The Return of The Mythical Archmage [EN]: Chapter 382

My teacher stands before me, staring at me blankly.

That face. That mana. That aura.

It’s undeniably Ray Bell Bytheiner himself.

“If you’ve overcome the trial of the Luminescent Mana Stone Cave, then achieving victory against me won’t be too difficult.”

But that’s all it is.

The man before me is just Ray Bell Bytheiner.

Not the ‘Ray Bell Bytheiner’ I know.

“Do you have any questions?”

He’s younger than the teacher I know.

Definitely younger than the teacher I accidentally met in Mimir’s grimoire before.

No, it’s more accurate to say he’s not just younger, but more like a youth.

“If you don’t have any questions, then we’ll begin immediately…”

“Did you project your past self?”

My teacher smiled faintly as he looked at me.

It seems he was quite pleased with my question.

“That is correct.”

He must have judged that my ability to assess the situation was excellent because of my question.

“The current me is an immature Ray Bell Bytheiner, not long after creating the Bytheiner Style. I’m only 20 years old.”

“…20 years old.”

The same age as I am now.

“My mastery is at the 7th Circle Master level. If you’ve successfully passed the trial of the Luminescent Mana Stone, you should be at the early stages of the 8th Circle… So, defeating me shouldn’t be too difficult.”

“A 7th Circle Master… are you?”

I know that my teacher created the Bytheiner Style when he was 16 years old.

Since he said he’s 20 now, that means only 4 years have passed since he created the Bytheiner Style.

‘But already a 7th Circle Master…’

It’s usually the pioneers who suffer losses in any field of study.

Because they are the ones who walk paths that no one has ever walked before.

Their achievements are bound to be much lower compared to those who follow.

‘I, a follower, barely reached this level in two and a half years, and he did it in just four years…’

It was shocking.

I thought I was quite fast in my progress.

Is it true that there’s always someone better out there?

“That’s enough with the questions and answers.”

Mana surged from my teacher’s body.

A very familiar energy.

Perhaps it’s because we’re both Bytheiner Style mages, but the nature of his mana is very similar to mine.

“Come. I’ll concede the first move.”

He clearly shows his intention not to accept any other questions.

“Just one last thing… May I ask just one more question?”

“I will allow it if it’s something that can be answered with a simple yes or no.”

He’s saying he’ll only allow questions that can be answered with a yes or no.

“It’s a simple question that doesn’t even require a verbal answer.”

It was a restriction that didn’t matter to me at all.

“After this trial is over, will we be able to meet again?”

The corners of my teacher’s lips curled up slightly.

“Yes.”

We can meet again.

“Is that so?”

Then that’s enough.

“Understood.”

Then there’s no need to talk any further right now.

The questions filling my head can be resolved later.

“Right now, I’ll focus all my attention on defeating you, Teacher.”

My teacher’s lips curled up even more.

“Excellent mana control.”

My teacher lowered his center of gravity.

He’s taking a stance to respond to my actions at any moment.

“Ah, before we start, let me clear up one misunderstanding.”

I said slowly, looking at my teacher.

“It seems you think I’m at the early stages of the 8th Circle.”

My teacher’s eyelids twitched slightly.

He must have realized what I was about to say next.

“That’s not the case. My current mastery is at the 7th Circle Master level, the same as yours.”

“……”

My teacher’s expression changed subtly.

It seemed like he was disappointed that my achievement was lower than he expected.

But it also seemed like he was proud of me for reaching this far with the mastery of a 7th Circle Master.

“But don’t misunderstand, I didn’t come here ignoring the trial of the Luminescent Mana Stone Cave.”

“…Hoh.”

My teacher’s expression changed again.

The anxiety and disappointment that were mixed in had disappeared.

And in their place, anticipation filled the void.

“You endured the mana emitted by the Luminescent Mana Stone with the mastery of a 7th Circle Master?”

A look of amusement.

A look that said he was dying to know how that was possible.

It was the curiosity of the creator of the Bytheiner Style.

