Genius Wizard who sees Rainbows- Chapter 142

**#142. Amon Family (2)**

—

The siblings with dark blue hair gave off completely opposite impressions.

The younger brother, despite being only a first-circle mage, made up for it with sheer effort and skill.

He radiated an energy of youthful vigor.

In contrast, the older sister, though a second-circle mage, failed to capitalize on that advantage.

She exuded an extremely calm demeanor.

‘…It’s not an important issue, though.’

Ray darted across the open field, evading the encroaching path of ice without pause.

That was when he sensed something.

‘Magic.’

Two vines of wind came hurtling toward him at frightening speed.

It was a situation he couldn’t avoid—

—under normal circumstances, that is.

His path was already restricted by ice magic.

And wind-based magic, being nearly invisible, was notoriously hard to detect.

Moreover, among natural elements, wind was the second fastest, only behind electricity.

But—

*Tap!*

*Whoosh─! Whoosh─!*

Ray dodged both wind vines with light, effortless movements.

“He… he dodged that?”

“How the hell…?!”

Voices filled with disbelief echoed across the open ground.

Several more wind vines were fired in an attempt to ensnare the target, but all of them barely missed Ray.

“Th-this is insane!”

“He doesn’t even look that much older than us…!”

Evading them hadn’t been difficult.

The common assumption that wind projectiles are invisible didn’t apply to Ray at all.

In the boy’s black eyes,

—the sky-blue mana forming the wind vines was clearly visible.

“H-he’s channeling mana into his hands!”

“Unlinked ones! Disruptors! What are you doing?! Interrupt him! Stop the spell from being completed!”

The lump of blue mana in Ray’s palm continued to grow larger.

Immediately, pressure was applied to it.

The enemies, who had been lying in wait, focused their full attention on dispersing Ray’s mana.

Seizing control of the mana to block the spell entirely—

—a technique known as interference.

It wasn’t commonly used.

It required a significantly higher level than the opponent and carried the risk of mana backlash, among other strict conditions.

But—

“Just a bit more!”

“You’re not casting a spell in front of us!”

—when it’s five against one, the situation could change.

And the five were highly skilled in interference, as if they’d practiced this many times.

*Wooooom───!*

The mana orb trembled violently, as if it would shatter at any moment.

The enemies grinned triumphantly.

No matter how skilled he was, there was no way out of this.

He was casting an enhancement spell while engaged in a chase.

To add a five-on-one control struggle on top of that would be logically impossible.

“We’ll drag you to Master!”

“Even if you hang on, your mana will run out first!”

“We’ve taken down even third-circle mages before!”

Smug voices full of pride.

But there was one thing they didn’t know.

That was—

*Woooong──!*

Ray hadn’t been paying attention to the mana orb at all, as he’d been watching their emotions.

As soon as he refocused, the mana orb shook violently.

“Guh!”

“Urgh!”

All five disruptors who were interfering with the mana vomited blood and collapsed.

The freed mana orb was instantly hurled to the ground.

In that moment—

*Crackle—!*

An ice path formed and extended outward.

Due to the limited ice element available within his circle, the width of the ice trail was much narrower than the girl’s.

However, its application was on an entirely different level.

The ice path split into ten branches and surged toward each enemy.

‘That’s… possible…?’

The previously expressionless girl’s eyes widened with shock.

*Crackle-crack-crack-crack—!*

It was too fast.

Just as she tried to move, Ray’s ice magic reached her feet.

*Crack!*

Both of her feet were frozen in place.

She couldn’t move at all.

“D-do something!”

“N-no one taught us how to handle this!”

Her comrades were in the same situation.

The girl pressed her lips together and focused on chasing her target along the ice path.

…The damage was significant.

But there was one fortunate thing.

That was—

The opponent, chased by the ice spell, couldn’t easily approach her.

In other words, the distance was being maintained.

‘That boy only used long-range magic once. He can’t attack us anymore.’

It was common knowledge that the farther the distance between caster and target, the more exponentially mana consumption increases.

Perhaps caught up in the heat of battle, the boy had made a critical mistake.

He had aggressively extended the already mana-draining ice magic.

‘And he even split it into multiple branches. He must not have any mana left for more ice spells.’

She was certain of it from the fact that the ice only froze her feet before dissipating.

