novelraw Chapter 38 : Unexpected Chaos (4)
Chapter 38 : Unexpected Chaos (4)
Chapter 38: Unexpected Chaos (4)
‘Banshi! Can you hear me?’
‘Uh……? Don’t tell me this is……?’
‘Good. Since you’re also a Flewd Elementalist, even if you can’t use it, you at least knew what this magic was.’
The moment my Spear Wall pierced through Banshi’s body, I implemented a single spell.
‘Linking……?’
‘Yeah.’
Linking—an innate spell of the Flewd element and a spell on the level of a 10th Circle Mage.
The moment the caster’s magic connected to the opponent’s body, the caster could enter the target’s mind.
Thus, Banshi and I were having a conversation inside our heads.
Thanks to the smoke that came from the five beads I had thrown, our figures still weren’t visible to the others.
But the smoke would clear soon, so I had to use this fleeting moment to explain everything.
At the very least, I had no doubt that Banshi was someone who wouldn’t question my plan and would follow it exactly.
‘Banshi, we don’t have time. I need to lose to you in this match. Can you do that?’
‘How could I possibly beat you, Archmage?’
The moment she realized we were conversing privately in our minds, she returned to speaking formally.
‘There’s a way. The moment this smoke clears, I’m going to implement a Fire Ball on par with a Meteor using your mana. Can you do that?’
‘I…… have never implemented such a large-scale spell. And a Meteor is practically equal to the Orb Transformation, a 9th Circle fire-element level, isn’t it?’
‘I said I’m not implementing a Meteor—just a Fire Ball that’s similar in size.’
‘Even so, I told you I’ve never implemented anything that big.’
‘I’ll implement it. We’re in a Linking state. So get a grip. If you lose concentration, even you will collapse.’
‘Is that really possible? Even in a Linking state, I’ve never heard something like that was possible…….’
It seemed she didn’t know the true effect of Linking.
It was literally a spell that invaded the target’s mind, and because of that, it could use the target’s mind to implement magic.
Magic was originally implemented through mental power—mana inherently residing within one’s mind.
This was fundamentally different from how Nide once added her ice magic to Lamic’s magic.
‘Who do you think I am?’
‘……Ah.’
The smoke slowly began to clear, and the silhouette of the Elemental Stone on the second floor started to appear in my vision.
‘That’s not all. We also need a bit of match-fixing.’
‘What kind of fixing, and what do I need to do?’
Banshi grasped the situation and only asked practical questions.
‘After beating me, you’ll secure six wins and raise the fire element to second place. That’s all.’
‘Is there a reason it has to be six wins?’
‘Summoning has five wins right now. I plan to push Summoning into third place as well.’
‘Understood.’
With that brief explanation, Banshi seemed to grasp the gist of my plan.
And it was around the moment the smoke had thinned enough to be practically useless.
‘Banshi, ready? We’re starting.’
‘Yes.’
‘Good. And don’t just stand there after being stabbed—act a little. Just in case. A professor or teacher might realize I’m the one implementing the spell.’
‘Understood.’
‘Alright, let’s see our Banshi’s acting skills!’
At that moment, the smoke fully cleared.
“Is that…… blood?”
A student’s voice came from the second-floor Elemental Stone.
Blood was dripping from Banshi’s arm where my Spear Wall had pierced her.
Judging by the students’ reactions, this was probably the first time a duel had resulted in a bloody scene.
But this wasn’t the time to worry about such trivial noise.
‘We begin! Banshi!’
‘Understood!’
Using Banshi’s mana, I began implementing a massive Fire Ball between us.
At the same time, Banshi began acting.
“If you don’t step back now, something bad might happen.”
“Oh yeah? I’d like to see what that ‘something bad’ is.”
“Suit yourself. I warned you.”
‘Not bad for improvised acting, huh?’
‘Thank you.’
The Fire Ball forming between us inflated like a balloon being filled with air, growing at a rapid, exponential pace.
But was it too much to implement it using only Banshi’s mana?
She blinked abnormally—just like Hei had when he became exhausted.
On top of that, she clenched her teeth tightly, focusing all her mental strength.
A dangerous state.
As expected, it was a reckless attempt for someone who had never implemented high-circle magic before.
If this continued for a few more seconds, the entire plan could fall apart.
I asked Banshi urgently.
‘If it’s too much, say so quickly. I can inject my mana. Don’t grit your teeth and endure it. If you use up all your mana here, you won’t win the remaining five matches.’
‘Even mana injection is possible?’
‘Of course.’
Thinking ahead, Banshi requested mana injection.
I immediately injected a small amount of my mana.
Then, the massive Fire Ball forming between us soon reached a size large enough for the two of us to stand inside.
‘Now, Banshi! Burst it with your staff! I set it so the flames will attack me!’
‘I don’t know what’s what, but I’m doing it because you said so, Archis!’
‘Just hurry!’
“I warned you! Don’t blame me later!”
Banshi swung her staff up and brought it down as she shouted.
‘Even while doing that, she sticks to her acting. I like it.’
‘……Thank you.’
And finally, Banshi’s staff struck the Fire Ball.
I shut my eyes tight.
‘This is gonna…… hurt like hell, isn’t it?’
A massive Fire Ball mixed with my mana—and I was going to receive the full brunt of it without defending.
Only then would it be my complete defeat, and only then could Banshi proceed to her next matches without any problems.
Pwaaaaaang—!
The Fire Ball exploded with a deafening boom, releasing dozens of blazing streams.
