Saikyou Mahoushi no Inton Keikaku (LN) - Volume 6 - Chapter 36

Thirty-Sixth Chapter 

The Two Encounters 

Alus and the others left Balmes’ headquarters at first light the next day. It was Alus, Lettie, Rinne, and twelve others from Lettie’s squad, for a total of fifteen. 

But Alus wore a dubious expression just before they left. “We don’t need anyone seeing us off in the first place, but of all people, why is the Governor-General here?” 

“That’s my line. Why haven’t you left yet?” Berwick countered. 

Alus glared at him, as if to say, Whose fault do you think this is? But Berwick didn’t react at all, feigning ignorance. “It just means that Kurama’s existence will be a nuisance.” 

“Just leave that to me. They don’t seem to have made any moves yet... no, I guess we can’t rule out that possibility.” 

“That means that we’d have to take care of everything. So once the other Singles arrive, have them stay on high alert.” 

“I intend to,” Berwick said. 

Alus let out a sigh, and Berwick grinned. “That reminds me, Alus, your pupils were in the main tournament, weren’t they? Do you know how it went?” 

“You’re going to bring that up? Well, I’m not worried about the results, so I’ll just have them tell me when I get back.” 

“Hmm, I think that would be for the best.” 

“And? I imagine you wanted to see Alice’s match.” 

Berwick’s wrinkled face smiled. “There’s nothing to worry about there. I’ve had all of the Second Magical Institute’s matches recorded, at the highest quality as well. I gave strict orders to my subordinates, so I will have views from all angles. I’ve had the latest in technology assembled for this occasion. I put extra effort into your matches, so it’ll be in far higher quality than what the tournament managers have. Ha ha ha.” 

Alus wanted to see the results of their training as well, so he decided to pretend he didn’t notice Berwick’s abuse of authority. “You better let me have a look too. I think you’re a little too old to be immature.” 

“I’m not unreasonable. So I can be convinced to show you.” 

This old kook, Alus thought. Berwick didn’t have children of his own, so he might be seeing Alice as a grandchild. Even if he didn’t, he always kept an eye out for her. 

Alus found out about this after the fact, but Berwick had had a hand in Alice’s admission into the Institute. The way he seemed to come to life was like any elderly person witnessing their grandchild’s big moment. His methods were a little extreme though. 

“Well, just think about it,” Alus casually replied. 

But Berwick’s expression turned serious. “When you return in one piece, I’ll consider it.” 

Alus looked peeved at the fact that Berwick would merely ‘consider’ it. Frankly, he was too exasperated to retort. “Right, we should go.” 

“I’m leaving this to you.” 

“We’ll handle this side of things, but...” 

“I know,” Berwick said. “I’ll make sure the other nations don’t intervene.” 

“Well, we’ll have things wrapped up before then,” Alus said, and they parted ways. 

After that, the group cut through the wind as they made their way to their destination, out beyond Babel’s barrier, and finally arrived in the Outer World. 

Seeing the picturesque scenery in front of him, Alus let out a sigh. I guess I wouldn’t be here seeing this if not for this mission... 

Unlike the weather inside the barrier that conformed to humanity’s convenience, this was real shifting weather. 

Today it was clear and refreshing. Beyond the barrier lay another—the real—world. It had been a while since he had last felt this sensation, and Alus took a deep breath as his Magicmaster intuition returned to him. 

“Rightcha, let’s go. It’s time to clean up this monster.” 

“There’s no guarantee that it’ll be a monster,” Alus said seriously. He’d said this meaning that the Devourer might not be strictly classified as an ogre. Typically, Fiends that more closely resembled humans and walked on two legs were referred to as ogres, or sometimes as monsters. 

Of course, Lettie hadn’t meant to refer to those ogres. It was just an expression, but it appeared Alus hadn’t picked up on that. 

Lettie, confused, looked at Alus’ expression for a moment, before realizing that he’d misunderstood her. She started laughing. “Allie, you should get out more... It’s just a figure of speech.” 

“... Just hope you don’t get the tables turned on you.” 

“Oh! But if we get the tables turned on us, so will you as the captain.” 

“That’s... not going to happen.” 

“Yeah...” 

Rinne shrugged as she watched them. “The two of you seem quite composed.” 

“Of course,” Alus said. “I’ve never struggled to eliminate a Fiend so far.” 

“... That’s just how it is. Allie, once this is done, Vanalis is next.” 

“I know... oh, there was something I should have said before we left. Everyone stop a moment.” 

The squad members’ faces tensed up as they looked at him. 

“At the completion of this elimination, you all can split up my part of the reward.” 

“—!! Seriously? The reward for eliminating something estimated to be at least an SS-class isn’t something to sneeze at, you know,” Lettie said to him. “It’s even more with other nations involved...” 

“I bet. But I’m not planning on working for free. I’ll get something better than money.” Alus wore a meaningful smile, but the squad members paid him no heed as they cheered. As the captain took the biggest portion of the reward in an elimination, his giving up his portion meant that the squad members’ rewards would skyrocket. 

They, of course, took pride in serving their nation as Magicmasters. But they still needed money for their equipment and to live. It was human nature to be happy for what you could get. 

In the end, very few showed any interest in what Alus meant by ‘something better.’ Sajik was actually drooling as he imagined what to use the money on. 

“All right, let’s go. It’s hunting time.” 

The squad members sported ferocious smiles at Alus’ words. 

The black-clad group’s morale was high as they made their way into the abundant greenery, running in a diamond formation with Alus in the front. In the center of the diamond was Rinne, with Lettie next to her as the vice-captain and bodyguard. 

“As expected, Balmes did some cleaning up,” Alus noted. 

They’d traveled quite a distance by now, but hadn’t encountered a single Fiend. There was practically no sign of any, either. Seeing as how Rinne wasn’t reacting, Alus knew there weren’t any Fiends anywhere near them. 

“Still...” Alus said. 

“It’s strange for there to be no sightings at all.” 

Alus nodded at Lettie’s voice coming from the receiver in his ear. “The Fiends are likely keeping their distance by instinct. Maybe they’re scared of being eaten, or maybe they really were eaten. Either way, it’s no normal A-class ruling this area.” 

High-classed Fiends tended to rule areas with lower-classed Fiends obeying them. And unlike wild animals, Fiends didn’t need to eat to live. So even if the lower-classed Fiends feared the A-class or higher Fiends, they didn’t normally distance themselves this much. 

But the Fiends were keeping their distance from the target. Alus suspected that meant their target didn’t even bother trying to rule, but simply devoured its own kind instead. 

If his suspicions were correct, then it was abnormally aggressive and greedy. In other words... 

As they reached the halfway point, Rinne showed a slight reaction. 

Alus immediately picked up on this, and he gave the squad orders to stop before she could even let him know. The squad maintained formation and kept watch on their surroundings while Alus went over to Rinne, impressed by her abilities. 

“There are four people 500 meters to the north of here, and one more quite some distance away from them, for a total of five. Are they Balmes’ survivors, perhaps?” Rinne reported her findings, and asked the question that the squad began to ponder. 

Alus couldn’t say right away, but suddenly he felt a strange sensation. ...We’re being watched? He thought he could feel eyes on him from somewhere. 

“Ms. Rinne, how many details can you make out?” Alus asked Rinne about the figures to the north. 

Lettie gave Alus a meaningful glance. She most likely felt the same sensation he did. He told her to hold off on that with his eyes, and waited for Rinne’s answer. 

“They’re wearing rather crude cloaks. But based on their appearance, they are most definitely Magicmasters.” 

“Pretty unnatural for survivors,” Alus noted. 

Rinne nodded, and focused some more. The figures all wore cloaks that reached down to their feet, and hoods that covered their faces, making it impossible to even tell their genders. 

Two of them stood on the branches of a large tree, keeping watch. 

One person was moving towards the two on the branches. 

Rinne concluded that they must be grouping up. She then closed one eye to purposefully lower the number of views she controlled. Her vision magnified, giving her a closer look at the lone person. 

When she did this, she could see some kind of AWR hanging from the person’s hip. 

Hearing this, Alus started thinking. If they really were survivors, he couldn’t figure out why they’d still be here in the Outer World. If there was just one of them, that would be one thing; but with five they should be able to move around. 

A reason not to move... maybe some are injured, or perhaps they’re bound with some kind of spell. 

Catching on to Alus’ hesitation, Sajik and Mujir gave him their suggestions. 

“If they’re survivors, should we go rescue them?” Sajik asked. 

“No, wouldn’t it be smarter to wait and see what happens?” Mujir put in. 

