Chapter 370

Words : 2552 Updated : Oct 9th, 2025

Rudger silently gazed at the person who spoke to him. He was a young man who seemed full of confidence, with a somewhat slick impression. It was a face Rudger had never seen before. His attire wasn’t from the Empire either. When Rudger asked Arpa with his eyes if this was someone worth remembering, Arpa shook his head. In other words, he wasn’t even worth being wary of. ‘He doesn’t seem like he’ll back down with just kind words.’ The fact that such a hot-blooded young magician came all the way here to pick a fight showed clear intent. He was trying to raise his reputation among the many magicians gathered here. ‘A teacher who only teaches theory might seem like easy prey from some perspectives.’ Should he give him a quick massage with source code magic and chase him away? While Rudger was considering this, a third party intervened between the two. It was a magician who looked like a homeless person. “Are you Rudger Chelici?” “Who are you? Can’t you see we’re talking here?” The moment the young magician glared at being interrupted, the shabbily dressed magician turned to look at him. “Hik!” At that moment, the young magician’s face turned pale. “Is there a problem?” “No, if you have business...I can step aside.” The young magician made a hasty excuse and then fled without looking back. The magician who had chased away the troublesome fellow turned to look at Rudger. He was one of the magicians that Arpa had earlier explained should be paid careful attention to. ‘Sempas was his name, I believe.’ Though he looked exactly like a homeless person, upon closer inspection, one could tell that what he was wearing was actually a robe, albeit ragged. At least he was proving that he was a magician. Instead, the lack of any logo or pattern showing affiliation meant he must be a free magician. Why would such a person approach him? “You’re Rudger Chelici. Correct?” “And if I am?” For now, he answered affirmatively since the other party asked for his name. “I want to fight you once.” “...” Even medieval knights wouldn’t make such a request upon first meeting. Perhaps there was a tradition of challenging new magicians during the Night of Mystery? But Sempas was openly burning with fighting spirit toward Rudger. He was full of pure intention to fight him. “Let’s have a match.” It wasn’t something a normal magician would say, but rather than surprise, the surrounding reaction was full of interest. Considering how the young magician from earlier recognized his face and ran away too he must be famous for this kind of thing. Still, he couldn’t just start fighting right away, so Rudger responded politely. “I’m quite perplexed that you would suddenly say such things to a mere academy teacher.” “I already know you’re not just an ordinary academy teacher.” Sempas’ eyes as he said this were already dyed with conviction. It was the gaze of a battle maniac burning with fighting spirit toward a strong opponent. Because the former Pantos had exactly that same look in his eyes. This makes it difficult to dodge the issue smoothly. Looking around, it didn’t seem like anyone was trying to stop them. Rather, they were happy to have good entertainment during the remaining time before the expedition departed. Above all, there was considerable desire to verify if the rumors about Rudger were true. While Sempas was a well-known mad dog in these parts, Rudger Chelici was not. In fact, magicians from other countries did not acknowledge Rudger. Though his fame was quite substantial within the Exilion Empire, particularly in Leathervelk and Theon, as rumors often are, they thought it was exaggerated and inflated. ‘If I back down here, they’ll mock me as a coward. This makes it hard to avoid.’ Rudger spoke to Arpa who stood beside him. “Arpa. Step back.” “But...” “It will end quickly.” Though becoming a performer on stage wasn’t really to his taste, if it was necessary, he’d gladly do it. Other magicians also naturally created space as an open area naturally formed with Rudger and Sempas at the center. Sempas opened his mouth. “I heard you can cast magic faster than anyone.” “It’s not really such an impressive speed.” “I heard a rather famous guy in the industry lost.” Rudger thought about who that might be and quickly recalled. There was a time when he had gotten into trouble with Luke’s people at a previous banquet. At that time, he had completely crushed the opposing guard magician with [Source Code] magic in front of everyone. ‘I just let it go at the time, but it seems he was quite a famous person.’ Is he feeling competitive after hearing about that incident? When Rudger asked with such a look, Sempas burned with even more fighting spirit. “I want to see it too. Whether your magic is really as amazing as the rumors say.” His words were full of provocative meaning and Rudger let out a small sigh. After exchanging a few words, he could tell Sempas had no schemes or hidden intentions. What he felt was fighting spirit as clear as transparency. ‘He might become good friends with Pantos.’ Of course, they would never meet, but still. Rudger raised the staff in his hand. Sempas also responded by drawing out his staff. Unlike Rudger’s clean and simple design, Sempas’ staff looked like a bumpy wooden stick. Full of scratches and dirt everywhere, it clearly showed traces of having crossed many battlefields and brushed with death. “First strike?” “I’ll let you have it.” “You’ll regret it.” Saying that, Sempas immediately cast his magic. In an instant, lines of magical power were drawn in the air and the spell formula was completed. It was fast and precise, and even the watching magicians let out quiet exclamations of admiration. The instantly completed magic became a spear of lightning that shot toward Rudger. The throwing speed of the flying magic was at least twice as fast as what other magicians could cast. ‘Did he add acceleration to normal magic?’ Rudger could understand why Arpa had remembered Sempas’ name. Sempas’ innate amount of magical power and strength wasn’t anything special. Instead, he knew how to use what power he had to its maximum potential. Just looking at the magic he just used showed that. [Source Code] As a single line of magical power was drawn in the air, a lightning spear identical to Sempas’ appeared and shattered the magic in mid-air. The spectating audience’s eyes shone at the magic being deployed at such terrifying speed. “Is that the famous [Source Code]?” “Clearly Sempas had first strike, and the attack was almost about to hit, but he blocked it.” “The spell formula was just drawing a single line in the air, but...” “So the rumors were true.” Despite giving up the first strike, he nullified the attack. At this point, it was obvious who could cast magic faster. Most magicians would lose their fighting spirit after realizing such a gap, but Sempas did not. The light in his eyes hadn’t died. Rather, it burned even stronger than before. Sempas created several spell formulas in the air to pressure Rudger. The implemented magic was similar in speed to before, but there was a slight difference this time. Namely, the size of the magic was much smaller than before. However, even though the size was reduced, the power hadn’t decreased. Rather, because the magical power was compressed, the power had increased significantly. Though it was slower than the lightning spear he shot earlier. ‘He judged that he couldn’t win in a speed battle. Since acceleration would just be nullified, he’s thinking of raising density and power to turn this into a contest of strength instead.’ He doesn’t panic even when his magic is easily blocked and seeks new paths. Rudger highly evaluated Sempas’ judgment. It was rare to see someone so cleanly acknowledge and give up on what was disadvantageous to them. Above all, what he liked was his attitude. He doesn’t get discouraged by the wall before him and tries to analyze some way forward. There was no sign of his fighting spirit being broken. Rudger favorably evaluated people who did their best in given situations. “But that doesn’t mean I’ll let you win the match.” Rudger immediately used the exact same magic that Sempas had cast. The spell formula implementation was faster and he compressed the magical power just like Sempas to increase its power. -Bang! Magical power scattered as it exploded in mid-air. Magic with equal compression power couldn’t determine superiority of strength. Cracks appeared in Sempas’ expression, who had been certain of victory this time. “Such compression while still having faster implementation speed...” As he muttered that, a meaningful smile appeared on Sempas’ lips. His eyes weren’t wrong, Rudger Chelici indeed wasn’t an ordinary academy teacher. He could tell now that they’d crossed blows that his reputation was actually understated compared to his real ability. ‘How long has it been?’ It had been so long since he could fight such a strong opponent. Nicknames like mad dog or battle maniac carried no pressure before this man but it didn’t matter. One of his weapons may have broken, but he had many others. Sempas stomped the ground hard with his foot. The surrounding magicians were puzzled by this sudden action but Rudger knew this wasn’t a meaningless action. Looking carefully, he could see magical power spreading into the ground through the soles of Sempas’ feet. ‘Flowing magical power?’ The magical power that seeped into the ground slowly flowed underground and gathered right beneath Rudger’s feet. And eventually the scattered magical power implemented its own spell formula, and a stone fist shot up aiming for under Rudger’s chin. It was amazing. It was truly a stealthy surprise attack. If he hadn’t been concentrating, this ambush would have greatly startled him but having seen it properly, he had no intention of falling for it. Rudger immediately deployed a magic barrier and blocked the attack. ‘This is getting interesting, though I didn’t think much of it at first.’ Rudger recalled what Sempas’ magic just now was. He sent magical power into the ground, and through a magical power path connecting that sent power to himself, he applied a spell formula. At first glance, it was very similar to the coordinate designation formula that he used. If what Rudger used was remote control, Sempas’ magic was closer to wired control. Though it had many shortcomings compared to coordinate designation magic, making it essentially an inferior version. To others, it would have seemed like magic activated from a strange location. What was even more surprising was that Sempas must not have thought this would defeat Rudger, as he was already charging toward Rudger after kicking off from his position. ‘Going for close combat here?’ Even after displaying this level of magic, he doesn’t have confidence. Even though this was just practice, he considered the worst case scenario of what if. ‘The world truly is vast.’ Rudger welcomed Sempas as if he had been waiting. Dodging the swung staff, while simultaneously flowing to the side to avoid the leg thrust out. Sempas’ eyes widened as Rudger easily avoided his attacks. While he wasn’t sure about other things, he had confidence in close combat. In that momentary gap that was revealed, Rudger lightly tripped Sempas’ leg. Sempas fell backward and tried to get up immediately, but before that, the black staff lightly pressed down on his neck. “That’s enough.” Sempas glared at Rudger while lying down. His eyes were saying it wasn’t over yet, but Rudger lightly ignored that gaze. “The expedition will depart soon. I don’t have the leisure to play along any further.” “...” “Having fighting spirit is good, but I’d like you to be mindful of time and place.” The magicians inwardly sneered at Rudger’s words. Sempas was called a mad dog because once he bit, he wouldn’t let go. He was a madman who would be satisfied if he could land one hit on his opponent, even if his arms and legs were all broken and he was covered in blood. If things ended well with words saying it’s over, there would have been no reason for Sempas to get such a nickname. Moreover, Rudger had clearly suppressed Sempas and hurt his pride. Having come this far, what would follow would be not practice, but a fight reminiscent of actual combat. But “...I lost.” Surprisingly, Sempas quietly accepted his defeat and withdrew his fighting spirit. Rudger glanced at him and withdrew his staff that had been pointed. Sempas got up and dusted off the dirt on his robe. As if truly having no will to fight, he hung his staff at his waist. Magicians who knew Sempas well were shocked at such docile behavior from him. “So, were you satisfied with the match?” “I’m satisfied. It was my complete defeat.” “You say that but seem quite dissatisfied. Probably because you didn’t use all your cards, right?” Sempas nodded. If this hadn’t been practice but actual combat, he would have used many more methods. “Seeing your movements, you use hidden weapons too. Hidden artifacts under that shabby appearance. Moreover, rather than head-on battles, surprise attacks and other dirty fighting would suit you better.” “...!” Sempas’ eyes widened, wondering how he knew that but realizing Rudger wouldn’t explain, he softened his expression. “...I acknowledge you.” “Yes. I too found it quite an enjoyable match.” Rudger was internally satisfied at the feeling of meeting a kindred spirit. Sempas’ combat method resembled his own. Magic was just a tool. Even more so in the point that they would use any means necessary for victory but that didn’t mean he neglected magic either. Just looking at magical power acceleration and compression, he was no less than an excellent war mage. Though he had limits to his talent, being able to utilize right up to that limit was only possible through endless effort. Sempas also highly evaluated his opponent. Seeing Rudger who had seen through and broken all his tactics, Sempas realized he was definitely not an ordinary magician but a kindred spirit similar to himself. No, perhaps someone far more amazing... “Someone like you just teaches students? Or perhaps Theon is such an amazing place.” “Did you become interested?” “A little.” “I’m glad you see it favorably. Someone like you could probably teach practical combat classes.” “I’m still insufficient to teach anyone.” Though he said that, Sempas also seemed quite refreshed, apparently quite satisfied with this match. “If the chance comes, let’s meet again.” Sempas left after saying those words. While thinking he was an interesting fellow, Rudger observed the reactions of the surrounding magicians. Most were looking this way with gazes of surprise and wariness after recognizing Rudger’s ability. It seemed he had properly shown his debut performance.

Chapter 370

Comments (0)