Chapter: 108
Let’s quickly summarize the current situation.
This guy seems primarily focused on close combat. He’s wielding a sword, so he must be a frontline fighter… But this isn’t just a simple guess; I’ve determined it from the muscles and steps visible beneath his tailcoat.
I can’t see any thrown weapons. If he has any ranged attacks, they might be mana projectiles or magic-based.
His rush towards me is faster than anyone I’ve faced before. If I close my eyes and open them again, I can imagine the point of his rapier piercing through me.
First, I need to block his approach. He looks like he’s got a lot of pride, so I’ll craft illusion magic that pokes at his ego.
“Jealousy Explosion.”
“Hmph!”
He scoffed at me. Yeah, go ahead and let your guard down. If you think my illusion magic is the same as other mages, you’re sorely mistaken…
Chaeng!
He deflected the magic with his rapier. Damn it.
Now I know the deal. When something outrageous happens, it typically means that the opponent has utilized metamorphosis. But what exactly can he do?
His speed slowed a bit from deflecting the magic, but he didn’t stop his charge. I only have one turn left until he closes the distance entirely.
If I waste my turn creating space, I’ll just be buying time before he catches up. The difference in agility between him and me is beyond imagine.
I recall various works from my past life. Historically, identifying the opponent’s abilities accurately tends to lead to victory. I’ll use this turn to dig into his metamorphosis.
“Depressing Ankle Bind, Seagull of Hydenmark.”
I unleashed different types of illusion magic. One shot mental force while the other created an illusion with light. And I observed without blinking.
The moment my magic encroached within a five-meter radius of him, it solidified.
Even though illusion magic shouldn’t have physical properties, it was infused with physicality. It was like shooting a bubble that instantly turned into a solid ice projectile.
The opponent can perform magical parries. Check.
Cha-ching!
Once again, he deflected the magic. The distance had closed completely. With our eyes locked, he grinned knowingly, and his rapier lunged towards me.
He was sure of his victory. Since I allowed a mage to come close, he must have thought he’d got me cornered.
…If only I didn’t have AI!
A command appeared on my retina. I took a step forward, pivoted, and deflected the incoming rapier with the back of my hand, aiming a strike at his centerline with my other hand.
I gathered mana and pushed forward.
Thwump!
“Cough!”
A sound reverberated as if a giant bell had rung, and he was sent floating three meters into the air. I took a moment to catch my breath and whispered the line I had always wanted to say.
“Tai Chi Chuan.”
“Is the mage throwing punches…?!”
He quickly got back on his feet without a sign of pain.
I expected this, but it wasn’t an effective hit. If I were a warrior instead of a mage, that last move would have drained every ounce of my energy, but alas. To play TRPG, I have to be an illusion mage.
He seemed a bit flustered but regained his stance and charged again. The messages on my retina displayed several trajectories, probabilities of success, and projected damage.
This was the battle assistance system from the AI, code-named “Heavenly Demon.” I smirked.
“Did you think a mage would just let you close the distance and take it? Think again!”
“Stop flailing about with those weird moves…!!”
I focused on striking first rather than waiting for my turn.
Tap, Thud! Bam! Pow!
I linked our wrists, leveraging his incoming force to throw him off balance. I aimed for vital points, delivering maximum damage with minimum movement. It’s not just basic training; I’m trying to show him who’s clever!
Bam!
I struck his chin. His head snapped back, his eyes flaring with anger before suddenly going cold again. A danger signal.
Puh-rung! Swaaaack!
I activated a mana explosion beneath my feet, launching myself backward. Right where I was standing, a barrage of rapid punches rained down, too quick for the eye to follow.
Had I not retreated, I would’ve turned into a pin cushion.
“Hoo…”
“…”
He sighed, brushing back his disheveled hair as if he had noticed something.
“I’ll give you credit. I don’t know why a mage has learned to throw punches, but for a commoner, you’re not bad.”
“Would it hurt less if you got punched in the jaw by a commoner?”
