Chapter 328
Chapter 328
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 328
Chapter Title: Flood and Darkness
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“…….”
Leo gaped for a moment before letting out a hollow chuckle. Then he knelt on one knee before me, cast a soundproofing spell, and spoke.
“Congratulations, Lucas. That’s so you.”
“You’re not mad, are you?”
To my half-joking remark, he gave a faint smile and replied in a serious tone.
“Shouldn’t you be a bit happier yourself?”
“I am…”
“No, you’re not.”
As I started to say I was happy, I realized what basis he had for claiming otherwise. While my gaze drifted to his chest, he nodded toward my bare earlobe—free of any artifact—and continued.
“Mad? If it were connected to you too, you’d know just how thrilled I am right now.”
At a loss for words, I looked up at him. Knowing full well the Mimesis camera couldn’t capture this, the corner of his mouth curved upward in the backlight. Leo placed a hand on my back.
“…!”
Leo’s mana surged into my body. I gritted my teeth against the pain and instinctively turned my head, but the mana kept pouring in without mercy. It should have felt like an attack—it was an attack—yet I couldn’t utter a single word.
“…….”
It was as if the mana was finally settling into where it belonged. Absurdly, my core’s mana offered no defense, merging seamlessly with Leo’s invading power.
The flow of mana mimics a heartbeat. Leo’s mana, lingering briefly in my core before fading, pulsed rapidly. Accepting defeat should have been one thing, but realizing his emotions were truly surging made it even harder for me to speak.
“Now that’s worth celebrating.”
“…….”
How had my mana pulsed in his core?
He gave a gentle nod and stood as if nothing had happened, walking off alone. After deep breaths to steady my disrupted mana, I scowled at his retreating figure. It didn’t take long to sense something off.
“Hey!”
Take me with you! I yelled, craning my neck as far as it would go, but he didn’t look back.
Damn it… I have to return too—what are you doing leaving me here? He’d even smashed my communication artifact…!
I could acknowledge the clean result while still wanting to flip him off. That buoyant pulse might not just be excitement—it could be annoyance. Fair enough.
As all sorts of thoughts swirled, the scenery before me shifted.
“…….”
My face was pressed against cold marble flooring. The pressure pinning me down was gone, making it easier to breathe.
A pair of boots entered my view. Mecklenburg, who had arrived first, stared at me like I was insane before snapping out of it, smiling, and extending a hand.
“…You beat me here. Thank you.”
“No problem.”
I’d worried with the exams back-to-back, but thankfully the system teleported us automatically. It seemed to be the waiting room I’d set up inside Mimesis.
Not entirely considerate, though. My hat that Leo had knocked off and my communication artifact hadn’t returned—meaning losses carried over to round two as is. My jacket, torn from the attack, remained unrepaired, and blood still seeped from my arm. Minimizing damage in combat is part of strategy. I pulled a spare communication artifact from my clutch and readjusted my mana flow throughout my body. Mecklenburg watched, arms crossed.
“You okay?”
“…….”
As I fitted the artifact just outside my ear, he pointed to my wrist. I tugged my glove down as far as it would go and answered.
“No. Not okay.”
Mecklenburg seemed displeased by my 100% honest phrasing—though if I spoke like Adrian Ascanien, he’d hate that too?—and offered a subtle smile before continuing.
“Wish I could fetch you some medicine. Good work out there.”
“Thanks. I won because you calculated so quickly, Senior.”
To my casual remark, Mecklenburg gave a polite smile. His lip curl felt artificial. It wasn’t hard to sense he wasn’t thrilled. Of course— he knew it wasn’t his victory.
Still, judging purely on ability during the exam, Mecklenburg’s warp coordinate choice had been brilliant. He’d grabbed a large area, but sequencing the warps within was entirely his call.
More importantly, seeing him act so gracious now meant he’d fully reverted to his usual self. No matter. If we’d won round one thanks to him, he’d be strutting with confidence instead of just smiling silently.
