Chapter 247: Episode 247

[White Army: Balak’s Crystal Core]

[Black Army: 30,000,000 Zen / 2 S-rank Equipment]

The stakes were on an entirely different level. If the White Army won, they would receive thirty million Zen and two pieces of S-rank equipment from Vesta’s personal collection. If the Black Army won, however, they would be granted the opportunity to destroy Balak’s Crystal Core. For Vesta, this was an all-or-nothing gamble. By any measure, the Crystal Core Taehyun had wagered was infinitely more valuable.

“This time, I will be victorious!” Vesta roared, his eyes bloodshot with obsession. “It’s too late to back out now. The bet is made. I will annihilate Balak and its Crystal Core!”

If he won this battle, his conquest of Balak would be complete. His desperation was understandable. Yet, Taehyun simply maintained his leisurely smile.

“I told you, we’re proceeding. I have no regrets. Let’s just start the battle.”

“Khuhuhu.’ You’ve made a fatal mistake. Even an S-rank mage is useless against Golbus. And the objective is to kill the Gryphon King! Polaris’s magic resistance is dozens of times higher than a normal gryphon’s. He can’t be defeated by mana alone!”

“You talk too much,” Taehyun said, waving a dismissive hand. “Aren’t you going to start?”

“Right away!”

The participants were chosen. All that remained was to begin. And so, the soldiers were transported to the Gryphon Nest.

—

[Communication with Vesta has been connected.]

[Objective has been updated.]

[Battlefield Objective: Kill Polaris, the Gryphon King!]

[Details: In the Gryphon Nest of the Kayas Mountains, there lives a king. The Midas Kingdom, weary of his constant raids, has issued a large-scale request for his head. As a mage, you must accept the request, find Polaris, and kill him.]

[Objective Status: Polaris 0/1]

The Kayas Mountains soared into the sky, their peaks scraping the clouds. Halfway up one of the mountains lay the Gryphon Nest. The participants materialized inside the sprawling cavern. Golbus surveyed his surroundings before his gaze fell upon the White Army’s soldier.

“Cough, cough.’ Tsk. That blasted Conductor,” the old elf wheezed. “The contract said I was only to protect the Forest of Silence. To think he’d force me into something like this.”

He was a gaunt figure, his face a roadmap of wrinkles. His back was bent, and he leaned heavily on a staff, his legs trembling. If not for his long, pointed ears, he could have been mistaken for any simple old man.

’I don’t like that this old fossil is my opponent,’ Golbus thought, ’but he’s an elf, and an experienced one at that. I must stay focused.’

Golbus had seen his share of slave elves in the continent’s magic towers. He would not underestimate a race that had mastered the art of mana manipulation.

“Kekekek,” Vesta’s voice crackled in his ear. “It seems his pride made him send only one. How foolish to court death like this.”

“When a mage fights a gryphon, high mana isn’t enough,” Golbus replied confidently. “That Taehyun fellow still has no idea I’m a Battle Mage.”

A Battle Mage was a master of close-quarters combat, wielding a spear and using magic primarily for support. He had hunted countless gryphons. This battle was already his.

’Kururuk! Kurururuk!’

The gryphons returned from their hunt. As a mage, Golbus knew he had to find cover. He quickly slipped into a nearby crevice. Hamulton, however, simply looked up at the circling creatures before turning his back.

“Stop rushing me,” he grumbled. “Ugh.’ My back is killing me. Working an old man like this… The heavens will punish you, Conductor brat!”

Prompted by Taehyun, he belatedly shuffled behind a large rock with the sluggishness of a grub. The sight was almost comical.

“To send an old elf like that,” Vesta scoffed. “How pathetic.”

“Keh.’ Can he even cast a proper spell in that state?” Golbus chuckled. “The outcome of this is obvious.”

“Move out,” Vesta commanded. “Start with Magic Detection.”

“Understood.”

As a Battle Mage, his detection range was limited, but it didn’t matter. His first target wasn’t the king, but the queen. She was the one who brought food for the young, and she was the one who would call the king. She had to be roaming the nest somewhere. Golbus cast his spell.

[Magic Detection has been cast.]

[Identifies beings in the vicinity.]

His mana spread outwards. The range was short, but he managed to locate a creature that fit the queen’s description. He drew his spear, preparing to cast Fly. Just then, Hamulton, who had been watching from behind the rock, cast his own spell.

[Elder of the Forest of Silence, Hamulton, has cast Magic Detection.]

[Identifies beings located in the Gryphon Nest.]

In an instant, a wave of blue mana washed over the entire mountain range, a scale that dwarfed the Battle Mage’s paltry detection.

“Ugh.’ I tried to copy that fellow, but is this right, Conductor?” Hamulton asked, stroking his beard in confusion.

Golbus’s jaw dropped. “H-How can his Magic Detection cover the entire mountain range?!”

“C-Calm down!” Vesta hissed. “If you’re discovered, it’s over! He’s just skilled at detection, that’s all. Calm down and approach the queen!”

“Gulp. Y-Yes, sir.”

Vesta had to be right. He was probably a one-trick pony. Golbus drank an invisibility potion and floated into the air. Below him, the Queen Gryphon came into view, but Hamulton still hadn’t moved.