In the next moment, the magic formula on Rinne’s eyeball rearranged itself at dizzying speeds, and she let out a muffled shout. “...?! Something is strange. The two on top of the branches don’t appear to have done any fighting. One is wearing a red robe and is rather small... and the other one is probably a man based on their physique.” 

If they were survivors, they would have been in these woods for two weeks. Why hadn’t they reported back? 

Instead, the worst case scenario that Vizaist and Berwick had mentioned came to mind. 

“What do you think, Allie? Could they be from the other nations?” Lettie asked him. 

“Probably not, they’d be too fast. Not to mention we would have heard something about it through Berwick.” 

Alpha would start off on its own. That was what Cicelnia and Berwick had set up, and they would’ve made sure the other rulers followed that. 

“So...” Lettie finally accepted reality and spoke the name that made all the squad members frown. “You think it’s Kurama?” 

“It’s very likely... but I don’t want to break up the squad to see what they’ll do.” 

Right after Alus said that... “No way!!” Rinne shouted out, and as everyone turned to look at her, the sound of something breaking rang out. 

She fell to one knee and covered her eye to ease the pain. Tears streamed out from between her fingers. 

Lettie supported her from the side, but before she could ask what happened— 

“Looks like it was right on the mark,” Alus muttered. He’d seen the magic formula on Rinne’s eyeball scatter like it was smashed to pieces. 

Rinne had been observing the figure in the red robe from behind. However, the figure had turned around in an instant and glared at her magic eye with hostility. In other words, the target had noticed the Eye of Providence. 

And because of that, the effect was broken as Rinne had said before, with the result being that she had temporarily lost her sight. 

“Ms. Rinne, are you okay?” 

“I was completely seen through by the person in the red robe!! ... I’m sorry, Sir Alus, my sight won’t recover for a while.” 

“How long?” 

“From thirty minutes to an hour. Fortunately, I was only looking through one eye.” 

“Just to ask—can you tell how strong someone is through that eye of yours?” 

“It doesn’t have that kind of ability. However... this is the first time I’ve been noticed so clearly. There was clear murderous intent in their stare.” 

“... I see, murderous intent, was it?” 

It took someone at Alus’ and Lettie’s level to notice a magic eye. So the opponent was likely equal to a Single. 

At the moment, they were north of Balmes, and relatively close to Hydrange. Their Single was a young man named Kurokel Ifertas. He had been at the rulers conference, so Alus knew what he looked like: he was slender, carried around a book, and seemed more on the scholarly side of things. Based on his height, he wasn’t short enough to be called small. So he likely wasn’t the one in the red robe. 

Hydrange might still be hiding someone on an equivalent level to a Single, but it wasn’t likely. Nor was it likely to be the other nations for the same reason and their current location. 

The information Alus received from his sixth sense backed up his suspicions. Its detection capabilities weren’t as advanced as Rinne’s magic eye, but from his experience, he was getting that there was one more on the same level as a Single aside from the red-robed figure. 

Two powerful people not connected to any nation had gathered in a problematic region in the Outer World. 

This had to be Kurama, the organization that Gagareed had made a request to. 

“So it’s really come down to this,” Alus spat out. The Governor-General and Vizaist had been too late. 

“Captain Alus, should we avoid combat and keep them in check as planned?” Mujir asked, keeping his cool, but there was Rinne to think about too. 

“Sir Alus, I will be fine. I’m still a spotter. Even if I lose my vision, I can still see. It’s not like I only rely on the Eye of Providence.” 

She wasn’t bluffing. It was the simple truth. Alus had worried that she wouldn’t even be able to walk on her own, but that had been needless worry. 

Alus made a swift decision, and with an almost evil smile, he gave his orders. “We’ll make the first strike... shoot to kill. Someone on the level of a Single won’t die from that. Can’t say anything about the weaklings, though.” 

As expected of an elite force, the team showed no signs of losing their nerve. If anything, they were pumped up, some even letting their mana leak out. 

What are they after... Are they just seeing what happens? Did the cancellation of the request not reach them? Or are they just ignoring it completely? Well, there’s no need for mercy against criminals just looking to make a name for themselves and extort their requestor for a reward. 

Alus figured they wouldn’t have to fight against the two strong people from Kurama. If they’d set out to deal with the Fiends, they’d want to avoid pointless battles too. Since they had noticed the magic eye, they knew that Alus and the others were here. If they wanted a fight, they’d have come in swinging right away, but they hadn’t, and weren’t showing any signs of moving either. 

They might end up stirring up trouble for themselves, but Alus would be able to handle them. 

He considered that the Fiend would notice the abnormality, but they wouldn’t have been able to launch a surprise attack on an S-class anyways. He just wanted to avoid a surprise attack from the Fiend. And Rinne’s magic eye was essential for that. 

And so they could spend the thirty minutes needed for her to recover by curbing Kurama. 

“If we’re gonna take a shot at them, we gotta use that,” Lettie said with a mischievous smile. 

Alus had a bad feeling about this, and scowled at Lettie, but the squad members that heard them perked up their ears. “You just want to compete, don’t you?” 

“Why not? It’ll really boost morale, you know.” 

Alus gave in, as Lettie smiled. 

The two using the same spell would synergize with each other, as carelessly using spells of differing attributes might cause them to clash with each other. The spell Lettie was referring to was an expert-level spell refined from the basic principles, making it easy to use, and Alus had also made additional adjustments to it. 

In Alpha, they were the only two that could properly use it. It was one of Lettie’s favorites, and she liked to use it whenever she could. However, because it spanned such a wide area and tended to, well—remodel the terrain, the Governor-General usually ended up with his head in his hands. 

“You sure love being flashy.” 

Hearing Alus’ approval, the other squad members started getting giddy with excitement. 

“You guys get the second wave ready!” Alus drew the AWR from his hip, pouring mana into one of the chain’s rings, making its magic formula light up. 

Meanwhile, Lettie raised her right hand, the back of it facing her, and curling four of her fingers. 

Her AWR were rings, and for this mission she’d worn one on her right hand and two on her left. The somewhat unrefined rings had their entirety engraved with magic formulas. The ones on her left hand were meant to aid her casting, while the one on her right activated the spells. This time she also wore a bracelet on her right wrist. 

“We don’t have to be specific with the coordinates, right? We’ll just blast away the entire area... Are you ready?” Lettie asked. 

“Whenever you are.” 

Alus used his sixth sense to reconfirm where the group was, realizing that there was no need to hold back. There were five of them, but he decided to aim for two of them. 

He didn’t bother specifying coordinates in more detail. Or rather, considering the nature of the magic, there was no need to do so. 

The two poured large amounts of mana into their AWRs and their respective magic formulas lit up. 

“‹‹Detonation››” 

The surging flames stained the area red. 

*** 

Meanwhile, the red-robed figure and their friends were there for a proper reason, just as Alus had expected. As for what that was... 

On the same day that Alus and the others left Balmes, once the light of morning had completely dispelled the darkness of night—four shadows casually, yet extraordinarily quickly, ran through the forests of the Outer World. 

In the front was a small figure wearing a crimson robe. The outfit reached down to the figure’s knees, and its long flowing sleeves also stood out. There was quite a lot of fabric left over, but despite the high-speed traveling through complex terrain, it didn’t get in the way at all. 

The group was tracing the way they’d come from, returning to Balmes. 

“Tsk! This is why we can’t trust those bastards in the military. I bet they’re looking down on us as bandits.” A cute young girl’s voice came from underneath the red hood, though she was cursing like a thug. 

She continued talking to herself, “They must have under-reported to us so that they could skimp on the reward!” 

The Governor-General had asked them to eliminate a Fiend, but the information they had received was very conflicting. In cases like these, Kurama selected members based on the difficulty of the mission, which they based on the information they had. After that, they demanded a reward considering their labor and in line with their reputation. 

Normally, they verified this kind of thing before accepting, but this time the request had been urgent, so they had determined the difficulty just on the information they were given. 

“And this is the result! Fuck!” the girl spat out in anger, venting. 

As she did, a larger figure picked up speed to get next to her. “Sure, it was a pain, but we’ll just threaten them and grab what we deserve. We might even get some extra valuable info out of them, double our rewards, and if they refuse... one of humanity’s so-called guardians will just disappear,” the man who was more than double the girl’s height said with a ferocious smile, as if to say it was business as usual. 

Sure, it was business as usual—but the girl didn’t enjoy murdering people like this man did. 

