Chapter 25: Pandemonium (3)

It was so quiet.

It felt like being left alone in a world that had perished.

But the scene unfolding before their eyes was surreal.

The sky was a chaotic blend of dark red mana light.
The ground was filled with unmelting ice and scorching flames that burned everything.
Sinkhole-like craters dotted the earth.

Despite the apocalyptic atmosphere as if the world’s will itself was urging for the end, the place was eerily silent.
It felt as if it were a completely isolated dimension.

“…Am I dreaming?”
“Hehe, it’d be nice if it were just a dream.”

The battle between Luke Richter and Charon had already concluded.
There was no trace of Charon anywhere on the ground.

Either he ran away, or he was obliterated without a trace by the torrent of mana bombardment.

Selena was convinced without a doubt that it was the latter.

“Angela, that crazy bastard is gone, right?”
“Yeah! He disappeared without a trace.”

Of course.
The magic she had just witnessed was beyond anything imaginable.
There’s no way anyone could survive that insane bombardment.

‘Thank goodness.’

The fact that the villainous bastard was dead was undoubtedly good news.
But it was still too early to feel relieved.

There were still far too many unresolved issues.

First off, they had no idea where this place was.
They had simply closed their eyes at the flash from the grimoire.
When they came to their senses, they found themselves in this godforsaken world.

A world shrouded by a red moon.
A desolate wasteland, as if all life had evaporated.

It was like standing at the brink of the apocalypse.

And the second issue…

“Sis…”
“……”

A horde of demons filled the sky.
To make matters worse, a swarm of devils appeared faintly on the horizon.

The army of evil that blanketed the sky was advancing straight toward Luke Richter.
It was a complete and utter crisis.

More than anything, there was the biggest problem at hand.

Bang, bang, bang—!!!

Selena pounded on the barrier that blocked her way, but all she felt was recoil. It didn’t budge.

It seemed that not only external impacts but also internal ones were completely neutralized.
Honestly, she couldn’t even comprehend the principle behind it.
Since it was a 9-star magic, it was natural that it would exceed human understanding.

Feeling somewhat safe, Selena’s legs gave out.

Thud—
She sank to the ground, lost in thought.

Just who in the world was Luke Richter?

He wasn’t an old sage who had burned all possibilities to their limits.
Nor was he a being born as the pinnacle of mana from birth.

Is someone like that really an academy student like herself?
Ha, what a ridiculous notion.

“……”

Once again, a flash of light flickered.
A familiar spell formation appeared in the sky and then vanished.
A miracle akin to a divine phenomenon manifested from Luke Richter’s fingertips.

It was like watching a vibrant fireworks display.

“Hehe… It’s pretty.”
“Pfft, right.”

Perhaps it was the sheer absurdity of the situation, but they couldn’t help but laugh.

---

Stella was once again floating above the Raucht Great Forest.

Recently, Stella had been particularly irritable.
The reason was the flood of malicious complaints targeting the academy.

With abnormal phenomena occurring more frequently, nations had begun formally lodging complaints against the academy.

Among them, the most troublesome was the Holy Empire.
Whenever they found an opportunity, they would start a quarrel, making Stella’s already foul mood even worse.

“Annoying brats…”

If it were up to her, she would have wiped them all out already.
The sight of those insignificant fools thinking highly of themselves grated on her nerves.

But Stella had to exercise superhuman patience and endure it.
Even if she displayed her overwhelming power, those crazy fanatics would just chant God’s name and rush at her without fear.

It wasn’t about being scared of filth; it was just too disgusting to deal with.

“Tsk. This is so damn annoying.”

The situation wasn’t looking good.
With the emergence of dimensional rifts and even the Assembly beings appearing.

On top of that, the movement of the stars had also become unusual.
Even for Stella, who had lived for hundreds of years, this was unprecedented.

It was only natural for her to be on edge.
As she was grumbling while flying through the sky—

“…What’s that?”

A familiar, sticky, and ominous mana presence pricked Stella’s intuition.

This mana was definitely…

“Pandemonium?”

Those cockroach-like bastards who constantly hide in the shadows and plot vile schemes.
Among them, this mana perfectly matched that of one arrogant brat who dared to call himself an executive.

“What was his name again?”

She couldn’t recall the name, but she clearly remembered how obnoxious that brat was.
But that wasn’t the important part.

The real problem was that the location where the mana was detected was none other than inside the academy grounds.

“You’ve got to be kidding me!!!!”

Stella immediately gathered mana to its maximum capacity throughout her entire body.
She changed direction and, cloaking herself in mana, flew at full speed.

Whoooosh—!!

As the sound of breaking the air erupted, trees bent at unnatural angles from the wind pressure caused by her rapid movement.

“The auction hall?”

The place she arrived at was the auction hall.

This auction event had been reluctantly prepared after repeated requests from the Magic Tower.
They must have thought that there was no better place to hold it, given the upcoming academy festival.

Actually, they weren’t entirely wrong.
When the festival takes place, the students’ parents naturally gather at the academy.
Where there are nobles, there are always numerous attendants and protective personnel.

Of course, merchants wouldn’t miss the rare opportunity to profit.
Additionally, the annual magical tournament, held in a tournament format to select a winner, also attracts recruiters looking for talented individuals.

In other words, the academy festival is essentially a massive money-making event, entangled with numerous interests, and serves as a financial pillar for the academy.

“This can’t be…!!”

