Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 659

Ian took a shallow breath, like a warrior praying to the gods before entering a fiery pit. Then, he turned his head to meet the eyes of his smiling doppelganger.

It was clearly his own face, yet it wore a smile of pure happiness, without a hint of worry. Did it even know what they were facing, what they were about to endure, to smile like that?

“Mage.”

“…Kuh…”

“Soul-lost mage.”

Ian’s voice, as he called out to them, was filled with pity.

“If you can hear me, regain your senses. It seems the puppeteer who controls you has a problem; this is a once-in-a-lifetime chance. If you see an opening, please—”

Ian said, drawing a ‘Hoirok’ magic circle [a type of magic circle].

From his shoulder blades, enormous wings of flame sprouted, and then a woman in the form of fire rose gracefully. The woman of Hoirok. Ian’s follower.

“Please, I hope you can break free.”

“Kuaaaak!”

Despite Ian’s plea, the forbidden mages only let out screams that sounded like cries.

Ziiing! Ziiing!

「Peristalsis」[a type of magic that causes rapid growth and multiplication].

Was it thanks to the forbidden power? They summoned magic instantly, without even a magic circle. Soon, tentacles burst out, tearing through their bodies. The ends of the tentacles were all in the shape of monsters.

Sharp snouts, huge fangs, and eyes with bulging veins, all looking for prey… It was as if a monster that had devoured the mages was bursting through their flesh.

“……!”

It didn’t end there. Tentacles grew from tentacles, and from those tentacles, more tentacles grew endlessly, increasing their size.

The woman of Hoirok, standing behind Ian, lowered her stance as if she was about to pounce, but she didn’t move. It was because Ian hadn’t given the order.

Meanwhile, Ian was looking at the bizarre phenomenon before him, searching his memories.

‘Peristalsis magic… Is it the one I know?’

At that moment-

“Ian! No! You mustn’t attack!”

Nakina shouted, seeing Hoirok’s attack stance.

“It’s a magic I’ve seen in ancient grimoires! Its regenerative power is immense; if you cut it, it will instantly grow thousands of times! It’s best to take them down all at once, including the mages. And there are two of them! If you’re not careful, it will be really, really dangerous!”

‘As I thought.’

His guess was right. It seemed the enemy knew its weakness, covering the mages from head to toe with tentacles, making them invisible.

“Moreover, if you cut the tentacles, a deadly poison will burst out! Be careful, it’s lethal!”

Nakina pleaded with concern. If she had her magic, she could help even a little. But now, she was just a human who had lost the power of a god.

Chwaaak!

Then, something changed. The forbidden mages cut each other’s tentacles. The severed tentacles formed huge lumps of flesh, and they multiplied rapidly, growing to a massive size.

“Ian, that thing-! Damn it! That crazy bastard!”

Ian nodded lightly. ‘I see.’ If they don’t attack, they’ll cut themselves to multiply. That’s their strategy.

The tentacles, scattered like clouds, raised their eyes stiffly. And then, they glared at Ian, as if daring him to do anything.

Chwaaaak!

But instead of counterattacking, Ian set up a shield and began to draw a magic circle.

“Ian! A shield won’t work!”

Nakina, startled, jumped up in alarm. There were too many tentacles, and above all, they were created by forbidden magic. The depth of the magic itself was extraordinary, so even Ian’s shield was in danger.

And as expected-

At the same time as Nakina’s shout, the shield melted helplessly from the poison, and at the last moment, the woman of Hoirok intervened, enveloping Ian in flames.

Saaaak!

The poison evaporated as if it was being annihilated.

The tentacles, which had been slowly approaching, stopped, maintaining a certain distance. Then, they formed a huge sphere that could swallow not only Ian but the entire area.

Ziiing. Ziiing.

A moment of crisis.

But Ian was not impatient. He found the sun, faintly rising through the sky, obscured by countless tentacles.

‘Just a little, just a little more…’

He had been moving the magic circle with one eye closed the whole time, and finally-

“…Done.”

The center of the concentric circle aligned with the sun.

Then, the golden edge of the magic circle shone brightly. Nakina, watching this scene, realized something and looked around.

‘Could it be, the, the doppelganger too?’

