Limit Breaking Genius Mage Chapter 349

Episode 349: Providence (2)

In a magic battle, assessing the opponent's magical ability is a very basic attitude.

Because you have to change your thoughts and make decisions depending on what type of magic you use.

It goes without saying that we must consider the possibility of an extraordinary magic item or artifact being in our possession.

Proof of logic with power, a battle to the death.

In any situation, figuring out the enemy's intentions is the top priority.

Of course, this did not mean that we should unconditionally push the opponent into a corner or hang on in vain until they show their full power.

The best solution is a quick decision.

It's about digging into the cognitive gap and ending it in one fell swoop before the other person even tries to do anything.

I don't know about others, but that was Verden's way of thinking.

So, first of all, I revealed the secret method.

Withstood the backlash of spatial properties and unleashed powerful magic.

He even used <Elemental Fusion> copied from Regret to find an opening.

'The result was as expected.'

With one blow, he split Arkrich's head apart in one fell swoop.

The torrent of collapse, <Destruction>.

A wave of physical force embodied in magical power, belonging to the 6th tier of gravity magic.

Its power cannot be fully withstood by pure magic resistance alone.

It is truly fatal to a wizard who has no means of mitigating physical impact, even if he is an undead born from death.

Verden, who had reduced the number as planned, used his magic to transform into blue lightning.

Before Kaesilus could respond, a blade of magical energy imbued with space pierced through the creature's torso.

'And then cut, crush, and burn.'

It was a definite ending.

So much so that it cannot even dare to survive within the human category.

However, the fourth servant, Kaesilus, was still alive, even though his heart was torn out and his head split open.

Knock… … Knock… … .

The skin that had been distorted by the flames began to wiggle and regain its original shape.

The broken bones were put back into place without any misalignment, and the head and upper body that had been split in half were reattached.

Cleanly, without leaving any gaps.

“Gravity and space properties. Magic that interferes with the trajectory of magic, and magic that becomes the element itself. It’s really colorful. I didn’t know I would die helplessly like this.”

The pronunciation is leaky in the voice.

Kaesilus stood up and twisted his chin this way and that.

Snap. The lower part of the face moved normally with the sound of bones fitting together.

All fatal wounds were completely removed.

Except for the robe being damaged here and there, it was completely restored to its original appearance.

'No, it's a little different.'

Verden's insight captured the subtle changes.

Her gray skin, which had been a mixture of ages, had become slightly paler.

The texture felt a bit more vibrant visually.

That means… … .

“Permanent aging in exchange for avoiding death… I guess that’s the magic you pioneered.”

“You have a keen eye. It’s not something you can just figure out at a glance.”

Kaesilus laughed eerily.

The Return of the Dead.

The moment this is opened, Kaesilus can be resurrected even if his body turns to dust.

The price for such great power is the irreversible, eternal aging that comes with each death.

Natural death due to physical deterioration is the only end that Kaecilus can face.

“As you said, returning from the dead is the magic I pioneered. And───”

A strange power surged from him.

An ominous aura, along with a considerable amount of magical power, consumed my entire body.

Crackle, crackle.

Suddenly, pure white bones rose from the ground and engulfed Kaecilus.

It's orderly.

They are connected regularly and connected as one. It looks like an armor made of bones.

Finally, the two arm bones extending from the back wiggled bizarrely.

The blue flames characteristic of the undead flickered in the eyes of Kaesilus, who had completed his transformation.

“The more I die, the closer I get to the concept of death.”

A stronger magical power than before is detected.

In short, does this mean that the more you die and wake up, the more your magical abilities increase?

'An infinite resurrection that continues until we die of old age… … .'

Despite being a troublesome opponent, Verden didn't show even the slightest change in emotion.

I just lightly rolled up my orient and took a stance.

“Then, let’s count how many times I have to kill before I die.”

<Levin Fatal>

Phage crackle!

A sharp shard of rock flew like lightning and pierced Kaesilus' abdomen.

Blood and pieces of flesh fell from the punctured wound, wetting the floor.

It is natural to feel shaken and your body sway as the shock is great.

But there is something that remains afloat.

Two arms formed directly from bone.

Even though Kaesilus was hit by the magic, they were aimed squarely at Verden.

<Call of the Agony>

Two skulls rose from the ground with their mouths wide open.

