# Chapter 39
—
Ares doubted his own eyes.
The lightning flashing before him was not magic.
That blinding white flame was lightning itself—the very natural force he had always longed for.
And that was why he could not believe it.
How could a human possibly control and command lightning?
Other than the “test subject” trapped in the laboratory, such a thing was unthinkable.
*No way…*
Ares swallowed dryly, his words trailing.
And, unable to hide the trembling in his voice, he asked,
“Y-you… what are you?”
“Is that really important right now?”
“What?”
“You’re in danger, Ares-ssi.”
With that warning, lightning struck.
The current wrapped around the meteor iron sword burst outward.
But to the magicians, unaware of the truth, it simply looked like a bolt of lightning falling from the sky.
**Boom!**
Fortunately, the barrier prepared in advance blocked the strike.
Even so, the astonishment did not fade.
Lightning had been fired—
A natural disaster moved by human will.
The magicians nearby, regaining their senses, groaned in disbelief, and Ares was the same.
The only difference was that for him, the thrill electrifying his body was greater than the shock.
*It’s no illusion… That bastard has stolen Julie Prosky’s bloodline.*
He didn’t know how, but that was the only explanation.
Having reached that conclusion, Ares burst into a rough laugh.
“…Why are you laughing?”
“Because, unexpectedly, what I always desired has been granted.”
“Ah. You mean this lightning?”
“Yes. And so, I’ll give you a chance. What’s your name?”
The man with blurred, indistinct features answered.
“Donn.”
“Donn… Very well. I’ll remember it. Because when this battle ends, your personality will no longer exist.”
Though the words were chilling, Arthur only smiled as he replied,
“I don’t think so. Because when this battle ends, you’ll be dead.”
With that, Arthur lowered his stance.
From that posture, Ares felt an obsession bordering on madness and muttered,
*Capture him first. Just enough to make him faint… the body must remain undamaged.*
Ares activated his magic.
In that moment, a massive boulder suddenly crashed down toward Arthur’s back.
Arthur swung his sword lightly at the sharp fragments like spears.
**Slash!**
The boulders were shredded like paper.
Though the ambush had failed, Ares was not disappointed.
**\[Earth Will.]**
The hidden spell activated.
The severed fragments clung to Arthur’s body.
He widened his eyes and swung his sword, but it was too late.
**Crack—crack—crack!**
The fragments multiplied, binding his limbs.
The magicians gasped in awe.
“To use magic like that…”
“Truly a real one is different…”
And so, Arthur, completely buried in fragments, became a stone statue.
Ares muttered as he watched,
*Is it over?*
Time passed.
The masked man made no move.
Smiling faintly, Ares commanded,
“Go bring him. It’s over.”
“Y-yes, sir!”
The magicians moved.
But when they tried to lift the petrified Arthur—
**Sschk!**
A grotesque slicing sound rang out, and three magicians’ heads flew off at once.
Ares’s eyes flew wide.
At the same moment, Arthur cut down the rest who approached.
“Playing dead—success.”
With that, the fragments binding him burst apart.
The crackling current melted them away.
As his figure emerged, Ares muttered in horror,
“Y-you… what are you? What is that form?”
“Me?”
“Yes! That reptilian shell! What the hell is that?”
Brushing off the fragments, Arthur answered,
“A bloodline. One of the bloodlines I possess.”
Then he used spatial leap.
Ares flinched and staggered back.
*Teleportation? No… what is this ability?*
He hastily erected a barrier—
But too late.
“….”
He looked at his right arm.
The arm that should have been there was gone beneath the shoulder.
As his face stiffened, Arthur whispered,
“This too is my ability. Now then, shall we begin, Ares-ssi? With your right arm gone, next comes your left.”
—
—
Ares widened the distance.
It was floating magic, similar to spatial leap, but its speed was fast.
*Even with one arm gone, his chanting speed is impressive. As expected of the future Imperial Army’s chief magician.*
With that thought, Arthur also used spatial leap.
At the same moment, flames roared up from the spot he had stood a heartbeat before.
Holding the meteor iron sword, Arthur steadied his grip.
**Crackle!**
Current flared from his fingertips and coiled around the sword.
Julie Prosky’s lightning of the future—
Not a human-made imitation, but a true natural disaster, surging from his hand gripping the sword.
Arthur savored that strange sensation and murmured,
*To fire it downward like before needs recharge time… Hm. Best to conserve it and fight in this state.*
His gaze shifted.
He sensed tremendous mana swirling in the distance—Ares chanting.
Knowing full well that giving a magician time was dangerous, Arthur moved immediately.
**Flash!**
With spatial leap, he thrust his blade.
But this time, Ares’s spell was faster.
**\[Ready Boom.]**
**Boom!**
A massive explosion erupted before Arthur.
Burned across his face, Arthur staggered.
It was clearly a fatal wound, but Ares did not relax.
*This one is dangerous. Not normal at all.*
Reptilian scale-like armor.
Spatial leaps akin to teleportation.
Julie Prosky’s lightning.
Any one of these would be extraordinary—yet this masked man wielded all three.
And so, Ares felt no more paranoid obsession.
Instead, there was a creeping chill along his nape—
Fear.
The emotion called terror seeped in.
