Jared maintained his composure by channeling all his anger into his attacks.
A young boy, still emotionally immature, couldn’t possibly endure being told his beloved would be killed.
No matter how many times he pierced the old man’s body with his stone sword, his anger didn’t subside even a little. It was only when he began to punch the old man with his own fists that he felt some relief.
Looking down, he saw the arrogant old man lying sprawled on the ground. Now, he just had to capture him to be finished.
“…Surrender, you’ve lost.”
“Don’t make me laugh. I’m not dead. I haven’t been defeated.”
“Then I’ll kill you.”
He created a stone sword, gripped it, and pointed the tip at the old man’s throat.
“Anything you want to say?”
“To think you’d make me believe you were only using Body Enhancement Magic when you were actually using Earth Elemental Magic… You truly are a Magician. But your way of thinking isn’t that of a Magician.”
“Is that your last word?”
“No, it’s not. I still haven’t been defeated.”
Magic power still raged from the old man, who now had only one arm.
“—Tch, so persistent.”
He clicked his tongue and distanced himself, circulating magic through his body, ready to fight at any moment.
“Give up? Do you know how many years I’ve waited to achieve my lifelong dream!”
“For a lifelong dream, it was a pretty unimpressive one.”
Jared still couldn’t understand. Whether one was a Magician or not, it didn’t matter to him whether someone was superior or inferior, or who ruled, just for “that reason” alone.
The country should be ruled by capable people. As long as the populace could live happy lives without crying, anyone would do. Though he was an untypical Noble, he would pledge loyalty to a King who worked for the people.
However, he couldn’t follow someone who discriminated based on the presence or absence of magic. In Lucas’s view, it was obvious many people would become unhappy. Only Lucas himself would likely be happy.
“Are you trying to insult me, you brat?”
“No, rather than insult you, I think you’re pathetic.”
“How is that not an insult! You think I’m pathetic? Ha, don’t make me laugh!”
No matter how many words he exchanged, the old man would not concede. Jared and Lucas were completely different. It would have been easier to understand Leonard.
“You are a pathetic human being. You differentiate between people based on the presence or absence of magic, believe the current world is wrong, and intend to take many lives. No, you’re already taking them. Not just those who became your allies, but even your son…”
“What does that matter? Those who are useless are discarded. I’ve done nothing wrong.”
“I’m sure that’s how you see it. But I can only see it as wrong.”
He felt it was useless, but he had to say it. He had to say it.
“Listen carefully, Lucas Gallagher. You are wrong. Humans are equal. Superiority is not determined by the presence or absence of magic, or by whether one is a Magician or not. Remember that well.”
“…I didn’t expect to be lectured by a child who has only lived for sixteen years.”
Lucas, with a bitter smile that seemed more like disappointment than amusement, aimed his severed arm at Jared.
“There’s no need to continue this dialogue any further. No matter how many words we exchange, we’ll never understand each other.”
“Indeed.”
“Then I’ll just kill you. You took my arm, so I’d like to kill you gruesomely, but my schedule is tight. I’ll kill you without making you suffer. Die with gratitude.”
With a roar, flames engulfed the old man’s single arm.
Drawing in the surrounding oxygen and magic, the flames roared and increased in intensity.
The red flames turned crimson, becoming a raging, scorching inferno. Jared couldn’t even begin to imagine how much magic had been expended.
Even at a considerable distance, he felt a heat that threatened to immolate him, making it difficult to breathe. The inferno was stealing his oxygen.
“I’m not particularly skilled as a Magician, and my only Element is fire. However, given enough time, I can do this much, even if perfection is impossible.”
“…You’re amazing. You’re the best at fire magic I’ve ever seen.”
Until now, Jared had believed Rosa Roen to be the best Fire Elemental Mage. But there was always someone better. The old man, wielding an inferno of breathtaking power, was undoubtedly a Magician who surpassed even Court Mages.
It was all the more regrettable. Why could he only use his magic for selfish desires or for what he believed to be right?
“I’ll take that as a compliment. Now, what will you do? Will you beat me to death? Or—”
Lucas suddenly stopped speaking.
