The Mage’s Nemesis Has Reincarnated - Chapter 148

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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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The Natural Enemy of Mages Has Been Reincarnated – Episode 148
“Well then, Patricia. See you next time.”
“Take care, Master.”
“What? You two have already decided to become master and disciple?”
“Isn’t that exactly what we are—teacher and student?”
At Carbollearos’s words, Patricia offered a small smile that neither confirmed nor denied.
Though only a year separated them in age, Zeke McLafflin was her lifesaver and the mentor who had guided her onto the path of magic.
Yet in her honest heart, Patricia wished she could call him something other than master.
The title carried an inexplicable distance that she found distasteful.
—If Zeke McLafflin insists I call him that, I suppose I have no choice.
I understood my disciple’s unspoken regret, though this distance was precisely what I had intended.
Deliberately maintaining that separation.
‘This is how it must be. I have no room in my heart to harbor feelings for anyone right now.’
Still, now that we shared the bond of master and disciple, Patricia would find contentment in that.
With the Circle rising exponentially, she would discover the joy of magic and would not neglect her training.
‘All I need to do is occasionally check on Patricia’s progress and collect my proficiency rewards remotely.’
At her current growth rate, she would reach the Fifth Circle within a year.
Earning 25,000 proficiency from a brief piece of advice—it was undeniably a worthwhile Quest.
“Then I’ll be going. Take care of yourself, Rant.”
“Yes, Zeke McLafflin! Next time you visit, I’ll prepare a proper feast with plenty of drinks! Hahaha!”
Watching the delighted Rant, I chuckled softly and turned to head toward my original destination.
None other than the Golden Eagle Mercenary Company.

* * *
Ten days passed, and the promised day of meeting arrived.
Kalos, the escort captain of the Hormos Merchant Alliance, welcomed our party with open arms.
“You arrived right on time. The elite of the Golden Eagle Mercenary Company!”
“Elite? That’s a bit much.”
I muttered awkwardly, but Kalos waved his hand dismissively.
“No need for modesty. If a party includes a legendary Spellblade and Draconians, what else would you call them but elite? In fact, even ‘elite’ seems insufficient!”
“Ha ha….”
He wasn’t wrong, I had to admit.
Myself, Carbollearos, Carse, Peter, Mary.
On the surface, we all appeared human, but beneath that facade lay the descendants of gods and two dragons mixed into our ranks.
The strongest party one could find anywhere in the mercenary world.
It was only natural that Kalos wore that constant smile.
“I feel so reassured having you all here! I was worried since the person we’re escorting is of such high standing, but this looks like it’ll go smoothly.”
“A person of high standing? Who exactly…?”
“I’ll explain the mission details in front of all the members later. First, let’s go meet our troops.”
Kalos gestured for us to follow and entered a building.
Inside, roughly fifty people were resting in various relaxed postures.
“Alright everyone, new reinforcements have arrived, so pay attention!”
As Kalos clapped his hands and ascended the platform with my group, all eyes turned toward us.
“As you’ve all heard beforehand, I’ve brought skilled mercenaries from the Decan Kingdom. Allow me to introduce them. This is Zeke.”
“Hello everyone. I’m Zeke from the Golden Eagle Mercenary Company. It’s a pleasure to work with you.”
“Zeke is both a swordsman and a mage. His swordsmanship rivals that of an Aura user, but he’s also capable of casting 6-Circle magic.”
“Is that the legendary Spellblade everyone’s been talking about?”
“That kid?”
Murmurs erupted at the mention of Spellblade.
It was because my appearance seemed younger than expected.
“I thought a seasoned veteran would show up, but here comes some kid….”
“This doesn’t make sense. He looks barely seventeen, and he can use 6-Circle magic?”
“The captain said he hired a legendary Spellblade, so I had high expectations, but this is below what I expected.”
“Isn’t this just a scam?”
Among the murmurs, I caught faint voices of skepticism, but I paid them little mind.
After all, this was only a temporary deployment, and I planned to leave the mercenary company entirely once this mission was complete.
My attention was elsewhere—on the Quest.
‘The system told me to build my reputation through this mission. Why? Does this mission hold that much value?’
