Ch.45Magician Milia (11)

# Mage Millia (11)

Esmeralda had been acting for over three years.

Even if her acting wasn’t extraordinary, that much time was enough to become accustomed to it.

Yes, she had been acting even in front of a big shot like a Legion Commander.

Her stupid self.

‘One in front and one behind. But when I was surprised that one died, only the one in front reacted.’

Therefore, her indifferent attitude and seemingly disinterested reactions were all fake.

She wasn’t foolish enough to display a slick attitude in front of a Legion Commander.

‘The ability to create duplicates. But there’s likely a limit to their number. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have sent such an awkward number as three people to the Glisha Tower Master.’

She coolly assessed the current situation. Situation assessment and analytical ability through observation—those were areas where Esmeralda wouldn’t lose to anyone.

‘Earlier, only one of the two reacted when the duplicate died. Then one of them could be the real body, couldn’t it?’

A process of possibility.

What if the opponent before her was the real body?

She had an intuition that this was the correct answer.

The opponent was still relaxed.

They said they would increase the tempo, but it was merely an increase in firepower.

Of course, even if she got hit, it would only affect a duplicate, not the real body, so that could be the case.

In fact, they were easily overwhelming Esmeralda, who was receiving support from the Glacies Tower.

‘But what if that’s what they want me to think?’

From here on was the realm of intuition.

No matter how weak Esmeralda might be, even if the mages of Glacies Tower weren’t much help now that the Tower Master was away.

Excessive composure, carelessness.

An ability like duplicates that seemed to yield little result even if killed.

A duplicate added belatedly.

The resulting fixation of thought.

‘A deception to hide their limitations.’

That’s why it was suspicious.

If Esmeralda didn’t have good intuition, she wouldn’t have even suspected it.

Esmeralda shuddered at the meticulous strategy hidden behind the composure.

They kept talking about Legion Commanders, but somehow none of them were easy opponents.

The opponent was feigning composure. They were hiding how limited the number of duplicates was while making her think the real body wasn’t here.

It was an impressive psychological warfare.

Even this much she could only think of because she had first faced the veteran Eleven…

‘Then there’s actually a chance of winning!’

She knew something the opponent didn’t.

Information advantage always leads to various variables.

Five, perhaps wanting to end this situation already, began to push Esmeralda in earnest.

Nevertheless, Esmeralda blocked the attacks by a hair’s breadth and endured.

A situation that seemed unsustainable.

Even the ice attribute enchantment provided by the Glacies Tower mages couldn’t possibly counter Five’s flames, which had begun to exert full power.

The swords she controlled melted in Five’s flames.

The fact that they melted even with the enchantment intact showed just how absurdly powerful the flames were.

The number of swords decreased moment by moment.

The Glacies Tower mages, unable to just watch, forged swords from ice and threw them to her, but it wasn’t enough.

Since they were swords made of ice rather than steel, most couldn’t even block a single strike from Five.

‘The situation is still the worst. No, considering the usual, it’s just normal!’

The fact that she could engage in close combat with Five at all was because one of the holy sword’s many powers was protection.

“Huff…”

Esmeralda calmly faced Five, who was pressing from front and back, and let out a sigh.

If there was any fortunate aspect, it was that her power of sword dance specialized in one-against-many battles.

Although the number of swords consumed was greater than the number of ice swords being supplied, she could buy some time.

“Haaap!”

It was time to make her move.

Esmeralda switched from defense to offense and charged in.

She was confident in her acting.

Even if everyone else had discovered she was acting, she could still deceive Five, whom she was meeting for the first time.

Yes, the opponent was a duplicate.

The opponent was making it appear so, and Esmeralda firmly believed it—that’s what they thought.

That was Esmeralda’s means to defeat an opponent far stronger than herself.

“Seems like you rushed out in impatience, but that was too stupid.”

Five read Esmeralda’s fabricated impatience, which had allowed her to endure even defensively.

Such a reckless switch to offense would inevitably create openings.

If she had succeeded in her gamble and luckily managed to eliminate a duplicate, that would have been good, but such risks always exist.

Kwaaaaa!

Five unleashed the heat they had been accumulating against the charging Esmeralda.

Even if it wouldn’t be fatal thanks to the holy sword’s protective ability, this should be enough to secure victory.

Yes, that was an assumption Five could make only because they thought they were deceiving Esmeralda.

“I wonder who’s being stupid?”

Esmeralda endured.

No, rather, she charged through the flames.

As if willing to sacrifice her life to kill the opponent. That’s what Esmeralda actually thought.

Of course…

‘If the opponent had been a duplicate, I wouldn’t have even considered this idea!’

If she could take down the opponent even if she fell, it would be worth it.

That was a strategy she could employ only because she knew the opponent was the real body.

Five, who had been pretending to be a duplicate, wouldn’t have left that option in their mind.

“Who was the impatient one?”

“You, this…!”

Skak!

Esmeralda’s holy sword cut through Five’s real body.

***

Five’s strength stems from being able to safely accumulate life-or-death experiences.

Yes, she roams the battlefield through her duplicates, engaging in desperate battles with enemies.

And even if a duplicate dies, as long as the real body survives, she won’t die. Of course, it takes considerable time to recreate the [Carbuncle Soul] consumed to make a duplicate.

But isn’t that cheap compared to the price of life?

And when a duplicate meets its end, Five could record and replay the entire process.

In other words, she could see exactly how the opponent defeated her, what means they were hiding. She could dissect everything one by one.

