The Greatest Magicmaster’s Retirement Plan: Volume 8, page 14
And so, Felinella felt that she had no choice but to give in. If not, then Delca might intervene in the fight after she left to deliver the message. It was definitely a possibility if he didn’t know who Alus was. Considering his strong sense of responsibility, she wouldn’t be able to blame him if he did.
She absolutely wanted to avoid getting in Alus’ way. He’d even asked her to prepare the stage. So it was only natural that she would prioritize the best choice, given her promise and the current situation. “I understand. The principal should be in the auditorium or her office. The message is, ‘Please prepare a team to pursue that girl.’ I believe Mr. Alus is planning on capturing her outside of the Institute.”
“What?!” Delca started to wonder just who this girl was that he’d allowed to participate if she required that much consideration. Clearly, her military position had been faked, and she was no ordinary person.
The message to the principal also bothered him. Even though it had the appearance of a request, it went beyond a proposal and was closer to an order.
Finally, Delca was convinced. Alus was part of the military and apparently had a rank close to the principal’s. His astonishment lasted for only a moment as, realizing the importance of the situation, he took off running.
That commotion aside, most of the audience had calmed down a little. Thanks to Felinella’s announcement, they interpreted what happened before as an accident, as the competitors just getting too heated with each other.
The announcement of a new match eased their confusion and helped spark their enthusiasm again. Of course, nobody in the audience knew of Alus’ true power, only recognizing him as the strongest student mentioned in the introduction. So naturally they could expect a higher-level battle than before.
A new barrier was raised that covered the entire training grounds, which was enough to fire up the audience, and they eagerly awaited the beginning of the match as Alus stepped up. The crowd shouted loudly, stomping their feet on the ground in a beat.
As he got close enough, Alus made a lighthearted remark. “Talk about being indirect. Even if you’re in your rebellious phase, you’re going too far...”
Nobody expected that she’d show up here. Looking things over, he could once again affirm... this girl was dangerous. At the same time, it also meant that the audience, as well as tens of thousands of campus festival visitors, were all potential hostages.
“Hehe, you don’t have to look so threatening, kid. I was only playing around with the brats. It’s just hard to hold back, you know?”
“You call me a kid, looking like that?”
Elise’s expression turned to displeasure at Alus’ provocation. She hated it when people pointed out her appearance to her. The same applied to her age. She wasn’t as short-tempered as Hazan, but when she couldn’t suppress her anger, she showed no mercy.
She pushed those feelings back for now and instead referred to her spell being broken. “It seems you use some interesting spells... you cut through space itself, didn’t you?”
“Hmph. I see you have a good eye,” Alus said. He added, “That goes for both of us.”
The last spell she’d used, Walpinos, was a rather old spell that was created when humanity was first making breakthroughs in magic. When the concept of magic development was in its early stages, many spells were developed that easily killed humans and similar creatures en masse, as they lacked information on what Fiends really were.
Because of that, much of the magic created back then focused on being fatal. Walpinos, in particular, was created to drown people. The original intent was to fire the water outward, but it ended up being turned into a spell that trapped its target instead.
It had undergone a unique process in its development. It was fatal for humans, but wasn’t very effective against Fiends, so almost nobody used it nowadays. It was also one of the spells banned at the Friendship Magical Tournament.
However, Alus had no idea what the spell with the four black tails was, the one that destroyed Tesfia’s and Alice’s spells. He imagined it was either a special ability or a completely original spell. But in that one instant, he was able to discern that it wasn’t a summoning spell. The fact that they were shaped as tails attached to her made him suspect they were connected to her nervous system in some way.
In addition to being able to freely move them, she was probably able to successively rewrite the spell’s structure to change their shape and allow for more complicated movements. Or maybe it was an even simpler principle. At any rate, they shouldn’t be able to move independently of her body.
“I’m sure there’s a lot going on in your mind, but nothing beats practice. I will personally instruct you. You’re stronger than those students from before, aren’t you?” Elise said, as if to tease Alus.
Those words were, of course, disingenuous. She was convinced that he didn’t know her identity. But it didn’t take long for the mask to come off.
“Oh? I see it’s true that you get senile with age.”
“—!!” Elise’s eyes narrowed in a chilling glare.
But before she could open her mouth, Alus followed up with even more provocative words. “Minalis Folce Quartz.”
“How... how the hell do you know that name?!” Elise ground her teeth.
“Hm, thought as much.” Alus had said the name without much conviction. There’d been a time when he’d researched Kurama once for a mission. Although not everybody’s identities were known, there weren’t many who could rival Singles either in the underworld or in the public eye. And the older generation of Magicmasters mostly died in the Outer World.
Alus made his painstaking way through the investigation, but when it came to confidential documents on Alpha, he could more or less peruse them through Berwick. But even given his knowledge and that information, he couldn’t get a perfect grasp on the past. So it was only by coincidence that he’d noticed the unnaturalness of the information about this person.
