Memoirs of a Wicked Magician - Chapter 123

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 123
“Look at me, sister.”
Liriope grasped Caliona’s face, which kept obsessively murmuring to itself.
“That’s a hallucination. Shadows can’t speak.”
……
“The shadow that hurt our parents was destroyed by mages back then. So what you saw just now wasn’t that one.”
As Liriope met her eyes directly and spoke with firm conviction several times, focus gradually returned to Caliona’s gaze.
After a moment, Caliona, who seemed to have regained her reason at last, slowly nodded.
“You’re right…… I suppose you are. Your words make sense. This is a side effect of contamination. It was the same when our parents passed, and now too…… I saw and heard things that weren’t there.”
Liriope relaxed, watching Caliona begin to breathe more calmly and steadily.
After that, Caliona herself began using Purification Magic, and her recovery accelerated further.
‘Od, can we tear through this Illusory Space right now and get out?’
[It’s possible, but since it’s a spell cast by a mage superior to you, it won’t be easy.]
‘Still, trying is better than doing nothing.’
Od seemed pressed for time as well. But he soon concentrated, carefully examining their surroundings, then hurried to speak to Liriope.
[Or we could directly find the master of this Illusory Space and prevent them from maintaining the spell. From the mana pattern, it seems that person has also entered this space.]
Upon hearing Od’s words, Liriope’s eyes froze in cold realization.
She thought something utterly absurd had occurred.
To draw a shadow that should be killed on sight into the Magic Tower…….
The very possibility of such a thing happening was a grave problem—as was the existence of someone in the Magic Tower who had done it.
‘Is the purpose mere low-quality entertainment? Or could there be some other impure motive?’
Moreover, this was no lesser shadow, but a humanoid one boasting the highest danger level.
Though it had seemed rather docile when she glimpsed it earlier, the mere belief that one could control such a thing freely was madness.
As Liriope imagined what would unfold if an uncontrolled shadow were to roam the Magic Tower freely, ice flooded through her veins.
‘Whether it’s the Magic Tower Master or Belkiers, I need to alert someone immediately about this.’
At least there was a good chance that Belkiers had already noticed what was happening to her.
‘Even if that’s not the case, if everyone worked together to deal with the shadow, it would make escaping easier…….’
But realistically, that seemed unlikely.
Those who had encountered the shadow defenseless were already heavily contaminated; overcoming irrational terror on their own would be nearly impossible.
And worse, the organizer had appended something particularly vicious at the end.
– Oh, and if the number of surviving participants drops to ten or below, the game may be terminated early at any time. Those wishing a prompt exit should take note of this fact!
Those words were unmistakably encouraging human hunting among the participants.
“Liri.”
Then Caliona called to Liriope, her composure now noticeably recovered.
“Hiding and running for an hour like this doesn’t seem like a good idea. And we can’t face that shadow on our own either—it’s too dangerous.”
She fell silent for a moment, then added coldly:
“Let’s choose a different way to end the game as quickly and safely as possible.”
“I was thinking the same thing, sister. I’ll try to find the mage who created this Illusory Space.”
“What?”
For some reason, at that moment Caliona suddenly lifted her head and looked at Liriope.
“What’s wrong, sister?”
Caliona didn’t answer immediately; instead she raised a hand and rubbed her own face in a somewhat self-deprecating way. Then, as if nothing were amiss, she looked back at Liriope and laughed silently.
“Never mind…… It’s nothing. I was just struck by how clever my little sister really is. It sounds like a good plan, so let’s do it your way.”
Liriope felt a moment of doubt, but now wasn’t the time to dwell on other thoughts.
She entrusted Caliona with keeping watch of their surroundings and closed her eyes.
[The basic sequence of Magic Backtracking is Mana Detection, Wave Tracking, and Circuit Reversal.]
As she began reading the scattered mana in the air the way Od had taught her, she soon felt the dense bundles of mana spreading like a spiderweb around them.
Using magic within an Illusory Space carried constraints; it was more cumbersome than usual, but this had its advantage.
Everything around was covered entirely in the mana of a single person, so there was no need to distinguish the caster separately.
[Find the circuit serving as the central axis. It’s like finding an artery if we’re comparing it to human blood vessels.]
Each threadlike line of the mana bundles was simultaneously a solid support and foundation that made up the Illusory Space.
Whether the master of the Illusory Space was truly a mage superior to Liriope or not, the mana circuits were twisted quite intricately.
And befitting someone who enjoyed such amusement, malice peeked through in places.
[There are traps mixed in. Don’t touch that circuit on the right. Go from there to the left.]
All acts of decrypting and backtracking another’s magic carried risk.
Some deliberately embedded lethal spells throughout to induce counterreactions.
[This time go right. Between the two, go lower. Now it’s the left.]
One misstep and Liriope could sink into a quagmire. Beads of cold sweat began to form on her brow.
She persevered, culling the central axis of mana from hundreds, thousands of circuits, climbing endlessly upstream.
[There. Found it!]
And finally, violet eyes holding the traces of mana reopened beneath her eyelids.
“I found them.”
Though there was no wind, Liriope’s golden hair stirred gently in empty air, following the mana currents.
“But they keep moving, so I’ll need to concentrate to avoid losing them midway.”
“I understand. I’ll protect you and clear a path. You keep tracking their location.”
The sisters hid Samuel as far back as possible in a corner of the Ventilation Duct and set out to pursue the master of the Illusory Space.
* * *
‘So this is that Mana Enhancement Potion Samuel mentioned?’
At that very moment, Cassel sat perched on the railing of the Balcony in the Banquet Hall, gazing down at the glass vial in his hand.
A small bottle roughly the length of two fingers. Inside it, some unknown black liquid sloshed.
The Northern Magic Tower contained all manner of people.
Just as there were model students like the sisters Liriope and Caliona who met everyone’s expectations, there were delinquents like himself.
He’d obtained this through a chain of such people.
“Tch. If I’d gotten this sooner, Liriope wouldn’t have to waste time on that annoying bastard right now.”
Cassel wrinkled his nose, picturing Samuel’s buttery, slack-jawed face.
He’d originally planned to accompany them out of concern about leaving Liriope and Samuel alone together, but when he saw Caliona moving with them, he’d turned back.
With Caliona there, she’d make short work of Samuel—Cassel’s presence wasn’t necessary.
But more than that…….
‘Since I’m already a step too late, why not try this myself?’
Liriope would get the potion directly from Samuel, so what Cassel had sought to obtain for her was ultimately useless.
So he intended to test it himself—see if it really worked. And if it didn’t deliver, he’d make sure to punish whoever had sold it to him.
Of course, if Liriope found out, she’d surely scold him for recklessly consuming something of unknown origin…….
But even if something went wrong, what was the worst that could happen? Death?
Cassel pushed his thumb upward, uncorking the Mana Enhancement Potion.
“C-Cassel.”
At that very moment, someone flung open the Balcony door and called to him in a trembling, bleating voice.
“L-Liriope’s location just became strange.”
“What are you talking about?”
At Milena’s abrupt words, Cassel’s brow furrowed.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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