Chapter 310: The Jester Is Myself (8.6k) [77]
“Did you hear? Third-year student Mike Owen is going to duel with first-year student Dark Demon!”
“Of course, why else would I be standing here?”
Brian Pò’ē looked disdainfully at his classmate, feeling that ever since they met, this classmate has always been spouting nonsense.
Mike Owen and Dark Demon’s conversation wasn’t kept secret from others. Those who passed by noticed the unusual atmosphere and stopped subconsciously, just like Wit and Robert did.
Naturally, they overheard everything.
Word spread quickly among the students still outside the castle.
Those uninterested continued on their own.
The interested gradually gathered.
Duels between third-year and first-year students were quite rare; one might see them only a few times a year.
Moreover, Mike Owen and Dark Demon were both famous in the Noble Academy.
Owen was among the top third-year students.
He had shone brightly in the Dueling Arena.
But now, he was set to duel a first-year student—had it not been for Dark Demon, someone might have interfered!
Since his victory over second-year student Else Kevin in the Novice Tournament, Dark Demon’s reputation had risen even higher.
Students had long equated his strength with that of third-year students.
Thus, this duel seemed like an equal contest among third-year students to some.
Furthermore, Professor Lily, who had just made a giant snowman, was overseeing it. There was no need for the students to worry.
At this moment, all they needed to do was treat this unruly street duel as the prelude to Valentine’s Day!
…
“Come on, come on, the more people the better!”
Angus Jeffrey and his club members stood together, eyes flickering.
Whoever won or lost didn’t matter.
The important thing was to create this opposition.
Ideally, it should be a fierce, intense battle to build up the momentum!
…
Ahead of them, where their gazes met,
Dark had just finished cleaning up the trash.
He regretted collecting the Mana Spirits too quickly earlier; he wanted them to learn to clean up after themselves.
After handing the garbage bag to Rose, he clapped his hands and looked at Owen, who had been waiting for a while.
He said, “Senior, has the long wait improved your mood?”
Owen hesitated, “What are you talking about?”
Dark casually replied, “Time can heal wounds.”
Owen whispered, “But my life is now only about dueling.”
Dark smiled, “Right, Senior. I still don’t know how we decide the winner in a street duel without rules. The initial duel mode involved a Mana Guidance Ball.”
Owen explained, “In a street duel, it ends when one side concedes.”
Dark asked curiously, “Isn’t the duelist not supposed to participate directly?”
Owen gave a peculiar smile, “They can’t participate directly, but nothing says they can’t be attacked.”
Dark was startled, then understood, “So that’s how it is, this is a street duel!”
Owen added, “Of course, in the academy, we should hold back a bit.”
Dark nodded, understanding.
Essentially, a street duel is an upgraded version of a street fight—no rules, no referees.
To win, anything goes.
While duelist participation is forbidden in public, in a street duel, attacking the duelist themselves is the true essence!
That’s when Armed Cards and Equipment Cards come into play.
[I summon my fist as a sign — a regular punch!]
That’s roughly it.
Even throwing lime or pouring acid could be winning strategies.
…
Of course, they were in the academy, so the so-called “street duel” was naturally restricted.
Dark patted the stone table beside him.
His understanding of “unscrupulous means” was thorough.
“How about using this stone table as the boundary?”
“Sure.”
Owen glanced at the two stone tables, feeling somewhat unfamiliar with them.
Was there such a nice resting spot by the lake?
He steadied himself and reached for his Mana Card Deck.
He believed he had a chance against Dark Demon.
In the previous Novice Tournament, Dark Demon’s deck had revealed much.
To him, Dark’s core Mana Spirit Cards were special enhancement cards and high-intelligence Mana Spirits.
In a ruleless street duel, having those special enhancement cards, Dark could quickly strengthen his Mana Spirits to the Second Tier!
Although Dark’s Second Tier Mana Spirits were all four-star, each one was stronger than the last.
Considering them ordinary four-star Mana Spirits would be a fatal mistake.
