Ranking War Finals (1)

"Whaaaat?! 880 points in one hit? That barrier is the special one for the ranking war, right? A 6th-level spell!"

The announcers' voices, sounding as shocked as Ha Ji-eun, echoed through the broadcast.

Just like the announcers, the viewers watching at home were in an uproar.

Just like the heated comments giving up on understanding, a massive roar erupted from the live audience, their excitement palpable.

"How long ago did the promotion match end, and she's already mastered something like that?!"

Ha Ji-eun stared at the screen, reeling from one shock after another. Yoo Eunha definitely hadn't shown that spell during the promotion match, so this must be something ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠she'd developed afterward.

'Mastering 6th-level magic in just a few months.... Is she even human?'

On screen, Kang Seo-hee looked stunned by the spell's power, frantically maxing out her defensive magic.

Ha Ji-eun quickly pulled up a magic calculator on her overlay.

"Pro league barriers are 8th-level survival magic, so... 88% damage ratio comes out to about 6.3 levels. Whoa, legit 6th-level tier?"

Even Ha Ji-eun, who'd run the numbers herself, was dumbfounded.

"The power's there, but honestly, it doesn't ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠feel like proper 6th-level magic."

"But it's definitely a completely different magic system from anything we've seen before."

While everyone was freaking out over Yoo Eunha's magic, the one most shocked was actually Kang Seo-hee herself. Her wide eyes said it all.

* '880pt....'

Panicked, Kang Seo-hee licked her lips, feeling her heart pounding so hard she could see the pulse in her temples.

"Heh... so you've got one big shot in you, huh?"

Kang Seo-hee gritted her teeth. With only 120 points left, one more mistake and it was over—she knew that full well.

'That spell was nearly unavoidable, so I need to predict it sooner.'

Not dodging when it flew, but deciding the moment she started gathering ether. In other words, she had to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠read the kid's mind.

'You're not the only one with a trump card, brat.'

Kang Seo-hee spread her refined ether around her, steadying her breath. Her purple tentacles writhed, dispersing her ether through the area.

"Those ether-spreading tentacles are pretty clever. But this is the end. Sea anemone mage."

She ground her teeth at the brat's taunt.

"We'll see about that."

As the spell unfolded, a transparent gas spread around her. A deadly nerve-disrupting gas with intense pain and side effects—it wasn't often used in mage tournaments.

"The moment you breathe, mana overload. How long can you hold out?"

Kang Seo-hee smirked. Rankers she'd fought for years would cut off air or cast purification the instant they saw it. But an 8-year-old rookie wouldn't know advanced purification magic.

'And no defensive spells either.'

This was checkmate.

"Too bad, but this spell hits harder the stronger your ether is. You're done."

A spell that punished the strong more—the classic strong-against-strong-weak-against-weak. But Yoo Eunha, seeing Kang Seo-hee's trump card, just unleashed magic without a word.

"......!"

Kang Seo-hee swallowed hard as Yoo Eunha casually fired the spell. A massive pit cratered where she'd hastily rolled away.

'That would've hurt bad....'

Cold sweat beaded as curses slipped through her mind.

Kang Seo-hee quickly checked Yoo Eunha's status. Ether backlash had to be hitting hard—fingers wouldn't even twitch. Yet the kid kept casting like it was nothing.

"Yeah, it's definitely tough, huh."

Yoo Eunha's right arm had bulging veins, blood vessels burst around her pupils, turning her eyes red. So she was just tanking the backlash.

'Fucking monster brat....'

For a split second, defeat flashed in her mind. Kang Seo-hee bit her lip in anxiety.

'But I can't let that happen.'

How had she clawed her way here? She couldn't drop back to 3rd Army.

'I have a promise with Dad.'

Not for the man lying in his hospital bed. She couldn't fall to 3rd Army again.

'I promised I'd watch over him from there....'

But even as she steeled herself not to lose for Dad, no path to victory emerged.

'A way....'

Kang Seo-hee dodged incoming spells, grinding her teeth. She had to admit it. The moment she'd eaten that first spell from Yoo Eunha, the match was decided. No—maybe the instant she'd picked Yoo Eunha as her opponent.

Dodging massive ether blobs by throwing herself aside, she spotted ether gathering at her landing spot. Yoo Eunha's hand was prepping a new spell.

'Damn...!'

The moment Kang Seo-hee used her tentacles to shift her landing, the spell exploded in front of her.

Boom—

Her sturdy white coat shredded, debris flying upward.

'Shattering something tougher than steel like it's candy....'

How was that a 2nd-level spell? Normal magic would need 4th, no, 5th level for that power.

Kang Seo-hee staggered up and launched herself again. Yoo Eunha was charging straight at her position.

Whoosh— A single punch tore through the air layers.

She'd barely dodged, but just the graze dropped her points.

50 points gone from a glancing punch.

'Fuck....'

One punch equaled a 3rd-level spell or higher.

'No, her 2nd-level spells have been abnormal from the start.'

Airborne, Kang Seo-hee finished casting fast.

'But Mancheon Hwau might turn things around.'

The moment she tried her signature spell, a strange sound whispered in her ear.

*

Kang Seo-hee had been dodging spells well lately.

'This is taking longer than expected....'

I narrowed my eyes at the panting Kang Seo-hee. The moment Ether Dynamics hit for 880 points, the match was over. Unless I just stood there, she had no way to win.

Yet she kept burning with grit, dodging everything to the end.

'Not in the Triad for nothing....'

I smirked at her sharp aura.

After the bait spell to guide her motion, I started casting the real one.

'Hit her landing with Abyssorium....'

The moment refined ether gathered—

Kang Seo-hee seemed to sense it and rolled out of range.

Thanks to that, it only wrecked an innocent white coat.

"......?"

I furrowed my brow.

'That speed should've been impossible to react to.'

Post-Ether Dynamics, her misses weren't coincidence.

'She's predicting them.'

Suddenly, how? flooded my mind.

I'd never encountered a mage like this, even as an exorcist.

'Reading ether flow to back-calculate landing? Impossible.'

Reverse-engineering trajectory from ether flow during a few seconds of casting? That's supercomputer territory.

'Does she know my habits? No, I don't have any—I've been varying trajectories on purpose....'

But one thing stayed constant: the intent infused in the ether.

'If she can read that subtle difference.'

It hit me. I poured ether into my body. A casting hold after ages.

As I swung my fist at her face, Kang Seo-hee couldn't fully dodge—her points dropped. Unlike her perfect predictions earlier.

'So that's it.'

That's why she couldn't dodge Ether Dynamics.

'The difference between magic and Ether Dynamics is intent. Ether without intent is unpredictable even for her.'

I admired the ether swirling at her fingertips. The vortex pattern screamed 5th-level or higher. And in that churning ether, I felt desperation, regret, self-blame.

'Emotions and intent....'

Come to think of it, back as an exorcist, I'd predict or disrupt spells using those. Backflow was basically stealing that 'intent' from the flow.

Forgotten for so long.

I kicked off the ground, sliding to her side.

"Thanks. It's been ages since I learned something new."

As her head turned toward me, I smiled faintly and fired a spell.