novelraw Chapter 229-1: Shikigami Battle Royale, The Arrogance of the Foreign Mage (1)
Chapter 229-1: Shikigami Battle Royale, The Arrogance of the Foreign Mage (1)
[The shikigami battle on the high platform was called to a halt, and two young onmyoji hurried down.]
[You and the Fire-Worshipping Senior Onmyoji ascended the high platform under countless gazes.]
[The onmyoji below began to murmur among themselves. Very quickly, the rumor spread that a foreign mage, proficient in sorcery but inept with shikigami, had brazenly claimed he would instruct Iya Palace in the way of shikigami.]
[For a moment, many onmyoji cheered for the Senior Master facing you, and countless youthful, indignant eyes glared in your direction.]
[You noticed the Vice Palace Master below summoning a Senior Onmyoji serving as referee and whispering quietly in his ear…]
[Soon, the referee onmyoji stepped forward and proclaimed loudly that, given you were a foreign mage unfamiliar with the rules of the Shikigami Ritual Assembly, you were to be informed in advance…]
[In the Shikigami Ritual Assembly, only the shikigami of both parties were allowed to do battle. Each master could only control their own shikigami and was forbidden from casting any other spells.]
[If a shikigami was no longer able to fight or fell from the platform, it counted as the opponent’s victory. Of course, surrender was also an option.]
[Because this duel was a matter of the foreign mage giving instruction to Iya Palace, and a single match clearly could not suffice for comprehensive instruction…]
[The duel would therefore be held in three rounds. Each round required both parties to send forth a different shikigami, to allow the foreign mage to ‘comprehensively’ demonstrate his guidance in the way of shikigami.]“Damn it, a proper shikigami duel turned into a Pokemon battle?”
He had only two summons. One was the Valkyrie, the other the Three-Headed Lion.
There was no need to say much about the Valkyrie’s strength, she could easily secure a victory.
The Three-Headed Lion, after flesh reconstruction, had seen its power skyrocket. It possessed a near-immortal self-regeneration trait like some bugged ability. In a shikigami battle, it could drag an opponent to death even by trading blows.
Barring surprises, it could also secure a victory.
But while the first two battles were manageable, what about the third?
According to Iya Palace’s ‘tyrannical clauses,’ the usual best-of-three rule clearly didn’t apply here.
Since they had explicitly stated it was ‘instruction,’ if Lin Xun lost even a single round, he could no longer bear the title of instructor.
The onmyoji who had slain the Bannerman Samurai had already met his end, but there were several onmyoji who had returned to Iya Palace.
It was likely that one of them had secretly informed the Vice Palace Master that he possessed a shikigami that had displayed overwhelming might in Fukoka Castle, prompting this sudden rule change.
“Are you picking on me because I don’t have enough summons?”
Lin Xun looked toward the Broken Wooden Board in his inventory.
Using this item would let him summon his Calamity Mage powerhouse.
But this item was clearly not suited for the current occasion. Everyone below was a professional onmyoji. They could tell at a glance whether the summoned being was a yokai shikigami or a demonic abomination.
If he recklessly summoned the Calamity Mage, this Shikigami Ritual Assembly would immediately turn into a purge against a demonic abomination.
Besides, this item was extremely precious. To use it here would be killing a chicken with a butcher’s knife.
[Seeing your hesitant expression, the onmyoji opposite you called out in a loud voice, “Could it be the foreign mage has some difficulty preventing him from offering instruction? If so, you are welcome to concede directly…”]
[Will you forfeit the summoner’s duel, or continue?]
Lin Xun hesitated only briefly before selecting ‘continue.’
[The gathered disciples began to cheer for their own onmyoji while booing you in unison…]
[Under the referee’s guidance, you and the opposing onmyoji each retreated to your corner of the platform.]
[Once the referee gave the signal, both sides would be required to summon their shikigami at the same time.]
[…]
[Please select the summon you wish to send into battle…]
Lin Xun narrowed his eyes, thoughts racing.
If the enemy already knew about the Battle Angel – Valkyrie.
Then their first summoned shikigami was unlikely to be their strongest.
They would probably employ the tactic of racing the weakest horse first, sending a lesser shikigami to face the Valkyrie and sacrificing the first match, then going all out in the remaining two battles.
As long as they could win a single round, the claim of ‘instruction’ would collapse. If they won two rounds, the foreign mage’s reputation would be ruined, and in future sorcery exchanges, he would be utterly at their mercy.
In Iya Palace’s eyes, sorcery exchange was a mutually urgent transaction, whoever commanded the greater authority could secure greater benefits at less cost.
“In that case, I’ll take a gamble!”
[You drew out the Little Demon Shikigami Bell!]
[You infused this special equipment with 10,000 Spirit Essence (the maximum), sacrificing vast amounts of Spirit Essence to summon the shikigami – Little Demon!]
[At the same time, the opposing onmyoji had already summoned their own shikigami…]
[It was a yokai shikigami covered in green fur. It had a bird’s sharp beak, webbed limbs like a frog, and a body like an ape.]
[The most striking feature was the massive turtle shell on its back and the dish-shaped depression atop its skull, filled with clear water that glimmered in the sunset.]
[You identified it as the Shikigami – Yokai Kappa.]
[As the Little Demon Shikigami Bell rang out, an inexplicable cold wind swept over the platform, and eighteen clusters of black shadow quietly emerged!]
[They were small as children, their faces blue and fanged, expressions ferocious. Some carried blades, others held clubs or tridents…]
[The eighteen Little Demons were pitch-black like quagmire, nearly solid in form, emitting waves of eerie, wailing cries.]
[Seeing the eighteen Little Demons, the opposing onmyoji stared, dumbfounded. Naturally, they recognized that these were linked set shikigami, not in violation of the rules.]