A Returner's Magic Should Be Special

Chapter 153. The King of Puppets (4)

It was absurd. It was simply too absurd. “That isn’t possible… ”

Desir said that, but deep down he felt it might actually be possible with that unique ability. “It’s not impossible if we utilize that power to manipulate causality.”

Kei looked at the Homunculus.

“Right now, it can only harness the power of causality on itself, but if we were able to utilise that power on an external target instead, it becomes possible enough.”

Desir shivered in horror at hearing Kei’s scheme.

The impact of erasing the existence of magic in the world was easily predictable without having to think too deeply.

It would cause as much confusion as the arrival of the Shadow Labyrinth.

“Even if you have that kind of ability, there’s no guarantee that you’ll be able to control it properly.”

“I know. Maybe it’s an impossible wish. Something unachievable even if I were to devote an entire lifetime in pursuit of it. But I can’t give up if there’s even a possibility of it coming true.”

Romantica raised her voice to a shrill tone.

“If you get rid of magic, all of the societies based on magic will collapse! There’s going to be all kinds of chaos! And how are you planning to clear Shadow Worlds without magic!?”

“My unit is proof enough that we are okay without magic. In fact, my men were not lacking at all in our fight against the Red Rose Battalion, the so-called elite of the Magic Kingdom.” Romantica frowned. As Kei had said, his unit had never been pushed back against the Red Rose Battalion.

“Even so, if you were able to harness that power, there are plenty of better ways to use it. Getting rid of the Shadow Worlds would be better, for example… ”

Kei shook his head.

“The Shadows Worlds are a necessary factor for the unity of mankind. Moreover, what I want is to remove the privilege that only a select few enjoy from the world. This is the best way to achieve it.”

Kei changed his stance as if to demonstrate his firm will.

Desir felt sorry for Kei. He too decided that further conversation was unnecessary at this point.

Sword Grand Master, Kei Hazmaryoon, would have prepared for this event over a long period of time, but the fact that magic still existed in modern times meant that his plan had ultimately failed.

In this Shadow World, Desir’s involvement had greatly weakened the Prophet, even though his plan was on the verge of success. However, no matter how hard they struggled here, it was just a virtual world. All extra work was in vain.

Utterly meaningless.

Even though a heroic character of note was heading down the wrong path, there was no use in trying to correct them.

The only thing that mattered now was the inevitable fight.

Understanding that Kei had no intention of giving up on the Homunculus, it was dangerous to give him any more time to regain his strength.

Desir made a declaration to Kei. “I will stop you at any cost.”

“… … … then I regard you as my enemy.”

After recovering just a little during this short respite, Kei’s sword threw out an aura more acerbic and vivid than in their previous skirmish, but clearly nowhere near his prime condition. This fight would be harder than before.

Kei sliced the air several times, his weakened aura lingering in the air, eventually forming the shape of a flower. This was his signature move. It demonstrated a skill level beyond comparison that was incredibly delicate and refined, yet rough and strong.

It was effective both offensively as well as defensively. It had played a critical role in defending against the bombing from the mage unit, and could be deployed at a moment’s notice while remaining effective at close range.

These flowers of pure swordsmanship don’t just look pretty; they indiscriminately shred anything they touch.

Pram and Adjest rushed at Kei without the slightest hesitation, ultimately failing to react in time. Their attacks uselessly bounced off Kei’s deadly flowers.

Blood splashed across the floor.

Within a fraction of a second, Kei had stomped against the ground to hurl himself at someone. His aura once again flared up around his brandished sword, sharpening it many-fold. This brilliantly shining sword was aimed at Desir.

‘I expected you to come at me.’

No matter how strong Kei was, the number of options he had to deal with the combined force of Desir’s party was limited. Losing an arm and having already exhausted most of his strength only compounded the difficulty, ultimately making it an impossible feat.

The only strategy he could rely on was to separate their forces and attempt to deal with each party member one by one. His hand had been forced. Desir, who had expected Kei to do this, devoted all of his effort and time into invoking a magic spell.

Kei could see Desir busy arranging a few small but fast-invoking spell arrays. A sinister smile crept onto his face.

Desir was not the only one attempting to predict their opponent’s plan. Kei’s experience during his lifetime of work ultimately culminated in reaching the lofty position of Sword Grand Master, and was by no means lacking in comparison to Desir’s experience in the Shadow Labyrinth.

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Kei, who had witnessed Desir’s magic several times already, had already finished estimating the preparation time, spell scope and spell power from the spell arrays he could see in front of him.

Kei moved into a position that was just outside Desir’s attack range. He then released a ranged sword strike. Desir could surely feel his impending doom, but did not seem to be reacting to it. The strike had almost reached him.

*Woooooooong*

Kei instinctively sensed something was wrong. Desir had not ceased invoking his spell.

Desir was an excellent magician. Kei realized that his attack must have failed and preemptively started to take a defensive stance while preparing to evade the attack if things looked dicey.