Those streams all slammed into my entire body.
“Urgh……!”
When someone suffered too much pain, wasn’t it impossible to even groan properly?
The moment the flames ravaged my body, I let out a soundless groan.
My body was flung far away, slammed back-first into the large doors at the entrance of the arena, then collapsed face-first onto the ground.
“Urgh…… urk…….”
‘It hurts too much. This kind of pain…… maybe similar to what I suffered from Sylarid during the Full Moon Battle 450 years ago……?’
No, thinking about it again, that time hurt far more.
Back then, it was the kind of pain that made me feel like I truly understood what death was, but this now was just pain.
But…… whether it hurt less or more, pain was still pain.
My skin surface was undoubtedly covered in burns.
And proving my suspicion correct, the pain from the muscles and organs hidden beneath my skin twisting as if distorted refused to stop.
In that state, I desperately looked toward where Banshi stood.
“Haa…… haa…….”
Having consumed a considerable amount of mana, Banshi had collapsed to the ground, cold sweat dripping from her.
At least the relief was that she wasn’t in a burnout state like Hei had been.
‘Good job, Banshi.’
With that final thought, my vision faded, and my head dropped helplessly.
The moment Artel collapsed, Nide and all the responsible instructors froze briefly like stone statues.
The one who broke that silence first was Nide.
“What are you doing! Walfis! Get down here right now!”
She moved to deal with the situation with relative composure.
“…….”
Walfis skipped replying, descending toward the first floor with a displeased expression and slow steps.
Nide ran straight toward Artel to check his condition.
‘The burns are severe.’
She then slightly turned her head to check Banshi’s condition.
She looked very exhausted, but not suffering from burnout.
That was where Nide sensed something strange.
‘She implemented a spell of that magnitude?’
Of course, Nide knew very well—she had watched Banshi for a long time.
Banshi was a student with talent and skill that couldn’t be compared to anyone in Class 1.
But what she had just witnessed with her own eyes was not something that made sense.
Nide looked at the students’ reactions.
“Artel!”
Kiena, in particular, looked ready to jump over the railing and run straight to Artel.
‘With so many eyes watching, I should at least give emergency treatment. I don’t like it, but…….’
For now, she used water-element magic to drench Artel’s body.
It wasn’t healing magic, but with his burned body, she at least thought cooling him with cold water would help a little.
“Teacher Walfis, take him to the infirmary immediately.”
Walfis only nodded and turned around.
At that moment, Nide’s scolding flew at him.
“Answer me!”
Walfis’ expression turned visibly irritated as he replied.
“Yes.”
With that curt answer, Walfis lifted Artel using his magic.
The difference in attitude was stark compared to when Ever had carried Hei on his back and sprinted before this match.
Once Artel was taken away, Nide stood before Banshi.
Banshi was still collapsed on the ground, breathing heavily.
‘Hm?’
There was something that amplified Nide’s suspicion.
Right after the match ended, Banshi had been sweating buckets, but now she was no longer sweating at all.
“Student Banshi.”
“Yes?”
She answered well, but oddly avoided eye contact, her voice flustered.
“Are you…… alright?”
Suspicion filled every corner of Nide’s mind, and for once, she did not use her usual polite tone toward a student.
“……Yes. I’m fine.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
Nide’s eyes were still full of doubt.
Banshi stared at the ground deliberately, anxious that she might get caught.
‘I can’t look too fine. I need to act like I’m about to collapse……!’
She practically hypnotized herself, doing everything she could to avoid suspicion.
Next, Nide pointed to the arm that had been pierced by Artel’s Spear Wall.
“You’re injured. Shouldn’t you go to the infirmary as well?”
“N-no! The bleeding already stopped. I don’t think I need to go……?”
‘I made a promise with Archis. I have to secure six wins no matter what. He trusted me and left everything to me.’
Her body was very tired, but that didn’t mean she could rest freely.
“Can you continue? After implementing a spell with such power, you shouldn’t even be able to stand properly.”
“If I drink a glass of water and rest a bit, I think I’ll be fine.”
“Water?”
“Yes.”
“Before that, there’s something I want to ask.”
“What is it?”
“That spell you used to attack Artel—what were you thinking when you implemented it?”
“…….”
The unexpected question made Banshi’s thoughts halt.
“Well…….”
If she delayed her answer, Nide would sense something, so she blurted out the first thing that came to mind while desperately trying to come up with an excuse.
Then, her eyes fell on her own arm, wounded from being pierced by Artel’s magic.
“Honestly, I don’t really remember. I was stabbed, too. I just squeezed out my mana thinking I needed something strong enough to shake this off.”
But Nide’s expression remained full of distrust.
“Judging from what you said to Artel right before bursting the sphere, it sounded like you had something else in mind.”
“……What did I say? Maybe because it was my first time bleeding, I really don’t remember. I was just startled…….”
Finally, Banshi matched Nide’s gaze.
The two women stared at each other for quite some time. The first to look away was Nide.
“You said water would be enough?”
“Ah, yes.”
Nide then walked to the center of the arena and continued the proceedings.
“The duel will be paused briefly. And Teacher Ever.”
“Yes! Professor!”
“Bring Student Banshi a glass of water. The duel will resume after a twenty-minute break.”
“Understood!”
When the break was announced, Nide looked at Banshi once more and thought,
‘There are still many suspicious parts…… but what can I do? There’s no proof. I’ll have to let it go for now.’
She was dying to know what had happened inside that smoke.