Chapter 116
Chapter 116
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 116
Chapter Title: Reddening Rifts
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The new spell I’d just developed,
dubbed “Swimming Light,” grew more effective with every use.
Ssssh— Ssssh—.
Tadadadak!
Kieeeek—!
All I did was channel some mana and clench my fist, and in an instant, over a dozen demons bit the dust.
Its power had grown far stronger than before.
On top of that, the casting time shortened dramatically, and infusing mana became a breeze— it was evolving at a terrifying pace.
I was so pleased with the results that I wanted to pump its power beyond even the light beams.
“……None left. Already.”
But I’d been practicing for less than thirty minutes, and I’d already run out of demons.
Now, even the dozen or so that the Chairman had taken out with his light beams felt like a waste.
“Tch, guess I’ll test it in the next rift.”
In the end, I wrapped up practice and headed over to the Chairman.
He’d been standing off at a distance, watching my spells firsthand.
Unless he’d just spaced out, he must’ve picked up on something.
“How was it?”
“Huh? Oh…… yeah, pretty good?”
……Did this guy space out?
Not the most enthusiastic response.
“……Care to elaborate on what was good about it? Even better if you point out areas for improvement.”
I furrowed my brow as I said that, and only then did the Chairman nod like he got it.
“From what I saw…… just increase the number of them.”
“The number?”
“Yeah. That way you can take out more demons at once. You can double-cast, right, kid?”
“Of course.”
With a bit more practice, I could probably even aim for triple-casting.
Triple-casting…… just imagining it had me thrilled already.
It’d be no exaggeration to say my combat power would jump by 1.5 times.
Anyway.
“You’re right— that does sound better.”
Unlike his lukewarm reaction earlier, the Chairman’s advice was actually pretty helpful.
Until just moments ago, all I’d been thinking about was boosting the spell’s raw power.
But increasing the quantity to hit more targets at once seemed even more practical.
“R-right……? Haha, go ahead and give it a shot…….”
That aside.
Why had this guy’s speech been so hesitant since earlier?
“Why do you sound so unsure?”
He looked just like an old dog spooked by something.
I asked why, but the Chairman just waved it off, clearly not wanting to say.
“N-no, it’s nothing. My stomach just started acting up all of a sudden. Ow, my gut…….”
His stomach hurt out of nowhere?
‘Why does it feel like he’s putting on a show?’
That thought kept nagging at me.
Whatever.
“Then take a break. I’ll head to the next rift first.”
He was an adult who could handle himself, so I turned to leave.
“No can do!”
For someone who’d just been whining about his stomach, the Chairman latched right on.
His eyes burned with even more enthusiasm than before, for some reason.
“……Do whatever.”
I muttered that he could suit himself and started to step away.
That’s when an unfamiliar voice rang out from far behind us.
“Th-this is bad!”
I turned to look. One of our soldiers.
Not from the crew handling this rift, judging by where he came from…….
But the key point was his face— pale as a ghost.
“What happened?” I asked.
“Th-the rifts……! Huff! Huff!”
The soldier was panting too hard to speak properly.
I patted his shoulder.
“Calm down. Take it easy and tell us.”
What could possibly have him this worked up?
“Huff……! Huff……!”
Swoosh.
The soldier lifted his bowed head, locking eyes with me.
His pupils trembled with raw fear.
A bad feeling washed over me.
And like always, that feeling was spot on.
“The rifts…… the rifts have turned red!”
“What?”
The rifts turned red?
What kind of nonsense was this on day three of the war?
Before I could dwell on it, the soldier pressed on in an even more frantic voice.
“I’m telling the truth! Every remaining rift is turning red right now……!”
“……!!”
By the time his words sank in— twice over— I couldn’t keep a straight face.
I wasn’t the only one.
Every last soldier here, the Chairman, me, the knights— everyone who understood stared at him, faces hardening.
Red rifts.
That change only happened when a Legion Commander appeared.
“……We need to regroup.”
Looks like a major incident just hit.
***
Boom!
“What in the world is going on……!”
Asion Gail slammed the table, his face twisted in fury.
The Academy President was showing uncharacteristic excitement.
But no one could step up to calm him.
No— they were all plenty riled up themselves.
“I have no idea…… All I know is I’ve never seen anything like this!”
“Chairman, have you ever witnessed something like this?”
