Chapter 54
Chapter 54
Translator: Penny
Chapter 54: How to Hunt a Mage [2]
Episode 54: How to Hunt a Mage [2]
He blocked it.
Seong Arin's ultimate skill, the Tidal Wave, which she had been using since entering the Academy.
And he blocked it with a crude, seemingly hastily constructed Reversal Device, against the full power of Seong Arin wielding a custom staff equipped with Alternium and the Dragon's Orb.
- What's the big deal? It was just a weak attack, right?
- No way! Blocking that is insane! That's an incredibly difficult spell to cast!
- She reversed a second-year senior yesterday, and now she's getting the same treatment from the President.
- Serves her right. She claimed to be a disciple of the Raging Dragon Teacher, but she's nothing special.
- We all know the President is amazing, but... maybe he just reversed it easily because the spell was poorly executed?
- Maybe.
The crowd erupted in cheers, their voices filled with a justified arrogance. They anticipated the spectacle of the girl who had utterly humiliated the second-years the previous day being humiliated and defeated in the same manner. Their shouts, tinged with madness, echoed through the arena.
Though these cries didn't reach the girl who had just performed a near-miraculous acrobatic feat, they nonetheless ignited the atmosphere of the stadium.
Because while Yun Se-a couldn't hear those voices due to the distance...
- Maybe her magic is just crude, making it easy to reverse?
- Could be. Honestly, that shield looks hastily made. The detachable parts are a bit... questionable, right?
- Pfft, Seong Arin's just a one-trick pony with her Reversal.
"Hey, hey, that's enough. You'll get on the Chongun Guild's bad side."
"Chain, Lightning!"
Seong Arin's voice rang clear.
Crackling...!!!
Her second attack surged forward. Had Seong Arin, frustrated by the mana reversal, lost her composure and launched a reckless assault? I wondered, but her attack was perfectly calculated.
She had twisted the Spell Formula into its most complex form, making it as difficult as possible to reverse, yet...
Crackling...!!!
"...Ugh?!"
The result was identical to what she had shown yesterday.
The dozens of thunderbolts split apart, each altering its trajectory to strike Seong Arin directly.
"...Ugh."
Seong Arin knelt, her body collapsing to the ground. The girl who had forced her to her knees slowly approached.
"Reversal, if successfully executed, can instantly turn the tide of a disadvantageous battle. That's why people began creating Reversal Devices, but... they were eventually abandoned, becoming just another mediocre magic known only to a few."
"Ugh... Ugh...!"
"It's merely a supplementary technique, you see. Reversal is just that."
The girl gazed down at Seong Arin, who had been moderately scorched by Lightning Magic.
The audience likely expected to see Seong Arin brutally attacked until her health gauge reached zero.
I can't let it end like this.
But I... I wasn't one of them.
After observing her fighting style, I reached a single conclusion:
She's too obsessed with Reversal.
To be sure, Reversal was as crucial in magic as parrying is in swordsmanship.
The ability to seize an opponent's mana-based magic and manipulate it at will is an undeniable advantage.
It was essentially the magical equivalent of a parry or counterattack. Success could instantly grant overwhelming advantage and initiative—a joker card every magician should prepare in their arsenal.
But Seong Arin was far too fixated on this technique.
In the past, when she constantly fought against weaker children, Seong Arin had relied on Reversal to subdue them without causing harm.
As a result, the computational device, enhanced with additional parts to increase its processing power and output, couldn't strike me faster than my Reversal speed.
Still relying on Reversal as her only weapon... That bad habit...
"Please, attack me. I don't think my magic alone can safely eliminate Miss Arin."
This was a clear "problem" that needed correction.
"...Ugh, ugh...!"
"Personally, I'd hate to see a talented junior like you get seriously injured. Miss Arin probably acted so fiercely yesterday because she was afraid of someone she cares about getting hurt."
Seong Arin, who had been desperately trying to stand up, froze mid-struggle, as if struck to the core.
"You... how did you know?"
"Well, Miss Arin is a kind person, after all."
Seong Arin had her flaws—she could be oblivious and lazy—but at her core, she was a kind person.
It was impossible to know how many children had swallowed their tears and fallen into despair because of her half-hearted approach. Still, her intentions were good.
Arin deliberately held back and took things lightly, trying to be considerate of her classmates in magic class. She wanted to get along with everyone. But for wizards who lived and breathed on their pride, this was the ultimate humiliation.
Hmm... To put it simply... Imagine a high school soccer team in South Korea, where everyone is training with their lives on the line to go pro. Then, a kid with the talent to play in the English Premier League starts playing casually with his friends, deliberately hiding his true abilities. Eventually, his secret is exposed—that he's been holding back and playing half-heartedly all along. That's the kind of feeling it was.
