Chapter 330
Chapter 330
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 330
Chapter Title: Reinforces (3)
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"Yes, nice to meet you too."
Oliver greeted the blood-clump figure in human form without the slightest hesitation. He even raised his hand slightly in greeting.
Yareli, already startled by the unfamiliar blood magic, was even more shocked by Oliver's reaction. The blood-clump human showed signs of bewilderment as well.
But that wasn't the end of it.
"By any chance... are you the One Master of the Blood Magic minor school?"
It was spot on, and the blood-clump human tilted its head.
[...How did you know?]
"Derek taught me on the first day at the academy's social hall. He said the One Master of the Blood Magic minor school had arrived. The magic you're using is blood magic, right? Where are Derek and Felix?"
Oliver asked casually, as if it were no big deal. Truly offhand.
[Ha... You're worried about them?]
"Yes. They're my professor's researchers."
Worried because they were his professor's researchers... On the surface, it seemed normal, but there was a twisted undercurrent that was hard to put into words. A distortion that could make even someone in a position of overwhelming superiority feel uneasy.
"Why are you doing this?"
Yareli interjected into the increasingly eerie atmosphere.
[What did you say?]
"I'm asking why you've started all this. The Life School, clearly affiliated with the Magic Tower, teaming up with another organization to attack invited guests."
[You think that's too much.]
"Of course!"
Yareli, usually so composed, raised her voice in rare anger.
Her composure shaken by being splattered in blood, and genuinely furious at the Life School's betrayal.
What was interesting was that her anger wasn't just from her own victimization—it was at the situation itself.
[Well, I can't say I don't understand. Honestly, I feel bad about the current situation too. But try to understand. It's just preparation for the crisis ahead.]
The crisis ahead... Yareli furrowed her brow at the cryptic words, while Oliver showed interest.
The blood-clump human continued, as if amused.
[I can't go into details, but soon the heavens and earth will be rent asunder. Only those who foresee and prepare for the future will survive. This is just a small sacrifice for that.]
"Um... Sorry, but I don't quite get it. Could you explain it more simply?"
Oliver raised his hand politely in request, but the blood-clump human only grew displeased.
[Of course you wouldn't understand. You're just an inferior race, not even a mage... But you, who's called a genius even in the Magic Tower—you should get it. Yareli.]
"No. I don't understand either."
Yareli shook her head firmly.
The blood-clump human grew irritated as the conversation didn't go as planned.
It had clearly thought stepping in would easily persuade anyone.
[Well, no helping it then... Even if you're called a genius, you're still just a student. Shall we have a more productive talk? Join our side. The battle's already decided, and your grandmother will end up with us too.]
Yareli instinctively glanced at Oliver. He shook his head.
"From what I know, she's fighting Theodore right now. Quite fiercely, too."
[Lies. You're Xenon, right? The Red Man's personal aide? What would a guy like you know, butting in?]
"He's not just some aide."
Yareli cut in sharply.
"Xenon can see the World Tree."
[Lies.]
"No, I've seen it myself. Even the Magic Tower professors acknowledged it."
Yareli shone with fervent conviction. She was probably referring to Kevin, which was intriguing.
Kevin and Yareli had an indirect bad history, yet this level of trust.
It was a public faith transcending personal feelings.
She reaffirmed that belief.
"And I believe the One Master of the Scardi minor school—my grandmother—wouldn't involve herself in something this deplorable."
The blood-clump human fell silent. Thanks to projecting itself through blood, Oliver could faintly sense its emotions: humiliation, irritation, and stubborn defiance at things not going as planned.
A moment later, it forced a casual tone.
[Fine... If you won't take the chance, there are other ways. Besides, I've been ordered from above to capture you if possible.]
The blood-clump human said, looking at Oliver.
An unexpected fact. Orders to capture Oliver...
Just as Oliver, the person in question, was about to ask why, both he and Yareli sensed something with their magic detection.
Numerous lifeforms in the basement were approaching.
[Your choice is free, but you'll bear the consequences. Try escaping if you can... Oh, by the way, there are still some we haven't taken away yet. We were planning to haul them off as materials soon, but we'll wait while you're here. You came to rescue them in the first place, right?]
As if to prove its words, groans of people regaining consciousness suddenly echoed from the adjacent room and corridors.
Oliver focused his eyes.
As the blood-clump human said, beyond the blood-balloon disguised as humans, there were real people. The subtle differences were now discernible.
"Did you awaken them with blood magic?"
[We put them to sleep with blood magic. So, what'll you do? Keep rescuing the people here? Or run?]
The blood-clump human asked mockingly.
Yareli, flustered by the blood-clump human's provocation using hostages, looked to Oliver, but he responded with a question instead of an opinion. Just like the blood-clump human.
"What do you think, Yareli?"
His voice was so calm it bordered on indifference, conveying he was fine either way. It flustered not only Yareli but the blood-clump human as well.
"...Don't you have an opinion, Xenon?"
"Yes. I don't have any particular opinion. Neither Derek nor Felix are here."
His sincere answer left Yareli dumbfounded. More than that, even.
After all, Oliver was the one who mentioned the kidnapped people here and asked if they should rescue them. Yet at the moment of decision, he offered no opinion and just asked hers.
It was normal for Yareli to get annoyed.
But unlike Yareli's feelings, Oliver truly had no strong opinion.
He had simply relayed to Kevin what Eve had told him about the situation here.
[You're really thick-headed. Talking about abandoning the trapped people here without a second thought.]
The blood-clump human tried to provoke, but it didn't faze Oliver much.
"No, I just said I have no opinion... You can say to rescue them, or we can leave without—either way... Aren't they all mages here? They must be prepared for situations like this, right?"
