Chapter 247
Chapter 247
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 247
Chapter Title: Magic Clash (7)
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“Shirone is a strong kid. He’s not the type to get discouraged by one loss; in fact, he’ll probably learn something greater from defeat. A true teacher must also teach how to learn from failure.”
Olina raised a hand, cutting Alpheas off.
“I’ll take that as the excuse of a 4th-grade loser.”
“Kukuku, anyway, I’m just a spectator today. Shirone and Dante. This should be very interesting.”
At last, the time for the duel had come.
As Shina, the referee, walked to the center of the Yicheonbeon, the atmosphere in the arena grew solemn.
In a moment, the greatest talent of Alpheas Magic Academy and the greatest talent of the kingdom would clash.
Mark, whose hands and feet were trembling as if he were having trouble breathing, looked over at Iruki beside him.
“Ugh, the suspense is killing me. Senior, do you think Senior Shirone can win?”
“In my opinion, both of them will have at least one opportunity. Shirone has a wider variety of offensive magic, but Dante’s tactical management can’t be ignored. Once the number of magic circles increases, Shirone will find his hands tied.”
Even from Iruki, who could be called his closest confidant, came a less-than-hopeful diagnosis. As Mark, on the verge of tears, was about to speak, the students suddenly erupted in cheers.
Shirone and Dante were walking up to the sides of the Yicheonbeon.
Shina, the referee, paid her respects to the former and current headmasters before summoning Shirone and Dante to the center of the Yicheonbeon.
The faces of the students, who had been watching the two meet with interest, turned pale. It was because Shirone was walking past the designated position and approaching Dante.
‘Ah!’
Shirone hastily came to his senses and stopped. But Dante’s face was already right in front of him. He had been lost in thought and hadn’t been paying attention.
The students interpreted Shirone’s action as a provocation and grew more excited, but his friends, who knew his personality, thought differently.
He was clearly nervous.
At the unusual situation, Killine laughed with a look of pity.
“Hoho! Oh, dear. What era are we in for such a cheap provocation?”
There had been many challengers who had acted like that against Dante before. Each time, Dante would respond with ease, embarrassing his opponent instead.
‘Huhu, Dante. What kind of performance will you start with today… Huh?’
A question appeared on Killine’s face. Dante, too, was glaring at Shirone without the slightest movement.
Shina was explaining the rules, but it didn't feel like they were hearing a word.
Since he had never shown such a side before, Dante’s friends were just as bewildered.
Sabina said, biting her nails.
“Dante, don’t you think he looks a little nervous?”
“That’s not like him. He was in great condition this morning, wasn't he? Let’s wait and see. This might be part of his showmanship.”
Iruki, who had been listening to their conversation, spoke.
“He can’t help but be nervous.”
“What? What do you mean, he can’t help but be nervous?”
Mark turned his head with shocked eyes. His anxiety was at its peak, and he was startled by everything Iruki said.
“Shirone has never lost in a competition. Although he hasn't been learning magic for long, he has continuously overcome difficult hurdles to get here. Of course, Dante has also built a nearly impossible record from his position as king for a long time. And now, those two are facing off.”
Amy said.
“A loss is a record engraved on a person’s life. It changes the direction of their life in some way. But neither of them has ever lost. An abnormal career that’s only possible if not a single mistake is tolerated. They don’t want to lose that.”
Iruki picked up where she left off.
“And today, the career of one of them will be completely shattered. They will have to live with the record of defeat engraved on their life.”
Mark was stunned. Was this the world geniuses lived in? For him, who had defeat etched into his life at the mere age of fifteen, it was a realm he couldn't even fathom.
But he didn't feel the slightest bit of regret. He just wanted Shirone, who had defeated him, to win again, and his heart pounded so hard it ached.
“Ugh. This is driving me crazy. When are they going to start already?”
Shina, having explained the rules, instructed them to create distance. But neither moved. It seemed they couldn't hear her.