To feel such a thing toward a nameless swordsman was humiliating, but unavoidable.
That was how abnormal the monster before him was.
*It must end here. With my arm gone, I cannot drag this out.*
He bit his lip.
And unleashed all his mana into his spell.
**\[Ready Boom.]**
**Boom!**
**\[Ready Boom.]**
**Boom!**
**\[Ready Boom.]**
**BOOM BOOM!**
Explosions erupted in succession, engulfing Arthur.
From the outside, it looked as if he’d been obliterated.
Panting, Ares thought, *Is it over?*
The answer was no.
He gaped as Arthur raised his charred face and twisted grin.
“Oooh… that hurt. Almost like when I was beaten by Tacen-ssi.”
Smiling, Arthur regenerated his burned skin.
Seeing that smile, Ares unconsciously staggered back.
*What? How did he recover? Is he a magician? A black magician?*
But no black mana could be felt—only two small rings of mana at most.
*Then how… how does he survive such wounds?*
In that brief hesitation, Arthur used spatial leap.
“But you can’t keep casting spells like that, can you?”
Ares realized too late—his mana was spent from the chain of spells.
Bloodshot eyes, a silent scream.
**Slash!**
With a strange sound, sensation vanished from his left arm.
Even without looking, he knew what had happened.
Writhing in pain, Ares was kicked down by Arthur.
Rolling helplessly, trembling, he shouted,
“Y-you… what are you? What the hell are you? Don’t tell me you’re an assassin sent by the other candidates to eliminate me?!”
Arthur stroked his chin.
“No. I’m killing you… because of a grudge, you could say.”
“A grudge?”
“Yes. You help the man I must kill in the future. Back then, you were Imperial Army’s chief magician—quite a nuisance.”
Ares’s mouth dropped open.
*Future? Chief magician?*
The words sounded glorious, but in this moment, they only chilled him.
Lowering his head, Arthur grinned at him.
“You stood in my way countless times. So this time… I’ll kill you in advance. Is that reason enough?”
“Y-you lunatic…! That’s no reason!”
“I hear that a lot.”
With that, Arthur sent current through his body.
Sensations disappeared, unbearable pain flooding from his toes upward.
Had he his arms, he could have resisted, but with both severed, Ares could do nothing.
Saliva dribbled from his gaping mouth.
Then Arthur turned and waved.
“Julie! Over here! As promised, I’ve got Ares-ssi restrained!”
Ares’s eyes shot open.
From the laboratory, Julie emerged, looking down at him at Arthur’s feet.
“…Serves you right, Doctor.”
—
—
At her words, Ares rasped,
“You… you bitch… You brought this monster…”
Arthur slammed his fist on Ares’s crown.
So hard he vomited blood.
As his consciousness dimmed, Arthur yanked his head up by the hair and warned,
“Watch your mouth, Ares-ssi.”
“….”
“You’re alive only because of Julie. Insult her again, and I’ll tear your tongue out.”
Ares trembled and nodded.
Satisfied, Arthur released him.
Meanwhile, thanks to Undine’s healing, Jeannie had recovered enough to mutter,
“That crazy bastard… at it again.”
The spirit slapped her cheek.
**\[Arthur is not crazy, Jeannie!]**
“Then what is he…?”
**\[A kind person! So don’t call him bad names!]**
Jeannie closed her mouth.
To call him kind after seeing *that*? Clearly, both master and spirit were equally deranged.
Julie stepped forward toward Ares.
Her bitten lip showed a storm of emotions.
To her, Arthur extended the meteor iron sword.
Julie took it, bewildered.
When she looked up, Arthur gestured at Ares’s throat.
“Here. If you strike here, even without strength, the head will fall.”
“….”
“Even if not severed, a stab will kill him. Can you do it, Julie?”
Julie’s eyes widened, lips sealed.
After a pause, she nodded.
“Yes. I can.”
Grunting with effort, she lifted the heavy sword.
Having been trapped in a capsule for a year, her strength was pitiful for her age.
After steadying her breath for a long while, she asked,
“Before I kill you… I want to know. Why did you kidnap me? Out of all the children, why me?”
Ares muttered,
“Why you…?”
“Yes.”
“…Hah. What a damned thing. Dying, and the only question I get is this.”
Spitting blood, Ares shouted,
“Because your blood was special! Even without being a magician, you had blood that could wield lightning! Blessed blood of immense value!”
“….”
“That’s why you were kidnapped and experimented on! If I could reproduce the miracle in your blood, I’d become a Tower professor, leave my name in history!”
Julie screamed,
“All that—just to cage me for a year and murder my friends?!”
“Magic is equivalent exchange! To gain, one must pay the price! Yes, lives were wasted, but if your blood’s miracle could be recreated, it was worth it!”
Julie bit her lip, tightening her grip on the sword.
“You bastard…!”
With a shout, she drove the meteor iron sword down.
**Slash!**
Flesh split, blood spraying.
Julie squeezed her eyes shut, turning away.
Beside her, Arthur gently patted her head.
“You did well, Julie.”
At that, she collapsed, sobbing uncontrollably.
“Revenge is like that. Refreshing, but bitter too. I’ll respect your choice, Julie.”
—
