Chapter 386

Words : 2429 Updated : Oct 11th, 2025

Thanks to the familiar summoned by Roina, Rudger and his companions were able to conserve their strength. The snail familiar moved slowly but was like an unstoppable tank. Even its slowness was relative to its size; by human standards, it moved at a brisk walking pace, so the speed wasn’t bad. Its most notable characteristic was that it grew larger as it absorbed the magical power from the shadow knights. It was already huge to begin with, but now it almost filled the entire corridor. “Despite its strange name, its abilities are impressive.” Arpa finally said those words. Sempas and Rudger instinctively flinched, but fortunately, their worry didn’t come to pass. There was no reaction from Roina, who was following right behind Kkingkking. No. Actually, there was a reaction. She had clearly heard Arpa’s words but she deliberately pretended not to hear them, acting as if she hadn’t heard anything. ‘She knows it’s embarrassing herself.’ Not only is its appearance creepy, but the name is also ridiculous. While the form of a familiar can’t be changed at will by the summoner, the name was entirely Roina’s choice. Roina probably regrets naming it that for a long time to come. However, once a familiar’s name is set, it can never be changed. The name is close to a type of contract that the owner engraves on the familiar. Once decided, it becomes the creature’s essence. Changing the name would be denying its essence, making it impossible to properly use the familiar’s abilities. ‘Come to think of it, I should have advised the students to carefully consider and choose names for their familiars during class.’ I was too busy to pay attention to that part. Usually, people naturally choose cool names or ones they like the sound of. Who would have thought we’d witness such an extreme example in a place like this? Meanwhile, the group continued to push quickly through the corridor. Roina’s familiar, Kkingkking, stopped growing larger at some point. Instead, it just secreted slimy mucus that wet the walls, ceiling, and floor. Arpa was horrified by the sticky mucus clinging to his shoe soles. “Ugh.” “This is liquefied magical power.” Rudger realized what the mucus produced by Roina’s familiar was. It was the byproduct of the familiar expelling the absorbed mana in a different form. Roina, who was leading the way, answered in a somewhat proud tone. “That’s right. It’s a semi-solid gel form with higher viscosity than actual liquid.” “Is this also one of the familiar’s abilities?” “My familiar isn’t really suitable for actual combat. It’s more supportive in nature.” “Support?” Rudger had an uneasy imagination as he looked at the mucus covering everything. “Don’t tell me this...” “If consumed when magic power is low, it can restore it. It’s essentially an instant mana potion.” “...” Rudger was surprised. This was for quite complex reasons. One was the existence of a familiar that could create mana potions on the spot. Even considering the condition that it needed to absorb mana first, the result was still too impressive. It was no different from automatically extracting water by collecting dew in a desert without water. It was clearly a familiar that would be incredibly helpful in times of crisis. Among all the familiars Rudger had seen so far, it was certainly one of the best in terms of support capabilities. And what surprised him in another sense was the fact that the result of this amazing process was that sticky mucus. “Don’t tell me we have to actually eat this to recover mana?” “Of course. How else would you recover mana? Who applies potion to their skin?” Eat mucus from a giant snail? That would be an option he wouldn’t choose even if he collapsed from mana exhaustion. Moreover, Rudger was bothered by Roina’s confident answer. “...Have you tried it?” “...” Roina avoided his gaze but with her protruding lips, she muttered slightly as if in protest. “...It’s surprisingly tasty.” “...” Rudger took a step back from Roina. Seeing this, Roina screamed. “Ah, why!” “Don’t come near me.” “What’s wrong! What’s wrong with eating something my familiar produced?” “The eating part is the problem.” “This, this was an experiment! A kind of research! So, it’s natural for a magician!” “At least I don’t think I’ll be eating it.” “...” Roina decided not to mention that it actually tastes good like jelly once you eat it. She realized there was no point in talking further. “Well, are there any other effects?” “No.” Ah, Roina opened her lips as if remembering something. “What is it?” “I tried applying it to my skin once, and it felt quite refreshing and nice.” “On your skin?” Rudger glanced at Roina’s skin. Her skin is fair and beautiful for someone who doesn’t exercise. Of course, it could be due to having little bodily waste thanks to the powerful mana from achieving 6th Circle. But was it just his imagination that he could see a future where women would flock to Kkingkking? ‘That’s not what’s important right now.’ Rudger observed Kkingkking, which was secreting more and more mucus and couldn’t shake the feeling that it seemed to be reaching its limit. The summoner Roina felt the same way. “This is bad.” “Has the familiar reached its limit?” “Yes. Although Kkingkking is expelling as much mana as possible while absorbing it, it’s absorbing more than it can expel.” Even now, the advancing familiar was absorbing mana from the shadow knights. However, even the most impressive familiar has its limits. At this rate, the familiar would be forced to unsummon. Roina seemed to make a firm decision as she scooped up a large handful of mucus flowing on the window frame. “In, in this case, I’ll cast another big spell...Kyaak!” -Tak! Roina screamed. It was the sound of Rudger hitting Roina’s head with his sword stick’s scabbard. Roina turned to look at Rudger with tears in her eyes. Her eyes were full of the emotion ‘Why?’ “Please do nauseating things where I can’t see them.” “Na-nauseating? After I made such a big decision...” “There’s no need for that. Because we’ve arrived.” Kkingkking, who had been sluggishly leading the way, smoothly turned its body to the side. This was because a wide space appeared before their eyes. It was a massive hall similar to the central hall they entered through the main entrance. There was a magic circle in its center. A crystal floated in the center of the magic circle, and shadow knights were rising one by one around the crystal. What caught the group’s attention were the people positioned around the magic circle. It’s them, the culprits behind this incident. Just as Rudger recognized them, the enemies also noticed the presence of the intruders. “Damn! How did they get here?” “Ignore them! Push through with the knights!” The knights all rushed toward the group at once. “Kkingkking!” At Roina’s shout, the now house-sized giant snail stood at the frontline and blocked the knights. The knights launched their attacks, but due to the smooth skin and massive flesh, the damage wasn’t too severe. However, damage was steadily accumulating. Through the wounds that opened up, the absorbed mana was rapidly leaking out. “We won’t last long!” “That’s enough.” Rudger jumped high as he stepped forward. The shadow cloak flowing from both his shoulders spread thin and wide, taking the form of wings. After gliding through the air over the knights, Rudger dropped into the center of the enemies handling the magic circle. “Enemy!” “Just one! Kill him!” The Black Dawn Society’s Orders didn’t recognize Rudger. This was because he was wearing a black shadow mask on his face, and that was exactly what Rudger had intended. If they recognized him here and showed any sign of knowing him, it would have been an awkward situation. Staves were pointed at Rudger from all directions. All the Black Dawn Society remnants gathered here were quite skilled magicians. As they were Leslie’s elite subordinates, their level was naturally high. -Whooosh! The surging magical power was strong enough to make even Rudger’s skin, covered in Aether Nocturnus, vibrate. They were preparing high-circle magic. with strong power. It was very dangerous magic to use where they themselves were gathered, but... ‘To those prepared for death, that doesn’t matter.’ What was even more insane about the Black Dawn Society was their attitude toward their opponents. They didn’t care if their own comrades were caught up and died. This wasn’t because they were selfish, it was closer to madness. They were determined to protect this place even if it meant dying by their comrades’ hands. Some tried to block Rudger’s attack by putting up defensive magic they had prepared. The role division between defense and attack teams was clear. “Die!” The one presumed to be a Second Order shouted as they fired magic at Rudger. Four ice pillars shot like cannons toward Rudger. Until then, Rudger, who had been standing still, disappeared as if sinking into the ground below his feet. -Crash! The pillars swept through other Dawn Society Orders and a shadow knight that had just risen. “He disappeared!” The panicked Second Order looked around for Rudger but that action didn’t last long. -Shunk! Rudger, who rose from the shadow behind him, pierced his heart with the sword stick. “H-how...” “Even in a mansion full of magical power, moving this short distance is nothing.” The