The doppelganger, standing a little distance away, had already completed the same magic circle as Ian. When he smiled at Nakina, she turned pale and frantically poked Kkyu’s side.

“…Back, back.”

-Kkyuu?

“Get back, you idiot! Unless you want to die!”

Ziiiiing! Ziiing!

The magic circle grew so large that it seemed to cover the sky. The incantations that formed it moved independently, one by one, and formed the shape of a giant hand. That was-

「Divine Palm」[a powerful magic technique].

The palm of a god.

The giant golden palm descended towards the forbidden mages. And at the same time, a slightly more opaque palm rose from the earth, the doppelganger’s.

Kugugugung-! Kung!

Between the palms, a huge force swirled. The forbidden mages and the tentacles that surrounded them struggled to break free, but they could not overcome the touch of the divine.

Kiiiiiik!

Shwik! Shwiik!

Ian, sweating profusely, concentrated to keep the shape of the hands from collapsing.

At first glance, the two hands seemed to be holding a butterfly, so precious. But in reality, what was boiling inside was poison-filled tentacles. As the poison flowed through the gaps between the fingers, Ian and the doppelganger simultaneously clapped their palms together-!

Kwaaaang!

Two Divine Palms collided according to their gestures. A gale swept through the area, covering all directions.

Nakina, who was hugging a dragon’s neck, and Beric, who was climbing over the corpses of soldiers, quickly lowered their stances to avoid being swept away by the aftermath. And after a while, when they saw the source of the calmed collision, they froze in place.

Flash-!

Leaving behind only a bright light as if the world was being erased, the two palms, which had been covered in poison, gradually faded and then disappeared completely.

Ian staggered, panting heavily. Using several high-level magics in a row, and even overlapping them, made his vision spin. Barely managing to keep his balance, Ian eventually lost his strength and fell helplessly to the ground.

“Ianaaa!”

“Ian!”

Two people rushed to catch Ian, but the closest was the doppelganger.

He hugged Ian tightly, stroked his head, and then gently laid him on the ground before disappearing. Nakina and Beric quickly rushed over to check on him.

Chwaaak!

“I, Ian, are you okay?”

“Hey, what’s wrong with him? Is he breathing? Ianaaa!”

“…Shut up, Beric. My head hurts a little.”

“Damn, he didn’t lose consciousness. Crazy, really. Just a headache? That’s a relief, damn it. Nakina, what are you doing? Give Ian some magic!”

“I got hit by Idgal, you idiot.”

“You got hit and you’re calling someone else an idiot?”

“…Beric, please. My head is pounding.”

“Oh, okay. I’ll shut up.”

He had no strength left in his body. It felt like he had used up all the magic that had been temporarily amplified in an instant.

Against two forbidden mages, with no major injuries, was this still okay? As Ian groaned, Nakina tilted her head in confusion and opened his collar.

“……!”

Ian’s right arm was stiff. The skin had turned black, similar to necrosis. It seemed he had been exposed to the poison while drawing the magic circle.

Nakina hurriedly tore her clothes and tied them around his shoulder. It was a simple measure to prevent the poison from spreading through his body. But it was only a temporary fix, and it was urgent to go to a safe place and get treatment.

“…Beric, what’s the situation over there?”

“The Lusweina soldiers? They all ran away to the capital. The puppeteer seems to have gone with them, but I couldn’t see properly. Did you see anything?”

“Yeah. It looked like it melted away.”

“Huh? What? The body?”

Nakina nodded, finishing the first aid. Unlike Beric, whose vision was limited by fighting the soldiers, Nakina had watched everything.

“Yeah. I thought something was strange from the second one, but by the third one, it melted away like it exploded.”

“Ugh, that’s disgusting. Really.”

At that moment, Ian’s left hand, which had been lying limply, grabbed Nakina’s arm.

“I, Ian?”

“…The third one?”

“Yes?”

Nakina paused at Ian’s question. Ian had been fighting the two forbidden mages and didn’t know that a third one had appeared. In fact, he had only assumed there were two, so he had only created one doppelganger.

Kwaaang!

Then, the earth shook not far away. It was the commotion of the magic department fighting the third forbidden mage.

When Ian was startled and jumped up, something surged up from inside.

“Ian!”

“Ian!”

