Jared truly felt relieved that Olivier and the others had left.
“Fuhahaha! Wonderful. I haven’t seen a magician capable of using not just Earth elemental magic, but Petrify magic to such an extent in a long time.”
Over a hundred fireballs, conjured by Lucas in a single breath, rained down on Jared. Judging it impossible to block them all with a barrier, he chanted as he pointed his fingertips towards the approaching fireballs.
“—Cursed Demonic Eyes, defile and corrupt!”
A flash of light, and the fireballs turned to stone and shattered. However, not all of them were petrified. Half the fireballs turned to stone, but the remaining half continued their trajectory, unswayed.
“Stone Spears, protect me!”
Interfering with the spirits, he caused stone spears to erupt from the ground. Over fifty stone spears overlapped, becoming Jared’s shield against the fireballs.
Roar. Roar. Roar.
The fireballs crashed against the stone spears, shattering with a roar. Fragments of stone scattered, grazing Jared’s body and spraying blood.
The stone spears shattered all the fireballs, but none touched Jared. Some fireballs, their trajectory altered by the impact, gouged the ground and shot up pillars of flame, yet Jared remained standing, unmoving.
“Such power without even incanting. You’re a bothersome user.”
“I’m honored by your praise. The young Court Mage also seems to have guts, though his magic skills are still developing.”
“Thanks for that.”
They had already repeated this exchange of attacks about five times. Each was trying to gauge the other’s skill. Lucas called it proper magician’s combat.
Jared had no intention of indulging in such a “proper” fight. However, he realized in the first exchange that his opponent was stronger than anticipated, and thus, he didn’t press for an immediate victory.
The magic power to effortlessly create over a hundred fireballs in a single breath. The skill to manipulate those fireballs with ease. The sheer power to gouge the ground with mere fireballs; Jared judged all of it to be superior to his own.
—I never imagined the Kingdom had such a magician.
He couldn’t help but click his tongue.
No matter how skilled Jared was as a magician, or how he was chosen as a Court Mage at such a young age, he was still inexperienced, having only dabbled in magic for a few years.
Though practical experience, rare talent, and the guidance of an excellent Master had elevated him above magicians of his generation, it was inevitable that his lack of refinement would stand out compared to seasoned magicians.
“Shall we call this sparring match over?”
“You too, if you keep holding back, you know you can’t win against me?”
“Ha! You speak boldly. But it’s the truth. There aren’t many magicians like you in this era. Even if the current Court Mages are skilled, they lack your innate talent. Of course, in past eras, someone like you wouldn’t have been uncommon.”
“Past eras, huh? You speak as if you’ve seen them before.”
Lucas offered a faint smile at Jared’s words.
“Indeed. I have. I lived in the era when magic overflowed, before the Wethered Kingdom swallowed our country.”
“…I had a feeling you’d say something like that, but you actually did.”
It wasn’t entirely unexpected. He had a Master named Almeida, whose age was unknown, and Wahash, the chief of Waalthe who called himself his grandfather, also knew her. Jared could infer she had lived for at least a century.
But what about the man before him? The Wethered Kingdom had been established for about five hundred years. If he had lived in a country before that, he would be over five hundred years old.
Normally, Jared would call it nonsense, but he wanted to believe the old man before him wasn’t so foolish as to joke in this situation.
More importantly, Jared’s instinct as a magician believed the seemingly absurd words.
“It must have been an enviable era to be born in. Assuming your words are true, let me ask again—what is your objective?”
“It’s simple. I wish to reclaim everything. My former country, my former era, my former magicians!”
“Ugh, what a boring ambition. Poor Leonard, to have been used for something like that.”
“…What?”
It was a truly ludicrous ambition.
Setting aside the details, if Lucas’s story were true, he should have been living in this kingdom for five hundred years. So why would he rebel against his homeland now?
If it were revenge for something done to him, Jared could understand. He could also comprehend the desire to restore his lost country. But it was too late.
Even after five hundred years, the plan was crude, and ultimately, no one besides Lucas knew his homeland. No, that was a problem even before that. Even his son, Leonard, who inherited the blood of the now-lost country, did not have the objective of restoring it.
In fact, only Lucas stood before Jared now.
“You call my ambition tiresome! You, a child who hasn’t even lived twenty years, dare to look down upon me and call my actions—!”
The old man’s spit flew as he raged, but Jared remained unfazed. He had no reason to be swayed.
Only one emotion burned in his chest now. It was a clear anger at his precious people being dragged into this for such a trivial purpose.
“You, a mere child not even twenty years old, dare to call my dreams, my ambitions, tiresome! As a descendant of that country, I will fulfill my duty—”
“Enough, shut up. I don’t want to hear it.”
“…Wh-what?”
“No, I said, that’s enough. I’ve heard it all. Besides, I’ve fought people with all sorts of reasons, but you are the most pathetic and boring.”
Jared cut short Lucas’s long-held ambition.
