29
Pa-a-a-a-a!
A white light burst out, brightening the surroundings.
Gradually, the light enveloped Amelia in a circular manner. It was a radiant barrier, a barrier of brilliance.
“Wow, so you had a hidden hand after all.”
Seeing the radiant barrier, the mine, Gu Junmyung, seemed amused, his eyes gleaming.
“But what can you do by blocking it? With that body injured by the bloodstone, you can’t even raise mana.”
Mockingly, Gu Junmyung’s eyes narrowed for a moment.
“······!”
Contrary to expectations, Amelia was quickly weaving a magical spell.
It was not a simple barrier as Goo Junmyeong had thought, for the dazzling magic shield.
Amelia, unable to gather magic due to the Bloodflow Stone, but the sigil inscribed on her body also served as a warehouse for storing magic.
In short, the Second Magic.
When the Second Magic was activated, Amelia could handle much more magic than usual.
However, as she received magic beyond her limits, it was inevitable that her body would strain.
Moreover, now in a situation where she was affected up to the Bloodflow Stone. A hot heat rose from her whole body like distillation.
“······I can’t hold on much longer.”
Even if it meant pushing herself a bit, she had to deliver a proper blow.
Crackle!
As magic filled the sigil, a blazing flame rose fiercely.
A 3rd Circle fire attribute magic, Burning Flame.
The wind that followed breathed vitality into the flames.
A 3rd Circle wind attribute magic, Wind of the Wind King.
Next, the flames that began to burn brightly overlapped with a light attribute magic, Star Cluster, splitting the burning flames into dozens of fireballs for a rebirth.
Amelia, the possessor of pure magic who could freely manipulate all elemental attributes, combined magic, and her signature magic, Flame Explosion.
The process was complex, but the completion of the magic was instantaneous.
Dozens of fireballs rose illuminating the dormitory, targeting Goo Junmyeong.
Boom!
The flames surged, and the ground ruptured. A firepower so intense that it distorted space.
Although it was a magic composed of three circles, through combination and amplification, its power could rival that of a 5th Circle.
This was the terror of Amelia’s boasted combined magic.
“Haah, haah!”
Using Flame Explosion, Amelia’s legs gave out as she staggered.
Her body overheated from using magic to its limits, her skin cracking. But Amelia’s expression was bright.
Just as expected, Flame Explosion, which would usually be difficult to succeed with, had burned down the area with a power far exceeding perfection.
Moreover, Goo Junmyeong showed no sign of blocking or avoiding.
Quite literally, he was ‘directly hit’.
No matter how powerful one’s magic was, it was difficult to withstand such a bombardment spell with bare flesh.
He would have been burnt by the flames, turned into charcoal, or scattered as ash.
But······
Thud, thud.
Amelia was astonished at the sight that unfolded as the flames subsided.
“···Unscathed?!”
Despite being directly hit by so many fireballs, Goo Junmyeong stood unscathed, without a hint of scorching.
Amelia was perplexed by this mysterious sight, but soon gritted her teeth. Successive fireballs aimed at Goo Junmyeong were shot.
Boom! Boom!
The amplified fireballs through combination were undoubtedly not magic that could be easily withstood without any defenses.
······Yet, for some reason, Goo Junmyeong was unharmed. Clearly, he was watching himself being directly hit with his own eyes.
“What in the world······”
“There’s no change no matter how much you keep looking.”
Gu Junmyung strolled leisurely. And Amelia couldn’t avoid it.
No, her body wouldn’t move.
“······!”
As Amelia’s eyes shook, Gu Junmyung smirked.
“It seems like you don’t know why your body won’t move.”
“······.”
Gu Junmyung pointed at the ground. Amelia’s abnormally elongated shadow was being stepped on by Gu Junmyung’s foot.
“Shadow binding. If I step on your shadow, you won’t be able to move.”
“······.”
Even without Gu Junmyung’s explanation, Amelia could tell what the situation was the moment she saw her shadow being stepped on.
The magic that entered her body through the shadow that touched Gu Junmyung was enveloping her body.
Of course, this was temporary and could be released at any time with magic. But.
“If you move again, it’ll be troublesome······”
“Ugh!”
Gu Junmyung’s fist struck Amelia’s abdomen. Through the penetrating fist, sinister magic flowed in.
