Chapter 179
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Watching Torua and Jamua’s match from the air, Sedzen put his pen to paper.
‘Those two are definitely on another level.’
*Scratch, scratch.*
‘It seems Torua is finally getting serious. I’m curious to see how the first-years will respond.’
Whether in the distant past…
Or in the present, the number of spells a mage could use was one of the metrics that determined their strength.
Of course, one could be a powerful mage without wielding a wide variety of spells.
Some mages made their name with just a few spells of overwhelming firepower.
Elena Jer-on, a third-year, was one such mage.
Unlike Elena, however, Torua was a mage who skillfully wielded countless magic spells.
‘The incredible thing is the spells themselves.’
A corner of Sedzen’s mouth curled up.
‘Not standard magic, but all unique spells she created herself.’
Torua's strength was in her magical research.
And that research knew no bounds, so long as it fell under the category of magic.
Thus, the diversity of her unique magic was beyond imagination.
‘Now, how will you handle this Torua? From your perspective, all of her spells are unknown.’
*Fwoosh-!*
Watching the spells that embroidered the air, Chelsea let out a cry of astonishment.
“What the—are those all unique spells?!”
“How is that even possible?”
A student from the Knight Department on her team screamed.
Even he, a layman when it came to magic, knew that creating so many unique spells was logically impossible.
“Logically, it doesn’t make sense. But this is Lumerne, isn’t it?”
Chloe gripped her staff.
“A place where logic can be shattered at any moment.”
*Woooooosh-!*
A blue magical energy surged from Chloe’s body.
“Ice World.”
With that quiet utterance, Chloe’s unique magic activated.
A field-type spell that exerted its influence over the surrounding area.
Within this alternate space, Chloe was, quite literally, a queen.
*C-c-crack-*
“Hmm?”
Torua expressed her admiration as she saw even the flow of mana begin to freeze.
“Impressive, junior. To raise the power of your magic to this extent.”
She clapped her hands and smiled brightly.
“I suppose it’s because you have such a fine goal to aim for?”
Torua glanced at Leo.
Just then, Abad also completed his unique spell.
“Tempest.”
*Kra-ga-ga-ga-gak-!*
A massive storm raged in the middle of the ice world.
Seeing this, Torua’s eyes narrowed.
‘Wind doesn’t have bad synergy with ice.’
Abad’s Tempest, now carrying scattered shards of ice, radiated an immense chill.
On top of that, Chelsea was adding to its power with an amplification spell.
It was, quite literally, an ideal magical combination.
*Crack-*
As Torua tried to evade the spell, a wall of ice formed in the air.
Meanwhile, the remaining students quickly aimed for the empty goal.
“Ah-ah. No, you don’t.”
Torua waved her hand lightly.
*Kwa-ga-gak-!*
“Ugh?”
“Is it a golem this time?”
“Hey! Break through! It can’t be as strong as that slime from before…”
*Gurgle, gurgle.*
“Aaaargh? It’s a Lava Golem!”
“Run! Run!”
The students screamed and fled at the sight of the golem, which had lava flowing all over its body.
A Lava Golem, something that couldn't be created without top-tier skill in the field of golems.
‘Is there anything this senior can’t do?’
‘This is the Omnipotence Wizard, Torua Yan.’
A name given to her for being a wizard nigh on omnipotent.
It was a fitting title for Torua, who displayed near-perfect magical abilities in literally every field.
“Give it here.”
“Ah! The ball!”
Torua snatched the ball from the first-years.
Then, she floated gently into the air.
“Excellent, first-years! As your senior in the Magic Department, I am overjoyed!”
Torua said, puffing out her chest.
“You will all probably become the best! You’ll lead Lumerne’s golden age!”
*Nod, nod.* Torua crossed her arms, nodding in approval.
“I wasn’t as amazing as you all when I was a first-year.”
“Ugh. Don’t lie. You’re a total monster!”
Chelsea grumbled.
Torua, smiling brightly at Chelsea, readjusted her grip on her staff.
*Woooooosh-*
Magical energy surged from Torua’s body.
The first-years watched her, their expressions tense.
“It just goes to show how important effort is.”
*Flash-!*
Countless magic circles materialized in the air.
Abad’s Tempest, which had been aimed at Torua, was dismantled.
*Fwoosh-!*
Chloe’s Ice World also vanished.
The faces of the two who cast them hardened.
‘This quickly?’
‘Did she just overpower it with mana?’
Their bewildered expressions soon turned grim.
‘No!’