A terrible scream that shook the air poured out in a straight line.

“……!”

The surface of the nearby land was sunken.

Verden barely managed to block it by forming a magical barrier reinforced with <Arcane>.

Attack and defense in seconds.

In an instant, magic crossed.

“With your calculating power running wild, and even your eyes engraved with magic circles… Yes, I admit it. No matter what method I use, I have no way of fully countering your magic.”

A considerable amount of blood flowed out of Kaesilus' abdomen.

“But what if I hit back like this?”

I can feel the flow of magical power from the two arm bones located on my shoulders.

It seems to move completely independently of Kaesilus. That must be why it was able to cast its magic without error even while its abdomen was being pierced.

“You’re willing to give up your life and cut off my flesh? How ignorant.”

“Everyone who witnessed my magic said so. And without exception, they were all buried in the ground. I wonder what will happen this time.”

Suddenly, as if he had forgotten, he continued speaking.

“Oh, by the way, aren’t you concerned about other places? Like Sacred, for example.”

Sacred?

“You must know who went there.”

“Yes. Dark Warton’s successor, Haldirn, has gone. As expected───”

In an instant, Verden extended his orient forward.

<Creamate>

The heat rays of destruction burn straight lines.

Almost at the same time, a powerful black magic struck Verden.

Kkudduk.

Verden, who had deflected the spear of curses, was pushed back.

Although both legs left marks on the ground, there were no injuries or even any significant damage.

In comparison, Kaesilus' entire upper body melted away.

That was only for a moment, and he soon regained his form and shrugged his shoulders. The injury on his abdomen had completely disappeared.

“Using fire magic in the middle of a conversation? I don’t think it’s polite.”

He looks fine, as if he is not even in pain.

Except that it's a little older than before.

'Is it only through death that the wounds can be healed?'

I don't know yet if that will be a loophole.

However, Verden had no choice but to admit it separately.

Since I can't kill him in one go, I guess I have no choice but to not listen to what he says.

“Then, please continue.”

Kaesilus spread out his arms with a calm expression.

“Aren’t you curious, Asher? Why did we use Kylians instead of anywhere else, and why did we have to control the Ainz?”

Before I could even ask, the guy answered himself.

“The Ainzoid outbreak in Kylians was not caused by us. It started before the use of the [Pillar of Life]. And the transport of corpses that you thought you had a clue about was just an additional factor.”

"……what?"

“The fact that the Ainz race started to run wild was a purely natural phenomenon. What we were after was the central axis that caused the phenomenon. Well, it was only a coincidence that we discovered it.”

An undead-like gaze stared straight at Verden.

“That ‘monster’ has power that even I cannot handle. Even with the scroll containing the 7th-tier black magic, I cannot control its mind, and all I can do is suppress its instincts.”

Literally a special entity.

Could Haldirn handle such a being alone?

“Well, I’m skeptical.”

Kaesilus laughed softly.

* * *

The weather isn't that cold even though it's midwinter.

Sacred, a city filled with warm light from the sun high in the sky.

“You’ve arrived.”

The Republic's flying ship carrying Haldirn, Leira, and Brilan has finally arrived at its destination.

So far, everything has been going very smoothly.

There was no sign of the glory of the corpse attacking the plane along the way, and the Sacred below also looked peaceful.

Bishop Lena breathed a sigh of relief.

“Thankfully, nothing seems to have happened… yet.”

“Maybe it has already started.”

Phew.

The aircraft rapidly lowered its altitude.

Ignoring the urgent stop warnings, we forced our way onto the dedicated dock in the heart of the inner city.

The soldiers rushed in, but they were only cautious and no one made a hasty attack.

It was because of the Supreme Councilor's mark that was engraved on the airplane.

Haldirn, who had been crossing his arms, reacted immediately.

“I can feel it now that I’ve entered the city. I can sense the aura of death condensing everywhere underground. It looks like the corpses are piled up.”

“Then it would be better to fight them individually.”

Haldirn shook his head at Leila's opinion.

“No, they are spread out all over the Secret, so it’s not easy to deal with them one by one. It would be better to just eliminate the places where the condensed evil is flowing.”

“Where is that?”

“The top of the tallest building.”

A cold metal gauntlet pointed nearby.

Brilliant, who had been listening from the side, narrowed his eyes.

