Chapter 85
Chapter 85
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 85
Chapter Title: Damage Per Second
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With all the participants gathered, save for a few mages who had withdrawn, the evaluation began at once, skipping the pomp and circumstance of a welcome ceremony typical for such large-scale events.
And it began in a most impressive fashion.
*Whoosh.*
With a resonant hum, hundreds of magic circles hidden in the grass began to glow.
From the center of each one-meter-diameter circle, a black leather sandbag rose.
As over a hundred sandbags emerged at regular intervals, the startled mages took a step back.
A powerfully built elderly troll pushed through the crowd of mages, who stood gawking with looks of confusion, and began to speak.
His voice, imbued with deep mana, cut through the mages’ idle chatter and rang clearly in their ears.
“Greetings. I am Yashio, the judge for the Damage Per Second evaluation.”
At the mention of a damage per second evaluation, a few quick-witted individuals, led by Lee Si-woo and Yahalong, swiftly positioned themselves in front of the nearest sandbags.
They had already figured out how the first evaluation would proceed.
The other mages, catching on a moment later, also moved to find a sandbag.
A minor commotion arose as over a hundred mages scrambled about, but thankfully, there were exactly enough sandbags for everyone, and the area quickly settled.
Yashio looked at the mages lined up before the sandbags with tense expressions and spoke.
“The Damage Per Second evaluation is conducted to assess how efficiently and powerfully you can cast attack magic over three minutes. The sharp ones among you have already figured it out, but when I give the signal, you are to unleash your attack magic on the sandbags before you with all your might. However, to test your pure magical attack power, the use of all artifacts is forbidden.”
Elder Yashio, with his impressive white beard covering his chin and his wrinkled, green skin, continued, his cool gaze sweeping over the mages.
“I won’t bother explaining what will happen if you’re caught secretly using artifacts or magic tools. That said, if you use them and I don’t catch you, I’ll let it slide. That is… if you think you can.”
Who would dare try any tricks in front of Elder Yashio, a 5th Circle Expert and the head of the Ya family, a historic troll mage clan of the Magic Tower?
The mages silently stored their artifacts in their inventory rings.
Yashio addressed the mages as they put away their artifacts.
“Any mages with questions, raise your hand.”
The moment Yashio finished speaking, a dozen mages shot their hands into the air.
Yashio pointed his index finger at one of them at random.
“You, what’s your question?”
A goblin mage spoke cautiously.
“Um, I’m an Arcane mage, so my attack spells aren’t very strong. In that case, what should I….”
Yashio cut him off mercilessly with a snort, as if the question wasn't even worth hearing out.
“Isn’t Magic Arrow an attack spell? Next question.”
An elf mage with a stiff expression raised his hand and spoke.
“It’s not a question, but this evaluation seems terribly unfair. Mages from the School of Arcane Magic or the School of Spatial Magic often lack attack spells and rely on artifacts to cover their weaknesses. If you forbid the use of artifacts….”
Yashio clicked his tongue and snapped.
“What a foolish question you ask. This isn't the only evaluation we'll be holding. Many different types of evaluations are planned, and some of them will be advantageous for support-type mages like you. Is that answer enough for you?”
As Yashio spoke, he glared at the elf with the look of a teacher dealing with a slow student, causing the elf mage’s face to turn as red as an apple as he lowered his head.
“Th-thank you for your answer.”
“Next question.”
When no one else raised a hand, Yashio singled out Lee Si-woo and asked.
“You, you’re a 2nd Circle Master, aren’t you?”
Lee Si-woo calmly replied to Yashio’s sudden question.
“Yes, that’s correct.”
Yashio glanced back and forth between Lee Si-woo and Yahalong with a meaningful look, then grinned, revealing his yellowed fangs.
It was less a smile of goodwill and more the mischievous grin of a troublemaker.
“Don’t you think it’s unfair? Grouping 2nd Circle and 3rd Circle mages together and ranking them?”
While a few 2nd Circle mages unconsciously nodded in agreement with Yashio’s words, Lee Si-woo shook his head.
“What does fair or unfair have to do with it? It’s not as if an enemy on the battlefield will care about my Circle before attacking.”
Yashio’s eyes twitched with interest as he asked.
“Is there a need to bring up the battlefield? This is merely an evaluation to check individual abilities.”
“I heard that the evaluations usually include a theory test.”
Why bring up the theory test now?
One might have expected Yashio to be annoyed by Lee Si-woo’s unexpected response, but instead, a faint smile played on his lips as he replied.
