Published at 16th of February 2024 2:20 pm

Chapter 14. All Fear The Control Mage

This chapter is updated by JustRead.pl

Nox and Lillin went first.

The rest of the class retreated to around the targets and training dummies. Only Professor Wolfhammer and his summons remained. The tiny man cast another spell, and a hammer as tall as he manifested in his hands. Unlike the weapons held by his ‘beasties,’ its head resembled a wolf and was bigger than his skull. Puffs of white vapors rose from the nostrils every few seconds, making it look like hot breath on a cold day.

“Are you sure you don’t want a third?” the professor asked. “It’s a bad idea to face my beasties without a vanguard.”

“We’ll be fine,” Lillin said.

“Are there any rules?” Nox asked. “Anything we can and can’t do?”

“There are no rules when it comes to dungeon combat, boy. If I had to make one, it would be to come out alive. Victory isn’t always necessary, but survival is. You may use everything at your disposal.”

Professor Wolfhammer raised his weapon high above his head and slammed it down on the ground. The stone terrace warped. Blocks rose and dipped. After a moment of shifting, the stone stilled, leaving the space looking more like an obstacle course than an arena.

“Begin!”

The tallest of the three summoned beasts charged forward, not giving the pair any time to prepare—not that they needed it. Nox and Lillin had fought creatures more than twice their size before. He stood his ground, manifesting a composite mana bow, while she retreated a dozen steps behind him.

The first projectile fired lacked form. It looked more like a bolt of energy than an arrow. It struck the wolf centaur in the chest and inflicted minimal damage. However, Nox hadn’t just fired an ordinary arrow. It was combat, and every unit of mana counted. The beast slowed to half its starting speed. The mana he fed the bow had just circulated through the Slow half of his core’s spell form.

When readying the second arrow, Nox poured more magic into it. He let the mana circulate through the star before channeling it through his father’s weapon. Nox tried his best to shape the energy as it grew into an arrow. The projectile adopted a faint outline, but the intended crystal head didn’t form. Instead, sharp, jagged fragments rotated around the body. When Nox released the arrow, the essence glass went with it.

Unlike the first attack, the second inflicted damage. Crystal shards ripped curving lines in the grey furless hide around the chest before remaining embedded in the chiseled flesh. Meanwhile, the mana arrow shattered, leaving burnt and warped skin behind, typical of mana burn.

A whine escaped the wolf centaur. Its snout crinkled, revealing monstrous chipped fangs. Despite the ongoing Slow effects, it picked up speed and leaped between the jutting blocks. The hammer rose high above its head, and the metal hummed in its hands.

An invisible force tugged Nox backward just as the weapon came down. He didn’t fight it. The spell pulled him several feet away from the monster. Then Lillin flew over his head. She reached the wolf centaur just as the hammer smashed the spot where Nox had stood a heartbeat ago. A black sphere pulsed in each of her hands. The force pulling Nox weakened as she passed him. Lillin thrust her palms forward, and the spheres remained hovering in place.

The beast roared as the essence shards ripped free from its flesh and took up orbit around the gravity orbs. The wolf centaur's wounds grew, and veins pressed against bare hide as it struggled to lift its hammer. Tufts of fur ripped free and joined the essence shards.

Veins bulged on Lillin’s forehead as she forced the gravity orbs together. When the wounds on its body grew, the beast leaped away, abandoning its hammer. She threw the gravity orbs after it. Much to the duo’s surprise, the wolf centaur launched forward as soon as it landed. The humanoid torso bent forward, and the gravity orbs shot past it. Instead of picking up the hammer, the beast pulled its arms back and swung from the shoulder, swinging its clawed hands like scythes.

Lillin flittered away like a lithe dancer. Sweat beaded her forehead as another gravity orb solidified in her hand. She threw it at the wolf centaur. Unfortunately, it was ready for her attack. The creature sped away, taking its hammer with it. Another projectile caught the creature midstride, cuttings its speed in half. Instead of following up with another projectile, he and Lillin sped at the beast in unison. Instead of two, she only conjured one gravity orb twice as big as the ones before. Nox felt its effects and let her move ahead of him.

When she caught up to the wolf centaur, Lillin stopped short. His giant hammer’s swing packed so much power the blast of air following it made her stagger backward. Nox shoulder charged Lillin, pushing her out of the way before the follow-up attack could hit her. The hammer grazed his shoulder, ripping his sleeve and peeling his skin. The blow rattled every bone in his body, and it took every ounce of focus to complete a cast of supercharged Slow. Staying upright in his current state proved challenging. His hand grazed the wolf centaur as he fell. It froze, and essence crystallized around the hammer before clattering to the ground.

