Yuuki and Rhya stood atop separate stone pillars, facing one another as astonishing torrents of mana poured from their bodies and flooded the surrounding space.
Permeation Magic allowed its user to vanish for a period of time, rendering them immune to all magic attacks. That was precisely what made the spell so troublesome—it placed the user in an almost invincible state.
There were only two known ways to damage someone in that condition.
One was Asta's Anti-Magic.
The other was pure physical attacks.
However, truly physical attacks—ones containing not even a trace of mana—were incredibly difficult for mages. Without mana reinforcement, ordinary punches and kicks simply lacked sufficient power.
More importantly, while in the "vanished" state, mana sensing became completely useless. One couldn't even determine where the opponent was.
"Good thing I learned ki," Yuuki thought coldly, locking onto Rhya's presence.
Within the Eye of the Midnight Sun, the Three Third Eyes each had their own specialties.
Vetto possessed the greatest raw combat power.
Fana had the largest mana reserves.
Rhya, however, was the most troublesome of them all.
The ability to wield multiple attributes alone allowed Rhya to overwhelm most mages with ease—something Yuuki understood better than anyone, given how similar their abilities were.
Their strengths were obvious.
And so were their weaknesses.
They lacked no variety of magic, but what they lacked was a method to cause a qualitative transformation in their overall power. Against human mages, that was fine.
But against devils—
The rule that non-Underworld-tier magic cannot harm devils would instantly erase their advantages.
Of course, that was a problem for the future.
Right now—
Rhya still had a flaw.
Before completing full reincarnation, Rhya could only use one type of magic at a time when employing Imitation Magic. He could not stack multiple attributes simultaneously.
To switch elements, he had to switch spells.
The process was fast—but at their level, even a fleeting opening could be fatal.
"Tch, tch! This is my first time fighting someone with a similar magic type," Rhya laughed.
"Guess we'll see whose magic is stronger!"
The stone pillar beneath his feet shattered as his body shot into the air. Spreading his arms, he swung them downward toward Yuuki.
"Imitation Magic — Absolute Zero's Great Ice Block!"
BOOM!
The air above detonated violently.
A colossal, oval-shaped ice mass—over fifty meters in size—materialized above Yuuki like a falling mountain, crashing down with terrifying force.
"Ice Magic? I can use that too!"
Yuuki roared,
"Ice Creation Magic — Heavenly Ice Fang!"
CRASH!
The reinforced floor of the great hall exploded apart.
Driven by Yuuki's vast mana, what should have been a two- or three-meter ice fang transformed into a massive ice spire dozens of meters tall, bursting upward from the ground.
Its sharp, conical tip slammed directly into the descending ice block.
RUMBLE—!!
The collision sounded like an earthquake. The hall and the very air trembled violently.
In an instant—
The enormous ice block was held aloft by the towering ice fang, suspended in the center of the hall like a crude ice monument nearly a hundred meters tall.
Yuuki and Rhya flashed around the massive ice formation in midair, unleashing spells of countless attributes.
Explosions echoed endlessly through the empty hall.
At the edge of the battlefield, Valtos—and Sally and Rades, who had arrived at some point after hearing the commotion—stood frozen, staring at the figures clashing in the sky.
"That's really… Yuuki?" Rades muttered stiffly, his uncovered eye blank with disbelief.
Remembering how he had once picked fights with Yuuki, a chill crawled up his spine. He swallowed hard.
"He's amazing… What should we do now?" Sally asked, eyes shining as she stared upward.
"Nothing," Valtos replied after a brief pause, his voice calm.
"Yuuki did betray the Eye of the Midnight Sun—that's a fact. And the two of you didn't join for any grand ideals in the first place, did you?"
Sally blinked, then giggled.
"As long as I get to beat up nobles, I don't care whether it's the Eye of the Midnight Sun or anything else," Rades said with a cold laugh, the fear in his heart easing somewhat.
BOOM!
Another thunderous explosion rocked the sky.
Rhya's grimoire glowed gold as his body turned into a streak of light, vanishing like teleportation. In the blink of an eye, he appeared behind Yuuki.
"Imitation Magic — Heaven-Splitting Flash!"
A brilliant golden beam erupted forth, carrying terrifying mana as it blasted toward Yuuki.
"Fire Magic — Little Sun's Radiance!"
Yuuki responded instantly. Immense fire mana condensed into a blazing red point before firing a crimson laser of its own.
HMMMM—!
The golden and crimson beams collided, emitting a piercing hum.
The sheer power of the clash caused ripples to spread through the surrounding air.
Valtos and the others felt their hearts seize and instinctively retreated even farther.
"Now!"
Yuuki's eyes flashed.
He had been waiting for this opening.
"Beast Magic — Cheetah Assault!"
Even as he maintained his Fire Magic, a violent surge of mana exploded from Yuuki's body. His leg muscles bulged.
BOOM—!
With a sonic boom, Yuuki became a silver streak, appearing directly in front of Rhya.
"Vetto's magic?! How—?!" Rhya's eyes shrank in shock.
