Chapter 366

[Short Story: The Demon Lord’s Horn]

I can see the flow of mana.

I see calm streams, swirling eddies, and an endless sea.

Humans cannot go against nature, but nature cannot push humans away.

So humans carve mountains, dam rivers, and build ships to cross the sea.

Was it possible because of explosives, dams, and sailing ships?

No, it was possible because the technologies of explosive reactions, dam construction methods, and ship design advance day by day.

Craftsmen who cannot see through the essence have no right to choose their tools.

[Conjuration: Boss – Einstein Condensation – Spin Cloud]

The air freezes cold and all atoms passing through the magic circle slow down.

As I recite the rune word, Larsson raises his great sword and begins to rush forward at a fierce speed.

There’s no need to aim.

I stretch my arm forward through the magic circle and grasp a bluish mana cloud very tightly.

The cold flowing between my fingers is a nostalgic sensation.

[Invocation: Glacius Ion Trap]

“What…!”

A massive ice hand rises from beneath Larsson’s feet, grabbing his body.

Creeeeak-!

I can hear the sound of the barrier shattering even from here.

As if he would not allow any further impact, Larsson spins Misthiltein and destroys the ice hand.

I take a few steps back and duplicate another magic circle.

[Chain Casting: Glacius Ion Trap]

“Ahhhhh!”

Cutting through the strongly resisting flow of mana, I bring my hands together in front of my chest.

The sound of a clear clap echoes.

Kuguguggh-!

Cold air swirls around Larsson, and two massive ice walls charge toward each other.

Kwaak-!

The ground instantly freezes, and solid sand fragments scatter.

To avoid the walls that are trying to crush him, Larsson jumps high into the air.

A clear handshake; it was the best opportunity for me.

I immediately release the ice walls and merge the two magic circles to expand the dimension.

[3rd Circle Casting: Glacius Ion Trap Catellus]

Turning the magic circle, which was positioned vertically, back to horizontal and densely filling the 16 corners with 1st Circle runes.

From Larsson’s feet, 16 ice chains fly from different directions and latch onto his body.

I immediately pull all the chains taut, slamming the bound sinner to the ground.

Bang-!

A shock strong enough to create a crater occurs.

It must have dealt considerable damage not only to Larsson but also to the particle barrier.

An arm emerges from the pile of ice.

Just barely escaping from the grave, Larsson kneels and catches his breath.

As I raise my eyebrows and smile at him, his expression reveals his confusion.

“Haah… haah… You’re quite the talented one, huh? Don’t think this will end here. You’re finished the moment I catch you.”

“I don’t think shivering like that is the right thing to say. And if you can’t catch me, so be it.”

“You brat!”

Pachink-!

Larsson thrusts his sword deeply into the frozen ground.

[Invocation: Thermal Conductivity – Conduction]

Mistiltein wrapped in the magic circle glows red, causing the ice to sublimate into vapor.

The ground turns into a sticky swamp.

Larsson surrounds his feet with aura to boost his speed.

‘Can’t let him have his way.’

[Conjuration: Superfluid – Helium]

[Invocation: Glacius Vortex]

Coldness rises from the ground.

Recalling the mistake from earlier, Larsson chooses to ignore it and doesn’t jump.

But the superfluid, moving like a single entity, grabs his ankle.

The quickly expanding slime overwhelms Larsson like a wave.

“Ugh!”

Seizing the moment when he is flustered, I prepare a follow-up move.

[Conjuration Release]

[Invocation: Viscosity Coefficient Control]

The fluid is becoming increasingly sticky.

I firmly fasten the slime holding Larsson to the ground.

His attempts to break free with Mistiltein sadly prove ineffective.

I approach the now stiffened Larsson slowly.

“Shall I let you go?”

“…”

“I could give you one more chance.”

“Get lost.”

Larsson grits his teeth and gathers all his aura.

Creeeeak-!

Blue lightning erupts inside the slime, and as his hands are freed, Larsson escapes the swamp.

With a whistling sound, Mistiltein is retrieved.

He glares at me with a much more distorted expression than before.

It could be called a tactical retreat considering that Larsson has fled to the end of the training hall.

I give a light chuckle and gesture with my fingers, beckoning him to come if he dared.

The great sword spirals with red mana, followed by searing flames engulfing the sword.

[Unique Magic: &^@᧌#@%]

A magic circle of a structure I have never seen before; it must be the unique magic of his family.

Lightning strikes, and the sword absorbs energy like a lightning rod.

He charges straight at me, holding the sword emitting violet sparks at his waist.

‘It’s all or nothing now.’

There’s no sign of even an attempt to dodge or counterattack.

It’s a reckless rush, believing in the superiority of his aura heart output.

I fire ice spheres several times, but they cannot penetrate the strange barrier that has formed in front.

Then I have no choice but to use magic that can forcibly stop him.

Cryomancy must be treated separately from typical water-type magic.

Water is indeed water-type magic, but the classification for ice is ambiguous; however, it remains water-type magic nonetheless.

So, what is cryomancy?

Only supercooled magic that defies the laws of physics at room temperature can be called cryomancy.

[Conjuration: Iron – Arsenic]

[Invocation: Superconductivity Phenomenon – Meissner Effect]

Bwooong-!

A powerful repulsive force against Larsson sends him backward.

And double casting.

[Invocation: Glacius Ion Trap Catellus]

With the magic circle in my left hand preventing his approach, I wield ice chains mercilessly with the magic circle in my right hand.

Bang-!

With each swing of the chains, a tremendous explosion occurs.

Every step he takes causes the superconductivity phenomenon to raise him, and he is repeatedly struck by the chains.