“Intriguing.”

My teacher’s fighting spirit surged even higher.

“That means the Bytheiner Style you have now has taken a different form from the Bytheiner Style I know.”

Just by hearing that I endured the mana of the Luminescent Mana Stone with the mastery of a 7th Circle Master, he grasped that the Bytheiner Style had evolved to a new stage.

His ability to assess the situation is frighteningly fast.

As expected.

“I’m curious. What form has the Bytheiner Style taken after leaving my hands and becoming yours? To what extent has the flow of time elevated the Bytheiner Style?”

A smile bloomed.

An expression that said he couldn’t be happier.

“I’ll show you now.”

I prepared my first spell.

As a disciple, I can’t disappoint my teacher.

I’ll go all out from the start.

“Ignis.”

The most powerful spell I possess.

The primordial flame, Ignis.

A myth became reality and engulfed the world.

My teacher’s eyes widened.

He wasn’t surprised that I used Ignis.

“A mythic spell without a Kailum [a magical focus], cast without incantation…”

Originally, mythic spells were high-risk, high-return spells that required chanting for more than a minute.

But not anymore.

With the development of the new generation AI choker, the processing speed has increased exponentially. Mythic spells no longer require long incantations.

“I see. Maximizing processing speed. Is that the new evolution of the Bytheiner Style?”

My teacher smiled boldly.

Looking at the flames that filled his vision, he smiled brightly with an expression of pure joy.

“This movement of mana. By outsourcing the processing of the spell, you’ve replaced the incantation.”

“……”

He read the structure immediately upon seeing it for the first time.

His observation skills were so outstanding that it gave me goosebumps.

“That outsourcing technology. I see it as the core technology of this era. Judging by the movement of mana…”

My teacher’s gaze turned to my neck.

“Is that a choker you’re wearing on your neck?”

“…Yes. That’s correct.”

I had only used a spell once, and he had read everything.

It felt like I had been stripped bare.

“Excellent. Incorporating modern technology into the Bytheiner Style and evolving it. That’s a wonderful evolution worthy of the Bytheiner Style.”

My teacher’s eyes shone sharply.

“However.”

And immediately after that.

Whoosh-!

My teacher’s mana blazed like flames.

“It’s somewhat… clumsy.”

Ordinary flames.

A flame so weak that it couldn’t even be compared to Ignis.

A trivial fire spell bloomed to a similar scale as Ignis.

“The approach was good. But the execution was clumsy.”

The flames that my teacher had conjured covered my Ignis.

Whoosh, whoosh!

The two flames began to collide and clash.

The amount of mana they contained was equal.

The output and range were also not that different.

The only difference was one thing.

The ‘caliber’ they possessed.

The ‘caliber’ that Ignis possessed was overwhelmingly higher.

If those two spells were to collide now, Ignis would win 100 out of 100 times.

It should win.

“Successor. It seems you think that the incantation of a mythic spell is simply for magical processing purposes.”

However.

“That’s not the case. The incantation of a mythic spell is not that simple.”

An anomaly occurred.

“You should have properly pondered the meaning of incantation.”

Ignis began to be consumed by the flames.

A firefly began to swallow the sun.

“Your myth is too weak.”

Whoosh-!

Ignis vanished.

‘No way.’

Shock. And admiration.

Those emotions filled my head.

‘Ignis being overwhelmed by an ordinary fire spell.’

It was pushed back by an ordinary spell.

Ignis was defeated by an ordinary fire spell.

That fact came as quite a shock.

“Do you understand why Ignis was pushed back?”

My teacher withdrew his fire spell.

Amidst the fading flames, my teacher’s smile was clearly visible.

“…I don’t know.”

I don’t know.

I can’t even imagine.

“It’s understandable that you don’t know. As I said, it seems you think that incantation is just an inconvenient tradition that you have to use for magical processing.”

An inconvenient tradition.

That phrase filled my head.

