Chapter 359: I’m a Mage Too (1)

"What, what?"

Brody thought he had misheard. How could a mere 3rd-circle mage make such an arrogant claim?

But Alpoi's expression was utterly serious. It was clear he wasn't joking—he must have gone mad.

"Pahahaha!"

Hearing Alpoi's self-introduction, Ghislain, sitting in the spectator seats, burst into laughter, clutching his stomach. Gillian, standing nearby, seemed to be biting his lip to suppress his own laughter.

The knights and soldiers from Fenris were also struggling to hold back their chuckles.

The tense atmosphere quickly took a bizarre turn, much to the displeasure of the Crimson Magic Tower.

Delmud shot Alpoi a deadly glare.

"Brody, kill him. No exceptions."

It was a clear order—no surrender would be accepted.

This ridiculous atmosphere could not continue. They needed the Scarlet Flame Magic Tower mages to stay terrified and demoralized, making it easier to kill them. To do that, Alpoi had to be killed immediately to shift the mood back in their favor.

Brody nodded and glared at Alpoi.

"You hear that? I won't accept your surrender."

At this, Hubert shot to his feet, shouting.

"What's the meaning of this? Are you trying to go all the way? Alpoi, get out of there! This exchange meeting is over!"

Delmud stood as well, raising his voice.

"Who said you could end it? From now on, no one will be allowed to surrender! If you refuse, I won't let it slide!"

Boom!

The mana of a 7th-circle mage radiated outward, instantly freezing everyone in place.

Hubert and the elders of the Scarlet Flame Magic Tower turned pale, and fear began to spread across the disciples' faces.

The atmosphere was rapidly deteriorating. It was clear Delmud intended to see this through to the bitter end.

Desperate, Hubert turned to Ghislain and pleaded.

"Count Fenris, you must intervene—"

Before Hubert could finish, Ghislain calmly replied.

"We don't know what Alpoi plans to do yet, do we?"

"What could he possibly—"

Alpoi cut Hubert off with an arrogant smile, speaking up.

"I'm not going to surrender."

"What?"

"I'm going to give it a try."

"You lunatic! Your opponent is a 4th-circle mage! You'll be killed the moment it starts!"

Though Hubert had long since distanced himself from Alpoi, the boy had once been a promising talent in the tower. His excessive pride and arrogance were flaws, but Hubert had personally mentored him and couldn't bear the thought of his senseless death.

"Get out of there! This duel is void!"

As Hubert frantically tried to stop the match, Alpoi scratched his head, feeling that everyone was overreacting.

'It doesn't seem like such a big deal.'

Though he'd been a little scared before stepping forward, now that he was here, the fear had largely faded.

After all, he'd been through too much in Fenris territory. There had been nothing ordinary about his experiences.

In his first battle, he'd nearly died when Vanessa drained his mana. He'd also survived falling from a hot air balloon with Kaor. He'd fought against Desmond's army, renowned as the strongest in the North, and battled the Queen of Greggs while luring hordes of Greggs in the Forest of Demonic Beasts.

After so many life-or-death battles, the 4th-circle mage in front of him seemed insignificant.

Even Delmud's threats didn't faze him.

'What's so special about a 7th-circle mage? The lord is right here. Worst case, he'll throw a punch again.'

He couldn't guarantee that the lord could defeat a 7th-circle mage. After all, such a mage was considered equal to a swordmaster.

But Ghislain wouldn't go down without a fight. If he died, he'd make sure to take the enemy with him.

Having experienced so much, Alpoi's nerves were shot, and his perspective skewed. But this also made him one of the few who could understand Ghislain's abnormal nature.

With a casual wave of his hand, Alpoi dismissed Hubert's concern.

"It's fine. I'll just give it a shot."

"You insolent fool! Get out of there this instant!"

As Hubert prepared to physically drag Alpoi away, Ghislain intervened.

"Why not trust him just this once?"

"What?! There's a massive circle gap!"

"Circle gaps aren't everything, are they?"

"For a mage, circles are everything!"

"Just leave it to him."

Hubert protested repeatedly, but Ghislain remained steadfast.

