**#127. Grand Match (3)**
—
There was one thing the arrogant man
—who prided himself on seeing through everything
—did not know.
*“The opponent doesn’t know about the gem.”*
The gemstone had only risen to the rooftop after all of the enemy’s familiars had been eliminated.
That one ignorance.
The boy believed it would be the decisive factor that determined victory or defeat.
Of course, the mana produced by the gem had clear drawbacks.
It required intense concentration to control, meaning he couldn’t move from his spot, and there was also a limit to how much mana he could manipulate at one time.
*“There’s a maximum output.”*
Just like how a thin hose can only spray a certain amount of water at once.
But now that the confrontation had turned into a battle of attrition, those restrictions were not a significant problem.
*Wuuuuuuung───!*
First of all, both the opponent and the boy were stationary, rooted in place.
And they were using mana below the gem’s maximum output.
The enemy’s mana was finite.
But the jewel’s mana was infinite.
“……”
If this turned into a battle of attrition, the outcome was already as good as decided.
Of course, there was the variable that the enemy might drastically increase his mana output.
…But Ray judged that possibility to be slim.
He predicted with high probability that the current standoff would continue.
*“As long as my prediction doesn’t miss the mark.”*
Without a doubt, the one who would run out of mana first would be the man.
Unlike the gemstone, the mana in the circle was inherently limited.
*Wuuuuuuung───!*
Yet, the true core of victory wasn’t the infinite nature of the gem’s mana.
*“Its infiniteness is a falsehood.”*
Even if a resource was infinite, the stamina required to use it always had limits.
Using mana accumulated mental fatigue.
Whether it was ambient mana from the air—
Or refined mana from a circle—
That was why the boy couldn’t literally draw on ambient mana infinitely.
*“But the gem’s mana is different.”*
No matter how much he used, it caused no mental fatigue.
Not even a little. Not at all. Nothing whatsoever.
Given the right conditions, it could be used endlessly for a lifetime.
The gem’s mana wasn’t falsely infinite.
That, the boy believed, was its true strength.
And the true factor that would bring him victory in this match.
*[Zzzr-crack!]*
Unable to withstand the strain, the navy-colored mana body shattered and vanished.
The navy mana stream extending from behind it clashed directly with a yellow bundle of mana.
*[KWA-AAANG──!]*
The stream and the bundle instantly intensified and formed beams.
The man slowly turned the hand emitting the beam toward the boy.
The boy mirrored the motion.
*Ziiik─ Ziiiik─*
From the recoil of the colliding beams, both the boy’s and man’s feet began to slide backward slightly.
From the clashing beams, fragments of yellow and navy mana scattered like sparks—
*Wuuung!*
—randomly fusing with elements in the air and manifesting phenomena.
*Zzzzzzt──!*
Frightening bundles of electric current—
*Guuuuung──!*
—pressure masses with invisible but definite physical force—
*Crash! KWAANG!*
—destroyed everything around them.
*Rrrip! Rrrrrip! Crash!*
The lights flickered wildly.
Pillars collapsed, walls cracked.
The entire building trembled as if it would collapse.
───.
───.
Even so, neither the boy nor the man gave an inch.
They only stared at each other.
*Zzrrak! Zzzrraack!*
The floor, unable to withstand the magical impact, screamed.
Cracks rapidly spread, forming a zone around the two of them.
*Zzrrk─!*
And clapped.
*Guuuuung──!*
The floor collapsed.
Even as they fell into midair, neither the boy nor the man broke eye contact.
In that moment of slowed time—
*—I’ll kill you.*
The man’s lips formed silent words.
The boy didn’t respond.
He simply focused on maintaining his beam while adjusting his posture in the fall.
He also quickly confirmed that the man’s arrogance hadn’t diminished in the slightest.
*KWAANG!*
The 10th floor hit the ground just before he did and shattered.
Amidst the flying debris—
Just before his feet touched the 9th floor—
*Wuuuung.*
The boy deactivated the gem.
Redirected his concentration to the ring’s mana.
The red mana surged through his body, strengthening his muscles and hardening his skin like metal.
Then, as time accelerated—
*KUUUNG──!!*
The thunderous impact from the boy’s landing shook the building.
Immediately, he reactivated the gem and extended his arm forward.
*[KWA-AAANG──!]*
The yellow beam fired and collided with the navy beam pushing forward.
The man was unharmed.
Unlike the boy, he could maintain the beam while simultaneously using multiple spells.
Ray glanced at the mana left in the man’s circle.
The fourth ring from the top.
More than half of it was already empty.
Understandable.
The mana output currently being maintained was no small feat.
“……”
The boy thought—
If it were him, he would’ve emptied that remaining mana in one burst.
That way, he could end the fight without giving the opponent the slightest chance.
“Don’t laugh at me!”
But the man didn’t do that.
“Bow down before me in shame! Tremble and cry!”
He only screamed with murderous rage.
Still within prediction range.
But the boy didn’t let down his guard for a second.
A variable could always appear.
The battle continued.
*Zzzzzzt──!*
*Guuuuung──!*
Mana fragments scattered like sparks.
A near-identical reenactment of what happened on the upper floors.
*Crash!*
*Crack!*
*KWAANG!*
Destruction, erosion, and collapse tore through the interior.
His ears rang. His arms tingled.
Debris fell on his head and shoulders, but he didn’t use reinforcement magic.
It was endurable, and larger debris was deflected by turning his head and taking the impact on his shoulder to avoid fatal injury.
He did not stop maintaining the beam.
And again—
*Zzrrak!*
Collapsing floor.
The boy used the ring’s mana only in the moments of landing—
*KWAANG─!*
*KUUUNG─!*
8th floor.
The more violently the beams clashed, the faster the floors crumbled.
*KWAANG─!*
*KUUUNG─!*
7th floor.
