The Return of The Mythical Archmage [EN]: Chapter 233

Stella Vinoche was in a state of utter bewilderment.

‘Ugh. I shouldn’t have gotten so worked up back there…’

The current situation was entirely Stella’s fault.

If Stella hadn’t said, ‘He’s as strong as my mother!’, this whole scene wouldn’t have unfolded.

‘But, my mother was looking down on Luan too much…’

Of course, it wasn’t like Stella brought up Shin Ha-yul out of the blue.

Since her goal was to bring Shin Ha-yul into the family, she would have had to mention it eventually, but today wasn’t the day.

As Shin Ha-yul was trying to conceal his information, to gain his trust and recruit him, she shouldn’t go around blabbing about his information.

That’s why Stella had no intention of talking about Shin Ha-yul to her mother.

At least, not until after he received his temporary instructor’s pass, and his information became a bit more public.

That was her plan.

‘No, more importantly, how did my mother even hear about the exam?’

But, lo and behold.

Sein already knew about Shin Ha-yul.

Or rather, it would be more accurate to say that she knew Stella had vouched for the identity of an unknown knight and arranged for him to take the temporary instructor’s pass exam.

‘She’s not one to look into such minor incidents. Who on earth told her?’

It couldn’t have been the butler.

Did one of the officials who processed the exam application get worried after seeing Shin Ha-yul’s activity log and report it to Sein?

‘Tsk. Whoever it is, they’re dead if I find them.’

Stella gritted her teeth, thinking about the unknown person who reported this to Sein.

‘If it weren’t for that person, my mother wouldn’t have looked down on him, calling him a half-wit and a fraud. And I wouldn’t have gotten worked up and said that. Then this situation wouldn’t have happened. It’s all that person’s fault.’

It was a situation that would make the person who reported it smack their forehead.

They were worried about Stella and reported it, but now they were being resented.

‘Oh well. It was going to come out eventually anyway.’

A hidden gem.

A talented person will eventually reveal themselves.

Come to think of it, Shin Ha-yul didn’t seem to be trying to hide his strength.

There shouldn’t be any trust issues.

…Probably.

‘Ugh. Why did my mother have to say those things?’

Half-wit. Fraud. A pompous ronin [a masterless samurai]. And many other insults.

Sein used many derogatory terms to belittle Shin Ha-yul.

After listening to it for so long, Stella couldn’t hold back and blurted out, ‘He’s as strong as my mother!’

‘……Ah. How embarrassing.’

Looking back, it was childish.

She could have just let it go.

To get so worked up and shout like a child just because someone insulted him.

‘Was I always this emotional?’

No, she wasn’t.

She was even called the Ice Queen.

She was confident in her ability to control her emotions. In fact, she had never gotten worked up and done something rash before.

‘Then why…’

But why did she get so worked up today? She couldn’t understand it, even after thinking about it again.

‘Is it because my benefactor was being disrespected?’

That must be it.

Anyone would be unable to stand by while their benefactor was being insulted.

Stella came to that conclusion on her own.

‘Anyway, I do feel sorry for Luan…’

Stella looked at the arena with a somewhat calmer expression and sharp eyes.

‘If I think about it, this situation isn’t so bad. It’s actually good for me.’

Sein was smiling with an expression that said she was having the time of her life.

And Shin Ha-yul was frowning, as if he couldn’t understand the situation at all.

‘To be able to see those two fight so soon.’

In Stella’s opinion, it was a duel between the two strongest knights.

How lucky she was to be able to witness it up close.

Stella’s heart was pounding with excitement.

“So, when are you going to explain what’s going on?”

At that moment, a woman who had been watching the situation from the side spoke.

Lilian Steart.

Adela’s mother.

She stared intently at Stella with a gentle smile.

It was quite a scary smile.

“I think you should consider our feelings, being dragged here out of the blue during the tea party.”

“Ah, I, I’m sorry.”

It was a natural reaction for someone who had been dragged here without knowing anything.

It felt like they were enjoying a tea party just two hours ago.

Somehow, they ended up watching a knight’s battle here.

