The 9Th Class Swordmaster: Blade Of Truth [EN]: Chapter 47

44. Magic Competition (1)

A prodigious magician had seemingly appeared in the magic city of Azor.

The rumors claimed their mana reserves already rivaled those of an intermediate magician, and their growth rate eclipsed even the most celebrated archmages. Some whispers even dared to suggest they might surpass Kaie Essir, the so-called strongest mage, and perhaps even reach the level of the seven elders who first brought magic to the world.

…Of course, none of that was true.

The earth-shattering event, capable of turning the city on its head, had transpired in a forgotten corner of the dark underground, and Bargo Sira, the first witness, was practically bursting to share the news.

‘I have to get my hands on that kid, no matter what. Someone that amazing, with no affiliations?’

This was a golden opportunity.

‘What kind of magic books does he like? No, I should recruit him into the guild. I need to win him over before he gets any older and wiser.’

Lost in this fantastical scenario, he even entertained the absurd notion of taming a magical beast.

“Your guild?” Karil asked.

“Yes. Why don’t you participate in the upcoming competition? We’ll provide all the support you need.”

“Hmm…”

“We have a 5th-class magic book that we acquired from the last magic competition. If you join the guild… we can provide it to you for free.”

“What’s the guild’s name?”

Bargo answered as if he’d been waiting for the question. “Ulkas.”

“An interesting offer. It’s certainly not easy to find a 5th-class magic book in Azor. But I’ll have to consider joining the guild. I’ll take a closer look and decide.”

“Of course. But I guarantee there’s no guild in the magic city that’s better than ours. You’ll be satisfied with everything, from our talented magicians to our sterling reputation.”

He spoke with unwavering confidence, but Karil couldn’t help but chuckle inwardly at his words.

‘A small guild whose name I barely recognize, and he’s so confident, probably because of Wooden Cloud [likely a valuable asset or member]. Well… I did gain something. I was able to confirm that he’s connected to Baker.’

“Then, what kind of magic books can I find here?”

“Choose as you please.”

Bargo Sira swept aside the curtains of the bookshelf with a proud flourish.

Karil calmly scanned the densely packed shelves.

“4th-class magic books.”

“We also have lower-level magic books. Please tell me if there’s anything specific you need. We have most of the existing books for each attribute.”

“Hmm.”

With a studied nonchalance, Karil selected 『Wind Magic: Blade Wind』 from the bookshelf.

It was a 3rd-class spell, but its lethality was so high that the Magic Society generally restricted its distribution.

“You really do have most of them. This is quite rare to see.”

“This is not all. I think you’ll be satisfied.”

“If it’s really this quality, I might consider joining the guild.”

Karil subtly licked his lips.

‘I knew it.’

Bargo Sira thought it was going exactly as he’d hoped.

No one could resist the allure of such a collection of magic books.

“Then, can you help me with one more thing?”

“What is it?”

Karil tapped the magic book he was holding and smiled meaningfully.

* * *

“Here.”

Karil tossed a few books at Mikhail, who was waiting for him in the plaza.

“Huh?”

“Magic books. Your attribute is wind, right?”

Mikhail tilted his head, looking confused, as if he didn’t recall ever mentioning that.

“Ah, yes. It is, but… when did I tell you?”

Karil chuckled at Mikhail’s question.

“When is the competition?”

“The earliest is in a week.”

“Who is hosting it?”

“I heard it’s being organized by the Immortal Society.”

Karil nodded.

“Since it’s your first time applying, you’ll start in the Beginner class… If you’re at that level, mastering up to 3rd-class magic should be enough.”

The competition was divided into three classes: Beginner, Expert, and Master.

The Beginner class was primarily for first-time participants, mostly new disciples who had joined the Magic Society for less than two years.

Therefore, most of them had mana reserves below the 4th-class level.

They were individuals who hadn’t yet fully reached the ranks of magicians.

“Try to master them within a week.”

“What? A week?”

Mikhail exclaimed, gesturing to the stack of thick magic books in his arms.

Officially recognized 4th-class and higher magicians competed in the Expert class.

Once, they had held a Master competition with magic books containing the three original magics created by the seven elders as the grand prize.

However, unfortunately, none of the past winners, whether from the Dawn Society or the Immortal Society, had been able to master the magic.

As a result, the Master competition remained only in name, virtually nonexistent for several years due to lack of participants.

In other words.

The competition with the most participants was the Beginner competition.

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

Mikhail said with an incredulous expression.

He had indulged Karil’s ridiculous request to enter the magic competition, even though he was a swordsman, simply because he was his employer.

‘But now he wants me to master magic?’

Even he, who had never properly studied magic, knew that it took months to master even one basic spell.

If you could master several magics in a week, wouldn’t everyone in the world become a magician?

“Aidan will help you. He’s not quite a magician, but his control is pretty good. Right?”

“Yes? Ah…, yes?”

Aidan answered, startled by Karil’s casual words.

He was probably wondering how to respond.

‘Considering his mana control and the current timing, Aidan’s mana should have reached 3rd-class.’

Unfortunately, years later.

Even when he organized the information group Astra under the orders of Olivin, his mana never rose above 3rd-class.

