Ch.284279 – External Manifestation

In a duel, a moment’s distraction leads directly to defeat.

Three gazes collided in mid-air amid the palpable tension.

A Cephiron Academy female student was being carried out of the arena by the referees.

“Was it really necessary to kick a senior who had no strength left to move?”

“It’s because of your innate magic that came from who knows where. Can’t let you try any funny business, right?”

Minyoung Lee rolled her eyes fiercely and grinned.

“Why so quiet? Are you scared?”

She twitched the corner of her mouth with a composed expression.

But unlike her frivolous mouth, her predatory eyes remained fixed on NoName.

“Minyoung, look at that horn.”

“I know, I have eyes too.”

From NoName’s magic circle, thin strands of light flowed out, building a solid conical tower from the bottom up, like a 3D printer.

A small horn had sprouted on her head, barely noticeable unless one looked carefully.

“What is this, Halloween or something…”

NoName ignored Minyoung’s comment completely and ran her hand through her hair.

“Are you afraid of what might emerge? That’s only natural. You’ve been bullying the weak and pretending to be strong all this time. It’s absurd seeing rabbits, not even foxes, playing king in a tiger’s den.”

After confirming the hard texture with her hand, she sneered provocatively.

“This brat from another academy has the nerve to talk to a senior like that! Park Jun-yong, start now!”

No more saving face was necessary.

Minyoung pulled up her aura and directed Jun-yong to cast support magic.

[Conjuration: Barrier Setting]

[Cast: Spin Mirror]

Last year’s Academy Tournament champion.

Second-year MVP Park Jun-yong.

“NoName, we all acknowledge you’re a genius. But don’t think we’ve been sitting idle. With the absolute difference in effort we’ve put in, you can never defeat us.”

The now third-year student created a barrier conjuration circle in his hands.

“The academy isn’t a stage for you alone.”

NoName could see the sticky jealousy in his eyes.

The excessive spotlight on the legendary figure called NoName before the tournament had scratched the pride of many geniuses participating in the Academy Tournament.

But NoName, who had spent years enduring countless people’s hatred and envy, found their gazes trivial.

“Stop talking and come at me, kid.”

“You keep calling me kiddo… brat…! You’re the real kid here!”

Minyoung, who already had a complex about her height, charged toward NoName like an arrow.

With precise aura manipulation, she bounced off the ground like a trampoline with each step, closing the distance in an instant.

“I don’t go easy on the young!”

Minyoung leaped high into the air using the barrier as propulsion.

Wheeeeesh-

The sticky aura droplets gathered around her clasped hands froze.

The aura, transformed into a massive hammer, fell straight toward NoName’s head.

‘If I’m going to be criticized anyway, I might as well end this with a single attack.’

KWABOOOOM!

A tremendous sound created circular shockwaves accompanied by a hazy mist.

The audience stirred all at once.

It was as if she was openly declaring:

This is the level required to be considered the academy’s strongest.

Minyoung had openly demonstrated the external manifestation of aura, said to be usable only by those chosen by the heavens.

Meanwhile, Jun-yong built barriers to distort mana flow and amplify Minyoung’s power.

It seemed no one at Cephiron Academy could stop these two anymore.

“Ha! That was nothing!”

“Minyoung! Behind you!”

“Huh?”

Until a giant hand emerged from the mist.

KWAAANG!

The hand that grabbed Minyoung by the nape slammed her head into the arena floor.

“AAAAARGH!”

Minyoung groaned in pain that felt like her skull might crack.

The impact with the floor had penetrated even the barrier protecting her head.

As she trembled, NoName pressed her knee against Minyoung’s neck and spoke in a gentle tone.

“This barrier would certainly be difficult for children to handle. Reversing the mana particle spin would make creating magic circles confusing.”

“What are you… how…!”

“Your aura handling talent is undeniably exceptional, unnie. But it seems this particle barrier doesn’t protect your internal body… I wonder what would happen if I keep pressing like this.”

“Hngh… kuhk… why is my body so heavy… can’t… breathe… Jun-yong…! Help me, please!”

Minyoung, who had been so confident, writhed desperately.

“Mo… monster…”

Jun-yong froze in place.

For good reason—NoName’s right horn, now a span longer than before, flickered with ominous dark red mana.

Then the giant demonic hand surrounding NoName’s arm mercilessly squeezed Minyoung’s body.

“Hnngh… huuugh… kugh…”

“Oh, I’m just kidding. Such behavior during a match would be bad manners. I just followed your lead, unnie.”

“Kack! Kek…! Kehek!”

NoName released her aura, freeing Minyoung’s body.

Crawling away pathetically, Minyoung clutched her throat and gasped for breath.

When she turned around to see what had just happened,

An unbelievable sight unfolded before her.

An asymmetrically grown horn,

A grotesque hand that had bubbled up to become as large as the girl’s frame,

And a massive pair of wings fluttering from the girl’s back,

It was an unreal appearance that seemed to exist only in fairy tales.

“The external manifestation of aura you all talk about. Actually, it can be used like this too.”

* * *

Aura is an extension of the body.

But to operate it like an independent third organ, a demon king’s horn was essential.