They didn’t even know the story behind this whole thing.

It was no wonder they were annoyed.

“To put it simply…”

Stella hurriedly began to explain the current situation.

The Steart family were honored guests.

She couldn’t imagine what kind of backlash would occur if she treated such guests poorly.

‘Why did my mother have to bring these two here…’

While explaining, Stella glanced at Adela Steart, who was sitting next to her.

Even after thinking about it again, bringing those two to this place was incomprehensible.

‘Mages don’t even like this kind of thing.’

Mages subtly look down on knights.

Therefore, they think of knight battles as nothing more than child’s play.

Mages’ battles are more flashy and have more to learn from, so why would they watch a sweaty battle between knights? They often say things like that.

‘See? She looks so bored.’

Adela’s expression was proof of that.

She had a completely blank expression, as if she had no interest or concern in the current situation.

‘I’ve heard rumors that she’s a woman who has no interest in anything other than magic…’

Stella’s expression twitched very slightly.

She felt a little insulted.

Sein Vinoche’s battle was not something you could easily see.

To be so calm even with such an incredible opportunity in front of her.

‘Hmph. Let’s see if she can stay so calm when the duel starts.’

Let’s see how long she can remain so composed.

Stella scoffed inwardly and explained the current situation to Lilian.

“……”

However, contrary to Stella’s expectations, Adela was not exactly calm.

She was putting on a blank face, but it was all an act.

In reality, she was more flustered than anyone else in this place.

‘……It’s a coincidence, so it should be fine, right?’

According to the plan, Shin Ha-yul and Adela, or rather, Luan and Adela, should not meet separately.

That way, the person ‘Luan Palatia’ wouldn’t be suspected of being ‘Shin Ha-yul.’

‘……Does it matter?’

But, lo and behold.

They unexpectedly met.

And in such an important place.

‘What if it does matter?’

That’s why Adela couldn’t help but be flustered.

That wasn’t all.

‘No, more importantly, he didn’t say he was going around as a knight…’

All Adela knew was that Shin Ha-yul was operating under the alias ‘Luan Palatia’ with a fake ID.

She had never heard or thought that he was working as a knight.

Who would have thought?

That the genius mage Shin Ha-yul would be working as a knight.

Moreover, not just any apprentice knight, but a knight on par with ‘Sein Vinoche’.

‘Did he imitate a knight’s battle using magic?’

Shin Ha-yul is a mage.

As long as he has a mana circle, it’s impossible for him to create a mana core [a source of magical energy].

Therefore, he can never become a knight.

She guessed that he must have imitated a knight’s battle using magic.

Shin Ha-yul also knew the ‘Shinmu’ of the Shinmuganga [a martial art style].

Since he was originally good at using his body, it wouldn’t have been too difficult for him to imitate it.

‘But… even if Stella Vinoche doesn’t know, he won’t be able to fool that person. Sein Vinoche.’

This was the third reason why Adela was flustered.

She was worried about Shin Ha-yul, who was standing there, so worried that she felt like she was going crazy.

‘There must have been other ways to investigate the knight school, why did he take such a risk?’

At this rate, Luan Palatia’s identity as a mage would be exposed.

If things went wrong, it might even be revealed that he was Shin Ha-yul.

‘There’s no way to back out now.’

Now that this event had been arranged, it was impossible to back out.

It was a situation where there was no way out.

Shin Ha-yul had to fight Sein Vinoche no matter what.

‘……Ah, really.’

Adela’s heart was pounding.

Her heart was beating faster due to anxiety and nervousness.

“That’s how it is.”

Just in time, Stella finished her explanation.

“So, is that man really on par with Sein?”

“I haven’t seen him go all out, so I can’t say for sure… but yes. At least, that’s how it looked to me.”

Lilian Steart, having heard everything, looked intrigued and her eyes sparkled.

“……”

Adela was still expressionless.

But as she said, her blank face was only on the outside.

Inside, she was more anxious than words could describe.

‘What is he going to do…’

She resented Shin Ha-yul for creating this absurd situation.