Oliver explained to Yareli and the blood-clump human, who were looking at him with misunderstanding and dismay.
Just as one must be prepared for murder in the fixer business, mages conducting human experiments should be ready for similar fates.
If not, wasn't that a bit off?
[You're... annoying. From earlier. I don't like you.]
The blood-clump human rippled as it spoke, forming blood blades to attack Oliver.
Oliver made no move to respond. Yareli acted first.
Shaken by the blood-clump human's provocations and pressure, she quickly regained composure, infused magic into the ground with practiced skill, and froze the blood-clump a beat ahead.
'As expected, it can't break free.'
Oliver thought, watching the blood-clump human frozen solid, its functions halted without self-breaking the ice.
He wondered if it could raise its blood temperature like Batori to escape, but as expected, its blood magic wasn't at that level.
It was pathetically low compared to Batori's blood magic.
Oliver drew his tonfa from his waist, smashed the frozen lump, and pocketed a suitably sized ice shard. Just in case.
Watching this, Yareli gathered magic in her hand, deployed a spell, and shot ice magic down both corridors, freezing the modified humans charging toward them.
Having made her decision, Yareli asked.
"If I ask for help, will you help?"
"Yes."
Oliver answered, recalling Kevin's order to protect and assist Yareli as much as possible.
"Planning to rescue the kidnapped people?"
"Yes. It feels like playing into their hands, but leaving things as is doesn't sit right."
Oliver agreed.
Given the effort to move the people locked in the warehouse and replace them with blood balloons, it wasn't pointless.
There had to be a significant reason for doing such work amid a manpower shortage.
He didn't know what, but disrupting it seemed worthwhile, even at some risk.
"The problem is distinguishing the people from those blood balloons properly."
"Ah, I think I can handle that."
Distinguishing blood balloons disguised as people from real ones wasn't easy, but Oliver could roughly tell them apart now that he'd seen the subtle differences once.
With Yareli's help, Oliver smashed the doors holding the people captive, pointed out those that looked like blood balloons, and had Yareli freeze them with ice magic to prevent them from bursting like before.
After securing safety, Oliver untied the belts binding people to chairs and helped them.
Most had just woken, making it easy to sort them. For those still asleep, Oliver carefully inspected and separated them.
The captives, all under blood magic influence, struggled to move properly, but fortunately, the blood magic was low-level enough that Oliver could help somewhat just by touching and interfering with their magic.
'As expected, the Magic Tower's blood magic and Batori Family's share the same mechanism. The difference is the proportion of added black magic... Did the Life School acquire blood magic knowledge through dealings with the Batori Family and modify it their way?'
Oliver thought as he freed over twenty people.
Other mysteries piled up too.
For instance, the One Master's claim of orders from above to hold him... Clearly, only the Life School Grand Master could command the Blood Magic minor school's One Master.
Why?
'Could it be because of Professor Kevin?'
"Is this the last one?"
Yareli said in front of the final room.
She had single-handedly defeated the modified humans pressing from all sides and a few mages while protecting over twenty sluggish, newly freed people.
Rumors said she was skilled enough to be a formal mage—no, she exceeded them.
Of course, she'd consumed considerable stamina and magic facing numbers over time.
Oliver replied.
"Yes, these seem to be the last."
He scanned the surroundings with a black mage's eyes.
Yareli sighed in relief and moved to act.
"Good. Then let's move—"
Yareli stopped mid-sentence. The ice-bound modified humans were writhing.
At the unnatural sight, Yareli gathered magic warily, and Oliver watched too.
The modified humans' life force surged, exploding like bombs. Blood medium formed a blood-haired man blocking the way.
The Blood Magic minor school's One Master, as Derek described.
He manipulated scattered blood into blades and swung them.
"As expected, I had to step in."
Sharp blood blades.
Yareli blanketed the area in ice again, erecting a massive ice wall for defense, but the blood blades sliced through her ice effortlessly.
The rescued mages, despite injuries, gathered magic to aid her, but the One Master shaped blood into spikes, piercing them lightly.
"[Blood Donation]"
⟨ Blood Donation ⟩
With the incantation, the spikes piercing bodies sucked blood, shriveling victims like mummies.
Naturally, the absorbed spikes grew larger, panicking Yareli.
Seeing her, the One Master asked.
"Really no intention of joining us?"
After witnessing her magic so easily subdued, Yareli resolved something, removed her thick glasses, and glared at the Blood Magic One Master.
The One Master immediately erected a blood curtain.
Surprisingly, the part the gaze touched began freezing.
Oliver wondered what it was.
"Ice Eye's innate ability...! Reckless. You can't control it properly yet, right?"
The One Master shouted, helpfully explaining.
It seemed true; Yareli's eyes were gradually eroded by cold, the area around them cracking, blood welling up.
Yet she didn't stop.
"I can take down one like you!"
Sincere. But the One Master scoffed.
"Shall we check? ...[Blood Fire]"
"[Blood Fire]"
⟨ Blood Fire ⟩
The One Master incanted, and the nearly frozen blood curtain suddenly boiled, igniting into sticky blood flames.
Overwhelming even for her eyes.
He manipulated the flames to engulf Yareli, who donned her glasses again and tried blocking with a massive ice wall.
Though it melted outright, outmatched in firepower.
Mages fleeing behind, oncoming blood flames, and Yareli resisting.
Witnessing it all, Oliver leaped into the blood fire.
"Xenon?!"
"Madman. I knew you were a bit loose, but not suicidal."
Oliver irritated him? The One Master gleefully amped the blood fire's intensity.
Intent on leaving no ashes.
But something was off.
Control of the blood fire was slipping away.
"Seeing Batori's and Derek's magic helped."
Oliver, cloaked in blood fire like armor, charged the One Master.