The Regular Exchange (4)
Arpina continued to attend the duels of the Secret Magic mages on the third day. No matter how little she claimed to expect from them, she was still one of Widia’s high-ranking mages. The true highlight of the exchange event was undoubtedly the duels between Secret Magic practitioners.
Because they exchanged spells using only short incantations or trigger words, the sheer speed was on another level. Since memorization wasn’t required, the heat of battle never cooled even during long matches. This was also why the organizers had separated the Apprentice and Secret Magic duels. The prevailing opinion was that no matter what tricks an Apprentice mage tried, they would find it nearly impossible to defeat a Secret Magic mage.
The very nature of a mage’s consciousness, which influenced mana, underwent a qualitative change upon entering the Secret Magic rank. This drastically shortened the time needed to manifest spells. If one abandoned any thought of rushing the opponent and calmly endured until the Apprentice mage exhausted their memorized spells, even the faintest sliver of hope for victory would vanish.
And most importantly, there was the existence of Secret Magic itself. These were powerful spells that a Secret Magic mage could begin using once they reached the end of the beginner stage. Some even described the entire Secret Magic realm as the process of refining and mastering these unique spells. They were the defining hallmark of a Secret Magic mage.
“Bloom!”
Just then, a woman with pale pink hair shouted from one side of the arena. It was her Secret Magic—Joyful Petals. Flowers densely covered the ground around her opponent before their petals began to swirl through the air. Each petal sharpened into a blade-like edge and swept over the enemy. The storm-like momentum left the opponent unable to respond properly, so a nearby mage extended his hand.
Without any incantation, the thousands of petals froze in midair.
“Rocelyn wins! This concludes the duel with victory for the Protal School.”
The pink-haired woman offered a polite bow and left the arena. Arpina rose from her seat as well, having decided this match would be her last. The mage who had lost to Rocelyn was a student from Widia.
She turned to the female mage seated beside her.
“Could we talk for a moment?”
“What is it?”
“The story you mentioned last time about Teneron. I’d like to hear the details.”
She had already asked Berford, who would be attending the meeting, to inquire about Teneron, but she intended to gather information through her own channels as well.
“Well… if that’s what you want, it’s not difficult to tell you.”
The woman smiled gently and stood up, following Arpina.
“If you want more accurate information, you’re welcome to visit our city and ask directly.”
The woman mentioned that remnants of the Black Tower were being held captive in their city.
“I thought someone like Lady Arpina would prefer to question them herself…”
“Hmm…”
When Arpina hesitated, the woman spoke again.
“It would be good for our disciples to interact as well. My student is incredibly curious about yours. They could broaden their horizons by observing magic from other schools.”
Arpina thought of Lia, who rarely interacted with others and spent all her time shut away in the training room, then nodded.
“Swell.”
The moment Leon uttered the trigger word for the spell he had memorized, the wooden sword floating in the air swelled to an enormous size in an instant. It was easily three times his own height. This was the foundational magic of the Sword that Scatters Moonlight.
When he had first encountered this spell, it had presented two major problems. One was that half of the proper formula had been erased. The other was that it demanded overwhelming talent and featured an excessively complicated formula. Tampering with it carelessly risked having one’s mana twisted and damaging the core.
However, after Leon gained All-Element Affinity, these restrictions had loosened somewhat. Of course, that only applied to the foundational magic. He hadn’t even considered touching the high-level spells that formed the true essence of this art.
No matter how twisted or partially erased the formula was, foundational magic remained foundational. Unlike the higher tiers, its complexity had limits. Leon possessed enough talent to infer and fill in the missing parts of the formula. He also had plenty of reference spells stored within the Chrono Orb.
Even so, he had refrained from touching it until now because there had been no need to take such risks. He had only begun seriously attempting to decipher the formula after obtaining the wooden sword that Kito insisted was a demonic blade.
Combined with the sword’s abilities, it seemed it could be used quite effectively. Leon began learning the magic in earnest, consuming time within the orb.
He had attended the personal disciple duels with discretion, but after realizing Robert wasn’t paying much attention, he stopped attending the others and remained shut inside the orb.
The first star of the Sword that Scatters Moonlight dealt with foundational magic. These were all the spells an Apprentice mage could learn—five in total. Every one of them was remarkably simple.
The first was the Swell Leon had just used. It enlarged the sword to a massive size. The second was Pierce, a straightforward spell that launched the sword at high speed to stab the opponent. It was so simple that one could think of it as nothing more than being faster than basic telekinesis.
Next came Blade, which simply allowed the sword to cut, Split, which increased the number of swords, and Luna, which infused the blade with mysterious power.
Leon had currently learned Pierce and Swell. He hadn’t had enough time for Blade yet, and the other two seemed to follow their own unique system, making it difficult for him to infer their formulas easily.