‘If his swordsmanship had been augmented by 4th-class mana, the first Sword Master among assassins might have appeared.’

“How can I…”

“There’s no need to teach him in detail. If you teach him the basics, he’ll learn the rest on his own.”

Mikhail’s expression hardened at Karil’s words, as if Karil knew him better than he knew himself.

‘Aidan should be enough. He’s received assassination training, so he’ll understand the skills needed in actual combat better than most magicians.’

“How can I…”

It was the same words as before, but this time it came from someone else.

“Just try it. What’s your current mana level? How many mana nodes have you opened?”

“I have three now. But while 1st-class auxiliary magics can be sustained, using 2nd-class magics quickly depletes my mana, so it’s impossible to use them effectively.”

Mikhail answered Karil’s question carefully.

“What do you think?”

Aidan turned his head towards Karil, who was looking at him expectantly.

“When you’re born, you feel mana when one mana node is opened, and you become a 1st-class user when two are opened, and a 2nd-class user when three are opened, right?”

“That’s right.”

“But just because you’ve reached a class doesn’t mean you’ve completely mastered it. It’s just a standard of whether you can use it or not.”

“……”

“You have three mana nodes opened now. It’s impossible to forcibly open more mana nodes, but wouldn’t it be possible to master 3rd-class magic?”

“Th, that’s…”

Aidan Hamil hesitated for a moment.

That was logically impossible.

In a normal way.

Normally, he would have answered without panicking. But under Karil’s sharp gaze, he faltered.

‘What is it? Why is he asking me that? Could it be that he knows even that?’

If it wasn’t common sense, if it was an unusual method, there was a way.

That is.

Mana Transformation (魔力變形) [a secret technique to temporarily boost one’s mana class].

A secret technique that could only be learned in Amyeon (黯然) [a hidden or remote region], Aidan Hamil’s birthplace.

It was a secret technique that his master had taught Aidan along with Body Transformation, which was taught to Juke Di Hold, who was from the same place.

Opening mana nodes is never easy.

Therefore, it is a technique to twist and condense the attributes of one’s mana to raise the class for a moment.

It was a skill suitable for him, who was specialized in assassination, but it was too risky, so even Aidan had never used it in actual combat.

‘The reason why you, a 3rd-class user, were able to fight Sword Masters on equal terms was not only because you were an assassin who exploited gaps, but also because you could use 4th-class mana blades for a moment.’

Karil had seen him survive countless battlefields with this technique, which even the person himself had never used.

“I think you said you were from the East. I heard that in the Eastern countries, unlike the Empire, they learn how to transform mana.”

Karil spoke casually, but his eyes were sharp.

“Ah… there is such a secret.”

“Can you do it?”

Aidan Hamil sensed that there was no escape.

‘Damn it, there’s something about him. Well, it’s good. It’s not like you can master Mana Transformation just by knowing the method…’

At that moment.

He quickly turned his head and nodded slowly.

‘If I just teach him the basics, he’ll get lost and eventually give up.’

Besides, there’s only a week left.

Children from Amyeon (黯然) are selected from a young age and receive special training.

It was a secret that could only be learned after years of hard work.

‘Learning such a thing roughly in this place?’

It’s impossible.

It can’t be.

“I know the method.”

Aidan Hamil answered with a sneer.

“That’s a relief. I think I did a good job bringing you along. Teach it to Mikhail.”

“I understand.”

Karil wore a satisfied expression, whether he knew his intentions or not.

* * *

“How is it?”

Aidan Hamil couldn’t close his mouth at the sight before him. And so was Mikhail, the person involved.

“H, how can this…”

The cross-section of the cut tree was as clean as if it had been sliced with a knife.

The magic he had just cast was Blade Wind, a 3rd-class wind magic.

“…It works?”

Mikhail muttered, showing his palm as if he himself was dumbfounded.

‘Honestly, it’s amazing. I knew about his talent in my past life, but I couldn’t gauge how much it was because he couldn’t master magic…’

A genius.

That’s the only way to explain it.

Unfortunately, a person with such talent died without being able to bloom in his previous life.

Karil thought.

‘At this rate…’

He would be able to fill a position in the unit he was planning in the future.

‘And there will definitely be people like Mikhail that I don’t know in this life.’

In order not to walk the same path as in the previous life, he must walk a new path in this life.

And Karil chose Mikhail because he knew that one of the ways to do that was to discover talent.

“It must be because the teacher is excellent. Isn’t that right? Aidan.”

“H… Haha… Yes.”

Aidan Hamil answered with an expression that he couldn’t laugh or cry at Karil’s words.

‘Crazy, is this possible? He succeeded in 3rd-class transformation in just three days, let alone a week.’

He wanted to shout right away, but he had no choice but to read Karil’s face.

“By the way… Karil-nim said that you would also participate in the competition… then are you going to do it in the same Beginner class as me?”

“No.”

Karil laughed lightly at Mikhail’s question and shook a red paper from his arms.

A dark blue seal was stamped on the surface of the envelope.

The two looked at it and widened their eyes in surprise.

“……!!”

It was none other than the official competition recommendation from the Ulkas Guild.

“Expert.”