Advent of the Archmage
chapter-7

The young Magician who had popped out of nowhere rather confused Jiggs.

Truth be told, the operation on the Magic Academy had been far too easy. The Magicians here had been raised in ivory towers. Their spellcasting had been artless, like children learning to walk.

Honestly, Jiggs felt a little disappointed.

The Magician who guarded the Portal Tower had a sea of knowledge and Mana flowing within him. He'd been able to cast Level-4 Spells, but Jiggs had finished him off within just two seconds.

One charge, a shield strike, and a quick swipe of his blade. That was all it took. It had been so easy; it was almost distasteful.

A Magician who had no idea how to fight with magic—it was inexplicable. A Magician like that wouldn't have even lasted a day in the Black Forest.

The young man who stood before him didn't look a day over 20. He was probably one of the academy's Apprentices. But compared to the teachers Jiggs had already faced, what could possibly be special about their students?

Because of that, Jiggs didn't act immediately. He just snorted and laughed coldly, "Young man, do you think that you're invincible just because you've learned a few days of magic? Look at him. He's probably been dabbling in magic longer than you've even lived."

Jiggs kicked the corpse by his feet. Link recognized it. It was Master Phil, one of the academy's only Level-4 Magicians. He had been 50 years old this year, with 30 years of experience in magic. Indeed, he had learned magic much, much longer than Link had been alive.

"The strength of a person's magic doesn't just depend on how long they've studied it. Talent is more important! You pariahs, I'll show you what real magic looks like!"

Link's voice was calm and cold. As he spoke, he lightly and discreetly tapped his foot on the ground. No one noticed his little trick.

"Hahaha. Then let me see your so-called talent. Sherman, go and cut his head off for me!" Jiggs ordered, pointing to one of his subordinates.

"As you wish!"

The Dark Elf Warrior Sherman carried his shield and walked towards Link. Twenty paces away, he suddenly set his shield in front of him and charged at the young Magician.

Lesser Charge

Battle Skill

Effect: A warrior can use a special breathing technique to gain explosive strength throughout his body. For a short period, they will gain unimaginable speed. It is highly recommended for use against Magicians.　

The Dark Elf Warrior was incredibly fast. His body raced through the air with a loud fwoosh.

What was worse, he held an anti-magic shield, and so magic couldn't hurt him directly. When he reached Link, he would be able to cut down the Magician's head with just one swing of his sword.

Yes, just one swing!

From the shadows, Celine had her wand extended at the ready, a darkness emanating from its tip. The young man was in danger. She couldn't just stand by any longer.

In the next moment, however, she withdrew her wand.

The reason was very simple–Sherman hadn't managed to reach Link.

Halfway there, Sherman had reached his maximum speed. But each subsequent step he took was a struggle, leaving a deep footprint on the ground. The ground pushed against him, stopping him from moving forward.

Just five paces away from his target, he found that the hard, solid ground had become very soft. He couldn't push off of it.

Not only was he unable to continue forward, but because his foot had struck the ground with such strength, his entire leg sunk into the ground.

He had been charging forward at lightning speed, a minimum of 60 feet per second. With one leg in the ground and the other still on solid ground, at such a high velocity, they heard a resounding crack–it was the sound of Sherman's pelvic bone shattering.

The worst had yet to come. The soft spot between his legs fell astride the solid ground!

He had been charging forward with all his might, and the momentum had carried on into his fall. There was a squelch. Something else had broken.

A shattered pelvis and a fatal blow to the groin—the pain was intolerable!

"Ahhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! Ahhhhhhhh!!! Ahhhhhhhhhh!!!" Sherman screamed with all the breath his lungs would allow. Anyone could hear the agony in his voice.

After letting out a couple more screams, the Warrior's head dropped to the side. He had passed out due to the sheer amount of pain.

The warrior Sherman had been ruined with just one little spell.

Mud Marsh

Level-0 Spell

Effect: Transform solid ground into soft mud.　　

(Note: Do not step on it! Especially not when it's hard! Stepping on it while running at high speeds is absolutely forbidden! Or else bear the consequences.)

"Hmmm?" Jiggs finally started to take his opponent seriously. Looking at Sherman's tragic state, his eyes narrowed in on Link.

"Apprentice, you've made me very angry!"

The Magician before him was a very low level. He hadn't crushed Sherman because of his strength, but because they had been careless.

But now, Jiggs was serious.

Pulling out the sword that hung by his waist, Jiggs gave orders to the Warrior next to him. "Terry, guard the Portal Tower. I will deal with this little thing myself."

"Yes, Commander." Terry retreated to the side. He knew that Jiggs would never gang up with him on a young Magician like that. Such was the pride of a powerful soldier.

Jiggs walked forward slowly, swinging his sword in the air languidly.

The black, heavy shield he carried glowed a soft white, made more obvious by the dark of the night. That was the Battle Aura that only Level-3 Warriors could have.

Then, he strolled towards Link as if he were leisurely walking through a park.

"Fireball!" Link growled.

A marble-sized white ball of flame appeared. It shot towards Jiggs.

Jiggs lifted his shield. With a small bang, the fireball collided with it, scattering into a cloud of futile sparks, not even causing the white glow of the shield to flicker.

Level-0 magic was too weak. A Level-3 Warrior could easily defend himself from such attacks.

As if confirming Link's thoughts, Jiggs said, "If that is all your magic can do, then you needn't put up a struggle. Just stretch your neck out and let me cut you down."

Fully clad in anti-magic armor, Jiggs seemed undefeatable, like a battle tank.