“You two? Return to your designated positions and wait.”
All sorts of thoughts crossed Dante’s mind. Who was this boy? At first, he said he didn't want to fight, that he didn't need power or honor, but now he was glaring as if he wanted to eat him alive.
‘No. Let’s not think about it.’
Dante snapped to his senses. He hadn't lost in 472 matches, so he could predict he wouldn't lose now either. Just like any other challenger, he just had to crush him.
“Shirone! Dante! Follow the referee’s instructions!”
Only after Shina shouted fiercely did the two come to their senses, backing away without breaking eye contact.
Arriving at his designated position, Dante took a deep breath and moved his body to release the tension.
The 60-meter distance seemed farther than usual.
But he had defeated all the renowned powerhouses to get here. If he fought as he always did, there was no way he could lose.
‘Right, I just need to fight my way. His only option will be a preemptive strike. I'll use that against him. As a target-type, I have the advantage in speed.’
Accelerate the formula to its maximum and deploy a spatial transfer magic circle at Shirone’s feet. It wouldn't have much impact, but there was no better way to break his balance. Then, just like he'd always done, he'd handle him depending on the situation.
“Now, the match between Shirone and Dante, Dante and Shirone…”
Shina’s words were buried under a huge roar.
In ten seconds, they would clash.
It felt as if even the air temperature had risen from the heat.
Shina gave up on signaling with her voice and raised her hand. At that, the students’ cheers grew even louder, and Shirone’s and Dante’s gazes fixed on the hand signal.
“Begin the match!”
Dante deployed an ultra-high-speed numerical sequence. The number starting from 1 reached 10,000, and his target-type Spirit Zone shot out, swallowing Shirone.
‘Got him…!’
The moment he thought that, Dante’s eyes widened. Dozens of Photon Cannons had already reached him.
Dante switched his battery and deployed a defensive magic circle. The barrage of Photon Cannons hammered against the circle. Only then did he realize what was happening.
‘Immortal Function!’
He had activated Immortal Function from the very beginning. Moreover, he was relentlessly firing Photon Cannons without any regard for tactical operation.
It had physical power comparable to earth magic, and it was fast, too. Experiencing it firsthand, it was a seriously annoying spell.
He was repairing the defensive magic circle by accumulating information each time it cracked, but he couldn't hold out any longer.
As Dante teleported away, Shirone, who had been rapidly firing Photon Cannons, also cast photonization magic and gave chase.
Two streaks of light decorated the skies above the Yicheonbeon.
The students were dumbfounded by the slugfest—no, the one-sided display of firepower—that unfolded from the start.
Iruki let out an empty laugh.
Of course, it was a good strategy. But he hadn't expected the prudent Shirone to gamble everything so early in the match.
“So his plan is to prevent him from even thinking about deploying a magic circle from the start.”
Mark asked in a trembling voice.
“Incredible. Is the person fighting now really the same one who had a teleportation duel with me last semester?”
“Probably not. In any case, not giving him time to use his skills means Shirone is dead serious. At this rate, the outcome is anyone's guess.”
Shirone pressured Dante with dazzling movements. He sealed off the left and right with the Patrol technique, then executed a reverse Rainbow Drop to soar into the sky. Below his feet, dozens of photon masses, created several per second, followed him in a trail.
Shirone fired them all. As the Photon Cannons dominated the space, Dante fled to the ground, his only escape route. An air-to-ground bombardment followed, but he had no desire to look up at the sky.
‘Damn it! Let me use some magic too! That guy’s a complete psycho!’
No, perhaps this was better.
He couldn't maintain Immortal Function for long anyway. If I can just survive this initial assault, it'll be my victory without a doubt.
‘Right, in this state, it’s 30 minutes at most. If I just endure for 30 minutes…!’
The Photon Cannons fell in a line, scraping the ground. Dante changed direction and checked Shirone’s position.
From the spot where he expected Shirone to be, dozens of photon masses were pouring out.
