The Return of the EX-Class Wizard - Chapter 200

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

The Return of an EX-Rank Mage Episode 200
Christine’s posture was remarkably humble.
It was the bearing of someone seeking instruction.
Red Cat meowed and swatted her paw forward.
Detestable mage.
Your petty competitive spirit is written all over your face!
Instinct surged within me.
For all her honeyed words, her true intention to defeat her master is glaringly obvious.
A dimensional monster that discerns forgery and detects deception.
Red Cat was about to exercise physical force to impose some minor restraint, but held back.
‘She seems quite intimate with her master.’
Then there’s nothing to be done about it.
-You possess the temperament that any mage ought to have.
-Impressive.
In any case, Christine’s eyes burned with longing.
Even if it’s two against one, so be it.
I just want to win once.
I want to inscribe a single loss into that monster’s mock battle record.
It would be even better if that one loss were inflicted by me!
‘Ugh. That record shines far too brilliantly.’
The glittering mock battle record caught my eye.
The golden radiance from thirty consecutive victories acknowledged by the system gleamed brilliantly.
───────
[30 Matches / 30 Wins / 0 Losses]
───────
A gold medal.
I envied it deeply.
‘How is this a mage’s record?’
Mages are at a severe disadvantage in direct combat.
Because combat involves countless variables unfolding in rapid succession.
It’s difficult to concentrate on spellcasting.
Yet thirty wins, zero losses. This is unbearable to witness.
That first loss. I cannot tolerate this.
One day, I will absolutely inflict that first loss.
And if it happens today, all the better.
“Kang Hye told me something. Master, you’ve learned some incredible defensive magic, haven’t you? As if you’ve been reborn as a protection specialist.”
“You’ve already heard?”
Christine grinned wickedly.
“I understand there’s an enormous gap between EX-Rank Awakeners and ordinary Awakeners. So here’s what I’m thinking—we attack, and you defend. How about it?”
It was underhanded, but there was nothing to be done about it.
Considering the weight class difference, this is actually fair.
“For a set duration, we’ll attack. You just defend. If we fail to defeat you, we lose. Agreed?”
Bessius spoke.
“The destructive power of cooperative magic wielded by two mages far transcends the standard scale of ordinary spellcraft.”
Bessius swung his staff.
As always, he was brimming with confidence.
hahahahahaha
The level of taunting magic, which was previously only possible with ‘kkkkkkkk’, has now become more sophisticated, allowing for more sophisticated communication.
Bessius, envious of how Choi Kang-mok conversed freely with Mayo, had further refined his ‘character-based communication magic’.
-You’ve learned defensive magic?
-Just shatter it with stronger offensive magic~!
Bessius deployed miraculous logic.
A true mage speaks through magic rather than words.
-In a [standard mock battle], we might not win, but in a [true magical duel], we can prevail.
“….”
Choi Kang-mok’s composure cracked.
Hey, hey, EX-class Destroyer. Can you even block the combined attack magic of the [Real Mages]? With your pathetic defensive magic? You’re just a one-trick damage dealer lol.
Hahahahaha
He swung his staff violently once more.
–
Scared?
The mock battle had begun.

* * *
The mock battle arena was deliberately set to the map known as Mage’s Gorge.
The distance to the enemy was considerable.
There were three main routes to reach the opponent.
[For 20 minutes, you are granted the right to attack the mock battle participant ‘Mage’.]
Christine grinned wickedly.
“Well done, Bessius.”
His provocation ability was formidable.
For a mage, composure was more important than anything else.
Shattering that composure was also part of magical combat.
“Hmph, this much is nothing to an Arch Mage.”
“Choi Kang-mok must be letting his guard down right now.”
Normally, it would take at least five minutes or more to reach the enemy’s main base.
By now, he would be constructing defensive formations using protective magic, wouldn’t he?
“You brought plenty of movement scrolls, right?”
“Of course.”
We would close the distance using movement scrolls.
We could cut the travel time by more than three minutes.
[If you fail to eliminate the enemy within 20 minutes, you lose.]
Excellent.
For twenty minutes, I could attack without restraint.
Combined magic had made our firepower far more formidable.
“Choi Kang-mok has a tendency to focus on practicing the magic he’s recently learned.”
“That’s only natural for a mage.”
“He’ll rely heavily on defense and dispel magic.”
That was what ‘magical warfare’ meant, after all.
“Don’t forget to assist with dispel magic.”
I had tailored my spells specifically for Choi Kang-mok.
I didn’t know what defensive magic Choi Kang-mok had learned, but I had no intention of meeting him head-on.
I would pierce through his defensive magic.
A smile kept threatening to escape my lips.
‘Think of it as a very small-scale meteor shower, Master.’
Choi Kang-mok’s spatial release magic transcended continents.
Now it even crossed dimensions.
While not quite at that level, I had grown capable of attacking beyond defensive magic.
Indeed, environment was everything for a mage.
I had gained much inspiration standing beside Choi Kang-mok.
And now Bessius’s dispel support would come into play as well.
While it would be difficult to completely dispel Choi Kang-mok’s defensive magic, we could certainly shake it.
“We’re almost there, Bessius.”
“Good.”
I had twenty minutes to spare.
If I failed once, I could try twice; if I failed twice, I could try three times.
‘I’ll show you exponential magic amplification.’
Christine and Bessius possessed twin staves.
Legendary-grade artifacts, no less.
When they used cooperative magic consecutively, the output doubled with each iteration.
First, 2x. Then 4x. 8x. 16x.
There was no limit.
Recently, they had even reinforced durability using the Unbreakable Rock.
They had successfully amplified nine consecutive times, reaching 512x output.
“It’s around there.”
Through detection magic, I pinpointed the approximate location.
Christine did the same.
Yet from Choi Kang-mok’s direction, I sensed no magical flow whatsoever.
He appeared completely unprepared.
‘Suspicious. He’s far too careless?’
Should I pause for a moment?
But Bessius was blinded by the scent of victory.
“Spatial Release, Christine’s support, Sylphid’s Resonance.”
Bessius’s signature one-on-one technique unfolded.
The attack had already begun.
Christine, holding the twin staves, could not stop either.
‘So be it!’
Christine and Bessius raised their staves high simultaneously.
Massive magical circles layered upon one another.
Wind. Wind. Wind.
Several winds converged.
Rifts tore through the empty air.
“Exponential amplification.”
2x. 4x. 8x.
The magical circles rotated, consuming one another.
The output swelled dramatically.
A tempest stretched outward in all directions.
The trees in the field lost their form, and the earth of the Canyon shattered.
‘Block this, Strong Tree!’
‘You won’t be able to stop it, Choi Kang-mok!’

