Episode 7
* * *
A few months later.
Along with water magic, Dale’s necromancy practice was improving by leaps and bounds day by day.
The news that the Black Tower Lord had officially accepted his son as his disciple also spread like wildfire.
There are some things that cannot be hidden, no matter how hard you try. This is especially true of talents that shine so brightly like Dale’s.
Magic and swords. There was also the etiquette of the nobility, horseback riding, and all the knowledge that he had to learn as the eldest son who would lead the duke’s family. The following year, when Dale turned 9, people did not hesitate to call him the prodigy of the duke’s family.
It is none other than the son of the Duke of Saxony.
The greatest necromancer and black magician on the continent, heir to the legacy of the Black Duke.
The father’s oath that he would not teach his children the dark arts. The breaking of that oath caused quite a stir throughout the empire.
In other words, the entire empire began to watch Dale’s every move.
* * *
The sunlight breaks into golden rays and scatters across the pure white plain. Two people’s footprints are engraved along the pure white snow-covered plain, and at the end of them, two people’s shadows face each other.
Sepia, a snow elf with eyes as blue as sapphires, and Dale of Saxony, the prodigy of the Duke’s family.
“Don’t hesitate and go for it with all your might.”
The elf wizard of the 6th circle, Sepia, opened her mouth. Her expression was more serious than usual.
The easiest and fastest way for a teacher to understand his student’s achievements.
Magic Duel.
It was a matter of the disciple directly experiencing and receiving the magic that was charged with power and sweeping away.
However, Sepia’s eyes, facing a rookie who was only nine years old and a first circle master, were filled with the same cautiousness as a wizard in the middle of a battlefield.
Silence fell. And the moment the feathers of silence descended upon the pure white plain.
“Arise, ‘united’ wall of ice.”
Dale finally says the words of the spell.
The magician’s spell is a process of self-suggestion that firmly establishes one’s own image through “verbalization of images.” And Dale added the formula of “combination” to the commonly used Ice Wall spell, thereby inducing conscious bias.
The power of suggestion in ‘verbalized formulas’ is stronger than that of formulas that are unconsciously engraved.
Kuung!
A huge wall of ice rose between Dale and Sepia.
Ice wall.
Elemental magic is closely affected by the surrounding climate, etc. Even if it is a beginner’s cold magic, its power is multiplied several times when cast in this kind of frigid permafrost. Sepia also cannot be unaware of this principle.
An ice wall 5 meters high, 5 meters wide, and 1 meter thick. Considering the circumstances, it is a normal-sized ice wall that is not particularly special compared to a normal wizard.
‘Even so… … .’
Sepia is a high-ranking magician who has reached the 6th circle of the water attribute. It was not difficult for her to figure out the secret hidden in Dale’s ice wall.
‘The density of the ice is extremely high.’
Molecular bonding.
By adding a formula for bonding that strengthens the attractive force between ice molecules, we have secured a density several times greater than that of a normal ice wall. Without that formula, an unimaginably large ice wall would have been formed.
‘But why did they bother to build a wall of ice?’
With that in mind, Sepia is pulling the reins of the border.
Swish, swish.
‘… … !’
“It’s a grenade.”
A turtle shell-like crack appeared along the ice wall, and Dale chanted the “Spell” again.
An order is ultimately a verbalization of an image, or in other words, a process of autosuggestion to solidify a mental image.
An image (archetype) that goes beyond the level of individual consciousness and is universally shared by peoples, nations, cultures, and eras.
To be a magic spell, you need such powerful symbols and images of autosuggestion. And at least in Dale’s original world, that meant ‘a very definite form of image’.
Kaang!
The front of the ice wall began to shatter into pieces and explode like a grenade, scattering countless pieces of ice in all directions.
Fragments covered in a cold frost. Ice grenade.
‘… … !’
Only then did Sepia realize why Dale had increased the density of the ice wall, and she gasped in shock.
‘Combination and fragmentation.’
In the case of an extremely compressed block of ice, the outer shell is torn into small pieces and an ice explosion is created that maximizes the fragmentation effect. Each piece of ice that is scattered is comparable to the blade of a skilled assassin.
This is a technique that is possible only because Dale has the mental image of a modern weapon called a grenade.
Probably no one in this world could have drawn such an image from the spell Dale had conceived, for there is no entity in this world that can be verbalized in such a way.
But Dale had them. ‘Weapons from another world’ that people of this world could not even dare to imagine, and their images.
In the fight between hunters and monsters, the role of highly developed modern weapons was by no means small. Furthermore, as the commander-in-chief of the human suicide squad, his military knowledge was in no way comparable to that of a civilian.
You don’t have to be a scientist. Magic is ultimately the embodiment of imagination, the power to turn imagination into reality.
And the image Dale embodies is a landscape that the people of this world cannot even imagine.
A hellish battlefield where guns, missiles, explosives, and all sorts of thermal weapons were endlessly firing. A slaughterhouse scene unknown to anyone in this world. The image Dale’s spell brought out was a fragment of that hellish battlefield.
Sharpened blades like those of high-ranking assassins rushed towards Sepia.
Even the blade was so small and fine that it was impossible to strike it off one by one. It was literally a grenade.