But that was all.
Relying solely on the Mana Spirit’s enhancement series cards had its limits.
As a top third-year student, Owen’s deck was rich and comprehensive.
He also had his own system for street duels.
“Let’s begin.”
“Then today, I’ll teach him a lesson!”
Mike Owen’s gaze turned fierce.
Though he claimed he came to lose face, no one truly wants to lose.
He intended to win this duel!
…
Behind the crowd,
Owen’s girlfriend, Maggie Gaske, quietly stood there.
She understood Owen’s predicament.
But understanding didn’t mean she could tolerate it.
After throwing chocolates, she returned to care.
This duel gave her a bad feeling; she truly didn’t want Owen to lose.
…
“Isn’t that Owen-senpai’s girlfriend?”
Robert, who was idly looking around, suddenly spotted Maggie and whispered to Wit.
Wit turned his head, puzzled, “Really? I thought Owen-senpai confessed by giving chocolates but was rejected. Later, it sounded like they broke up. Why would she come to watch?”
Robert whispered, “Men and women aren’t that simple. How can they reconcile if they break up?”
“This…”
Wit fell silent.
Could they reconcile after breaking up?
Was Owen-senpai still worth sympathy?
Suddenly, he thought of something and asked Robert, “Wait, if Owen-senpai wins this duel, can he reconcile with his girlfriend?”
Robert stroked his chin, pretending to be mature, and shook his head, “I don’t think so. Maybe losing is the chance for reconciliation!”
Wit, “How so?”
Robert, “Listen carefully…”
…
Leaving aside Wit and Robert’s speculation,
Professor Lily and Pandora focused entirely on Dark.
Lily found it interesting.
Pandora thought Dark’s victory was inevitable.
Rose and Diana were slightly worried.
Diana held her panda familiar on her head, anxiously watching the field, though she didn’t understand the street duel.
But she understood one thing: Dark had never participated in this kind of duel before!
As a beginner, he must be unaware of certain tricks.
Thus, he could easily be taken advantage of.
Though she trusted Dark, she couldn’t help but worry.
Rose shared similar thoughts.
Both felt worried.
…
Under everyone’s watchful eyes, Dark and Owen stepped back.
With no rules in a street duel, there were no restrictions on the battlefield.
Stepping back was a habit in dueling.
Only when they were about ten meters away from the stone table in the middle did they gesture to each other that they were ready.
The street duel began!
Dark swiftly reached into his Mana Card Deck. His magical energy danced on the Mana Card’s surface, and “Remote transmission and control of mana” played its part.
Mana Spirit Cards, containing magical energy, could be controlled by this technique.
By identifying the type of Mana Card through magical energy,
he used “Remote transmission and control of mana” to draw it out.
It was a fundamental skill every competent Magus possessed.
Thus, with just a touch of magical energy, they could extract the Mana Card.
Dark hadn’t yet mastered this level of proficiency, but after reaching into his deck, he accurately drew out the Mana Spirit Card — “Wrestler Eagle”!
He immediately started running!
Hadn’t he seen a pig run even if he hadn’t eaten pork?
If street duels allowed attacks, standing still was tantamount to suicide.
So, running was the right move!
Almost instantly, his regular summoning spell was complete!
The entire summoning process took just 2 seconds!
In a blink, the “Wrestler Eagle” Mana Card lit up.
Among all Dark’s Mana Spirit Cards, except for “Meow” which wasn’t bound to “Paradise,” only “Wrestler Eagle” possessed the strongest mobility!
In a ruleless street duel, mobility was crucial.
Thus, the half-eagle creature wearing a wrestling mask leaped out from the Mana Card!
…
On the other side, Owen’s summoning speed was
It was clearly slower than Dark.
Although this one-second delay was negligible in this situation.
However, Mike Owen’s usual summoning spell was naturally compressed to the limit of three seconds!
And Dark’s summoning speed was even faster than his, which meant he had already surpassed the limit!
The meaning behind this wasn’t as simple as it appeared on the surface.
