Chapter 89
Chapter 89
Chapter 89
[Main Story] No.2 Betting Table (5)
What on earth is that guy doing?
Is he Sa Oh-jeong or what?
And yet, he nodded at me, thinking, "Good job, right?" I wanted to smack the back of this 60-something middle-aged man's head.
Just then, the assistant director smiled brightly.
"Haha! I see?"
And at this point. The reason this main story was named "Betting Table" began to reveal itself.
"That's right. Indeed! It can't be for free!"
The reason I've consistently referred to the Empire as a casino is because its citizens are madly fond of betting.
"In that case! I will feature the winning Professor separately in the Monthly Report!"
The betting had begun.
I was about to shout that I didn't need it.
"Furthermore, I will give the nation of the winner of the two illusionary combats a full page, two sides of the paper!"
Huh?
This changed things.
I knew that placing a single advertisement on one page of the Monthly Report cost twenty million Hica.
If they were giving that away for just one match...
'No. Is twenty million Hica that important?'
It was an enormous sum, but just as I was trying to regain my composure.
Chief Professor Horup suddenly grabbed the microphone.
"Hey, young Professor. Dante Hiacapo, was it?"
He called out to me.
I tried not to react, but Wilhelm, with an excited expression, shoved the microphone into my mouth. As if feeding a baby candy.
"...That is correct."
"Are you confident? You, a mere senior professor."
"...What?"
"I am a [Grandmaster]. A full member of the 'Grand Natural Assembly,' the continent's foremost academic society for illusion magic. I am also the head of the Assassination Squad, running the Illusion Assassin Corps. Do you think you can stand against me?"
Having finished speaking, Chief Professor Horup smirked.
"......"
If this were a script, it would be my turn to deliver my lines. And everyone was waiting for my response.
I shouldn't react... The gazes from our side were unusual. Wilhelm, the assistant professor, Maid Lucy, Cheongru and Reim, even Rebecca were frowning. Lastly, Gray looked almost anxious.
What choice did I have in this situation?
"......You are no match for me."
'Kya!' Maid Lucy exclaimed involuntarily, then covered her mouth.
Kreutz's entire group's expressions hardened, while our side's brightened.
Simultaneously, the film crew was jumping up and down silently.
【 'Ohh! Well done, well done...!' 】
【 'Wow, this is a great scene, isn't it?!' 】
【 'Gasp! Good, good! Light it up! Fire!!' 】
Then, Chief Professor Horup's lips twisted.
"You seem confident... Very well, Assistant Director. I have a proposal."
"Yes! A proposal?"
"Feature the winning Student on the cover."
No,
That guy is truly insane.
He poured gasoline on a burning house.
Why were we and they in conflict? Because there was one chair for two people.
In other words, we had dressed up nicely, engaged in illusionary combat, and given interviews to decide who would be featured on the 'main cover' of the Assassination Daily's monthly issue.
Yet Chief Professor Horup made the insane suggestion to make it a bet.
In terms of betting, it was literally an all-in. The already excited Assassination Daily film crew jumped up and began to rave.
"Oh!! Ah, this is a fantastic scene!!"
"The loser dies...!?"
They were merely restraining themselves as staff, but anyone could tell they were on the verge of a paroxysm of ecstasy.
'Unbelievable.'
However, all authority rested with the Director and Assistant Director. As conductors of this event, there was no way they would accept such a crazy proposal, right?
It was then. The directors nodded their heads.
"Excellent...!!"
Everyone except me was insane.
And so, following Part 3, Part 4 began.
The Assassination Daily, a crazy company that would sell out its own executives if it meant generating buzz, instantly created the stage and set up Chief Professor Horup and me.
"They say an incredible illusionary combat is about to begin here?"
"Oh, them?"
The fact that they brought over leisurely staff members, saying there needed to be an audience for such an event, was a bonus. The reason why some of them were announced as specialists in illusion magic was unclear.
【 'Ah, the buzz for this is going to be insane! Kreutz invested hundreds of billions of Hica in illusion magic, and a senior professor from that nation is facing off against Hiaka?' 】
【 'Even if the result is bound to be revealed, if they broadcast the entire illusionary combat without edits, sales will go through the roof!' 】
Business calculators were already whirring in their minds. That was the problem.
'It shouldn't be revealed!'
You crazy bastards!
But it was now unavoidable.
So, from now on, I would cross just one line I had drawn in my heart.
"You're lucky. What you're about to witness is [Illusion Magic] that isn't easily accessible."
At that moment, Chief Professor Horup spoke to me in a confident voice.
I didn't reply and just looked at him.
"My illusion magic is very special. Because I wield vast and diverse formulas that can't be seen anywhere else. That's why those who have engaged in illusionary combat with me gain great knowledge."
With that single statement, I realized his main ability was "Imaginary Garden."
There are several schools of [Illusion Magic].
One that strives to resemble reality as closely as possible. (Me)
One that pursues exaggerated illusions as if one were intoxicated. (Horup)
"Illusionary combat—"
As everyone fell silent, only Chief Professor Horup and I faced each other at the center of the set.
"—Begin!"
As the signal was given, magical imprints shot out from Chief Professor Horup's entire body.
Like an assassin, like a missile, he seemed intent on crushing and subduing me with a single explosive ability.
Fzzt-!!
An immense amount of mana began to shake the entire set.
At its end, something astonishing began to happen.
"Whoa!? Wow...!"
"What, what...!?"
The set was expanding. Metaphorically speaking, a single room was expanding to the size of an indoor stadium. In reality, it was likely unchanged, but the sense of space, the sense of reality, was an incredibly precise interference of perception, even to my eyes.
