What Nil was doing might indeed look like torture. But it wasn't as extensive as the buffalo thought. He was just executing the idea he thought would have the highest chance of success when it came to killing the buffalo.
The idea he had come up with was a little convoluted, but it wasn't as extensive and costly as the buffalo thought. Because unlike what the buffalo was experiencing, the maze wasn't that large, and it didn't take Nil too much mana to maintain it since he could recycle the mana in the broken walls and the walls that the buffalo thought it moved past.
Nil had originally intended to create a maze on top of the entirety of the metal sheet so that he could keep the buffalo occupied while preparing what would actually lead to the buffalo's death.
But when the buffalo decided to burst through every door instead of following the impossible maze, Nil realized that he didn't need to maintain the entire construct as long as he played his cards right.
After shrinking the maze down to a single row of three rooms, Nil got a lot more breathing room to use his magic, and his pace of constructing and conjuring could easily keep up with the buffalo's speed.
With his casting speed matching the buffalo's charging speed, Nil moved the metal below the buffalo's feet and the walls around the buffalo to make it feel like it was charging through the walls. And after helping the buffalo break through one wall, he was already setting up the next room.
It consumed a significant amount of mana to keep such a scheme going. It also required a lot of focus from Nil, especially since he had to do it all while simultaneously raising the maze high into the air. And in order to save mana, he had to stay as close to the buffalo as possible.
Nil and the buffalo were alone on the platform-like lump of metal that seemed to be convulsing from an outside perspective. But Nil wasn't worried. As long as he didn't make any mistakes, there wouldn't be a reason to worry.
However, he quickly realized a significant problem with his plan.
In order to raise the trapped buffalo into the air, he was continuously expanding a pillar upon which the platform rested. That in itself was not a problem.
The dissipating mana at the bottom and the increasing weight of the growing pillar was quickly leading to the pillar's inevitable collapse.
Since the pillar was quickly approaching the limit of what it could hold, Nil considered dropping the buffalo. But after looking down, he noticed that he wasn't quite as high up as he wanted.
The buffalo was a sturdy beast. Even if he dropped it, it might not die. And Nil was quickly running out of mana.
He was betting it all on his plan. And if it didn't work, he would be defenseless against the buffalo. If the buffalo didn't die on impact, it might still be strong enough to kill the exhausted Nil.
Not to mention how Nil wanted to be successful on his first attempt. Dropping the buffalo and not killing it would be a shame since Nil would have to rely on Toz and the other cats to finish it.
After resolving himself, Nil gathered up as much mana he could spare while still keeping the buffalo trapped and sent it in a burst into the pillar, rocketing the platform into the air.
The change was enough to make the buffalo notice, but it didn't matter. It was already too late.
But the buffalo wasn't the only one in trouble.
The final burst of magic had been enough to destabilize the pillar, and it began crumbling at the bottom.
Nil detached the platform and dispelled it while in midair. The walls and floor disappeared from around and beneath the buffalo, and its eyes widened in absolute confusion. Without the platform's momentum to carry it further upwards, the buffalo's ascent stalled before transforming into a descent, and the buffalo plummeted toward the ground with panicked bleating.
Since Nil weighed less than a fraction of the buffalo, he wasn't in as much trouble as his target. But he would still die if he didn't do anything.
He noticed Toz on standby and knew that he could be rescued at any moment if he so wished. But his plan would only be a success if he could pull it off by himself. And that meant sticking the landing as well.
Nil used the last of his mana to create a wire and pull himself toward the pillar that was beginning to fall.
He sat atop the pillar as it made its way toward the ground. But he wasn't safe yet. When the pillar hit the ground, Nil would be smashed as well. The impact of his fall might even be worsened due to the rebounding force of the pillar hitting the ground.
The pillar had been falling slowly at first. Slower than how fast Nil would have fallen without any support. But after a certain point, it picked up its speed ridiculously quickly. The air began putting pressure on Nil's head due to how fast it was going, and Nil had to hold on with all of his claws not to be blown off.
Falling alongside the pillar would lead to more damage than falling by himself, but Nil would die either way, so it didn't matter much.
The only difference was that the pillar was made of his mana, and as long as he didn't panic. Everything would be alright. He didn't have to worry about a thing.
Nil kept telling himself that he would be just fine, almost hypnotizing himself.
He even shut out the sound of the buffalo's panicked screeching as it plummeted toward its death. It seemed like it would hit the ground shortly before the pillar did. Nil was a little upset since he wouldn't even get to see how effective his idea would be. But surviving was obviously more important, and Nil spread his senses into the pillar.
It was, at most, only a couple of moments left until the buffalo hit the ground. And after that, it would be Nil and his pillar's turn.
Nil closed his eyes so he could concentrate on his mana and magic. And before he knew it, it was already time.
A resounding thump rang out that silenced the piercing screech. The buffalo had hit the ground.
