Book 3 Chapter 26
Episode 75
As soon as the Sandstone Golem appeared, Dragonblood Arena became uncontrollably boisterous.
“Not only does she precisely control the Bloodline Limit Summoning spell, but she also adds a new power to it?”
“If Lain Ludwig is the pinnacle of masterful simplicity, using only the magic absolutely necessary in the right place at the right time, then Krista Warden is truly the epitome of aristocratic splendor!”
“I thought the latecomers of the Eight Great Schools would dominate the magical world in the next era, but now I have to reconsider which side to take.”
Such high praise didn't just come from random magicians. Even Madelia Page let out an exclamation of admiration.
“The weakness of the Sandstone Golem was that, while its attacks were strong, its durability had many flaws…”
She found the optimal rune, 'Sou' (溲), and reconstructed it into an entirely new spell. That will surely be passed down as a new secret technique of the Warden family.
“The true essence of that arrangement, however, would only be known to someone who has directly faced the original Sandstone.”
Professor Kyle also smiled.
Because the magic circle was composed of dual attributes, even with the 'Sou' (溲) rune incorporated, the mathematical formula didn't become overly complex.
“The interaction between runes and magic circles always has a close influence on the formation of magic. And that modification was born from a perfect understanding of that interaction.”
This is truly spine-chilling. It's just as the world says. This generation is a golden generation (黃金世代), one that has never existed before and never will again.
‘And the person who shone a light before Krista Warden, allowing her to grow without stagnating in her superiority, is none other than…’
Professor Kyle's gaze turned towards the black-haired handsome young man looking down at Krista from the audience.
‘You, Lain Ludwig, I presume.’
Lain curled the corner of his mouth with an amused expression, thinking, ‘It seems he’s finally realized how important the variations of magic circles according to runes are.’
‘Though it only took Tureyna a week to figure that out.’
How long did it take me?
Hmm, right when I was learning the basics of magic?
‘Still, I suppose… that's good enough for a 90 out of 100.’
Lain Ludwig, who had been smiling warmly without even realizing it, his expression turned chillingly cold the next moment.
He smelled blood.
The scent of death was approaching.
The owner of that stench came and sat in the empty seat where Gertrude, with an excited face, was hanging onto the railing, shouting Krista's name.
“……”
He had expected him to come, but seeing that face in person once again made his heart skip a beat for a moment.
‘I’ was sitting next to him.
Or rather, ‘Lynn’. More accurately, it should be said, ‘the guy with Lynn’s face’.
“Make any strange sound, and I’ll kill you instantly.”
The man said that and offered a cloth soaked crimson with blood. Lain looked at it quizzically, then as soon as he nervously began to unwrap it, *hah*, a hollow laugh escaped him.
It was a silver pocket watch.
Engraved with ‘Oath’ (盟) in the center.
An item given only to mages of the Special Operations Division, proof that the owner of this watch was a renowned battle mage in the current era.
“Did you kill all their owners?”
“It’s disheartening to be asked such an obvious question.”
“Hmph.”
Did he think Lain was trembling in fear? When Lain let out a bitter laugh, Libadine also smiled back, as if amused.
“Yes, you’ll soon meet the same fate, so it’s only natural for you to laugh.”
“No, I’m just glad that a truly black mage-like fellow has finally appeared.”
He’d rather deal with someone like this.
Rather than someone like Valen, whose true intentions were utterly inscrutable.
“Why are you glad?”
“Because I can kill you without any problem, right?”
The tone in which Lain said that, his eyes gleaming coldly, sounded like an everyday greeting, like ‘Good morning’ or ‘Good night.’
A voice as if dealing with and killing black mages was just a part of his daily routine…
Because of this, Libadine briefly raised his eyebrows in bewilderment.
‘I was going to lure him outside the city, even if it meant taking his family hostage, if he showed any sign of trying to escape or retreat.’