“……First time for me too! I’ve been through and heard about countless wars, but rifts turning red on day three? Never once!”
Me, the Chairman, commanders from each unit, the royal guard, and more.
We’d all rushed to the seventh rift for this.
An emergency meeting.
Though it wasn’t going according to plan.
“Unbelievable…….”
“No way……. No way……!”
“This is insane…….”
The situation was devolving into chaos.
Everyone was too busy venting their emotions.
And who could blame them?
How many here had faced a Legion Commander head-on?
“Hold on.”
Realizing this wasn’t productive, I stepped in.
“We need to focus on countermeasures, not this.”
“Yoo Han, got any bright ideas?”
“If you’ve got a plan for this mess, spit it out.”
Gulp.
All eyes turned to me, and I swallowed hard.
No room for nonsense with this tense crowd.
But someone had to do it.
No need to stress.
I’d just lay out what I knew.
Swoosh.
‘……Barundel.’
Drawing strength from Barundel’s reassuring pat on my shoulder from behind, I forced the words out.
‘Countermeasures, huh.’
There was only one we could realistically put together right now.
“As you all know, battle with the Legion Commander is inevitable. We’ve got seven rifts left.”
When rifts turn red, the Legion Commanders invade exactly six hours later.
Sure, we could close them in the meantime, but with seven rifts……
The Rift Closer took one hour per rift.
Seven hours total— impossible to shut them all.
So.
We had to tilt the odds in our favor somehow.
“Considering terrain, remaining forces, everything— where’s the best spot to fight them?”
“Hmm, best spot…….”
My question had everyone rolling their eyes in thought.
With so many minds gathered, an answer came quick.
“……The ninth rift. The barricades are already complete, and we’ve got plenty of ridges to hold the high ground.”
Swoosh. I turned to the speaker.
Elbert, bandages wrapped tight around his midsection.
His injury from Dershion’s clone must’ve healed up some.
“The structure lets us surround the rift?”
Elbert nodded gravely at my question.
“Yeah. If we’re committed, not even a single lesser demon slips out.”
“Perfect. Then we just concentrate our firepower.”
“You mean…….”
“Yeah.”
We had one job.
“In the time we have left, close six rifts. Leave just one open.”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Some even sprang into action right away.
“Let’s move, then.”
“Got it.”
Tadak, tadadak!
As I exited the tent, a sudden thought made me look up.
The red moon hung in the sky, a reminder the war raged on.
And for some reason,
it brought him to mind.
‘Baal.’
He was surely watching this unfold.
From the pitch-black abyss, without a single ray of light.
‘What’re you thinking, you bastard?’
The image fueled a deep-seated rage.
***
The urgent situation sped things along.
“Rift closure complete!”
“Second rift closed—!”
“Tenth rift sealed too!”
Reports rolled in every hour as closures finished across the sites.
Elbert and I hustled to handle any potential wrinkles.
“Mage, this spot good?”
“Yeah. Make sure there’s no gaps.”
“Understood.”
First up: reinforcing the barricades around the ninth rift.
Elbert said they were done, but stacking a few more couldn’t hurt.
‘If it’s something like Valefor, this still might not cut it.’
The guy who’d smashed the District 7 barricades in one go.
With no clue what might emerge, this was crucial.
Second:
Wooong! Wooong! Wooong! Wooong!
“Hey, research Chairman. Put some more muscle into it!”
“Huff……! Huff……!”
We’d gathered all who could cast spells to erect a barrier around the rift.
In simple terms: creating a zone that buffs mages.
Not an easy feat, but with mostly 7th-circle-and-up high-rankers here……
Grinding them down made the impossible possible.
Chiiiing.
The domain was starting to take shape before our eyes.
My first time benefiting from one— I was inwardly thrilled.
‘Didn’t expect to experience this so soon.’
A domain’s effects on mages were straightforward.
Five semi-permanent buffs lasting as long as the domain held:
- Casting speed +30%.
- Mana regen +100%.
- Max mana +100%.
- All elemental mana power +150%.
- Joint spell power +200%.
Every single one a cheat-level gem.
Mages inside a domain became twice as deadly.
How much time passed?
Chiiiing!
The domain completed, surging with indescribable power.
I felt like I could do anything.
“Whew.”
Savoring the fullness, I eyed the rift.
“Now we’re balanced.”
It’d grated on me that only they got the red moon’s boost.
Finally, we stood on equal footing.