So, for him, this effectively made round two his first real round—reclaiming initiative.
As the exam countdown began, Mecklenburg murmured.
“I said I was glad to be teamed with you.”
“Yes.”
“I’m happy to be with you too, Ascanien. Brings back old memories.”
What a load of nonsense.
Saying outright that he sees his brother in me? Probably trying to rattle me. I don’t even respect Adrian Ascanien. No matter what he said, it wouldn’t faze me, so I just shrugged with a smile.
“I thought you were finally looking at me now?”
“Please take care of me in round two.”
I lightly grasped his offered hand. Round two. In round two…
‘…Sigh.’
Best to avoid Leo somehow. Mimesis hadn’t shut down, so the numbness from the vine still lingered. That was manageable, but the vines crawling with hostility? That vivid memory made it feel like plants were still writhing alive somewhere.
‘…Plants aren’t supposed to move like they have brains.’
Sure, they moved under Leo’s brain’s command, but seeing was one thing—having them climb my body? No getting used to that. If I could endure, maybe head somewhere with less plant density, but the park was the worst. I could really die buried in foliage.
[…3, 2, 1.]
Beeep—
With the alert, the scenery changed. From indoors to outdoors, we were now on a wider observation deck than before. Wind whipped across my face sideways. I let my hair fly freely now—no more regulation pomade I hated anyway.
Mecklenburg spoke first.
“It’s started. This time…”
“Eliminating the opponent seems to be the real goal.”
Checking the desk’s materials, I cut him off and eyed the map. Unlike the previous test covering Berlin and parts of Brandenburg, this was just one district-sized map—no contamination charts or news articles. Basically, fight to stop the enemy.
Behind me stood three mages in Imperial Guard uniforms, lined up stiffly. All fakes modeled after real people. I glanced back and said.
“With these assistant mages I’m meeting for the first time.”
It felt like they’d made round one harder than two. We hadn’t even clashed directly in the Berlin-scale arena after finding answers and deceiving each other.
The real issue now was elsewhere. Thinking of the enemy base somewhere far off, I rubbed my face.
‘…Damn….’
Force a direct confrontation.
I was marked by Leo again. Not just marked—could turn into him declaring I lounge in the grass. And before us stretched mountains and fields.
Keep throwing variables like this? Felt like determination to pick the strategy master as commander.
Mecklenburg’s expression was subtle too. Probably recalling how I’d smoothly commanded the unfamiliar 98th A-Team.
‘First, consider the worst-case where Leo catches me.’
Get too sleepy here, and I might not lift a finger. In that scenario, all I could do was talk trash.
‘Can’t recopy that ability again?’
Gazing below the deck, I twitched my fingers. Predictably, the grass didn’t stir. Leo’s unique ability from the extra chapter was surely limited to there. Even if usable, I couldn’t flaunt it… So, no regrets. Like my first strategy game with Erich Reichenau, I surveyed the forest- and mountain-filled map and said.
“Senior. You and I need to stick together this time. You three, stay grouped up too. Key point: no one goes solo.”
* * *
Stick together. You and me?
Mecklenburg stared blankly at Ascanien. Ascanien dusted off his shirt cuff and continued.
“You saw it, so you know: Sir Leonard Wittelsbach can wield his unique ability as a lethal weapon. He’ll attack us the instant the test starts.”
Lethal weapon.
He’d planned to seize initiative, but as teammates, info sharing was needed. Ascanien’s wrist from earlier was bruised dark red—likely Wittelsbach blocking his mana. In a nature sprint like this, caution was warranted.
“Thinking deeper like round one, he might read our expectations, give a peaceful start, then ambush mid-test. Paradoxically, that forces us to stay vigilant throughout, so Wittelsbach’s choice likely aligns with ‘attack immediately.’”
Obvious. But ‘how far to allow meta-expectations?’—our eternal dilemma. With similar levels, they’d think just as deeply. Round one twisted expectations repeatedly too. But endless flips loop back. Ascanien’s logic held, so move past it.