“Hmm. Well, it should be interesting.”

Lilian Steart smiled and looked at Adela.

“Adela, you should watch carefully too. This battle. You’ll have a lot to gain just by watching.”

“……Yes.”

Thus, the three of them watched the arena with different thoughts.

And just then.

—The temporary instructor’s pass exam for Luan Palatia will now begin.

The referee announced the start of the exam.

Stella and Adela took a deep breath with trembling expressions.

Of course, it wasn’t the same kind of trembling.

‘I wonder what kind of battle he will show us?’

One was trembling with anticipation.

‘……Ugh.’

The other was trembling with anxiety.

With such contrasting emotions, the two women focused all their attention on the center of the arena.

* * *

“Then, we will start the duel in 5 seconds…”

“That’s enough.”

Sein Vinoche interrupted the referee.

“There’s no need to count. Step back.”

“But…”

Sein Vinoche’s brow furrowed slightly.

“I won’t say it twice.”

“……Yes.”

The referee flinched and stepped back.

No, instead of stepping back, he went completely out of the arena.

“He is ignorant. A count is unnecessary between us. Don’t you think so?”

Sein smiled brightly.

“I don’t know.”

I didn’t know what he was talking about, so I just gave a vague answer.

“I see. So you’re the humble type.”

Was he pleased with my answer? Sein’s smile deepened even more.

“Despite achieving such accomplishments, you are not arrogant and complacent. Not bad.”

His evaluation of me was higher than I had imagined.

What did Sein see in me?

“Aren’t you overestimating me too much? You haven’t even seen me wield a sword properly…”

“I don’t need to see you wield a sword to know.”

Sein stared intently at my dantian [an area below the navel, considered the center of energy], the area where my mana core was located.

“The density, the amount, and the purity of the mana flowing from your mana core. It proves that your skills are extraordinary. What more do I need to see?”

“……”

Sein’s aura surged even more intensely.

The aura was so fierce that the surroundings trembled.

‘It was because of my mana core.’

My mana core is different from the mana cores used by knights.

The mana core itself is the same, but the processing capacity and speed are significantly different due to the infinity circle connected to the core.

My mana core is practically complete.

If he could see the perfection of my mana core at a glance, it was understandable that he would say such things.

“Of course, your swordsmanship might be somewhat inferior compared to your mana core…”

Sein chuckled.

He drew his sword while smiling.

A mock sword made for training, with no sharp edge.

The tip of the sword pointed at me.

“That’s something we’ll find out. Now, draw your sword.”

“……Is winning the only way to pass?”

“Yes. You have to win to pass.”

“I never thought it would be this difficult to get a temporary instructor’s pass from the National Knight School.”

“Hmph. Did you think it would be so easy to gain the qualifications to teach someone?”

A playful smile.

He said that, but it probably wasn’t really about winning to pass.

If he saw a certain level of potential and skill, he would probably let me pass.

I drew my sword as it was.

I gripped the sword gently and took a stance.

“I’ll give you the first move. Come.”

“Then, I’ll take the liberty of making the first move.”

I can’t use magic.

Before, when I was fighting Mael Nadal, there were only knights nearby, so I could mix in some magic.

But Lilian Steart and Adela are here.

If I used magic, I would be exposed immediately.

‘I’ll fight purely with my sword and physical abilities.’

Besides, this battle prohibits any mana release, including sword aura.

If it’s a fight using only physical abilities, I don’t need to use magic.

The mana core increased its pumping speed even more.

The mana circulation that started from the mana core also sped up.

“Good. Good. Just as I expected. Hahaha!”

Sein’s expression brightened even more.

“Now, come on. Show me your sword.”

Right after the acceleration of the mana core stabilized.

‘I’ll cut him.’

At the same time as I made up my mind, all distracting thoughts disappeared.

And the next moment.

My body was instantly within Sein Vinoche’s reach.

And my sword,

Whoooooosh-!

Fell straight down towards the smiling Sein.

Kaaaaaaang-!

A deafening roar, as if a bomb had exploded, filled the entire arena.