Lillin’s giant gravity orb pulled the super-slowed wolf centaur off balance. It landed stomach-first on the sphere. The magic ripped pieces of fur, hide, and flesh free of the creature. It thrashed and whined but still didn’t fall. Professor Wolfhammer’s magic appeared potent enough to hold the beast together through Lillin’s violent gravity magic. Nox saw no option but to waste valuable resources.

First, he smashed a thumb-sized vial on the wolf centaur. The contents expanded into foam as it reacted to the air. The gravity orb accelerated its movements and swiftly covered the beast. Nox struggled to resist its effects. His body still hadn’t recovered from the hammer graze. The gravity forced him to his knees. Fortunately, the orb kept the foam on the wolf centaur and away from him. The wild mana radiating from the spell and the summon roiled, twisting and mingling.

Nox knew what he needed to do. He fought down the urge to retch and crumble under the pain. A shuffle brought the thrashing wolf centaur within his mana zone. A stray limb whipped past him, and the claws drew blood from his cheek. He ignored the pain and poured all the mana he could spare into Crystallize Essence. A flower of black, clear, and blue essence glass bloomed. Shards grew out of the hardening foam and wolf centaur’s flesh. It gurgled blood before going still.

Lillin’s strong hands wrapped around Nox’s shoulder and pulled him away from the still-growing glass flower. She pulled a metal flask out of thin air, unstoppered it, and poured the contents down his throat. Skin itched, and bones groaned. Nox felt the wound on his cheek knit itself closed. A cold rawness consumed his left arm as fresh skin grew. Something also clicked in his shoulder, suggesting a dislocation.

A few cheers sounded from the group waiting for their turn at the test. Meanwhile, heavy silence hung over the rest of the class. Edward, Louis and their entourages stared at him either with horror or contempt in their eyes.

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“Professor Kris wasn’t lying when she said you two had talent,” Professor Wolfhammer guffawed. “I’ll admit it. I expected a lot less from you. It’s not every day a new Professor shows up with two recruits. When they do, they’re rarely competent, let alone good. I don’t remember the last time someone beat one of my beasties on the first try.”

“Louis Mercer did,” one of the young women sticking to the Trade Empire’s prince said.

“Surviving five minutes against my summons and defeating them isn’t the same.” The professor returned his attention to Nox and Lillin. “You pass, as promised. I’ll treat you the same as everyone else. We’ll talk more after class.”

A wave of whispers passed through the group of veteran students as Nox and Lillin joined them.

“What was that foam?”

“Is he really using a mana bow? Don’t they drain your star super fast?”

“How the hell does an apprentice have gravity magic?”

“That’s the disinherited prince. I bet he bribed the professor.”

“He did. That wolf was the weakest.”

13/40

The whispers weren’t all wrong. The pair had won by the skin of their teeth. A summon’s durability, physical strength, and magical prowess grew with the summoner’s power and mana levels. Professor Wolfhammer’s stars stored more arcane energy than the two apprentices put together. Every arrow ate away at Nox’s stores. Lillin’s gravity orbs consumed even more mana. If the fight had gone on any longer, the pair would’ve lost or relied on Nox’s creations to trap the beast and stall for time.

Nox looked over his shoulder at one of the groups discussing the fight. He spoke loud enough for the whole class to hear. “I’m an alchemist,” he told them. “Trap Foam is one of my patented creations. If you’d like some, I’d be happy to sell a few vials to you. I require an advance payment if you want a case or more.”

“Typical Nox.” Edward scoffed. “Trying to scam his betters.”

“Please save business discussions until after class,” Professor Wolfhammer said. “Who’s next?”

More people volunteered than before. Watching Nox and Lillin in action appeared to have filled them with confidence. Some fought like aspiring Aether Warriors, using Haste or other body enhancements. Some utilized offensive magic ranging from throwing fireballs to conjuring blades and manipulating them to slice, stab, and block. Only teams with debilitating effects got close to defeating the wolf centaurs or surviving the five minutes. In the end, every group failed one after the other until there were only two people left.

The young woman from Beginner Shaping faced the last of the summoned beasts with a lone companion. A boy barely as old as Louis stood far behind her. If he moved any further back, his coat would touch Ygg’s bark. Standing a little over five feet tall with chubby cheeks and a lanky frame, he looked like an adolescent barely out of puberty and carried himself like such. One of the young men hanging close to Edward’s entourage had started a betting pool, and much to Nox’s surprise, the odds were in the duo’s favor.

“You’re not going to bet against Dean Myrina’s grand niece and nephew, are you? They’ve got druid blood running through their veins. If the banished boy and his servant girl can win, they can, too.”

