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chapter 19
Traits?
Toulon paid no attention to such incomprehensible words. What mattered was that the black mage had noticed his presence.
That was impossible.
Right now, he was inhabiting the tiny body of a spider, a familiar.
And not just anywhere—he was clinging to the ceiling more than twenty meters above.
But no matter how impossible it seemed, one couldn’t deny reality.
“I don’t know how, but I’ve been exposed.”
Even so, it didn’t change what he had to do.
No, if anything, he needed to act faster.
Toulon poured the gathered mana straight into the magic circle.
He didn’t know how the other noticed him, but his opponent was only a First Circle black mage.
If it was only a First Circle mage, there was no way they could stop the “Sacrificial Circle” that was about to activate.
Wuuung—.
The mana began to flow. Soon, the circle would activate.
When that happened, everyone in the exhibition hall would have their life force and mana drained, all to be offered to the [Spider] with whom he had formed a contract.
The crucial point was this: at that moment, the [Spider] would be connected to this place.
The instant the [Spider] looked down upon this hall, Toulon would present the radiant talent of Aria Ires to it.
Instead of the hassle of kidnapping her and dealing with the risk of escape, this was a neat, efficient plan—end it all right here and now.
Shhhk.
Then, that First Circle black mage dared to raise a hand toward the activated circle.
“Hoh? And now you think you can do something?”
The circle was already nearly complete.
Unless you obliterated it in one strike or had deep knowledge of its structure to target precise weak points, there was no way to stop it now.
And for a mere First Circle black mage, that was as close to impossible as could be.
So Toulon smirked at the sight—
But the world always found ways to surprise you.
A crimson-black flame sparked in the mage’s hand. It shot like lightning toward the center of the circle, and in that moment, everything changed.
Though its form looked different, as a Third Circle mage Toulon instinctively recognized it.
That crimson lightning bolt was none other than an Arcane Blast.
[Arcane Blast]
[Mana Detection]
The destructive nature of Arcane Blast was stripped away, leaving pure energy.
That energy was then combined with the mechanism of mana detection.
The two separate properties fused into a precise, refined construct—and soon transformed into an entirely new spell.
A spell that traced mana, locked onto it, and shattered it.
[Mana Shatter]
From the center of the circle, a destructive ripple spread outward.
Wherever it touched the magic circle’s lines of mana, they collapsed and crumbled like sandcastles under a child’s hand.
Fsshshhh…
Hours of work were reduced to dust in an instant.
But more shocking to Toulon than that sight was—
“Impossible… that such a thing could be done with Arcane Blast?”
How could such a thing even be possible?
By any conventional wisdom, it shouldn’t be…
Then Toulon suddenly sensed danger and snapped back to himself.
“Damn! I stayed linked to the familiar for too long!”
This was no time to be spacing out.
The enemy who had just destroyed his magic circle would of course target this familiar’s body.
He had been so distracted by the incomprehensible spellwork that he made a critical mistake.
Toulon hurriedly cut the familiar link and turned his focus toward the black mage—
“Gone?”
And then, a voice whispered right beside him.
“Too late.”
Clap.
Toulon’s vision was swallowed by darkness.
* * *
Phew. That was way too close.
If I hadn’t once dismantled Arcane Blast in front of Aria before, I’d never have dreamed of combining spells like that.
Right now, my body was suspended in the air, having blinked to the ceiling to take out the familiar.
If I hadn’t managed to arrive within a few blinks, I would’ve risked a huge commotion by firing an Arcane Blast from the ground—but luckily, fortune was on my side.
Well, the noise just now can be smoothed over by the people below.
What mattered now was time.
Judging from his actions so far, the bastard would probably flee now that his plan had crumbled.
If I let him escape, he’d be nothing but a persistent nuisance.
So, where would he hide?
Someplace where he could both control a familiar and pour mana into a large-scale circle.
Obvious, really.
[Pick & Blink]
Pop!
My view shifted again, everything turning stark white.
“This place…”
For a second I thought I’d entered another world.
But then familiar furniture arrangements came into focus.
It was the upper floor of the exhibition hall—the VIP dining area.
The whole place was covered in webs.
“Pick & Blink, huh? You’ve got quite a rare spell there.”
A young man’s voice pierced my ears.
At the center of that web-covered space, a man in a hood sat hunched.
Toulon Goksel.
[Arcane Blast]
I fired the instant I saw him.
“Tch, impatient, aren’t you?”
BOOM!
Blocked by his shield.
Impressive… he really was Third Circle.
Shhhk—.
He rose to his feet, wiping blood from his mouth.
“Pseudo-death while linked to a familiar… they say even at higher circles the mental backlash is no less painful.”