"Fine! Do whatever you want, you damned fools!"

Fuming, Hubert sat down but began gathering mana in his hands. He was prepared to break through the barrier to save Alpoi if necessary.

Delmud, sensing the flow of mana, gestured to his elders.

"If anyone interferes, kill them."

Hubert, grinding his teeth, was forced to dissipate his mana. Any misstep could lead to an all-out battle here and now.

As the chaos settled, Alpoi glanced back at Ghislain.

Ghislain gave him a thumbs-up, smiling.

Grinning, Alpoi turned his gaze to Vanessa, who was clasping her hands together, watching him with worry.

Alpoi slicked back his hair arrogantly and declared.

"Watch closely. Witness the brilliance of my skills."

The elder overseeing the match shouted.

"Begin!"

As the duel started, Brody sneered viciously.

"You're fearless, aren't you? I won't just kill you—I'll rip you apart so thoroughly that you'll regret it even in death."

Alpoi, still smug, replied.

"Go ahead and try. But first, let me show you something."

"What are you going to show me?"

Alpoi opened his palm to reveal a solid-looking rock.

"What's that pebble supposed to do?"

"I'm going to show you a trick."

"...What?"

"Just watch for a moment."

Alpoi closed the distance between them with long strides.

"Watch closely as it disappears."

Whoosh.

With a simple sleight-of-hand spell, the rock slipped into Alpoi's sleeve. Brody frowned, unable to comprehend the purpose of this display.

"What kind of magic is this? Why are you showing me this nonsense?"

"What goes in must come out."

"What?"

Before Brody could react, the rock shot out from Alpoi's sleeve at tremendous speed.

Thwack!

"Gah!"

The sudden projectile struck Brody's nose, causing him to stagger and bleed profusely. But as a 4th-circle mage, he quickly retaliated by casting a spell.

Fwoosh!

A ball of fire burst forth from his hand. Though hastily cast and underpowered, it was still formidable.

"Haste."

Alpoi had already enhanced his speed, dodging the attack. At the same time, he cast another spell.

"Grease."

The ground beneath him became slippery, reducing friction. Though not a multi-cast, his speed made it seem as though it was.

Alpoi cast the spell around himself, then lunged at Brody, attempting a tackle.

"What?!"

Caught off guard, Brody yelped as Alpoi tripped him.

Crash!

Before Brody could respond, he fell to the ground.

Unlike most mages who never used their bodies, Brody was unprepared for Alpoi's construction-honed physicality.

"You insane bastard! What the—"

For a supposedly elegant mage to resort to brute force—it was an unthinkable disgrace!

But Alpoi didn't care. He mounted Brody and raised his fist.

"Fire Fist."

Fwoosh!

Flames erupted from Alpoi's fist, his mana control so swift that Brody had no time to counter.

"This is a fire punch, you bastard."

Bam!

"Argh!"

Brody screamed as the fiery punch landed squarely on his face. But Alpoi showed no mercy, raining down blows with relentless ferocity.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

Fists engulfed in flames smashed into Brody's face repeatedly.

Alpoi refused to stop. A mage duel would put him at a disadvantage, so he pressed his advantage while he had it.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

"Gahhhh!"

Overwhelmed by pain, Brody couldn't fight back. Having lived a privileged life, he had never even imagined enduring such a beating.

Though Alpoi wasn't particularly fit by Fenris standards, his years of labor gave him an edge over most mages.

"P-please… stop…"

Brody begged, but Alpoi didn't relent. Instead, he grew even bolder.

"Here comes a fireball."

With a flick of his palm, a small fireball entered Brody's open mouth.

Boom!

"Gahhh!"

Brody's scream was cut short as Alpoi's flaming fist struck again.

Bam!

Even as he swung, Alpoi kept taunting.

"Does it hurt? It does, doesn't it? What did you say to me earlier? Do you even know who I am?"

"Ugh…"

For the first time in his life, Brody experienced such pain, and his mind went blank. He couldn't even cast a proper spell before succumbing to the relentless assault.

By the time Alpoi finally stopped, Brody's face was unrecognizable, charred and beaten beyond recognition.

