episode_0300

Aspi is a knight faithful to the duty of her protective sword. Her blade commands the wind at will, slicing her foes as swiftly as fluttering petals.

She draws her sword, assuming a stance. Between the faintly green blade and the hilt, the magic stone brimming with my ether begins to glow pure white.

“Ready?”

“Y-yes…!”

“Then I’ll go first—”

*Whoosh—*

Before Aspi’s senses could react, I unleashed my ether. A snow-white curtain immediately enveloped the surrounding space. Aspi and I were trapped in a perfect airtight chamber.

Aspi, about to charge, halted, realizing something was amiss. This was because the wind was completely still; I had sealed the surrounding air within the ether curtain.

“So, what are you going to do now?”

“Huu…”

But Aspi didn’t panic. She immediately gathered her strength, gripping her sword firmly. The wind spirit sword glowed, infused not with wind, but with pure white mana.

*Swish—!*

As she swung her sword powerfully, a crescent-shaped energy wave sliced through the ether curtain. A considerably refined energy wave. Physical attacks don’t work against ether, so severing its concept is a technique on a whole other level.

Aspi immediately lunged at me. A faint green wind followed her. Blades of wind vibrated wildly around her sword, surging towards me.

Dozens of blades tore at my body, then vanished instantly like white smoke. That was my spirit clone.

*Spot—*

My main body appeared right behind the clone. I raised my Muyeong sword and swung it widely. Aspi’s balance was slightly off, but she easily parried my attack.

*Clang—!*

“Good, that’s fine so far.”

“I… can do more…!”

“Okay.”

It might be a little mean, but I want to respect her will as much as possible. I converted my ether into magical energy and unleashed shadows from beneath my feet.

The shadow world.

A technique that once drove Aspi and me into a corner. Pitch-blackness, devoid of even a single ray of light, enveloped the surroundings. Aspi immediately tensed, raising her senses.

I sent several shadow clones at Aspi. They wielded their respective weapons, fiercely pressing their attack. Aspi closed her eyes and smiled.

Dozens of sword strikes surged like a single gust of wind. The clones, and even the shadow world itself, were torn to shreds, returning to normal.

I scattered my Muyeong sword into the air and clapped softly.

“Good. You’ve improved a lot.”

“Thank you…!”

She easily surpassed the passing standard. Because Aspi fundamentally follows the righteous path of swordsmanship, she could be vulnerable to magical attacks. However, Aspi effortlessly broke through all the magical traps.

Celebrating her sufficient growth, Aspi smiled brightly. The sight of her hugging the wind spirit sword I gifted her, cheeks flushed, was truly adorable.

Suddenly, I felt a gaze. The next contestant was waiting for me. It was Nyx, draped in dark mist.

“Next is me!”

“Right, are you ready?”

“Yep— let’s start—”

Nyx, unfairly, cast her magic before I was properly ready. Inky fog filled the training grounds, beginning to disrupt my senses.

But I expected as much. A surprise preemptive strike is the beginning and end of battle magic after all. A caster, relatively vulnerable to physical attacks, must never be given the chance to approach.

And I, having failed to grasp that opening, took Nyx’s mind control magic head-on. I lost control of my body, staggering.

*Thaaat—*

But only for a moment. I barely kept my balance, as my falling body rose. Just now, I self-harmed within Nyx’s illusion and instantly returned to reality.

“Wh-what, this isn’t right?”

“Your illusion is weak against me. Once you’ve given me your trust, it won’t be easy to control you. You know that, right?”

“Tch… Do it again!”

This time, Nyx laid a deep shadow on the training grounds floor. It wasn’t mind control magic. The footing disappeared, sending my body plummeting into the void.

I was slightly surprised. To think that Nyx, who wasn’t known for this, had even cultivated subspace magic. As I was falling into her unique shadow world, I quickly regained balance and created a foothold.

I leaped off the faintly solidified ether. Since I was falling into a trancelike state, the exit looked incredibly far above.

“You anticipated an opponent with mental resistance—!”

“Do you think I’m a fool? I’m a genius, a genius! I have an IQ of 150!”

“…Your access to my past life memories is revoked, indefinitely.”

The space continued to expand, pushing me into the darkness. Even though I said it jokingly, this subspace magic had considerable power. It is pushing me away faster than I can advance.

The physical body has its limits. I immediately clasped my hands together and shot forth a stream of ether. The moment the light passes through the entrance, I activate teleportation magic.

*Pop—*

I barely escaped. But before me stood Nyx, chanting a second mind control spell.

“This time for—”

“No.”

I activated my Muyeong armor, blocking all magical effects. Then, I extended the ether curtain into the form of a rope and wound it tightly around Nyx. She dangled like a bale of straw tied with rope.

“Huuuk… I worked hard researching to surprise you…”

“You did well. I didn’t expect you to use subspace magic so skillfully.”

“Uh-huh… hee hee…”

I don’t know if she really intended to defeat me, but in the end, Nyx seemed somewhat satisfied and laughed. However, as punishment for seeing my memories without permission, I decided to bind her in the air for a while.

