“Hey, let’s try reviving Melinda,” Auraniess suddenly suggested.
“Huh? Why?” Marius asked.
Auraniess replied with a smile, “I’m curious to see who’s stronger between us.”
“No, honestly, I think I’d win now,” Marius said, bewildered. Putting aside his prowess as a mage, he now possessed divine power. No matter how great a hero, he didn’t believe he could lose to a human.
“Why don’t we fight as mages?”
“Hmm.”
Pushed by Auraniess’s rare persistence, Marius pondered. Apart from the Demon Lord’s motives, he too was interested in Melinda, a great hero. She was not just strong, but a formidable woman who established a magical system and created Magic Items. The term “hero” felt inadequate; she should be called a great figure.
“Reviving the original might be problematic, but creating a being with the same power could work,” Marius finally said.
“Oh? How will you do it?” Auraniess’s eyes sparkled, radiating an aura of excitement.
“We should be able to replicate her using Psychometry.” Of course, a being who remembers Melinda would be necessary, and Auraniess and the others fit this role.
“It could be a desecration of the dead, so let’s keep it quiet,” Marius said. Auraniess nodded with a mischievous grin, like a naughty child plotting a prank. Thus, “Melinda Guilford,” though not the original, was temporarily brought back to this world.
***
Marius, Auraniess, Sophia, and Iris were in a land far from the Taliant Continent. It was a nameless continent they had created previously. Together, Marius and Auraniess brought a woman to life: Melinda Guilford. A mage who lived over a millennium ago and is still spoken of in legend today. She appeared to be in her mid-twenties, with blonde hair and blue eyes. While not exceptionally beautiful, the magic power emanating from her body was immense.
“This is Melinda in her prime,” Sophia explained, and Auraniess nodded.
“She’s much stronger than when she sealed me,” Auraniess remarked. It seemed Melinda was still developing when she sealed him. Marius’s impression was that she was stronger than he was before becoming a Saint.
“We didn’t fight, but if we had, it might have been dangerous,” Iris commented. Her statement seemed reasonable. Marius stepped forward and addressed the past hero.
“I am Marius. Please, impart some knowledge.”
“…Very well,” came a clear, yet somewhat hollow reply. Marius’s body was then engulfed in ice. She had unleashed the ice-based Forbidden Spell, Absolute Zero, without incantation.
“…Marius, did he die?” Auraniess muttered, half in shock. The ice then shattered, and Marius emerged unharmed from within. He had apparently protected himself with adequate defensive magic.
“Whoa, I almost died right off the bat,” Marius said, breaking out in a cold sweat. If not for the Ring of Divine Words, his defense might not have been fast enough. Furthermore, without his experience fighting Auraniess, even with the Ring of Divine Words, he might have been in trouble. Melinda’s spell projection speed was that devastating.
“…I can do this.” The woman hero who nearly killed Marius moved to her next attack.
“＜Spear of the Thunder God that destroys evil. Destroy my enemy with the wind of impermanence!＞”
(A composite chant synthesis!?) Marius’s eyes widened. Composite chanting was an extra skill added after defeating Auraniess in the game, allowing for easier activation of synthesized magic by combining different incantations. Though it had the drawback of increased magic consumption, the power it offered was well worth it, Marius thought, watching the players who had mastered it fight. The synthesis of two Forbidden Spells, Vajra and Annihilation, descended upon him. Judging that he couldn’t withstand it, Marius evaded it by a hair’s breadth using Warp. Then, another Forbidden Spell attacked. She had likely used Refrain without incantation. He narrowly avoided it once again.
(This is not normal strength, seriously.) Marius was sweating. It was only natural, considering she was the progenitor of magic and had once stopped Auraniess. Honestly, he hadn’t intended to be careless, but perhaps he had underestimated her to some extent.
(I don’t like being one-sidedly beaten.) Marius decided to counterattack.
“【Vajra】【Agni】【Absolute Zero】!”
While dodging the wave of Forbidden Spells unleashed by Melinda.
“【Annihilation】!”
What Marius unleashed was the ultimate black gale.
“【Neutral】!”
And it was neutralized and rendered ineffective by Melinda’s magic. The black wind dispersed into the air as soon as it collided with the white wind.
“Huh?” Marius’s eyes literally widened. He knew the effect of Neutral, but he never imagined it would be used for defense like this. Especially preventing Forbidden Spells. To Marius’s surprise, the legendary mage counterattacked.
“【Umbra】【Absolute Zero】” “【Agni】【Star Rain】”
She was countering Forbidden Spells with Forbidden Spells. A scene unfolded that would make any mage faint.
“They’re evenly matched,” Auraniess murmured. Marius was still not using divine power, and Melinda wasn’t using sealing magic. Even so, them being evenly matched was precisely as she had predicted.
“Well, Melinda’s skill as a mage is far superior,” Sophia said. Judging by Marius’s reaction, she surmised he had thought Forbidden Spells could only be defended against with other Forbidden Spells. That Marius, with inferior skill, was holding his own was purely due to the difference in magic power, and also Marius’s high evasion capabilities.
“To not get hit by an attack from someone more skilled than you is truly amazing,” Iris commented.
“Indeed. Is he dodging purely on instinct like me?” Auraniess tilted his head, but Sophia denied it with a “hardly.”
“Only someone like you, Lord Auraniess, can solve things purely on instinct.”
“…Was I just praised? Or insulted?” Auraniess made a conflicted face.
“Of course, you were praised,” Sophia replied instantly without changing her expression.
“Is that so?” Auraniess fell silent.
(I can hear you.) Marius thought to himself, addressing the spectators internally. The reason he could dodge Melinda’s attacks was likely because he had seen them all before. Perhaps this evasion ability was his greatest weapon. Marius himself was secretly starting to think so, as he was somewhat losing confidence. He had rarely had his magic perfectly defended against before. Auraniess had countered with power, and Tindalos had simply missed. However, Melinda was nullifying them with skill. While Marius had also used lower-level magic to blast away higher-level magic, his was pure brute force. In contrast, Melinda was skillfully managing, deflecting, and neutralizing. Since all existing magic was created by her, she presumably knew how to deal with any situation.
(Was I getting arrogant without realizing it?) Marius scoffed at himself. He had thought he understood that this current state wasn’t due to his own training. The battle with Melinda was proving to be a good lesson for Marius. It could be considered an unexpected outcome. Especially the method of composite chanting and how to deflect higher-level magic with lower-level spells.
(I see, I see.) Marius gradually found his footing and began to imprint Melinda’s fighting style into his memory. However…
“Ughhhh!” A sudden roar erupted.
“Let me join in!” Auraniess could no longer hold back and barged in.
(You held out this long, which is pretty good.) Marius thought, letting out a sigh. Melinda’s body’s outline blurred, and she began to vanish into light. She existed because Marius and Auraniess supplied her with power, so naturally, she would disappear if Marius stopped.
“Ah!” Auraniess protested with a scream-like voice.
“I can’t help it. I don’t want a three-way melee,” Marius shrugged.
“Objection! You’re not the only one having fun.” Auraniess pouted.
“You’re the one who said you wanted to see the fight between me and Melinda, right?”
“Grrr…” Marius’s point left Auraniess groaning in frustration.
