[Translator - Kiteretsu]

    [Proofreader - Kyros]

    Chapter 40

    Superior Mage Finals

    The weight of the finals was significantly lighter compared to the semifinals.

    "Princess Violet will end this quickly."

    "Her opponent isn’t even a Meister—just an ordinary mage, right?"

    The public had already decided the outcome.

    "Even though Kaylen brought a mana suit, the performance gap is just too wide."

    "I’m curious to see how he plans to handle this."

    The same sentiment was shared among the scouts.

    Everyone anticipated Kaylen’s loss—an overwhelming defeat at that.

    Despite the lopsided expectations, the organizers decided to hold the finals without an audience.

    This decision came after the chaos caused during the semifinals.

    “It’s going to end quickly anyway, so they turned it into a closed match.”

    “Well, it couldn’t be helped. It’s a miracle no one was injured during the semifinals.”

    However, a special viewing area was reserved for high-ranking nobles and select scouts, where small groups had gathered to chat amongst themselves.

    “How many minutes do you think it’ll take, Lioness?”

    “That depends entirely on Her Highness’s mood.”

    Perhaps due to having been trapped in ice for several days, Lioness’s face was pale.

    “...The power of an S-class is on a completely different level.”

    Having experienced the princess’s power firsthand, Lioness understood better than anyone the sheer destructive capability of her S-class mana suit.

    This match wasn’t even fair to begin with.

    The difference in power was simply too vast.

    The beginning and end of this battle were entirely up to the princess.

    “Still, I doubt she’ll end it immediately. She’ll probably test him out first.”

    “I see...”

    “I hope the match lasts as long as possible. I want to see what he’s capable of.”

    With eyes full of anticipation, Lioness stared at the empty arena.

    “There he is.”

    Kaylen was the first to appear.

    Clank. Clank.

    Kaylen walked in, clad in black armor unlike anything anyone had seen before.

    The jet-black steel plate was etched with intricate magic circles, as though they were a part of its design...

    Every inch of the armor was inscribed with finely carved runes.

    “Is that... a mana suit?”

    “Judging by the runes and magic circles on the armor, it seems so...”

    “But it doesn’t look like it’s been lightened. The sound it makes when he walks is incredible.”

    One of the fundamental features of any mana suit is weight reduction.

    The sheer weight added by the magic circles necessary for mana concentration would normally make such suits impossible to wear.

    Without weight reduction, even knights would struggle to move in a mana suit—let alone a mage.

    But Kaylen, a mage, was walking under that weight?

    It defied all logic.

    “How is he even walking in that?”

    “It must be hard just to stand in that. Yet his walking posture is surprisingly stable.”

    “Still, that mana suit... in terms of practicality, it’s the worst. No other mage would even be able to stay upright in it.”

    “That thing is only good for salvaging the mana stones before tossing it out.”

    As murmurs of astonishment and harsh criticism about Kaylen’s mana suit filled the air, the attention quickly shifted when Princess Violet stepped onto the stage.

    Clad in a radiant blue robe, the princess ascended to the arena, wearing her signature half-mask, Glacia. She looked no different from how she typically appeared at the academy.

    “It’s about to begin.”

    “Judging by how Her Highness hasn’t entered Spirit Form, it seems she’s planning to go easy on him.”

    “She might be testing the student directly.”

    Apart from her mask, her body remained entirely free of ice.

    It was clear to the spectators that the finals wouldn’t end as quickly as anticipated. Instead, they watched in anticipation, curious to see how Kaylen would withstand the power of Glacia.

    But none of them imagined that he would be the one to attack first.

    “Blaze.”

    From Kaylen’s mana suit, a crimson glow radiated. At the same time, a bright yellow flame ignited in the palm of his left hand.

    “Lightning Bolt.”

    Within the fire, a sharp white light flashed. A cluster of lightning began to form amidst the blaze.

    The fire briefly absorbed mana, and then—

    Crackle!

    Kaylen hurled a lightning-infused flame straight at Princess Violet.

    The Lightning Bolt, fused with fire, surged toward her like an unrelenting storm.

    The mana suit Kaylen wore shimmered in alternating hues of red and white, bursting with intense energy. Fire and light mana swirled violently around the armor, creating a fierce storm of raw power.

    “Wait a minute, that mana suit...”

    “Doesn’t it lack basic safety mechanisms?”