‘She analyzed the spell structure and unraveled it!’
It was astonishing.
And as mages, they found it awe-inspiring.
‘To be at this level.’
Abad had seen many mages in his family.
Among them were masters worthy of being called archmages, and many who had attained the rank of Hero.
The same was true for Chloe.
Although her family wasn't of high status in the Northern Magic Tower, as a member of the tower, she had grown up seeing incredible mages.
They had shown great interest in the talented Chloe and had taught her much.
Some of them were even stronger than the current Torua.
But they could say with certainty that none of them understood the field of ‘magic’ as well as Torua did.
She would only grow stronger after graduating from Lumerne.
‘Usually, a display like this would intimidate them.’
But Chloe and Abad showed no such signs.
They simply looked as if they had found a new goal.
‘Is this also thanks to Leo? Now, what about his reaction?’
Chuckling, Torua looked toward Leo.
And her eyes widened.
Leo’s gaze, watching her from the ground, was a little peculiar.
‘Admiration… and… understanding?’
Torua’s expression changed subtly.
***
“Looks like Torua’s pretty fired up, too.”
“I’d be happy too if the kids from the Knight Department performed that well.”
Lis chuckled at Ullta’s words.
“Well, I don’t think our juniors will be left behind, either.”
Lis smiled brightly, watching the Knight Department juniors facing Jamua.
“Anyway, Torua’s weakness is her inability to control her strength.”
“Don’t worry about that.”
“Ullta, what do you know about Leo?”
Lis looked at him with a puzzled expression.
Ullta simply smiled back at Lis.
‘The Phoenix, and the contractor of the Fairies.’
During the incident on the Isle of Mythical Beasts in the first semester.
Ullta had genuinely wanted to form a contract with a fairy.
It wasn't out of a summoner’s greed or ambition.
‘Wouldn’t it be fun to be friends with a fairy?’
It was a simple, childlike thought, but that was the kind of person Ullta was.
‘But there was already a contractor.’
He had seen through it when facing Tartaros’s beast summoner.
Later, he heard from Yura that Leo had contracted with a Phoenix on the first day of school.
A summoner’s capability is determined by the mythical beasts and spirits they contract with.
‘Of course, even the most powerful beast is useless if not handled properly. But Leo can handle the Phoenix and the fairies well.’
If so, he was more than qualified to be the student council president.
That was what Ullta thought.
And he had a personal desire as well.
‘It would be great if the student council president came from the Summoning Department.’
Just as Torua and Jamua were convinced Leo belonged to the Magic and Knight Departments respectively…
Ullta was equally certain that Leo belonged to the Summoning Department.
‘I don’t know why Leo isn’t revealing that he’s the contractor of the Phoenix and the fairies… but I hope he reveals it on this occasion.’
As the top student of the Summoning Department, Ullta wanted to leave the ultimate summoner as a gift for his juniors.
‘Now, Leo. You won’t be able to face Torua without the Phoenix. Show everyone that you are the Phoenix’s contractor.’
***
“First, we need a way to counter those unique spells.”
Abad said in a serious tone.
“Should I fly up to Senior Torua and try to distract her?”
Chelsea raised her hand and offered.
As the fastest among them, Chelsea might indeed be able to disrupt Torua’s vision.
“No. Those are all unique spells. If you approach recklessly, you’ll get taken down.”
Chloe shook her head.
“I have no intention of winning by scoring a goal. I plan to wipe you all out, you see?”
Torua burst into laughter from the sky.
Watching her, Leo spoke up.
“I’ll hold her off for a bit.”
“Leo?”
Chloe was startled to see Leo step forward.
“You guys get ready to score.”
Leo used the Fly spell to soar up in front of Torua.
“Hello, Leo. I have a question.”
“What is it?”
“I’m your senior by a long shot, and an older woman, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Normally, a cute adolescent boy like you should blush or get shy when he sees a pretty older woman like me. You’re supposed to have a fresh, youthful reaction.”
“Isn’t it true that among the first-years, and even all the male students in the Magic Department, no one reacts to you that way, Senior Torua?”
Torua was undeniably beautiful.
And she was twenty-one.
It wouldn’t be strange for first-years to harbor a romantic fantasy about such a woman.
But none of the Magic Department students reacted that way to Torua.
That was because, even before being a revered senior, Torua was known for her peculiar personality.
She was famous for being a magic-obsessed fool who knew nothing but magic.
“Anyway.”
Torua crossed her arms.
“It’s strange that a first-year is looking at me with the eyes of an old man.”