From the start of the battle, Yuuki—like Rhya—had only used one attribute at a time. Rhya had assumed they shared the same limitation.
He was wrong.
"Too late!"
Rhya didn't have time to switch to Through Magic.
The next instant—
Yuuki's fists became a storm of blows. Empowered by Beast Magic, every punch carried enough force to shatter the air itself, smashing directly into Rhya.
BAM! BAM! BAM!
Damn it—!
Rhya struggled to break free.
But Yuuki never gave him the chance.
Relentless close-quarters strikes denied Rhya even a moment to switch spells, hammering him straight down from the sky.
Yuuki's assault never stopped.
BOOM!
With the final punch, the ground collapsed inward, forming a massive crater.
Rhya's eyes rolled back as he lost consciousness, lying motionless at the center.
Yuuki stood beside him, breathing heavily, finally relaxing once he confirmed Rhya was completely out.
Rhya was different from Vetto and Fana. With Through Magic, he could have escaped during a slower binding spell.
Chain Magic was simply too slow.
And to prevent Rhya from self-destructing, Yuuki had been forced to overwhelm him in one decisive burst.
"His grimoire…"
Yuuki turned his gaze toward the fallen grimoire nearby and took a step forward—
WHOOSH!
A golden flash streaked past Yuuki's head and landed beside Rhya's grimoire.
"What are you doing?"
Licht stood there, his body radiating blinding mana. His golden eyes were so cold they seemed to freeze the air itself.
Yuuki halted.
BOOM!
Holy, overwhelming mana erupted from Licht, forming a massive golden beam that slammed down.
Light Magic — Divine Punishment's Radiance!
The wide-area attack vaporized everything in its path.
Yuuki didn't even have time to draw the Demon-Dweller Sword.
"Fire Spirit Magic — Salamander's Breath!"
ROOOAR—!
A torrent of searing flames blasted from Salamander's jaws, colliding head-on with the golden beam.
KRAAASH—!!
A catastrophic explosion engulfed the entire hall.
Valtos and the others were blasted away before they could even react.
Every stone pillar in the hall was annihilated, and the ground at the epicenter was scorched into a wasteland.
Thankfully, the Eye of the Midnight Sun's floating base was vast and protected by powerful magic arrays—the explosion didn't affect the structure itself.
As the blinding light faded—
Yuuki was gone.
"Tch."
Licht snorted coldly before rushing to Rhya's side.
"Light Recovery Magic — Healing Light Particles."
Gentle light enveloped Rhya, his wounds rapidly mending.
THUD!
The moment Rhya regained consciousness, he sprang to his feet—then relaxed when he saw Licht.
"Sorry, Licht. I didn't manage to take him down."
"That brat's strength was beyond expectations. Worse, I never got close enough to his grimoire to fully understand its abilities."
Licht's eyes filled with guilt.
"I'm the one who should apologize. I was the one who brought him into the Eye of the Midnight Sun in the first place."
"Relax," Rhya waved it off with a grin.
"Vetto and Fana aren't really dead—they can still reincarnate. Things are messier, but the overall plan hasn't changed."
He smirked.
"That brat still has the Third Eye's Sacrificial Magic on him. Let him be arrogant for now."
Licht's expression eased slightly.
"The Witch Queen's magic stone is probably in his hands. Getting it back won't be easy."
"That's not a problem," Licht said firmly.
"Magic stones are useless to humans. He took it only to sever ties with us and show it to the Magic Knights."
"In the end, it'll reach the Wizard King anyway."
Grand Cravatt Rock Belt — Edge of the Strong Magic Region
Yuuki appeared atop a small floating rock.
"Whatever. There will be another chance."
He glanced once more toward the Eye of the Midnight Sun's base deep within the region.
The moment Licht appeared, Yuuki had known—getting Rhya's grimoire was no longer possible.
And despite what Licht claimed, the truth was that Licht was stronger than any of the Three Third Eyes.
He still sealed an even more terrifying power within his body—one capable of attacking the entire Clover Kingdom if released.
That power was reserved for one purpose:
Wizard King Julius.
Yuuki had no intention of forcing Licht to unleash it prematurely.
More importantly, Licht's sudden arrival meant something had changed in the capital.
Yuuki needed to return—fast.
"Next time we meet… will be the final battle."
"And the moment the Eye of the Midnight Sun changes leaders."
His figure vanished.
Leon Town — Near the Tavern
The district had fallen eerily silent.
A place that should have been bustling during the day was now completely empty.
From above, one could see Magic Knights evacuating civilians outward from the tavern at the center.
Yuuki had expected the Clover Kingdom to remain in the dark for at least three days.
But he had underestimated their intelligence network.
The incident in the Witch's Forest was simply too large to hide.
After repeated attacks by the Eye of the Midnight Sun—and the discovery that they were plotting something extremely dangerous involving magic stones—
The Eye of the Midnight Sun had become the Clover Kingdom's greatest enemy.
And now—
The revelation that Yuuki was one of their members immediately drew the Magic Knights' attention.
(End of Chapter)
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