Chapter 485 - The Pinnacle (1)
Amwol, Dahit Wethroel had led a singular life long before Verden ever existed in this world.
A Genius who carried Transcendence.
A disciple taught by the eight earliest figures who made a name for themselves in the magic world.
The leader who usurped the Black Hour.
The pinnacle of the death Mages who annihilated the Kingdom of Ailan.
A criminal who fought the alliance of four Magic Towers to a standstill, and alone slaughtered nearly half the high council of the Diamoon Magic Tower.
Above all, a transcendent existence who fought Bohemirn's tower master, Balrog Bessias, at the Cliff of Eternity without a decisive outcome.
A monster, through and through.
No matter that Verden, after Defying the Heavens, had crossed several brushes with death and reached Transcendence in less than three years… when measured by experience, he could not yet stand as Dahit's equal.
'This battle of magic is clearly in Dahit's favor.'
And yet, he had pushed forward the confrontation with the Black Hour without hesitation, because he carried one certainty.
Infinite magic power.
Two Mado.
Transcendence chosen by his own will.
Without a doubt, Verden was a transcendent Dahit had never encountered before.
Kuuuuu…!
Three flaming meteors, formed high near the towering ceiling, plummeted downward. The lake beneath the bridge began to seethe.
Dahit gazed coldly at the heat that illuminated his skin.
Then, with the base of his staff, he lightly tapped the ground.
A radius of twenty meters centered on Dahit───from its edges crawled the flames of Deathflame.
As they roared to life, they formed a curtain of pitch-black fire.
Kwa-gwa-gwa-gwa-gwa-gwa-gwang!
As Verden and Dahit's magic clashed, deafening blasts tore at the ears.
Noisy, but nothing more.
The three
"That incomprehensible magic circle that rises with your eyes… even skips the computation of a 7th-tier spell. Its versatility is remarkable. But do you think fire magic will avail you, against me of all people?"
For Dahit was a Mage specialized in flame magic, and the Mado
The heat of black fire erased matter without a trace, leaving not even ashes.
Conceptually, no ordinary flame could dare oppose that pitch-black fire.
Then Verden spoke.
"True enough, to counter your Mado with fire of the same attribute would be difficult."
Again, the temperature soared.
"But not impossible."
A crimson rain of disaster.
The burning meteors burst apart into dozens of fragments that battered Dahit's barrier with violent force.
Once, twice, thrice in succession without pause. Dahit's eye twitched.
'This brat, his mana circuits….'
To unleash 7th-tier fire magic indiscriminately was indeed powerful, yet at the same time a foolish assault.
Even a transcendent would suffer significant backlash to their mana circuits.
'And yet he shows no strain at all. Just what kind of Mado did he pioneer to step into the realm of Transcendence?'
While harboring deep suspicion, Dahit leapt backward.
Even
The curtain of black fire scattered, and a vast explosion swept the surroundings.
The lake thrashed madly.
Yet the straight bridge above it remained unscathed.
For this Great Hall was a legacy the Black Hour's council had built with utmost effort, imitating the architecture of the Mado Nation.
Not quite as durable as the Administrator's chamber where the Demon King's clone resided, but not easily damaged either.
Verden's eyes sharpened.
'Even if Dahit is nearly immune to fire, the force of a 7th-tier spell still reaches him.'
The fact that Dahit's innate magic had been broken through was proof enough.
Which meant other 7th-tier elemental magic would be even more effective.
'And thanks to the Mystic Eye, my casting speed is overwhelmingly superior.'
Meanwhile, Dahit was still focused on observation and analysis, deciphering his opponent's Mado to prepare his next move.
So Verden was willing to show part of his full strength.
His turn was not over yet.
Swoosh.
Casting
His palm turned downward.
By the law of tiers, the lake in the Great Hall began to churn as one.
A pillar of accumulated water.
Like a waterfall flowing in reverse, water columns rose like towering walls.
Their boundary split the stage of the two transcendent beings in half.
"Water element…?"
Witnessing an element opposed to his own, Dahit instinctively drew in magic power, but the disparity in scale was vast.
Swept up by the torrents, while above, dozens of fiery meteors rained down.
Steam exploded.
