Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: The Empty Vault
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3
The explosion on the second floor of the main building was anything but small.
The soaring flames died down quickly, but thick black smoke kept billowing endlessly.
Through gaps in the smoke, the outer wall was visible—completely blown out and collapsed.
With a massive hole punched straight through the outer wall, the students and staff inside the main building fled in a hurry.
Amid the chaos, one figure was dashing straight toward the explosion site.
It looked insanely dangerous to anyone watching, but he charged ahead without hesitation.
That was Leon Hilfenberg.
“Hey! Leon! Where are you going!?”
“There might be people inside.”
Leon’s words were spot on.
Even so, it was the kind of thing no normal person would attempt.
But Ethan followed right behind Leon, who acted without a second thought.
The two arrived at the base of the main building in one breath, then leaped up onto the outer wall and slipped through the collapsed hole.
I’d originally planned to leave it all to Leon, but I hadn’t expected Ethan to join in.
Talk about good luck. I’d been worried just moments ago, but this worked out perfectly.
Those two could handle it without a hitch.
Sure, the building was probably crawling with low-ranking cultists brought by Jaist, but even that wouldn’t be an issue.
Now I just needed to slip away casually—like I’d never been here to begin with.
“Everything’s going according to plan.”
“What plan are you talking about?”
This time, the voice came from behind me again.
What was it with people around here? They always popped up behind me to start talking.
I spun around.
Jaist stood there, brushing back one side of his hair, staring at me with emotionless eyes.
“You again.”
“…What are you talking about?”
I answered on instinct.
Any opening I gave here would just lead to trouble.
That day, in front of the old dorm, when Jaist mentioned an “obstacle,” he’d clearly meant me.
If I left even a hint that I’d interfered with his plans, the outcome was obvious.
“No need to play dumb. I’ve already confirmed you’re the obstacle.”
“So what are you saying? Obstacle? Whatever—there was an explosion. We need to evacuate. Or better yet, help with cleanup, Mid-level Mage Jaist.”
I put on my best act, but Jaist’s eyes stayed fixed on me.
He drew his hand from inside his robe.
In it was a short wand.
“I can’t forgive anyone who interferes with the plan.”
Ah, this was bad.
The thought hit me just as I instinctively drew Deathwise.
Deflecting the first strike was pure reflex.
It also came from all the intermittent training with Deathwise, which had taught my body how to move properly.
I swung the blade, slicing through the compressed water projectile at its tip.
It was an attack spell that could shatter bones on impact, and pierce skin and muscle if compressed further.
Water magic had serious destructive power, contrary to its soft image.
Especially when focused on a single point—it rivaled top-tier attack spells like fire or explosion magic.
“Listen to me, damn it!”
To think he’d fire something like that right off the bat.
Villains in this world loved monologuing endlessly on their own but never listened to a word anyone else said.
Come on, talk to me—actual conversation!
- Save the complaints for later, you fool!
“I know!”
It was already too late.
I hadn’t expected to get dragged in like this, but regrets wouldn’t help now.
I gripped Deathwise firmly with both hands.
Water magic was powerful, but Deathwise was tougher.
Even in daytime, I could parry or block water projectiles like these.
Countless water shots flew silently toward me.
Blocking them all was impossible.
I dodged what I could and only deflected the unavoidable ones with Deathwise.
“Ugh…!”
Each block sent a heavy shock through my arms.
The bone-rattling impact never got any easier to handle.
With every hit, my stance crumbled a bit more, and my grip on the hilt weakened.
Still, I held on somehow.
My odds of taking down Jaist right now were less than 1 percent.
If this were a game, sure, raw physical stats might overcome the spec gap—but no such luck.
It wasn’t impossible, though.
Theo’s body was definitely above average.
I rolled my eyes amid the barrage of water shots.
Spotting Jaist’s position, I lowered my stance and charged.
Reducing my profile meant fewer areas to protect.
As long as I guarded my head and torso, I could make it work.
The distance between us was barely five meters.
I closed it in one burst and swung Deathwise horizontally.
Slash!
Jaist was cut by Deathwise.
In that instant, Jaist’s form dissolved.
A clone made of water.
Of course, I’d known that much.
It was the final pattern of Jaist’s first phase.
And in this pattern, the real body always appeared behind the player.
Without slowing down, I twisted my body.
Spinning 180 degrees, I swung Deathwise—Jaist, standing right behind me, leaped back.
I felt the feedback through the blade.
A thin gash appeared on Jaist’s cheek.
Too shallow. Or too late, maybe.
“To think you saw through it. I underestimated you.”
Jaist, now at a distance, swung his wand.
That pen-like motion, drawing runes in the air—it was familiar.
Could I block it?
Water shots, maybe—but not this.
The decision was instant.
I kicked off the ground.
A massive tiger formed of raging torrents lunged at me.
4
On the second floor of the main building, in the magic research clubroom where the explosion had occurred, figures in white robes had taken over.
Leon, who had climbed the outer wall, exchanged glances with the white-robed men before drawing his weapon.
“What’s all this? Not janitors, that’s for sure.”
“Doesn’t look like it.”
Ethan, following behind, drew his sword and shield as well.
Outnumbered at least ten to one, the two swung their weapons without a care.