If he had enough mana, her entire body would’ve been frozen.

Also, given the intensity of the ongoing battle, the enhancement spell likely wouldn’t last much longer either.

After all, he probably only had one circle.

…The girl couldn’t even imagine that Ray might have more than that.

‘Master said…’

That to reach first-circle by the age of 18 was considered exceptional talent.

And if one could reach second-circle by then—

—that was genius-level potential.

「Ayla. I’ve mentored many students during my travels, but you’re the only one to reach the second circle at that age. Truly unparalleled.」

So the black-haired boy *had* to be only first-circle.

‘If this becomes a battle of attrition, I’ll win. No matter how skilled he is, the mana difference between first and second circle is absolute—’

It was then that the girl sensed something odd.

*Drip.*

Water began to trickle from the ice that held her feet.

‘It’s melting…?’

Now that she thought about it, the ice hadn’t felt very cold from the beginning.

It seemed the spell had been set to melt at about body temperature.

When she looked up, she could see the ice that had spread across the open field was also melting significantly for some reason.

The moment she realized something was wrong—

—*Crack!*

A pillar shot up from the ground, lifting the boy high above the battlefield, away from the ice path.

‘He has another primary element…?’

The girl’s eyes shook again.

Just as the rising ice trail tried to reach his feet—

*Boom!*

Ray stomped down.

The next moment—

—the girl was blinded by a brilliant yellow light.

*Zzzzap!*

A surge of electricity exploded from beneath Ray’s feet.

Along the many ice trails spread across the field—

—and through the wet moisture still clinging to them—

—in all directions,

like a complex circuit board, drawing hundreds of intricate and bizarre lines—

*Zzzzzzzzzt───!*

—it surged.

Some of the final destinations were—

“Gah!”

“Urgh!”

—the enemies who were still frozen to the moist ice.

The current was regulated, so it wasn’t fatal, but it was enough to render them completely incapacitated.

A moment of silence blanketed the field.

Only the sound of heavy breathing remained.

“…….”

Ray quietly stared down at the ice path that had stopped just in front of his feet.

Then, he jumped off the pillar—

*Thud!*

—and landed.

The shattered ice beneath him exploded into shards.

*Step. Step.*

He walked toward the now-defenseless enemies.

Thanks to the abundance of fire-element particles scattered during the chase, waves of heat radiated from the ground.

“D-don’t come!”

“Y-you monster!”

*Thwack! Thwack!*

*Thud! Thud!*

The two closest collapsed after being struck in the head with the *Cromwell Grand Encyclopedia*.

“W-wait! Y-you asked earlier if we were with the Amon Family, r-right! We are!”

“Y-you want information, right? Let’s talk, please—!”

*Thwack! Thwack!*

*Thud! Thud!*

A few more dull thuds echoed through the field.

Only one remained.

*Step. Step.*

The girl trembled in fear as Ray approached.

*Step. Halt.*

Seeing the blunt weapon in his hand, she shook her head desperately.

“…….”

“…….”

They exchanged a silent gaze.

Ray understood the message in her eyes.

‘She wants to be hit with something else. Just like Veronica—girls really are pickier than boys.’

He looked around, but couldn’t find anything else suitable as a blunt tool.

All he could do was hit her a little more gently than the others.

*Hum—*

Having released the metal enchantment beforehand, Ray gave a small nod.

The girl’s expression began to show relief—

*Thump!*

*Thud!*

—just before the blunt blow landed and she collapsed unconscious.

Ray looked down at the girl and thought:

‘She was second-circle, so I expected more.’

He was a bit disappointed.

The main reason he ended the fight so quickly was that she didn’t seem capable of showing him any more interesting magic.

…In fact, if anything—

‘Their overall strategy and role distribution were more interesting.’

They had melee specialists, long-range attackers, and even interference mages to block spells.

It was a structured and well-practiced formation.

Against a less experienced mage, it would’ve been deadly.

‘I didn’t catch their emotions earlier, but… I doubt the “we’ve caught a third-circle mage” claim was a bluff.’

As Ray sank into thought, he calmly opened his mouth.

“I’m warning you. Move that hand and you’re dead.”

“……!”

Behind him—

—the man gripping a knife in reverse felt a chill crawl up his spine.

