Chapter 97: Genius Lost in Light (6)
x5M7Master5WDxVs
RzgkpUThadd hesitated to speak. Was Alpheas still the same person he used to be? Humans hold hope because they don’t know the future. But Alpheas’s memories held no hope. Any happy memory was buried under terrible pain.WVOIugG
xfTpfAlpheas closed his eyes again, a tear rolling down his cheek.GbzO
E54NMaster, are you alright?WQXSVf
NX7CThank you, Thadd.YDYwZKo
LnmLRelieved by Alpheas’s kind tone, Thadd sighed.RJWfWkR
BhQ7ytbAre you really okay?VB4sBIA
vhiQ5Of course. Sorry for being harsh to you earlier. But that was the old me.YN2R0m9
pbQSNo, I’m the one who should apologize. I thought it might be better for you to stay as you were, fearing something might happen to youxEA2P
BY1xIAlpheas patted Thadds shoulder reassuringly.r6wo
zEcE6dIt was a decision true to your nature. Maybe it would have been better that way.GcaE9r
SFTJThen, MasterwZ7
oA1vThadd became anxious again. Maybe he should have persisted with his initial thought. It could have been an unrepeatable chance for Alpheas to escape his past.ZuIEf
rZrZYes. Memories I never want to recall. But0CIKev
we4hvnAlpheas looked at Erinas portrait, recalling the moment they first met at the ballroom and how he confessed his feelings, a faint smile appearing on his lips.e6InoiL
JoIEXUEven in a life filled with pain, there are moments worth living for.x03XDfm
pCPsolI see.onCRHp
El6Thadd finally felt at ease. Alpheas was still the same person he knew, unchanged in any way.DY5
C0m5eThe woman named Erina, who had shaken the entirety of Alpheas’s life, remained in his heart as a painful but unforgettable memory.SYqMlZ
3JIHLMaster, the one behind this incident is Arcane. Currently, Teacher Ethella isLS6wN
M92HFI had a hunch from the start. Its not the time for explanations. Lets move.StSiajp
mlNeqAlpheas walked towards the door, Thadd following him. The first crisis might have been averted, but the real problem was just beginning. The entire student body was under Arcanes influence.5JiWo9a
tomu1HI just hope its not too late.lQh4q
94FzAfter learning about Alpheas’s past, Shirone and his group were speechless for a while. It was a shockingly tragic and sad love story.GGI
Y4BlsThe Headmaster had such a pastF5ISwq
y0atA certified 4th-grade mage and the headmaster of a prestigious school, anyone would think Alpheas led a successful life. But after hearing Arcanes story, it was clear that young Alpheas was extraordinary. He proved the Photon Theory at a young age and was a Gold Circle awardee. His experiment on memory transfer was a progressive idea just beginning to be explored in the magical society.38dB
k0HQCCertainly, Alpheas was a genius. But he was weak. Had he endured a little longer, the world would have been different. He ruined everything with a mere sentiment. I can never forgive him for that.GuLX
fsqKSShirone had a lot to think about. Arcane was known as a villain, but he was also a mage. At least in Erinas experiment, he was nothing but a helpful collaborator.45NTrt
dqd0oEiThats true. Headmaster Alpheas destroying your research might have been hypocrisy.XQMlZ
mUHdkDArcane’s murderous intent softened, allowing Shirone to approach him a bit closer.6fvMP
Rf2But even then, I would have made the same choice.5bt
ZLPArcane frowned in displeasure, but Shirone wasnt being stubborn.79L
VSxamIf sacrificing one person could save ten thousand, it might be a rational choice. But I wouldnt sacrifice that one person.6EB30Io
k2WrThen ten thousand will die.8BsGKjS
JjRdvWThats a risk we have to take.xdG
yBluShirone spoke with conviction.AWEI
n5cTen thousand might die. But we shouldnt interfere beyond our human limits. It’s arrogant to weigh human lives. Even if it leads to more sacrifices, we just need to do what we can. Eventually, there might come a day when we can save ten thousand without sacrifices. What youre trying to do isnt different from a tyrant trying to stand above humanity.kuSVMY1
GbKP26xArcane realized that Shirone stood at the opposite extreme of his beliefs. Sacrificing a few for the many is not an option? Some might call it virtue, but if such a situation really arose, not many people would agree. Humans are creatures that wander between good and evil, looking for what benefits them. But Shirone stood at the farthest end of goodness. Both a cruel murderer and a savior saint are inhuman, and both are persecuted by the public.gk2Byx
H0QDYour life wont be easy either. Dying here might even be a blessing for you.Ssww
HECiviA mage bases his choices on intelligence. Arcane believed in the efficiency of evil to advance humanity. To him, Shirone was a future threat that must be eliminated.jPS
sP6nLazWe are incompatible breeds. Regrettably, I have to kill you.YD30ey
uNuShirone stepped back in surprise. Arcane, who had seemed weakened, was now exuding the aura of a true archmage.HqtfhG6
2vXgAMTSurprised, boy? Magic is a mysterious thing.CAmxi
zGfMUoAccording to the Magic Association’s research, the mental fatigue a mage experiences when casting pure magic is equivalent to the focus an ordinary person maintains for 48 minutes on a single task.CsY8Ro
gWgHIpHowever, Arcane defied such arithmetic calculations and quickly gathered his strength.ZyUy22
8a6Iw“Let’s end this. There will be no pain.”5y3
