Episode 479. Im Sol (5)

Im Sol reached out her hand.

The magic of the grandly rising pentagram. A pillar of light asserting its presence between them.

Because of the magic used to draw the pentagram, only two pillars of light remained, but they still asserted their presence.

A top-tier magic among her own original creations.

The giant, blazing pentagram rampaged wildly, responding to her magic.

However, Im Sol’s expression slowly began to harden.

“… Why?”

It was the intuition of Im Sol, who had lived as a mage.

Im Sol sensed her own defeat the moment the sun summoned by Lee Hoyeon collided with the pentagram.

A mage’s battle is typically a repetition of offense and defense.

Anyone can attack, but defense is divided into shields and counter-calculation based on the mage’s level.

The higher the level of the mage, the more they counter-calculate the opponent’s magic. This is because counter-calculation saves much more mana than shields.

But the current Im Sol couldn’t do that.

To use magic inside the Sky-Piercing Palace, Im Sol converted mana on a per-second basis.

From the composition of the magic circle to the intensity of the mana, and the caster’s breath.

Controlling all those elements while responding to the opponent’s mana was beyond human cognitive abilities.

Im Sol did not deploy shields or counter-calculate to block Lee Hoyeon’s magic.

Instead, she crushed and shattered it head-on.

Fortunately, Im Sol had grasped all of Lee Hoyeon’s mana through several previous sparring matches.

Therefore, she could efficiently deal with Lee Hoyeon’s magic even inside the Sky-Piercing Palace.

She devoured and destroyed Lee Hoyeon’s mana with overwhelming power.

That strategy was successful. In fact, Lee Hoyeon charged in physically, and even sustained an injury to his shoulder.

However, the Hellish mana Lee Hoyeon had saved until the very end was different.

Hellish mana disrupts the mana possessed by living beings.

In the process, Im Sol’s rapid, second-by-second mana conversion, designed to counter the Sky-Piercing Palace, was disrupted.

It was only a brief moment, but the problem was that this clash was a total war between them.

This wasn’t a light skirmish or a simple exchange of spells.

“Ah….”

A sigh escaped Im Sol’s lips.

The blood-red sun advanced with overwhelming power, devouring the pentagram.

Im Sol’s pentagram formation couldn’t block the Eclipse, imbued with Hellish mana.

A magic that couldn’t be countered even with a lifetime’s worth of accumulated magical systems.

The approaching ominous mana stirred Im Sol’s pride once more.

“Not yet… it’s not over yet.”

Im Sol, eyes wide, bit her lip and scanned Lee Hoyeon’s magic with her eyes.

‘Condensed flames from within. Followed by an explosion. Powerful, but simple.’

Its destructive power was strong enough to collapse space itself. It was simple enough that if she could counter-calculate it, she could use that mana herself.

However, the current Im Sol couldn’t decipher the ominous mana composing the sun.

That ominous mana was so alien that it would require at least several weeks of dedicated research.

‘This is the last one.’

Im Sol knew Lee Hoyeon was nearing the limit of his concentration.

If she could block just that magic, victory would be practically assured.

“Overwhelming destructive power… Right. I’m going all out too.”

Im Sol muttered, reaching her hand towards the black sun.

Since it was magic imbued with her disciple’s affection, she had to meet it with her own sincerity.

Nothing had changed.

As a teacher, she intended to pay her respects to her disciple’s final spell and clash with her utmost effort.

Of course, that magic was stronger than expected… but it was still just magic.

Even in the desperate situation of the black sun approaching right before her eyes, Im Sol didn’t think she would be pushed back by magic.

The arrogance of Im Sol, the genius mage.

… Perhaps this would be the last time.

“Armageddon.”

A colossal energy gathered before Im Sol’s eyes.

A massive elemental sphere confronting the black sun.

The mana most focused on destruction among the magic Im Sol could wield appeared in the training hall.

Zzzt- Zzzzt-

Eclipse and Armageddon.

The mana of the two colossal spells resonated, and the surrounding air began to tremble.

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

Beeeeep-Beeeep-Beeeep.

Simultaneously, the magic circle in the training hall vibrated.

It was an emergency stop signal indicating the match must end.

To prepare for unforeseen circumstances, a magic circle that nullified mana was also installed inside the training hall.

However, the two currently in the training hall were Im Sol and Lee Hoyeon.

A mere magic circle couldn’t possibly contain the mana of two genius mages.

“… Is this okay?”

Lee Hoyeon swallowed hard.

The massive sphere of mana that appeared before his eyes looked dangerous to anyone.

Could this training hall really withstand a collision with his Eclipse?

‘It definitely wouldn’t hold.’

It wouldn’t hold unless the person who designed the training hall was the Demon King.

