Chapter 145: Ashes

The people who were lying down slowly raised their heads at the sudden silence. It was because the magic that had been constantly exploding with shouts had abruptly stopped. Thinking it might be over, they looked around, but everything was still the same.

“Wh-why are you all doing that?”

“Ian’s magic just stopped Wesleigh.”

“What’s that? That’s great! Ian! Use your strength!”

“P-Please stop the witch! Please!”

“What are you all doing? What are you standing there looking at?”

“Jeirutt! Ministry of Magic!”

“Protect His Highness Gale behind Ian!”

The outsiders who didn’t know what was wrong started shouting. But despite that, the magicians and security guards were frozen like stones and couldn’t move easily.

‘Did Ian’s magic just work?’

‘He made a strong impression at the New Year’s party, but to that extent?’

‘No, the opponent right now is Minister Wesleigh.’

‘Could this also be Minister Wesleigh’s illusion magic?’

A newcomer magician who hadn’t been in the department for long surpassing the Magic Minister who had risen to the position of the youngest court sorceress! This couldn’t be. It was as absurd as a newborn knocking down a seasoned warrior crawling and flying in the training grounds.

“Ian, it worked well! Oh my, well done!”

“…Uh, sir Romandro.”

“Huh? What, what?”

“It would be better for you to step away from me.”

Romandro happily shook Ian’s arm and then hesitated. He was scared to death, but he was told to step away? Ian silently pointed his chin at Wesleigh. Her gaze had completely shifted from Gale to Ian.

“Eek! Oh my, heavens! Ian, be careful, be careful!”

Romandro, who had been at a loss, fell backward and ran away as if crawling. A security guard supported him, and Ian carefully surveyed his surroundings. Everyone was still staring at him as if their souls had left their bodies.

‘It’s clear that forbidden magic worked. It’s too early to judge the strength of the mana.’

He had been contemplating whether to help Gale or not, but now there was no choice. If he was the only one who could do it, he had no choice but to do it. Nothing would be as foolish as showing a passive attitude here. It would be good to take this as a stepping stone and firmly imprint his presence.

“Ian! Get a grip.”

The first to approach Ian was Nakina. She embraced Ian’s shoulders and slightly bent her body. She aligned her gaze with Ian’s and glared at Wesleigh together.

“It seems you’re the only one who can land an effective hit here. The department heads will be here soon, so until then, prioritize the safety of His Highness Gale. Have you tried using attack magic? Or defensive magic?”

“…I haven’t, but I’ll manage.”

“Great answer. What techniques do you know?”

“I don’t know that either, but I’ll manage if you help me.”

“Even your posture is perfect. Okay.”

Countless magic techniques passed through his mind, but Ian lightly shook his head and said he didn’t know.

“Ian.”

It was Wesleigh’s call. She was smiling brightly as if surprised. The blood vessels had risen on her snow-white skin, making it hard to tell she was smiling.

“Oh my, I see. So that’s how it was.”

Everyone held their breath in tension at the sight of the woman muttering as if she had lost her mind. But Ian could grasp her intention. With the attack of the mana sphere just now, she had realized that Ian was a product of forbidden magic.

That he was someone who didn’t exist in this world, and thus had been constantly bothering her.

“Wesleigh. Your every word and step are creating sins.”

“It was you in Karenna too, wasn’t it?”

The flow of mana was getting more and more intense. The woman’s disheveled hair slowly unraveled, and soon flames erupted from her fingertips. Everyone held their breath, feeling like their throat and lungs would burn if they inhaled the heat.

“So Gale found out. Ah. Now I somewhat understand what happened. Ian. You were the problem all along.”

As Wesleigh’s momentum became unusual, Nakina released her mana. It was to show the technique with light.

Zzing! Zing!

Magic was like a kind of study, so until one became proficient, there was no choice but to go through the activation process one by one. If it was mastered and imprinted in the mind, it would be possible without any hassle.

However, even so, the results varied greatly depending on how vividly one visualized the image, so it wasn’t difficult to rank the talent of magicians.

“Nakina, no explosions!”

Nakina nodded at Tomi’s shout. This was the lobby of the grand conference hall. If they couldn’t lure the target outside, a strong impact could backfire. So, they had to use magic that restrained the opponent by binding them.

「Binding」

It was considered one of the basic field-applicable magic, but a complex shape appeared in front of Nakina’s body. The magic circle emitted light in concentric circles, and dozens of activation formulas spun around frantically following it.

“Ian! Read it properly! Then it becomes like this!”

A geometric figure emerged from the floor Nakina was stepping on. If lightning had shattered into pieces, it would surely look like that.

The magic quickly climbed up the walls and spread to the ceiling. And soon, it found the target’s location and mercilessly fell around it.

Kwajik! Kwaaang!

Pillars of light plunged down in front of, behind, and on both sides of Wesleigh. As a result, her hair fluttered again. No fear was felt on her fully visible face. She had already put her life on the line and summoned forbidden magic.

“Ian, can you see? Can you do it?”

It was a very short moment. It took only a few seconds for Nakina to release her mana and activate the magic. The other magicians who heard it beside her booed and shouted.

“Nakina, are you kidding? How can he do it after seeing it once!”