“Viewing… Okay. Then I’ll leave those to you.”

Brilliant took the lead and went down the stairs.

The Republic's executioners, the direct subordinate force of the Supreme Council, took control of the surrounding area.

“B, Supreme Councilor Brillan?! Oh, no, why are you here without any notice……!”

The commander of the Sacred Knights, who recognized him, stuttered, unable to hide his embarrassment.

“This is an urgent matter, Commander of the Knights Gropen. I will explain later, so please step aside for now.”

“I, but there’s this thing called procedure… and Chief Councilor Dumbred is here too….”

Here is Dumbred, holding hands with the glory of the corpse.

There is no time to delay.

“You don’t understand what I mean at all.”

"yes yes?"

“As the highest councilor of the Republic of Beldirn, I command you.”

Slurp.

The executioners who had been waiting all drew their weapons.

The unspoken pressure to cut down anyone who defied authority. The momentum that flowed from them overwhelmed the people gathered at the dock.

Brilliantly declared in the chilly atmosphere.

“Get out of here now. Unless you intend to commit a rebellion.”

* * *

From then on, it was a continuation.

Thud, thud, clank.

The inner guards and knights, who could not dare disobey the orders of the Supreme Councilor, laid down their weapons and retreated.

There was no war. There was only confusion and fear. I guess it means that it had nothing to do with the glory of the corpse.

If that were the case, I would have tried desperately to stop it.

Tata, tata, tata.

The punitive force quickly took control of the area around the city hall without any gaps.

Haldirn, Leyra, Bishop Lena, the clergy, and Brillan, leading a small group of executioners, went up.

“Be careful. The executioners who guarded Senator Nelonian are not a major threat, but the executioners that Dumbred carries are dangerous.”

Dumbred is the oldest of the senior members of the House, having served in office for more than half his life.

“Just as the wealth and power he has accumulated over the years are strong, so too are those who guard him. There are knights who have awakened the seasons and magicians who are lower than the 6th rank, even if they have not yet developed the magic, who are on the execution squad.

A 6th-tier wizard. Nothing strange.

Because not everyone who reaches the 5th or 6th tier can pioneer the magic world.

Looking at the overall distribution, the proportion of magicians is a minority.

Finding and walking one's own path is never easy.

“It doesn’t matter. I’ll handle it.”

“I’ll help too.”

Aside from the Mithril-grade adventurers, there is the high-ranking bishop of the Luas Church and the next owner of the Magic Tower.

That's why Brilliant was able to move forward without hesitation.

however.

“It’s a lot quieter than I thought.”

It was just as Bishop Lena said.

The whole building is dark and quiet.

There was no sign of life. It was as if there was no one inside the city hall… … I reached the top floor with a slight sense of unease in my arms.

This too, no one could stop it.

“That’s the place.”

Haldirn flashed his magic.

A shock wave blew across the market room, and the door to the market room was blown away with a loud noise.

And there was only one person in it, Chief Councilor Dumbred.

“Dumb… Bread…? What are you… doing?”

The market room was filled with intricate and numerous magic circles, each one engraved with blood.

Dumbred lay on his haunches in the center of the room, in the middle of the magic circle.

The eyes that had been looking at the ceiling turned downward.

“Ah, Brillian. I heard you joined hands with the Luas Church, but you managed to come all the way here.”

“I asked you!! What on earth are you doing───”

At that moment, Haldirn raised his arm low and stopped Brillan.

Then he spoke softly.

“……The magic circle has already been activated.”

Then Haldirn nodded.

It meant not to move rashly or provoke the bastard, but to buy time until the blood magic circle was analyzed.

Yeah, it's not time to get excited.

Brilliant, who had barely calmed down, exhaled and asked calmly.

“Dumbread, why did you betray the Church of Luas and join hands with the evil warlocks?”

“…….”

“I asked why I was defiling the Republic of Beldirn, which I had ruled for decades, with my own hands.”

Dumbred was not a man of integrity, but at least he was a politician who knew how to serve his country.

Brilliantly remembered his many accomplishments.

“Why did you do that? Well… because I was scared.”

“What were you so afraid of? Was the glory of the corpse a threat?”

“I was afraid of the Luasians.”

“……!”

Bishop Lena, who was behind him, was startled.

The priests who were with her, as well as Brillan, were the same.