‘How…?’

Even with only one circle, he had unparalleled stealth magic thanks to his unique element ratio and relentless training.

If he focused, even his master wouldn’t sense him.

Yet—

—this black-haired brat had spotted him instantly.

And at his feet, the previously fading current had reawakened, crackling threateningly.

*Zzzzt! Zzzzzz!*

Even more vicious than before.

As if it would climb up his leg at any moment.

*Gulp.*

…If he moved, he’d die.

His instincts screamed danger.

“Wh-when…?”

He couldn’t finish his sentence out of tension, but the meaning was clear.

“If you’re asking when I noticed you—since the beginning. The others didn’t know, but I saw you sneak in and watch from the edge of the clearing.”

Ray slowly turned, pulling the knife from the trembling man’s hand.

As he lowered it, the blade passed the man’s fear-stricken eyes and quivering lips—

*Shhhk.*

—drawing a red line across his neck.

“Nice knife. Sharp blade. You look older than the rest. Supervisor? Handler?”

“I-I-I’m just… gulp… an observer. Sent by Master… to check on the kids…”

*Clang—!*

Ray tossed the knife carelessly to the floor.

“Then take me to your superior.”

*
*
*

 

“I-I’ve already contacted them, so they should be arriving soon! Please wait just a moment!”

The man with the thin red line across his neck was drenched in cold sweat as he closed the door and disappeared.

*Creaaak—Clack!*

“…….”

Ray glanced around the interior.

A wide table and leather sofas.

Various furnishings placed throughout the space.

Its location not far from the black market.

All signs pointed to this being a branch office of the Amon Family, with its neat and organized appearance.

*Fwoomp—*

Ray sat down on the sofa.

Though his body was at rest, he kept the mana in his circle elevated, ready to respond at any moment to a sudden turn of events.

In that state,

he calmly gathered his thoughts.

‘He said they’re not officially part of the organization.’

Just like the ten who came before, the courteous man who appeared at the end and guided him here didn’t bear the Amon Family tattoo either.

That included the merchants who, upon the man’s instructions, had hurriedly darted into the alley as Ray exited the black market—

—and the burly men who passed him in the hallway and nodded respectfully as they went by.

「W-we’re all disciples of the Master. W-we do help the Amon Family, b-but we’re not part of them.」

In the clearing, the man had said that in a trembling voice.

「Disciples? Are all eleven of you—including you—everyone?」

「N-no. Including those not here, there are over twenty of us.」

He had said their master was a second-circle mage.

A middle-aged man in his mid-to-late forties.

Not especially impressive in terms of how many circles he had, but raising nearly twenty disciples at once meant he couldn’t be an ordinary individual.

‘What kind of person is he?’

A strong curiosity rose within him.

The man called “Master” was apparently on his way here now, together with a manager from the Amon Family.

Of course, the primary objective of this operation was to make contact with the card technician—but Ray had no intention of settling for that alone.

‘There has to be a bigger gain than just being able to use cards.’

Only then would it be worth it.

He had taken on the risk of provoking a major organization—he needed a payoff to match.

…Truthfully, the safest course of action would’ve been to wait until the war between the North and East ended and the card technicians resumed their work.

‘But who knows how long that wait would be.’

He needed to move things forward as quickly as possible.

Having already spent nearly a month in Sector 46 and delayed his journey this long—

—he now had to make up for lost time.

And that compensation, he felt, might come through this so-called “Master.”

If someone had the ability to train over twenty disciples at once, they surely possessed far more knowledge and information than the average mage.

‘It wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect something from him.’

Whether it was about the Rainbow—

—or the seven-colored band that appeared in the sky—

—or that mysterious atmospheric phenomenon said to grant the wish of whoever discovers it—

“…….”

Even if not that, any information relevant to his party’s objectives would suffice.

For example:

The Black Rain, Philip’s mother, Murcred, the City of Mages, the one-eyed goggled wizard, and—

—and whatever else.

*Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.*

That was when quick, rhythmic footsteps echoed from outside.

They grew louder and stopped right in front of the door.

*Creaaak—Clunk!*

Several men appeared.

At that moment, Ray’s gaze locked onto the chest of the man in front—and refused to move.

Two circles.

And within them, deep blue mana filled to the brim.

—

 

 

 

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