The reason was that a shadow enveloped him. At first, he thought clouds had gathered overhead. But then he felt a magic. A grand magic that the old man had never sensed before. Despite having an enemy before him, he couldn’t help but acknowledge it.
“Impossi-ble.”
Looking up, the old man was speechless.
Spreading across the sky was a mass of rock with a density that obscured his vision. It was as if a small mountain was floating in the air, a colossal rock suspended in the void.
He wouldn’t ask foolish questions like who or when, because he already knew who was capable of such a feat.
“Is this your doing… Where do you possess the magic to create such mass! This is not the magic power a Human should have!”
Lucas realized he had misjudged Jared once again. His Magic Power was something rarely seen, even in the era when magic was most prevalent. Magic power is determined at birth. Humans, Dragons, Monsters – their magic power rarely increases afterward.
Even in past eras, increasing Magic Power remained an eternal challenge that could not be overcome. In an era like the present, when magic had declined, increasing Magic Power posthumously was virtually impossible.
If so, Jared’s Magic Power was indeed unbelievable. It exceeded the limits of what a Human should possess. No, that was not the main issue. Creating a mountain-like rock within a few minutes of conversation was impossible for a Human. As far as Lucas knew, only Spirits or Dragons could do such a thing.
He understood that Jared was a Spirit Mage capable of interacting with Spirits, but even so, it was virtually impossible to surpass the bounds of humanity.
“…Monster.”
For the first time, Lucas perceived the boy not as a Magician, but as an incomprehensible monster.
“But I cannot lose!”
It would have been unfortunate for the modern era, where magic had declined, to have produced an unconventional Magician. If only simple magic like what the boy used remained, his Magic Power would be wasted.
Or so he would have thought. But with a small mountain undoubtedly created above him to crush him, whatever he said would sound like a sore loser.
“Are you ready?”
“You already think you’ve won! I am astonished that you could create that much mass of rock, but why can’t you understand that you won’t be defeated by my flames!”
The old man was confident. While he was indeed astounded to see the rock mountain, that was all. He could simply shatter it with his raging flames. Lucas had the confidence and experience to do so.
“Then let’s test our strength. I will defeat you with all my might.”
“As you wish. Let’s see which is superior, my flames or your rocks!”
He poured all his magic into the inferno and unleashed it.
Released towards the sky, the inferno was like a dragon’s breath. The heatwave generated by the aftershock burned the debris of collapsed buildings as it blew them away.
In contrast, Jared protected himself from the heat while forcefully bringing down the arm he had raised towards the sky. With just that action, the floating mountain of rock began to descend rapidly.
Like a divine punishment descending, the small mountain approached the old man. It was not just a mere rock. Each component of that mass was created with Jared’s unconventional magic as an Earth Elemental Mage.
“This magic has no name. It simply rains down rocks. Be crushed, Lucas Gallagher.”
The old man’s inferno and the boy’s mountain of rocks collided.
The inferno scorched and melted the surface of the rocks. Not content with that, it began to vaporize the rocks created with magic.
The firepower was so intense that he couldn’t help but gasp. However, it wouldn’t last. The intensity of the flames continuously emitted by the old man began to weaken. Just as it had melted one-third of the small mountain, the old man’s magic was mostly consumed.
“Damn you! Damn you! Damn you! How much magic did you pour into that!”
In other words, he was defeated by sheer Magic Power.
Even with fifty units of magic, one could not overcome a hundred units of magic. This was especially true if both were able to wield their full magical potential.
The smaller rock mass, melted by the flames, approached the old man. Unable to escape or counter, the old man realized his mistake.
He shouldn’t have fought him head-on. Even if he was called cowardly, he should have stayed silent and approached from behind to kill him. Even if it wasn’t something a Magician would do.
“My lifelong dream! My ambition! Damn you, brat! My ambition of five hundred years! Damn youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!”
Realizing the difference in their caliber as Magicians, the old man was ruthlessly crushed by the rock mass, which now blazed like the sun.
