The Return of The Mythical Archmage [EN]: Chapter 192

About four hours had passed since we departed.

‘We’ll take a 30-minute break here.’

After a diligent flight, we arrived near Hamhung in South Hamgyong Province.

‘Is 30 minutes enough? If you’ve maintained flight magic for four hours, you should rest for at least an hour.’

He hadn’t flown alone; he had carried me, a burden, so his mental exhaustion must be far more intense than usual.

It was understandable that he would suggest taking a break.

‘Huh? I’m not resting because I’m tired.’

‘Pardon?’

I wondered if he was pretending to be strong.

His expression was very relaxed.

There was no hint of fatigue.

‘…He’s really fine?’

I activated my Mind’s Eye [a skill that allows one to perceive the mental and physical state of others] to check properly, and he was indeed fine.

There was almost no mental exhaustion, or only a very slight amount.

The consumption was at most around 10%.

‘Why? Is it strange that I’m okay?’

‘Yes. Honestly, it’s a bit surprising.’

Flight magic is a high-level spell usable from the 6th Circle [a measure of magical power].

And high-level magic, regardless of the type, consumes a significant amount of mental energy.

Even an 8th Circle mage would be exhausted after maintaining flight magic for four hours.

Why was he so fine?

‘What is it? You were stuck to me like glue, and you didn’t notice?’

Charles grinned slyly.

‘Tsk, tsk, a Mind’s Eye user’s pride is dead. Heh heh.’

‘…I was focused on checking the surrounding radar network, so I didn’t have the capacity to observe you, Commander Charles.’

‘So, you’re saying you didn’t see what magic I was using or how I used it.’

‘I didn’t look, not that I couldn’t see.’

I could have seen it anytime if I had wanted to. There was no reason to observe Commander Charles in that situation, so I didn’t pay attention to him.

‘Okay. I’ll take that as an excuse.’

Charles clasped his hands behind his neck and laughed playfully.

‘Do you know why flight magic consumes so much mental energy?’

‘I understand it’s because there are many processes to handle.’

‘Oh. As expected of the top student. You know it well. That’s right. Flight magic has a very complex process, even though the effect itself isn’t much.’

Just lifting a person’s body into the air and moving it freely requires a considerable number of processes.

In addition, a significant portion of the process is allocated to safety measures against falling, and a considerable portion is also allocated to safety measures against special situations such as gusts of wind.

The extreme mental energy consumption of flight magic was inevitable.

‘That’s why I don’t use flight magic.’

‘…Pardon?’

That was quite a leap in logic.

‘The fly magic listed in the open-source library is too inefficient. What’s the point of consuming so much mental energy for safety and all that? It reduces combat potential.’

‘That’s… true, I guess?’

High mental energy consumption means a decrease in combat potential.

In that sense, flight magic is indeed inefficient.

Especially for mercenaries like Charles, who spend their days on the battlefield.

‘And my main attribute is telekinesis, isn’t it?’

‘Ah.’

Telekinesis.

The power to exert physical force from a distance.

Broadly speaking, it’s on the same path as flight magic.

‘So, I don’t use flight magic. It’s much more efficient and convenient to fly using telekinesis.’

As his main attribute, it consumes less mental energy and is more powerful.

Therefore, he doesn’t use inefficient magic like flight magic.

He can fly more efficiently with telekinesis.

That’s what he meant.

‘But… wouldn’t it be a big problem if something unexpected happened?’

There’s a reason why the process of flight magic is complex.

Mages aren’t fools, and if it were just inefficient, why would they leave the magic formula as it is?

‘Well, if the air currents suddenly fluctuate, or a gust of wind blows, or lightning strikes… it might be a little dangerous?’

There are many variables in the sky.

Flight magic has numerous precautions engraved to keep the caster safe from the dangers of those variables.

‘…That’s too reckless.’

Giving up on such flight magic is like half neglecting safety.

‘Hey. It’s okay~ At least up to here. Nothing dangerous has happened, right?’

‘That’s true… but that sounds like it’ll be quite dangerous from now on.’

‘Hmm. From here on, it’s a little… very little dangerous. Because it’s the land of death.’

Usually, lands dominated by monsters are called ‘lands of death.’

And the sky in areas dominated by monsters is incomparably more dangerous than the sky in other areas.

It’s only natural.

The mana emitted by numerous monsters can create mana storms.

The air currents change frequently due to monsters that breathe fire and monsters that emit cold air.

The sky becomes truly capricious.