Beyond the hazy mist, countless droplets rained down unvaporized.
And of course, Dahit's presence could still be felt clearly.
Verden clenched his jaw.
'Just a little more.'
The head of Interis, wrapped in a three-dimensional sphere of wind, was swung and hurled with force.
Fwaaaaaaaaah───!
The transcendent storm that had thwarted the Bone-Relic Dragon in the Republic of Beldirn twisted the air.
Its pressure drove a sudden shift in atmosphere and came crashing in.
Brushing aside the obstructing steam, Dahit muttered.
"Such brute force…."
Condensed fire of Mado burst violently forth. Everything between the two was erased in an instant.
Immediately, Verden cast
...!
Dahit instantly tilted his head up in response.
Blocking the wave of Deathflame with an earthen wall, Verden counterattacked with a spatial shockwave.
Kwa-gwa-gwang! Kwa-ang! Kwa-gwa-gwa-gwang!
Pitch-black fire and brilliant elements bombarded each other. Neither yielded an inch.
After more than a dozen such collisions, Verden used the Mystic Eye to designate the range.
Double Casting.
He altered the computation mid-process, generating repulsion instead of attraction.
Kuu-ung!
Crushed by the force, Dahit planted his feet on the bridge and barely held his ground, trying to erase the effect of gravity.
Infinite Mado.
'Gather.'
Verden's will, carrying endless possibility, drew the surrounding steam into a single mass.
The temperature dropped with cold.
Then, with the pressure shifts caused by
Crackle crackle…!
Countless bolts of lightning flickered and tangled within.
The guillotine was ready.
Without hesitation, Verden brought Interis down in a vertical stroke.
Heaven-shaking punishment.
Vision bleached white.
Kwa-gwa-gwa-gwa-gwa-gwa-gwa!
Overwhelming thunder swept past Verden, striking down the transcendent of the Black Hour.
***
Tsssss───
The radiance subsided.
The bridge, within the scope of extreme heat and pressure, glowed red in places.
"Hoo…."
Verden exhaled deeply.
Never before had he unleashed 7th-tier magic like a torrential downpour.
His mana circuits ached.
His body ran hot, his breath grew heavier.
The smokescreen lifted.
Leaning on his staff for balance, Dahit's body smoldered, wisps of smoke rising.
'It landed cleanly.'
Not enough to pierce the resistance of a transcendent and deliver a fatal wound.
Yet still, a meaningful strike.
Dahit swept his tangled dark gray hair upward.
"Not only do you possess such mana capacity and mana circuits, you're a holder of every element. Born with every magical talent imaginable. Even mastering each element's 7th-tier spell in full… looks like your teachers raised you grinding their teeth."
Completely wrong.
Verden's deep knowledge of 7th-tier elemental magic came from living in Bohemirn Magic Tower's unofficial laboratories.
Gravity magic and spatial magic were from tomes obtained in the Eastern Continent and the Ark.
Naturally, not a touch from the hands of the First Eight.
Dahit continued.
"And this frenzied battle of magic… yes, the texture is quite different, but still somewhat similar. to that half-wit, Balrog."
Balrog was a transcendent specialized in magic circles.
Since Bohemirn Magic Tower claimed all attributes, he could implement the phenomena of each element in diverse ways through magic circles.
It was no accident he was called an all-rounder.
At that, Verden furrowed his brow.
"…Balrog, you mean the tower master of Bohemirn Magic Tower?"
"Yes."
Who exactly was he comparing him to now?
Verden did not bother to hide his deep displeasure as he answered at once.
"You're mistaken."
"No, similar…"
"Not similar."
"…?"
Dahit tilted his head at Verden's resolute denial, but quickly erased the thought as useless in the current situation.
He lightly brushed his jet-black robe and pressed hard at the base of his neck.
"Still, to be overwhelmed purely in firepower… yes, this is the first time. I admit it. your magical talent and those eyes are a serious nuisance."
Dahit released his staff.
"Playtime ends here."
Whoosh.
The black fire flowing from his hand coiled around the staff floating before him, shrinking it.
Soon the staff vanished, transformed into two flames, each settling into one of Dahit's hands.
An artificial artifact, [Calamity of Revelation].
