ARPG: City of the Dead Mage (3)
Is he really a 7th Circle mage?
Kasian Valerius had soloed the tutorial boss even when the difficulty was cranked up from normal to extreme hard.
The monster that normally appears on normal difficulty is the "Wendigo."
Unlike its grotesque appearance, once you figure out its patterns, players can take it down with simple spells—no need for mana rifles.
But on extreme hard, a completely different beast shows up.
It's called "Ness."
For starters, it's at least three times the size of a Wendigo. About the height of a three-story apartment building—its head would barely scrape the roof of most structures.
Plus, it has two faces: one on its tail, one on its head.
It freely whips those faces around to spew breath attacks from all directions, pressuring you omnidirectionally or covering blind spots. That's its defining trait.
On top of that, it's got skin tougher than crocodile hide.
Regular mana rifles can't even scratch it. You need something like a large-caliber mana-penetrating rifle for effective hits. That's how it was designed.
Yet this thing—the third-act boss on normal difficulty that every player except Kasian had faced...
"So this is what it feels like to run out of mana... Absurd."
"Gyaaaaaah!"
"Doesn't mean I can't use magic at all, though. Crema—Tio!"
The court mage's staff spat fire toward the massive monster charging at him.
A pinpoint lance of pure white flame pierced straight through Ness's head, then chained explosions ripped through its organs.
6th Circle destruction magic: White Flame Spear.
"Kiyaaaaaaaah!!"
Ness let out an agonized scream before turning to ash in an instant.
Kasian stayed cool even against a monster form he'd never seen, thrown into a situation he'd never experienced.
The title of imperial hero isn't handed out to mediocrity, after all.
And Mary watched the whole spectacle, holding her breath.
"Holy crap, he's a real powerhouse mage? I heard the council was sending backup, but I didn't expect this strong...!! Oh!"
Her awe was short-lived. She had to hurriedly chase after Kasian, who was heading away from the sanctuary.
"M-Mister? Um... can we talk in our language?"
"Hmph. How do I know you're not a succubus in disguise—or some monster? In a world where monsters bigger than mansions roam around, you can't rule out ones that mimic humans."
"...Okay, sure, those exist! But I'm not one!!"
Kasian and Mary's first meeting was a total disaster.
Kasian spotted her tailing him and slipped behind her the moment she lost sight of him.
Then he hit her with forced disarmament magic and binding spells, neutralizing her effortlessly.
She ended up dangling helplessly in midair.
She was a hotshot in the sanctuary, but against a 7th Circle mage's overwhelming power, she was just another weakling.
"Mister Mage, don't you have identification spells or something? Just check with that!"
"...Sadly, no. If I did, I'd have my own mage tower just for inventing it."
"So even council mages aren't all-purpose, huh..."
"Council?"
At that moment, Kasian's eyes sharpened.
The quick-witted Mary caught it immediately.
"W-Wait, you're not with the council?"
"Don't lump me in with those damn greenhouse flowers. My efforts carry a different weight."
"What?! Then let me down! You're weird!!! I only followed you thinking you were council!!"
"You little...! Stop squirming! I'm already low on mana in midair, and my body's not responding right—fine control's a pain!"
"Kyaaaaah!! Perverted old man's gonna rape me!! Help! Anyone there?! Kyaaaaaaaah!!"
"W-What!? No! You cheeky brat, how dare you with that loose mouth!!"
"Eek!! Listen to your mouth!! Total pervert!!"
Mary thrashed desperately and finally broke free of Kasian's binding.
"Take this!!"
"Stay right there! Who do you think I am, some lust-crazed tower lord?! Slow!"
"Ahh... the spell's draining my strength..."
It took over an hour of unintended tag before they finally cleared up the misunderstanding.
In the process, Kasian naturally picked up the world's lore and a rough backstory.
'Feels just like "Free City Milton."'
Eons may pass, but roots don't change.
No doubt about it.
This massive city vaguely resembled Milton Free City, on the border between the empire and the eastern kingdom.
Kasian Valerius, who had served under the Iron Emperor, recognized it instantly.
Of course, Milton fell thirty years ago.
Sandwiched between empire and kingdom in their war, it was doomed to a bad end.
'Makes sense. Five hundred years later, a new city rising in its place isn't a stretch.'
Kasian convinced himself.
He'd also confirmed the mysterious fog, unheard-of monsters, and the sanctuary as the city's last bastion with his own eyes.
Assuming it was all real, those fools ranting about doom in front of the palace were telling the truth.
"So all the survivors are holed up in this tiny zone?"
"Yeah, and even that's only about two thousand people..."
"Living here's no picnic, that's for sure."
The sanctuary.
Kasian hadn't seen hope or vitality on anyone's faces there either.
Gloomy. Like any battlefield where life hangs by a thread.
As Kasian reminisced briefly,
"Anyway, I told them you were with the council, like you said. Obvious they'd suspect if I said you dropped from the sky."
Mary approached after her meeting with Paeton, leader of the sanctuary scavengers.
They'd unintentionally skipped the entire tutorial.
Honestly, after soloing Ness and with extreme hard mode active, the standard tutorial was pointless anyway.
He's a 7th Circle, after all. Right below grand mage territory.
Yujin and Wiki had fine-tuned those details.
So Act 1 unfolded quite differently.
First change: Instead of bumping into the player at night while solo scavenging, Mary came straight to the lodging.
"...Lost your sibling? Looks like a kidnapping?"
"Please help, mister... I'll be honest. I've never seen a mage as amazing as you. Name your price. Please..."
"...Fine. Just tell me where you last saw them. I'll handle it."
"I-I'm coming too!"
"What help's a kid swinging a weapon as big as yourself gonna be?"
"It's the one I look after. You just got here today—how would you spot them? Kids go missing all the time lately."
Convinced by Mary, Kasian headed to the sewers with her.
They took down the resident "Sewer Slime" and the traitor scavenger "Action Captain Mallex," rescuing the sibling successfully.
In the demo, Mary and Paeton were supposed to die together, but the full release delayed revealing Paeton as the villain.
Neither Kasian nor Mary suspected Paeton yet, naturally.
The next day.
Mary immediately exposed an internal scavenger selling kids to the "mysterious faction."
Paeton, furious, blamed the "Legion" scum and ordered Mallex's execution.
"See that, everyone! Fellow scavengers! These stragglers threaten our kids, our food, our warm sanctuary!"
"No more delays! Tomorrow, we reclaim Factory B! Council mage Kasian Valerius promised to join us. For the day we retake that plaza—forward once more!!"
Thus began Act 2. The stage of "Sealed Industrial Complex."
Before the Day of Loss, Haganelle was a munitions firm specializing in mana rifles and dedicated ammo production.
Haganelle mana rifles boasted superior firepower and reliability over others.
Rumors say they house a secret weapon rivaling an 8th Circle destruction spell—one that could take on giant monsters.
In times like these, people flock on those rumors.
Does the secret weapon really exist? Or is it sweet poison to swallow the hopeful?
No one knows without checking themselves.
Kasian Valerius.
"Misteerrrrr!!!"
"Kid!!!"
In that desperate moment, you saw the gray-haired girl overlap with someone from your past. Ah, yes. What you must face isn't just the future.
You'll have to confront the unresolved past too.
Mary. No, Claudia.
The one family member you—who grasped all glory—couldn't save.
— Daaaaddy!!
Just one.
