Marvel's master of cosmic magic

Chapter 543

"How is her fire magic this strong... is she a Saint too?"

Backtrack Water stood within the Endless Waters, shock rippling through him as the tri-colored flames battered against his domain. Under normal circumstances, magic of the same attribute was a matter of scale. Two fire spells collided, and the larger one won. A fist-sized fireball could never beat one the size of a boulder.

Saints were the exception.

Their unique blessing amplified magic far beyond normal limits. Same spell. Same output. Entirely different results.

And what Rowan had unleashed felt exactly like that.

By sheer volume, Endless Waters should have smothered the flames instantly. The water within the domain was strengthened by angelic authority and Saintly power, far superior to ordinary water. Yet if Backtrack Water had reacted even a moment too slowly, the domain would have been pierced outright.

That meant only one thing.

At equal scale, Rowan’s magic was stronger than his.

But that made no sense.

Backtrack Water was not only a Saint, but a fusion of Saint and Virgin, a rare convergence that doubled the amplification of his magic. Even among Saints, his power stood at the peak.

And yet, he was being pushed back.

"Enough," he roared. "No matter what you are, you’ll be erased here!"

He unleashed everything.

The two-kilometer water domain twisted violently. Enormous constructs formed in an instant. Twenty-meter water lances. Thirty-meter ice blades. Forty-meter war hammers of compressed water and frost. Countless weapons manifested around him, all aimed at Rowan.

A floating arsenal.

"That’s a spectacle," Rowan said lightly. "Guess I’ll match it."

He pointed downward.

"Rise."

The massive bridge beneath them groaned as its foundations tore free. An eight-hundred-meter span of reinforced metal ripped itself from the river and lifted into the sky, hovering before Rowan.

At this point, raw force was no longer an issue for him. Manipulating structures of this scale was trivial.

Backtrack Water laughed.

"You think ordinary metal can stop weapons forged by angelic power?"

Those constructs were no longer mere ice and water. They exceeded mundane materials entirely. Any attempt to use the bridge as a shield would end with it shredded.

"Block?" Rowan smiled. "I prefer offense."

He placed a hand on the airborne bridge.

"Mimetic Transmutation. Draconic Form."

The metal screamed.

In the blink of an eye, the bridge reshaped itself into a colossal five-clawed metallic dragon over a kilometer long, its body gleaming with cold, mechanical majesty.

"Divine Artifice."

Refinement followed transmutation. The dragon’s eyes ignited with energy capable of firing focused beams. Its jaws churned with tri-colored flames. Its claws shimmered with razor-sharp metallic force. Its body hardened into a near-impenetrable shell.

Backtrack Water’s breath caught.

"This kind of magic..."

He had studied countless systems, but this was alien even to him.

"No more delays," he snapped.

With a violent gesture, the sky filled with weapons as the entire arsenal surged toward Rowan.

Rowan waved a hand.

"Go."

The metal dragon roared, its sound shaking the air. It surged forward, tearing into the storm of weapons. Energy beams lanced outward. Flames flooded the sky. Claws ripped through ice and water alike.

Below them, students and staff across Academy City stared through windows in stunned silence.

Moments later, every district broadcast chimed in unison.

"Attention students. This is a demonstration of experimental large-scale virtual projection technology. Please remain calm."

Inside the Windowless Building, Aleister pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Couldn’t he be subtle... just once?"

Backtrack Water was strong. Among humans, excluding Magic Gods, he ranked near the very top. Aleister knew that if Rowan truly went all out, the fight would have ended in minutes.

This display was unnecessary.

In the sky, the metal dragon dominated the battlefield. Weapons shattered by the hundreds. Backtrack Water was forced to continuously regenerate his constructs just to stay afloat.

Meanwhile, Rowan watched calmly, mentally noting imperfections in the refinement process. Adjustments to structure. Energy flow inefficiencies. Improvements for next time.

At this point, he no longer needed to restrain himself.

Magic Gods were the ceiling of this world, and even they weakened when manifesting fully. Rowan had already crossed into that tier.

Whether Aleister had to clean up afterward wasn’t his concern.

They were partners. Not equals.

And if Aleister couldn’t manage the fallout, that was his problem.

Half an hour later, the number of weapons dwindled.

"Running out?" Rowan asked.

Backtrack Water knew it too.

Gritting his teeth, he made a desperate choice.

"Endless Waters. Detonate."

The entire domain collapsed inward, engulfing Rowan and the metallic dragon in a single instant before erupting outward in a catastrophic explosion.

The sky ignited.

Light drowned the city, turning night into blinding white. The shockwave rolled across Academy City like a miniature sun detonating overhead.

When the light faded, Backtrack Water lay sprawled atop a thin cloud of water, gasping for breath. His power was nearly gone.

"That’s the first time anyone’s pushed me this far," he muttered.

He forced himself upright, eyes dark.

"I need to retreat. Report this to the Church. Recover... then take the boy’s right hand."

For now, survival came first.