Many present noticed this, but few thought deeply about it.
The duel didn’t stop because of this one-second difference.
In just that instant.
Right after Dark stepped forward, a muddy area appeared behind him!
If he had walked any slower, he would have sunk into the mud.
Even if he didn’t have to retreat due to remaining combat strength, he would be immobilized by the mud, turning him from a moving target to a stationary one!
Following that, a fierce assault came swiftly, forcing him out of the arena!
All of this happened with just two “Magic Cards”!
This was still within the limitations of the academy.
Otherwise, a single “Magic Card” attacking directly could end the duel instantly if it hit.
Mike certainly did not expect Dark to anticipate this. After casting the mud magic, he was momentarily stunned.
By the time Dark began his second summon, Mike still held the prepared magic card—”Sword of悬空”.
That brief delay.
The first Golem to appear on the battlefield—the Wrestler Eagle—had already leaped halfway across the field.
Its claws landed on one of the stone tables, leaving deep scratches, then used the recoil to leap again, almost instantly reaching close range.
When Mike regained his composure, he remained calm.
He didn’t switch the Mana Card but directly summoned the “Sword of悬空”!
As the usual summoning completed, a sudden strong wind blew in the air, forming a sword shape in mid-air.
Mike pointed the Mana Card, and the “Sword of悬空” plunged downward!
Originally meant to aim at the duelist, it was now used to block the Wrestler Eagle’s charge.
“Hacha!”
The Wrestler Eagle’s flight path was suddenly blocked by the “Sword of悬空”, causing it to scream and abruptly stop.
Feathers on its wings flapped wildly due to the wind, disrupting its flight.
But when the “Sword of悬空” stopped the Wrestler Eagle, a small gray shadow flashed past, dodging around the “Sword of悬空” and rushing towards Mike like the wind!
That was another Mana Golem summoned earlier than the “Sword of悬空”—”Meow!”
As a three-star Mana Golem with maximum magical attack, Meow was incredibly fast among all of Dark’s Mana Golems.
Though not registered in “Paradise,” with the Wrestler Eagle drawing attention, Dark was slightly more composed.
Most of what happened in the first few seconds was already anticipated by him!
His next third Mana Golem would be the Imp Beast!
Along with the “Imp Beast,” “Pride III” also appeared in his hand.
Indeed, lacking powerful Magic Cards was his disadvantage.
But the ultimate skills of Mana Golems could effectively compensate for the lack of Magic Cards.
Once he summoned the “Demon Beast,” he would have the ultimate power to end this unregulated duel!
The entire duel happened in a flash.
While manipulating the “Sword of悬空,” Mike couldn’t afford to summon anything else.
But when he pointed, the “Sword of悬空” suddenly rotated, lifted, and swung horizontally!
This swing formed a powerful wind wall!
It successfully blocked Meow’s charge!
Seeing the might of the “Sword of悬空” reach such heights, Dark furrowed his brows, and his fingers trembled slightly.
If the Wrestler Eagle hadn’t been fast enough to give Mike a lethal threat, the “Sword of悬空” would have been hanging over his head!
But after releasing the wind wall, the “Sword of悬空” rapidly depleted its magic power, leaving only a faint outline.
Simultaneously,
Mike pulled out a third Mana Card and started running to reposition himself.
The failure of the “Mud Trap” and the forced defense by the “Sword of悬空” left him at a disadvantage.
Without a Mana Golem to block the opponent, he lacked a shield.
But the third Mana Card would solve this problem.
“Armored, Transform!”
Mike forcefully pressed the third Mana Card against his chest.
A silk-like beam burst from his chest, enveloping his body and weaving into full armor!
Equipment Cards and Armed Cards were the true core of street duels.
Mike dressed in soft metal armor while running, with red insect-like goggles over his eyes and a shining red gem as a magic core in his chest.
At the moment of successful transformation, large amounts of magic power were continuously absorbed by the Armed Card.