Was killing Ribeni not a stroke of luck? Of course, he could tell that from the multi-computation he displayed on the first day.
“Ha, you brat… Your spirit alone is first-rate.”
“Well, is it just spirit?”
“Choose where you want to die. For your pathetic life, I'll let you choose the last place you'll see.”
He wasn't showing mercy. It was simply because Valen had made so many threats that he said this.
‘The plan is to pretend to agree and then lure him outside the city.’
Then Lain stood up from his seat. As Libadine reached for his shoulder, thinking he was running away, Lain returned the blood-stained pocket watches and said,
“Outside the city would be good. A forest, completely devoid of people.”
At those words, Libadine was slightly surprised. Wasn't that line supposed to be his?
“You guys already put me on the radar of the ‘Golden Children’ and the Special Operations Division anyway.”
“Oh, really? So?”
“If I kill you in a crowded place in this situation, I’ll be stuck, won’t I? I hate things getting complicated.”
* * *
The abandoned temple of the forgotten king.
This place, filled with broken divine statues in the ancient Albrazm style that evoke instinctive fear, is once again filled with a decadent, primitive melody today.
That melody was an echo of a dream.
An echo of the seal of the Queen Who Walks Through Time, one of the Five Kings of the Abyss, the scream that distorts space and time, gradually cracking…
Amidst that melody, Tureyna sat in the lotus position.
Normally, she wouldn't listen to her disciples' discussions unless it was an extraordinarily important matter during her meditation.
But this time was different.
[What you just said, is it true?]
When Number 5 asked in a surprised voice, Number 1's shadow nodded.
[He's already inside the school. We had no time to stop him.]
Then Number 5 sighed and rubbed his forehead, and Number 4 nodded with a mischievous gesture.
[Well, he's dying for revenge, so what can we do? They were like siblings, weren't they? No, were they actually siblings?]
Both Libadine and Ribeni were creatures created by Tureyna through human transmutation, a forbidden practice designated by the Dragonblight Orthodox Church and the Mage's Alliance.
As they were created from fragments of the Archmage Lynn, they all had astonishingly identical appearances to Lynn.
It goes without saying that their abilities were as outstanding as their looks. Though they started the same, Libadine, who enjoyed fighting strong opponents, was three times stronger than Ribeni.
[Brother Valen, this situation has gotten quite interesting, hasn't it?]
When Number 7 chuckled, Number 1's eyes narrowed.
[Does this look interesting to you right now?]
[Haha, don't be so sharp. Think about it. It's certainly an unforeseen situation, but it's made things much easier for you, hasn't it, brother?]
Valen had been placed in the school by Tureyna with great care, meaning his identity must absolutely not be discovered until graduation day.
But what about Libadine?
Even if that guy caused trouble, Valen could simply play ignorant, and it would be over. No one would know the connection between the two of them.
[Just let Libadine kill him. How convenient is that? Libadine is a professional mage hunter. Is there any mage who can overcome 'that ability'?]
[You should look at the forest, not the trees. What would be the repercussions in the school from Lain Ludwig's death?]
[The school would probably get a bit noisy. But that's all, isn't it? They wouldn't cancel the graduation tradition, which is still a long way off, would they?]
[It's not that simple of a story—]
Cutting off Valen's words, and drawing the attention of all the members, was a *thud*, the sound of a pipe tapping the floor.
The source of the sound was Tureyna.
This signified her intention to personally pass judgment on the matter, so everyone immediately fell silent and looked at her as if prostrating themselves.
“Let Libadine run wild. I will punish him later.”
At that decision, Valen's eyelids closed weakly. If Tureyna had made a decision, there was no longer any room for him to interfere.
[As you wish… I will obey.]
If Lain Ludwig was indeed the dangerous individual Milek reported, it meant he was the one who defeated Ribeni.
In that case, the only members who could be trusted with a one-on-one assassination were Numbers 1, 2, and 4.