Minalis Folce Quartz. Back then, she’d been the ranked No. 2, the strongest in Alpha. Most Single Digit Magicmasters—including her—had lost their lives during the appearance of an SS-class Fiend, now referred to as the calamity. Almost no Magicmasters who fought back then were alive today.
Alus had noted an unusual cause of death recorded on the list of the deceased. It was just too vague and unclear. Even though she was supposed to have fought the SS-class Fiend Cronus, nobody knew how Minalis had died. It didn’t even look like she’d gone missing in battle.
That caught his interest, and Alus asked for more information on her, but there wasn’t much left. It was as if it had been deliberately erased by someone.
Meanwhile, around the same time, he came across some data on illegal research that the top brass had been working on in secret. Among the data was information on immortality. At the time, Alus thought of it as nothing more than an impracticable theory. Even if the aging process could be slowed, it wasn’t possible to extend someone’s life expectancy by very much. That was just common sense.
However, there were no records on Minalis’ characteristics or appearance. Not to mention that the noble Quartz family mansion had burned down in the past for some reason.
So Alus bringing up that name here was just to squash a last possibility. Even if it was a lie that she was in Alpha’s military, he figured that there was some truth to it. Then there was the old-fashioned lethal magic she’d used. All in all, this was the result of him somewhat forcing together pieces of a puzzle using what information he had on Kurama.
But he’d never imagined that an old-style Magicmaster like this was alive, especially not someone who’d fought Cronus.
During the Demi Azur incident, Jean had fought two executives from Kurama. Assuming that Kurama had members originating from Alpha only made sense. Magicmasters were trained to serve in the military after all, and Alpha had long been renowned as a magical powerhouse.
Moreover, according to Jean’s report, one of the two was skilled with the water attribute. That was why Alus made that assumption, but even he was surprised that he got it right.
It was like looking at a ghost. With that in mind, he spoke up again. “And here I was thinking there were some insane kids out there. You really let someone like Jean get too much information on you, granny. Is that big one that was with you not here today?”
“If he was, this institute would be covered in blood by now.”
“I bet.”
Elise was annoyed and tried to stay calm. There was something more important than Hazan, and that was... only she needed to know her secret. “You really are a frightening brat, Alus Reigin... I was only going to see how strong you were. But now there’s a change of plans. I’ll kill you right here.”
The overly dense mana began to turn to liquid. Elise hadn’t really confirmed anything, but based on her attitude, Alus was convinced and decided there was no more use in arguing.
With technologies such as AWRs and the like, modern magic was far more advanced than in the past. As a researcher, he was sure of it. So as the current ranked No. 1, if he used his power, he should be able to handle Minalis, a survivor of the calamity.
“Try it.” He raised his hand, beckoning her over with his index finger.
The next moment, Alus’ mana overflowed like a muddy stream, blowing away Elise’s mana that had filled their surroundings.
***
Even though a gag order was imposed to prevent an increase of hostages at the training grounds, rumors spread like wildfire.
The fact that Tesfia and Alice lost to their opponent spawned all kinds of theories among the students. It must’ve meant that a high-ranking Magicmaster had appeared and was taking part in the mock battles.
Eventually, the gossip shifted away from those two and onto the Magicmaster’s next opponent, Alus. Any first-year student had heard that name at least once, be it in a good sense or bad sense. He was treated with great caution, but nobody approached him, and so the rumors about him took on a life of their own. The only thing agreed upon was the perception that they didn’t understand him.
A handful of girls, though, had heard about Alus from Tesfia and Alice, so they had a better impression of him than the male students. And now he would fight the opponent they’d lost against.
Everyone believed it was a chance to see Alus’ true worth that had been hidden behind a veil of mystery. At the very least, since he was always with Loki, who was second in the Institute after Felinella, he might have power on par with Tesfia and Alice. That’s what most thought, and now they’d have a chance to find out.
Their expectations were even higher after hearing the rumor that Felinella called him the “number one” in the Institute. That was saying he was stronger than her, which was certainly controversial, so the best solution was to go see for themselves.
And so, some students abandoned their stalls to hurry over to the training grounds. As a result, the training grounds that were already at capacity were filled with a new wave of students.
Among them was the blonde transfer student that had enrolled after the tournament. Alus clearly remembered this noble girl, Lilisha Ron de Rimfuge Frusevan, as someone to keep a watch out for.
“I guess it can’t be helped. They’ve gotten this close, so I will have to step in too.” Unlike the other female students who were giddy with curiosity, Lilisha was biting her lip and furrowing her brows. “This throws a wrench into my plans,” she muttered to herself, before raising her head.
By then her expression was back to that of a normal student, an innocent student that didn’t know anything. And in a very blatant tone of voice, she said, “Speaking of all this... I remember hearing rumors that the ranked No. 1 is still young...”
“Wait!!” “Where did you hear that?!” “How old are they?!” The girls around Lilisha immediately asked for more.