The five spells didn’t particularly link together and were used independently.
‘They probably only connect once you reach Secret Magic.’
It seemed Luna, the one that infused mysterious power, was the core of the foundational magic.
Leon canceled the spell and retrieved the sword.
‘As expected, because I filled in the missing parts of the formula myself, the mana consumption is unusual.’
Although he had learned Pierce and Swell, the fact that he had inferred and completed the empty sections meant they differed from the original spells. The fact that the mana drain was so severe despite being foundational magic proved it. The more mana he poured in, the more it devoured. The more he gave, the larger and faster it became.
‘Is this even a spell a normal mage could handle?’
It was clear Leon had tampered with something he shouldn’t have.
‘I should just be grateful it doesn’t cause any recoil.’
After storing the wooden sword in his subspace, Leon emerged from the orb. He thought about the Secret Magic duels that would be taking place right now. He was genuinely curious about their matches, but that wasn’t why he had stopped training.
The most popular duels of the exchange event. In other words, it meant most people had flocked to watch them. There could be no better time to secretly sell the items he possessed.
Once outside the orb, Leon left his lodging and once again sought out a secluded spot. He needed to change his clothes. He couldn’t exactly change inside the building.
He slipped into a remote alley and was about to grasp the orb when he suddenly froze. A chilling premonition ran down the back of his neck.
‘Search magic!’
He felt a flow of mana sweeping over his entire body. His throat tightened. He had thoroughly checked his surroundings before entering, yet someone had hidden themselves and cast search magic in this isolated place. What did that imply?
‘How long have they been following me?’
His nerves sharpened to their limit. Leon pulled a massive stack of scrolls from his subspace. E-rank Blink, triple Fireball, Flame, and Barrier. D-rank Water Prison. And as a final contingency, a B-rank Emergency Designated Teleport.
“Infusion.”
While he secretly muttered the trigger word for the mana infusion technique he had memorized, the mana rippled. Something hurtled straight toward him.
The ominous magical energy made Leon’s blood run cold. He immediately clutched the shield token he carried.
“Defensio!”
A barrier instantly formed around his body, but Leon didn’t stop there. He poured mana into barrier scrolls without pause. By the time four layered barriers overlapped around him, a powerful impact had already struck the token’s shield.
Boom— Boom— Boom—
The barriers shattered the instant the magic touched them. The token in Leon’s hand failed to withstand even a single hit and broke. The barriers created by the scrolls were then smashed apart one after another.
Seeing the black mass pierce through the barriers, Leon instinctively leaped backward. The magic that had penetrated every layer slammed into the spot where he had been standing.
Boom—
With a heavy thud, the magic that had shattered the ground did not disappear. It remained there, writhing. The sight of the black, mucus-like substance wriggling made Leon’s stomach churn strangely.
“Hmm?”
A voice filled with curiosity rang out as a human shape rose from the shadows. The red-haired man who quickly emerged fully onto the ground made Leon’s sense of danger spike to its peak. He had instinctively realized it.
‘A Secret Magic dark mage…’
Leon had come thoroughly prepared to deal with Secret Magic mages, but actually facing one still made tension unavoidable.
The red-haired man glanced briefly at the token that had shattered into several pieces on the ground.
“…So it really was you who interfered with our plan? I wasn’t sure since you looked like an ordinary person.”
“…”
Leon was at a loss for words. Did that mean the man had attacked without even being certain of his identity? The guy was completely insane.
“You must have some way of hiding your power. What’s your real rank? It’s definitely not Secret Magic.”
Watching the man’s sneering face, Leon didn’t hesitate. He drew the wooden sword.
“Pierce!”
Since he had been training until just now, two of his four memorized slots were occupied by sword magic. The wooden sword, infused with every ounce of mana he could muster, shot toward the man like a bolt of lightning.
Of course, Leon didn’t believe this attack would work. After all, the man was a Secret Magic mage. It was nothing more than a way to buy time.
‘Take the initiative with the wooden sword, then summon the guardian golem. That probably won’t be enough, so I’ll throw all my E-rank scrolls to gain more time and then call Arpina’s summoned beast…’
While Leon’s mind spun at full speed, the man simply flicked his hand upward at the incoming wooden sword.
“Block it.”
The wriggling black mucus leaped up and formed a barrier in front of the man. The tip of the wooden sword struck the barrier.
Thud—
“Ugh…”
The instant the wooden sword touched the barrier, the man furrowed his brow. In a single moment the black mucus scattered, and the wooden sword buried itself directly into the man’s chest.
The man with a pierced chest was sent flying and slammed into the wall.
Boom—
His body then slid limply to the ground.
“…”
Leon stared at the scene with his mouth agape.
“…Huh?”
In his hand was a green flute he had only just pulled from his subspace.