It becomes a tragic tale of the weak being utterly defeated, the strong showing pity, and the relationship fracturing due to the distance created.
It's like an eagle meant to soar through the sky being forced to walk on the ground like a flightless ostrich.
Anyway, that's the feeling.
To realize that a rival you thought shared the same dream and stood on similar ground was actually far above you, and that the reason they concealed their true abilities was simply to play with you... How utterly humiliating.
Hong Biyeon's anger at being defeated by Seong Arin's magic was understandable, but the decisive factor was Seong Arin's deliberate avoidance of even looking at her, out of consideration.
If you just cower, you'll never grow.
Therefore, I had to shatter that mindset first.
Originally, Seong Arin would overcome this trauma by facing Hong Biyeon's berserk rampage alongside Seo Jian. But since I had prevented Hong Biyeon's Demonic Beast transformation, it was my responsibility to break down the wall Seong Arin had built.
"There are more people outside the well than inside it," I said, leaving those words behind as I strolled leisurely toward the back of the arena.
"If you become Student Council President and use your authority to skip classes... you probably thought your classmates wouldn't be overshadowed by your own abilities."
By then, I had moved right up to the Out-of-Bounds Line.
"W-wait! Chairman! Crossing that line means disqualification!!"
"I know that much."
And then, right before the Out-of-Bounds Line, I stopped precisely.
"...The choice is yours, Miss Arin. If you choose to remain in the well, defiling your potential and living within its confines... I'll step over this line myself. You'll secure an easy victory."
Then, despite having lied about not bringing it... I drew out the Staff I had actually brought.
"But if you discard this mindset of pitying and holding back against your opponents, and instead focus wholeheartedly on growth, trusting your comrades and striving together to become Heroes... I'll use every means at my disposal to crush you completely, Miss Arin."
Seong Arin lay motionless, still unconscious.
Honestly, this is a gamble.
Seong Arin often pretended to be less capable than she was, unwilling to witness her friends' sorrow. But she was no ordinary child. She was the girl whom Choi Won-ho, the S-Rank Hero Raging Dragon, had recognized as possessing the potential to become his successor as Archmage.
Naturally, she would possess a mage's pride.
As I said earlier...
Clatter!
Mages live and die by their self-esteem.
"Don't go."
Despite her exhaustion, Seong Arin struggled to her feet, her indomitable will driving her forward.
Thank goodness.
You're still wavering, aren't you? Being alone must be terrifying.
Taking the first step on a path no one has walked before requires immense courage.
But if you take that one step and keep climbing... you'll be able to claim that dazzling vista.
Just like you did in the original story.
I'll take you to a place where even greater people reside.
Standing beside a radiant protagonist requires far more than what you currently possess.
Before the moon landing, the moon was an uncharted wasteland, devoid of any information. If no one had dared to reach it aboard Apollo 11, it would have remained untouched, a place no one would have even considered reaching.
"So, get up. Let's soar higher."
Whoosh!
"Drink this. You can't possibly withstand my full power in that state."
I handed her a High-Grade Recovery Potion and a Mana Recovery Potion. Seong Arin quickly grasped the situation and began gulping down the potions.
Though the commentators were chattering incessantly, I silenced them with a raised hand.
Click...
70% isn't enough.
At this level of output, I couldn't defeat Seong Arin in a direct confrontation.
Clank!
I unfastened my bracelet and tossed it aside.
The idea of winning by using a shield... must have been firmly planted in Hong Biyeon's mind.
I glanced at the audience and saw Hong Biyeon staring back at me.
"Eventually, I'll be able to block attacks like that too."
As I spoke, I pointed to Seong Arin, who was floating in the air surrounded by dozens of Mana Orbs.
"Engrave the Breath of the Star."
Faaaaaaahhhhhh...!!!
"Shining star, reveal your form in the heavens!"
They're going all out... I guess I should too.
"Cancer, beast shattered by the weight of Deicide, offer me your ocean-bearing Mana!"
The green constellation of Cancer unfolded perfectly.
Cancer's ability: Mana amplification by 150%.
With this, my Mana stat had shattered the S+ barrier—and without using Mephisto's Remnants.
Mana surged through my body, threatening to burst from my skin. As the sensation grew so intense that I felt my body might explode and Mana leak out, my mind began racing.
Drawing the formulas became far easier thanks to the overwhelming Mana, and as a result, I was able to complete a Black Mana Orb of quite satisfactory quality.
And then...
"Infinity Ray."
"Hmph, maximum output."
The most powerful spells each of us could unleash...
KWAHHHHHHHHHHHNG!!!!!!
collided within the arena.