“They did. Unfortunately, it’s been excluded from this one.”
“Furthermore, while the evaluations are traditionally held at the end of the year, this one was unusually moved up. That is my answer, and the reason I brought up the battlefield.”
Some of the mages reacted with hostility to Lee Si-woo’s seemingly irrelevant answer, spitting or muttering curses, but others’ eyes widened in realization.
Yashio squinted, his eyes fixed on Lee Si-woo.
‘Well, look at this. Now I see. This one has insight beyond his low Circle, doesn't he?’
Lee Si-woo was implying that this evaluation was preparation for a potential war, and his guess was correct.
In fact, the Senior Magic Tower had moved up and designed the evaluation specifically to prepare for a possible conflict between magic towers.
That was why they had stripped out all the theory and structured the evaluation around practical skills.
‘My grandson praised him so highly, I wondered what he was like… He’s more impressive than I thought. Hmph, still, he’s just a low-Circle, multi-root magician. His limits are clear.’
Yashio was impressed by Lee Si-woo, but that was as far as it went.
Yashio raised his hand above his shoulder and shouted.
“I will count down from three before we begin, so everyone get ready! Ah, and just in case, let me warn you: hitting the sandbag before the countdown is finished won’t count toward your score, so it’s in your best interest to be precise with your timing. Now, prepare!”
Yashio counted down, “Three, two, one,” then shot a Magic Arrow into the air.
As the Magic Arrow soared high into the sky, all the mages began to pour magic into the sandbags before them.
‘Harman.’
Harman responded to Lee Si-woo’s call.
-Yes. I was ready. Triple Casting. Commencing now.
[2nd Circle Elemental Magic: Wind Throw x2]
[2nd Circle Spatial Magic: Spell Charge]
Since this was a damage per second evaluation, Lee Si-woo had no intention of using attack spells from other schools.
After consuming the Elemental Stone, the power of his elemental magic far surpassed that of any other school.
*Thump! Thump!*
The sandbag shot high into the air and then plunged back to the ground twice in succession.
A few mages who had been secretly glancing over flinched, startled by the enhanced power of his Wind Throw.
Not only was its power unthinkable for a 2nd Circle spell, but they had never imagined Lee Si-woo could use Triple Casting, a control technique they had only heard about.
Moreover, Lee Si-woo’s magic wasn’t finished.
A translucent, circular portal had formed just in front of his left palm.
It was Spell Charge, a magic that created a spatial portal capable of stacking up to six spells.
[2nd Circle Elemental Magic: Wind Throw x3]
Lee Si-woo used Triple Casting to cast Wind Throw three times into the Spell Charge portal on his left palm, then steadied his breath.
Normally, Triple Casting was not a control technique to be used so recklessly.
Casting three spells at once consumed a massive amount of mana.
What’s more? It was only natural for a mage’s magic root to run dry after repeatedly casting 2nd Circle spells, which consumed mana on a completely different level than 1st Circle spells.
Yes, if he were an ordinary mage.
‘The mana consumption is certainly high, which is a burden… but fortunately or unfortunately, I have six mana pools.’
While his growth was slower due to the number of his magic roots, having a mana capacity proportional to that number was one of the strengths of a multi-root magician.
Of course, other mages would often scoff, saying, “What’s the point of having a lot of mana if you never get a chance to use it all?” And they were right.
No matter how much mana one possessed, it was meaningless without the ability to expend it.
It was just that this didn't apply to Lee Si-woo, who could spam Triple Casting thanks to Harman.
[2nd Circle Elemental Magic: Wind Throw x3]
Three more Wind Throws poured into the Spell Charge portal.
With that, six Wind Throws were stacked, and Spell Charge entered Full Charge Mode.
*Whaaaaam.*
Perhaps due to the immense wind pressure emanating from the portal, Lee Si-woo felt as if he were holding a typhoon in his left hand.
“Hup!”
With a short cry, Lee Si-woo opened the Spell Charge portal.
A massive current of wind engulfed the sandbag, sending it soaring high into the sky.
The sandbag, launched like a rocket until it was nearly a dot in the sky, suddenly flipped over mid-air.
As was the nature of Wind Throw, the updraft had reversed into a downdraft.
*Swoooosh! Craaaash!*
The sandbag slammed into the ground with the same force it had ascended, causing dirt and gravel to erupt like a broken fountain.
It was a situation that could have easily caused collateral damage.
However, Yashio, who had anticipated such an event, casually waved his hand, enveloping Lee Si-woo’s surroundings in a mana shield.