“Hah, haha! Just because you can blabber doesn’t mean you’re hiding your breath. You’ve been breathing heavy since a while ago, and your limbs are trembling. How long can you keep this up?”
“…”
He got me there, damn it.
Of course, a mage can’t keep up with someone whose physical specs are built for close-combat. That means I have to anticipate three moves ahead to respond effectively.
And since I didn’t bring my simulation facility, I had to run the “Heavenly Demon” battle assistance system entirely in my brain. Moving my body requires my brain, and honestly, I feel like I’m about to blow a fuse.
Not being able to keep up physically is huge as well. Trying to pull off martial arts with an untrained body has its consequences, and I’m struggling for breath as my lungs feel choked.
Not to mention, he didn’t seem affected by my hits at all. Well, expecting damage from a mage throwing punches was a bit unrealistic.
Time to catch my breath.
I pretended to casually speak with magic. While keeping up appearances, I started to breathe in quietly without him noticing. Is the oxygen really this scarce?
“Have you used metamorphosis?”
“Metamorphosis – ‘Mana Hardening’. The magic around me has physical presence. Curses, blessings; all of it.”
“…”
“I bet that’s distressing. Struggle some more! I’ll give you a round of applause for your performance, commoner.”
So, my magic now behaves like arrows or stones.
Illusion magic has its advantages and disadvantages, but the biggest merit in battle is that it’s almost always guaranteed to hit. So there’s no need to aim. I just need to worry about breaking through his mental barrier, and if I do, it’s 99% for me.
But if it has physicality now, that merit disappears. Did you have to snatch away what little advantage I had?
Giving it physical form?
That makes it no different than operating a magic missile. I prepared dozens of light spells. Everything from tickling his toes to inducing vivid hallucinations.
His metamorphosis doesn’t stop magic; it solidifies it to counteract it. That means if he can’t deflect it with the rapier, he’s gonna have to take a hit.
If he could deflect single shots, then it’s just a matter of firing so many that he can’t block them all!
“Magic Barrier.”
Shoosh-shoosh-shoosh-shoosh!
A sound sharp enough to slice paper echoed dozens of times as my magic was ripped apart. It was the comprehensive protection device used by Bennett.
“…You managed to deflect that.”
“My metamorphosis brings you and me, the mage and the knight, into the same ring. This isn’t a fight that exploits each other’s openings. It’s a duel to compare our skills evenly, commoner.”
“Is it fair to put a mage and a knight against each other in close combat?”
“Where’s the fairness in a fight?”
“…”
That bastard.
I was hooked.
Seeing that look in his eyes tells me he’s still cold-blooded. That last comment was a calculated jab to throw off my composure. Yet being hooked is still being hooked.
If a clear trajectory can be blocked, I’ll just complicate it beyond what could be understood by anyone less than a genius like me.
I unleashed more magic. Then, I shot additional spells that overlapped and collided with the first shots. I repeated this endlessly, tangling the different magical trajectories as if playing billiards.
Ping! Tiddly-ding!
“…Just tricks!”
Let’s see you manage to block all that while calculating the erratic trajectories, you second-rate scoundrel!
Shoosh!
The rapier danced in dizzying patterns. But he couldn’t catch all the spells with just one hand. One of the spells struck the ground and ricocheted off, piercing through his guard straight into his chest.
I hit him…!
Teeing!
Light erupted from the pendant around his neck, deflecting my magic. I let out a sigh.
“…An artifact?”
“Just because I can deflect magic doesn’t mean I don’t wear protective gear. Did you not think that far, commoner?”
I thought for sure he’d keep the whole squishy mage vibe going!
You mean to say he wrapped himself in magical equipment too? How frustrating!
If I don’t shoot trick shots, he’ll deflect them. If I hit him, the weaker ones will be blocked. Meanwhile, the rapier keeps lunging forward at me.