Dumbread said.

“The scriptures of the Luas Church contain this content. Life is a process of washing away impurities, and if you fail to do so, you cannot be saved. Only the pure can go to the side of Luas, the god of light.”

There are two criteria.

It is to be honest with yourself and be recognized by God.

“So I’ve been thinking long and hard about whether I can be saved.”

The answer came right away.

“I am not a great person who deserves that. No matter how much I think about it, I am not the kind of person who would die and go to Luas’ side. Even if I do good or hypocrisy later, it’s not like I will suddenly become proud of myself.”

I never thought about it when I was young, but when I started to get old, I suddenly became scared.

“Since then, I have been afraid of the afterlife. So I searched for a way to not die, and the glory of the corpse contacted me.”

“Is that… all? You joined hands with them for eternal life?”

“Do you think that’s enough of a reason?”

Brilliant shook his fist at the voice that seemed to say it was obvious.

The idea of wanting to live forever is a common desire, so I don't care.

It's natural that everyone wants to live happily for a long time.

However, allowing the Republic to be controlled by others for his sake was a high crime that a member of the highest council could not dare to commit.

“……Where are the executioners who protected you and the market of Sacred?”

“The fourth servant took care of it himself. As a sacrifice. It should be somewhere among the corpses underground.”

“Do you really think you can do something like that and get out alive?”

“Of course. I will abandon this dying body and take on a new one.”

Extension of life.

That was the deal.

The youth we once lost is right before our eyes.

If you repeat this method, eternity will not be a dream.

“You won’t find me.”

Hwaaaaaaaaaaah!

Light flowed out from the magic circle. A bright red blood color filled the market room.

A strange atmosphere trembles.

Haldirn, who had just finished interpreting the magic circle, clicked his tongue.

“Oh, man. I got hit.”

“Huh? What is that───”

“Whoa!”

Haldirn used his magic to push the others out of the market hall.

At that moment, countless red lines stretched out from the magic circle.

It was moving and squirming as if it were alive, and it was engulfing the two people inside.

“Huh?! What, what is this…! I’m sure there was no story like this… Wait, wait, this isn’t it! This isn’t it─── Kkaaaaaaah!”

Dumbred, who had been struggling, screamed at the top of his lungs.

I instinctively felt a sense of crisis.

Immediately afterwards, Dumbread was torn to pieces by a powerful stream of blood, and his blood was absorbed into the magic circle.

Dumbread is dead.

There was no such thing as eternal life for which he was waiting.

If that's the case, Haldirn would also be in danger.

“Your Majesty Haldirn!”

“I’m fine. Why can’t you dare do anything to me with something like this?”

Knock knock.

Haldirn easily broke off one of the stems.

“But it seems like it’ll take some time to break. And what we need to worry about right now isn’t some dirty curse like this.”

“What does that mean?”

“They didn’t collect the corpses and pile them underground in Sacred to implement a high-level black magic circle. They certainly didn’t do it for the eternal life of Dumbred. They simply spread the scent of blood far and wide through sacrifices.”

“Blood scent…?”

Leila wrinkled her nose.

As I was thinking about it, a strong smell of blood suddenly wafted in the air.

“All you’re doing is spreading the scent of blood. What on earth is your purpose…?”

“This is probably bait. Prey to draw something in. I think… their target is either a race of beasts or a demon. Or both.”

A race? A demon?

“The real problem is out there.”

Haldirn nodded to the side.

Everyone followed him to the window at the end of the hallway. They opened the window wide and looked at Sacred.

The distance is the same as before.

But not outside the walls.

[Krrrrrr… … .]

[Kwaaah! Kwaaahhh!]

[Keeeeeeeeeeeeeek!]

A large number of Ainz and demons crawl out of the nearby forest.

The number is well into the hundreds. No, it is well into the thousands.

From the lower species to the upper species, they all have eyes filled with murder. It's as if they're about to devour the city at any moment.

“Oh, my God……!”

Bishop Lena was astonished.

Other people weren't much different.

If a number like that were to charge into Sacred… … If they were to climb over the walls, it was obvious what kind of catastrophe would occur.

Kukukukukuku… … !

Thousands of monsters drawn to blood gather.

A large-scale attack triggered by a surge in the number of Ainz and Demons.

One of the natural disasters, the Stampede, was about to begin.