    Kaylen knew he had to treat the suit as if it might fail at any second. Every battle with it was a race against time.

    “That means this has to be a short fight.”

    He observed the flow of mana around him.

    Centered on Princess Violet, an overwhelming wave of ice mana expanded outward, sweeping through everything in its path.

    “She might not be able to control the output, but... she doesn’t need to.”

    The sheer force of Glacia’s power wasn’t concentrated. It spread equally in all directions, creating an omnipresent field of icy dominance.

    It was the same as when she had fought against Lioness—her power was vast and unrelenting, rather than precise.

    Yet even without focus, the transcendence of Glacia’s strength was undeniable.

    Kaylen could already see the frost creeping toward him, extending its domain at an alarming rate.

    It wasn’t just a matter of advancing toward her; even holding back her overwhelming power seemed nearly impossible.

    “Still... right now, this is when she’s weakest.”

    The longer the fight dragged on, the more mana Glacia would unleash, and the freezing power would only intensify.

    If he was going to challenge her, the moment was now.

    “Six Blades—Unleash.”

    Kaylen summoned the power of his six elemental blades, channeling his aura to activate them.

    From the six—fire, water, wind, light, darkness, and earth—he chose three.

    Fire. Light. And Darkness.

    The chosen blades resonated, their energies linking to Kaylen’s mana suit.

    “Blaze.”

    “Sunlight.”

    The flames that erupted this time were far stronger than before, bolstered by the unleashed power of the Six Blades.

    Encased in blazing light, the temperature around Kaylen surged dramatically.

    His mana suit now glowed with two distinct hues—one half a fiery red, the other a radiant white.

    Fire and light merged, much like when he had used his lightning magic earlier.

    “Now, let’s add darkness to this... to create an undying flame.”

    Although Kaylen had never studied dark magic formally, he could still manipulate the mana to infuse it into his spell.

    The destructive and sinister attribute of darkness blended with the flames.

    Whoosh.

    The roaring fire diminished.

    What had once been an inferno that shot skyward now barely reached above Kaylen’s head, reduced to a contained, flickering flame.

    Even with the light of the sun imbued in it, the fire seemed smaller, weaker.

    [What...?!]

    But Glacia’s power couldn’t pierce the strange flame.

    The ground beneath Kaylen’s feet, far from freezing, began to melt under the intense heat.

    [“Ice Field!”]

    Princess Violet hastily invoked another spell, amplifying Glacia’s power.

    Yet—

    Step. Step.

    Kaylen walked forward, unwavering, the eerie flame still in his grasp.

    [What is that fire...?!]

    From the outside, the flame appeared white-hot, glowing with an almost divine purity. But at its core, it burned black—a dark, mysterious energy radiating from within.

    Fire, light, and darkness—an unnatural and destructive harmony.

    The clash of the three attributes—fire, light, and darkness—created a spell of immense power, each force colliding and feeding into the other.

    “It’s incomplete... but I can manage a crude imitation.”

    A grand spell: Hellfire.

    An eternally burning flame, known as the fire of the underworld.

    Kaylen lacked the incantation, and his understanding of the necessary magic circles was woefully insufficient.

    Yet, the memory lingered. During his time as Emperor, he had once stood against a demon lord, enduring the full force of Hellfire.

    Its unique flow of mana and distinct properties had been seared into his mind.

    Light and dark mana constantly clashing, their conflict fueling the fire’s mana, allowing it to burn endlessly...

    The struggle to extinguish that eternal flame had nearly cost him his life.

    But because he remembered that battle vividly, he could at least mimic it now.

    Step.

    Step.

    Kaylen walked forward, wielding the hellish flame.

    His steps were deliberate and heavy, the effort to maintain the fire evident in every move. Yet, he pressed on, undeterred.

    As he advanced, the frozen world around him began to melt.

    The sight caused Princess Violet’s expression to harden.

    Her glacial domain, which had effortlessly consumed the arena, was dissolving with every step Kaylen took.

    The flame he carried, while imperfect, was undeniably destructive.

    The clash of opposing forces within the fire—light, dark, and flame—made it volatile, but also unstoppable.

    Kaylen’s pace was slow, but it was steady. Each step ate away at Glacia’s frostbitten terrain.

    Princess Violet’s lips tightened into a thin line, the weight of the situation dawning on her.

    She had underestimated him.

    [Translator - Kiteretsu]

    [Proofreader - Kyros]