SZiJKpIShadows surged from Arcane’s body, covering the sky with a black curtain. Its massive size astonished everyone. It was on a completely different scale from the dark powers exhibited by Canis.aMzLr
TNtAIAs Arcane raised his right hand, the curtain morphed into the shape of a fist. Shirone admired its purity. The size of the fist indicated that if it fell, it could obliterate half of the basin.ItJxc4D
fvv‘I can’t block it. Nor can I avoid it.’yYuKM
07aIf quantified, the power of a unit cube (1 cm in width, length, and height) of dark powers is about 0.1N, slightly better than an ant’s jaw joint. But beyond a billion units, it can exert a tremendous force, enough to sweep away everything on the surface of the earth.JBel8q
fdJz“Stop this nonsense, Master.”YkRQM
gBlbclFEveryone’s gaze turned to the cliff. Alpheas stood there, hands behind his back, followed by a beam of light roaring in, with Thadd landing beside him.B5EnE7
w7Y“Teacher Thadd!”GtuiwCu
G9f7Shirone and his companions brightened up. Just the arrival of Alpheas and Thadd felt like gaining a mighty army. Thadd looked up at the dark power and cast Fire Sun. The stream of flames spiraled upward, forming a huge fireball.PEebpS
7dObZ2“Wow”MwU
YYDThe surrounding scenery turned into a blinding white light, making it impossible to open their eyes. But Arcane countered the blinding light with his dark magic, staring directly at it.wIjEeMy
gPUKVp“Hmm.”MrDae6
uONxStretching his palm towards the Fire Sun, the darkness in the sky mimicked the movement, engulfing the giant fireball.sph1
00bLNwChiieeee!LT0
PtanShirone shivered. He had never seen anything burn with such a massive sound. Darkness enveloped the world again as Thadd grimaced and transformed his Spirit Zone into an offensive form.o36Pij
AWtHFmD“Damn! Annoying old man…”INZ8
3iDkAlpheas stopped him with a hand gesture.eykg0h
9FzqM“Let it be, Thadd.”M5XO
BnyOK“But, Master…”vGdbo9
NPIjZ4A“This is my battle. A matter between me and Arcane. Leave it to me from here.”i0O
B92BAlpheas walked leisurely forward, and Arcane, extinguishing the Fire Sun, reshaped the dark power into a curtain and spread it across the sky.3JP
90kiM“You’ve aged, Alpheas. Well, even a time mage is just a human before the years.”L5cphUh
IbAAlpheas ignored Arcane’s first greeting in 40 years. At least not yet… it wasn’t time for two foolish old men to settle the past. Looking past hundreds of students, the injured Yiruki, Nade, Shirone, and finally at Ethella, he saw bruises spreading over her pale skin.NlEd
vIeIr“You’ve had a hard time, Ethella. It’s my fault for being irresponsible. I have nothing to say but sorry.”9rZkih
gaLW2“It’s not your fault, sir. I failed to protect the students.”EtJu076
rtHi1WCAlpheas shook his head. Ethella, who excelled in magic, martial arts, and mental techniques, had seemed bewildering when she came for a teacher interview. But today, he couldn’t be prouder of his decision to hire her. Without her, the students wouldn’t be safe as they were now.2xzN6
eLgNy6“Headmaster, please be careful.”Zp1
PrGShirone looked worried. If Arcane had been exhausted, Alpheas, a 4th-grade certified mage, might have had a chance. But Arcane was undoubtedly at his peak now.eDC5s
PEtvAlpheas smiled reassuringly.M6W
ak7YJq“Don’t worry. There’s no magic that defies the law of equivalent exchange.”QSy
oqs“But Arcane must have regained his mental strength…”ArJ8h
STH87p“Yes. He must have recovered. But that too is magic.”uOd
nzmd“Magic?”Jzr5g
HmjU0sm“Abyss-type magic controls memories. Arcane created it and is the best at using it. Right, Master?”fLb
YCN7R7Arcane snorted dismissively.pkcKTq
NcY“Not senile, I see. By the way, the magic you experienced was Abyss Nova, far more advanced than mere memory manipulation.”VTDvR
wo1Z“It was impressive magic. Thanks to it, I could relive old memories.”tqc75
aXG“Don’t pretend. You must have been crying out of fear. You always run away in the end. And you were probably weeping like a baby.”NQ2
52z“You’re right. But Master, you’ve weakened too. Struggling against a hundred-year-old child and resorting to Abyss Memory, of all things.”0cXUUa2
AYe1Arcane didn’t get angry. If Alpheas was calm, so was he. A 40-year-old grudge couldn’t be resolved with mere words.3AwND
KiKTUJ7Alpheas turned to Shirone with a pre-storm calmness.kvBtp4Z
ImdZ8i“Shirone, casting magic requires intense concentration in a moment. Its like using an hours worth of focus in a second. Thats why Arcane did this.”mNUkJ6
eac7PTapping his temple, Alpheas continued.sAuCQE
izxM“He cast a spell on his own head. A memory erasing spell.”CKrqix7
OPDmn“Ahh…”Tcmv7
U08DBThat was a possibility. Erasing the memories used by the brain eliminates mental fatigue. Although it would undoubtedly overload functionally, it was a viable way to recover mental strength once.e6uF
UlcYShAlpheas understood Shirone’s feelings. Viltor Arcane, a dark mage who had survived a century on the battlefield, was not someone to be underestimated, regardless of past grudges.Hc5Rn
E0sA“Yes. Bold and brilliant. Arcane lives in such a world. Remember that. A combat mage who doesnt have at least one last resort isnt truly a combat mage.”CTSLFW
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