“……Here?”
Feyna, coming to her senses, realized she had entered a world of darkness where not even a single ray of light could penetrate.
Unsure of where she was or why she was here, she tilted her head in confusion when suddenly, a beam of light descended from the sky.
“Urk!?”
The dazzling ray of light shone before her and revealed an incomprehensible pitch-black shadowy figure.
─Grr, groooaaannn….
The grotesque creature, which at a glance seemed devoid of any intelligence, predictably let out an incomprehensible shriek as it approached Feyna.
Watching the grotesque figure slowly approach her, Feyna frowned and instinctively reached for her staff to prepare for battle.
However, no matter how much she searched, she couldn’t find her staff. Panic-stricken by the complete disappearance of her magical tool, she hesitated for a moment—just as the shadow swiftly lunged at her.
“Illusion Manifestation-!”
But her panic was short-lived. Feyna immediately used magic to materialize her staff, and soon after, unleashed her Aura through it.
The Aura Blade that shattered everything dispersed the shadow, and Feyna looked around, trying to comprehend what on earth was happening.
“What the hell is this… Crud-!?”
As Feyna surveyed her surroundings, she realized something in the darkness had attacked her and swung her staff toward that spot.
The Aura Blade shattered something, emitting a faint glow, and Feyna realized the attacker was none other than the shadowy figure she had just killed.
“─Apophis.”
And only then did Feyna realize the situation she was in. Bursting into laughter, she gazed at the shadows before her.
Apophis, the dream demon. The demon sealed away by Merlin. A demon whose abilities had fallen to less than ten percent of its original power due to countless injuries and seals while battling Merlin.
Naturally, Apophis, weakened beyond measure, had limitations to its powers. Unless it fearlessly unleashed its abilities despite its soul being worn down, there were limits to the nightmares it could create while sealed on Earth.
“To have surpassed those limits……?”
Just as Feyna wondered how such a thing was possible, countless Aura Blades began appearing before her.
An innumerable amount of demonic shadows began emitting Aura Blades alongside her.
One of Apophis’s nightmares. A nightmare where one is endlessly murdered by grotesque figures with the same abilities as oneself.
The more power Feyna unleashed, the stronger the shadows’ power became.
“This is maddening.”
Sighing deeply, Feyna gripped her staff and realized she would be endlessly slaughtered until she eventually went insane.
Pain applied equally to demons too.
Even he, a half-demon, was no exception.
But facing death didn’t mean he could give up helplessly. That wasn’t a choice worthy of an Aura Master.
“Come at me.”
Sensing his end, Feyna pointed her staff toward the shadows.
Illusions would fade without substance.
They would scatter, but their conclusion would be beautiful.
Thus, the fate of one demon was decided.
* * *
“……I see, it’s definitely gone now.”
After deep meditation and introspection, Merlin realized that the half-demonic alter ego within him had completely disappeared and turned his gaze toward Kail.
Feyna had been his second persona, but that didn’t mean he was inferior to Merlin.
He was a demon who wielded his body just as well as Merlin—and perhaps even better—having mastered staff combat to the level of a Master, a skill Merlin himself couldn’t use.
On top of that, they shared the magic of Illusion Manifestation, making it nearly impossible for even ordinary Masters to defeat Feyna, let alone stand their ground against him.
‘But this guy…… Is he really in his teens?’
To think that someone who casually defeated a Double Master was the same age as Arthur—Merlin was overwhelmed by a reality he found hard to believe.
Over his long life, Merlin had met countless humans, many brilliant geniuses—but even among them, Kail stood out as unparalleled.
‘Though humans bloom and wither in the blink of an eye…… How is this possible?’
It was the first time someone in their teens had become a Master.
The first time a Master defeated a Double Master.
First, first, first.
Kail was writing a new myth. A myth so legendary it might as well have never existed.
The difference between the mythical figures and Kail was that myths couldn’t be proven, but Kail could.
“Huh? Old man, why are you staring at me like that?”
“What, old man?”
“Well, you’re an uncle, so naturally, you’re an old man.”
“No, weren’t you showing respect earlier……?”
“That was because I thought you were stronger back then.”
Kail smirked upon hearing Merlin’s words.
“Now that I’m stronger, I’ll call you whatever I want.”
“You crazy brat…”
“If you’ve got a problem, bring it on. I’m always ready.”
Taking a boxing stance, Kail made sounds with his mouth that were definitely not normal. Seeing no sign of Merlin attacking, he clicked his tongue in disappointment.
Then, locking eyes with Merlin, he spoke.
“You know I saved your life, right?”
“……Does sparing someone count as saving them?”
“Oh, come on, you were the one who attacked first.”
“Well, fine. I won’t deny it. You saved me. Consider it a debt.”