Yet, that was just the beginning. The space, now as large as an indoor stadium, expanded two, three more times, becoming as vast as a concert stage.
Immediately after, his body began to change.
It was like lighting a match to an apartment-sized log. His flesh became an unrealistically colossal flame, and soon began to form a shape, which anyone could see was a dragon.
A preposterous size, easily a hundred meters long.
An Eastern-style dragon coiled its long tail and soared into the sky, reaching the heavens.
Finally, it looked down at me.
—Grrrrrrrrrrr!!
The colossal monster roared, its throat vibrating.
Yet, an oppressive pressure that seemed to shake heaven and earth was felt.
"O-oh, o-oh, ooooooh...!!"
Those with weak spirits could lose consciousness from this crushing sensation alone.
Truly intense.
As if this was what being a [Grandmaster] meant.
<Why do you stand still?>
It was then. The dragon's consciousness, like the voice of a God, resonated in my mind, unfolding within my brain. It was the illusion formula [Imbue], which forcibly manipulates another's senses.
Horup could interfere with my mental system using it, so even if everyone else here didn't understand, I understood. That my opponent's level was incredibly high.
<Are you scared?>
There was one thing I had to admit. His mana reserves were three times mine. And that was a conservative estimate.
If it were me, my Mana Reservoir would have been depleted just by forging this space. But he was still overflowing with composure.
However...
"Professor Dante! Why are you standing still?"
"Are you admitting defeat!?"
The onlookers shouted.
An illusionary combat is decided when each other's illusions clash, so I, who hadn't even deployed my illusion, would appear to have lost.
But that wasn't the case.
<This coward...>
<There's no more time to spare. If you don't deploy your illusion within five counts, you will be considered defeated.>
<Five.>
The voice, tinged with weariness, echoed in my mind.
However, the reason I stood still was that I had never seen an illusion from a Chief Professor-level practitioner before.
I had merely been curious about another's research achievements, and seeing it in person was astonishing.
<Four.>
But the viewing was over.
<Three!>
He had consistently claimed greatness and splendor.
Well, was that truly the answer?
<Two!!>
For these reasons, what I deployed was a tiny "Glass Butterfly."
Flutter, flutter...
The flying butterfly.
<......>
Horup, transformed into a dragon, seemed hesitant about whether to treat that as [Illusion Magic] as well.
<Are you trying to oppose me with a mere butterfly...?>
<How pathetic and insignificant... To try and contend with a Chief Professor with such meager skill, you're not even worth engaging.>
Something colossal, splendid, and unreal began to open its impossibly realistic mouth wide.
The butterfly fluttered upwards, and Chief Professor Horup intended to unleash a fiery breath to eliminate that insignificant thing. The giant dragon's belly swelled.
<It's over.>
He was about to manipulate a colossal phenomenon. But by now, my formula was also complete.
<Chief Professor Horup.>
I called out to him.
Injecting my voice into his mind.
At that moment, the dragon's arrogant expression contorted violently.
<.........!!!>
He had received a tremendous shock.
<Can you hear me, Chief?>
<You, you... How...!!>
Fundamentally, [World Fabrication] does not possess the formula [Imbue].
The only reason I could cast [Imbue] on him was one.
I had penetrated his [Illusion Magic] formula [Imbue] in reverse and transmitted my consciousness into his brain.
This was a reversal of formulas stemming from a pure difference in the level of illusion.
<You...!! How, how did you use my frequency to speak to me—!!>
He was understandably astonished.
[Imbue] is an extremely one-sided formula among all formulas.
Just as no student injects memorization subjects into a teacher.
The caster holds absolute authority. Yet, I was achieving a miracle in reverse.
<How did you do it!! How on earth did you ride my formula and speak to me—?!>
Finally, he asked. It was anger, but also a flicker of pure academic curiosity.
<Are you curious.>
<Tell me immediately what trick you used! Now—!!>
<Chief Horup, you will probably forget, but I will still give you one piece of teaching.>
<T-teaching!? >
<Do not become fixated on the grand and the splendid.>
<......!!>
<The essence of illusion magic is 'deception'.>
At that, the dragon's expression crumpled further.
<Nonsense—!!>
Fwoosh!! Simultaneously, a chilling aura bloomed, creating ripples in space.
<What do you, a mere senior professor, know about [Illusion Magic] to try and teach me! I am a Chief Professor! A [Grandmaster]!!>
His anger was justified. I deeply empathized with him. What one believes for five years becomes conviction, but he had likely practiced [Illusion Magic] for fifty years. This was a miracle beyond common sense that had occurred to me.
<Then, I shall show you.>
<.........!!>
At this point, the studio was as quiet as a dead mouse.
Chief Professor Horup, who had suddenly stopped.
And I, after looking at him silently, raised my hand.
Everyone read the subtle tension between us.
And so, as everyone waited for my reaction.
I responded with a very small movement.
I pointed at the dragon's head with my finger.
Flutter....
The butterfly fluttered and landed on the dragon's head.
After that, I uttered one sentence.
"Die."
That was all.
【 'Huh...?' 】
【 'What?' 】
【 'Is that it...?' 】
As everyone looked on in confusion.
The change unfolded silently.
The dragon's colossal head was severed and fell.
⋮
『 World Fabrication: Spatial Perception Forgery [Near Death] 』
⋮
Immediately after,
CRASH—! CRASH—!
For an instant, the entirety of his virtual space exploded in sequence.
From far to near.
It burst, and burst, and burst in the order he had expanded it.
CRASHING—!!!
Finally, after the severed dragon's head exploded, the colossal, easily one-hundred-meter-long super-dragon exploded all at once, finally filling the entire set like scattered glass shards.
───────── !!!