While I pondered, my companions began their introductions.
“Hello everyone, I’m Mary, a 5-Circle mage. Nice to meet you all.”
“5-Circle mage, Carbollearos.”
“I, I’m also a 5-Circle mage. My name is Carse, and um… what else should I say…?”
“That’s enough of an introduction, Carse.”
“Ah, yes! I’m Carse! Thank you so much!”
Carse seemed momentarily flustered, but the reaction from the men was quite pronounced.
“Ooh, three beautiful women….”
“Now that’s some real eye candy, isn’t it?”
“H-hey, should we try talking to them later?”
After all, the Escort Guard consisted entirely of men.
Perhaps for that reason, even when Peter’s 6th Circle rank was mentioned, the reaction remained lukewarm.
“That concludes the introductions. Since we have some time, let’s grab lunch and begin the briefing in an hour. Use that time to get acquainted with your new teammates. And don’t cause any trouble. That’s all.”
Kalos descended from the podium and exited the building.
Thud.
The moment the door closed, the members swarmed forward like a cloud.
They were eager to approach the female members.
“You said your name was Mary, right? How old are you?”
“What kind of man do you like? Someone muscular like me?”
“Do you have a boyfriend?”
A barrage of questions followed, and it was no different for Carbollearos and Carse.
“You’re totally my type. How old are you?”
“A 5th Circle mage? I’m a 6th Circle mage. Want me to teach you some magic?”
“Hey, move over! I can’t see the women!”
As they began bickering with one another in shameless display, I sighed inwardly.
‘They’re all obsessed with women. This isn’t even a military unit.’
Unable to comprehend their behavior, I activated my skill out of curiosity to read their thoughts.
I observed several of them and quickly grasped why they were acting this way.
‘Ah… there’s really no difference between this place and the military.’
The Hormos Merchant Alliance’s Escort Guard typically recruited only men.
Given the nature of escort work along trade routes, which frequently demanded forced marches, they primarily selected men with superior physical stamina.
As a result, the Escort Guard was predominantly composed of aura users wielding swords.
Of course, a few efficient mages were mixed in, but they were men as well.
Since problems often arose when women entered groups filled with men, they had decided to hire only men.
‘Now I see—we were the exception. They accepted women because of my recommendation.’
But now their behavior was crossing the line.
“You said your name was Carbollearos, right? How about it? Meeting a man like me? You seem to be around the same age. Let’s get close—spend a hot night together.”
“Pfft! Hey, Goth! Your stamina’s been pretty pathetic lately anyway!”
“What does that have to do with anything?”
As I watched the man named Goth bicker with his comrade, Carbollearos turned his gaze toward me.
“Zeke. What should I do in a situation like this? Is it okay to crush this scrawny twig?”
“What? Scrawny twig? You ungrateful—I’ve been nice to you and this is how you talk?”
“Haha! That woman’s got a point there!”
Apparently sensitive about his skeletal frame, Goth glared fiercely at Carbollearos.
“Just because you’re pretty doesn’t mean I’ll go easy on you. You said you’re 6th Circle, right? Well, I’m 6th Circle too! Come on. We’re having a magic duel!”
Goth cried out and drew his staff, while Carbollearos looked at Zeke with a questioning gaze.
“What are you doing? He wants to spar—you should accept.”
When Zeke gestured toward Goth with his chin, Carbollearos’s expression turned skeptical.
“May I kill him?”
“Come on, why would I ruin things? You’ve experienced human recreation before, so why are you being so tactless?”
“That was three thousand years ago. And I was an emperor then—I’m unfamiliar with commoner customs.”
“An emperor? Ah, you did mention founding an empire, didn’t you?”
Was it the Akidelphia Empire?
As I muttered to myself, Goth’s roar reached my ears.
“What the hell are you two whispering about? Planning some strategy?”
“What should we do, Zeke?”
“Beat him half to death.”
“Understood.”
Having received his orders, Carbollearos stepped forward confidently.
“Oh, Goth and that woman are having a magical duel?”
“Finally, something entertaining to watch!”
“Come on, everyone make some space!”