More importantly, Mecklenburg had no intention of letting Ascanien ramble. The moment he paused, Mecklenburg raised his baton and spoke.
“Got it. Situation analysis first. They’ll seize the river first—or rather, block us from it.”
“Agreed. Since it came up, how far does your unique ability extend? Control range.”
At that, Mecklenburg thrust his wand forward then yanked it back.
“…!”
Ascanien’s stoic face twisted briefly. He gaped in shock, clutching his left hand.
“Clear enough?”
“…….”
Blood must’ve rushed in like it’d burst. Pale-faced, Ascanien massaged his hand with a hollow laugh.
“Jealous of that power.”
“Obviously tough on moving targets. You were standing still in front of me.”
“Modest, aren’t you?”
“…….”
Each quip grated. Unnecessary barbs—deliberate to annoy? He’d play innocent if asked, so Mecklenburg held back.
“Anyway, we still need to scout the whole area on foot. No warp coords given… Thought to borrow unique powers, but these three lack them too.”
Mecklenburg rustled their personnel sheets. Map center: mountain and river, surrounded by forest and marsh, bases at opposite edges. Cave midway up the mountain.
“Ambush risk during search, so forest last. But Wittelsbach might preempt that and enter first, so someone monitors him.”
“Senior, good with water magic too?”
“Better than most mages.”
Mecklenburg replied curtly.
“Mountain’s trickiest—priority. But Wittelsbach is the issue. So we don’t wait for his attack; we go on the offensive. Problem: whether he comes or we go, we face grass in this natural field.”
So what now? Ascanien didn’t interrupt. No ideas, or same as mine. Mecklenburg suppressed a smile and said.
“Enemy has field advantage, so won’t dodge fights. We lure Wittelsbach to the river. Difficulty per spot similar for both, so lure works. Feign mountain target, then river-pull when he approaches—first action.”
“Done talking?”
“…….”
Done?
Mecklenburg’s brow furrowed slightly. Ascanien smiled thoughtfully, then murmured.
“Senior.”
“…….”
“Very by-the-book.”
* * *
Boom—!
“You’re good.”
Mecklenburg glared rottenly at me clinging to his arm as we ran. Floor was total water. No longer a field—this was marsh. Of course: Mecklenburg’s ability flooded it. Still pulling river water to drench the vast plain. Lure Leonard? No time—what for?
Better disrupt his movement. His field was probably flooded too. Yes—everything but the mountain, waterworld.
Mecklenburg gritted through clenched teeth.
“Don’t grab my arm—spread a barrier on the ground.”
“Then we’re same as Wittelsbach’s side.”
Barrier good.
But maintaining while blocking attacks? Tough. Break and sink? Mud-running hell—no need to imagine.
Mecklenburg could evaporate our narrow water path while running. Proper use, right?
So, following him, I checked for Pleroma portals in the area…
“…Good. Here’s enough—we’re ahead.”
Stopping mountain-side, Mecklenburg said lowly. Sour again over lost initiative.
Anyway, we’d checked 2/3 of the field. Next orders due. Sending to the three mages at mountain good option, but my thought differed.
“Senior.”
“Speak.”
Same tone as before. I scanned around, about to speak.
Kwaaaang—!!
“…?!”
The earth-shaking roar made me reflexively clap my ears.
‘…What…?’
Blink after: unexpected sight. World pitch-black, light blocked. Couldn’t tell ground from sky. Squinting around.
“Senior.”
No reply.
Mimesis off. Virtual world vanished from sight—what else?
Theoretically possible. Off, we’d wake in expanded Mimesis arena via spatial magic, thousands pyeong, linked to waiting rooms, back to other mages.
But…
Mimesis off—why still nothing? Why not awake in arena? Recent articles swirled in head. Just off?
“Senior.”
Called again—no answer. Familiar darkness. Couldn’t tell what I stood on. Vast dark where floor met sky unknown, endless void, I…
“…….”
My breath echoed in my ears. Breath caught at my throat.
* * *