The next opponent was Lulu.

“Come to think of it… Lulu, I didn’t give you a separate gift.”

“G-gift? Your Highness giving me a gift, that’s hardly conceivable…”

“Don’t say such things. Come here for a moment.”

I briefly sat down and opened my subspace storage. There were a few things I needed to do.

A gift for Lulu… The first thing that comes to mind is a large staff. Since I happened to have gathered the materials, I immediately took them out of my subspace storage.

Several magic stones I received from the Archmage Leonardo, and a World Tree branch from the Sanctuary of the Sprites. I held the two in my hands and conjured an image.

I’ve never made a staff before, but I know Acusto’s staff making principles. The ritual circuit must be the core element.

I traced the paths of mana flowing through my body and floated them in mid-air. I used the long World Tree branch as the body. Then, I embedded magic stones in important places like the heart, the dantian, and the head, filling them with ether.

‘It’s like replicating myself as a mage.’

The finished product looked surprisingly impressive. Since it was hastily made by a non-professional like me, it couldn’t be called top-of-the-line, but once Lulu, the user, makes fine adjustments, there wouldn’t be a better staff. The materials were top-notch, after all.

I named this staff Astral Dryad. The name just has to sound cool. Since it contained the World Tree and my power, I simply came up with this.

Lulu held the staff and scanned it with wide eyes. It’s a little large and long for her height, but mages usually need staffs of this size.

“Is it alright?”

“Really… Did you make this here? If I adjust it to fit my hand…”

“That means it’s fine, right?”

“Yes… should I even receive something like this…”

Instead of answering, I lightly stroked her head. I often forget that she’s almost ten years older than me. She’s so small and cute.

Lulu looked up at me with determined eyes.

“Then… I will show you my secret technique. Please assess only this one thing.”

“Okay? If you say so.”

We each took our positions. After loosening up, as I looked towards Lulu, several magic circles instantly appeared around her body. She’s holding the Astral Dryad I’ve just given her and began chanting something.

I used [Clairvoyance] to observe Lulu. Numerous incantations are interwoven in an incredibly complex manner, which is difficult even for me to comprehend. Instead of rashly trying to read the magic, I decided to set up a defense first.

I first wrapped myself in my Muyeong armor and set up several curtains in succession. With my clairvoyance activated, the thick magical barrier becomes almost impossible to see through.

*Whoosh—* *Roar—*

Soon, fireballs gathered around Lulu. A huge magic sphere hovering in mid-air swallowed all the surrounding flames, becoming a large star.

The flames, initially red, gradually faded, transitioning through yellow and white to blue. It was so intensely hot that even the glass, and the others waiting nearby, needed magical barriers.

“Please receive my ultimate move…! Flame Horizon—!!”

A colossal fireball flew towards me. The first thing I did was spread out my hand and activated [Dispel]. But as expected, it didn’t work.

Because of the multiple layers of flames and incantations, I couldn’t see any meaningful effect. In the past, I could erase Lulu’s magic in one go. Just like everyone else, she’d improved on that weakness.

The layered blue flames broke through the ether curtain, constantly pushing forward. Its speed slightly decreased, but its heat didn’t show any signs of diminishing.

I activated three spells simultaneously. The first is an ether curtain to block the fireball’s advance. The second is multiple Muyeong swords to reduce the size of the fireball, and finally, in the event the others fail, a shadow subspace to completely absorb the fireball.

A Muyeong sword with dispel properties flew towards the blue flames. Its size started to slightly decrease. The smaller flame is barely contained by the ether curtain.

The fireball that reached my palm was slightly bigger than me, and thanks to the subspace, I was able to barely extinguish it.

Lulu, drained of strength, collapsed to the ground. Even though she lacked the strength to move her finger, she held the Astral Dryad I had given her close to her chest.

I approached Lulu and offered my hand. She took my hand with a relieved expression and stood up.

“…How was it?”

“You saw it yourself. I barely managed to block it at full power. Now Lulu alone can wipe out a hundred thousand troops, huh?”

“Th-thank you…!”

I lightly patted her head and sent her out of the training grounds. Feeling an intense gaze, I turned around to see Tiera staring intently at me.

Her gaze moved sequentially. Yuri’s wand, Nyx’s necklace, Aspi’s sword, Lulu’s staff. Finally, with tears in her eyes, she glared at me in protest.

“Me… what about me…?!”

“…Alright.”

I made a cross-shaped amulet for Tiera as well, crafting it from magic stone. It’s brimming with ether, improving its magical efficiency and easily usable with both light and dark magic.

Because she wasn’t a combatant, I didn’t engage in a sparring match with her. And since she already demonstrated skill at a level that filled the hole in my heart, her real strenght was already confirmed.

“I’ve been waiting?”

“No. Sparring with Your Highness… it seems it has been quite a while.”

The final opponent entered the training grounds. It was Yuri, neatly dressed in a maid outfit. The combat-modified maid outfit was less billowy and clung to her body, making movement easier.

Yuri raised her wand. Dozens of blades of water filled the space between us.

And then, the blades flew towards me.