Clang!
Swords clashed.
The explosion site offered unstable footing, and acrid smoke hampered vision and breathing.
But Leon swept through the white robes as if none of it mattered.
He deflected attacks with minimal motion and counterattacked to drop them.
Every breath was calculated—his movements had reached the realm of mastery.
Minutes into the fight, victory was already in sight.
Then, a noise from outside drew Leon’s gaze.
Out front, Theo Agrit was battling someone.
The way he parried water magic and closed the gap in one go gave Leon an intense sense of déjà vu.
“That’s…”
The sword stance, footwork, breath control.
Theo Agrit’s fighting style was all too familiar to Leon.
“The Hilfenberg Style…”
A unique school passed down solely in the Hilfenberg family.
Occasionally taught to outsiders who formally joined, but not something you saw every day.
And Theo Agrit wasn’t even an initiate.
During their spar, he’d seemed utterly clueless about swordsmanship.
Yet here he was, mimicking the Hilfenberg Style—clumsily, but unmistakably.
Leon could draw only one conclusion.
“No way he copied it from that short spar?”
The brief exchange between Leon Hilfenberg and Theo Agrit.
Leon had deliberately held back during it.
So if Theo had mimicked Leon’s sword then, it explained the roughness.
In truth, it was nothing like that.
The swordsmanship Theo had seen most in his life was simply the Hilfenberg Style.
Even that, only through a monitor—pre-programmed motions linking smoothly—so imitating it in person came out awkward.
But Leon had no way of knowing, so he went with the most logical assumption.
Meanwhile, Jaist dodged Theo Agrit’s decisive strike, and a massive tiger erupted from his wand.
The tiger, formed of fierce currents, pounced on Theo Agrit.
Theo barely evaded, but not fully—clutching his side.
Blood dripped from his hand, staining the ground.
“I’ll leave the stragglers to you.”
With those curt words, Leon leaped from the second floor.
He landed with a boom and launched forward.
Jaist, alerted by the impact, swung his wand.
Whoosh!
A massive wall of water rose between Jaist and Leon.
Crashing into it would shred him to pieces, but Leon didn’t stop.
Too late for that.
He simply raised his sword high.
The path to cleave was clear in his mind.
Swords couldn’t cut water—that was common sense.
But Leon Hilfenberg cleaved common sense itself.
The churning wall of water split apart.
Without pausing, Leon slashed deep into Jaist’s shoulder beyond it.
5
“Gah!!”
Leon’s sword struck Jaist.
No—sent him flying.
The merciless strike on a villain was pure Leon.
“You okay?”
“Not badly hurt. Stings a bit… but watch out, he’s not done yet.”
I stood, gripping Deathwise.
Blood trickled from my side, and it hurt like hell.
Gritting my teeth, I pointed at Jaist—he rose unsteadily, blood dripping from his head.
“…More obstacles. No matter. I’ll deal with both of you here.”
Phase two engaged.
Jaist showed no mercy, summoning mana.
The stirring mana around us turned to water, swirling wildly.
Boom! Boom! Boom!!
The undulating waves thrashed like living serpents, wreaking havoc everywhere.
It looked like a simple Hydro Pump, but…
The erratic motion made it a nightmare to counter.
And regular attacks couldn’t block it.
“…Are you behind this incident?”
Confirming his foe, Leon stepped forward without hesitation.
He tried to cleave the churning Hydro Pump but… realized it was futile and fell back.
“And if I am?”
“Why?”
“It’s a grand plan. You wouldn’t understand even if I explained.”
They traded typical Q&A while clashing.
But Jaist’s water magic packed serious power.
Unblockable, options for defense were limited.
The fight was one-sided.
Minor wounds accumulated on Leon until blood dripped from his entire body.
His breathing grew ragged, sword tip trembling.
To anyone watching, he was on the brink.
But his eyes held steady, unwavering.
Seeing that, I relaxed.
Ah, the fight was already decided.
“I never intended to listen.”
With one line dismissing the villain’s exposition, Leon charged.
Straight into Jaist’s reach.
Jaist wouldn’t miss that.
A massive Hydro Pump surged at Leon.
Leon swung his sword all the same.
Swords couldn’t cut water—but Leon had just disproven that.
If he could do it once, he could do it twice.
Clang!!
His practice sword shattered, unable to withstand the force.
He’d called it glass before, but its durability was high.
The blow carrying that much power cleaved even the raging Hydro Pump.
“Impossible…!”
Thud!
No sword? No problem.
Leon punched Jaist bare-fisted.
Jaist flew spectacularly once more—and this time, slumped motionless.
It was over.
I’d worried about third parties jumping in besides Jaist, but thankfully, none did.
“You good?”
“Fine.”
Blood dripping everywhere—what was fine about that?
Watching this guy fight always made onlookers more nervous than him.
“Hey! Buddies! You both okay!?”
Right on cue, Ethan poked his head out the outer wall hole.
I waved casually back.
“All clear here. You?”
“Same!”
Perfect. Incident resolved.
Worth the effort.
Nodding in satisfaction, Ethan added belatedly.
“But here! The vault’s empty!”
…Huh?
We just stopped the raid.
Why the hell was the vault empty?