In the dark, Celine stretched her wand out again. This Jiggs was an experienced warrior, and he had Battle Aura. She found it impossible to believe that Link could defeat someone like that.

She had to help.

In the next moment, Link attacked again.

The New Moon Wand in his hand flitted up and tapped the air before him. In that instant, he looked just like a music conductor with a baton.

With each tap of his wand, a white ball of flame appeared. In that one second, Link tapped the wand nine times!

Within that one second, Link had taken 0.1 seconds to produce each Fireball, displaying his quick spellcasting abilities.

Something even more incredible happened.

The nine fireballs flew out simultaneously. Each followed a different trajectory, spinning in random patterns, but with a common goal – the Warrior Jiggs.

The fireballs landed in different areas. Some landed on Jiggs' chest, others whipped behind him and landed on the seam between his helmet and the armor on his neck. Others even crashed into the eye openings of his helmet.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! The fireballs exploded in rapid succession. Some flames managed to seep into the seams, succeeding in dealing some damage to Jiggs.

"Damn it, your little tricks have brought my patience to an end!" Jiggs raised his voice. The fireballs were a real nuisance, and they were actually dealing some damage.

With Sherman's tragedy before him, Jiggs did not dare charge forward so easily. He instead jogged towards Link.

Link's magic wand flitted around in the air again.

Fwoosh. Another nine fireballs appeared, shooting out in random patterns again, landing with frightening accuracy onto the seams of Jiggs' armor.

Jiggs had learned his lesson. He didn't slow down his pace even as he shielded his face from the tiny flames.

The Fireball's power was limited though. Even if Jiggs' other parts were hit directly, protected by Battle Aura, the worst he could get was a light burn. The burns would probably heal within an hour or two. What was important was that his eyes didn't get hurt.

Bang, bang, bang! The fireballs exploded again. Even though they didn't do Jiggs any harm, the force of their blasts still made Jiggs feel somewhat cornered.

"This damned Magician's Apprentice. I will crush his head between my hands!" Jiggs' blood boiled as his pace quickened.

Even a saint would get angry at such attacks.

The Mana in Link's body had almost been depleted by his use of the Fireballs. But he still had 13 Omni Points left. He used one of them to replenish 10 Mana Points. Then, while Jiggs was still trying to protect himself from the fireballs, Link used a different spell.

"Grease!"

Grease

Level-0 Spell　　

Effect: The ground will become very, very slippery. Just like it's been covered in oil.　

Within a split second, the ground beneath Jiggs became as slippery as ice.

Jiggs had been running at a jog, covering his face with his shield and fuming because of the constant barrage of fireballs. His anger and impatience led to his downfall.

It was important to never lose one's cool in battle because it could lead to poor decisions.

Jiggs had noticed the change in the ground. But he had been more afraid of the mud from the Mud Marsh spell, so he made his footsteps lighter.

He slipped as a result, his expectations opposite of the outcome. Jiggs was alarmed and tense, he was unable to keep his balance any longer. The heavy armor he wore made him all the more clumsy. All he saw was the sky as he fell backward.

Here, we need to elaborate a little on armor.

No armor covered its joints with metal. In fact, such parts needed to be made with soft, supple leather to facilitate body movements, especially around the crotch area.

Like a turtle onto its back, Jiggs fell over, exposing his groin -- a weakness that was never seen when he stood upright.

But now, it was fatal.

"Purchase spell: Vector Throw!" Link muttered.

Vector Throw

Level-1 Spell

Effect: Throw an object at high speed. The lighter the object, the faster it will be.

Link was very familiar with this spell. If he threw a stone weighing 2 pounds, the spell could bring its velocity up to 160 feet per second.

A 2-pound stone, at 160 feet per second. If it were to smash onto a delicate area like the groin…the outcome of such a thing, one couldn't even bear to think about.

Purchasing the spell as fast as he could, he pointed his wand towards the ground.

"Go!" he shouted.

Controlled by magic, a rock about the size of a fist flew out in a smooth arc, landing smack dab in the middle of the only unprotected area of Jiggs' armor-covered body.

Bam! A muffled thud rang out. Despite the sound not being loud, it was still worth the concern because of where the rock had landed.

How painful that must be!

"Guhhh." Jiggs let out a snort that sounded just like a strangled animal.

Only then did he slam onto the ground. He let go of his shield and clutched at his crotch, writhing on the ground.

He didn't know how badly his genitals had been injured, but the pain was excruciating. Worse, he couldn't even feel down there anymore, as if it had been smashed to a pulp.

Pain, fear, panic, all kinds of emotions clamored within him. He had long since forgotten about defending himself, not even maintaining the Battle Aura that protected him against magic.

"Earth Spike!"

Link dealt the finishing blow.

From the spot on the ground that corresponded to the joint between Jiggs' helmet and neck armor, rose a spike of stone, two feet tall. It pierced the joint in Jiggs's armor, impaling his defenseless neck.

Jiggs was dead!

The Warrior Terry could not believe his eyes.

The commander had been killed, by someone from afar, who hadn't even moved throughout the entire fight, using only low-level magic tricks.

How was this possible?

In the shadows, Celine's mouth gaped.

Using Level-1 Spells to kill a Level-3 Warrior who was literally wrapped in armor from head to toe was unheard of!

Tssk-tssk. Perfect timing, impressive spellcasting skills, and a formidable grasp of the human psyche and behavior, Celine thought. This warrior was toyed with to his death! Celine had sharp eyes. She had seen everything, including the play of emotions between them.

It was because she had seen everything that she was shaken up.