Kurama was certainly a first-class criminal organization, but it wasn’t like all of its members shared the same ideals. Essentially, it was a group of outsiders with powers who came together, with no ideals in common. 

That’s why the current leader didn’t interfere in their work, aside from making sure there weren’t any tracks left behind. 

One could say that they were accepting of outsiders, but there were plenty of people with twisted ideals, political opinions, or who just straight-up enjoyed murder in the organization. But as a criminal organization, they couldn’t just do whatever they pleased. So when times called for it, they needed to work as a team. 

Of course, no one really came together in earnest, but they could put aside their differences when their interests aligned. 

The girl wasn’t really a criminal to begin with. But after corrupting herself, she had begun to use her previous position and abilities to accomplish illegal requests in Kurama. By now, she had become one of Kurama’s executives. 

Regardless, she needed the money to hide herself in the darkness from people in power, and to survive in this harsh world on her own. 

Moreover, Kurama was pretty well known, but since it was a criminal organization arrogant politicians and nobles would sometimes look down on them. 

However, they didn’t put up with that. Especially not when that contempt led to situations like this one. In those cases, they demanded exorbitant compensation including reparations, and if they didn’t pay up, they paid for it with their body and their life. 

“It still looks like the usual old shitty monster. Don’t tell me you actually got cold feet, Elise.” The massive man turned his rough face toward the girl called Elise as he teased her. His swarthy face had scars everywhere, and he had stitch marks on his thick neck. Like his face, his body likewise was covered in scars. 

However, these weren’t scars inflicted on him by his enemies. He was an oddball who cut himself with a knife for each person he killed on a request. Despite his big size, he didn’t make any sound as he ran, just like Elise. 

“You brat! We could have done it... but you’d have been dead, Hazan. Not even I could have killed that myself. So consider yourself lucky, kid.” 

They hadn’t fought it, but Elise and Hazan had already identified the target. The dread that had run through Elise’s body when she’d observed it through magic was still present. Strangely enough, it wasn’t the sensation that she would get killed. 

The Fiend’s form wasn’t all that unusual, just like Hazan said. But the sensation Elise felt was hard to describe in words. It didn’t look out of the ordinary, but she felt some kind of unexplainable ghastliness. If she carelessly attacked it, something that couldn’t be undone would surely happen. 

Obviously this was an abnormal situation, and she determined that she lacked information. It must have been either an oversight or a deliberate omission by Balmes’ Governor-General. Battle had been expected to start before dawn, but she’d seen a strong indication for their defeat with just the two of them plus an additional two subordinates, and they’d temporarily turned back. 

If they’d gone to kill it, she would have been fine, but Hazan, who hadn’t even picked up on its strength, would have gotten killed by his own inexperience. Even then, he was one of Kurama’s feared executives. 

As the international community was keeping a watchful eye on them, they couldn’t afford to throw away fighting power for no reason. 

Personally, Elise wouldn’t give a damn if Hazan died here. 

“Everyone’s a brat from your point of view. You can relax, I’m not making light of your power. I was just wondering if you’d gone senile... I frankly don’t care if we blow away the Fiend or that fucking client.” 

“Hey... who are you calling senile? Do you want me to tear you to pieces?” With an irritated voice, she flipped her hood up. Elise’s hands were hidden by her sleeves, but the sound of her knuckles cracking could be heard. 

“Fighting to the death with an old hag would be pretty fun, but I don’t fight against someone I can’t beat,” Hazan said. 

“Then let me teach you some worldly wisdom from an adult. Stupid or not, you better watch your mouth... because if you start barking on your own again, you’d be better off cutting your own tongue out.” 

Hazan fearlessly snorted at her and said, “It would be faster to smash your ears in.” 

But Elise ignored him. To think this idiot is the only one here in this situation... maybe I should just finish him off and say he got killed on the mission, she thought to herself, but soon reconsidered that he was better than nothing. She was sure she could win if they fought against the target, but she wouldn’t be able to avoid getting hurt. And if she were to collapse... 

“This is why I hate brats...!” After spitting that out, she suddenly felt like she was being watched, and hit the brakes. 

Hazan did the same. The two slid across the ground as they turned around. But there was no one there. 

That said, it wasn’t her mind playing tricks on her. Her subordinates aside, Hazan had clearly felt it too. And so Elise jumped up to the massive branch of a nearby tree. 

Keeping her subordinates waiting down below, she scanned the area, when she saw something moving in the corner of her eye far away. It was a branch lightly shaking. 

Elise suddenly rolled up her sleeves, revealing her hands. They were the thin, fragile-looking hands of a child. However, that was just a portion of it, as the rest was concealed with wrapped cloths from elbow to wrist. 

She kept her sleeves from rolling down further, while making a circle with her fingers, bringing it up to her eye and peeking through it. A lens of water was created with mana, working the same way as a telescope. Elise used that to peer at the distant landscape, like a scout peering at enemy lines. 

“Who are they?” The branch lightly creaked as Hazan’s huge frame stood on it. 

“They’re pretty skilled. They probably have the same objective as us.” 

“So they might beat us to the punch,” Hazan said. “We should crush them to avoid any future problems.” 

“You just want to fight them, don’t you?” Elise said. Hazan’s awkward smile was all she needed to know that she was right. “—!!” 

She felt a prickly sensation and pulled her hand away from her face, looking behind and above her. As she did, the water lens dripped off her hand and fell to the ground. 

That strange sensation she’d felt before was now right behind her. But once again—she saw nothing. 

However, she was convinced that someone had been responsible for it. Because the moment she reacted to having noticed that stare, it completely disappeared. 

She didn’t know what kind of spell it was, but that was all the more reason to stay on alert. Maybe it’s a special ability, Elise realized, and raised her opponent’s potential threat level a few notches. She’d need to treat this opponent with care. 

“So what are you gonna do, Elise? If they steal our prey, I’m gonna be pissed. We shouldn’t let them do whatever they want.” 

Elise glanced at Hazan, who was making sense for once. He had a point, but considering how she’d been unable to fully evaluate the target’s strength, she wondered if she could use this situation to her advantage. The other party was an unknown, but maybe she could let them clash with the target and see what happened. 

Their affiliation was also unknown. They probably weren’t Magicmasters from Balmes, but from one of the other nations. It was possible that the client would find out if she wiped them out here, which could become an international situation that would lead to problems for her later down the line. In the worst-case scenario, they might not even get the cancellation fee they were about to grab. 

Of course, if that happened, she couldn’t let Balmes’ Governor-General live, but killing clients left and right would cause their trust within the underworld to drop, and they’d have less influence behind the scenes in political terms. There was no reason to recklessly make things difficult for herself here. 

There was also the sense of utter dread she’d felt from the target before turning back. As long as the identity of that sensation was unknown, she wanted more firepower on the level of their executives to pitch in and help kill it. 

However, Elise’s cheek twitched as she thought of Kurama’s other executives, and realized that wasn’t going to happen. There were some she could never get along with, some who would pounce on any weakness, and some who lost sight of everything when the fighting started. There was even an idiot who only seemed to be able to say, “I’ll fucking kill you!” 

The girl shrugged. Nah... the best option here is to grab that cancellation fee for not giving us enough info... That made deciding easy. 

“Getting a little extra money’s not going to be worth it to kill that thing. We’ll hit up that bastard for giving us worthless information and make him pay up. Besides, I don’t think he’d give us any information that I would accept. After all, I saw it for myself and couldn’t tell,” Elise said. 

“... You gotta be kidding me?!” 

“We’ll get a bunch of cash without doing any real work. So just settle for that.” 

That’s when a fifth figure approached them. The contact they’d left behind in Balmes had caught up with them. 

He jumped to one of the branches below them and muttered a single word, “Canceled...” He’d brought news of what the client wanted. 

“You heard him. No more whining, Hazan. The situation’s changed, and someone else got the short straw. I’m not fighting if it’s not worth it.” 

“You might be after the money, but I wanna fight something. So I’ll go pound on those guys.” As Hazan said this, the muscles in his body swelled up and pushed against his robe. 

Elise left Hazan for later, and asked her subordinate with her eyes if there was any more information. 

“This information hasn’t been confirmed... but according to the news, the Singles from the other nations will be gathering to eliminate the Fiend shortly.” 

“Shortly?” In that case, who was that group in black? Are they reconnaissance then... No, that doesn’t quite add up... 

“There’s a lot of confusing information out there, but it seems Alpha has already sent out an elite squad.” 

In that instant—a dark red mana filled Elise’s surroundings. 

