A Resplendent Era (11)

Typically, when studying magic at university, guidelines are provided regarding the output levels that can prove lethal, cautioning students accordingly.

Having issued the warning, they then absolve themselves of any civil or criminal liability for subsequent incidents.

Regardless, I discharged electricity at potentially lethal levels, but the Demonic Tribe’s bodies proved sturdier than expected.

Still, with so many guinea pigs available, I could roughly gauge their limits –

How much mana, and by what method, was required to render them combat-ineffective? I may well be the foremost authority on such matters in this world.

The spear I had hurled impacted the ground, emitting an unpleasant screech as it engulfed a nearby Demonic Tribe.

Kwaaaang!!

“You fight so dirtily!”

“Then come at me one by one, fair and square! I’ll gladly oblige with equal courtesy.”

I chose to interpret that shriek as high praise.

Indiscriminately lobbing a mana-infused spear kept the Demonic Tribe at bay. While not scoring direct hits, it was an area-of-effect attack.

When barricading oneself and issuing a challenge, the opposition’s responses typically fall into two categories:

One is to deem it a waste of time and simply depart.

The other is to remain, adamant about defeating you even at the cost of their own demise or capture.

Typically, those lacking purpose or consumed by hatred tend to choose the latter option – and the Demonic Tribe seemed to fit both criteria.

Judging by the duration of my evasion… around an hour, perhaps? Without a timepiece, I couldn’t pinpoint the exact figure.

And if Belfast’s police force functioned normally, they should restore order within an hour or two.

Time was undoubtedly on my side. Enduring that span was the primary challenge.

“No need to cower! He can’t throw very far or fast anyway!”

“Right. If we attack simultaneously from all sides, what can this puny fool do against us?”

“Oh, damn.”

While picking them off one by one during the chase had proved effective, being surrounded rapidly depleted my resources.

Unfamiliar attacks inevitably cause initial disorientation, but they wouldn’t fall for the same patterns repeatedly.

“Oooh, right. Fight fair and square, then – come at me one by one!”

“Very well, you asked for it!”

Exploiting my momentary distraction from hurling the spear elsewhere, a Demonic Tribe charged from my blind spot, rapidly closing the distance before I could react.

Kwagagagak!

Immediately after, the vendor stall I had been using as a shield was nearly cleaved in half, as if mere cardboard. I stifled an internal scream.

Remarkably, they had utilized bare hands for the attack.

Even accounting for their momentum, reducing an intact wooden plank to such a state seemed implausible.

“Your turn to suffer this fate – urrghk.”

“Strength!”

“Kkkhh…”

“Infinite strength!!”

However, their willingness to engage at close quarters signified a readiness to be electrocuted.

I had attempted extracting my hands from the tangled stall at the last moment, but to no avail. Regardless…

‘Persisting like this will prove arduous.’

Even bosses become vulnerable if they merely repeat patterns, do they not?

Overwhelming them through sheer force might suffice, but engaging in swordplay against such self-destructive tendencies is ill-advised unless absolutely necessary. Fortuitously, I possessed alternative means.

To reiterate, upon joining the Royal Academy, my foremost pursuit was naturally accessing Londinium’s military technologies.

Merely discharging electricity from one’s hands? Certainly serviceable, but in terms of difficulty, it barely qualifies as offensive magic – more akin to rudimentary pyrotechnics.

“What did you intend to use this for?”

“Weapon development, I assure you.”

“Still, granting such permissions so readily is somewhat…”

“Ah, I planned to establish a club among fellow members, not pursue it alone. Would that provide adequate assurance?”

And by invoking other mages’ names, I obtained powers commensurate with their worth.

While the Glasgow Kingdom had indeed neglected military research in recent years, was this not superior to self-study?

Gathering a handful of scattered metal fragments, I infused them with sufficient mana to deem them adequate.

Thanks to the Demonic Tribe’s partial demolition of the vendor stalls, I lacked no shortage of materials.

Once they became too hot to handle barehanded, I lobbed them amid the Demonic Tribe.

“That fool threw something again… but nothing’s happening?”

“You imbeciles! It’s clearly a diversion to divert our attention. He must have expended considerable mana – his reserves are likely depleted.”

“Press the attack, keep pressing! Surely he doesn’t intend to retreat empty-handed after coming this far?”

