Chapter 71: The Mage (1)

Fides saluted Yuri with a military gesture and sprinted toward the rear lines.

His body moved nimbly.

“Be careful!”

Yuri waved in the direction of his back, then turned away.

It was time to hunt the shaman. He could feel the rigid flow of mana, halted by the dispel.

If he followed the origin of that stagnant energy, he could find the shaman. For a regular mage that would be impossible, but Yuri felt he could do it.

He closed his eyes and sharpened his senses. He could sense the points that disrupted the flow of mana and blocked its current. At first, it was blurry, but it became clearer over time.

“There, there, and there.”

“Excuse me?”

Laurent and Jared, who were beside him, looked at him.

Yuri said:

“There are three shamans. I’ll take this side.”

“Ah…”

There was no time for explanations. Yuri charged forward. Laurent and Jared looked at each other and ran in opposite directions.

He looked at Okua.

Moyongchan was holding him back, and the other knights attacked from behind whenever they could.

They looked like knights out of an old tale, fighting a wicked dragon. Yuri had never known in his past life that Okua was such a monster. Only in this life did he discover his ties to dark magic.

What other truths might be hidden?

“¡Kuar!”

Yuri shouted. It was the word for “shaman” in the orc tongue, which he had learned from Cory.

“¡Kuar!”

He shouted repeatedly.

Then, the group of orcs who had pulled back to watch reacted. Among them, hidden among the guardians, was a shaman with his eyes covered.

Yuri jumped and slashed with Guilty directly. Though exhausted, his senses were sharper than ever. He could see even the slightest tremor of spears and swords flying at him.

He twisted his body, dodging with almost acrobatic movements.

The blindfolded shaman accepted the blade as if he already knew his fate. His chest split open in a vertical line, and blood and entrails spilled out.

The moment he killed him, orcs charged from every direction. Yuri aimed for the thinnest cluster and sprinted. Several axes flew toward him.

There was no room to dodge. So he had to deflect.

He summoned the energy of the Cut of the Soul and the Heart and slashed. Several axes bounced away simultaneously.

He slid between two orcs standing side by side and slashed Guilty swiftly.

Blood sprayed from both sides. Barely escaping the encirclement, Yuri turned and raised his sword.

The orcs didn’t dare to approach, hesitating before him. He had grown so much he was no longer the same man who had joined the Allied Army.

But there was no time to feel proud.

“One down…”

He moved away from the orcs and looked around. Laurent and Jared hadn’t gone alone—they had attacked with other knights and brought down the shamans.

One by one, the shamans fell. He could feel there was no longer interference with the magic.

Only the fireball needed to fall. While dispel could disable spells easily, the support fire of a mage was extremely destructive.

But the magic didn’t arrive. Yuri, half crouched, looked at Okua.

The creature formed in his shape was swinging its massive limbs, cornering Moyongchan. He and the knights continued to battle the beast.

Yuri realized.

“Ah…”

There was still one shaman left. Okua’s own body, formed of corpses, was dark magic.

The moment he understood that, Okua’s massive arm tore through the ground.

Several knights were swept away by the blow. The 3rd Division commander and Graham, who had shown great strength, were crushed like insects.

How could they stop that creature? Yuri gripped Guilty.

“If I could just break the dispel…”

Due to the nature of magic that assembles mana from the outside, it was easy to dismantle.

He just had to remove that limitation. Hernando was an excellent mage. Moyongchan hadn’t recognized him as a great warrior for nothing.

If Hernando gathered the mages and launched a magic assault, they could win.

Yuri took a deep breath. He had no mana left. His core was cracked like a dry rice field.

If he pushed the power further, his very life force could collapse. But he didn’t hesitate.

The remaining energy of the Cut of the Soul and the Heart responded to his will and surged upward. His vision lost its color once again.

He gazed into what he called “the world beyond,” the reverse of the physical plane. Around the monstrous Okua, black strands writhed like cords.

That was the true essence of the dark magic interfering with the mana. The moment he saw that vastness, he almost dropped Guilty.