“And I also got rid of your split personality, so that makes two debts, right?”
“You’re really scraping the bottom of the barrel.”
Merlin nodded again without denying it. Saving his life and eliminating Feyna’s persona—both were debts. And Merlin always settled his debts. Living a long life meant trust and credibility were important.
Seeing Merlin nod, Kail clapped his hands approvingly.
“Let’s settle one of those debts now.”
“……What do you want?”
“Something simple.”
Thinking of the Duke still waiting for him in the North, Kail said,
“Barbarian hunting.”
It was time to return.
* * *
This is the limit.
The Duke acknowledged this fact and exhaled deeply, “Phew-.”
His eyes were bloodshot, and his once sharp and agile mind now stumbled over reciting even a 5-star spell.
His nerves were frayed, and he frequently snapped at his soldiers over minor mistakes.
He had thought he could last a month, but that assumption came with a prerequisite: the presence of Yuri, a 4-star mage aiding in repairing the barrier.
‘Yuri’s help was greater than expected…….’
With Yuri gone, the burden of repairing the barrier fell entirely on the Duke. There were other mages in the territory, but none as skilled as Yuri.
Thus, the Duke reached his limit sooner than anticipated. He had arrived at the point where he accepted raids with indifference.
The barbarians seemed to realize the Duke had reached his limit, as the frequency of their attacks increased. In a few days—or even just one—the Great Wall would…
‘It’s over.’
The Duke lamented the lack of talent in the Empire. No, the barbarians produced Masters popping up every few months, yet the Empire barely had enough Masters to count on both hands, and among them, why were there so few mages?
ThesentencesandwordscrambledandreassembledrepeatedlyinmyheadasIrealizedthatourEmpirewasrottenfromwithin……
In the midst of letters and sentences breaking apart and recombining repeatedly in his mind, the Duke opened his eyes after receiving another attack that shook the barrier.
“……Haa.”
A sigh escaped involuntarily. Massaging his trembling legs, the Duke climbed atop the fortress wall and gazed at the barbarians slowly approaching from afar, realizing the time for decision had come.
The barbarians, aware that he had reached his limit, had arrived with their troops.
“─All units, prepare for battle.”
His body had reached its limit, his spirit was worn out, and his soldiers were exhausted.
There was no support, and the enemy consisted of fearless warriors driven by madness.
Only a commander worthy of the title “Hero of Reversal” could overcome such a situation.
Unfortunately, the Duke hadn’t risen to his position through strategy or tactics. He had merely honed his magic to reach this place.
Comforting his soldiers and boosting morale wasn’t something he could do.
“Today, we die here.”
All he could do was rely on magic.
An extraordinary ability that overwhelmed the masses.
And the massacre it enabled.
“However, the enemy will die in greater numbers.”
With resolve, the Duke chanted his spell. He couldn’t use large-scale magic; his mana was depleted, and on the enemy side lurked a monster called Hippocraddon, capable of devouring anything made of mana.
That left him with only the most basic magic: Magic Arrow…….
“Huh, Master. Are you dying?”
Chanting his spell, the Duke heard a voice he shouldn’t have and turned around. There stood Kail.
Not having heard of his arrival, the Duke thought he was hallucinating and sighed deeply.
“……Finally, hallucinations.”
“You’re the one talking nonsense. Are you really that tired?”
“……How does a hallucination understand my words?”
“Yuri, put him to sleep. He must be exhausted.”
Only then did the Duke realize not only Kail but also his daughter Yuri and two others—a man with green hair and a woman with black hair—were present. His eyes widened as he stared at Kail.
“……Kail, don’t tell me—.”
“Mission accomplished, I’ve returned. Master.”
“Ahh, ah—.”
The Duke rolled his eyes and fixed his gaze on the man with green hair. He didn’t recognize the woman with black hair, but the man was a face he knew all too well.
The head of the Imperial Palace’s Mage Corps. The pinnacle of all mages in the Empire.
The Grand Sorcerer, Merlin.
He had arrived as reinforcements.
“Kail.”
“Yes, Master.”
“Can I ask a favor?”
“Anything.”
With a sly smile, Kail stepped forward, and the Duke relaxed his tension and collapsed. Cradled naturally in Yuri’s arms, the Duke finally fell asleep after 500 hours.
Leaving the collapsed Duke behind, Kail turned to the two mages who had followed him and requested,
“It’s time to repay my debt.”
“What kind of trouble has this guy gotten himself into…….”
“When this is over, we need to talk separately.”
The two mages, Merlin and Rizelotte, began chanting spells as they watched the barbarians approaching from afar.
Soon after, the spells they chanted rained down.
Kail understood why it was the mage’s duty to face armies.
