Embracing Magic - E.M Chapter 81 (Part 1)
As soon as Rodin stepped onto the deck, he assessed the situation on both sides.
‘Is that old man the problem?’
Rodin first excluded the old man, who seemed to be a 6th-circle mage, from the battlefield. He needed to determine whether he could win against a 6th-circle mage.
‘This isn’t good.’
The disparity in power between the two sides was too great to compare.
The knight commander of the Imperial Army was fighting evenly with a man who seemed to be on Rodin’s side. While they had a slight advantage, it wasn’t a significant one.
‘I’ll consider it even for now.’
The 30 mercenaries were irrelevant. The five knights on the other side alone were skilled enough to handle them with ease.
There were 95 knights remaining. Could the two knights on his side, who seemed to have considerable skill, handle them all?
‘It’s tight. I’ll have to join in if we’re going to win.’
For Rodin to join the fight against the knights, the 6th-circle mage on the other side had to be dealt with.
‘I’ll have to handle him quickly.’
It would be difficult if he got caught up with the 6th-circle mage.
He had to take care of him as quickly as possible, without exhausting too much mana or getting injured.
‘This is tricky.’
Rodin concealed all the circles within his body using a hidden mana circle technique. Then, he asked Jito to change his robe into normal clothing and left the deck.
He descended the ship carefully, like someone gripped by fear, then circled around to the side where there was no fighting.
‘Let’s hope this act works.’
He didn’t move too slowly, either. He walked at a moderately fast pace, like someone frightened and trying to flee in haste.
It was a convincing performance. To an outsider, he would simply look like someone trying to escape out of fear.
Indeed, Dave, the 6th-circle mage, noticed the fleeing figure from a distance but ignored him.
Rather than wasting energy on a weakling who wouldn’t affect the outcome, it was more important to deal with the immediate threats in front of him.
Once Rodin moved out of the enemies’ sight, he carefully circled around and entered the harbor. After moving cautiously, he finally reached his desired position.
‘Perfect.’
From there, Rodin quickly began casting a spell. His chanting in Rune language was so quiet that it was drowned out by the sound of the wind blowing through the harbor.
‘This is my only chance. I can’t miss it.’
Mana or aura grants its user a certain degree of resistance. Thus, even when hit by the same attack, those without aura or mana suffer much greater damage.
“But this spell is different. Black Thunder Bolt!”
“Ugh!”
Rodin’s spell struck the head of the 6th-circle mage, who had been focused entirely on the front.
Caught off guard, Mage Dave screamed as he fell.
Rodin’s spell was a 5th-circle Black Thunder Bolt, an improved version of the original Thunder Bolt.
Though a 5th-circle spell, its power was almost on par with a 6th-circle one. Even Elrov, a member of the Special Forces Training Institute, had been turned to ashes by this spell.
This time, Rodin had focused all of his energy into a single Black Thunder Bolt, maximizing its power.
“Reflection, Hell Beam.”
Without hesitation, Rodin cast his next spell.
The enemy had fallen, but he wasn’t dead. Rodin had no intention of letting his guard down until the job was finished.
Reflection was a spell inscribed on an artifact bracelet Rodin had made, and it had the ability to bend magic. While it wasn’t particularly powerful on its own, its true potential shone when combined with other spells.
“Hah!”
Dave saw the incoming spell but didn’t cast any defensive magic. It looked like the spell was going to miss him.
However, just as the spell seemed to pass by his side, it suddenly veered and pierced through his chest.
“Urgh!”
“Phew.”
Dave, who had been preparing to counterattack, collapsed on the spot. His heart, pierced by the compressed heat, had already ceased to function.
Reflection magic wasn’t sophisticated enough to deceive a 6th-circle mage. If Dave had been in a calm state, he wouldn’t have been fooled so easily.
“What?”
“What’s going on?”
“It’s an enemy! A new one has appeared!”
The enemies only noticed Rodin’s presence after their 6th-circle mage had died. Their reaction was too late.
‘Just as planned.’
Rodin inwardly breathed a sigh of relief as he prepared his next spell.
Although the 6th-circle mage was dead, there were still many enemies left. The longer he delayed, the more his allies would suffer.
“Chain Lightning.”
He wanted to use Lightning Field, but that spell didn’t discriminate between friend and foe. Even if Rodin calculated precisely, there would still be some collateral damage to his allies.
Instead, he opted for the 4th-circle Chain Lightning. Carefully calculating the angle of each bolt, he ensured that the lightning would only strike the enemies.
Though it was a tiring task, with the battlefield under control, it was manageable.
“Who goes there?”
“A passenger.”
“Ah! Right.”
A man with arms reddened from burns approached and stood in front of Rodin, blocking potential threats from reaching him.
With the knight standing guard, Rodin calmly continued casting his spells.
“Lightning Bolt! Lightning Bolt!”
He fired off the simple 2nd-circle spell repeatedly. Every time a bolt struck, the enemy knights shuddered.
While it wasn’t enough to kill them, Rodin didn’t mind. As long as they took some damage, the mercenaries would handle the rest.
“Magic Arrow! Fire Arrow! Lightning Arrow! Hold! Wind Sickle! Ice Spear! Magic Arrow! Hold!”
He unleashed a barrage of low-circle spells.
With someone guarding him from the front, Rodin could cast spells without restraint, as if he were practicing magic.
“Fireball!”
“Kraah!”
“Someone deal with the mage….”
Whenever the enemies grouped together, Rodin broke their formation with an explosive spell.
‘Oh, this side is quite strong too.’
Rodin observed three individuals on his side and was impressed.
A male mercenary fighting the enemy knight commander, a female mercenary charging through the ranks of enemy knights, and an ally slicing through approaching enemies while holding the line.
These three were especially skilled within their formation. Even Hedler and Lant, who had trained alongside Rodin at the academy, were a step below them.
“Magic Arrow! Fire Arrow! Ice Bolt! Fire Wall! Wind Spear!”
Each time Rodin cast a spell, an enemy was injured, and soon, they lost their lives to his allies.