Book 19 Chapter 21
Chapter 160
Siege of Lombard, Extermination Battle of the Old Nobles (2)
“The Archmage is entering. Squad, attention.”
In the scarlet city of <Lombard>, not a few mages were stationed, including those from the Magic Alliance’s Combat Division 1. Because a sandstorm made it impossible to suppress the surging enemies with conventional firepower, the mage corps was organized as the main pillar of the firepower battle. And the leader of those mages was Rin, who was, without need for explanation, the Archmage of the era and ranked first in the magic world (it is said that Ulan Page intended to cede the leader's position immediately after the turmoil ended).
“T-that person…!”
“The Archmage of the Hero’s Party…!”
“Dazzling! I feel like I’ll go blind from the halo…!”
“It’s a dragon! Just as the title [Archmage of the Ice Dragon] suggests, they really have a baby dragon with them…!”
Amidst gasps of suppressed awe, the young Archmage who ascended the platform glanced over the assembled mages and said this:
“Guys, isn’t your magic too pathetic?”
Instantly, the hall fell silent as if cold water had been thrown over it. All the mages gathered here had voluntarily served on the front lines. Being a frontline battlemage was their pride and self-esteem. Everyone was doubting their ears, but the Archmage’s voice was replayed, like a dagger being plunged in.
“Guys, isn’t your magic too pathetic?”
What a confirmation kill! Cruel! Is his social intelligence shattered?!
No, it’s not that bad!
This wasn’t Rin emphasizing it twice, but rather the sound made by the girl who had whimsically followed Rin.
“Ri-Rin-nim!”
The greatest resistance came from the mages of the Magic Alliance’s Combat Division 1, who were the top elite among those gathered here. They were the proper path of mages! Unlike Rin, who suddenly appeared from who-knows-where, weren’t they a group predominantly composed of talented individuals who had graduated from magic academies, hailing from famous magic towers or noble families!
“It’s a well-known fact that you are the youngest Archmage in history and truly gifted with the greatest talent! But how dare you call us pathetic!”
“We are also battlemages recognized as the best in the Empire!”
“Please, withdraw that insulting remark.”
Amidst such cries of protest, Rin suddenly pulled the brim of his conical hat deep over his face, then even turned his back.
I can’t, I can’t bear it!
This reaction, this situation… it was exactly as he had fantasized in [The Strongest Archmage's Bucket List], so he couldn’t control the joy welling up from deep within his chest, threatening to burst into laughter!
‘Yes, this is it! The arrogant remark from the strongest Archmage directed at recognized powerhouses of the world! They *have* to protest like this!’
Only Svarmal sighed deeply, knowing all of this terrible reality!
“Kyuu…”
Of course, [The Strongest Archmage's Bucket List] doesn’t end here. The lines he had prepared were perfect down to the ending, and he would achieve them all here.
“Hmph, they say a frog in a well thinks the well is the whole world, and it was true…”
“Hmph, they say frogs in a well think the well is the whole world, and it was true…”
“What are you, get lost?”
Rin’s fist immediately hammered down on Toureina’s head 13 consecutive times!
“Ouch! It hurts!”
What befell the mages was truly shock and terror, and even emotion (?).
‘They said he became an Archmage at a young age, but I never thought he’d be so arrogant!’
‘If such a being becomes the leader, the order of the magic world will truly collapse. I must report this to the current leader.’
‘Even his attempt to act cool is cute! Since he’s cute, anything goes!’
Rin regretted this remark exactly 13 hours later, that is, after the demonic forces' offensive began!
‘Crazy, there are so many of them!’
Whether the mages were offended by [The Strongest Archmage's lines] or not, when told not to come out, they really didn't appear on the defensive front.
‘Wow… they really didn’t come out when told not to, those crazy fools. The city is on the verge of falling.’
Friede, who was sitting on the uneven stone wall smoking a kiseru, wore a somewhat playful yet wistful smile.
“Rin, I heard you caused trouble again?”
“Normally I’d say no, but this time it seems I really did cause trouble.”
