Surprisingly, Wand Crafters
Surprisingly, the ones with the broadest and deepest understanding of all types of magic weren't the mages of the Magic Towers or the professors at the academy.
The mages of the Magic Towers and academy professors only needed to master their own fields. The profession that truly required profound knowledge of magic was that of the wand crafter. They had to sell wands to mages of every discipline, so they inevitably developed encyclopedic expertise across the major schools. Naturally, that included the rune magic of Nordenburk.
"Reinforcement rune activate."
That was why she could wield an axe inscribed with runes she'd never seen before as if it were her own.
Blue, frost-like runes etched themselves along the blade. In the midst of mild spring weather, the biting cold of the north began to whip through the air. Yet even in her thin dress, she felt no chill. The first reinforcement spell had taken hold—flames of ruby engulfed her body.
"Haa, nice. Feels like power's surging through me for the first time in ages."
Buffs didn't add up—they multiplied. With six buff spells stacked simultaneously, her body was now tougher than most warriors'. Of course, the backlash multiplied too. Three hundred years ago, during the Demon King's war, she'd somehow endured it... but could this body handle it now? She'd spent too long holed up as a shut-in to remember clearly.
"Whatever."
Truth be told, it didn't matter. Her body, heated to its limits by the overlapping buffs, was unmistakably craving battle.
Aiming the axe at the enemy, she called out.
"Run now, and I'll let you live."
The response was, predictably, refusal. The center of the banquet hall transformed into a vast swamp.
"Refuse... only death..."
Black mage Ivan's mind grew more frantic as time dragged on. By now, he should have kidnapped the wielder of the Olive Wand and escaped as planned.
He'd already investigated everyone at the banquet. The emperor himself wasn't attending, so there were no Imperial Guard or Imperial Knights—just a handful of Nordenburk students suited for combat.
'I figured students would be easy enough to handle.'
But the one who foiled his plan was a tiny girl. Axe in one hand, pistol in the other. Bloodstained dress clinging to her frame. At a glance, she seemed like just a girl with a bit of strength.
So Ivan tried to crush her outright. At his will, massive tentacles converged and surged toward her like a tidal wave.
A chilling, frosty gleam flashed—that was the moment.
Freezing Explosion
Runes lit up on the axe in the girl's hand.
Wooong—
With a heavy activation hum, immense mana gathered on the blade.
"Come at me for real."
She swung the axe lightly, as if it were nothing. But the shockwave was anything but light.
"...!"
Along the blue line slashed through the air, the tentacles exploded. Dark blue blasts erupted in sequence, severing the oncoming mass.
Splat—
The severed remnants fell at the girl's feet with a wet thud. She crushed the writhing pieces underfoot and taunted.
"Or you'll die."
That was when he should have realized something was wrong. But Ivan had no time.
With the goal of kidnapping Lily and the uncertainty of how long his minions could hold Sylvia, he couldn't afford a leisurely fight. His impatience manifested immediately.
"Don't... get cocky..."
Countless magic circles bloomed behind the black mage as he spread his arms.
She was just a normal human, after all. No match for him, drawing infinite power from beyond the world.
If firepower wasn't enough, he'd pour in more. The ceiling cracked, fissures spiderwebbing the space like shattered glass. Vast mana poured from the gaps.
The instant Ivan absorbed it all and focused on the girl—
"...!?"
In the blink of an eye, she'd vanished from sight. As the startled Ivan scanned around—
"No one's gonna wait for your transformation, idiot."
A voice came from above. Ivan's gaze shot upward.
"...!"
His eyes met the girl's suspended in midair. She plummeted axe-first.
New runes ignited on the blade.
Ice Strike
Before he could react, a sapphire slash hammered down.
Kwaang—!
A sound no human could make echoed. The axe pierced the black mage's defensive spells.
Desperate, Ivan detonated his still-charging barrage spells.
Kiiiiing—!
The shrill charge pierced the air.
"Die!"
Ivan clapped his hands without hesitation. Pale white light flashed from the surrounding circles.
"Tch, annoying."
Light Beam Barrage
-------!!!
As the girl kicked off the ground, the barrage rained from all sides. An eerie screech, like souls being flayed, filled the hall.
After the brutal onslaught, nothing remained. Fine furniture melted, outer walls crumbled, and nearby monsters turned to dust.
But the girl was unscathed. A step away from the scorched path, not a scratch on her. Only the singed hem of her dress betrayed her presence in the blast.
'That one's dangerous.'
For Ivan, who'd lived without fear his entire life, it was a first.
Kidnapping the Olive Wand's wielder? Irrelevant now. His life was at stake. He unleashed everything he'd hidden.
"Hah, don't get smug just 'cause you dodged once."
Ivan was a mage. He knew exactly how to handle axe-wielding warriors. The formula was centuries old: pin them with firepower, then crush with more.
And the girl had a reason she couldn't dodge.
"Academy... professor, was it?"
Barrage circles glowed again.
"Then protect your students."
Kwaaaang—!
Pale blasts hurtled—not at the girl, but behind her.
"Hey, you...!"
This time, she couldn't evade. She deflected with the axe instead.
He fired only strikes she could block. One hand casting, the other reached skyward. His rotten hand pointed up, widening the sky's fissures. Tentacles from beyond forced the gaps, creating a path for what lay outside.
Woooong—
A heart-rending hum accompanied three massive tombstones descending slowly. New circles formed around them—a colossal barrage to melt her position entirely.
As it activated, Ivan was certain of victory.
"Fool."
Lowering his skyward hand slowly, he muttered.
"Burn."
Those were black mage Ivan's last words.
A red beam pierced a crack in his defensive circle, straight through his skull.
Tucking away the pistol, she muttered softly.
"Always the same damn thing."
Fights with black mages always followed the same pattern. They grabbed hostages at the brink of death, exploiting the need to protect others to gain the upper hand. She'd seen it countless times in the Demon King's war three centuries ago.
Now, she was used to it—enough to turn their tricks against them.
Black mages were arrogant. Arrogant enough to drop their guard when they thought they had the advantage. She exploited that gap. Let herself get pushed back on purpose, until the mage forgot the crack in his own defenses.
Then, as he prepared his big finisher, she struck the opening.
The result: the headless black mage.
"...Everyone, fall back."
But it wasn't over. Black mages steeped in malice never died cleanly.
Thirty barrage circles hovered before her.
"Ha."
Dropping the battle axe to the ground, she let out a hollow chuckle.
"Never go quietly, do you?"
Thanks to her accelerated cognition, she saw mana gathering in the circles. She swung wide, deflecting three trajectories. Then kicked off, closing the distance in a blink—the ground folding beneath her.
Ignoring the glowing circles, she activated the axe's runes.
Ice Strike
Craaack—!
Cracks spiderwebbed the defensive circles around the corpse. She raised and slammed again without pause.
The dead mage's lingering defenses shattered under the onslaught. That was when the final spasm began—the surrounding circles ignited.
A normal person would dodge. But after countless battles with Demon King forces, she didn't need to. She trusted her speed to finish him before the barrages completed.
Frost Explosion
Gripping the axe two-handed and slamming down, the frozen barriers exploded in shards. The black mage's body cleaved in two.
The ready barrages lost their glow.
After the shockwave cleared, she addressed the wary monsters amid the settling dust.
"I can keep fighting."
With a strain, crunch—the axe pulled free. The hesitating beasts fled.
"Hoo..."
Now, just cleanup. With a light sigh, she turned.
Handing the axe to Gunter Nordenburk—who still couldn't process it—she smiled faintly.
"Good job with the axe."