Since mages often have to fight in such places, flight magic has a formula that emphasizes safety.

‘You’re not going to use only telekinesis above this, are you?’

‘I am?’

‘….’

‘Hey. What’s with that look? Don’t you trust your sister?’

Charles glared at me.

‘Land of death or whatever, it’s nothing to me. I’m someone who has soared through the sky with only telekinesis even in worse places. You know?’

No, she wasn’t glaring at me.

Her gaze was directed at me, but her focus wasn’t on me.

It was just a coincidence that her gaze was directed at me.

‘Using flight magic is more dangerous in the first place. Especially here. It interferes with aerial combat.’

She turned her gaze with a confident expression. The place she was looking at was the sky we had to go through.

Charles’s eyes, staring intently at that place, emitted a belligerent aura.

It was as if she was looking forward to fighting someone waiting there.

* * *

After exactly 30 minutes of rest.

We started flying again, heading towards Mount Baekdu.

About 40 minutes had passed since we departed from Hamhung.

Considering the time it took compared to the distance we had traveled so far, we had about 3 hours left until we arrived.

‘Of course, that’s 3 hours if we just calculate flying through the sky.’

I glanced at Charles’s face.

It was the face of a ferocious beast.

The somewhat light atmosphere from before was nowhere to be found.

A sharp atmosphere as if she was about to engage in battle right now.

Just by looking at that, I could tell.

A battle would occur soon. And it would be quite a fierce one.

‘May I ask you a question?’

‘What is it?’

Her words were short.

That meant she was in a sensitive state.

‘It’s a bit late to ask this now, but why did we rest for 30 minutes earlier?’

‘It is late now.’

Charles chuckled.

‘With that level of condition, we could have gone straight, but I was wondering why we took a break.’

Honestly, with that level of condition, she was in her best condition.

If she was aiming for 100% recovery, she could have rested a little closer.

Why did she rest at that timing?

‘I didn’t rest because of my condition. I told you, I’m not tired at all.’

So, it wasn’t because of her condition.

‘Then why…?’

‘If we rest there for 30 minutes, we can meet him in the best position.’

‘Best position?’

‘Yeah.’

Thump, KWA-AAANG!

Suddenly, lightning struck.

Right next to where we were flying. A bolt of lightning struck a huge tree. The huge tree turned into dust and scattered.

It was too powerful to be considered a simple lightning strike.

The air changed.

It was suffocating, and my heart was beating fast.

I could tell instinctively.

It was no ordinary foe.

At least S-rank [a high rank for monsters]. It could even be an unranked disaster-level monster.

‘Mind’s Eye.’

I activated my Mind’s Eye and examined the unidentified object approaching from afar with tremendous force.

It was impossible to detect it clearly due to the mana filling the surroundings, but its enormous size was definitely conveyed.

At that moment, lightning struck again.

Thump, KWA-AAANG!

KWA-AAANG-!

This time, two in a row.

One of them fell above Charles and me.

KAAAA-AAANG-!

Charles blocked the lightning that fell at super speed.

‘He’s so impatient. He’s already doing this when we’re still a bit far away.’

She spoke as if she was annoyed, but her expression was more vivid than ever.

It was as if she couldn’t wait for the battle that was about to unfold.

‘Is it the Thunder Bird?’

‘Oh. You know? Did you do some research?’

‘Yes. Of course…’

The Thunder Bird.

An unranked disaster-level monster that has established its territory around Mount Baekdu.

It is the only one among the three unranked disaster-level monsters that has established its territory in Mount Baekdu that has the ability to fly, and it is also called the ruler of the sky.

‘How much do you know?’

‘I know all the publicly available information.’

‘If it’s public information… you know that he’s a territorial creature?’

‘Yes.’

‘Then, do you know that his flight has a pattern?’

‘That’s the first time I’ve heard that.’

That was the first time I had heard that.

‘So you didn’t know… Ah, geez.’

At that moment, lightning struck again.

This time, three in a row.

Two of them fell towards us.

Charles used a barrier again to block the attacks.

Was it my imagination, or were the attacks much heavier than before?

‘Hoo. He’s really impatient. We’re getting closer anyway, why increase the speed? This will misalign the meeting point.’

The power of the lightning increased as the Thunder Bird got closer.

‘Anyway, the Thunder Bird’s flight has a pattern. It’s a kind of cyclical flight caused by the other two unranked disaster-level monsters that have established their territory in Mount Baekdu… but that’s not important, so let’s skip it.’

Charles’s flight speed increased.

