Chapter 59

Eunbyeol took a moment to admire the barrage of firepower pouring down right in front of her.

Salvo is basically the area-of-effect version of Ether Shot, right…? Just dumping a bunch of ether missiles.

It should have been something like that. But Yu Eunha's magic looked like it was on an entirely different level.

Kwaaaang! The massive explosion made her legs tremble.

It's probably still an executioner build at heart…

Surely it was just an unusual build with one extra bombing spell added on. There was no way she'd abandoned her main battle mage spells for that.

Eunbyeol swallowed hard and began gathering ether.

These were the four spells I'd brought to this foundation league practice match.

Sticking to the concept of sweeping up points with AoE is good, but…

Just looking at the spell lineup, it was bound to be vulnerable in one-on-one fights.

If I cut back on AoE, the cooldowns would leave me short on points. That's fatal for a pioneer, so no choice, right? Better to stick to the concept.

I furrowed my brow, recalling Monica's words.

"Still, it's a pretty extreme build."

I clicked my tongue and fired off a Salvo.

Huge clumps of ether flew ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠out, creating a massive explosion. Soon after, my score jumped by 40 points.

"Hm…"

This pioneer build Monica gave me was straightforward—no need to overthink it. Rotate through multiple AoE spells quickly to push back the Abyss. Destroy abyssal entities and terrain indiscriminately to sow chaos among other mages, then crush rival builds with overwhelming points from the massacre.

Great that it doesn't require much thought.

But interference was bound to come soon.

Like this.

Shiiik—

I jerked my head aside to dodge the incoming ice blade.

"You didn't think I'd let my guard down, did you?"

……

She sounded cool, but my arm was already sliced open.

She fired two in that gap.

Even focusing my eyes, I couldn't spot the enemy. Invisible to the naked eye was standard, but the ether waves were perfectly normal too—it was disorienting.

"Alright, how about this then."

The casting that was about to launch got canceled.

Tch, cooldown not up yet.

The moment I switched spells and hastily recast, something came flying from above.

As soon as the surging ether wrapped around my body, sparkling threads appeared around me.

"Eek?!"

Bound tight by the threads, I dangled helplessly in midair.

"Hehehe."

The owner of that familiar voice was Eunbyeol.

"I've been waiting for you to use that spell."

"……."

Eunbyeol's figure faintly materialized in front of a rock.

"Impressive. It really felt like nothing was there at all."

"Thanks for the praise? But you'd better worry about yourself. You won't last long."

"……."

Ether was rapidly draining from where the threads touched my skin.

"This is…."

"A battle mage exclusive ether drain spell. Time to be my battery, Yu Eunha."

The ether threads extended toward Eunbyeol at the center. Cold ice-attribute ether gathered over them like tree roots.

Two advanced control spells in a row—one of the hardest categories—and the rainy meadow froze over in an instant. Abyssal entities nearby had their cores shatter, the sounds echoing from all directions.

"Oh… Not bad linkage. Quiet and lethal. With your weak ether core, you probably haven't used spells like this much."

"I can't cast alone, but with a sturdy charger, it's different."

"Yeah, a charger…."

No matter that I'd hunted mages as a Mage Hunter, I wasn't one myself. These mage-exclusive spells were unfamiliar.

I squirmed my limbs, feeling the texture of the ether threads and watching the ether drain from my core as soon as I gathered it—fascinating.

"Oh, the less I struggle, the more ether you take?! Amazing!"

"Y-you're not panicking…."

Eunbyeol, the one tied up, seemed flustered instead, her ether control getting sloppy.

"Of course."

Sensing her disrupted ether, I neutralized the spell.

Definitely smoother and more natural than before.

Thanks to Secret Transmission Dynamics elevating my ether control to pro level, I could interfere with others' ether without Reverse Flow.

"Huh? Wha—what…?"

I looked at the panicking Eunbyeol and spoke.

"Barriers, auras, barriers, veils. I've broken every defense spell there is, so this is no different."

"What? Wait, you can do that…?"

"Indeed. The world is full of techniques you don't know, little one. Now, let's end this."

As I grinned and prepared to deploy Abyssorium,

Piiik—

A whistle blew.

"Ah?!"

It was the practice match end signal. Flustered, I hurriedly summoned the hologram, and a screen popped up before my eyes.

"??"

"Alright~ Everyone gather up~ Practice match over. Hehe."

Monica giggled as she threw up barriers around me and Eunbyeol. Seong Jiho flew in from the distant woods.

"Oh, it's over?"

Flustered, I fidgeted with my hands.

"Wh-what kind of rule is this? Wasn't it supposed to be 30 minutes?"

"Can't be helped~ It's exactly 30 minutes~ Little one~"

Monica's stopwatch clearly read 00:00:00.