"Phew…"

Confirming Brody was dead, Alpoi stood up straight.

He hadn't intended to kill him, but there was no way to hold back against a superior-circle opponent.

Staring down at Brody's corpse, Alpoi uttered solemnly.

"Magic isn't about circles—it's about real-world application, you punk."

It wasn't the kind of thing a mage should say, but in Fenris, it wasn't entirely untrue.

"Woooo!"

Cheers erupted from the Scarlet Flame Magic Tower, celebrating Alpoi's victory.

Ghislain clapped, grinning, while Vanessa jumped up and down in joy.

Gillian looked on proudly, and even the knights and soldiers cheered with shining eyes.

In stark contrast, Hubert and the elders were dumbfounded, their mouths agape.

"That… that brat… What kind of life has he been living? Where did he learn this? Is this even magic? Huh? Can that even be called magic?"

The elders stammered in disbelief.

"Does working on construction make you stronger?"

"Why is his mana control so advanced?"

"It almost looked like he was multi-casting."

Though Alpoi's circle hadn't changed since leaving the tower, his combat abilities seemed to have multiplied.

Yet, they couldn't shake the feeling that his methods were uncouth.

All of them had the same thought.

'That brat must have learned this from Count Fenris.'

There were rumors that Fenris fought a little rough, but they never imagined it applied to mages as well.

Though Alpoi had undeniably grown stronger, none of them wanted to fight like him.

As the Scarlet Flame Magic Tower disciples cheered, Alpoi shouted at them.

"You cowards! And you call yourselves the best tower in the North? You couldn't even face these guys?"

Their laughter stopped abruptly, as his words hit too close to home.

Alpoi continued with his arrogant smirk.

"Have some confidence. These guys aren't that tough if you fight back, got it?"

The disciples nodded, clenching their fists.

A 3rd-circle mage had beaten a 4th-circle mage, one of Delmud's direct disciples at that. Maybe the Crimson Magic Tower wasn't as formidable as they thought.

Satisfied, Alpoi smirked.

'Whew, good thing I won. I wouldn't have been able to scold them otherwise.'

He returned to his seat amid the cheers.

"Well done, Alpoi."

Hubert awkwardly patted him on the shoulder.

"Hmph."

Alpoi turned his head away, annoyed.

'I was slaving away on construction sites, and they didn't even check on me, only to send me out for this duel?'

Feeling a bit spiteful, he gave Hubert the cold shoulder, leaving the elder flustered.

Hubert hadn't expected Alpoi to win and now felt guilty for neglecting him.

"Ahem, I've been busy, you know? That's why I didn't reach out."

"I don't care."

"Come on, don't be like that."

"I just fought and I'm tired."

The reunion between master and disciple ended on an awkward note.

Meanwhile, the atmosphere on the Crimson Magic Tower side turned icy.

"That brat… how dare he…"

Delmud's eyes burned with murderous intent. Killing his first disciple, right in front of him, was an unforgivable insult.

Mana began radiating from his body, suffocating those around him.

Hubert, noticing Delmud's rage, smirked inwardly.

'Our heir defeated yours!'

Though they'd lost more duels, the victory in the heir match mattered most. He couldn't wait to spread the word.

Of course, he kept quiet for now, not bold enough to provoke Delmud openly.

Turning to Vanessa, Hubert said.

"Vanessa, be careful not to get hurt, alright?"

"Yes, I understand."

Despite reaching the 6th-circle, Vanessa still spoke respectfully to Hubert. Her humble nature, coupled with her origins in the Scarlet Flame Magic Tower, made her hesitant to act otherwise.

As Vanessa stepped forward as the final contestant, Hubert relaxed.

'Phew, none of their disciples are higher than 6th-circle. This will be another win. Thanks to Alpoi, we've salvaged our pride.'

The elders and disciples shared similar thoughts, relieved.

But their relief turned to horror when they saw who stepped forward.

"The final match will be mine."

Delmud strode forward, exuding murderous intent.

At the same time… Ghislain slowly stood from his seat.

[T/L: Please support me and read 385 extra chapters: https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]