But… if not now, when could he settle this match?

Lee Hoyeon was too exhausted to create any more secret weapons.

Lee Hoyeon minimized the Rune Barrier and the Sky-Piercing Palace, channeling that mana into amplifying his emotions.

“Professor Sol. … Here I come!”

“Try to block it if you can…!”

He burned with his final fighting spirit.

Eclipse and Armageddon slowly made contact.

The shockwave emanating from them was beyond Lee Hoyeon’s imagination.

“… I’m sorry. Ms. Rebecca. Ms. Ahyoung.”

Maybe those two would handle it somehow.

Lee Hoyeon watched the black sun absorb the colorful masses, getting swept away by the shockwave.

*

“….”

Her vision tilted.

She couldn’t stand properly, and moving her mana was impossible.

It felt like she’d been put under full anesthesia. She couldn’t control her own body.

Thump.

Im Sol, who finally collapsed onto the floor, closed her eyes.

Armageddon, which had consumed all her mana, was swallowed by the black sun.

As long as Im Sol was inside the Sky-Piercing Palace, it might have been natural for her mana to be consumed. The Eclipse, imbued with Hellish mana, had collapsed even Im Sol’s Armageddon.

Did she miscalculate the countermeasure?

No, the countermeasure was perfect.

“… Was I careless?”

She was overjoyed by her disciple’s growth. That’s why she wanted to decisively crush his final spell.

If she had concentrated until the very end, would the outcome have been different?

Im Sol shook her head.

‘No.’

Lee Hoyeon had saved the dagger known as Hellish mana until the decisive moment.

Everything had been planned. Perhaps even sustaining the injury to his shoulder.

In actual combat, nothing matters except the result.

If Lee Hoyeon hadn’t withdrawn his mana at the last moment, she would have died right there.

It was a perfectly flawless defeat.

Thud. Thud.

She heard the sound of someone approaching.

Im Sol slowly opened her eyes.

“It’s 1 win and 19 losses. Luckily, I won before it became 20 losses.”

“… Did you plan for this from the start? Even anticipating my carelessness?”

“Yes. I know your personality well, Professor-nim. Ah, but I didn’t intend for the shoulder injury. That was genuinely dangerous.”

Lee Hoyeon looked around.

The solidly deployed Rune Barrier.

Just as expected from Ms. Rebecca. She never disappoints.

“… I lost perfectly.”

“I’ll call you Sol now. Sol-ah.”

“Tch. Do whatever you want.”

Seeing Lee Hoyeon smile, Im Sol felt a sense of peace.

She didn’t know why the title ‘Sol’ was important, but if her disciple liked it, then it was fine.

Drip-

Blood trickled down from Im Sol’s mouth.

Did I push myself too hard after all? I should have just admitted defeat at the end.

Her desire to receive her disciple’s sincerity was too great.

Although Lee Hoyeon had withdrawn his mana just before, it wasn’t without impact on Im Sol.

Thump.

Im Sol, having lost consciousness, collapsed onto the training hall floor.

“… Huh? Professor-nim?”

Lee Hoyeon, his smile gone, immediately approached Im Sol.

If anything were to happen to her life, he wouldn’t be able to forgive himself.

Whoosh.

However, his own feet wouldn’t move as he willed.

Mana exhaustion, felt for the first time in a while. The backlash from Blood Beat, and a headache from maintaining the Sky-Piercing Palace for so long.

As soon as the tension left his body, all the accumulated backlash from the battle hit him.

“- S-Sol-ah…! M-My dear. No. Ah, no! Kyaak!”

Familiar voices and hurried footsteps reached his ears, and Lee Hoyeon’s vision instantly went black.

*

“….”

“….”

The training hall, filled with thousands of people, was deathly silent.

Adults, children, men, and women alike were focused on Im Sol and Lee Hoyeon’s match.

This was, after all, just training.

In the morning, there had been many training sessions where professors taught students in a friendly atmosphere.

But those two were different.

“Ho-Hoyeon-ah. No. Why are you doing this?”

“Awesome…. This is awesome! If they’re this intense from the start, we could definitely make this a regular event!”

“Chairman-nim! Is that what’s important right now? Are you crazy?! Shouldn’t you stop them quickly?!”

“Ah, Aah. Surin-ah. I’m sorry. Just a moment, look at Lee Hoyeon student’s expression! He’s the one who’s serious about this match!”

“I know that, but…!”

Those confident in their own skills watched the match with increasingly wide eyes.

It was the same for Lucy and Lumi, who had just finished their own match. Having come out from the waiting room to sit in the audience, they stared dumbfounded at the difference in class.

“Hoyeon-ssi….”

“Lu-Lumi. What was what I just did?”

