The Return of The Mythical Archmage [EN]: Chapter 320

Ignis, now infused with the reversed mana of the heavens, unleashed a colossal explosion. It was a deliberate surge, designed to amplify its power.

The raw force spewing from the rampaging Ignis was unlike anything seen before. Its power was so immense that it reached even the Black Magic King.

Whirr, whirr, whirr—!

The Black Magic King’s body was engulfed in flames. Being at the epicenter of the rampaging Ignis, he was absorbing its full force directly. It was as if a fire giant and a fire dragon were simultaneously attacking him.

‘Such absurd power,’ Sein muttered, sheathing his sword.

He had intended to launch a follow-up attack using his Mind Sword [a technique that allows a swordsman to project their will into their blade] if the opportunity arose, but that now seemed impossible.

‘Can’t even my Mind Sword cut through that?’ he wondered.

This magic was beyond the realm of cutting. There was no indication that he could even touch it. It existed on a higher plane of existence.

‘I’m still far too lacking. There’s a mountain of things I need to learn,’ Sein thought, taking his hand off his sword and smiling faintly.

He might not be able to cut it now, but he would someday. If he continued to hone his sword, he would eventually reach that dimension. The thought brought a smile to his face.

‘……’

Then, he noticed Sophia beside him, her face blank and her mouth slightly open. Her expression was one of utter shock. She was completely dumbfounded by the sheer power of the magic unfolding before her eyes.

‘Sophia Anescheff, that expression again,’ Sein teased.

‘……Ah,’ she stammered, finally snapping out of it.

‘Get a grip. It’s not over yet,’ Sein said, not just to Sophia, but to himself as well.

He had momentarily assumed the battle was over and lowered his guard, just like her. He couldn’t afford to be careless. Against an opponent like this, any lapse in focus was dangerous.

‘……Right,’ Sophia replied, quickly regaining her composure. She sharpened her mind, ready to react to the Black Magic King’s next move.

‘There…!’ Sophia suddenly shouted, her heart once again thrown into turmoil.

‘That idiot…!’ Sein felt the same. The focus he had been cultivating to respond to the Black Magic King instantly dulled.

‘Sophia! Follow me!’ he yelled.

As soon as he confirmed the man collapsed and bleeding where Sophia had pointed, the Black Magic King was no longer in his sight.

‘He said he wouldn’t push himself…!’ Sein thought, frustration evident in his voice.

Near the spot where the Black Magic King’s body had been burning, Shin Hayul lay collapsed, in a place where the flames hadn’t yet reached. He was pale, spitting up blood, and unconscious.

‘Shin Hayul!’ Sein exclaimed, rushing to his side.

He lifted Shin Hayul’s body as if embracing him and checked his breathing. He was still breathing, and his pulse was present, so he was alive.

‘It’s dangerous,’ Sein muttered, his brow furrowed.

He was still breathing, but if left like this, he wouldn’t last long.

‘His insides are completely twisted. His mana circuits, as well as his organs, aren’t functioning properly,’ Sein observed, his eyes scanning Shin Hayul’s condition.

Shin Hayul’s body was like a ticking time bomb, ready to explode at any moment. They needed to stabilize his mana before it was too late.

‘Sophia Anescheff, help me. This isn’t something I can handle alone,’ Sein said, his voice urgent.

If Shin Hayul had been a swordsman instead of a mage, Sein might have been able to manage on his own. As someone who knew the structure of a swordsman’s body intimately, he could have saved his life even in a more dire state. But Shin Hayul was a mage, and Sein knew little about the intricacies of a mage’s body. No matter how sharp his eyes were, there were things he didn’t know. To save Shin Hayul now, he needed Sophia Anescheff’s expertise.

‘What can I do to help?’ Sophia asked, her expression calm. She knew better than anyone that she needed to remain composed in this situation.

‘Explain the structure of the mana circles and mana circuits. How can we return this twisted mana to its original path?’ Sein asked, placing his hand on Shin Hayul’s chest. It felt like placing his hand on the mouth of a volcano, ready to erupt at any moment.

‘The mana circle is designed to encircle the heart. If the mana rotation is twisted, focus on the heart. There must be a problem there…’ Sophia began to explain, using her ‘Jewel Eye’ [a special ability that allows her to see the flow of mana]. She explained the basic structure of a mage’s body while also trying to assess Shin Hayul’s internal state.