“If it were any other child, I would have ordered a retreat or told Valen to help, but with that child, there shouldn't be a problem, should there?”
Soon, the figures gathered in the temple began to disappear one by one.
*Swish.*
*Swish.*
There was no overturning Tureyna's decision, and no one had the authority to object, so the meeting was over.
“……”
Tureyna put down her pipe and quietly sat in the lotus position again, eyes closed.
Despite already being a master at the peak of her power, the reason she tidied and trained her magic daily without fail was because Lynn had taught her to do so.
Tureyna had never disobeyed Lynn's teachings in her entire life. Except for one—the teaching to never dabble in black magic.
- Consistency is important in magic. Always work hard.
Memories of 300 years ago resurfaced. The chill and weight of the incessant rain on the day they parted came back, sending a shiver down her spine.
Even when her master met that fate, those who called themselves her colleagues merely waited and did nothing.
While the other two were ignorant of magic and sorcery and were thus given absolution, Master Friede was so capable, and yet…
Tureyna was not so ignorant and heartless. Instead of just waiting, she desperately searched for a method.
She had lived for 300 years solely for that one ardent wish… and the Abyss had given her the answer. Soon, the long, seemingly endless journey would reach its conclusion.
‘Soon, I will be able to meet you again.’
* * *
A foul stench wafted on the wind that brushed through the forest.
In that breeze, the leaves, colored with the hues of summer, instantly turned into withered autumn leaves, plummeting helplessly to the ground.
Between those fallen leaves, the garments of the two masters rustled quietly. It was Lain who first cast off his school uniform cape, tossing it into the air.
“Just one question. What exactly are you guys?”
As if responding to that killing intent (殺氣), Libadine threw down his tattered cloak.
“What good would it do for someone about to die to know such things?”
“It depends on your answer. Whether you die peacefully, or agonizingly, like that runt Ribeni.”
An instant later, a vein bulged on Libadine’s forehead. If he hadn't been certain that this guy was a master, he would have charged forward right now and twisted his neck.
“So tell me. Who gave you guys Lynn's face? And what exactly are you plotting?”
At this, Libadine was slightly surprised, even parting his lips for a moment.
‘Aside from the members, no one has ever recognized that I have Lynn's face until now…’
Most people just wonder, ‘Where have I seen this guy before?’ and then move on.
It couldn't be helped.
After all, a fleeting glimpse of a face on a statue would be all they'd seen.
“I’m sorry, but that question is too strange for me to answer!”
The iron staffs hanging at both his waist, *clank*, were instantly assembled into a single staff. Simultaneously, magic power erupted around him like an explosion.
The magic power of a black mage who wields the Abyss transforms into miasma (毒氣), exhibiting a dark blue, rather than light blue, hue.
Furthermore, unlike ordinary magic power that doesn't significantly affect the natural world beyond air pressure, it causes everything it touches to rot and decay.
“No one gave me Lynn’s face!”
Just as now, wherever that magic power swept through, trees withered, dew corroded, and a putrid stench permeated the air.
“This body is merely the reincarnation of the Archmage Lynn!”
It was an explosion of miasma that momentarily startled even the seasoned mages of the Special Operations Division. Even that chick bowed its head, as if having lost its fighting spirit—
“Puh-hah.”
—and was laughing. Mockingly, as if utterly dumbfounded. Libadine's brow furrowed.
“Are you insane because you’re about to die?”
“Sorry, it’s just too funny. It’s the first time I’ve ever laughed like this before a fight.”
Lain, having stifled his laughter with a few coughs, threw off the glove on his left hand, revealing a palm bizarrely wrapped tightly in bandages.
“Lynn’s reincarnation, you say? Well, what do you know, you’ve picked the wrong opponent, completely wrong.”
And from the boy’s body, an unexplainably intense whirlwind of magic power erupted, blowing away the surrounding miasma with a counter-gust. Along with this wordplay:
“*This* one is the original Lynn, you see.”