It was a more certain measure to subdue her. That was when Gu Junmyung injected the magic.
Beep─ Beep─
The smartwatch clasped around his wrist emitted a loud warning sound along with a red light.
Gu Junmyung’s expression hardened.
“Kiyonghoon’s in trouble? How could it be so soon······”
He and the Mains shared smartwatches that allowed them to check each other’s safety.
The current signal was a warning that Kiyonghoon, a Main who had secured the escape route, had lost his signal.
Since Kiyonghoon wouldn’t have intentionally cut off the signal, it meant that some problem had occurred.
It was when Gu Junmyung furrowed his brows upon realizing that the escape route had been blocked.
Whoosh!
Magic burst out from the magic circle carved on Amelia’s abdomen. Gu Junmyung, who was off guard, was pushed back.
“Haah, haah······”
Amelia, who had barely regained her freedom, breathed heavily.
Her body was in a terrible state, but fortunately, there was still some magic stored in the magic circle.
Of course, it was impossible to strike Gu Junmyung. Somehow, her attacks weren’t affecting him.
But all hope was not lost. Earlier, Gu Junmyung’s expression had hardened upon hearing the smartwatch’s warning sound. That meant something difficult for Gu Junmyung had happened.
‘I need to buy time.’
Instinctively understanding the situation, Amelia summoned her magic.
From Noble mtl dot com
To buy time, she needed to distance herself from Gu Junmyung. Especially, a situation like just before where her shadow was being stepped on must never happen again.
“Such futile resistance······”
As Amelia weaved her magic, Gu Junmyung’s expression turned sour.
“I thought you were clever, but I was mistaken. You must have seen that your magic doesn’t work, right?”
Ignoring Gu Junmyung’s words, Amelia’s magic was completed. The flames of magic slashed through space. But it wasn’t aimed at Gu Junmyung.
Boom!
The piles of sand rose roughly. It was as if the earth itself was disturbed by the inferno.
“······!”
Junmyeong Gu’s momentarily surprised expression contorted.
Amelia realized belatedly that Amelia had used magic not to attack her, but to escape.
And Amelia made a terrifying escape as the dust and sand rose.
“Haah, haah!”
Her body, affected by the Blood Flow Stone, was hot like a boulder, and the rising heat made her vision blur, yet she never stopped taking steps forward.
The only stroke of luck was that the acceleration buff on her body kept her movements from being slower than expected.
Before the dust settled, she successfully moved to the dormitory corner.
Glancing back, for some reason, Junmyeong Gu hadn’t moved an inch from his spot.
She was puzzled as to why he wasn’t following, but either way, it was a good thing for her.
“Alright. With this distance, I’ve bought some time.”
The distance between Junmyeong and her was close to 10 meters.
Perhaps she could escape.
It was when Amelia harbored such a small hope.
“······!”
As she turned her gaze, her body seemed to freeze as if nailed to the ground. Trying to move forcibly, her legs wouldn’t obey.
“······What’s happening?”
Amelia’s eyes, bewildered by the phenomenon she couldn’t comprehend, flickered.
“No matter how much you run, it’s pointless.”
“······!”
Junmyeong’s voice suddenly came from right behind her.
“He moved in this short time?”
Astonished, Amelia looked ahead, only to find Junmyeong still standing 10 meters away.
“W-What’s going on······?”
“It’s a body-sharing spell. Illusions and reality. A magic that shares two bodies.”
‘What kind of absurd magic is this······’
Although astonished, Amelia muttered, unable to voice her thoughts. Her body had been corroded by Junmyeong’s magic.
“Then, let’s extract the magic power.”
Seizing Amelia by the hair, Junmyeong dragged her to the magic circle he had drawn in advance.
Thus, Junmyeong threw Amelia into the magic circle and disintegrated into shadows.
Following him, the original Junmyeong walked over.
Watching dumbfoundedly from the side, Emerson asked in a trembling voice, “W-Will you, not kill her?”
“She’s still here.”
Crack!
Junmyeong, grabbing Emerson’s face like lightning, injected magic.
“aaagh!”
Struggling in Junmyeong’s grip, Emerson soon collapsed like a deflated doll.
Having captured Amelia, Junmyeong judged that there was not much value in keeping Emerson and disposed of him.
“······!”