Realizing his mistake, Dante felt a chill run down his spine.
‘Damn it! 30 minutes my ass, I won’t even last 5!’
After blocking the first bombardment with a defensive magic circle, he broke through an opening created by the delay before the second bombardment and escaped the curtain of fire. But there was nowhere left to go. He had been pushed to the edge of the Yicheonbeon without even realizing it.
Shirone occupied the space with his Patrol technique, driving Dante to the very corner. Then, when Dante showed signs of escaping, he threw a compressed photon from his hand. A straight line of light shot out.
Unable to escape the corner, Dante hastily deployed a defensive magic circle. A weight completely different from the previous attacks was transmitted.
As the second and third attacks hit the same spot, the magic circle cracked audibly even as it was being repaired.
Iruki smiled with pity.
“Did being nervous freeze your brain too? How could you not know after fighting him this much? There’s no way a hastily made magic circle can block that.”
As the magic circle protecting Dante shattered into pieces, Shirone surged forward in a straight line, as if compressing space into a single point.
Dante chose to forgo evasion and buy time to prepare instead. As he deployed magic circles on all sides to block Shirone’s approach, Shirone ducked and cast Frenzy.
“Kugh!”
As the curtain, pulsing 30 times per second, hammered the magic circles, Dante felt like his mind was being torn to shreds.
He had seen Frenzy during tactical training, but it had only been used for defense, so he hadn't thought much of its power. But experiencing it directly, it was practically a wide-area destruction spell.
As all seven magic circles shattered, his concentration wavered. Dante, covering his face, peered forward over his wrist.
But Shirone was nowhere to be seen.
The moment he lowered his gaze, his eyes met Shirone’s, who was crouched low with a photon compressed in his hand.
Shirone ducked into Dante’s guard and swung his hand. An afterimage of the photon trailed behind it.
For a mage, two seconds is enough time to enhance power. Without a moment for other thoughts, Dante deployed a defensive magic circle.
The Photon Cannon, thrown from point-blank range, slammed into the magic circle, shattering it in a single blow before striking his abdomen.
Dante felt dizzy for a moment. But after quickly checking his condition, he found the impact wasn't that severe.
‘Tch! Still, I blocked most of it! From now on…!’
At that moment, Shirone reached out with both hands, grabbed Dante by the collar, and cast photonization magic. Before Dante could even feel bewildered by the unexpected physical struggle, he turned into light and moved.
When the photonization magic was released in a state where he couldn't even tell where he was, Dante frantically searched for Shirone’s position.
When he turned around, Shirone was gone, and countless photon bullets filled his vision.
BOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOM!
As the Photon Cannons slammed down, the spot where Dante had been flashed with white light. The students shielded their eyes from the light pouring into their retinas with their fingers, but even so, they couldn't see what was happening.
Shirone stopped his attack and caught his breath. It had only been five minutes since the battle began.
Dante had seven magic circles deployed in front of him and was covering his face with both arms. But soon, the light from the magic circles faded, and they shattered like glass. One of Dante’s knees gave way, and he slammed to the ground with a thud.
The students’ eyes trembled in shock. He had deployed magic circles, but it was clear he hadn't been able to block the attack completely.
Iruki’s eyes gleamed.
“It finally landed. That one had an impact.”
Dante was famous for never losing the initiative, no matter the situation.
Once a battle began, his style was to neutralize the opponent’s attacks with his genius management before finishing them with a counter.
But Shirone had broken through that ironclad defense and landed what could be called an effective blow.
Among the 500 people gathered at the duel site, no one uttered a word. Not only Killine, who had known Dante since he was young, but even his friends wore expressions of disbelief.
472 battles, 472 wins.
Dante, who boasted an undefeated record, had been brought to his knees by his opponent in just five minutes. As if to reveal the ferocity of the battle, a rough wind swept through the Yicheonbeon.
(End of Volume 10)