A Growing Magic User

Having learned from his earlier lesson, Ingram kept a safe distance from Aozaki Aoko. Though combat skills were a required course for modern magi, magi aspiring toward the Root simply did not spend much time on them. Ingram himself was naturally no exception.

Spells cast through burning money were not something a mage of Aozaki Aoko's level could break, even if they were riddled with flaws.

Aozaki Aoko became more cautious. Her mana was not infinite either, and every attempt she made to rush in for a surprise attack was stopped by Ingram. The battle reached a stalemate for a time.

Ingram fingered the few ancient Roman coins he had left, then finally clenched his teeth and gripped the silver denarius bearing Alexander's portrait. Coins of different values could cast different magecraft; the value of a sestertius was not enough to break through the girl's defensive spell.

As a proper magus, he guessed that at least half the girl's mana had already been depleted. Magecraft enhanced through Value Conversion was no mere showpiece. Her only reason for being able to withstand it was that layer of mana barrier, and at the very least, he was certain it was not the effect of a Mage's Garment.

As the name implied, Mage's Garments were tools that helped magi wield magecraft or possessed magical effects. Broadly speaking, they could be divided into two types: one supplied mana to the magus, while the other produced preset effects, allowing its user to perform the corresponding function.

Embarrassingly, all the valuable Mage's Garments of the Edgington Family had been looted clean. The worthless common garments had been sold off for cash. Otherwise, Ingram would likely have starved to death on the road before even reaching the Far East.

If only he still had those Mage's Garments...

Ingram could not help letting his imagination run wild. If those Mage's Garments passed down through the Family Heritage had not been taken, dealing with the girl before him would not have been nearly so difficult.

He looked at Aozaki Aoko's pretty face and sighed inwardly, then tightened his grip on the silver denarius. The Value Conversion spell unfolded, forming an entirely new spell.

"In itinere ad plenam mors florum (The road to death is covered in flowers)."

An invisible curse fell upon Aozaki Aoko. Though she had no idea what had happened, her mana barrier enveloped her entire body and bloomed with a dazzling azure radiance, like the sun itself.

The mana within her body was being consumed at a frantic pace. At this rate, she probably could not hold out for even ten seconds. After a brief hesitation, she took out a strip of dark gray cardstock, stuck it to her arm, and charged toward Ingram.

Seeing that his curse had not taken effect immediately, Ingram was mildly surprised. It was the first time he had seen a defensive spell capable of blocking a death curse. Still, given that girl's condition, how much longer could she last? Five seconds? Ten?

Of course, none of that mattered. Before the value granted by the silver denarius was exhausted, the death curse would not fade. He only needed to wait patiently.

To be safe, he spent another sestertius to reinforce the defensive spell before him, preventing the girl's desperate final counterattack.

There was nothing left to worry about. He only needed to watch the girl's death throes. In that final brilliant instant before her life burned out, if her corpse remained intact, he would not mind turning it into a doll. It could still be put to some use.

At that moment, Ingram was like an old general on an opera stage, covered in flags, yet utterly unaware of it himself.

A cold silver arc flashed past, swaying like the waning moon of a summer night—graceful as a startled swan, yet utterly unstoppable. The defensive spell that could withstand a tank's main cannon at close range was like foam beneath sunlight, unable to delay it for even a second.

With the next breath, that silver light gently swept across his neck. After a faint sting came an endless, bone-deep chill. Ingram instinctively clutched his throat as thick blood streamed endlessly through his fingers, staining his clothes and the concrete beneath his feet red.

He staggered backward before collapsing to the ground. A hissing sound came from his throat, blood bubbles rising from the slash across it, while his lungs, flooded with blood, were forced to cease functioning.

What happened...

At last, he saw the true form of that silver glint. It was a dagger no longer than his palm, its blade as thin as a butterfly's wing and etched with unknown runes. It was this exquisite dagger, indistinguishable from a work of art, that had rendered his defensive spell useless.

Am I going to die?

Ingram's lips twitched slightly. As he neared death, none of those life-flashing-before-his-eyes memories came to him. What remained in his mind was neither that anti-magic blade nor anything else, but the expression on the girl's face.

Her face, speckled with a few drops of blood, was utterly expressionless. The light of her Mage Crest fell upon it. She neither cried nor smiled, a girl who, stripped of emotion, would be alone anywhere.

Sure enough, she was an immature magus. Shouldn't one laugh with joy after defeating an enemy? Back when he had killed the elder brother competing with him for the position of heir, he had been happy for a long time.

His thoughts wandered wildly as the massive blood loss began to blur his consciousness. His vision gradually darkened and grew hazy, his life force slowly draining away. He could already see the far shore of the Styx.

The Edgington Family, passed down through seven generations—its final heir died without a sound in a remote alleyway in the Far East, no different from a stray cat or dog.

Clap, clap, clap—

Crisp applause rang out. Michael strolled over, raised a thumb, and said quite sincerely, "Congratulations, classmate Aozaki, on your first victory."

"Ha—something this easy hardly counts for anything, does it?"

Aozaki Aoko fired back without mercy, until she noticed Michael smiling as he looked at the dagger in her hand.

"Without this thing, it would only have taken a little more effort."

She slipped the dagger back into the strip of cardstock and tossed it toward Michael. He had lent her this Mage's Garment as a precaution. Though it was genuinely useful, Aozaki Aoko returned it without hesitation.

"Keep it. Consider it a graduation gift."

Michael casually tossed it back. Mage's Garments capable of breaking magecraft were rare, but he could mass-produce them.

"Hey, don't just throw something so dangerous around."

Aozaki Aoko complained, then unceremoniously put away the strip of cardstock containing the anti-magic dagger.

"Then, to celebrate classmate Aoko's graduation, how about we go to the aquarium tomorrow to relax? It can be a change of pace. Then we can get something to eat at night too. How does barbecue sound?"

Michael pulled three tickets from his Imaginary Pocket and waved them before Aozaki Aoko and Alice Kuonji. "Then we can get something to eat at night too. How does barbecue sound?"

Aozaki Aoko eyed Michael suspiciously, feeling that he was plotting something.

"I don't mind."

Alice Kuonji's tone remained as calm as ever, like the tranquil sea beneath moonlight.

"Fine. It's a rare opportunity."

Aozaki Aoko nodded decisively. Of course, she did not say the rest aloud: opportunities like this came once in a blue moon. Since it was such a rare chance, she had to bleed Michael dry. The guy was filthy rich.

Perhaps because she would finally have a chance to "get revenge" tomorrow, the slight heaviness in her heart from taking a life eased considerably. She glanced at Ingram's corpse, unfolded an ignition spell, and let the flames consume it.

For invaders coveting the spiritual land, this was the ending they deserved. There was no need for pity.