“You fool. I know your intentions, but… aren’t you pushing yourself too hard? Goodness, children really grow up in the blink of an eye, don’t they.”
A quiet emotion was stirring in Friede’s heart. It didn’t take long for the news that Rin had withdrawn all mages from the front line to spread throughout the city. There were not a few criticisms that he was too arrogant, but his comrades in the Hero’s Party knew his true intentions.
‘He must have been worried. If the opponents are the Old Nobles, it’s not a battle for ordinary people to step into…’
Thanks to Rin, the mage corps would be able to be utilized as reserves in a more crucial situation.
“Don’t push yourself too hard. Let’s focus on fending off the first offensive. If ‘they’ break through the city walls, that’s when we step in and finish them off.”
Rin was truly disappointed. He had thought Friede would help, but Friede only patted his shoulder a few times and then left.
But [The Strongest Archmage] cannot be weak. He cannot show a weak side.
‘Damn, I have no choice but to do it.’
Rin ordered Toureina, who had somehow become the Archmage’s errand girl, to bring about 30 mana potions. Secretly hoping Toureina would make as much noise as possible while getting the mana potions. He thought that if he looked pitiful, the mages would come to help, but that didn’t happen.
‘Master is perfect! So I must even hide the fact that he's taking mana potions!’
Because Toureina had brought the potions very secretly and quietly to protect Rin’s honor!
A madman beyond his master!
What a crazy student surpassing their master! Perhaps this is karma. Accept it sweetly.
‘Shit….’
Rin resolved that from now on, he would choose the right time and situation for his pranks.
And beyond that stone wall, he spread his palm towards the enemies who finally appeared with a thick sandstorm. At least 10 mathematical equations were presented, solved, and derived on the blank canvas of his mind in a flash faster than an instant.
“…”
“…”
“…”
In later generations, among the information passed down about Rin, there is something consistently spoken of.
‘Beautiful…’
Those who witnessed Rin’s magic, whether they were knowledgeable in magic or ignorant of it, all felt that way. The sheer power of the magic was enough to not just break the enemy ranks but utterly annihilate them, so it could indeed be described as beautiful. However, witnesses reported feeling this even before its power manifested:
‘To think that the act of using magic could be so beautiful…’
The mages who had been insulted by Rin in <Lombard> observed Rin’s battle in their own ways (using stealth, observational magic, etc.). And in an instant, it vanished. And in an instant, it changed. Malice, envy, jealousy, and such emotions born from humiliation… vanished or transformed. Into an emotion of reverence (awe).
‘Ah, this is indeed the 11th Archmage…’
‘The youngest in history to obtain the rank of Aquijard (5-star)…’
‘There was absolutely no falsehood in the rumors that he was the main figure in all the victory reports successively sent from the rear…’
It is said that there have been only two people in history, up until that time, who could captivate everyone’s hearts merely by their movements while using magic.
The first mage, Emitsa Page.
One of <The Ones That Came>, and the progenitor of magic, Black Sun Kalenden.
The ‘light’ named magic, which he had created and shared out of love for this cruel and pitiful world, was now, at this moment, descending upon this land once more.
“I-I want to fight too!”
Into that feast of light, Toureina tried to step forward, but Friede placed her hands on the girl's shoulders and shook her head.
“Unfortunately, Rin’s level is different now. And the enemies’ level is different too. Those are the Old Ones. They’re not just demonkin, but ancient monsters. Rin kept you and the other mages from coming precisely because you would only get in the way.”
“But…!”
“Do you see the scrolls and barrier shimmering around me? This is the barrier of the Divine Ash Cantos, isn't it? Without it, you… wouldn’t be able to withstand that cosmic energy and your brain might burst. That’s what the Old Ones are like.”
Even though she said that, Friede couldn’t feel at ease. Rin was panting. Watching him uncork his exactly 21st mana potion, her heart ached.
“Friede, you said you’d observe the situation for a while, right? What do you think?” Lista Alter Shirpen said.
The demonic forces’ grand offensive was concentrated in the west, where the ‘Pyramid of Harvest’ was located, and Rin was defending this western gate alone. Thanks to him, the firepower of the witches and mages could be dispersed to the south, east, and north gates, allowing <Lombard>’s defense line to function steadfastly.