“Pseudo-death”—the dreaded debuff every familiar-controlling mage wanted to avoid.
In games too, characters and NPCs would stumble into confusion for a while after it.
So for him to raise a shield and stand so quickly after that—his willpower was impressive.
“Thanks for the lovely experience. And for cleaning up my magic circle for me. I’d really like to return the favor.”
Crack.
No. Not gratitude—rage.
His eyes were bloodshot with fury. He might as well be under the “Taunt” debuff.
“Repay you? The party hasn’t even ended. Stay and enjoy a little longer.”
“Heh heh heh…”
He laughed, then suddenly went cold.
“No. It ends here.”
Mana surged from him.
[Summon Spider Leg]
From the webbed-over walls, a massive spider leg broke through and stabbed toward me like a blade.
Shhhhk—!
Just one leg was nearly ten meters long.
A shield wouldn’t cut it.
[Pick & Blink]
Crack!
From the air, I looked down at where the enormous leg had skewered the spot I had just been standing.
Then his voice rang out again.
“Pick & Blink—I’ve seen it already.”
And instantly, my [Senses] screamed danger.
[Spider Bind]
A massive net of webbing spread to blanket the space ahead.
I glanced back, gauging the distance and speed.
If I blinked and landed poorly, I could be caught.
Then the only option left—
Was to break through head-on.
[Arcane Blast]
BOOM!
A gaping hole tore through the center of the net.
I slipped through easily, but—
[Web Surge]
[Web Surge]
[Web Surge]
Bundles of web came flying one after another, perfectly timed.
[Arcane Blast – Triple Chain]
BOOM BOOM BOOM!
I blew them all apart. Through the bursting webs I caught sight of his face, wide-eyed in shock.
Why so surprised?
No time to dwell on it.
[Arcane Blast]
BOOM!
His shield shattered into fragments.
So he can only block twice, huh? Good to know.
“You broke my circle too… what are you, exactly?”
I smiled at his question.
“What am I, your teacher? Figure it out yourself.”
“You little—!”
[Summon Spider Leg]
Another massive black lance shot toward me.
I knew the attack now, so I dodged without blinking.
Crack!
It grazed right past my shoulder.
I ignored it and charged straight ahead.
Tat-tat-tat!
“Close combat? Barbaric!”
Why thank you, that’s the best compliment you could give a mage.
Just ask the security guards—why do they always push into a mage’s shield range?
Because it works.
I rushed inside his shield.
Whoosh!
I swung a punch straight for his face—
Only to stop short, my fist halted as if caught between unseen threads.
[Web Spit]
He had woven webs between his hands like string, stopping my strike.
Snap!
“A shield? When did you—?”
Of course. Among spider-magic cantrips, that’s the only emergency-use one.
If he hadn’t had it up, my fist might’ve been torn apart.
[Arcane Blast]
BOOM!
The blast from my halted fist shredded the webbing and shot toward him.
But he twisted unnaturally, narrowly dodging.
The grace of a spider—another spell.
At the same time, his hands glowed green, reaching for my throat.
Second Circle magic: [Venomous Fangs].
If it hit, I’d be paralyzed.
Just as his glowing palms neared my neck—
[Pick & Blink]
Pop!
I vanished, reappearing a good distance behind him.
He swung at air, then turned toward me.
“…That spell. Truly annoying.”
He swept his hair back with irritation.
Couldn’t agree more.
If there were a poll for “best spell I ever learned,” I’d vote Pick & Blink without hesitation.
Drip.
Meanwhile, blood from my body stained the webbed floor red.
Damn. Even with shields, I was still bleeding.
But I had a spell prepared for this.
Honestly, without it, I wouldn’t even attempt such reckless fighting.
It was a healing spell I picked up just to fill an empty slot in my skill tree.
[Lesser Regeneration].
I’d avoided using it until now because—well, healing that hurts more than the wound is ridiculous.
But no choice.
I clenched my teeth and cast it on my torn arm.
“….”
It felt like every drop of blood in my arm froze solid and stabbed through my nerves.
Even braced for it, the pain was far from tolerable.
But I kept the spell up without flinching.
He watched me, surprised.
“You’ve learned quite a variety. Lesser Regeneration is supposed to be excruciating, but you don’t seem bothered?”
No, it was excruciating.
But I wouldn’t show weakness.
I straightened, feigning composure.
This battle had confirmed something important.
“Web Spit” was just a spider-school cantrip—normally the bread-and-butter spell for any spider black mage build.
And yet, even with a shield up, it barely did anything to me.
The mainstay spell of the spider path was this weak?
That could only mean one thing.
This bastard, unlike game NPCs, hadn’t invested in any traits for his magic.