Thud—

She stomped the ground and took off again.
It was still okay.
She had realized the situation before anything major had exploded.

‘How dare they intrude into my territory without fear?’
If she spotted them, she’d separate their heads from their bodies without a second thought.

Barely a minute passed.
With a hint of expectation, she dashed toward the site—
But there was nothing there except for a single old book lying on the ground.

“What the hell is this?”

An old book tossed on the ground.
At a glance, it looked like an ordinary, unremarkable grimoire.
However, Stella’s instincts warned her that there was something about this book.

[7-star Magic: Contemplation]

Blue mana light enveloped Stella’s eyes.
Simultaneously, a special mana tattoo appeared on her pupils.
She lowered her head to examine the grimoire.

“Huff…!”

A gasp escaped her as she staggered backward.

This wasn’t just an ordinary old book.
What she felt beyond the grimoire was an eternity of death and pure, malevolent evil.

This was undoubtedly…

“A Forbidden Book…!”

A Forbidden Book.
Something that shouldn’t exist, but also something that can’t be destroyed.
A magical tome that itself crosses the boundaries of the forbidden realm.

“Luke Richter, Selena… and Angela…?”

The problem was the faint traces of familiar mana lingering around the magical tome.
Now that she thought about it, today was the day the Student Council was supposed to conduct a pre-auction inspection.

No way… did they get sucked beyond the Forbidden Book?

“No.”

Stella picked up the grimoire and instinctively infused it with dark mana.

The reason a mage like her could handle dark mana—
Was because, before being a mage, her identity was that of a witch.

“Damn it…!”

She had to rescue them immediately.
The dimension beyond the Forbidden Book couldn’t be escaped by conventional means.
It was a one-way street.

If she didn’t go in and get them, they were guaranteed to die.

Woooong—

The pages opened, emitting a burst of violet light.
Stella closed her eyes as the light flashed.
Then, she opened them again.

A crimson moon covered the dark red sky.
The ground was completely scorched, as if hit by a meteor.
The dense, overwhelming dark mana made even Stella feel uneasy.

And then…

“You crazy bastard.”

Luke Richter.
He was standing alone, facing off against a vast horde of demons that filled the heavens and earth.

And that wasn’t all.

————————————————————

[7-star Magic: Reverse Gravity]
[8-star Magic: Paradox]
[7-star Magic: Dimensional Slash]

————————————————————–

He was casting spells ranked 7-stars or higher as if they were simple 3-star spells, spamming them nonchalantly.
Witnessing such an incomprehensible phenomenon, Stella was at a loss for words.

This wasn’t just surpassing a limit—it was far beyond any human capability.
Is he even human? No matter how she looked at it, that level of power wasn’t something a human could achieve.

“Could he be a dragonkin?”

Was he perhaps a dragon who descended to the human world for leisure?
But to display such divine power, he would at least have to be an Ancient Dragon…
However, Ancient Dragons are too old and frail to enjoy leisure.

“This insane bastard.”

If he had died, she would have used forbidden magic to resurrect him.
But rather than dying, he was actually holding his ground against the demons, maintaining control.
It was so absurd that Stella couldn’t help but laugh bitterly.

“The others are safe too.”

To her left, she saw Selena and Angela waving at her.
After confirming everyone was safe, the only thing left to do was to escape.

Stella flew straight towards where Selena and Angela were.

“What kind of magic is this?”

Judging by the formation, it was definitely a 9-star magic.
She was briefly startled by the unfamiliar spell, but soon began deciphering the runes on the outer edge of the formation.

“Hah, this is ridiculous.”

The magic was simple in essence.
It completely separated a specific area into an entirely different dimension.
It was impossible to bring them out using normal magic.

“Tch.”

Stella clicked her tongue and extended her hand forward.

[Black Magic: Dispelling Curse]

Black mana sprouted from her fingertips, enveloping the barrier.
Simultaneously, a small gap, just enough for a person to slip through, appeared in the previously seamless translucent dome.

“Hurry, get out!”

At Stella’s shout, Selena and Angela quickly slipped out.
After confirming their escape, Stella withdrew her mana.

“Principal?”
“Stella? How did you get here…!”
“Yeah, yeah. Just stay quiet for a bit; it’s getting noisy.”

Stella turned her gaze toward Luke Richter.
He was still locked in a fierce confrontation with the endless wave of demons.

He continued to unleash 7-star or higher magic spells non-stop.
The way he cast them seemed almost as natural as breathing.

But she couldn’t just keep watching.
If this place was really what she thought it was…

There was no telling when that guy might appear.

“I have no choice but to forcefully take him.”

Stella stomped the ground.

[6-star Magic: Link]

With the activation of the spell, a faint thread connected Stella and Luke Richter.
Then, accompanied by a massive spell formation, Stella, Selena, Angela, and Luke Richter’s figures began to distort as if affected by static.

[8-star Magic: Return]

Flash—!

Space twisted, and they crossed dimensions.

When they came to their senses and opened their eyes, they were back in the auction hall.

“W-We’re back…”

Selena and Angela, overcome with emotion, looked like they were about to cry.
But Stella didn’t even glance at them.
Her entire focus was on Luke Richter.

However, something seemed off about him.

Snore—!

The familiar, resonant sound of snoring echoed.
Stella couldn’t help but laugh incredulously.

“Are you seriously sleeping right now?!”

Luke Richter was lying there, sound asleep, with a carefree smile on his face.