Step. Step.
The moment Roteron appeared, the surroundings fell silent.
The mages of the New Mage Tower who had made a deal with Nicolai stared with wide eyes, confused as to why he was here.
His arrival was a shock to them.
“If you withdraw even now, I’ll promise to spare you from the worst outcome.”
Roteron’s deep, metallic voice echoed from within the iron mask.
“Sir Roteron. This is not your concern.”
The one who answered was Jeffrey, the captain of the War Mage squad leading the group.
With thick sideburns and a long beard, he spoke firmly, unwilling to appear intimidated by Roteron.
“We are carrying out official duties to capture the intruder who attacked the Tower. Please step aside.”
His tone was polite, but his expression and voice were not.
He clearly found Roteron’s appearance bothersome.
After all, Roteron belonged to the opposing faction—no reason at all to welcome him.
“Yes. Official duties. Naturally so, since the Tower was attacked.”
“Then please move aside.”
“But doesn’t something strike you as strange?”
Roteron’s gaze swept slowly across the area.
“I see some unfamiliar faces.”
From behind the iron mask, he carefully surveyed the gathered crowd.
Not all of them were War Mages from the Tower.
There were outsiders mixed among them—men whose very presence screamed “dirty work.”
“And these Automatons—what are they? Since when did our New Mage Tower produce such things?”
“...They’re newly developed Automatons. They were just completed recently, and we decided to use this chance to test their performance.”
“A field test. Not a bad idea.”
Roteron nodded slightly.
“But these look to me like they far exceed the approved specifications.”
The Automatons standing around like mannequins were excessively armed—far beyond regulation.
“Didn’t we establish an internal agreement regarding this matter? Don’t deny it. I’ve memorized the entire rulebook.”
“T-That’s...”
“And you even brought along Armored Suits that haven’t officially been released yet. Isn’t that excessive for apprehending one intruder? It’s almost as if...”
“As if what?”
“...As if you’re using full force to erase your own dirty secrets.”
“Your words go too far!”
A War Mage shouted, unable to contain his fury.
His voice trembled with rage and hostility toward Roteron.
Jeffrey raised a hand to restrain his subordinate, then spoke coldly.
“Sir Roteron. Even for someone of your Lexor rank, those words are difficult to overlook.”
“Difficult to overlook?”
“Yes. That’s an insult to us. Or are you deliberately interfering because you belong to an opposing faction?”
“Interfering...?”
Roteron muttered as if he couldn’t believe what he’d heard. Jeffrey seized the momentum.
“And you just happened to appear here alone at a time like this. Don’t you think the timing is a little too convenient? It looks as though you’re openly trying to protect that Black Mage.”
Jeffrey’s mouth twisted into a sneer.
“Unless... you’re with him?”
Hostility surged, filling the air like a crushing weight.
Magic, killing intent, and malice pressed down on the space between Roteron and Jeffrey.
Yet Roteron stood calmly, unmoved.
“How amusing.”
He looked around.
There wasn’t a single gaze that wasn’t laced with animosity.
Their intent was clear even without reading their minds—they planned to brand him a traitor and eliminate him here.
As the leader of an opposing faction and a major power within the Tower, Roteron had made plenty of enemies.
He’d blocked their proposals, challenged their corruption, and made them grind their teeth in resentment.
Now, with ample forces gathered, they saw a chance to get rid of him for good.
He had walked right into their den.
“Well. This makes things easier for me.”
When Ludger had sent word beforehand, Roteron had been skeptical.
But now, standing here, he understood.
“I had hoped you wouldn’t cross the line... but so be it.”
A surge of tremendous mana rose around him.
That mana soon took shape—a towering humanoid form appeared behind Roteron, folding its arms.
A 6th-Circle mage who specialized in unique-series magic—Roteron.
At his display, the War Mages all readied for battle.
“A fierce fight is about to begin.”
Roteron turned slightly /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ toward Cravat behind him and warned quietly.
“I won’t have the strength to protect you. When the fighting starts, hide yourself or run.”
“I appreciate the warning, but don’t underestimate me.”
Cravat’s expression darkened, his irritation plain.
“I was already planning to take care of these guys myself, with or without you.”
“Then that’s good. Just don’t get in my way.”
“Same to you.”
The mage in the iron mask and the black mage wearing a goat-skull mask stood shoulder to shoulder.
“Crush them all at once!”
At Jeffrey’s command, the Automatons drew blades from their arms and charged.
* * *
“You needn’t worry about me. You’d better worry about yourselves.”
“Ha! Keep talking big! What are you all waiting for? He’s asking for death—grant it!”
At the signal, the War Mages unleashed their spells.
At the same time, Nicolai’s test subjects moved to surround Ludger, attacking from all directions.
A flawless, coordinated assault—no openings anywhere.
Ludger watched them, channeling mana into the swordstick in his hand.
From behind the shadow mask, his blue eyes blazed.
“The only ones drinking punishment here... will be you.”
Mana surged at the tip of the swordstick, taking on elemental properties.
Crackle.
He spun, swinging in a wide arc—
and countless shards of ice sprouted along the path of his blade, freezing the air itself.