It seemed impossible. But he had to do it.

Only he could do it. He raised his sword.

And then he heard a chilling voice whisper in his ear.

‘Never fear the enemy.’

He nodded.

‘Do what you believe is right.’

He tightened his grip on the sword.

‘Fulfill your duty as Prince of Briol to the end.’

Yuri wasn’t naïve enough to ask what the duty of Briol meant.

He could feel the battlefield with his entire body. Soldiers staggering while swinging their weapons, knights facing impossible foes.

No one was evading their role. And he was Yuri Briol. He had something to do.

“I made a vow.”

He murmured as he squeezed out the last spark from his core. A white light began to radiate from Guilty’s blade.

His mana was completely depleted. In its place, he forcibly drew the life energy that remained in his body.

Blood streamed from his nose and mouth. His legs trembled. With a quivering hand, he raised Guilty above his head. The weapon’s tip vibrated endlessly.

But he didn’t stop. He saw them.

The souls of the sacrificed cried out. Even in death, they found no rest, turned into part of the dark magic, polluting the world against their will.

“Cut.”

The trembling gradually ceased. His breathing steadied. He stared straight at the enemy.

And he slashed.

A blade of light streaked across the sky and split it in two.

***

The mages waited in the rear lines, guarded by escorts, with their dispels at the ready.

“Impressive.”

Hernando was watching the battlefield with arms crossed when the Imperial mage, Eisen, approached him.

“Me?”

“No, I mean the Third Prince.”

“Ah…”

Yuri, at the head of Briol’s army, was breaking through the enemy lines. His piercing force was astonishing, as always.

“He’s young, but his skill is admirable. Both with the sword and in judgment.”

“He’s brave.”

“What do you think?”

“About what?”

“About this battle.”

“The Alliance will win.”

“Will there be many casualties?”

“I hope not.”

Hernando answered indifferently. He didn’t sympathize with the mages from the Empire.

Magic towers were spread across the continent, but the Empire’s tower was especially mundane. More of an imperial academy to train official mages than a true magic tower.

It was far from what Hernando considered a real mage.

“Excuse me, which tower are you from, Lord Hernando?”

Eisen asked cautiously. Hernando shrugged.

“The main headquarters.”

“Oh…!”

The main headquarters was the origin of all magic towers, and only the most talented could study there. Even though the Imperial one had grown, it still didn’t compare.

“How admirable.”

“It’s nothing. You’re formidable too, Eisen.”

“May I ask your rank?”

Mages’ ranks are private unless they choose to reveal them. Only a few knew Hernando was a Grand Wizard.

Hernando answered modestly.

“I’m a Master Wizard.”

“Excuse me?”

“Master Wizard.”

It wasn’t entirely a lie.

A mage who reached the rank of Master Wizard and obtained their own unique magic could ascend to Grand Wizard.

“Really?”

Eisen looked him up and down, suspicious.

“Yes.”

“Impressive…”

Hernando said nothing more, so Eisen cleared his throat loudly and continued.

“I’m an Expert Wizard.”

“A great achievement.”

“Would you like to come to the Empire after this war?”

“What are you talking about?”

“The Empire welcomes outstanding mages. If you’re a Master Wizard, you’ll be honored.”

“No, thank you.”

“Are you satisfied in Briol?”

“That too, but…”

Hernando shook his head.

“The war isn’t over. It’s not the time to talk about that.”

“No matter how this battle ends for the Alliance.”

“What do you mean?”

As they talked, a boom rumbled across the field. Both turned to look.

Suddenly, an Ancient Wyrm and wyverns appeared. The battle, which had seemed in the Alliance’s favor, began to shift again.

Then, after Yuri did something, Moyongchan appeared and directly faced Okua.

The situation turned critical. Something unexpected happened.

Just when they thought Okua had died, a dark creature began to rise.

Eisen, who didn’t see well, couldn’t make it out clearly, but Hernando understood.

“Those are corpses.”