‘This is…’ she began, but the moment she checked Shin Hayul’s internal state, her expression turned to one of shock. She was completely dumbfounded.

‘The mana circle encircles the heart?’ Sein asked, his gaze sharp.

‘No. Shin Hayul’s internal mana isn’t rotating around the heart,’ Sophia replied, her voice filled with disbelief.

‘Shin Hayul’s mana circle has seven parts. Each different part is rotating through a different center,’ she continued. Shin Hayul’s mana had no single center. Some mana rotated around the heart, but there was also mana that didn’t pass through the heart at all.

‘What is this structure…’ she muttered, her mind reeling. This alone was shocking enough, but it wasn’t the end.

‘The mana is passing directly through the brain…?’ she exclaimed, her voice laced with shock.

The truly shocking thing was that all of that mana was rotating through the brain.

‘He was controlling mana directly with his brain nerves…? That’s impossible. No, but he’s actually doing it…’ Sophia’s expression grew more serious by the moment.

‘Save your idle thoughts for when you’re alone!’ Sein’s shout brought Sophia back to her senses.

‘So, what should we do? What did your eyes see? What do we need to do?’ Sein asked, his voice urgent. He couldn’t save Shin Hayul with his own power. The only one who could save Shin Hayul now was Sophia.

‘His insides are a complete mess. Just how much did he push himself to use that magic? From head to toe, all his circuits are messed up,’ Sophia said, her voice filled with concern.

Sein bit his lip and looked at the flames that were still raging fiercely. Although the range was a bit smaller, the power was comparable to the ‘meteor’ that the Black Magic King had used. There was no way there wouldn’t be a price to pay for using that level of magic.

‘I know that much. What I’m curious about isn’t the cause, but…’ Sein began.

‘Yes. I know. You want to know the solution,’ Sophia finished for him.

Sophia rolled up both her sleeves.

‘Don’t worry. I have a way,’ she said, her voice filled with determination. The dark curse that was consuming Sophia’s body was clearly visible.

‘Hayul’s internal mana isn’t rotating around his heart, but around his head,’ Sophia explained, placing her left hand on Shin Hayul’s head and her right hand on his chest, then closing her eyes.

‘It’s rotating through seven different routes, but the center is always the head. The brain,’ she continued.

Thump, thump! The sound of his heartbeat was transmitted directly. Along with that heartbeat, the tremor of mana could also be heard.

‘And out of the seven routes, there’s one. There’s one route that’s still intact,’ she said, her voice filled with a hint of hope.

‘There’s an intact circuit in this mess?’ Sein asked, his voice filled with disbelief.

‘Yes,’ Sophia replied.

Among the mana circuits that Sophia’s senses were picking up, just one.

‘A route where the mana is rotating in reverse. That route alone is fine,’ she explained.

‘……What are you talking about? Isn’t that the most problematic circuit?’ Sein asked, confused.

A circuit where mana was flowing in reverse. As a circuit causing mana reversal, it could be said to be in the most critical condition.

…But.

‘No. That’s not it. The mana in this circuit is rotating in reverse, but it hasn’t caused a mana reversal,’ Sophia explained, her voice calm.

‘This circuit seems to be a special circuit that is designed to make mana flow in reverse from the start. This circuit alone is rotating normally among the other circuits that are in disarray,’ she continued.

‘A circuit designed to reverse mana…? Can such a thing exist?’ Sein asked, his voice filled with disbelief.

‘I don’t know. But at least that’s how it looks to me,’ Sophia replied.

It was hard to understand. For a swordsman, mana reversal only meant a demonic incursion.

‘I’ll stabilize the other circuits, centering around this intact circuit,’ Sophia said, her voice filled with determination.

‘Is that possible?’ Sein asked, his voice filled with doubt.

‘I can’t say for sure. It’s just that this is the only hope,’ Sophia replied, cold sweat dripping from her forehead.

‘Then, I’ll begin,’ she said, her voice firm.

Sein immediately closed his mouth. He withdrew all his energy so as not to disturb Sophia’s senses. He waited for Sophia to finish the treatment.

‘His complexion has improved,’ Sophia said, her voice filled with a hint of relief.

Just a little. It had only returned from a zombie-like pallor to a slightly more human complexion, but the fact that there was progress was important. If given enough time, she could calm Shin Hayul’s rampage.