“Oh, it’s just something I overheard someone say...” Lilisha vaguely said. She glanced over at a male student who was heading for the training grounds. And everyone around her followed suit.
***
A little while before the students began gathering, and a couple of minutes before Alus’ and Elise’s match began...
The barriers dividing up the training grounds were released, and everyone eagerly awaited the match that would take up the training grounds in their entirety.
Normally, the grounds were split into four arenas, so this felt rather large to Alus. He was reminded of when he’d lightly raked Tesfia over the coals when she’d haughtily challenged him. That aside, despite the field being so large, it felt small. It was proof of how capable his opponent was.
In the case that Elise—Minalis—were to go on a rampage, the strength of the barrier around the training grounds had been raised to the maximum level to prevent any casualties, but it wasn’t something that could be fully relied on.
Alus’ duty here was to settle everything peacefully. The idea wasn’t to overwhelm Elise but rather to render her harmless by removing her fangs and will to fight.
The best thing would be to turn her away without any casualties to the crowd. It seemed like a simple thing to do. But his opponent wasn’t a normal magic criminal. She was in a league of her own, which was common ground they both shared.
At present, the audience and visitors to the festival were all hostages, and the risk was too big to make any careless moves. He understood he was asking the impossible of Sisty. Alus was the only Magicmaster who could deal with her without causing any more trouble. But that also meant shifting locations and relying on a number of military personnel.
Meanwhile, he also had an investment in this. He couldn’t afford to lose his established place in the Institute, however noisy things were right now. Moreover, he wanted to avoid ruining the campus festival that Felinella was managing with a violent incident. It could very well turn into the site of a historical disaster.
For the time being, he would make this look like just another event at the festival. Since she hadn’t brought that battle-crazed giant of a man with her, and he could feel that she wasn’t looking for simple carnage, that seemed appropriate.
Moving locations was reasonable, but Elise had no reason to go along with it. ... It’ll probably be tricky. It appeared that she knew Alus was hiding his power for some reason. She’d probably chosen the mock battles as a means to guarantee he couldn’t run or hide, and using Tesfia and Alice as bait to provoke and lure him out was also meant to show her intentions.
Irritating as it was, his body had moved on its own back then. He couldn’t stay detached and overlook it. He did think her act was in poor taste, but there was no point in lamenting something that had already happened.
Alus sighed, but not even he knew why. Now that it had come to this, he’d have to do what he could. He wouldn’t be able to get away with cutting corners.
He’d had the damage exchange system turned off so that Elise could experience his power firsthand, but also so he could focus on the battle. When it came to actual combat, the exchange system only got in the way of casting spells. And those black tails in particular would require him to sharpen his senses to their limit. That was what Alus thought to himself, as he waited for the buzzer to ring out.
Elise was following the rules and holding off on her attacks as well. That was one of the reasons behind his decision. If she wasn’t willing to perform needless carnage, then there was still hope. If she came out of the match in one piece, she’d probably just leave.
Of course, it was still unclear how far she would go; and there was no denying there was some wishful thinking mixed in on his part.
Eventually, the buzzer rang out, interrupting his pointless thoughts.
He wasn’t sure what to do. Even if she’d declared she would kill him, she wouldn’t be able to. Something he could do was to give her a display of his power and let her know she was no match for him.
Alus knew he wouldn’t be able to accomplish anything with half-baked measures, and it wasn’t necessarily a good idea to just corner her here. This’ll be a pain. First, I should find out how much the barrier around the training grounds can take, he thought to himself.
“Let’s see what you’ve got, brat,” Elise said with a joyful smile, as she thrust out her hand, bending her fingers in one at a time starting from her pinkie. Once closed, she opened her fist up to Alus. At the same time, a massive amount of water overflowed from her sleeve.
“‹‹Aqua Dragon››”
Alus furrowed his brows at her words. This meant another bothersome spell was coming. “Just where did you learn about this?”
When it came to summoning spells, manifesting power as a coiling dragon was an expert-level spell. Dragons were nonexistent, so that presented a problem when it came to imagining and constructing the information. Yet Elise was using Aqua Dragon as if to test the waters, so she wasn’t cutting Alus any slack.
The audience stirred immediately. The water dragon that appeared was easily taller than the third floor of the audience seats.
However, it seemed more like it had been a magic trick, as in the next moment it was surrounded by invisible walls and disappeared.
“As I thought, you can directly interfere with space,” Elise said with a laugh, as she looked at Alus, who’d brought his hands together to temper his mana.
“...” He’d known she was just testing him, but to think that was her intention... “You sure get right to the heart of the matter. I have things I want to hide too, you know.” As Alus said this, the supposedly crushed Aqua Dragon reformed itself at a high speed.
That meant his spell before had been meaningless, but he wasn’t particularly surprised. He’d wanted to show that he could deal with the water dragon even if it meant risking his space manipulation magic getting found out. If possible, he hoped to not only keep her in check but to limit her options.