Seeing his clothes becoming tattered, I even feel a bit sorry for him.

“Are you not going to give up?”

“Haah… huff… haah…”

He seems too out of breath to respond.

Larsson resorts to using magic he’s not used to in order to turn the situation around.

[Invocation: Arc Barrier-]

But,

[Dispelling: Arc Shockwave]

I predict his spell with triple casting and dispel it during the incantation.

“…!”

“Magic is something only I can use.”

Only then does Larsson dash towards me, like someone who has lost their sanity.

“You monster! Aaaaah!”

I honestly can’t tell if he’s thinking or just fighting wildly now.

“Not fun.”

It’s hard to find interest in an enemy who has lost the will to fight.

Just look at him now; he’s full of openings.

Finally able to close the distance, Larsson raises his great sword high.

The sunlight reflects off in all directions, emitting a dazzling luminosity.

I step forward, slightly bowing my head as I draw all of my mana to the tip of the black horn.

[Conjuration: Niobium]

Wiiiiiing-!

A tone unheard in nature shakes the space.

The vapor changes to thin ice as it touches the black horn.

A space generates immense electromagnetic force.

Finally, the mana, compressed to its limit, erupts powerfully.

[4th Circle Invocation: Glacius Astra – Railgun]

Boom-!

“Ugh.”

Ah, I forgot to cover my ears.

A shockwave that makes my ears ring spreads outward in a circle.

The mana that has surpassed the threshold of necessity perfectly aligns with the properties of particles.

The mana cannonball with perfect straightness sends the man flying across the training hall by about several dozen meters.

I think I heard a scream as it flew, or maybe not.

When I lifted my head again, Larsson was unconscious from the railgun’s direct hit.

Everything is quiet.

Taking a deep breath, my ears were finally cleared.

“Prince Larsson!”

“Your Highness!”

The dome shield opens, and black-clad bodyguards rush out from beyond the fence.

I hadn’t noticed while inside the training hall, but outside, a sweltering wind rushed in.

Of the twelve bodyguards, half dashed over to check the prince’s condition, while the other half surrounded me.

“Huh? Why? Do you want to fight me too?”

Didn’t they just witness my fight?

Upon hearing what I said, they subtly retreated.

“This must be a dream.”

The late-comer Harold, or was it Harald?

Anyway, the coach resembling a bear mumbled with a blank expression.

This is right.

For a prince of a tiny country that could disappear with a mere flick, who does he think he is to try to teach someone?

The teachings should always come from my side.

* * *

In the shady area of the training hall waiting room, Larsson suddenly opened his eyes.

It felt like waking from a long sleep, but his body was in no way refreshed.

As he turned his head, the ice pack resting on his forehead fell to the floor with a thud.

“Are you coming to your senses?”

“Where am I…”

“You fainted during training!”

“Training? I… Ah!”

As memories returned, his head throbbed, and his whole body ached.

“Eew!”

“Do not move. Your knee and shoulder can dislocate again.”

“The fact that it can dislocate again means that it already—Aagh!”

The temporary healing magic circle was working hard.

He wanted to ask for some anesthetic magic, but Prince Larsson couldn’t bring himself to due to his pride.

‘Still in the waiting room?’

His eyes, now adjusted to the light, began to scan his surroundings.

Prince Larsson realized that he had lost to a 9-year-old girl without landing a single effective hit.

If Katsuhata Emika was a dump truck, fighting against Noname felt like being crushed by a supersonic fighter jet.

Remembering this made his chest hurt even more.

“Ugh! Is there any anesthetic magic…?”

“Huh? We are currently in partial anesthesia. To make it stronger, a general or sleep anesthesia would be needed.”

“Is this supposed to be anesthesia? Damn it…!”

“Just hold on for ten more minutes. We’ll treat you soon.”

As Larsson turned away, trying to hold back tears, he heard a familiar girl’s voice.

“Ten minutes? That’s quicker than I expected. If I had known the medical staff were this skilled, I would have hit you harder.”

“There were some dangerous attacks, and fortunately, they missed vital points.”

“Did those miss? I intentionally made them miss. Either way, it’s fine. Elias Larsson, since you’re under anesthesia, I’ll give you feedback on our last match.”

“Agh, now? Can’t you see what kind of state I’m in?”

“Hmm… You look fine to me. Is it painful to the extent you can’t hear? Hmm, is that so?”

“No, say it! Hurry up!”

“Why is the prince so indecisive… Anyway, get up. I just got the footage from the coach.”

‘Just breathing is excruciating, and you want me to get up?’

Prince Larsson hesitated.

His pride wasn’t going to feed him, and he decided to let go of it a little.

“I can do this while lying down…”

“Hmm.”

“My body still hurts.”

“Okay, just listen while lying down. Now that I see it, you seem to have a bit of a sense of entitlement, which I can understand since it’s your culture.”

Born into royalty and having voluntarily relinquished his royal title, it was the first time in his life Larsson had heard someone accuse him of having a sense of entitlement.

“Now, this part. Destroying the ion trap with your sword and escaping was executed very well. But why did you suddenly jump up during the second trap? I genuinely can’t understand that decision. Knowing it would break with the sword from the previous situation, anyone with a head would know that blocking is much safer than jumping into the air. What were you thinking? Do you have a vampire ancestor and are wings sprouting or something?”

“What, what?”

Larsson couldn’t keep up with the barrage of sharp words.

“Tell me quickly. What were you thinking?”

Nameless, seated beside the prince, furrowed her brow.

With a slightly disdainful gaze, raising one eyebrow and frowning, she looked at him as if he were an idiot.

The cold feedback of the 9-year-old ice witch left Larsson momentarily speechless, without a word of response.