“Lu-Lucy. It’s o-okay. If we learn from Hoyeon-ssi, we definitely will too….”

The other students couldn’t take their eyes off the match unfolding before them.

They knew Im Sol was strong.

Even if they weren’t mages, the genius mage Im Sol was a renowned figure.

“… Was Lee Hoyeon really this strong?”

“They said he was strong. That he’d surpassed the student level.”

“I get that, but does that make any sense?”

It was the same for the reporters who needed to write breaking news quickly.

Even the reporters writing breaking news found themselves staring blankly at the match, hands hovering over their keyboards as it progressed.

They too knew that if they missed this match, they wouldn’t get another chance to see it.

“What on earth is going on? Wasn’t this supposed to be a practical combat training session? Why are they fighting like they want to kill each other….”

“… Unnie. My head hurts. Aagh….”

“E-Elise. Are you okay?”

Elise, suffering from a throbbing headache, leaned heavily against Irene.

She had been satisfied with the skills she’d improved through immense hardship over the past month, but seeing the match unfolding in the training hall now inevitably drained her.

How many years would it take to catch up to that?

“…… Huh? Oh dear. This looks like trouble.”

Irene, holding Elise, focused on the concluding match.

The atmosphere in the training hall shifted with the magic unleashed by Lee Hoyeon, who had been on the defensive throughout the match.

Im Sol’s magic crumbled, and she too deployed her final trump card.

Crackle. Crackle-crackle-

Vibrations that could be felt even outside the training hall.

But this time, it was a bit intense.

“… Unnie. The magic circle is in danger!”

“I know. Let’s get down!”

The massive elemental sphere summoned by Im Sol collided with the black sun.

The immense energy from the collision exceeded the limits the training hall’s magic circle could withstand.

Mages around the training hall were pouring mana into it, but it wasn’t enough.

Irene and Elise jumped down near the training hall to offer even a small amount of help.

But just before the magic circle shattered.

A thick barrier unfolded, centered around the training hall.

Irene realized it the moment she saw the barrier.

‘Rebecca.’

She had deployed the Rune Barrier.

Irene immediately understood what she needed to do and directed the mages in the training hall.

“This is Irene, the 1st Team Leader of the Iris Guild! I’ve deployed the barrier, so everyone support it.”

“Ah, Irene-nim!”

“Focus! We can hold it.”

Rebecca’s identity needed to remain hidden.

Even though she had a fake identity, there was no need to stir up unnecessary trouble.

Irene directed the mages in the training hall, blocking the aftermath of the massive mana collision.

Fortunately, since Lee Hoyeon had withdrawn his mana, no greater commotion occurred.

A moment later.

Irene let out a short laugh seeing Lee Hoyeon standing in the training hall.

‘He’s a monster.’

The magic Im Sol displayed throughout the match was impressive even to Irene.

The skill of a genius mage, without a doubt.

But the winner was Lee Hoyeon.

He had been an absurd womanizer from the first time she saw him, but his abilities as a mage were the real deal.

“… At this level, Father would probably try to marry Elise off first.”

Skills that even that doting father would have to acknowledge.

Sigh.

Seeing the emergency medical team heading towards the training hall, Irene sighed and returned to the audience seats.

She was worried about Lee Hoyeon’s condition, but Elise was trying to leave the auditorium.

“Unnie. Let’s go.”

“Huh? Aren’t you going to see Hoyeon?”

“… Go where? He didn’t even come to my waiting room.”

Irene smiled, watching her sister’s sulking back.

She seemed to still be upset about Lee Hoyeon not being in her waiting room.

As Irene was about to follow her to comfort Elise, she suddenly sensed an unpleasant mana.

“….”

The entrance to the audience area.

Most of the audience was still immersed in the aftereffects of the match, but she saw the back of a man leaving through the entrance.

• Fzzt. Fzzt-fzzt.

Irene operated her smartwatch.

Around the main auditorium were members of the Iris Guild, collaborating with Victoria Academy.

“- Yes. Irene-nim. This is Kang Hyorin, head of the Korea branch.”

“- Mm. Were there any intruders in the main auditorium during Lee Hoyeon’s match? Anyone suspicious.”

“- Not a single unauthorized life form, not even an ant, entered.”

“- …Understood.”

Irene ended the call on her smartwatch, tilting her head.

“Was it just my imagination?”

Irene hadn’t gotten a proper look at the man who attacked Scarlet. Therefore, she couldn’t be sure.

Perhaps it was just a momentary anomaly caused by contact with Im Sol and Lee Hoyeon’s mana.

“Unnie. I’m leaving first.”

“Mm-hmm. Let’s go together. Elise. But you’ll visit them later, right?”

“… I don’t know.”

Irene followed Elise, dismissing her concerns.