In a situation like this, it’s not like creating new magic will help me win. If I can’t win, then I have to escape. But I have a feeling that running while splitting into duplicates won’t help me escape either…
I either hold on until the Tower Master arrives or somehow manage to catch him.
Artifacts were made to be pierced by special burst techniques. I can buy time with casting, and if I land a hit, I can win.
So that means I need to maneuver to unleash shots that he can’t deflect. That’s doable. If I just have a little time, I can pull it off.
Swaaaack!
“…Cough!”
“Shouldn’t you struggle a bit more? Hmm?”
It’s the lack of that little bit of time that’s the problem. My body starts to feel like it can’t take it anymore. I’m pushing my muscles to their limits, and it’s neither human nor practical to run the simulation through pure brainpower.
For a moment, I blacked out. Everything went dark. As I desperately cycled my mana to revive my metabolism, my mind returned.
Pshhht!
His shoulder pierced through.
It felt like being stabbed with a red-hot poker. It’s fine. I can endure pain. But without options, I’m in trouble.
I need to buy some time using holograms. But my predictions are grim. With a hologram only capable of lifting a stone, I can’t rely on its defense.
While I contemplated, I noticed a flicker of anxiety cross his face. Normally, I should have been dead by now; realizing that the mage was dragging the fight out must have put him on edge.
He opened his mouth.
“You’re a disciple of the Tower Master, and it shows. You learned your magic from a defective product, and it’s a disaster.”
“…”
That’s a provocation. A primitive one at that. I’m not shallow enough to fall for something so crude…
“Wait there, you’ll die first. The Purple Tower Master will soon follow.”
That jerk.
I wavered. Normally, I wouldn’t let that shake me, but the image of the Tower Master asking for a date flashed through my mind, causing emotions to surge unexpectedly.
The battle assistance system lit up red, issuing warnings.
His fist swung close.
His punch slammed into my solar plexus, and I was sent flying back.
===============================================================
For a moment, I lost consciousness and then woke up.
My body wouldn’t move. I could barely flick my fingers, feeling a rustle behind me.
I had the sensation of something touching me as I flew through the air, and it seems I had broken through a building’s outer wall. Just how hard did he hit for me to crash into a wall?
If I hadn’t instinctively surrounded myself with mana, I might have been dead.
It was a threat to my life.
“…”
I didn’t feel fear, even being close to death. In fact, I had a trump card left.
I could forcibly activate metamorphosis right now.
The brain capacity I’m using to suppress that. I can draw resources from there.
After temporarily regaining the emotions blocked by that, I’d fire a special burst technique in my head. What would happen next is unclear, but theoretically, metamorphosis should be easily achievable.
If I only borrow for a moment, it shouldn’t completely take over my body. I’d be shaken but, to regain control means I’ll have to expend a bit more brain capacity than before.
But I can’t just die here, worrying about the future.
As I pushed myself up, I saw something rolling on the ground. A familiar design glinted in the dust.
…Armor?
It was the Capital Knights Order’s power armor. I must have crashed into the headquarters of the Capital Knights Order.
“…”
Power armor, huh.
===============================================================
Roderus, the assassin sent by Duke Redburn, approached the dust-covered building of the Capital Knights Order. He had to finish off the mage for good.
He was a formidable opponent.
He had dominated the fight until now, and it was now just a matter of dealing the final blow. However, that was because he was fully equipped with every imaginable advantage.
Had he not brought an artifact, he might have fallen victim to the condensed magic. If he lacked a metamorphosis to counter the mage, he would have been dead by now.
It was absurd that a mage could even engage him in close combat. He knew he was significantly faster, yet still found the mage’s hands reaching him first.
The thought that had he been equally matched, he might have lost sent chills down his spine.
The penalties for failure are severe. Roderus didn’t want to think of what would happen if he failed.
He had no idea what trick the mage might pull. Cautiously yet speedily, he stabbed at his head with his rapier. Roderus stepped onto the rubble of the collapsed outer wall.
At that moment, amid the settling dust, three shadows burst forth.
They were holograms wearing power armor.
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