"Ah…."

"Congrats on last place, little one."

"Yu Eunha got last."

"Hehe, I won."

"????"

Absurd. I yelled.

"Hey! I went easy! I only fired the same spell three times from the start!"

Of course, no ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠one took that seriously. Seong Jiho and Eunbyeol's eyes curved in amusement.

"Oh? You went easy? Yu Eunha, you admitting you went easy with your personality? You really held back?"

"……."

As I bit my lip silently, Eunbyeol hugged me tight.

"Don't bully my Eunha~ She's still a baby and cries if you tease her."

"I won't cry!"

"Aw~ Aw~? Your voice is already cracking?"

As I debated biting Seong Jiho, Monica laughed.

"Oh my, little one, real tears?"

"What?!"

I hurriedly wiped my eyes—rainwater came off.

"……."

Realizing I'd been tricked, the three of them smiled with their eyes.

"Ah. Damn…."

*

After showering at Monica's house, I draped a towel over my head and sat in the study. Fluffy Eunbyeol and Seong Jiho sat beside me.

"Three bathrooms in the house."

"Yeah…."

Half-dazed, they savored the warmth on small chairs. Monica, wearing mystery glasses, looked at me.

"How was it? Little one."

"What do you mean."

I added cautiously,

"…Sir."

Monica just smiled faintly.

"Today's practice match."

I scratched my cheek.

"I get it now—spell concepts and elemental advantages are key."

"That's it?"

At Monica's words, I sighed and continued.

"Pioneers lack counters against executioners. Hunters can get reversed if points spike suddenly and they miss timing. And time is a pioneer's most vital resource."

Monica clapped at my words.

"Good. You nailed the core in one practice. As expected of my disciple."

"If I'm sticking with pioneer, I need countermeasures."

Eunbyeol and Seong Jiho smirked confidently at my serious tone.

"Hehe…."

"Not so easy, huh?"

I shrugged at their reactions.

"No big deal. Tweak the spell deck a bit."

Monica broke into a cold sweat.

"Huh? You figured it out alone?"

"You called it a standard pioneer build, but it's unbalanced. Three AoEs is too much."

"……."

"……?"

Silence hung in the study. Eunbyeol and Seong Jiho reacted with shock seconds later.

"W-wait. What? AoEs…. how many?"

"Three AoEs? Huh? What?"

Seong Jiho shot up from his chair in shock.

"W-wait. Aren't you a battle mage? I thought double shot at most, but three AoEs…?"

"Th-then my ether drain didn't stop your spells—you had none left to use…?"

Eunbyeol's voice trembled faintly.

"Th-that one AoE I saw was all?"

"Yeah. That's it."

At my flat response, Seong Jiho grabbed my shoulders and shook.

"Wait. I can't follow! Lots of AoEs? Then…. b-battle mage?"

"Hobby."

"……."

Seong Jiho slumped into his chair.

"My analysis says you're straightforward, not a braggart…."

"Think I'm lying?"

"No, that's why it's shocking."

Seong Jiho ran a hand through his grayish hair.

"Sigh…. I lost to a hobby spell?"

His hair fell back with a shimmer.

"Ahh, gotta overhaul my strategy…."

Eunbyeol stared blankly at Seong Jiho, so I narrowed my eyes.

"Dumb but handsome."

The two bristled.

"No! I don't think he's handsome!"

"Why am I dumb?!"

As they fumed together, I grinned wide.

"Anyway, now that I've felt the spell restrictions, time to prep cards for variables."

"Ah, r-right. B-but only a week left."

"Forget how I escaped easily?"

"Ah…."

I smiled at Eunbyeol's dejected face, then eyed Seong Jiho.

"Your point pattern hit 350 in 20 minutes—probably the optimized score. I have a counter."

Seong Jiho clutched his head.

"Ah…."

I smirked at his expression.

"What, forcing a strategy rework a week before? Not going to plan?"

"Huh? Oh?"

Caught, Seong Jiho panicked visibly.

"You just exposed your pace, and now I have homework on your new patterns."

"……."

I mimicked his winning smirk at his despairing face.

"This is bad…."

I hummed as he muttered.

"Hm hm~ But it has upsides too."

"Like what?"

"Only you two know I'm not a battle mage."

At my meaningful words, Seong Jiho and Eunbyeol's eyes sparkled.

"You have a week to counter. I think that's fair pay for practice help."

I set down my towel—Monica was bringing cake.

"See you in the real match."

*

Korea's year-end was noisy. Christmas and New Year's events played a part, but the real buzz was Olympia and the foundation league.

The day Olympia's prelims ended, Korean news exploded.

With Olympia's prelim exit, even fiercer anticipation surged toward the foundation league.