The Great Mage Returns After 4000 Years (Web Novel KR)
chapter-268

At that moment the five of them all had different reactions.

Sedi’s first thought was to get rid of Nodiesop before the tsunami arrived. But that plan wasn’t very feasible. The distance between them was quite far, and she was exhausted at that moment. More importantly, there was no way that Nodiesop would just sit still and allow that to happen.

Min Ha-rin and Leo had similar ideas, but they came to their senses a moment later when they realised that with their strength, they were far less likely to succeed compared to Sedi.

In such an urgent situation, the difference of even one second could determine their life or death.

Arid bit his lip… According to Lukas, he had the power with the greatest potential, the so-called Communication. If that was true, then maybe he could prevent this, even if he’d never tried to do something like this before. There was only one problem. He wasn’t even sure where to start.

No one had a way to deal with the current situation.

Except for the Priestess.

“Ice Age.”

With a low murmur, cold air exploded from her body.

8-star spells.

Things that could theoretically be regarded as the very end of ‘magicology’ in terms of range and power. After all, 9-star spells didn’t exist.

The thing that distinguished 8-stars and 9-stars was the ability to manipulate Absolute Power, not the type or power of the spells they could use.

In other words, depending on how much magic power was injected into it, the Ice Age spell that the Priestess had just used was capable of not only changing the terrain but also the climate.

Crackle!

The wave of cold air explosively spread in every direction, causing the crushed and broken pieces of ice to fuse together once again.

Once again, the surface of the water became a landmass made entirely out of white ice. The water falling from the sky was no exception. The cold air perfectly froze the wave in its curved state.

“…!”

Min Ha-rin couldn’t help but look at this scene with wide eyes.

Although she was seeing it with her own eyes, it was still hard to believe.

‘…so this is magic.’

Was this the level she was aiming to reach?

At that moment, it felt extremely distant.

“Huff…”

The Priestess exhaled roughly before collapsing down onto one knee.

“Priestess!”

“Are you okay?”

The Black and White Sorcerers called out in worried voices, but they couldn’t even help her up. This was because they were currently pouring all of their energy into suppressing Nodiesop’s power.

The Priestess gave them a slow nod.

Nodiesop, who was quietly watching the entire process, finally let out a mocking laugh.

“You managed to deal with the most pressing concern. But now, you’re not capable of using the attack you used to pierce my stomach.”

It was true.

At that moment, the Priestess was in no condition to use Absolute Power.

She’d spent most of her mana on Ice Age.

‘…if the island was still okay, we might have been able to get help from the various formations I made.’

The island had been completely devastated by the first tsunami.

Now, it was completely submerged and even frozen. This meant that the formations on the island would not work.

But that wasn’t her greatest concern.

The Priestess turned to look at the Black and White Sorcerers for a moment. They’d failed to complete her orders to save Lukas.

When they returned, they told her that he was already dead when they found him.

‘…’

Was it possible that they were mistaken?

It could be that he wasn’t really dead. But what if they were right and Lukas was actually dead?

She tried her best to kill those thoughts. At that moment, the only thing she should be thinking about was the fight.

In any case, from the beginning, she hadn’t intended to receive Lukas’ support during the fight against Nodiesop. So, in a sense, there was no ‘loss of power’.

“…it’s true that I drained most of my mana.”

In a tone colder than the ice around her, the Priestess began to speak.

“But most of the water in the area has been completely frozen. I didn’t just freeze the surface like when I used the Blizzard spell. Instead, even the currents below have been frozen solid.”

“Doesn’t that mean that Nodiesop can no longer use the water to increase his advantage?”

Sedi was quick to understand her meaning.

After all, she was the one who regained her composure the fastest after the Priestess.

“Then we still have a chance to win this fight.”

With those words, she clenched and unclenched her fists a few times. Her body could still move. But what about the others?

Min Ha-rin’s condition was… not very good. She was panting uncontrollably and looked like she would pass out at any moment.

Her muscles, bones, and willpower. All of them had been pushed beyond their limits. If she kept moving her body, she would suffer numerous aftereffects, so Sedi forcibly knocked her unconscious. Even then, her eyebrows remained furrowed. This showed that even in unconsciousness, she was probably experiencing tremendous pain all over her body.

Leo’s condition was a bit better, but he could only last another two to three minutes at best.

She turned to look at Arid, who was standing behind them. As soon as he received her attention, Arid flinched, and when their eyes met, she could see the guilt and shame that he felt deep in his heart.

Without saying anything, Sedi’s gaze soon left him and returned to Leo once again. Then, while loosening her neck and shoulder muscles, she said.

“Hey, brat.”

“Yeah.”

“It seems like you and I are the only ones that can still move, but honestly, when it’s reached this point, strategy doesn’t really mean much anymore.”

“…yeah.”

“In my experience, while in a situation where the possibility of death is overwhelming, it’s best to not fight while thinking about winning.”

Leo’s expression became a bit strange. He realised that Sedi was giving him advice. Until now, Lukas was the only person who had truly acknowledged him.

‘…no.’

She wasn’t really acknowledging him, instead, it could be said that the desperate situation was forcing her to rely on someone that she normally wouldn’t.

“Just focus on surviving. Always keep the word survival in your head. Don’t think about how much energy your enemy has left, how much longer your body will last, or even what the current situation is. Put aside all of those useless thoughts.”

“Yes, thank you.”

“…hah.”

Sedi shook her head slowly as if she couldn’t believe what was happening.

Then, she exchanged one more glance with Leo.

Before they both charged towards Nodiesop at the same time.

(TL: Who do you guys think will die first? One from the group, or Nodiesop?)