“That’s right, it’s difficult for us too! Having strong mana and applying it are a bit different. Probably.”

“Instead of that, tell him to keep shooting mana!”

“Until the department heads come out, at least hold her attention!”

“She doesn’t even consider the situation when talking nonsense.”

“Come to your senses! Don’t do useless things!”

“You bastards, all of you shut your mouths! You’re out of your minds! I’ll split your heads open!”

When Nakina couldn’t take it anymore and shouted, the magicians bit their lips like mutes who had eaten honey. Even combining their strength wasn’t enough at this moment, so she didn’t know why they were acting like that. Nakina calmly looked at Wesleigh walking through the pillars of light.

‘As expected, it’s not working.’

Originally, the function of the binding magic was to limit the opponent’s radius with the mana flowing between the pillars. But Wesleigh was approaching this way without any restrictions. Nakina anxiously turned to Ian.

“I watched carefully, senior Nakina.”

“…Ah.”

Ian was smiling. More than any other words, his single smile was saying everything. That he was confident, that he could read all the techniques she had just shown. Before Nakina could say anything, Ian activated the magic.

Zzing. Zing.

Paaaat!

Golden eyes like a lion. As his pupils expanded, the mana in his entire body exploded. Ian directly transferred the technique Nakina had shown into his mind and activated it without any process. Light began to leak through the cracks of the marble floor he was standing on.

“Th-this is…”

“Dodge! Everyone dodge!”

“C-Crazy. He’s crazy.”

The force of mana pressing down on Ian like gravity. As cracks formed in the marble, the light intensified. Soon, everything in all directions centering around him, the walls and ceiling that were in contact, were engulfed in light.

Kwaaang! Boom!

Dozens and hundreds of light streaks falling from the ceiling. All things big and small enveloped Wesleigh without error. The black smoke she was emitting disappeared helplessly whenever Ian’s magic struck.

As the gaps were gradually filled, Wesleigh screamed, trying to break the magic with force.

“Ian, are you going to interfere until the end! You’re also a forbidden-“

Kwaang!

“It would be better for you to shut up, Wesleigh. I’ll say it again, your every word is piling up as sin. Wouldn’t it be better for your well-being to remain silent?”

As she tried to shout the forbidden secret, Ian dropped light on her head without hesitation. Although Wesleigh lightly blocked it with her hand.

Nakina looked at the scene and pondered for a moment which part she should be surprised by.

‘How many streaks of light are falling? And he’s utilizing the binding magic as an attack magic. This is…’

Is it possible? Even though magic is a transcendental realm, there should be a line of common sense within it, right? Not only Nakina but the other magicians also lost their minds and watched the streaks of light pouring towards Wesleigh.

Kwaang! Boom!

“It’s like a shooting star…”

Ian didn’t know who muttered that. But those around them felt it was a quite good analogy. In broad daylight, in a half-open lobby, it felt like watching a catastrophic meteor shower.

“…B-But I say.”

Romandro was also flat on the ground, watching it. He tugged at the security guard’s collar and whispered.

“Why is Wesleigh just staying still?”

From the moment she appeared until now, although she had threatened, she hadn’t really counterattacked. She had only tried to go inside, more precisely, to meet Gale. Didn’t she just ignore it when the magicians united and attacked?

‘There’s no counterattack.’

Ian felt the same. Unlike the magic of others that was neutralized, Ian’s was showing an effect on Wesleigh. The proof was that she kept blocking the light with her hands.

“Hey, about Minister Wesleigh. Doesn’t something feel strange?”

“That’s right. And the heat is getting hotter and hotter. I don’t know if this expression is correct, but…”

“It feels like the body is burning.”

“Yeah. Yeah, that’s right. It feels like that.”

The skin was peeling off due to the burning heat. To the point where it felt like she was burning her own life to move.

She gasped for breath and then looked at Gale. The man’s eyes were filled with disgust, but a smile rose on the woman’s face.

“Gale.”

Zzing! Zing!

Boom! Bang!

At that moment, Wesleigh called Gale’s name and released her mana to the maximum. Ian’s binding magic light streaks crumbled helplessly from the tremendous explosive power. She instantly pounced on Gale and embraced his neck with both arms.

“Your Highness Gale!”

“Attack! Hurry!”

“Get her off! Get that witch off!”

Everyone’s shock was momentary, and soon they reached a state of horror. Wesleigh had grabbed the back of the stunned Gale’s head and kissed him.

“Gale. Do you think I would kill you?”

“Crazy…”

“You won’t know my pain through death.”

Ian finally realized. Wesleigh wasn’t trying to break through the Imperial Palace’s power with forbidden magic to see Gale’s blood, but to cast an eternal curse on him. Perhaps the reason she came here was to directly let him know about it.

“Gale, you will ― and ―, forever ―.”

Black smoke rose around Wesleigh. As his head became dizzy, her curse was heard intermittently. But Gale seemed to have heard it clearly, and his eyes widened as he spewed out curses that didn’t fit his dignity.

“You crazy bitch!”

And he tried to pierce her neck with his sword at once. But Wesleigh’s form had already turned into smoke and disappeared, leaving only hot ashes swirling around.