash creating a huge fissure in the wall behind, the raging flames melting the remaining gold in the chamber.

"They let that group of despicable mortals escape!"

The man retracted his wings and half-knelt, angrily thrusting the Longsword into the ground, causing it to crack.

His eyes red with fury, he turned his head and gritted his teeth toward the mage behind him: "William, can you track their location?"

The Red Robed Mage sighed, helplessly shaking his head: "Lord Hans, these mages are not of high caliber, but the one who crafted their scrolls is far more astute than I imagined.

Their group teleportation left no trace of coordinates, and my Prophetic Magic Ball is shrouded in fog."

"Damn it!"

The Angel Divine Descendant known as "Lord Hans" slammed the ground again in anger, causing the entire subterranean world to tremble slightly.

"And that Donald, what a pig-headed fool! To be fooled by such lowly tricks, he has disgraced His Majesty Wilhelm!"

Mentioning His Majesty's name, Hans looked at the breached wall and the empty secret compartment, panic inevitably flashing across his usually arrogant face.

"Damn it, damn it! His Majesty emphasized the importance of that contract, that bastard Donald is unworthy of trust..."

"Everything is over, all is lost..."

...

Anzeta Great Wilderness, Suburbs of Isdalia City, Magic Coin dedicated testing field.

With the distortion of the space, and the fluctuations, a dozen blurry figures emerged out of thin air, and Charlotte and her companions appeared here in unison.

Charlotte patted her face, still shaken, and sighed with relief: "That was a close call, the Birdman's sword nearly hit my face. Lucky we teleported out at the last second."

Bright Moon nodded in agreement: "We're finally back. It feels safer in the Empire."

Charlotte nonchalantly took off the [Shapeshifter Robe] she was wearing, wiped the sweat away, and took a deep breath.

"Phew, still my handsome face. Compared to that fat pig, he's far from my league."

He looked at the nearby Activated Armor and said with a smile: "Don't you agree, Tie Dan?"

But as soon as Charlotte changed her appearance, a red light began to seep through the cracks of the armor, and a cold, grating voice emanated from within.

"Enemy detected! Eliminate the intruder with full force!"

The Activated Armor, dragging its heavy hammer, was about to charge over, but all Charlotte did was

Then you need the corresponding Ring Rank. If not, you must pass an Arcana check of 10+ Ring Rank, if you fail, both the scroll and the action will be wasted.

The Wanderer subclass of Thief has a 13th-level ability, Universal Skillful Hand, which is the ability to use Magical Items irrespective of Occupation and Race requirements (but still requires a check to use scrolls). Larian granted this ability to everyone. Additionally, the 3rd-level ability Sleight of Hand allows the use of some items with a bonus action, such as Blood Medicine and Poisoning (furthermore, there is bonus Steal, bonus Lock Picking, and bonus Disarming Traps). Larian also granted this ability to everyone, in the EA era.