It was a hot coughing fit of blood. Ian covered his mouth with his hand, but the blood kept pouring out. The sudden movement had caused the poison to spread rapidly.

Ian looked down at his palm, stained red, with an indescribable expression. The Divine Palm, which had shone gold and turned the world upside down, was nowhere to be seen, only a small hand soaked in blood remained.

* * *

Haile felt helplessness for the first time. Even when he summoned the best magic he could use, even when the mages kept giving him magic power, he couldn’t even make a small scratch on the forbidden mage who stood there blankly.

Chwaaak!

“Captain!”

Haile, who had been thrown back because he couldn’t withstand the opponent’s magic, knelt on one knee and caught his breath.

‘This is crazy.’ How deep is the forbidden magic that it feels like such an insurmountable wall? And Ian, who had faced these guys, was really…

‘…Awe-inspiring.’

Haile felt deeply that even this was an understatement.

While he was wiping away his sweat, the mages stood in a wide circle around the forbidden mage. And they immediately gathered their strength and unleashed a binding magic.

Kung! Kung!

It was a magic that could restrict the opponent’s movements and even bind them. Because they were working together, a huge pillar of light, unlike anything they had seen before, fell in all directions.

Kwaang!

“Kuhhh!”

But the forbidden mage simply shattered the pillars of light by punching them. It wasn’t magic, just a fist imbued with magic power.

The mages screamed as they fled, avoiding the flying fragments of the pillars, and at that moment, a huge roar shook the earth from behind.

Kugugugugung! Kung!

It was Ian’s magic. Golden palms rising from above and below. A feast of high-level magic, following the doppelganger, Chuswae [a type of magic], Hoirok, and then the Divine Palm.

The mages were so surprised that they fixed their gaze in that direction, and the forbidden mage did not miss this opportunity.

Ziiing! Ziiing!

“E, everyone-!”

“Focus! It’s coming!”

The forbidden mage summoned sharp flames and attacked the mages.

A shield was quickly created, but it was useless. It was shattered in an instant, and in the end, it cut some of the mages’ shoulders, cheeks, and waists.

“No!”

And then another attack.

Everyone was powerless in front of the forbidden mage. What kind of meaningless battle was this, facing an opponent that nothing could penetrate?

“Uaaaah!”

“Be careful! Please!”

“It’s coming again!”

“Kuh, damn it, ugh…”

“Are you okay? Those who are injured, fall back!”

Haile bit his lower lip, watching his colleagues being helplessly defeated. ‘That’ Ian had used four overlapping high-level magics to face the forbidden mages. But could he, could the mages here, defeat that guy without any sacrifice?

“Captain Haile?”

Ian had already taken on two and done his part, but he, the captain under him…

“Captain! Just a moment!”

“No, you can’t!”

Haile placed his hand on the ground and drew a forbidden magic circle. The startled mages tried to approach, but Haile refused, his golden eyes flashing.

“Everyone, keep going!”

“Captain! Absolutely not!”

“If we can’t catch this guy, we’ll all die.”

Our death is the decline of Bariel, and it means that Ian’s past and future are both denied. Are we going to bury the pride of Gaia that we have protected so far here?

No. Absolutely not.

“Haile-!”

Ziiing! Ziiing!

The forbidden magic circle was drawn from Haile’s fingertips. The magic circle, which was frightening just to recognize, was vividly in front of his eyes. Haile sighed for a moment and then drew a cross on his palm with his sword.

Chwaak!

Now, all he had to do was mix blood into the magic circle.

Haile looked at his colleagues and muttered softly.

“I’m sorry. And thank you.”

Now, I will create your future entirely with my share. It was the moment Haile was about to mix blood into the magic circle, with that resolve.

Taat!

Someone snatched his hand. A small but firm hand, covered in blood. Like the golden Divine Palm that had shaken the heavens and the earth, two red hands clasped together in the air.

“…Haile. The abyss is a world you don’t need to see.”

It was Ian. He stood there, gritting his teeth. Sweat dripped down his chin.

Haile instinctively turned his head to look at the forbidden mage, and soon realized that the guy was trapped by Idgal [a type of magic]. It was only for a while, but it had bound him with one blow.

Ian ordered.

“We will retreat soon. Everyone, wake up and get up.”