Baekmokgong
A low murmur rippled through the VIP gallery the moment we stepped onto the arena for the team match.
"Oh, look! Isn't that Sharin Sazaris, the daughter of the Blue Magic Tower Master?"
"My, a real heavyweight has taken the stage."
"Mmm, but wasn't she adopted?"
"What does that matter? She's the top student of Magic Engineering and was born with Mirinae!"
Sure enough, Sharin was the name on everyone's lips. Born with Mirinae—the ultimate eyes that represented the pinnacle of magical talent—her sheer genius was more than enough to silence any whispers about her status as an adopted child.
Of course...
"..."
Sharin herself didn't look pleased to hear her adoption brought up. I could feel her gaze boring holes into the back of my head. No doubt she was thinking about the promise I made when recruiting her—that I would show her how to stick it to her adoptive father, the Tower Master. She hadn't pried further back then, but it was clearly something she cared about deep down.
"But why isn't Sharin the team leader?"
"Hanon... I've never heard that name before."
"But those eyes and that hair color..."
Before long, the VIPs' gazes shifted from Sharin to me. My hair and eyes were a perfect match for Iris, who had just finished her match. That meant they had already deduced the origin of my bloodline: the House of Robliaju. But since my surname was Airey, not Robliaju, quite a few of them were whispering in confusion.
"How intriguing."
Except for one person. A woman with snow-white hair and eyes that curved into a strange, fox-like shape was staring down at me with bright yellow eyes. Draped in a long cloak that only partially concealed her alluring figure, she smiled as if she had just found a highly entertaining toy.
There were four dukes in the Highsirion Empire, and she was the ruler of the eastern duchy. Baekmokgong. She was the oldest duke, having stood by the empire since its very founding.
I knew she'd take an interest in me.
Even from this distance, an absurdly dangerous aura radiated from her. My Steel Skin trembled instinctively, as if screaming at me to avert my eyes from Baekmokgong immediately. But considering what lay ahead, I couldn't afford to be intimidated. Leaving Baekmokgong's gaze behind, I stepped fully onto the arena. Instantly, the weight of the surrounding stares vanished, filtered out by the barrier magic surrounding the stage.
"Looking at it from the inside, this magic is put together in a really interesting way~" Sharin murmured, looking around the barrier with an intrigued smile.
"Don't dispel it."
"What do you take me for~?"
She was a wild card. Leaving aside Sharin, who might act on a whim at any moment, I turned my head.
"Seron."
"Ah! Yes! What is it?!" Seron squeaked, gripping her axe tightly. She was incredibly tense. Unlike me, her eyes were fixed on a specific spot in the crowd. There, a middle-aged man who looked exactly like her was grinning from ear to ear, holding a banner that read: Go get 'em, sweetie! No wonder she was so stiff; her dad had come to watch.
"You and I are going to handle the Apostles ourselves up to Round 5."
There were ten Apostles in the team match, meaning there were ten rounds in total. Since the difficulty would spike in the later stages, it was most efficient for Seron and me—the ones with the highest physical endurance—to handle the early rounds. I turned to Seron and smirked.
"If you're too nervous, just say the word. I'll let you sit out."
A vein popped on Seron's forehead.
"Who's nervous?!" She swung her axe in a threatening arc. "Just you watch, you sweet potato prince! I'll slaughter them faster than you can blink!"
Don't waste your energy before we even start.
"Card, Grantoni, get ready. Sharin, you wait until I call you."
"Go get 'em."
"Heheheh, this is going to be fun."
"I should've taken a longer nap~"
Listening to their replies, I rolled up my sleeves and secured them. The moment I raised my hand—
Thud! With a tremor that shook the earth, a massive, bull-shaped Apostle materialized.
Round 1. The Water Buffalo Apostle.
Tick! The timer measuring our clear speed began to run. Seron and I kicked off the ground, launching ourselves toward the dark beast.
The Water Buffalo Apostle, seemingly determined not to be instantly slaughtered like its predecessor in Iris's match, swelled its forelegs to a massive size. It threw a heavy punch straight at my face the moment I closed the distance. A fist larger than my head hurtled toward me. I snapped my head back, narrowly evading the blow. The sheer weight of the wind pressure grazing past my face was staggering. To think Iris ended something like this with a single swing of her sword. Once again, I was struck by a sense of awe at Iris's monstrous strength.
While I drew its attention, Seron slipped inside the Apostle's guard. In response, the beast unleashed a high-pressure torrent of water from its maw.
"Whoa, watch it!" Seron yelled, hurriedly splitting the water cannon with her axe. The torrent exploded into a massive splash, leaving her looking like a drowned rat. The soaked fabric of her shirt clung tightly to her skin, revealing the pale contours of her body and the thin camisole underneath.
"Moooo!" The beast thrashed, snorting a massive gust of hot air.
Grab! I leaped forward and clamped my hand over the beast's snout. Watching it snort like that was incredibly annoying for some reason. The Apostle flinched, staring at me through the gaps of my fingers. True to its bovine nature, its eyes were remarkably clear and sparkling.