‘Why would he still… ’

He did not get a chance to finish that thought. His instincts moved faster than his mind, and Kei turned abruptly while putting all of his strength into his legs to leap out of the way.

*Crack*

His leg bones, which had been far overworked, could not handle this sudden bout of strength as well as the significant stress placed on them during the battle up until now, cracked in several places. An injury of this severity would take a normal soldier out of commission for months.

The pain he experienced as his nerves and muscles tore was severe, but Kei couldn’t afford to mind that. He realized that what Desir was aiming for was none other than the Homunculus. Kei, who had completely avoided the attack, headed back into the range of the attack on his own volition.

[Flame Storm] *Boom*

The flames of fire seemed to consume everything before Desir. They removed all darkness and painted the surroundings in a multitude of crimson shades.

*Blow*

Kei was swept away by the tremendous momentum of the oncoming storm of flames.

As the main body of flames swept past and died out, the figure of Kei appeared amid a blazing crater. The flames that remained around him continued to burn and melt the floor around him. Kei was unable to completely block the magic and there were burn marks all over his body. But even with such a scarred body, he refused to relinquish his grasp on his sword.

Kei gave Desir a fierce look. His spirits were still sharp, even though he was not even able to hold himself properly.

He took a step toward Desir.

Desir had no more magic left to develop. If Kei approached unchallenged, there were no further means to stop him now. *Kaang*

A shot of super-condensed wind bounced off Kei’s sword. *Tcch*

Romantica clicked her tongue.

A strong current was sweeping around her. *Bang*

*Bang* “… … …”

Kei deflected and sliced apart Romantica’s shots, even with his body in such a wretched state. However, Kei could no longer afford to only care about attacks on himself.

Romantica persistently aimed for the Homunculus, and Kei’s radius of action was severely limited as a result. Leaving the Homunculus alone was a sure recipe for defeat.

It was a confrontation that devolved into a war of attrition. Neither party could advance nor retreat.

However, such a stalemate could not continue forever. There was a sudden commotion heard approaching the garden.

Desir made his declaration triumphantly. “It’s your loss.”

Appearing a moment later were many magicians each wearing a cape bearing the illustration of Blue Roses. They surrounded Kei and Desir’s party.

“… you aimed for this all along.” Kei’s voice shook in anger.

“What in the world are you… … why did you do this to me… ?”

He came so close to achieving his long-cherished desire. Before he could take that last step, he had been interrupted by those that he had tried to use. People he had shared a sense of comradery with.

He could not handle the Blue Rose Battalion in his current condition. It was also impossible to protect the Homunculus. He couldn’t run away either; he would never have another chance at obtaining a Homunculus…

Kei felt like he was going to lose all sanity, faced with this incomprehensible situation. The commander of the Blue Rose Battalion walked out. He glanced up and down at Kei, then smiled.

He then took out something and threw it at Kei. *Thud*

Kei could hear the sound of the flesh dully bouncing off the ground. Kei’s eyes opened wide after seeing what it was.

It was the head of the second lieutenant Penen. His face was distorted in pain and his eyes were sewn open. Overall, he looked incredibly miserable.

Kei spoke in a trembling voice.

“Commander Lergen… Did you have to do this?”

“This is the fate of rebels. Don’t worry. You’ll soon follow in the footsteps of your men.”

It was a decisive moment. Kei, who thought he had prepared himself for the death of his subordinates, could no longer maintain his sanity upon seeing their tragic deaths.

*Click*

Kei spared Desir one glance but soon turned away. From his point of view, Desir and his party were figures who would be treated as rebels anyway and were fated to die either way.

Kei’s anger soon descended fully on Lergen, who had brutally murdered his men. As the angry Kei took one step forward, the countless magicians surrounding him began to arrange spells aimed at him, as if they had been waiting for him to move.

The Blue Rose Battalion were only concerned with Kei. This was because he was perceived as the greatest threat here. As a result, there was no one keeping an eye on Pram, who had been busy crawling into a corner out of sight.

Kei poured all of his remaining energy into his blade and leaped at Lergen, the commander of the Blue Rose Battalion.

The physical technique and raw power on display was formidable.

All of the magic aimed at Kei cut through the air. Kei, who had leapt at a speed that exceeded common sense, cut Lergen’s head off in a single moment. Lergen couldn’t even scream.

But as a result of doing this, Kei couldn’t move any more. He had totally exhausted his energy. The magic spells that were mid-flight continued to descend on him.

Just before the countless spells pierced his body, Pram leapt out and removed his head in a single blow. That was the greatest courtesy he could afford to a fellow swordsman, let alone one he regarded as a mentor or teacher.

[You have prevented all future manufacturing of Homunculus. You have removed all of the masterminds involved in this conspiracy. Research into Homunculus has caused a lot of chaos and confusion in the dark, unrecorded in history.]

[-You have cleared a series of hidden quests which has raised the reward ratings.]