For those whose daily routine was tedious training, a fight never grew old as a spectacle.
Once the duel was arranged, the members eagerly cleared a path and created an arena.
One volunteer stepped forward as the referee.
“Before we begin, I’ll explain the rules briefly. You must not manifest mana until the starting signal. Additionally, excessive lethal magic or area-of-effect spells are prohibited to prevent collateral damage. Do you understand?”
“I understand—now start already.”
Goth urged him on, and Carbollearos nodded in agreement.
Seeing this, the referee nodded and gave the signal.
“Very well. Now then, the duel begins!”
But the duel ended rather anticlimactically.
The moment it started, Carbollearos conjured thirty Magic Missiles and unleashed them all at once.
“Gasp! What—what is this? Incantationless casting?”
Even for first-circle magic, casting typically requires time.
Yet she created thirty in just 0.1 seconds?
Goth, who had been preparing an offensive spell, hastily switched his formula to a defensive one.
Whoooosh!
Just barely, he conjured a barrier to shield himself before the thirty Magic Missiles struck.
But then—
Crack-crack-crack-crack-crack, boom!
“Gasp!?”
These were no ordinary Magic Missiles—a sixth-circle mage’s barrier shattered almost instantly.
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud!
“Ugh, hack, cough, gag!”
Battered mercilessly by the Magic Missiles, Goth collapsed to the ground as a broken, tattered mess.
The judge blinked in astonishment, momentarily unable to process what he was witnessing.
The reality was simply unbelievable.
“The, the victor is… Carbollearos!”
“Woooooow!”
In an instant, Carbollearos became the center of attention for every man present.
With a beautiful face and exceptional skill to match, her appeal skyrocketed among them.
“Is this enough, Zeke?”
“Yeah, it’s sufficient.”
Goth had merely lost consciousness—fortunately, he wasn’t dead.
Had the situation looked fatal, Zeke would have intervened beforehand.
After all, he possessed the ability to foresee the future.
But there was one thing even Zeke hadn’t anticipated.
“Carbollearos! Do you have a boyfriend?”
“Will you seriously marry me? This is a proposal.”
“All of you, back off! The man worthy of Carbollearos is none other than me, Henk!”
The display of Carbollearos’s martial prowess had stirred the hearts of every man in the room.
‘This is insane. They’re even more worked up than before?’
Faced with the uncontrollable excitement of his comrades, Zeke found himself forced to step in.
“Everyone, please calm down. Carbollearos has no interest in men. That doesn’t mean she’s interested in women either.”
At Zeke’s intervention, the men’s eyes turned cold and hostile.
“Who do you think you are, butting in? Just because you’re a comrade?”
“A kid shouldn’t be inserting himself between adults.”
“Don’t tell me you two are… that kind of couple?”
Sharp remarks were directed at Zeke, but he remained unmoved.
To him, their hostility was like a gnat glaring at him.
“I’m not interested, so please stop, all of you.”
“Carbollearos isn’t saying anything, so why are you acting out?”
“Because she’s my comrade. Why else would I step in?”
“Tch, this kid’s impossible. How old are you anyway?”
“I’m 17 years old.”
Zeke spoke with confidence, but the men only burst into bitter laughter.
“17 years old? And you’re already at the 6th Circle?”
“That bastard’s definitely not a Spellblade. How could he be 6th Circle at that age?”
“You’re lying about being a Spellblade, aren’t you?”
“You’re nothing but a con artist.”
A barrage of accusations descended upon Zeke.
But this time too, Zeke remained indifferent.
Or rather, he intended to be.
Until a large man grabbed his shoulder and started a confrontation.
“Hey. Back off while I’m still being polite about it.”
I turned my head to see the man named Henk from earlier.
He tightened his grip on my shoulder and attempted to shove me back.
But then.
“Huh…?”
Seeing his push fail to budge me, a flicker of bewilderment crossed his face.
‘My Strength stat alone exceeds five thousand. Did he truly think he could move me?’
I inwardly scoffed, though Henk’s pride had clearly been wounded.
The sudden challenge he issued made that evident.
“Hey, you brat! Come with me! Let me teach you a lesson!”

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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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