Magic Engraving: Flame
Whoosh! The magic engraving etched directly into my Steel Skin flared to life. Intense, white-hot flames erupted from my fingertips.
Crunch! Combining the searing heat with raw physical grip, I crushed the beast's skull. With its head obliterated, the Apostle collapsed instantly, its struggles cut short.
Catching my breath, I glanced over at Seron. She was spitting and sputtering, trying to get the water out of her mouth.
"Ugh, why is it so salty?!"
"Probably milk. More importantly, dry yourself off. I don't have a habit of staring at girls' underwear."
Seron looked down, finally realizing her state, and gasped. She hastily crossed her arms over her chest and shrieked.
"Hey! It's not underwear, it's a camisole! What kind of dirty thoughts are you having?!"
"I'm not thinking anything."
"...Wait, that actually pisses me off even more."
As we bickered, the second Apostle began to materialize. It was an Arachne-type—a human torso fused to the body of a giant spider. We didn't have time to waste. Seron realized this too, pouting as she tightened her grip on her axe.
"Let's keep going."
Seron and I lunged forward once more.
Outside the barrier, where Hanon's match was in full swing, the spectators in the VIP gallery were starting to lose interest.
"When is Sharin Sazaris going to do something?"
"The others have been standing idly by while those two do all the work."
Perhaps because Iris's earlier performance had been so overwhelmingly dominant, the crowd's reaction remained lukewarm. Even though Hanon and Seron were clearing the Apostles faster than the average third-year, the spectators couldn't help but compare them to the princess.
Still, Hanon and Seron fought exceptionally well. While they couldn't obliterate the beasts in a single strike like Iris, they dispatched the second Apostle with impressive speed.
By the third round, Card and Grantoni stepped up to assist. Card wielded shadow magic, sending dark tendrils from beneath his feet to deliver timely, lethal strikes while Hanon and Seron engaged the enemy. Grantoni's necromancy provided flawless support; he conjured skeletal platforms to allow the vanguard to leap from any angle and summoned bone bindings to restrict the Apostles' movements.
Their coordination was flawless. Most notably, Hanon's commands were perfectly tailored to each new Apostle that materialized. It was as if he knew their weaknesses inside and out. Granted, all these Apostles had already been revealed during the third-years' and Iris's matches, giving him time to formulate strategies. Yet, even taking that into account, Hanon's execution was so perfectly optimized that it bordered on uncanny.
"Hmm?"
"That boy..."
A few keen-eyed VIPs began to notice, casting intrigued glances at Hanon. His encyclopedic knowledge and seasoned composure when dealing with the Apostles were far beyond what anyone would expect from a mere second-year student.
"How boring."
"And here I was, looking forward to Sharin Sazaris's magic."
However, the less observant spectators remained unimpressed. While Hanon's tactics were incredibly efficient, to the untrained eye, they lacked the flashy spectacle of high-tier spells. These complaints mostly came from nobles who had never set foot in the Demon Palace themselves due to their own lack of ability.
Just as there were those who earned their seats through sheer merit, there were also those who inherited them through birthright and circumstance. The VIP gallery was gradually dividing into two distinct camps.
And among them, the woman who epitomized the former category curved her eyes like a fox.
"Heh... Hehehe. What an intriguing boy."
Baekmokgong. The oldest duke of the empire and a living witness to its history. She was currently watching the match with far more interest than she had shown during Iris's turn. A golden light flickered briefly in her eyes.
"Your Grace, does the vigor of youth bring you such joy?" asked the one-eyed attendant standing behind her. Baekmokgong tapped her chin with her long, slender fingers.
"The vigor of youth is always a joy to behold. Just as one's eyes are naturally drawn to a roaring fire."
"Even so, you seem far more amused than usual."
He was right. Baekmokgong was smiling a lot today. And the reason was simple: the boy currently reflected in her eyes.
"The Empress of Steel, is it?" she murmured, her eyes flashing. She had lived as a duke since the very inception of the Highsirion dynasty. Those who harbored a Mystery were rare, but not nonexistent. Yet, even among them, truly bizarre anomalies occasionally emerged. Just like now.
"Heh, hehehe..." She chuckled, watching Hanon summon flames from his palm. What kind of madman would think to engrave magic directly onto his own body? Especially using Magic Engraving, a forgotten art dismissed as a relic of the past.
Magic Engravings and Mysteries should have a highly volatile compatibility... Possessing the vast, ancient knowledge of one who had lived for centuries, her smile widened.
I wonder if he did it knowing the risks, or out of sheer ignorance. Whichever it was, it had been a long time since she had seen something so delightfully reckless. She had come to see how the famous Third Princess had grown, only to stumble upon an unexpected new source of amusement. Baekmokgong lightly bounced her ankle beneath her long legs.
Now then... How much of your worth will you prove to me? The First Prince and the Third Princess. She, who still refused to take a side in their struggle, had discovered a fascinating new variable. A chilling, beautiful smile spread across Baekmokgong's face.