Second Order died with his eyes wide open at Rudger’s answer echoing from behind the mask. The other magicians who belatedly noticed the Second Order’s death tried to counterattack, but... Rudger’s magic was much faster. The Source Code formula activated simultaneously as he stabbed the Second Order to death and a single line of magical power was drawn before Rudger’s eyes. However, what it contained was a collection of formulas as precise and complex as a machine. Countless spells output through Source Code were fired in all directions, sweeping through the Black Dawn Society remnants. “De-defend!” The quick-witted ones immediately went into defense, but that was a foolish action. Rudger wasn’t alone here. -Boom! An explosion from behind swept through the Dawn Society Orders who were about to launch a counterattack as Sempas and Arpa joined in. Roina used magic to open a path, while Sempas and Arpa, who approached through that gap, stirred up the enemies. This was not a formal battle, but a chaotic fight where it was hard to distinguish friend from foe. However, neither Sempas nor Arpa shied away from this muddy battle. The most dangerous thing about a melee is the inability to distinguish friend from foe in indiscriminate fighting. But this wasn’t a problem for an automaton who could clearly distinguish friend from foe in any situation and a combat magician whose specialty was melee combat. The two of them mercilessly took down the magicians as if competing with each other. For the Black Dawn Society, they couldn’t shake the feeling of being surrounded from front and back. They had greater numbers but felt surrounded. It might sound laughable at first glance, but looking at individual skill levels, it wasn’t wrong. “Protect! Protect this place with your lives!” “We can’t let the plan be ruined!” The Black Dawn Society didn’t run away but tried to fight while gritting their teeth. However, the struggle of the powerless ultimately amounted to nothing more than a meaningless waste of life. It didn’t take long for all the Black Dawn Society remnants to become cold corpses. -Clang! Rudger destroyed the small crystal floating in the center of the magic circle. At the same time, the endlessly generating shadow knights crumbled like mirages. As the knights that had filled most of the hall disappeared, the group could finally breathe a sigh of relief. Especially Roina, who had been mainly dealing with the knights along with her familiar, had worked particularly hard. “Everyone seems to have used a lot of magical power, would you like some?” “...” “...” Roina said as she held out a handful of gel but Rudger and Sempas didn’t answer. Arpa whistled while turning his head away, as if it didn’t concern him since he wasn’t a magician. Finally, Rudger took the burden of answering again. “It’s fine. I didn’t use that much mana.” “Don’t lie. Do you think I wouldn’t know? You used a lot!” “...I have my own recovery medicine, so I’ll just appreciate the thought.” “You never know when you might need it, so it’s better to save it. This is a natural mana recovery item, so you can eat as much as you want.” Roina seemed determined to be shameless now as she persistently pushed the mucus. She clearly had the mindset that she couldn’t die alone. “Here. Eat it. It’s surprisingly tasty.” Just as Rudger was about to tell her to stop, as her eyes were starting to look a bit crazy... ─! Roina’s eyes widened, and then she stiffened up and collapsed like a puppet with cut strings. It was a sudden situation however everyone present quickly responded. -Ting! The following sharp magical threads were deflected by Sempas and Rudger’s barriers. It was an ambush, which signaled the appearance of a new enemy. That thought simultaneously appeared in everyone’s minds. When Sempas was about to counterattack, Rudger shouted. “Don’t defend, fall back!” Sempas heard the warning but it was already too late. After the attack that came stealthily for the ambush, next was a massive magic bullet meant to destroy the target along with their defense. -Crash! As the magic barrier shattered, Sempas was hit by the attack and flew backward while coughing blood. However, Rudger couldn’t spare time to check his condition. ‘If I show even a slight opening, I’ll be done for.’ The enemy was strong. Even so, if he turned his back here, his throat would surely be torn out. Rudger calmly composed himself as he stared at the enemy entering alone. “So you’ve come, after all.” His blue eyes held a slight hint of bitterness. “Sage Limrei.” “Yes.” Limrei revealed himself while swinging his tablet-shaped staff. “I didn’t want to come here, but...”

Chapter 386

Comments (0)