“What about me seems like an old man?”
“Yes. The eyes of someone much, much older, who seems to understand me. Like Professor Irua, who retired when I was a first-year.”
“Who’s that?”
“A sixty-year-old mage from the Northern Magic Tower.”
“That seems a bit beyond just an old man.”
Torua had glimpsed a sixty-year-old grandfather in Leo’s eyes.
Leo chuckled and said.
“In any case, it’s because I understand, to a degree.”
“What part?”
“The kind of effort it must have taken to build such skill.”
Torua’s skill was the culmination of unimaginable effort, far beyond mere talent.
‘She’s different from Elena, Chloe, Abad, and Chelsea.’
In terms of talent alone, those four were students born with overwhelming and exceptional gifts.
But Torua was different.
From Leo’s perspective, while Torua was blessed with many talents, she lacked the kind of talent that could reach the pinnacle in any single field.
‘Just like me.’
She was like Leo, an all-class who never reached the ultimate level in any one area and had to borrow from his friends.
‘She built that level of skill purely through passion and effort.’
She studied and researched various fields, compensating for her weaknesses.
Torua’s magical skill, praised as being near omnipotent, was completed in that way.
Seeing that look in Leo’s eyes, Torua’s own eyes widened.
Most people attributed Torua’s rise to become Lumerne’s top mage to her talent.
Of course, they didn’t deny her effort.
But they couldn't fully comprehend what was in her heart on her journey to where she was now.
That included her friends, with whom she had spent five years.
But Leo seemed to completely understand the effort Torua had put in.
Though unspoken, Torua felt a strange sense of kinship with Leo.
“Leo.”
“Yes.”
“Let’s get married.”
At the sudden proposal, Leo let out a chuckle.
“If you’d at least been a little flustered, you’d have some cute charm. Acting like this just makes you seem like the older one.”
Torua grumbled at his composed reaction and crossed her arms.
“So, you’re going to stop me by yourself?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm. I know you’re an excellent mage, but isn’t that a bit reckless?”
“It is.”
‘At my current level, there’s nothing I can do to Torua.’
There was a clear difference in class that couldn't be overcome with technique or skill.
That gap existed between Leo and Torua.
Leo stirred his mana.
“But there is a way to stop you for a short time, Senior Torua.”
“Hmm? So confident? Alright. If you can stop me and your team scores even a single goal, I’ll acknowledge your victory.”
“No take-backs.”
Leo stirred his mana.
As he did, he glanced toward Lis.
‘Student council president, huh?’
When he first heard about it, he wasn't particularly interested.
But his thoughts had changed over the past few days.
He had read the memoirs of those who had subjugated the fragments of Erebos 3,000 years ago.
‘I used to vaguely think that if I couldn’t achieve it now, I could just entrust it to future generations.’
Leo clenched his fist.
‘But I was wrong.’
The fragments of Erebos are sealed within the Hero Record.
On top of that, Tartaros is after the Hero Record.
What if someday, in the distant future…
His records disappear, just like those of the other Great Heroes?
What if Tartaros’s plan succeeds and the Hero Record is completely destroyed?
If that happened, only a dark future might remain.
‘To prevent that from happening, I need to become a Great Hero once again.’
He had to leave a new achievement in the Hero Record.
And he had to pass that record down to future generations.
So that one day, someone who inherited his power could appear.
‘To do that, becoming the student council president as a first-year wouldn’t be a bad idea.’
Of course, there might be immense backlash.
‘I’ll just have to show them with my skills.’
A way to counter Torua, who was unleashing a barrage of unique spells.
It was to counter them with the exact same spells.
Logically, canceling out unique spells, which weren’t even standard magic, with identical spells was nigh impossible.
But Leo had a way to make the impossible possible, if only for a moment.
‘Unique magic for unique magic.’
Leo closed his eyes.
*Vweeeeng-!*
Magic circles materialized all over Leo’s body.
Seeing this, Torua’s brow furrowed.
‘What is this? I’ve never seen this form of spell structure before.’
Just as Torua wore a puzzled expression…
Leo opened his eyes.
His eyes glowed red.
The spell structures of Torua’s magic, which adorned the sky, came into his view.
In an instant, the spell structures were analyzed in his mind.
Leo stirred his mana.
*Vwoom-!*
Leo cast Torua’s unique magic.
Seeing this, Torua’s eyes widened.
“…What did you just do?”
At Torua’s question, Leo smiled.
“It’s my unique magic, Bible.”