Though Mike became light as a feather, no longer fearing close-range attacks from three-star Mana Golems, this wasn’t his intended outcome.
Deciding the duel in two moves was his original plan.
Only by unexpectedly killing the opponent could he avoid Dark using unknown follow-up moves later.
But it was too late.
When he transformed,
Dark had successfully summoned the Imp Beast, and “Pride III” was already in preparation.
One effect of “Paradise”: The summoning time of Mana Golems belonging to Paradise is reduced by one second.
This allowed Dark’s summoning speed to surpass the limit!
“Jijiji!”
The Imp Beast’s maniacal laughter echoed through the sky.
It knew who the main character was today.
The Imp Beast would surely stand above all!
…
“In the name of Dark Demon, Mana Summoning!”
Amidst the Imp Beast’s mad laughter, Dark successfully activated “Pride III.”
A brilliant light burst forth from the surface of “Pride III.”
The Imp Beast charged toward the light.
The skull pattern on its forehead quickly vanished, replaced by the symbol of “Pride.”
The dark golden light released from “Pride III” was instantly absorbed by the symbol, then burst forth.
Centered around the “Pride” symbol, the Imp Beast’s body gradually glowed, enveloped in a dark golden light sphere.
“Grrr!”
With a vicious roar, the light sphere broke open, revealing a pair of broken bat wings!
The demon with two sharp horns opened its crimson glowing eyes.
Intense light radiated a nearly savage arrogance!
Its arms spread, breaking free from the light sphere, revealing its muscular, athletic body tightly wrapped in black clothing!
This demon beast, never summoned publicly by Dark before, exuded pure, powerful darkness that instilled fear.
Its head was covered by a gas mask, revealing only pale skin around its mouth. Its chest bore a bat-like crimson mark, and multiple black leather belts were tied around its waist. Below the knees, its arms extended and ended in retractable forearms and enormous, sharp death claws!
Every detail was a symbol of extreme evil!
Such an appearance would undoubtedly be rejected by the Church of the Saints!
But this was Saint Maryann Academy.
A Mana Academy where the concepts of light and darkness were more thoroughly understood!
…
“He summoned it out!”
After transforming, Mike turned to see the awe-inspiring demon beast, feeling a heavy heart.
A new second-tier Mana Golem meant a new ultimate skill.
If outside the academy, he would have rushed in, relying on his transformed strength to attack the duelist directly.
But within the academy, unregulated street duels were still bound by rules.
He could only use the transformation to defend and dodge attacks.
He couldn’t personally attack.
Mike clenched his teeth and drew the fourth Mana Card.
Now, he not only faced the threat of the demon beast but also the Meow and Wrestler Eagle that had bypassed the wind wall and returned.
His strategy of not summoning Mana Golems initially backfired.
But he wasn’t helpless.
As a third-year student with rich experience, he still had cards to play.
…
“Death Claws!”
Dark’s command echoed through the sky.
The demon beast, engrossed in everyone’s attention, snapped back to reality. It stood still, raising both hands toward Mike, its arms stretching rapidly and grabbing for Mike’s body!
“Mana Summoning!”
Mike completed the fourth Mana Card summon at the last moment.
Light released from the Mana Card took form in the air.
“Boom!”
A massive bronze gate crashed down, blocking the demon beast’s death claws.
Immediately afterward…
A second bronze gate crashed down, blocking Meow and the Wrestler Eagle’s attack.
“Boom!”
Finally, the third bronze gate fell, forming a perfect triangle with the previous two gates, protecting Mike inside!
Mike leaned against one of the bronze gates, slightly panting.
Just before the three bronze gates closed, he saw the audience still in shock.
It clearly wasn’t caused by his armored card or the triple bronze gates, so it must have been because of Dark’s demon beast!
That demon beast was indeed terrifying, unlike a typical second-tier Mana Golem.
If in a normal duel, he would have to summon a higher-star Mana Golem to counter it.
There was no good way to deal with this golem.
But now it was a street duel.