Hazan’s eyes shot open in shock. He could see Elise’s eyes open wide, and the edges of her lips spreading so wide it looked like they’d torn. 

His stirred-up fighting instincts were quickly disarmed after seeing her abnormal appearance. It was like an open fire on the verge of erupting immediately getting deprived of oxygen; his momentum was completely taken away from him. 

The subordinate who’d brought her that information instinctively lowered his head and cast his eyes down, as if trying to hide from his fear. His trembling legs made it clear that he didn’t dare look Elise in the eye. 

As for Elise herself... They’re from Alpha. In that case... 

She thought about killing them, but quickly calmed down. Sure, it was Alpha’s fault that she’d fallen as low as she had. And she’d sworn to get revenge, but that was decades ago. 

She didn’t want to remember those beasts driven by greed, how they’d thirsted for more, and how they’d set her up. 

All the ringleaders of the incident had left this world long ago. Elise had dealt with the majority of them herself, but some had reached the end of their lives or died in accidents. The flames of vengeance should have died long ago, with her revenge complete. Yet just hearing that name made her feel a pain that tore at her body, and started a hatred whirling inside of her. 

But that was in the past. She realized that taking out a grudge on Magicmasters from a younger generation wouldn’t alleviate her feelings in the slightest. So she silenced her mana. 

“I’m backing out of this... but I’m interested in how they’ll face that thing,” she said. 

Her curiosity reared its head for a moment, but with the various nations’ Singles and elites gathering in Balmes, it was better to not overstay her welcome. 

The moment after she thought that— 

“Tsk!!” She clicked her tongue at the same time as she saw the phenomenon. Everywhere she could see were glowing small red dots. She didn’t even need to think to know this was an omen of the enemy’s attack. 

I figured they’d notice us... but this is—!! Elise immediately jumped backwards, and the moment after her escape— 

In the blink of an eye, one of the red lights burst open into a large explosion. 

Following that, the other dots popped one after another in a chain explosion. 

One was powerful enough, but now tens, hundreds of them were going off at once. 

Each explosion was engulfed by another, leaving ever growing destruction in their wake. In an instant, everything turned into a sea of fire, the ground was blown to pieces, and the trees withered to ash. 

However, Elise had cast a spell at roughly the same time as the explosions had begun. Her arms began to faintly glow beneath the cloths wrapped around them as she thrust them forward. She moved her fingers slightly, as if controlling something, and a membrane of water expanded around her into a giant globe that enveloped her completely. 

Next, large quantities of water burst out with the speed of a torrent. Before long the globe around Elise was as thick as a wall, absorbing the water current around her and creating a raging vortex that crushed everything in its path. 

Water furiously splashed about, not just protecting Elise, but also extinguishing the flames. 

Inside the globe of water was one more person. Hazan, with his face red and swollen as he trembled with rage. 

“That was Detonation, but it’s been refined quite a bit,” Elise noted. 

It was hard to imagine that just anyone would be able to use a spell like that. Magic may have evolved since Elise was in active duty, but the user must have put a lot of work into it. Its degree of perfection was a little too high to call it a mere expert level spell. 

“So this is the power of modern Magicmasters. It’s got to be a Single,” Elise muttered, and then thought to herself, If there had been someone who could use this level of magic back then... No, that’s in the past; nothing would’ve changed. 

Before long, the burning, bright red flames had been extinguished by Elise’s power. Seeing that was enough, she undid her spell and the two people inside the floating globe naturally fell toward the ground. 

The next moment, Elise sensed large amounts of mana in the distance, a sign of incoming spells. “That’s thorough. They know how to fight.” 

“Now I’m getting pumped! I love this kind of thing!” Hazan exclaimed. 

Their surroundings had been completely burned down, and the three subordinates were nowhere to be seen. They’d likely been turned into ash. They were supposed to be pretty strong, but they didn’t stand a chance against that level of magic suddenly hitting them. 

They already had criminal records, and had taken to committing more serious crimes, so they weren’t destined for decent deaths anyway. 

While it didn’t pain her to see them go, they had worked together on a mission for a short period of time, so she did feel a little bad about it. But now wasn’t the time to get sentimental. 

As she fell towards the ground, Elise could clearly feel the hostility approaching her. It was a massive summoned beast that had transformed its body to lightning as it dashed through the air. 

Next to it was another. A liquid purple serpent was swimming through the air, making its way to Elise and Hazan. The liquid that it splashed about appeared to be a strong acid. When it dripped to the ground, it burned the trees and white smoke rose up. 

“Sorry, but I’ll play with these two!” Hazan said. 

“Whatever you want.” The wind conjured up to break her fall rustled Elise’s hood, revealing her face. 

Her hair that reached down to her shoulders danced in the wind, exposing the white nape of her neck. Her pale blonde hair was dyed crimson the further towards the ends that it went. Her amber-colored eyes looked as sharp as a predator’s, but her skin was as clear as a child’s. 

Her youthful body showed no signs of her age. Seeing as how she only reached up to Hazan’s waist, those who didn’t know her would assume that she was just a determined child. She most certainly didn’t look like someone old enough to be called an ‘old hag.’ 

Yet that insensitive Hazan sometimes called her that in jest, much to Elise’s displeasure. Of course, she knew better than anyone that her appearance wasn’t going to change. 

Because she’d looked just like this for almost one hundred years. 

Without waiting to land, Hazan ripped off his cloak and unleashed a violent torrent of mana. He grabbed hold of the sword handle at his waist and pulled it out of its sheath. But surprisingly, what one would normally expect to be at the end of the handle wasn’t there. 

Hazan fearlessly grinned, raising his arm and grasping his weapon even tighter. Yet there was still no blade to be found. “First off’s that poison summon!” 

“Then you take responsibility, and don’t let them near me.” 

“Who’s gonna let you have it! This is the perfect prey to vent on!” As he landed, the muscles in one of Hazan’s hands swelled up abnormally, and as he swung the handle, there was now a long sword blade sticking out of it. 

The invisible energy launched from it flew through the air and slashed up the ground, ultimately splitting the liquid serpent in two. 

But as one might expect from a liquid body, it quickly put itself back together, furiously making its way towards him... but at the same time, a fierce pillar of fire rose up from the ground that had been fissured by the invisible energy. 

“Shaaa!!” The serpent didn’t even have a chance to evade as it squirmed in the flames. Its body shrank as it evaporated in the heat, until it was completely gone. 

Hazan grinned once more. However, this time the beast of lightning brought down its claws on him. 

“Hah! Weak!” The claws aimed at Hazan’s shoulders were stopped in midair, even before reaching him. At a closer look, he could see that it had been blocked by an invisible energy field, and as the claws clashed with that, the beast was unable to push in any further. 

Elise knew that was thanks to Hazan’s Storm Armor, but the lightning beast was born from advanced magic as well. The armor wasn’t going to be able to block it forever. 

Yet composure was written on Hazan’s face. Or rather, it was happiness, he was enjoying the current situation. As a serious combat fanatic, this was just extra spice to enjoy the battle even more. 

Shortly, the dense storm that Hazan was wearing turned even rougher, grinding away at the lightning beast’s claws. Seeing this, it didn’t hesitate to turn back into lightning and retreat. 

“—!!” But in the next moment, a splash of water grazed Hazan’s cheek. 

Seeing the beast fall back, he’d undone his spell, but his cheek was cut and blood ran down his swarthy skin. 

He spun around to glare at Elise. After all, she should have been the only water attribute user here. 

However, Elise calmly faced his glare, sitting down on one of the large rocks lying around and irritatingly pointing her finger up at the sky. “It’s because you’re taking your time playing around.” 

Turning to look, Hazan saw multiple magical lights flying in. He ground his teeth, the veins in his temples bulging. “SHUT THE FUCK UP!” he roared in rage, and at the same time a shockwave shaking the atmosphere was created. 

The next moment, it wiped out all of the incoming magic. That mana-infused shockwave had forcibly interfered with the very structure of the magic formulas. 

Roots Actor Break was an expert level spell quite close to a taboo, putting it in the gray zone. It was one of Hazan’s biggest trump cards. 

The magic beast was caught up in the destruction and turned into remnants of mana. 

“Sheesh, talk about indiscriminate. Why don’t you learn to distinguish between friend and foe already,” Elise muttered, as she confirmed that her own barrier had disappeared. 

It was a snide remark she’d said loudly enough so that Hazan should’ve been able to hear it, but he showed no sign of reacting to her, simply staring in the direction the spells had come from. “You dare to fucking hurt me with your shitty spells?! I’ll fucking kill you!!” 