Amelia’s face turned pale as she mourned her cousin’s death. Tears welled up in her eyes and streamed down her cheeks. The belated horror of Emerson’s death engulfed her.
Feeling a chill run down her spine as she met Junmyeong’s greedy gaze, she shuddered all over.
“Let’s begin.”
In no time, Junmyeong brought his hand to the ground, unleashing a sinister light from the magic circle.
A white magic power started to flow from Amelia’s body, seeping into the magic circle.
“This, this is pure magic power.”
Junmyeong, who had both hands on the magic circle, trembled.
“Amazing! To be able to monopolize something like this!”
Junmyeong’s face was filled with delight.
Originally, pure magic power was supposed to be gathered and shared among all the mages, but Junmyeong had no intention of doing so. They had only come together out of necessity. There was no sense of camaraderie among the mages. Even if it had been a different mage in Junmyeong’s place, the outcome would have been the same.
“······Am I going to die?”
As the magic power escaped from her body, the life gradually faded from Amelia’s eyes.
She was staring blankly at the sky, filled with emptiness.
Thud!
Junmyeong’s right arm, which was raised towards the magic circle, was severed.
“aaargh!”
Clutching his shoulder, Junmyeong quickly stood up and turned around.
“Who’s there!”
“What will you do if you find out.”
“······!”
Amelia’s eyes widened. The voice was familiar to her.
Soon, she turned her head and saw a man standing next to the magic circle.
“Phew, I’m glad I’m not too late.”
The man who sighed in relief as he looked at her was Haehwasol.
***
Junmyeong, the phantom ghost, was difficult to deal with if you didn’t know him, but surprisingly manageable once you did.
Junmyeong’s actual combat ability was nothing special.
However, to strike him, one needed to accurately understand the nature of the abilities Junmyeong possessed.
Firstly, Junmyeong had two bodies.
Namely, the ‘shadow’ and the ‘substance.’
The shadow could be up to 10m away from the substance, and this shadow was, in fact, Junmyeong’s ‘main body.’
On the other hand, the ‘substance’ was nothing but an illusion, making it impervious to attacks.
The issue was that this substance wasn’t a complete illusion; it had a sense of reality.
With Junmyeong’s magic moving between the shadow and the substance, the substance gained a sense of reality when the magic lingered on it.
And while the magic resided in the substance, it was no different from a regular physical body, making it vulnerable to attacks.
Conversely, for Junmyeong’s substance to strike an opponent, it needed magic.
It was this intricate ability that made Junmyeong a challenging foe to capture.
Of course, I knew well about Junmyeong’s tactics.
Right at the moment when the lad injected mana into his body.
If his ‘both feet’ did not touch the ground, he could isolate the mana.
He had to make sure both feet touched the ground to communicate with shadows and mana through the earth.
That’s why I quietly watched Amelia being dragged along by Gu Junmyeong.
I had to wait for the exact moment when the lad would lift his foot off the ground.
The moment when Amelia’s pure mana blurred the boundaries.
“…How are you not scared?”
Gu Junmyeong, with one leg caught in the grip of power, asked with a stiff expression.
Of course, I had no reason to answer.
It wasn’t out of curiosity that Gu Junmyeong asked.
It was clear he was rolling his eyes, waiting for a chance to strike.
“Amelia. That’s about to burst. Hold on to it.”
The black shadow was sluggishly trying to escape.
Seeing Amelia, who had struggled to stand up from the magic circle, guarding the shadow, I nodded.
“No need to be scared, it’s nothing.”
Gu Junmyeong’s mana was currently bound to the ‘body’. It seemed safe to assume that the shadow had no power.
Naturally, if Amelia were to seize the shadow, things would go smoothly, but that was not the way.
I had to grab it to deliver the final blow and gain experience points.
However, it was better to kill both the body and the entity at the same time.
If only the body died, the mana could return to the entity and cause a potential explosion.
Soon, my sword’s blade pierced both the lad’s body and entity.
[Save the Eternity Academy from the group terror of Minds!]
▶Main Building (0/1)
▶Saengdo-dong (1/1)
▶Outskirts Escape Gate (1/1)
[Subquest: Amelia’s death line is released.]
[A reward of 5000 SP will be given.]
…Following that, numerous notifications about experience points filled my vision.