“I’ve already seen that.”

That’s why Five had consistently maintained the upper hand in her battles with Millia and Eirene.

She already knew how one of her duplicates had been defeated.

It was a battle with a huge gap from the start.

For the weaker ones to defeat someone stronger, they had no choice but to devise wisdom and strategy.

“Ah? Trying to do the same thing?”

“Eek?!”

But Five had already experienced all those strategies and wisdom.

In other words, the same tricks wouldn’t work.

“Sorry, but I know now.”

Eirene, who had been drawing a ritual formation under the snow, rolled on the ground with a short scream. Since holy power is pure white light and her eyes are also pure white, it would have been quite easy to deceive the opponent.

But Five had already experienced it once, so she responded by melting all the surrounding snow with a flame-wrapped kick.

“The same goes for that.”

She cut through Millia’s tentacles.

Legion Commander Five is skilled in swordsmanship in addition to the power of flames.

That’s because she was a warrior who wielded a holy sword in her previous life. In some ways, this was even more familiar to her.

Skak!

Millia’s tentacle magic.

It’s a form of attack that enchants specific elemental magic onto an amorphous, slimy liquid.

Therefore, just by touching the tentacles, the opponent is exposed to all sorts of elemental attacks such as burning pain, electric shock, freezing, and so on.

And because it can absorb and release the same elemental energy, Five had a hard time with it.

That’s why Five cut through the tentacles with simple physical force.

“Got anything else to show?”

“Kuk!”

Millia could only retreat consistently against Five’s attacks, which overwhelmed her with just a single sword.

Kwajik!

Just as she was pushing Millia and Eirene back.

“Hm?”

Five tilted her head at the invisible force biting her ankle. But looking closely, she could see black mana.

It’s the characteristic residue of black magic.

“Aha?”

Only then did Five’s gaze turn to Lug, who was dangling from Millia’s tentacle. Wasn’t his specialty black magic? He must have entered the legion as an executive with that, so it must be true.

However, it’s different from what she expected.

Although it’s a somewhat unusual form of black magic, if asked if it’s special, Five could only shake her head.

“How pathetic…”

A ploy to hide the specialness Five was curious about. Seeing him like this even in this situation, there’s a high probability that it would be quite troublesome if revealed.

And at the same time, wouldn’t it include the thought that he doesn’t want his comrades to discover his power?

Five thought so while observing the secretive form of magic.

Yes, she detests people like Lug.

Not completely betraying because of affection, yet the cowardice of trying not to reveal what he’s hiding even in this situation.

“That’s the type I hate the most.”

She abhors affection.

She hates lies.

And she despises those who use affection as a means to perpetrate falsehoods.

Hwarluk!

Five drew out the power of [Fire Spirit] to its maximum. The absorption ability of the tentacles is annoying, but even that can be overwhelmed with sheer firepower.

Now she just wants to burn everything in front of her.

“Die.”

Five, with her entire body wrapped in scorching heat, looked like a fire incarnate.

In fact, it’s not much different.

The deity worshipped by the Fire Spirit Cult. Resurrected through that power, she was indeed a being worthy of being called an incarnation.

Yes, Garnet is already dead.

The righteous warrior named Garnet died and disappeared, and what’s here now is just a shell and a specter consumed by hatred.

And because she was like that.

“You traitors.”

It might be natural that she’s so consumed by hatred that she can’t even distinguish the opponent in front of her.

Kwaaaang!

With a sound as if a volcano had erupted, the snow mountain collapsed.

***

Tadak. Tadak.

The snow on the mountain had all melted, and the trees, which had been left with only bare branches, had all become burnt firewood.

In such a situation, Five felt her body wavering.

‘The real body has been hit.’

Not to the point of death, but it seems to have suffered a considerable wound.

She’s already injured from the battle with the dragon, Agni.

The real body will probably leave immediately to recover.

There’s no time. Now is the only chance to finish off the enemy decisively.

If the distance increases, she, who is here now, will be absorbed into the real body.

“Yes, I thought you’d be alive.”

Five smiled as if pleased that her prediction had come true.

The demon spy, Lug.

He was waiting for Five with magic deployed in one hand.

“Ah, this is self-defense. I’m saying I did nothing wrong.”

“Self-defense… I see you still think of returning to the army?”

“Honestly, I don’t really understand what I did so wrong.”

“Is that so? But will that be enough? I’m starting to want to see what this ‘specialness’ you’re hiding is.”

“That’s a bit difficult.”

The demon spy, Lug.

According to Esmeralda’s assessment, his skill level is merely around 200 in comprehensive estimation.

If he were to release the power and memories he’s drawing a line around and isolating, he could easily handle the current Five. Of course, if that happens, information about his identity might leak to the Demon Lord.

But now it’s a bit different.

Such detailed reasons cannot be recalled by the current Lug.

The reason he’s enduring in this place with just black magic is solely one:

“I still want to talk from the same perspective.”

Because he needs to be a fool who suffers and agonizes together from the same perspective, not a sage who knows everything, understands everything, and teaches from above.

“That’s what I’m trying to do.”

The three years spent with the hero’s party. The fact that it was somewhat enjoyable and that it’s regrettable to part ways.

Only his current self can understand that feeling.

Black Magic

Six Realms Manifestation – Hungry Ghost Realm

[Hungry Ghost Struggle]

That was the reason Lug confined himself to the five desires and seven emotions.

After all, being tainted by the five desires and seven emotions also means showing humanity.