“That’s enough. We’re leaving.” 

However, bloodlust was the only thing on Hazan’s mind. “Not a chance! I’m going over there to crush them even if I’m alone!” 

The moment after he said that, he felt a violent tempest of mana pushing his back, and he slowly turned around. 

“This is why I fucking hate babysitting. This is a request that I accepted. I’m not going to listen to your selfish opinions. If you’re going to throw a tantrum, I’ll deal with you myself.” 

“Tsk!... Fine... I get it. However—!!” Firmly grasping his bladeless sword, he forcefully swung it in the direction the spells had come from. A blade of wind created from the slash flew straight that way, running through the burnt forest and cutting through the trees beyond. 

That brought Elise to the verge of erupting, but she squeezed out the last of her mental fortitude to bear it. I’m never teaming up with this guy again, she decided, realizing that the next time Hazan did something stupid she wouldn’t be able to hold back. She’d reached the limits of her generosity. 

“We’re leaving now. Seeing as how they’re not showing themselves, that Detonation and those summonses were probably just to keep us in check and see what we’d do. If we don’t make a move on them, we can avoid a clash. If we don’t do anything, that is!” Elise said, but kept herself from continuing with, Though it might already be too late because of a certain meathead. 

Her strong tone made Hazan snort as if he’d lost interest, and he turned around to pick up his cloak that was on the ground. 

“—!!” Hazan reacted. 

“Interesting...” Elise said. 

The last slash attack that Hazan had fired off had actually been sent accurately towards where the caster was. But quite some distance away from them, the presence of that massive blade of wind had abruptly disappeared. 

Obviously, as the one responsible for it, Hazan could tell as much. He clenched his fist that held the cloak, and stared in the direction he’d sent the wind in, where he could see the trees that had stood in its way had been cut down. 

Elise couldn’t explain what happened either. But there was no doubt that Hazan’s powerful mana-infused attack had been scattered. Or rather erased without a trace. 

She was curious too, but if they let this chance go, they might really end up having to fight. Moreover, she didn’t know if Hazan had done it on purpose, but with all the trees gone there was now a straight path to them. “We’re going.” 

“... Tsk. Fuck!” After a short pause Hazan finally agreed to leave, putting on his cloak as he clicked his tongue. 

Looking over the burnt area once more, Elise thought of her fallen subordinates and slowly closed her eyes. She didn’t know their real names, and their faces were a blur, but she could at least give them a silent prayer. 

Hazan, on the other hand, seemed to have already forgotten their existence. He didn’t bother remembering anyone but the strongest. 

I wasn’t exactly growing senile behind the scenes, but it seems the world has changed a lot. In order not to be left behind with the times, Elise had made an active effort to stay updated, especially when it came to the field of magic. 

Living a hundred years, the road I seek to master is thin and narrow, yet the world is both deep and vast. Under the red hood she’d put back on, Elise unconsciously wore a daring smile. 

“Alpha, huh? This’ll be fun! I’ll have the boys make a list of the enemy’s members. The next time we meet, I’ll kill you in order!” 

“Just not during this request. There might be clients who care about international politics who wouldn’t take a liking to that, which would make it harder to move about... besides, with that level of skill it won’t be easy. They probably have a Single in there,” Elise said, and then fell silent. 

She was digging up knowledge from the vast wealth of it in her mind. It was only natural to stay on guard against Magicmasters who could fight on a par with Kurama. Singles in particular required one of their executives to even stand a chance. 

In that regard, Alus and the other Singles saw Kurama’s executives as opponents they couldn’t afford to underestimate. 

Hazan glanced over at the red-hooded woman. “Oh yeah, you know lots about politics too. How much do you know about Alpha’s military strength?” His tone wasn’t the same one he’d used when calling her a hag, which was only natural since he was now asking her for precious information. 

“... Yeah, right. Well, right now, Alpha has two Singles. The ranked No. 7, Lettie Kultunca... and Alus Reigin who is the ranked No. 1.” Elise didn’t actually know anything about Alus aside from his name. He rarely showed his face, with very few who actually knew him, including the military top brass. 

But perhaps that was all one could hope for in a criminal organization like Kurama. They did have connections to the top people in the various nations, but they were fundamentally hostile towards Magicmasters and the nations. While the top people might rely on Kurama for the dirty work, they weren’t foolish enough to easily give up information on their own nation or the other nations. 

Elise lamented her current position a little. But then she reconsidered, and was relieved that they’d been able to avoid fighting. If they have a Single with them, we’ll leave that monster to them... and go negotiate for our reward. 

She ignored Hazan, who was grinning like an idiot who’d found a worthy opponent, and quickly changed gears. For now they would go collect what they were owed. Since the nations would be gathering in Balmes soon, Kurama would find it difficult to move about freely. 

Singles were the only ones who could effectively limit Kurama’s movements, but they’d been unable to do so with all of their missions in the Outer World. Yet now those Singles would be in Balmes, meaning they couldn’t afford to be careless. 

First, they’d leave this scorched land behind and make for Balmes. 

Just as they started running, the two suddenly stopped again. Elise turned to Hazan and clicked her tongue. “Shit, this is all your fault, Hazan.” 

“Yeah, I don’t mind that. In fact, I’m so pumped right now. Tagging along on the hag’s errands isn’t all that bad.” 

The two raised their eyes and glared. 

Burnt trees were stacked on top of each other, creating a small mountain. And on top of it, staring down at the two— 

“Sorry, but this is work, you see.” 

A young man with blond hair, dressed in a white military uniform, took a breath after having run as fast as he could all this way. The next moment, he narrowed his eyes and continued, “This is a big haul. I’m glad I hurried to get here. I recognize that scary face. You’re Hazan, one of the most wanted criminals from Kurama.” 

“Well, ain’t I famous? And who’re you supposed to be?” 

“You guys are really good at skulking in the shadows. In fact, your name and face have only started circulating in our circle recently. And I’m not particularly good at going after humans.” 

Hazan’s lips twisted into a crude smile. His cloak rustled a little as he quietly gripped the bladeless handle in preparation for his next move. “I’ve got no business with weaklings—!!” A long blade was created with wind. 

Nobody would have been able to notice the faint flow of mana and the blade concealed by warping the light around it... at least not an average Magicmaster. 

“Unfortunately, when it comes to magic, I’m your superior.” With a refreshing smile, the young man leaped off the small mountain of trees, evading Hazan’s long-range attack. 

Next, he caught Hazan’s wind sword with his bare hand as Hazan swung it against his neck. Hazan’s AWR, which was just a handle, could create a blade through magic. Theoretically he could freely control its length and unleash its slashes as wind blades. As it lacked a physical form, its strength was heavily influenced by its wielder. 

However, Hazan was one of Kurama’s executives. He could more than handle the AWR’s special properties. Yet this young man had seen through his attack and caught the blade in his hand, and then continued to crush it. Or rather, he hadn’t touched it directly. 

As proof of that, there was a slight gap between where the blade had been and the young man’s palm. He could control the mana covering his hand freely, turning it into a shield or an iron glove like a magic trick. 

That one display was enough for Elise and Hazan to measure their opponent. 

“You’re Rusalca’s Jean Rumbulls, aren’t you? The ranked No. 3,” Elise said, turning her amber eyes on him. She sported a somewhat fed-up expression over how things had turned bothersome. If the group from before was from Alpha, this meant the other nations’ Singles had already started arriving in Balmes. It might just have been that Jean was extra speedy, but he had still arrived faster than the intel they’d been given. 

“The ranked No. 3, huh, so for the first time in a while I can fight someone with a spine,” Hazan grinned. 

“I’m a busy man, and you people have been giving everyone a lot of trouble. So, sorry, but I’m going to dispose of you here.” 

Elise said, “I was hoping to leave this gloomy place behind, but I guess you won’t let us go that easily. In that case, I’ll have to go all out too, but isn’t your actual goal elsewhere?” 

Jean narrowed his eyes as he heard how much Kurama knew. 

“You wouldn’t want to wear yourself out fighting us, would you? How about we negotiate instead? And just so you know, this is me compromising.” She decided to at least try it, but Jean Rumbulls was known to be very serious in his work, so that probably wasn’t going to fly with him. 

However, Elise got an unexpected reply. “If you’ll be returning to your own hideout, I can leave it at that. If you promise not to meddle with Balmes, that is.” 

Her face stiffened the moment he said that. “Sorry, but that’s no good.” She had no intentions of returning empty-handed. Figuring that was the end of the negotiations, she reached toward the cloths covering her arms. 