The outcome of a street duel depended on the life or death of the duelists.
No matter what kind of golem the opponent summoned, as long as a dagger was placed on their neck, victory could be achieved!
Owen sighed slightly. He originally did not want to use that mana spirit card.
As one of the top students among the third years, Owen naturally had his own trump card.
He did not use it immediately because summoning this golem required some time!
Now that there were three layers of bronze gates protecting him, he had some leeway.
As long as he successfully summoned his trump card, he could instantly turn the tide!
“Instant teleportation.”
But just as he was about to start the summoning, he heard Dark’s clear voice from behind.
Then, a shadow suddenly appeared before him.
Almost instinctively, he rolled and jumped, his entire body becoming agile like a monkey with the help of his full armor, and he managed to dodge the imp beast’s chokehold!
The imp beast silently appeared inside the three layers of bronze gates and only revealed a cruel smile.
It flew in the air, looking down at Owen as if he were a rabbit with no escape!
Yes, no escape!
The three layers of bronze gates trapped Owen like a cage!
The only opening was above.
But the moment the three layers of bronze gates closed completely, an invisible barrier had already formed there.
Owen originally thought that Dark wanted to break through the bronze gates, which would take some time.
However, he never imagined that Dark didn’t even attempt to break the bronze gates.
That black demon actually possessed a space transfer-type ultimate skill!
It teleported in directly…
“Senior Owen, surrender. Surrendering means you lose half.”
Dark’s voice echoed through the bronze gates and entered Owen’s ears again.
…
Owen tightly held onto his trump card and put it back into his deck.
But this didn’t mean he had given up.
“If this were a real street duel, I would probably have been torn apart by now.”
Looking at the mocking black demon, Owen couldn’t help but laugh bitterly.
But he quickly composed himself.
The duel wasn’t over yet.
For a street duel, every element had to be utilized.
Trapped inside the three layers of bronze gates, unless he voluntarily canceled the summoning, he was like a turtle in a jar, easily manipulated by the imp beast.
But once he canceled the summoning, facing Dark and more golems would only make things worse.
Moreover, staying inside the three layers of bronze gates had a significant advantage.
No one outside could see him.
And that black demon wouldn’t truly try to kill him!
This meant the duel wasn’t over yet!
Although it seemed underhanded, this was a street duel!
Utilizing everything available until victory.
By any means necessary!
…
Owen made a decisive move.
He abandoned his trump card that required a long time to summon and charge.
He also gave up his initial arrogance of “teaching Dark a lesson.”
He drew his golem card and engaged in a battle with the single imp beast within the narrow triangular space!
…
Outside the three layers of bronze gates, Dark remained vigilant.
Without receiving a response from Owen, he summoned each golem one by one from the “Paradise” tier.
Except for the three four-star golems that he kept for last.
In just half a minute, he summoned the other five first-tier golems, including the imp beast and the wrestler eagle, at an incredible speed!
With each golem’s appearance, the effect of “Paradise” increased, adding 100 points to both attack and defense!
Seven golems in total added up to 700 points!
In just half a minute,
the imp beast inside the three layers of bronze gates reached an impressive 2700 points in both attack and defense!
Single-target physical ultimate skill? Death Claw!
Long-range magical ultimate skill? Razor Wings!
Area-of-effect physical ultimate skill? Ten Thousand Deaths Claw!
Displacement skill with a cooldown of only 15 seconds? Instant Teleportation!
Imp Beast, forever the god!
…
“Hahaha!”
Inside the three layers of bronze gates.
The imp beast’s wild laughter gradually changed.
From a sinister cackle, it returned to a normal, maniacal laugh.
Mike Owen was sweating profusely.
Before today, he never imagined he would be so suppressed by a golem.
The narrow space inside the three layers of bronze gates was a key factor that restricted his performance.
Each golem summoned was instantly killed by the imp beast.
Not a single ultimate skill was used.
The necromantic ultimate skills that turned corpses into sacrifices were easily identified and destroyed!