It was ‘Ranged Shield,’ a control technique that allowed one to deploy a mana shield at a desired location.
*Pat, pat, patter.*
The scattered gravel and rising dust hit the mana shield and fell harmlessly to the ground.
Lee Si-woo gave Yashio a slight nod of thanks before immediately casting his next spell.
[2nd Circle Elemental Magic: Antlion Pit]
Antlion Pit didn’t require Triple Casting.
As a continuous spell, it was pointless to stack it; like other spells of its kind, its power gradually increased the longer it was maintained.
A section of the plain transformed into a sand pit, violently pulling the sandbag downward.
The sand pit hardened, slowly crushing the sandbag.
Had it been a living creature, it would have felt its bones and flesh being broken and pulverized as if constricted by a massive serpent, but whatever the sandbag was made of, it showed no signs of damage.
‘Hooo….’
Lee Si-woo’s eyebrows twitched as his mana depleted at an exponential rate.
He now understood why continuous spells like Antlion Pit were looked down upon.
With this level of mana consumption, an ordinary mage—not a multi-root one—wouldn't even dare to cast it.
“Stop! That’s enough!”
At Yashio’s shout, the mages, who had been enthusiastically unleashing their spells, came to a halt.
The mages were drenched in sweat, like sprinters who had just finished a 100-meter dash.
Among them, about ten individuals, including Lee Si-woo, drew the attention of those around them.
They were all mages who had received Yashio’s Ranged Shield—individuals whose magic was powerful enough to cause collateral damage.
Yashio tallied the scores on his smart pad, then let out a soft groan.
“Hmm….”
Yashio’s gaze lingered on Lee Si-woo for a brief moment before he cleared his throat and spoke.
“Everyone, look up. I will display the hologram scores.”
[Damage Per Second Rankings]
1st: Ixion
2nd: Schizo
3rd: Nobrad
As the stark rankings appeared on the hologram score, some gasped in awe while others sighed in despair.
But it wasn't long before the wide eyes of numerous mages turned to one spot.
They were looking at Lee Si-woo, who was checking the scores with a relaxed expression, his arms crossed.
7th: Lee Si-woo
At this shocking result, no one cursed, nor did they cry out in astonishment as if they’d just seen a plot twist in a movie.
What filled their eyes was deep disbelief and doubt.
There were few better measures of a mage’s pure power than the Damage Per Second evaluation.
And yet, in such an evaluation, a fledgling—a 2nd Circle mage, not even a 3rd Circle—had made it into the top rankings.
At 7th place, no less.
It was like a middle schooler advancing to the finals of a high school boxing tournament.
The mages, suspecting that Lee Si-woo must have used an artifact, began to murmur among themselves.
‘Lee Si-woo is 7th? Does that make any sense?’
‘What a load of bullshit. That bastard definitely used an artifact. There’s no other explanation.’
‘I’ve heard of invisible magic tools. It must be one of those. Otherwise, how could a 2nd Circle punk make it into the top ten?’
As the commotion grew, Yashio boomed in a voice like thunder.
“Enough! Quiet! There is no manipulation or cheating in these scores. I will say it again. I personally confirmed that Lee Si-woo did not use any artifacts. Are there any objections?”
But even with Yashio’s declaration, the mages’ disbelief did not easily fade.
Yashio’s irritation flared at their suspicion, which spread like wildfire.
‘Fools. A multi-root magician, one who has consumed an Elemental Stone, spamming elemental magic with Triple Casting—is it really so strange that his damage output is this high? Their heads are filled with crap, blinded by envy, unable to make a proper judgment.’
Moreover, to show such defiance toward the words of an elder?
It was a reaction that would have been unimaginable under normal circumstances.
On the other hand, he understood.
A human mage, one Circle lower, had overwhelmed more than a hundred others to place in the top ten. How could they easily believe that?
Still, Yashio, furious at the foolishness of the mages who would form the core of the Magic Tower, shouted.
“If you find it so hard to believe, then just watch Lee Si-woo in the next evaluation! All artifacts will be permitted in the next one, so you can gauge his skills there!”
Only then did the mages’ murmuring subside.
Although their disbelief hadn't completely vanished, they managed to calm their seething emotions with the thought of waiting to see what happened in the next evaluation.
But did they know?
That even this ranking was a utterly meaningless result, as it didn’t reflect Lee Si-woo’s physical abilities or his Forbidden Arts.
“Elder, what is the next evaluation?”
In response to someone’s cautious question, Yashio replied in a cold voice.
“A group evaluation.”