‘An inconvenient tradition. Something that’s unnecessary. Something that’s better to get rid of…’

That’s an accurate description.

I had only thought that incantation was something that should be discarded.

That it was just an unnecessary tradition.

That it was just a relic of the past that was outdated.

“I’ll give you an assignment.”

My teacher’s mana surged explosively.

“Go and realize the essence of incantation.”

Like a flame.

No, like the sun.

As if all the mana in this area had become my teacher’s.

“This is a gift.”

I was being overwhelmed.

I couldn’t take my eyes off the legendary figure before me.

“Behold.”

My teacher slowly raised his hand.

“Red is a gift from the gods, born for me.”

The incantation of Ignis shook the world.

“……”

When that incantation was completed.

A myth had been born before me.

“Ignis.”

A true myth, unlike my shameful one.

* * *

“Successor. Welcome back. How was the trial…”

Mimir greeted me as I came out after finishing the trial.

She was talking to me with a bright expression, but she stopped talking as if she sensed something was wrong.

“…What’s wrong? Did something happen?”

She tilted her head, looking at my expression.

She must have guessed that something had happened because of my expression.

“I met my teacher inside.”

“…Huh?”

Mimir’s pupils shrank.

A look of surprise.

“Ah, you met Father? How? Why was Father the first trial?”

The grimoire of Dante Roa contained records of the Hallamanium site.

That book described what each area looked like and how to operate those structures.

But that was all that was written.

There was no record of the trials that would be held when passing through each area.

Since she didn’t know the content of the trials, Mimir’s surprise was understandable.

“What kind of trial was it? What did Father say? No, before that, did he remember what happened in Mimir’s grimoire? If he remembered…”

Mimir’s questions poured out like a machine gun.

Because we had parted on bad terms in Mimir’s grimoire before.

It’s understandable that she’s anxious.

“First of all, I don’t know what state my teacher was in. I was only allowed to ask questions related to the trial. He didn’t allow any personal questions.”

“Ah… I see.”

Mimir looked a little disappointed.

“The trial was a duel. The condition for passing was to win.”

“…Win? Against Father?”

‘Where did such an absurd condition come from?’

That was the expression she seemed to be making.

“Ah, of course, it wasn’t about defeating my teacher in his prime. The teacher inside was my teacher from when he was 20 years old.”

“…Ah.”

Mimir nodded as if she understood.

“If it was Father from that time, he would have been around the 7th Circle, so it would have been doable.”

“No.”

Doable?

No way.

“I was overwhelmingly defeated.”

I didn’t have any chance of winning.

I was overwhelmed from beginning to end.

“Even though I wasn’t at full power because I wasn’t there, you were pushed back to the point of being overwhelmed? Even with the support of the choker?”

“Yeah. I was completely defeated.”

The difference between Mimir supporting me and not supporting me is quite significant.

Mimir’s absence can be seen as a 30% loss in my power.

“Even if you had supported me, Mimir, it wouldn’t have worked.”

If Mimir had been there, it would have been a more competitive match.

But that’s all.

In the end, I would have been overwhelmingly defeated.

“…Why?”

Mimir asked with an expression that said she didn’t understand.

“The inner strength I possessed… The caliber of the myth I wielded was too different.”

It still vividly comes to mind.

That scene where it felt like I had witnessed a myth in person.

If the god Ignis were alive, that’s what he would look like.

“What do you mean? I could understand if you were pushed back in terms of how you used your magic. But as far as mythic magic is concerned, there’s no way the successor could be pushed back.”

In Mimir’s mind, the instant-cast mythic magic that I wield is superior.

I had thought so too until now.

“Being fast isn’t everything.”

I had fundamentally misunderstood what incantation was.

Because it’s an act that has been abandoned in this era.

And because it’s the darkness and trauma that I had before I obtained the Bytheiner Style.

I had concluded that it was better to discard it if possible.

“Mimir. We’ve been taking mythic magic too lightly.”

Mythic magic wasn’t just a high-powered spell that was simply powerful.

I realized that now.