Unlike my previous spear, the lack of immediate change prompted the Demonic Tribe to gradually lower their guard and approach.

They did circle warily, suspecting some ploy, but it ultimately mattered little.

“Hoyt.”

“…?!”

With a flick of my finger, the metal shards clattered towards the Demonic Tribe’s positions.

Not being official institute products but repurposed from street vendor stalls and doorknobs, precise control was impossible. However, I could roughly guide their rolling trajectories.

Some nimbler individuals evaded them, while others belatedly realized the threat but reacted a moment too late.

“This attack resembles the previous one! Retreat at once!”

“Too late.”

Crackle! Zzzap!

“Kkhhuuck, aaargghh…!”

While lacking the spear’s area-of-effect, their dispersed formation left scant room for evasion.

Admittedly, the charge’s potency was diminished, but by capitalizing on their momentary immobility, I could fell one or two with follow-up strikes.

I thoroughly tested what had merely been a paper concept born of idle musings: ‘What if I created a spell like this?’.

The culmination of whimsical imaginations someone had likely indulged decades prior finally materialized in reality.

Self-propelled, electromagnetic shrapnel – who could have conceived such a devious notion?

“Retreating will only erode our forces!”

“Advancing risks subjecting us to that attack. What should we do?”

“Just… charge with the resolve to perish. Merely stalling will not allow us to overwhelm him, and humans will soon arrive.”

“If even one of us reaches him, it will be a success.”

After some murmured deliberation in their tongue, the Demonic Tribe seemed to reach a consensus, nodding in unison before charging towards me.

Two bodies already lay crumpled before my vendor stall barricade. Including those incapacitated from afar, the tally reached six.

It seemed they had agreed to simply overwhelm me through sheer numbers, even at the cost of serving as meat shields.

The distance had narrowed considerably. Though I lobbed more electromagnetic shrapnel, the Demonic Tribe, realizing its limited potency, opted to boldly endure the impacts rather than retreat en masse. After a momentary pause, they promptly resumed their advance.

Crack! The dilapidated vendor stall, now mere tattered rags, collapsed to the ground.

While I had taken cover behind another overturned stall, a few forceful Demonic blows would undoubtedly reduce it to rubble.

“As loath as I was to resort to this…”

I had previously mentioned assimilating Londinium’s military technologies.

The first anti-Demonic Tribe weapon I created was a railgun. Its implications are evident, are they not?

Ping!

In essence…

I had acquired the ability to fire railgun projectiles with my bare hands.

In my youth, I had indulged in all manner of pyrotechnic displays with this very concept. Once the theoretical prerequisites were met, was it not inevitable that I would revisit it?

Phwack, blood trickled from my fingertip.

More accurately than throwing spears, I could now strike targets directly. Sacrificing a mere finger was a small price for a favorable outcome, was it not?

The Demonic Tribe I had aimed at let out a death rattle as they toppled backward, azure blood gushing from their chest.

Crunch, I swiftly consumed another fruit before flicking a fresh metal shard from my fingertip.

Ping, ping. This time, the Demonic Tribe approaching Freugne’s door and another attempting to pummel me fell.

While lacking the piercing power to penetrate multiple brick layers like the institute’s manufactured products, it proved sufficient to rend Demonic flesh.

“Ah, urp. Ugh, I’m done for.”

“So it would seem.”

“…?!”

As I crammed the remaining fruit into my mouth and scanned for additional threats, an unfamiliar voice came from behind, accompanied by fingers constricting my throat.

I had missed one, or perhaps they had remained concealed until now.

A slight elevation coupled with the sound of air being choked off – as I reached to electrify the assailant, they seized my wrist with their free hand.

Despite my efforts to discharge electricity through that contact, my dwindling mana merely caused them to flinch briefly.

“Seems the game of tag ends here.”

Thud thud thud

“Ah.”

Simultaneously as I was lifted off the ground, metal shards clattered beneath my dangling feet.

Struggling to respond to the Demonic Tribe’s bewildered gaze, I mumbled through the mouthful of fruit:

“…Not how I wanted to die?”

“You reckless-“

While the words were likely incomprehensible due to the obstruction, I trust the intent was conveyed.

Immediately after, indiscriminate lightning illuminated the surroundings.