The only difference between demons and humans was the horn, but the few demons who had tails and wings owed it all to their ability to freely manipulate aura from their horns.

I was able to protect myself from Minyoung’s attack just now by wrapping my body in layers with wings made of aura.

I increased the horn’s output to accelerate the aura heart that converts mana into aura,

And coated my arm with an opaque liquid to shape a giant hand.

Aura is generally more efficient than mana.

So I decided to fight using the demon king’s horn throughout combat rather than using raw magic, and only use magic when absolutely necessary.

“Snap out of it, Minyoung! She can’t maintain this for long!”

“Haah… so this is what a true genius is… I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it myself.”

She glared at me with eyes contorted in pain.

The seniors who had competed earlier had fought hard and depleted much of their stamina.

At this point, with their barriers nearly destroyed, declaring a substitution would be impossible.

So naturally, their next move would be to abandon defense and relentlessly attack me.

“I’m joining in.”

“You should have done that earlier.”

The male student who had been maintaining the barrier from behind declared his participation.

Swoooosh-

A small vortex rose at the students’ feet, and their forms vanished like smoke.

‘At least the barrier is gone.’

When I lifted my eyelids, they had already reached right in front of me.

“Minyoung, now!”

“I know, idiot!”

[Cast: Type 1 Lever – Cutting]

[Cast: Dilution Cooling – Helium-3]

One spell maximizes electromagnetic repulsion, while the other cools toward absolute zero.

Their intention was obvious.

They planned to freeze my wings and then tear them apart.

“You guys just charge in without thinking about what comes after?”

“…?”

“…!”

I increased the output of my left horn and drew in mana this time.

[Cast: Circuit Reconfiguration]

[Cast: Diffusion Coefficient Adjustment]

This is when the power of double casting shows its true worth.

By interfering with the circuit forming the base of the Type 1 Lever, I weakened its cutting power, and by adjusting the diffusion coefficient, I neutralized the ice magic by mixing the isotopic composition of helium atoms.

THUD-!

The children who had rushed in believing my wings would break couldn’t overcome their momentum and instead collapsed against my wings.

I swung my heavy arm toward them and grabbed whatever I could.

SQUEEZE-

“AAAAH MY LEG!”

Unlike Minyoung who escaped quickly, I managed to grab Jun-yong’s leg.

I aimed at the fleeing girl who was drawing a large arc in the air and threw him mercilessly.

“AAAAGH!”

The children’s bodies tangled together as they rolled on the ground.

CRACKLE!

The sound of their barriers breaking became increasingly clear.

It meant the match would soon be over.

Since this was a duel where everything was at stake, I had no intention of going easy on them.

I withdrew all my wings and implanted the excess aura into my left arm.

With two aura hands, I grabbed each of their heads and lifted them up.

Two bodies dangled helplessly in mid-air.

“Let me give you some advice—don’t try to understand with your head. There’s a lot I don’t know about this world either.”

The defenseless children summoned all their strength to wrap aura around their bodies.

All meaningless resistance.

I set up two resonance circles to adjust the natural frequency in the air.

While I was creating the magic circle, Jun-yong shot a pure mana bullet at my abdomen with trembling fingers.

Fizzle-

A portion of my mana particle barrier was shaved off, but the damage was truly minimal.

“What… are you?”

“Fu… fuck this is a nightmare… a nightmare! Hnnngh…”

Jun-yong asked through gritted teeth, while the other had completely lost her mind.

“El, Maben, Gernum, Nelimelro. Oh, me? I’ve told you many times. I’m NoName.”

“It’s impossible to control aura like this at your age! It’s because of that innate magic, right? This is cheating! I’m going to file a formal complaint after the match!”

As a final desperate act from someone who had lost their reason, it was rather bland and deflating.

Without hesitation, I filled the magic circle with runes and gave them a faint smile.

[Cast: Natural Frequency Adjustment]

“You should think about that while you sleep.”

“What?”

Jun-yong’s head stiffly turned sideways.

A massive 2-circle magic circle activated between the two students.

I stretched my arms out to the sides, and the hands made of aura followed, holding the children apart.

“Are you trying to make us collide? W-wait! Stop! St-sto—”

“I can’t hear you! I can’t hear anything!”

“You crazy—”

Clap-

My small palms collided with each other.

Swoooosh-

Following this, the massive aura masses cut through the heavy air, bringing the children to the central magic circle.

“AAAAAAAH!”

Their screams didn’t last long.

BOOOONG!

BOOONG-

DONG-

The violent collision of their bodies triggered the magic circle, and I injected mana until their barriers were completely shattered.

Bell sounds echoed throughout the arena.

After the clear and elegant sound came a silence so profound that even insect sounds could be heard.

Swoooosh-

The secondary shockwave from the dissolving magic circle gently caressed my face as it passed.

I lowered my gaze to my feet.

A trickle of blood was flowing from the ears of the limp boy and girl.

As I withdrew all my aura, the bright sunlight stung my eyes.

I realized that my hands and wings had been blocking the sun all this time.

I sat cross-legged on the bare ground for a moment to catch my breath.

Only then did the audience begin to pour out confused chatter.

After observing them carefully, I pointed to Altair’s shutter, which hadn’t opened once during this match, and said in a low voice:

“Next.”