Some gamblers appeared unsure. Their chatter suggested that they wanted to trust the duo’s lineage but knew too little of their magical capabilities. Nox ignored the chatter and focused on the pair.

“Begin!”

The young woman opened her palms, scattering an assortment of seeds around her. Thick brown and green vines sprouted from the ground and climbed up her legs. They coiled around her limbs, abdomen, torso, and then the rest of her body. By the time the wolf centaur reached her, she had gained a foot in height. The beast swung his hammer, and she didn’t dodge. Instead, Dean Myrina’s grand-niece caught the weapon in one hand and punched her opponent with the latter.

Squirrels as big as house cats ran up her body and leaped onto the wolf centaur as the pair grappled. They bit exposed flesh and ripped at the fur but struggled to inflict meaningful injuries.

The wolf centaur opened its ugly maw and chomped down on the woman’s armored shoulder. Fangs sunk into the hardened vines, ripping through them and exposing the layer underneath. It cracked, and bits shattered. Blood trickled onto the wood, but she didn’t let up. The beast whipped his head back, ripping a chunk of armor away and revealing delicate freckled skin underneath. Shallow teeth marks marked her flesh. The woman pulled her head back and then swung it forward, bashing the armored temple against the wolf centaur’s mouth. A high-pitched whine escaped the beast, and shards of broken teeth rained from its mouth. It dropped its hammer and attempted to pull away from the woman in living plant armor but failed.

More squirrels emerged from magic circles around the boy. A group gathered around the giant hammer, and while individually they couldn’t do much, they collectively had enough strength to inch the hammer away. Meanwhile, the wounds on the woman’s shoulder stitched themselves closed, and the plant armor grew over it.

Furry, long-tailed rodents climbed over the wolf centaur’s face. They ripped at ears, eyes, nose, and everything they could reach. Unfortunately, the woman failed to overpower the beast, and the squirrels lacked the power to do anything substantial.

“Time is up!” Professor Wolfhammer exclaimed. His summons melted into nothing. “Good job, Miss Woodson. Any delving party would be lucky to have you as their vanguard. You pass.” Then he turned to her brother. “I’m afraid I can’t say the same to you, Master Woodson. Your capacity for multiple summons and control over them is nothing short of amazing. However, they lack the power and utility to contribute much to a delving team.”

“Aw, c’mon, man,” the boy said, his shoulders slumping. “How often will we face creatures as strong as yours in apprentice dungeons and F-rank rifts?”

“This isn’t up for argument, lad. You’re more than welcome to move to the beginner class or try again next semester. If you attempt the latter, I can almost guarantee the results won’t differ.”

“But—”

“Believe me, lad. I’m not attacking you. My summons aren’t particularly powerful.”

“Are you kidding? Those wolves are insane.”

“Wolves?” Professor Wolfhammer laughed. He tapped his weapon’s pommel on the stone floor. “I started off summoning hammers, not wolves. It took a lot of effort and planning to get where I am now. If you join the beginner class, I can guide you. Summoner to summoner, I know what I’m talking about.”

The boy relented. Professor Wolfhammer spoke to them a while longer, listing training plans and other inconsequential details. Nox pretended to listen until he dismissed the class.

“Why did you hold back?” the professor asked once he had Nox and Lillin alone.

“What makes you think we held back?” Nox raised an eyebrow.

“Kris filled all of your teachers in on why you should get to take on more modules than the university allows and why you deserve a slot in intermediate classes.” Professor Wolfhammer nodded at the flask hanging from Nox’s belt. “Your cocktail would’ve made the laps a breeze and saved you a fair bit of pain in the fight.”

“I wanted to prove to you that I could win without alchemy.”

“That’s stupid. It’s an integral part of you. Prove to me you’re smart and think quickly on your feet. Pride gets you killed. In a dungeon, you use whatever it takes to win—short of sacrificing your comrades. Either way, that’s not important. I just wanted to let you know that a position in this course comes with a basic dungeoneering license. Since you have my green light, you can attempt apprentice-ranked dungeons and f-tier rifts.”

“Straight away?” Lillin asked, grinning from ear to ear.

“Unless Kris says otherwise, you can start tonight,” Professor Wolfhammer replied. “I’d suggest you get a third person, though. Both of you have enough power and control to serve as the battle and control mages, but that’s no replacement for a vanguard. They don’t need to be amazing. Just find someone who can take a couple of punches and hold beasts’ and boss-class monsters’ attention.”

“That’s easier said than done.” Nox sighed. “But thank you, professor. This is good news. It will make it easier for us to gather alchemy materials.”

“Also, you need to figure out something more than your mana bow. You looked a few shots from mana drain. Maybe carry a quiver of real arrows for regular dungeon dwellers and save your mana for the boss.”

“Yes, professor.”

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