The elevation of the boy and the man dropped rapidly.
*KWAANG─!*
*KUUUNG─!*
6th floor.
The man’s mana was depleting faster than expected.
Ray realized—
The building wasn’t shaking solely due to the beams’ collision.
*KWAANG─!*
*KUUUNG─!*
5th floor.
He glanced behind the man.
Out the broken window.
Only a gloomy navy hue was visible, as if a massive dark-colored canvas had been draped over the window.
*KWAANG─!*
*KUUUNG─!*
4th floor.
Focusing his senses, Ray felt something enveloping the entire building.
*KWAANG─!*
*KUUUNG─!*
3rd floor.
It was a massive hand of mana shaking the entire structure.
*…Is it to rattle me emotionally?*
*KWAANG─!*
*KUUUNG─!*
2nd floor.
“Despair! Fall into ruin! Fear me!”
The inability to feel emotion—
Was it a blessing, or a curse?
A debate that could rage endlessly—but right now, it was clearly a tremendous strength for the boy.
“Realize your weakness! Your helplessness!”
The man wanted the boy to be consumed by primal emotions like any other enemy.
*KWAANG─!*
*KUUUNG─!*
But the boy never gave in.
Finally, the 1st floor.
Dust rose where the boy and man landed.
Had the mana run out?
The yellow beam that had been thinning vanished in an instant.
The man trembled with uncontrollable euphoria and increased his beam’s output.
“Ku-ku-ku! Look! This is as far as you could go—!”
But the man’s sneer didn’t last.
The beam charging at its prey suddenly stopped—right in front of the boy’s face.
And began to fizzle out.
At the moment the navy beam vanished—
*Zzzzt───!*
A chilling bolt of electricity shot from the boy’s raised arm.
“Gyaaaaah!”
The high-voltage current struck the unguarded target, spreading through the man’s body with a violent twitch.
“Guh!”
Coughing up blood, the man dropped to his knees.
He tried to stand using reinforcement magic, but it was no use.
The boy’s pure white eyes.
In their reflection, the man’s circle had no trace of mana left.
“Guh! This…! It makes no sense…! A mere bug…! Guh…! How…! How…!”
While the emotions once exiled from the man’s vessel returned, Ray checked his own condition.
His right arm ached from channeling the powerful mana, and his shoulder stung from enduring the debris—but nothing serious.
More importantly, his circle’s mana was nearly untouched.
“You’re just 2nd Circle…! Guh…! There’s no way you still have mana left…! You shouldn’t be able to stand—!”
“Who said—”
Ray cut him off.
“—that the mana I possess is only 2nd Circle?”
The man froze like stone.
Then, as realization dawned, shock filled his eyes.
“No way…! What the hell is that…! What is that…!”
He had sensed the activated gem within Ray’s body.
*Zzzt! Zzzzt!*
As if to affirm the man’s senses, radiant yellow electricity danced around Ray.
A brilliant gleam in his eyes, sparks capable of reducing matter to black ash crackled fiercely.
“You had plenty of chances to turn the tide. If you’d kept your wits, you’d have realized my mana wasn’t just 2nd Circle.”
*KUUUNG!*
The man, struggling to rise, collapsed to his knees.
“If you’d gone all out, I’d have had to revise my tactics. But you didn’t. You deliberately dragged out time to match your opponent’s strength. Just like when you tormented the support faction—you wanted a specific reaction.”
*KUUUNG!*
Still unable to get up.
His upper body slumped forward from the fall, arms bracing him on the ground.
Above his bowed head, a cold voice fell.
“You should’ve finished it when you had the chance. You made the same mistake on the rooftop.”
The white king, lying nearby, floated into the air—
And landed before the man’s lowered face.
*Tap.*
“You lost. Again.”
In that moment, the man’s long-dulled arrogance surged explosively.
“How dare you—! How dare you look down on me—! With those eyes—! Don’t you dare look at me like that, you filthy bug—!!”
He raged like a madman, but it was meaningless now.
He only coughed up more blood, gasping for breath.
“Whether you acknowledge your defeat or not—it doesn’t matter. What matters is that you now need to answer my questions. I won the bet.”
Ray’s gaze was indifferent.
His voice dry.
But inside his vessel, many emotions stirred actively.
Excitement, anticipation, exhilaration—
The wild emotions born from fierce battle lingered, not yet dispersed, driven by the expectation of the spoils to come.
Ray parted his lips.
“The Doctor. The Rainbow. The organization called Murcred that you belong to.”
“Shut your filthy—!”
“Tell me everything you know.”
“How dare you! You inferior worm! Don’t you *dare* command me—!”
“……”
Ray silently stared down at the man still trying to resist.
It was fascinating to watch the swirl of clashing emotions—
But interference with information extraction was a problem.
*CRASH──!*
Ray used telekinesis to hurl a table aside.
Pain should quiet him down.
He raised his hand, formed a chilling electric charge on his palm, and without hesitation, fired it at the man’s chest.
*SHHHH──!*
“Guh! You lowly bastard—! You filthy insect—! How dare you—!!”
At the moment just before impact—
The space between the charge and the man’s chest shimmered.
*Zzzzt.*
The air tore like a blade had slashed it.
A crack in space yawned open and swallowed the electric mass—
Then—
*Zzzip.*
Disappeared.
And then—
*KWA-AANG───!*
Far away, the rift reappeared and spat it back out.
Junk and debris exploded into dust and wind.
*Tap.*
Between the boy and the man—
Someone stepped into the air and landed.
An individual known to both duelists.
And one they never expected to appear at this moment.
Even the man’s wild emotions stilled in that instant.
A white ghost mask.
A body cloaked in black cloth.
Both the boy and the man spoke at once:
“Curiosa?”
“Shannon?”