Meanwhile, Jean stared at the two members from Kurama with a derisive smile. “I expected as much. Not that a promise is worth anything... to people like you.” He too had prepared himself for the battle that was unavoidable. He’d also hoped to buy some time, as Rusalca’s following forces should catch up eventually. 

“I’ve just had to put off a fight before this. So you better not let me down!” Hazan found this as convenient as anything as he bared his fangs. Mana incomparable to before flooded to his AWR. 

The next moment, the blade of wind instantly grew longer as it attacked Jean directly. 

Jean dodged it with nimble steps, but its reach was unexpectedly long, looking like it might even reach the clouds. 

Seeing that blow in lieu of a greeting, Elise stepped forward as if to push Hazan back. “I told you we don’t have time for this, Hazan. Stop playing around. I’ll do this.” She had a daring smile as she loosened the cloths around her arms. “I guess I’ll erase one of the Singles. I’m sure you can stop the Fiends even with one of you dead.” 

Despite looking like a little girl, Elise’s words sent a chill down Jean’s spine. At some point his palms had started sweating. And he realized that he’d been fooled by appearances, as he needed to be the most cautious of her. 

Jean’s body and mana felt numb as the loudest warning signals he’d ever felt were running through his head. “I’m not a fan of hurting the ladies, but I suppose I don’t have a choice.” 

He kept his smile the same as he remained at a distance from her. He wasn’t being overly confident in his own abilities. But it seemed that Hazan and previously identified executives weren’t the only ones with the strength to rival Singles. 

As this was going on, Jean sensed another group of Magicmasters leaving the area. 

So Alus and the others went, huh? What a relief, he thought to himself. He might struggle on his own, but they’d surely accomplish the more important mission. 

Governor-General Berwick had gone through Lithia to send him over here in case Kurama made any moves. Cicelnia had said that Alpha would deal with this on their own during their meeting, but Berwick hadn’t forgotten what Lithia said. Her offer had been spurned by Cicelnia, but he figured it would still be effective for limiting Kurama’s movements. 

Jean didn’t know about Alus’ special ability that might be necessary to eliminate the Devourer, but he could serve as another unit to keep Kurama in check. 

He certainly felt a friendship with Alus. And unlike Alus, he had a sense of justice that wouldn’t let him ignore Kurama. Jean had only been sent here to keep Kurama from interfering with Alus and the others, but if worst came to worst, he’d have to fight. 

He’d left his squad behind so that at least he alone could catch up as soon as possible when he saw the sea of flames. I suppose this is a good chance to repay some of the favor that I owe Alus. 

This was an important moment that might impact the future of humanity. And the best option was to send Alus on his way without any worries. So even if Kurama was a tough opponent, Jean only had one thing he had to do. 

“Elise, give him to me. I made up my mind. I’m not going to let anyone else have him.” Hazan took a step forward and stood in her path. 

A displeased expression appeared on Elise’s face. 

However, Jean didn’t care about their complicated relationship. “Either way’s fine. Come get it.” 

“That’s enough of your prince act! I’ll mess up your face until it loses its shape!” Driven by impulse, Hazan sped towards Jean. 

Seeing a slash incoming, Jean looked to be judging its range, but the concept of range didn’t exist with Hazan’s AWR. His target was always in range. He brought his right hand with the swollen muscles over to his waist on the opposite side, and in the next moment swung the blade made from magic. 

However, Jean had closed the distance as well. Hazan’s arm was stopped in the middle of its swing. Having slid up close, Jean had stopped the arm from moving with a single hand. 

After an instant of shock, Hazan tried to forcibly push Jean’s arm away. “Ack!!” 

Jean used that flow against him, landing a kick on his chin. However, he could feel something like layered wires resisting his kick. With that, he couldn’t expect much effect from the attack. 

Swiftly pulling his leg up high, Jean brought it down on the top of Hazan’s head next. Hazan’s massive frame was slammed into the ground, as his head violently tossed up and down. 

Yet he seemed unfazed by the combo, as he quickly got back up. 

Jean appeared to have seen that coming, as he pointed his open palm towards Hazan’s chest. In it was a silver sphere with a strange pattern that hadn’t been there before. He thrust his palm to strike Hazan, and the shock went through Hazan’s body. 

It was a combined technique with his AWR, Rage Balls, a spell known as Impact created by focusing mana into the palm and having his AWR construct it into multiple spells unleashed on contact. 

Each one alone didn’t have all that much power, but by timing the shockwaves so they overlapped, they had several times the power in a single point. 

Hazan was sent flying like a cannonball. However, partway through, he regained his posture, bent backwards, and slid across the ground as he barely managed to land on his feet. His chest had slightly sunken in, but Jean could feel the unnatural wind serving as a barrier and protecting him from the worst of it. 

It was too shallow. 

On the spur of the moment, Hazan had used Gargalom, a wind attribute defensive spell that was effective against Jean’s Impact and dispersed most of it. Having barely endured the impact, Hazan, still bent backwards, looked up in the air and began chanting something. 

Jean didn’t notice that until after he’d taken a step forward to follow up. 

“‹‹Under Desire››” Without any sign of hiding it, Hazan poured vast amounts of mana into the ground. 

A summoning, huh. Eventually a stone arm came out of the ground. Many human-shaped arms followed it and then they all attacked Jean at once. 

He immediately moved away, but as expected, the hundred or so arms gave chase to catch him. It was a simple tracking program built into the spell, but because of it, the arms would chase their target wherever they went. 

It looked like the grudge of the dead, trying to pull the living target underground. The most troublesome part of the spell was that the arms were partially made out of the minerals that were underground, making them as sturdy as steel. 

After casting his spell, Hazan leaned forward into his usual posture. Being the complete battle fanatic that he was, his eyes were wide open and his lips twisted into a sadistic smile. He didn’t pay any heed to the streak of blood running down from the corner of his mouth. 

It was a result of not being able to fully kill the impact, but even that was another bit of spice to excite him further. The taste that filled his mouth as he licked it up only stimulated him more. 

Meanwhile, having determined that he wouldn’t be able to escape the arms’ pursuit, Jean jumped high into the air as some of the fingers touched his legs. 

The rock arms stretched out to chase after him. He looked at the arms below him and also glanced over at the girl in red. She wasn’t showing any signs of intervening, but Jean was still more cautious of her than Hazan. He wasn’t going to show her any openings. 

Glancing down at the approaching arms, Jean extended his hand. As he did, the silver AWR in his hand changed shape from a globe to a thin sword. 

Upon a closer look, it became clear that its color was a mix of silver and red, the red parts due to it being heated as hot as magma. It covered the surrounding area in a hot vapor. 

The globe shape wasn’t Rage Balls’ true form; it was just one of its forms that it maintained for convenience’s sake. It was also meant to lower the opponent’s guard. Very few people alive knew about this, including Lithia and Rusalca’s Governor-General. Not even Alus knew about it. 

The Rage Balls, which had properties similar to those of shape-memory alloys, were made entirely out of meteor metal. 

What was once a globe was now a thin double-edged sword. That transformation clearly hadn’t followed any laws of physics as its total volume had increased. And the blade glowing red from the heat had one magic formula after another starting to light up. 

Jean raised the completed sword and swung it down at the approaching rock arms. 

“‹‹Vermilion››” 

A single strike that would wipe away everything, the slash unleashed a powerful shockwave, destroying the rock arms and their insides, blowing them away without a trace. 

The blast alone tore up a big hole in the ground, sending dirt flying through the air. After causing the surface to cave in, the shockwave spread across the ground through the surrounding area. 

Just when it looked like Jean had escaped from his pinch by pulling out his ace, an invisible blade of wind approached him while hiding itself behind the fragments of the arms. 

“—!!” Sudden changes in position were difficult in the air, and Jean hadn’t anticipated Hazan’s follow-up attack. 

Jean relied almost entirely on instinct as he twisted his body to avoid the massive blade. When he landed, blood dripped from a scratch on his cheek, staining it red. The wound wasn’t all that deep, but it was a close call. It was a skillful attack snuck in as he was distracted for a moment. 

Phew, I guess I won’t be able to use Vermilion for a couple of days. 

Jean’s Rage Balls actually had several more forms aside from the globe and sword, each with its own unique spell suitable for that form. The magic formulas themselves changed with the shape-memory alloy, but they were all limited to one use, and the AWR would be burning hot for a while from the magical load released. 

“Well, this is a lot of effort. That kind of power would have been so reliable if fighting side by side, but I guess it can’t be helped.” Jean lightly landed, and put his hand on his hip. Rage Balls returned to its globe shape, floating beside him and still emitting heat. 