‘This is definitely not a child’s idea.’
The destructive power was completely different from when she had previously used the Ice Blast with the Unmanned Spear. Sepia’s expression was distorted in shock at the sight of the scattered grenade fragments.
The blades of ice began to slaughter Sepia’s body. It was torn to pieces beyond recognition, making it impossible to even distinguish the corpse.
“teacher!”
Dale took a deep breath. His heart sank. However, Sepia’s body, which had been hit directly by Dale’s ice grenade, did not splatter blood or internal organs.
There is only a trace of destruction, like an elaborate ice sculpture shattered. Only then does Dale realize.
‘illusion!’
After realizing this, he quietly turns his head away.
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“Dale.”
Sepia was now behind Dale, watching him with a cautious expression. Dale held his breath.
A single line of blood runs along Sepia’s pure white cheek. A drop of blood flows down from that wound.
“That wound… … .”
“Are you afraid that I might die?”
Sepia asks, and the question is by no means light.
“… … I never intended to kill you, teacher.”
Dale nodded hesitantly. It was neither a well-intentioned lie nor a pretense.
However, what was embedded in his magic was the art of slaughter, which was intended to slaughter Sepia with all its might. Dale also realized this fact.
“You’ve mastered water magic very well. Why are you so intimidated when you’ve been using it so skillfully?”
Sepia once again laughed bitterly, mocking her own immaturity.
“Rather, as your teacher, I am very happy that you have been practicing magic with all your heart.”
Sepia continues. Dale blinks at the unexpected words.
“He revealed himself honestly without hiding anything.”
With all your might, without even a shred of reserve.
“teacher…….”
“Where can you find more evidence that you trust me?”
I believe it. Saying so, Sepia quietly hugged young Dale.
“You are my very proud disciple.”
Sepia said, as if to herself.
“… … Really?”
“I am truly a lucky teacher to have such an excellent student.”
“It’s thanks to what Teacher Sepia taught me.”
Sepia nodded again. Only then did Dale smile. A smile appropriate for someone his age.
Very brightly.
Sepia responded with the same smile.
A magician who uses the dual attributes of water and darkness and is on the verge of completing the second circle. Even handling not one but two attributes requires not just double the effort, but square the effort.
But Sepia was able to realize that Dale’s true fear was not the speed of accomplishment.
After all, magic is the power to materialize the imaginary world and superimpose imagination onto reality.
Then, what on earth would the perfect image that this child would unfold in this world look like? Furthermore, what on earth would be the scenery of the ‘world of Dale’ that would be covered in this world? I couldn’t know. Sepia simply blessed her disciple’s growth.
Trying to ignore the ominous feeling running up my spine.
* * *
That night, in the Duke of Saxony’s office.
As usual, at the place where Dale’s performance was being reported, the black ball held its breath at the unexpected sight.
“Hyeonyo, what happened to the wound on your cheek?”
A single scar stretched across the elf wizard’s cheek. The water magic of the blue tower was specialized in protecting one’s own body and confusing the opponent. And the fact that the blue wizard’s body was wounded had a significant meaning.
Even if it is a trivial detail.
“Is there a ‘Hashishin’ in the mountains… … .”
Assassin of the Mountain. At the words of the black ball that was about to carefully open its mouth, Sepia quietly shook its head.
“This is what happened due to my immaturity during the magical duel with Prince Dale.”
“… … !”
Sepia said with a bitter smile. Dale. The name caused a hidden wave of anxiety to appear on the black-haired man’s face.
“I have sent a letter to Cheongtap informing you that the Duke’s stay will likely be longer than planned.”
“I owe you an unspeakable debt of gratitude, Sepia.”
“Thank you. It is a pleasure for me to teach talented students.”
Sepia smiled quietly as she recalled Dale’s appearance growing by leaps and bounds each day.
“Thank you for saying so.”
The black ball continues speaking calmly.
“So, shamelessly, I have one favor to ask of you regarding Dale.”
“Is there anything you would like to ask me?”
“──Not long ago, I received intelligence that a group of orcs from the Demon King’s Territory had begun crossing the White Mountains.”
Sepia swallowed quietly.
“The threat from the orcs themselves is minimal. They can probably be dealt with by mustering a small cavalry force.”
“What do you mean?”
“That’s why I want to send Dale to fight in this battle.”
“Honestly, Prince Haona Dale!”
“I’m not asking Dale to make a ‘big splash’ on the battlefield.”
But the Duke of Saxony quietly interrupts her.
“It is the duty of the House of Saxony to subdue the monsters that flood the territory and ensure its safety. Dale, as the eldest son who will shoulder the burden of the Duke’s family, must also understand this duty.”
‘It’s so cruel.’
But Sepia couldn’t bring herself to say those words. A father’s love for his son would not be any different from this man.
Nevertheless, this is the fate given to those who inherit the Duke’s blood.
“So, what specifically would you like me to do?”
“While I am preparing to depart, I would like to pass on one of my artifacts to Dale in case of emergency.”
The artifact of the black ball. Sepia swallowed her breath quietly as she pondered its meaning.
“The Artifact of Darkness… … .”
“Please, Sepia, guide Dale so he can control his power.”
Sepia nodded without hesitation at the black ball’s request to her.