* * *
Three minutes earlier.
Choi Kang-mok’s shoulders rose slightly as he entered the mock battle.
“Deliberate provocation.”
He had read Bessius’s intention with perfect clarity.
Like a battle-specialized mage thoroughly versed in combat.
“And Mage’s Gorge, no less.”
He deliberately chose a distant location despite the time constraint?
“He’s openly trying to induce carelessness.”
[Survive the enemy’s attacks for 20 minutes.]
Meow.
Red Cat swiped her front paw.
The message changed.
[If you survive the enemy’s attacks for 20 minutes, you win.]
Choi Kang-mok stroked Red Cat’s head.
Then he sighed.
“Tsk. Scheming only makes you craftier, not stronger.”
A mage should improve their magical prowess, not resort to such tricks.
If I had naively trusted only the notification…
“It would’ve been recorded as a draw.”
A draw is also a blemish.
My 31-win consecutive victory record would be broken.
-Two foreign objects have entered this mage’s domain.
-They’re using peculiar amplification magic.
The wind blew in.
I sensed a rather adorable flow of magical energy.
-Compared to the user’s explosive draconic aura, it’s quite cute.
There’s no need to even intercept.
-I’ll push them back through basic friend-or-foe identification first.
Entry into my domain requires my permission.
Whether it be a person or magic itself.
Christine and Bessius’s magic could not pass through the invisible barrier.
The mages themselves were no exception.
They crashed into the invisible wall with a bang and tumbled backward.
“Ugh.”
“Gasp.”
There was no physical damage.
But the mental shock was severe enough to cancel their magic.
“Blech!”
“Hack!”
Both of them vomited simultaneously.
The backlash of mana surged through their bodies, inflicting tremendous strain.
They nearly died.
“This is the Magic Fortress’s Pocket Dimension.”
“Damn it.”
The scope seemed to have expanded even further than before.
“Did you bring the Tunneler barrier nullification scroll?”
“Of course.”
They activated the scroll, but it had no effect.
Then, a horrifying notification echoed.
[Time is decreasing.]
Meow!
[Remaining time: 16 minutes ▶▶▶]
Meow! Meow! Meow!
[▶▶▶ 1.6 seconds]
“Huh?”
“What?”
Before they could tilt their heads in confusion.
[The mock battle has ended.]
Choi Kang-mok had won.
31 matches, 31 victories.
The mock battle field vanished, and they returned to reality.
“Wait, Red Cat, hold on—does this even make sense?”
Meow.
-Tricks hold no sway before this cat.
-You must have subtly planted a draw condition?
Meow!
Red Cat swung a front paw.
A cat paw-shaped hammer materialized in the air, then smashed down on Christine and Bessius’s heads with a resounding thwack.
Christine couldn’t accept it.
This wasn’t right.
“Hey, Master, let’s go again!”
-Meow?
[The mock battle has begun.]
The mock battle commenced once more.
The conditions were the same.
However, this time they couldn’t penetrate the friend-or-foe identification.
[The mock battle has ended.]
Choi Kang-mok’s record became 32 matches, 32 victories.
Now it was all or nothing.
“Let’s do this again without that.”
Excluding the ability to distinguish friend from foe.
And the moment we began,
[Upon entering the mock battle field, you are defeated.]
“….”
“….”
Christine and Bessius were at a loss for words.
“These conditions are absurd.”
“You’re counting this as a victory?”
Mock battle record: 33 wins in 33 matches.
“You’re counting this as a victory? This is cheating.”
A victory just for entering?
This was a bug.
Red Cat let out a sharp meow in protest.
-If you keep sneaking in draw clauses, I will have your hide.
-This cat is watching with eyes wide open.
The mock battles continued.
34 wins in 34 matches.
35 wins in 35 matches.
36 wins in 37 matches.
As a result, Christine and Bessius came to realize one crucial fact.
“Wait, hold on.”
This wasn’t a duel between the Christine-Bessius alliance versus Choi Kang-mok.
“I’m not the only one feeling this, am I, Bessius?”
“This is ridiculous! To think I, the Grand Mage Bessius, would be….”
The true nature of this mock battle lay elsewhere.
“That cat and the Magic Fortress….”
“It was actually a test of loyalty?”
The real participants in this mock battle were ‘Red Cat versus the Magic Fortress’.
The Christine-Bessius alliance was merely a side dish.
A tool to showcase devotion.
The absurdities didn’t end there.

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