‘…….’

But.

‘Sophia Anescheff,’ Sein said, his voice low and serious.

‘……Run away. Take Shin Hayul and get as far away as possible,’ he continued, gripping his sword.

He stared intently at the center of the flames, where the black was slowly encroaching on the red, and drew his sword.

‘Hurry!’ he urged.

‘Hmph. That was really dangerous this time,’ a voice said, the black slowly expanding its territory.

The black soon took the form of the Black Magic King.

‘Was it a mistake to assume he was still in the growth stage and consider him outside of my calculations?’ he mused, the black expanding.

As if swallowing Ignis whole. As if completely engulfing the world. It absorbed all the surrounding red.

‘To think he could already use magic of this level. I’m genuinely surprised,’ the Black Magic King said, his voice filled with a hint of admiration.

Thud, thud. Footsteps could be heard from within the black.

‘Although he’s still young, a beast’s cub is still a beast after all,’ he continued, the expanded black beginning to contract again.

‘However,’ he said, the black instantly focusing on one point. All the mana was gathered towards the Black Magic King.

‘If you were going to do something this reckless, I wish you had used it on Veil Stole instead of me,’ he said, his voice filled with a hint of annoyance.

The Black Magic King’s body was unharmed. Not only were the burns he had sustained from the flames earlier gone, but the wounds he had received from Sein earlier had also completely disappeared.

‘If that were the case…’ the Black Magic King said, standing directly in front of Sein.

Sein swung his sword at the Black Magic King. Sein was certain that his sword, which had never been able to properly counter him, would now tear through the Black Magic King’s body.

However.

‘Stop it, Sein Vinoche. Your grand sword is no match for me now,’ the Black Magic King said, his voice filled with confidence.

Sein’s sword couldn’t cut the Black Magic King.

‘Now, with me armed with myth, your heart can no longer reach me,’ he continued, his voice filled with a dark power.

Sein’s heart couldn’t cut the Black Magic King. He couldn’t cut the darkness that filled the Black Magic King’s surroundings.

‘That darkness is…’ Sein’s eyes trembled. He bit his lip, staring intently at the darkness that filled the Black Magic King’s surroundings.

‘That darkness cannot be cut,’ he realized, his voice filled with despair.

Just like the fire magic Ignis that Shin Hayul had used earlier. That darkness, like Ignis, was also ‘something’ from a different dimension. With his current immature state, he couldn’t cut that magic.

‘To think I’d use an incomplete magic in an incomplete body,’ the Black Magic King said, glaring at Shin Hayul.

‘You’ve caused me no small amount of loss because of you,’ he continued, for the first time revealing his killing intent towards Shin Hayul.

‘How do you plan to take responsibility for this?’ he asked, the darkness disappearing for a moment.

And when the darkness reappeared.

‘No. Can you even take responsibility if you’re not alive?’ the Black Magic King said, his face right in front of Shin Hayul’s.

‘Black Magic King…!’ Sophia moved to respond immediately, but.

‘Don’t move. Don’t speak. Don’t resist,’ the Black Magic King said, his voice filled with a dark power.

She couldn’t. The moment she made eye contact with the Black Magic King, her mana and body stopped simultaneously.

‘Don’t worry, I don’t intend to kill this man. I told you,’ the Black Magic King said, staring at Shin Hayul’s face from a distance of less than 3cm.

‘Shin Hayul, the legitimate successor of the Vaitener style. No matter how hateful this man is, I can’t kill him,’ he continued, his voice filled with a strange mix of hatred and necessity.

He wanted to twist that neck right away and eliminate the threat, but he couldn’t.

‘Without this man, I can’t achieve my dream,’ he said, his voice filled with a dark determination.

This man was his only hope. This man was the only one who could deal with Veil Stole.

‘Sophia Anescheff,’ the Black Magic King said, lifting his head and taking his gaze off Shin Hayul.

‘Save him, no matter what,’ he commanded, his voice filled with a dark power.

The Black Magic King’s body was once again engulfed in darkness and disappeared. And when the darkness reappeared, the Black Magic King was sitting on a black throne.

‘If you fail to save him…’ he said, emitting a dark glow and wearing a chilling smile.

‘Today. This world will meet its end,’ he finished, his voice filled with a dark promise.