"Of all the artifacts in existence, finding one suited to oneself is not easy. the mightier one is, the harder it becomes."
Transforming his staff into 'Gauntlets of Pitch-black', Dahit donned them and gestured lightly.
Fwoooosh…!
The flames of annihilation generated along that trajectory began to flare wildly, moving irregularly as though alive.
"So I forged one myself, for my Mado alone."
Dahit's lips twisted.
"Let's see if you can withstand it."
He crossed his hands.
Supporting his right wrist with his left hand, he pointed the curled five fingers of his right hand directly at Verden.
A condensed dark blaze.
───!
Bursting forth silently, it seared a straight path toward Verden.
A barrier of space blocked the front.
At once, Dahit's strike crashed upon the defending Verden.
'This is…'
The annihilation of black fire now erased even space itself.
The spatial shield was partly destroyed.
Through those small gaps, a heat neither hot nor cold invaded.
"…!!"
As if thousands of needles pierced his skin, then tore through his muscles.
Stamina and magic power drained away.
Verden, whose threshold for pain was high, uncharacteristically showed disturbance upon his face, and hurriedly overlaid mana shields with Arcane at full force.
About seven seconds of contest.
At last, as Verden endured, Dahit moved both hands.
Black waves rippled outward.
Exponentially expanding, they surged like a tidal wave.
Verden swiftly activated the Mystic Eye and
"Where do you think you're going."
Dahit's awareness turned upward.
From the vast swells of black flame, countless fiery spikes stormed forth.
Shweeeek.
They narrowly grazed Verden's flight path, only to halt just before striking the ceiling.
Then they spread wide, merging, dyeing the horizontal plane of space black.
Above, and below.
The sea of annihilation enveloped both sides, hemming Verden in.
'…Spatial movement cannot cross this.'
For Dahit's Mado now encompassed even the concept of space.
To recklessly
Yet standing idle here offered no clear solution either.
Gripping Interis with both hands, Verden dove sharply, spinning as he fell.
Triple Casting.
Violet blades pierced through the rippling Black Sea in succession.
He carved out a gap barely wide enough for one person, and threw himself through.
Tak.
Escaping the trap, Verden landed before the second gate of the Deep Layer.
"You find your openings well enough. but no matter how far you run, you're still in the same place."
Dahit raised his right hand, pointing a finger skyward. All the black flames filling the surroundings fused into a massive sphere.
The concentrated body of annihilation.
In silence so deep even breath ceased, Dahit spoke quietly.
"Time to reveal my hidden card."
He curled his finger.
Endless darkness descended.
There was room to evade, but he did not.
His instincts screamed not to go there.
And if he were to take the blow head-on, the balance of this magical battle would collapse in an instant.
Verden thrust Interis forward, channeling mana to its utmost.
A torrent of blue mana poured from the orb, smashing into Dahit's black sun.
Kwa-gwa-gwa-gwa-gwa…!!!
For a while it seemed to hold, but gradually Verden began to give way.
The reason was simple.
The mana beam was being erased by Dahit's innate heat before it could unleash its full power.
At this rate the result was inevitable.
His instincts tolled the alarm.
'Though I have grown more complete as a transcendent than when facing Grand Duke Rivandale… with my current strength, this is the limit.'
Not that he regretted it.
It was enough that he had forced Dahit to reveal the card of an artifact.
The important part came next.
Hoo.
Verden withdrew all his mana, canceling the fusion.
At the same time, he pivoted on his rear foot, spinning back.
Mado shift.
Pure mana vanished, replaced by crimson-black mana filling his circuits.
A tremor.
A sense of omnipotence.
The three pillars surrounding Interis's orb aimed at the black sun drawing ever closer.
A ray of ruin pierced the horizon, colliding with the
As the waves twisted, then warped altogether—
───!
Dahit's unique magic collapsed, scattering traces everywhere.
A thunderous boom struck the ears belatedly.
Tiny embers of pitch-black fire drifted like sparks, then one by one vanished.
Mado
At last, Verden opened his second Mado, and looked straight ahead.
Their eyes met.
Dahit clenched his fist, glaring at Verden, whose aura had wholly transformed.
New Star and Dark Moon.
Both, sensing the end of probing and prelude, began to reveal their true strength.
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