“You said the Old Nobles would come to this city rather than recover their strength. But they haven’t shown themselves yet.”
“They’ll come. This city itself is like the gluttonous duke’s tomb, so they’re definitely coming to awaken their superior.”
“What about the strategic assessment that they’d recover their strength?”
“They absolutely have no such option. The Old Nobles are arrogant by nature~! For example… imagine Lista had to fight an ant. Would she postpone the fight because she caught a cold?”
But what if this attack was a smokescreen created by the Old Nobles to rebuild the Altar of Harvest…? Even the Hero’s Party would have no chance of victory. Lista had keenly felt the overwhelming power gap between immortals and mortals in that single exchange she had with the Old Noble at the Pyramid of Harvest.
‘There are a hundred of such beings. If we poured all our strength into it, we might miraculously win.’
But I guarantee, after that, Lista’s lifespan, like candle wax, would completely melt away. Her journey would end. Any journey she could embark on after her journey ended would simply conclude as a dream, and if that happened…
[(!ㅁ!)]
The moment Lista was having ominous thoughts, a sudden change occurred as Kiese raised an eyebrow and gripped Serwebon. How should this be explained? As a blade of the Great Desert? The keen edge of sand, flying widely with an eerie tearing sound, ruptured the stone wall.
‘It’s not just a stone wall made by stacking stones, but a barrier created by <The Ones That Came>… yet it's breaking apart and flowing down like sand!’
Rin, who was drinking his 22nd mana potion atop the western gate's battlements, was able to witness the might of the Old Nobles first and most clearly, more than anyone else. Of course, Rin knew nothing about the Old Nobles! Information about the Old Nobles was kept confidential from everyone except the command center for the sake of troop morale, so he simply thought an incredibly powerful opponent had appeared.
‘Who is it?’
Through that opened gap, beings of sand poured in.
「Ah… this vile stench. A prelude to the inevitable end of mortal flesh.」
It was impossible to clearly gaze upon it. For within the fierce, biting, and ferocious sandstorm, wasn't only a magnificent gaze glimmering? A clear form must have been hidden within that storm.
「But fear not. I shall now, uhehehehehahaha… bestow upon you eternity.」
Beyond the dizziness blurring his vision, Rin could see white hair embroidering this dust-storm-covered world in pure white.
“Rin, you’ve worked hard.”
Following this, came a brilliant sword light, the very light of the holy sword, which made the abyssal sands scream and incinerate.
“Just hold on a little longer. We’ll finish that one off.”
The forces waiting below the western gate's battlements were not just the Hero’s Party.
“You’ve come, Old Noble! I, the Wanderer Simian, will face you!”
What majesty! Simian the Wanderer appeared, crossing his arms!
“Form the Holtranks formation! Suppress the enemies pouring through the gap! Command is entrusted to Vekiz!”
“Leave it to me!”
Lista kicked off the slope of the stone wall and leaped backward, landing while generating a heavy tremor in the ground, and simultaneously swung the holy sword Shirpen dazzlingly. Paladin Riven also leaped with a powerful step! Half a beat after Lista, he valiantly thrust the tip of his holy spear towards the Old Noble. But!
─────CRASH!
The immensely swung Edge of Harvest struck away both the blade of the holy sword and the tip of the holy spear. Not only that! It then swept the entire area with a shockwave that shattered everything.
‘He deflected my attack…?’
Overwhelming skill and speed, enough to make cold sweat form even in this murderous heat!
‘And even unrealistic destructive power…!’
All of his sensory organs were warning him. This opponent was more dangerous than any other enemy.
‘All the enemies we’ve fought so far were strong, but… this one is on a completely different scale?’
As Lista and Riven took evasive action and leaped into the air, the desert's power, seething on the scythe's edge, once again ran wild.
「How boring…」
That was the power of Harvest! The power of Harvest was running wild! With the power to snatch life from everything it touched!
「Witness eternal despair and be awestruck before everlasting terror!」