It seemed like she had increased her speed to match the Thunder Bird’s speed.

‘When we finished resting and entered the Thunder Bird’s territory, his position was roughly north of Mount Baekdu.’

‘You mean he was located the farthest from us.’

‘Right.’

Her flight speed accelerated even more.

‘And one more thing. The Thunder Bird can detect intruders by scattering subtle mana in his territory. You know that, right?’

‘Yes.’

‘The Thunder Bird, who has realized that we have invaded his territory, will naturally fly towards us immediately. And if we also fly towards the Thunder Bird…’

Charles began to slow down.

‘Here. We’ll meet at the center of the Thunder Bird’s territory, a terrain that is not interfered with by the other two unranked disaster-level monsters.’

Charles, who had stopped in mid-air, looked far away.

A yellow object rapidly growing in size.

As if proving that it was a bird that controlled lightning, it was flying towards us with electricity all over its body and at a speed like lightning.

‘…You adjusted the time to create the safest situation to subdue the Thunder Bird. I understand.’

Charles landed on the ground and stood on a suitable large tree.

‘You’re not asking why we’re fighting the Thunder Bird?’

‘After hearing all this, do you not know the reason?’

There was only one reason why we were going to defeat the Thunder Bird here.

‘Considering the altitude of Mount Baekdu, the most dangerous one is the Thunder Bird. He could attack us at any time. Let’s take care of the most dangerous one first and search safely. Isn’t that the intention?’

‘That’s right. You know it well.’

Charles laughed heartily.

‘Well, the other two unranked disaster-level monsters don’t have the ability to fly, so we can run away if we try. In many ways, the Thunder Bird is the most annoying.’

‘I understand.’

A near-perfect strategy born from practice and experience.

As expected of the leader of the best mercenary group.

‘Then, there’s no problem in defeating the Thunder Bird, right?’

‘Of course. Would I have created a place to fight like this if I thought we would lose?’

Charles left me behind and began to ascend into the sky.

‘Then wait here. I’ll take care of it quickly.’

With those words, Charles soared tens of meters into the air in an instant.

And not long after.

KIIAAAAAAAK-!

The Thunder Bird revealed itself.

* * *

Several tens of kilometers away from where the Thunder Bird and Charles were fighting, a man was looking up at the sky.

‘What is it? There was a visitor besides me?’

The man’s eyes were clearly directed towards the place where the Thunder Bird and Charles were fighting.

‘Is it a Thunder Bird subjugation team? I haven’t heard any news about sending a subjugation team to Mount Baekdu.’

One of the executives of the Black Magic Tower, and now a widely known top wanted criminal, a monster tamer.

Code name: Parade.

‘If I had stayed in Green Land any longer, I would have been in trouble. I wouldn’t have been able to catch even one.’

He let out a sigh of relief.

‘You think it’s a relief too, right? Velvet Tiger? It’s better to be caught by me than to die, right?’

One of the three unranked disaster-level monsters that has established its territory in Mount Baekdu.

He climbed onto the Velvet Tiger and roughly patted its back.

Krrr….

The Velvet Tiger growled as if it didn’t like Parade’s actions.

However, that was the end of its growling. It didn’t retaliate or anything.

‘This is the last time you can be so defiant, so bark as much as you want. From now on, you’ll become my cute pet and live your life obeying my orders.’

The Velvet Tiger’s body was a mess, to the point that it could be called a rag.

Even if it wanted to resist, it couldn’t.

‘Well then, please take care of me from now on.’

Parade, who had moved to the Velvet Tiger’s head by jumping lightly twice, placed his hand on the Velvet Tiger’s head.

And he poured mana into it.

‘Seal of Subjugation.’

The Black Magic Tower’s secret magic, which only Parade could use among the existing black mages, unfolded.

A black collar began to be engraved on the Velvet Tiger’s neck.

Now, after about 10 minutes, the Velvet Tiger would obey Parade.

‘By the way…’

Parade took his eyes off the Velvet Tiger and looked again at the place where the Thunder Bird was fighting in the distance.

‘It’s a shame. I wanted to have the Thunder Bird too.’

He had lost the Black Bell Wyvern, and there was a vacancy for a flying monster.

‘Judging by the fact that the Thunder Bird’s presence is gradually fading… it’ll be hard for him to survive, right?’

Parade smacked his lips.

What a shame.

‘…Annoying.’

And the disappointment soon turned into annoyance.

‘I don’t know who it is, but I’ll make them pay the price for killing my pet.’

Parade’s lips curled into a smirk.