“What?”

“They’re merging and rising.”

“That’s absurd…”

“And yet, it’s happening.”

Hernando let out a sigh. How many lives had been sacrificed to create that? The more corpses, the stronger Okua became.

He worried for Yuri’s safety. If they couldn’t kill Okua, the Alliance couldn’t win this battle.

“They should retreat…”

But he knew they wouldn’t. Hernando clenched and unclenched his fist.

The situation kept getting worse.

“Grand Wizards don’t interfere in the affairs of humanity.”

Bound by that rule, he couldn’t override the dispel.

“Don’t worry so much.”

Eisen spoke calmly.

“Even if we lose, it won’t matter. The orcs will also suffer heavy losses.”

“Many people will die.”

“That’s war.”

At that moment, a soldier ran toward the rear. He seemed to be using mana-mesh, as he moved extremely fast.

“Lord Hernando! Lord Hernando!”

The soldier called out. Hernando stepped forward. He recognized the face from camp.

“Lord Hernando!”

“Me?”

“The prince says to launch the fireball!”

He stopped in front of him, panting.

“The… the fireball. The prince said you’d know what he meant…”

Hernando tilted his head. Yuri couldn’t be unaware of the dispel.

“With the dispel active, launching a fireball is difficult. The prince must be confused.”

Ignoring Eisen, Hernando looked to the battlefield. Yuri didn’t say nonsense in combat.

If he said that, he must have a plan. Hernando lifted his spyglass.

He saw Yuri speaking with Laurent and Jared. Then, the three split in different directions.

There were blindfolded orcs there. They were going to eliminate the shamans. If they managed to eliminate them all, casting spells wouldn’t be impossible.

Hernando tried forming mana in the air. The dispel prevented it from binding properly.

Eisen commented,

“Ah, the prince is trying to eliminate the shamans.”

“Yes.”

“Even so, it won’t be enough. Even if he kills them all, it won’t be.”

“Why do you say that?”

Eisen, as if he knew everything, pointed at Okua.

“Look at that! Okua has become the core of the dark magic.”

“Are you saying…?”

“Yes. The Empire knows a fair bit about dark magic.”

Eisen crossed his index fingers in front of Hernando.

“Okua generates dispel by himself too.”

“I see.”

Hernando looked calmly at Yuri. Even if Eisen was right, for some reason, he felt Yuri would succeed. Perhaps because of all he had already shown.

For a mage who sees fate, that feeling could mean more than a hunch.

“Lord Hernando?”

“Hmm?”

“What are you doing?”

“Preparing.”

Hernando was drawing the structure of mana in the air.

“But as I said, with the dispel…”

“I only need a moment.”

Hernando replied.

“If I get even an instant of full control over mana, I’ll do it.”

“That instant is…?”

Then it happened.

Hernando and Eisen turned at the same time. All the mages in the rear stood up and looked ahead.

The mages could feel it.

Something extraordinary was happening.

“It can’t be…”

Eisen pointed, stunned. At the end of his finger stood Yuri.

From his sword emanated a blinding light, as if he held lightning in his hand.

He looked up at the empty sky for a moment and slowly raised his sword.

And slashed.

The mana, which had been blocked, began to flow like an overflowing stream.

A miracle had occurred.

“The dispel is broken.”

Hernando kept his word.

As soon as the dispel vanished, he formed seals and chanted a spell. It was so fast Eisen was stunned.

In an instant, a great spell formed in the sky, shining like sunlight.

“Dear God…”

Eisen, dumbfounded, could only murmur. Hernando shouted at him,

“What are you doing?”

“Huh?”

“Just going to watch?”

“Ah, yes, yes.”

Startled by Hernando’s intensity, Eisen formed seals immediately. The other mages also began casting their own spells.

It was an awe-inspiring sight. In broad daylight, a second sun appeared over the plains.

And around it, countless stars emerged.

“Ah…”

Orcs and humans alike looked up to the sky, speechless.

And finally.

The sun descended.