Several test subjects charging in were instantly caught, their limbs encased in frost.
The War Mages responded by firing flame spells.
A rain of fire fell from above.
Flaming spears flew through the air.
Waves of fire rippled across the ground.
Yet Ludger’s sword dance didn’t stop.
He lightly struck the ground with his swordstick—
and as if bursting from an underground spring, water surged forth.
He gripped that water with his free hand and drew it out.
Shaaa!
What emerged was a whip of pure water.
Ludger swung it, the liquid arc slicing through the air—
and in an instant, every flame in its path was snuffed out.
The War Mages moved to counter, but Ludger was faster.
Crackle!
The mana of frost turned to lightning.
The energy around the swordstick shifted, forming a curved single-edged blade—a thunder sabre.
When Ludger swung, a storm of electricity erupted, rippling outward.
“Wh-What the hell!”
“His mana conversion speed is insane!”
They tried to respond, but Ludger mocked them with yet another transformation.
The water whip vanished—
and now his hand held a spear wreathed in flame.
He hurled it into the air.
The flaming spear exploded, scattering into hundreds of smaller bolts that rained down like fiery hail.
It wasn’t like the War Mages’ earlier “fire rain.”
Each ember carried enough power to burn a man alive.
Some War Mages raised defensive barriers.
Others, veterans, charged straight through, their bodies shielded by protective artifacts.
They swung weapons infused with elemental mana.
“You think you’re the only one who knows Southern Kingdom magic?!”
Clang!
A War Mage’s wind blade struck Ludger’s lightning sabre.
The compressed wind swirled violently, beginning to grind away at the blade—
a miniature drill spinning in his grasp.
“You’ve learned a few tricks, I’ll give you that—but you can’t beat us with that alone!”
“Then how about this?”
Ludger abruptly withdrew his strength.
The War Mage’s balance collapsed, his guard wide open—
and what filled his vision was the flash of Ludger’s swordstick.
Slice!
The head spun away.
Without pausing, Ludger turned and kicked backward at another attacker.
Boom!
The man had twin rock shields, and he barely blocked the kick—
but the impact made him grit his teeth.
What the hell—barefoot, and it hit like that?!
He started to retreat, but his shield jerked to a halt.
Looking down, he saw a black talon clamped onto it.
“A... crow’s claw?”
Ater Nocturnus—the shadow magic within Ludger—had shaped his foot like a raptor’s talon, clutching the shield tight.
The War Mage was yanked forward—straight into the executioner’s blade.
Another life vanished, and still Ludger did not stop.
He pressed the attack even harder.
He extended his arm, and a shadowy hand—like a demon’s—stretched out, twisting around a mage’s neck.
Crack!
Another one down.
In the storm of crimson fire and dancing shadows, the black monster’s eyes gleamed, seeking its next prey.
The War Mages shuddered, chills crawling down their spines.
“I’ve never seen anything like that!”
“He’s a damn monster!”
Ludger fought like a mage, like a knight, and like a beast obeying pure instinct.
His shifting elemental styles, unpredictable rhythm, and surgical precision—
every strike was fatal, every movement honed for killing.
It was a fighting style forged solely for taking lives.
The War Mages, veterans though they were, froze in terror.
In that chaos, Nicolai’s test subjects moved.
They charged through the falling flames, bodies burning but unflinching.
Their special coats couldn’t block all the fire,
but their monstrous bodies could endure it.
Clang!
As they attacked together, Ludger spread his cloak wide like wings,
using it as a weapon to deflect their blows.
One test subject slipped underneath, aiming at his blind spot—
—but Ludger’s leg struck first.
Crunch!
Wrapped in Ater Nocturnus, his leg had morphed into the taloned limb of a crow or eagle.
That strength crushed the target’s skull instantly.
Blood splattered across the ground.
But the headless body suddenly reached out, grabbing Ludger’s ankle.
“Hm?”
A split second later, the creature’s body swelled grotesquely—then exploded.
BOOM!
The blast rocked the entire area.
The War Mages barely raised barriers in time to withstand the shockwave.
“D-Did he die?”
Given the sheer force of that explosion, not even Ludger could have survived it—or so they thought.
But when the smoke cleared, despair twisted their faces.
“He’s... fine?”
“How is that even possible?”
Ludger stood there, completely unharmed.
An explosion of that magnitude at point-blank range—yet not a scratch.
“So, they even planted bombs inside their bodies.”
Even headless, these creatures still moved.
That, and now internal explosives?
But unfortunately for them, such ordinary explosions couldn’t harm him.
The remaining test subjects saw him unharmed and roared, charging again with weapons raised.
“All is vanity.”
Ludger once again invoked the same magic.
His form blurred like an afterimage—
and the test subjects’ weapons passed harmlessly through him.
Even those trained for perfect instinctual response froze in confusion.
“If I’m given even a moment to prepare, ordinary physical attacks don’t work on me.”
A true spell—one that naturally deflected all attacks lacking mana or aura.
For a first-time opponent, it was impossible to counter.
The swordstick gleamed with killing intent.
Heads flew. Hearts split open.