“Yeah, it’s a shame. So let me kill you.” Quick to action, a dense amount of mana coiled around Hazan’s arms like snakes, emitting an ominous light. A flood of mana gushed out in response to his excitement. 

The mana around his arms turned into a spell. It was as if his arms were wearing the wind directly. 

That’s not Tempest. It was probably a spell Jean had no memory of. Either way, he wasn’t given any time to think, as Hazan stomped the ground hard enough to leave an imprint and rushed him. 

It was like a wild beast’s charge, but his movements were nimble and extremely swift. He looked like he was being boosted by the wind, as if leaving afterimages behind. 

“‹‹Fade Spira››” Like an animal swinging its claws, Hazan pulled his arm down as if to crush everything in his path, including the ground. 

Jean managed to dodge the attack, but a thin wind wrapped around the arm he’d kept in front of his face and tore his arm to shreds in an instant. When he strained his eyes, he could see a thin, smoke-like wind coiled around Hazan’s arms like snakes. 

By the time he noticed, Jean’s sleeve had been torn apart, and beneath it were several sharp claw marks that had torn up his skin. He’d dodged the attack, but the wind had reached out from Hazan’s arm and touched his own. In addition to that, it had twisted his arm and scraped away his skin instantly. If he’d been just a little slower to dodge, he might not have been able to use his arm anymore. 

Jean stepped backward as he counterattacked. It seemed Hazan’s arms would tear and destroy anything in range. It was a rather advanced spell, but once he’d seen its range, that was all. 

Pouring mana into it, Jean changed the form of his Rage Balls into a stake. Pointing its sharp tip in the right direction, he sent the stake flying towards Hazan. 

Having gotten in position to launch his second attack, Hazan was unable to dodge in time and the stake jammed into his flank. A binding spell unique to that form was immediately activated, fixing not just his left arm but his whole body in place. 

Yet even as blood flowed out of his side, Hazan didn’t so much as flinch. 

Jean had been fighting Hazan while keeping an eye on the girl behind him, but he realized he’d lost sight of her during the intense back and forth . 

The moment he sensed danger, Hazan forcibly overwrote the coordinates holding his body in place with his own mana, and raised his freed left arm. That took about a second of time. 

Normally, that would be more than enough time for Jean to evade. However... “—!!” Jean stepped away from Hazan, and he felt a wall of wind made from magic behind him, preventing him from moving. So this was what he was after from the start. 

Hazan had closed in, to the point of taking a hit from the stake, for this one moment when Jean’s escape was cut off. In order to bring the fight to one of close combat, he’d put his life on the line to finish the enemy. 

With his back against the wall, there was no time for Jean to run. He’d have to just play along with Hazan’s rules and ready himself to get injured. 

Yet Jean showed no panic after being cornered. Because of his AWR’s performance, the longer the fight dragged on, the bigger of a disadvantage he’d be at. And he still felt the biggest threat was the girl behind him. So he’d need to finish this quickly. 

Rage Balls’ restrictions after activating a spell was a side effect of its versatility. In exchange for the perfect spell for the situation, it temporarily lost its function as an AWR, so one might even call it defective. Casting high-level spells when the AWR was overheated from the load caused there to be a delay in its processing speed. 

Jean swiftly determined that it would be a bad idea to show them too many of the tricks up his sleeve, and instead he would finish the fight in the next attack. Rage Balls, which had returned to his side, next changed into two daggers. 

Its ability to split and seemingly multiply was yet another unique functionality of this AWR. The two daggers were as light as feathers, and handled as quickly as lightning. 

By linking their movements to his nerve signals and artificially making them part of his body, it was possible for Jean to exceed the speed that humans could perceive. In other words, this form came with a support spell from the start, but not only did this put a strain on the AWR, it also came with the risk of his muscles and ligaments getting torn. 

Jean resolvedly readied the two daggers. With this, he’d be able to exceed the expectations of both sides striking each other, and add in a few fatal blows as they crossed. 

With Hazan’s massive fist raised overhead, Jean’s arms reflexively moved. 

However, words were then quietly but coldly uttered. 

It was as if time itself stopped in that moment. The same seemed true for Hazan as well. And strangely, his attack was forcibly stopped halfway through. 

“Don’t lose your head, Hazan.” It was a penetratingly cold voice filled with heavy bloodlust, to the point where Jean’s body instinctively tensed. 

Before he knew it, the girl had stepped out of the giant’s shadow and jumped over his right shoulder. She grasped his shoulder so hard the flesh could tear, and from that position, Elise unleashed a kick at Jean’s neck, aimed at his cervical vertebrae. 

It was a complete ambush from a blind spot, or rather Jean had been unable to sense her mana approaching from this close and was stunned. 

Moreover, it was a strike meant to use the advantage of surprise and destroy his neck. It was one of the secret teachings of assassins, but he’d never seen anything like it performed at such a high level. 

There was a terrifying depth to it that could only be described as the essence of the art of killing. It went beyond that of an interpersonal battle between Magicmasters. 

By the time Jean felt danger, his arm had already automatically moved up to protect his neck. Firmly gripping the daggers, he braced for impact. 

Just as he was convinced he’d be able to block the close call, his consciousness wavered. 

He only realized he’d been hit after he was already sent flying. It felt like he’d been mercilessly struck and sent into the air by a heavy blunt weapon. Even so, he recovered, using his legs to kill the momentum. 

Fortunately, it hadn’t been fatal, but his mind was a little cloudy and his sight was shaking. As Jean unconsciously rubbed his neck, he wondered why he’d been hit by the kick he should have blocked. 

Did she alter my perception...? But I was on guard for that...! That’s when Jean noticed that the arm he’d raised to block was wet. It wasn’t because he was bleeding, nor was it from a sudden spell of rain. But it wasn’t on the level of dampness. It was like it had been drenched in water. This made no sense. 

Jean had taken a defensive position and blocked the girl’s kick with his arm. Yet the kick had slipped past his guard and directly hit his neck. “I don’t know what you did... but you’ve got some bad habits for a young lady.” 

“The way you’re dripping with water makes you look a little more attractive, don’t you think?” his opponent returned sarcastically. 

Jean took a deep breath, but no brilliant ideas came to mind. As long as he didn’t know what she’d done, there was nothing he could do. 

That said, the skills of the girl in front of him were—That’s bad news. Actually, how old is she even? From her high-pitched voice and the luster of her skin that he could see from under the hood, she was perhaps in her tweens. It was hard to imagine she was older based on appearance alone. 

Yet her expressions and the way she cursed wasn’t like a young girl. “Time’s up, Hazan. If you make any more moves, you’ll become one of my targets too.” 

“...” Hazan raised his hand in surrender to her warning. 

However, she didn’t even glance his way. From Jean’s point of view, she only warned him to keep up appearances, not actually caring what Hazan did. His shoulder that she’d gripped was stained red with blood. 

“Alright, Mr. Handsome. Let the end begin.” 

Beneath the hood, her eyes were a heterochromatic pair of amber and blue. And seeing her mouth twisting into a warped smile, Jean was able to understand the position he was in. 

Soon it... no, they... became more apparent. They were all massive, to the point that Jean couldn’t help but wonder why he hadn’t noticed them earlier. 

It was like the entire area had turned into a sea, as fish-like creatures were swimming around. 

No, calling them creatures wasn’t the right word. They were probably made entirely out of water through magic. The way even light passed through their bodies, they could perhaps best be described as water spirits. 

Each one was easily over two meters long, with their shapes and sizes varying wildly. They had tails, fins, and long sharp teeth in their mouths, the telltale sign of predators. 

Despite the variations, they all had one thing in common. They had no eyes. 

Looking up, one could see massive fish swimming in circles around the girl. “Geez, this looks like it’s going to take some time.” Not even a Single like Jean had ever seen or heard about a spell like this. The only thing he could really tell was that this belonged to the water attribute. 

Jean lightly opened and shut his hand in a way that wasn’t noticed. His arm hurt from Hazan’s attack, and his fingers were numb from the impact. 

“Why not enjoy this undersea paradise while you have the chance?” Elise played around with her fingers like a conductor, lightly swinging them about. When she did, the school of water fish swimming through the air began moving as one toward Jean in a frenzy, as if this was the first food they’d been given in months. They paid no heed to their surroundings and as soon as they latched on to their prey, they weren’t going to let go until there was nothing left but bone. 