Trying to bombard it with quick-attack magical cards was futile against its 2700 defense.
Setting traps to lure it in only resulted in him being caught and thrown into his own trap.
If not for his sturdy armor, he might have become the first mage to die by his own trap.
After being caught and thrown a second time, a disheveled Owen finally realized his blind spot.
-The imp beast wasn’t unable to handle him; it was deliberately not handling him!
Such an intelligent golem couldn’t possibly not understand other methods of restraint besides killing.
Whether binding his hands, confiscating his deck, or blocking his mouth, these were all effective measures.
Once treated in such a manner, he would have no choice but to comply.
But the imp beast had no intention of doing so.
It was toying with him, playing with him, enjoying the process of outsmarting a mage!
Damn it!
…
But in reality, Mike Owen was still wrong.
The imp beast wasn’t enjoying the process of outsmarting a mage.
It was simply enjoying the pleasure of crushing a mage.
…
Since its creation, the imp beast had never felt so satisfied.
All the accumulated frustration seemed to have been released during this process.
Apart from not being able to speak or fully taunt, it was almost perfect.
The imp beast felt proud from the bottom of its heart for accurately seizing this opportunity and controlling it with its “wisdom”!
When Owen finally couldn’t resist and canceled the “three layers of bronze gates,” it was nearly ten minutes later.
Dark had already summoned all the golems.
Boredom had almost led him to the point of wanting to play with a cat.
Mike Owen finally reappeared.
He dared not remove his armor, as his face was bruised and swollen beneath the soft metal armor.
The imp beast flying away still looked unsatisfied.
Apart from the two parties involved, no one knew what exactly happened inside the three layers of bronze gates.
People only knew that after coming out, Mike Owen hastily admitted defeat and walked away without looking back.
He couldn’t stay.
His mana was nearly depleted.
Armed cards were incredibly mana-intensive!
Once his mana ran out and the armor was removed, his disheveled state would be exposed.
This would be another fatal blow to him.
“Goodbye, senior!”
Dark waved warmly to say goodbye.
After the imp beast regressed to an imp, it hurriedly clung to Dark’s shoulder to claim credit.
“(?) Ah wo ah wo!”
It sensed that its little red flowers were about to overflow!
…
“Is it over?”
The spectators who had waited outside for ten minutes were all bewildered.
Apart from the initial精彩的对决之外，他们几乎全程都在盯着那三扇青铜门。
至于青铜门里究竟发生了什么？
达克·迪蒙究竟是如何获胜的？
麦克·欧文为什么一出来就认输？
这里面到底隐藏着什么秘密？
总不会是一场表演吧？
一号演员：达克·迪蒙。
二号演员：麦克·欧文。
三号演员：恶魔兽？
…
但决斗已经结束，当事人跑了其中一个，他们也不好继续围观。
于是有人离开，有人散去。
人群中流传着各种猜测。
特别是欧文和达克并没有表现出任何“仇恨”，这让他们更加摸不透。
等进了城堡，还有人看到麦姬出现在欧文的身边。
于是“欧文分手求决斗”的不靠谱传言不攻自破。
…
但别人怎么想，怎么猜，都影响不到达克·迪蒙。
达克收回“乐园”，让魔导精灵们排好队，在狄安娜班长的带领下返回了城堡。
今天下午，达克打算把事情做完，善始善终。
所以他与半身人厨师们沟通后，把魔导精灵们都带进了食堂！
那场面简直壮观！
除了小恶魔兽经常出入食堂外，其他的魔导精灵从未如此光明正大地进入食堂。
它们占据了整个食堂的一角，使用半身人厨师们特意提供的餐具，大口大口地吃着各种食物和点心，时不时发出满足的叫声。
渐渐地，不仅达克等人看着它们露出温柔的目光。
越来越多的女生靠近过来，悄悄注视着它们，一个个都变成了小圆脸。
…
【四合一8650！】
【新的一年，新的一月！】
【月票、推荐票、刀片！】
【冲！冲！冲！】