Jean would have to run to escape the starving school of water fish’s attack. As he ran, he racked his brain to come up with a plan to get out of this, but the water fish had an unreal speed and were gradually closing in, despite his abilities as a Single. 

The school chasing him wasn’t showing any signs of exhaustion. So if he stopped for even a moment, he’d be the prey of their countless sharp teeth. 

“Come on, they’re catching up to you. You wouldn’t be able to act cool if all your clothes were torn to tatters,” Elise told him. 

“Now you’ve said it...” 

One of the fish sped up from the rest and scratched up Jean’s arm with its teeth. Despite having been created with magic, their teeth were very real and razor sharp. 

The school was getting even closer, and Jean was starting to get attacked by the fastest of the water fish. 

While skillfully dodging them, Jean returned Rage Balls to a globe and sent it away in exchange for a split-second of his time. Reaching the front of the school of water fish, Rage Balls unleashed a powerful lightning attack without any warning. 

The water fish that were run through or brushed by the lightning were shocked, and had portions of their bodies blown away. 

Of course, that wasn’t enough to wipe out that number of water fish. Each one had been made with individual mana, and destroying a portion of the school wasn’t going to make it disappear in its entirety. If anything... 

“So it didn’t work after all,” Jean muttered, glancing behind him. He could see the supposedly destroyed water fish regenerate and start swimming again. It looked like their numbers had actually increased instead of decreased. 

Then attacking the source is all I can do. His arm’s state wasn’t a problem. It could still move well enough. But his AWR was starting to overheat, unable to perform its normal functions. He understood the cost of using the unique magic, but he wasn’t in a situation where he could choose not to use it. 

Now that he’d used two unique spells in succession, Rage Balls needed time to cool off. Not even Jean knew how delayed its processing speed would be now. At any rate, it was a war of attrition. 

Another school was approaching him from the front, and just before they collided, Jean made a sharp turn to catch hold of the girl. 

But there was such a vast distance between them. And instead it was the girl, Elise, who had caught hold of him. 

“This is how you use magic. A lesson for you to take to the afterlife.” 

The water fish had been chasing after Jean like trained hunting dogs to guide him to this spot. As Jean realized this, his reaction was one step too slow. 

The girl in front of him raised one arm, creating a large water globe. And inside it were wild, raging black currents. 

Eventually the cloth around Elise’s arm was melted by the water, revealing a vividly glowing magic formula—carved right on her skin. 

That wasn’t something completely impossible. There had been experiments for decades, but carving a magic formula directly into the skin was unsuitable for freely controlling spells due to the need for precision in the formulas. 

Cells are born and die daily. The scars from a magic formula carved into the skin would heal and twist, and ultimately backfire when used. No matter how much work one put into it, the formula would lose function before long. 

After pointing a creepy smile in Jean’s direction, Elise frowned for a moment. That frown contained sadness, anger, and all kinds of emotions, and could be interpreted in any way depending on who was looking. It was a vague and incomprehensible expression. 

Next, the bubble filled with black water floated forward for a short while before stopping, squirming as if to unleash the torrent inside, and spat out several small spirals that flew straight for Jean. There was of course still the school of water fish coming at him from behind as well. 

It was a pincer attack. Even if he wanted to dodge to the side, having been lured in with the perfect timing, there was no escape. 

In that case! Jean suddenly kneeled and thrust his arms out on either side. He’d already had Rage Balls split into two, keeping each one in front of the palms of his hands. On the surface of the forcibly activated silver-colored AWR was a very faint light from the magic formula. 

He immediately pointed one arm towards the school and another towards the spirals, accompanying those gestures by speaking out the spell name. 

“‹‹Hellfire››” 

It was an expert level spell that turned the area around it into scorched earth. The AWR still hadn’t properly cooled down, yet he’d forcibly changed its form and cast two massive spells at the same time. 

He could tell that Rage Balls was reaching its limits, as it was starting to shake. The flames unleashed were clad in lightning. Just a look at the crimson flames made it clear how intense they were, and they engulfed everything, turning it into ash. 

As a result of their clash, Jean’s vision was covered by an immense amount of steam. He could barely see his hand in front of his face. 

Hopefully the same was true for his opponent, Jean thought to himself, but he remained on guard. At the very least, the water fish weren’t attacking him from behind, so they must have been wiped out. 

The problem was in front of him... Jean didn’t think that was enough to beat her, but... 

“—?!” He sensed something in the white steam, like a massive snake... but also like a water current. He could definitely hear something hiding in the steam, wriggling and scraping across the ground. Even if he wanted to confirm what it was, he couldn’t see that far. 

Next, he heard another abnormal sound beyond the steam. Jean furrowed his brows at the sharp, whip-like cutting sound. Reaching out with his mana, he could just barely make out that someone was fighting. 

Though whether it could be called a fight or not was a different matter. The sense of battle lasted for just an instant, ending with a single blow. 

Before long, the steam surrounding Jean was blown away by a strong wind. When he could see again, there was nobody in front of him. 

The only things he could see were the boiling surface and a burnt-away forest, clearing up his view considerably. Even the trees that were barely still standing were burned to their roots. When Jean touched one, the scorched bark peeled right off. 

So they ran away. 

If anything, he was the one who’d been cornered. And he felt less regret and more relief over this turn of events. 

Eventually, after several deep breaths, Jean sat down. “That was rough... It’s not worth showboating on your own. But still, Kurama was tougher than expected.” 

Still seated, he let the tension leave his body and took another deep breath. He paid no heed to the burnt smell and simply focused on calming down. 

Rage Balls, still split in two, was lying nearby. Even after he got to Balmes’ defensive lines, the AWR wasn’t going to be of use to him. 

Not much time had passed since Kurama had left, so Jean looked in the direction that Alus and the others had gone in. “If Kurama’s run off, then my work is done for now. I can just leave the rest to Alus and take a breather.” 

But still—what was with that ending? He hadn’t been able to see it for himself. There was no way his subordinates had arrived as reinforcements. So, just who was it who had helped him out as he was backed against the wall with his AWR overheating... No, perhaps assuming someone had helped him was too rash. 

From the way things looked, it wasn’t impossible that someone had let the two Kurama executives escape. It was possible that the whip-like sound hadn’t been due to battle, but was some sort of signal. Regardless, he hadn’t been able to see anything in the steam, so he’d just have to guess based on what he’d felt with his mana. 

Only one thing was certain. He’d sensed a fourth mana that didn’t belong to that girl or to Hazan. So someone had likely intervened. 

But who would show up here? Jean had rushed over to stall Kurama for a top secret mission that no one else knew about. 

Nothing was making sense, so Jean looked up at the sky and let out a sigh. 

* * * 

“Hmm hmm, hm hm hm, hm hmm.” 

With the scorched land behind her, the woman was happily humming, as if she was out on a casual stroll. 

This was still the Outer World. While their numbers were reduced here, it was still an area where the Fiends ruled. 

Despite being such a dangerous place, the woman ignored the burnt smell and cheerfully talked to herself, “Oh dear, that Elise is always so restless. You can’t get in the waaay. But right, she doesn’t know anything, does she? Oh well, that’s fine. Just leave it up to him, and everything will work out...” 

Anyone who saw her would surely be shocked. After all, she wasn’t dressed like a Magicmaster, but like an average city girl you’d find anywhere in the Inner World. 

She had the gentle face of someone who’d never left the human domain, and would never get anywhere close to battles against Fiends. Being surrounded by a comfortable, ordinary life, such as gossiping with her friends or smelling the flowers on a stroll down the road seemed like it would suit her best. 

She looked approachable and friendly, like someone who was easy to ask for directions. “But what a mysteryyy, who told them where the deposit was? That’s information you could only find out after a geological survey in that areaaa. In fact, who was it who said you could get mithril from there in the first plaaace?” 

The woman enjoying talking to herself suddenly stopped, and found the answer to her question by searching her memories. 

“Oh my? Now that I think about it, I was the one who told the head of Balmes’ research team about it. But that won’t dooo; if there is something you want, you have to take care of what you wake up... Oh, those people were all devoured, weren’t they?” 

She shrugged off the circumstances of the world, as if to say, ‘Oh well.’ 

With graceful steps, as if she were dancing on a stage, the woman, Dakia Agnois, happily smiled. “But if it’s Alpha’s number one... I can expect much from hiiim. After all, he’s the one who killed me. Now that I think about it, what did he think of me when we saw each other at the demonstration? I wasn’t wearing a strange outfit, so I’m sure it’s okay.” 

With a truly happy expression, Dakia began humming once more... a song with an unheard melody and unknown lyrics.