’His detection is impressive, but I’ve already won this match.’

The Queen Gryphon didn’t just tend to her young; she also enjoyed intimate moments with the king. With the flock gathered like this, it was the perfect opportunity. He would have to face both the king and queen, but he had a plan.

[Queen Gryphon Panyapila performs a courtship dance.]

[King Gryphon Polaris’s gaze has changed.]

Polaris arrived. Panyapila led him toward the summit.

“Now!” Vesta urged.

This was the chance he’d been waiting for. He had to act before their tryst was over. Golbus cast a spell on the Queen Gryphon.

[Illusion Provocation has been cast.]

[Queen Gryphon Panyapila directs her rage toward an incorrect target.]

[Illusion Provocation uses remaining: 1/1]

Panyapila, who had been cooing affectionately, suddenly shrieked and flapped her wings in a fury. The target Golbus had selected was Hamulton. The queen spotted the mage hiding behind the rock and charged.

“Kurururuk!”

“Hoh. A gryphon,” Hamulton observed. “But why is it so angry?”

He threw up a shield, barely blocking her beak, but it was a futile gesture. A lone mage was no match for a gryphon. Hamulton’s annihilation was certain. Golbus rushed toward the now-unattended Polaris.

“Kuruk?!”

“As expected, your magic resistance is formidable,” Golbus said, grinning. “But it’s useless against my spear!”

“Kurururuk!”

The king roared in fury, a shimmering barrier forming around him. But a barrier was nothing to a Battle Mage. Golbus twirled his spear, preparing for battle.

Just then, a massive explosion rocked the cavern.

[Elder of the Forest of Silence, Hamulton, has cast Ancient Explosion.]

[Queen Gryphon Panyapila has entered a state of severe injury.]

It was Hamulton. Coughing in a cloud of black smoke, he was now perched on Panyapila’s back.

“It’s been a while since I cast a spell… ’cough, cough.’ My back is killing me. ’Tsk.’ This is why Explosion is such a headache.”

Immense magical power radiated from him, and flames blazed from his staff. The feeble old man he had written off had subdued the Queen Gryphon and was now leisurely stretching his back. It was a stunning reversal. Polaris and Golbus, who had been preparing to fight, could only stare, their mouths agape.

“Kueeeek?!”

“By Oz’s beard.”

—

He was the elder elf who had guarded the Spirit Forest for centuries, a mage who protected his people with a branch from the World Tree itself, a gift from the goddess Ameria. His power was on par with that of a superhuman. Though age had weakened his body, his magical prowess was still among the top five on the continent.

[Elder Elf Hamulton]

[Rank: SS]

[Level: 93]

[Class: Mage]

[Title: Leader of the Elves]

[Affiliation: Balak]

[Loyalty: 12]

[Favorability: 35]

[Obedience: 8]

[Skills: Ancient Explosion, Magic Detection, Soul Bind, Nature’s Embrace, Spirit’s Veil, Ancient Blizzard]

[Special Ability: Magic Library]

[Strength: 1] [Endurance: 2] [Agility: 1] [Stamina: 4]

[Mana: 154] [Divinity: 1] [Affinity: 120] [Luck: 89]

[Status: Weakened]

His relationship stats were abysmal, but everything else was incredible. His skills and attributes were in a different league from the other soldiers, and his special ability, Magic Library, was absurdly overpowered.

[Magic Library has been activated.]

[A pre-stored magic is applied as a skill.]

It was an ability that allowed him to store memorized spells and cast them as skills. While Golbus had been running around, Hamulton had been calmly stocking his library.

“Now, what should I do, Conductor?” Hamulton’s voice came through the connection.

“Leave the queen,” Taehyun commanded. “Kill the king.”

“Nothing but troublesome work. ’Tsk.’ I’ll take care of him quickly.”

The World Tree branch in his hand began to radiate an intense cold. He had already stored the highest-tier ice magic as a skill. Without hesitation, Hamulton unleashed the most powerful area-of-effect spell in history.

[Hamulton, the Great Elder of the Silent Forest, has cast Ancient Blizzard.]

[A blizzard from a snow-capped mountain rages throughout the entire Griffin’s Nest.]

[All beings within range are afflicted with the Freeze status.]

[Ancient Blizzard Usage Limit 1/1]

It was not merely winter. In an instant, an ice age descended upon the Kayas Mountains. The gryphons that had flocked to Polaris’s call were frozen solid in mid-air. To finish the job, Hamulton raised his staff one last time.

“Hmph. This is tiring. I’ll just deal with that one and then get some rest.”

Mana gathered, concentrating at the tip of his staff, and then lanced out, piercing Polaris in a single, decisive blow.

[A White Army soldier has eliminated the target.]

[System Message: White Team’s Victory!]

[System Message: The third crystal tower has been captured by the White Team.]

And with that, the third battlefield was his. Taehyun watched as Polaris dissolved into motes of light, then lifted his head to face his opponent’s sputtering rage.

“What in the hell was that? A mage of that caliber… I’ve never seen anything like it. That’s far beyond S-rank!”

“Hah. What was that you were saying before we started? Something about how even an S-rank mage would be useless against Golverse? If my memory serves, that’s exactly what you said.”

“I can’t accept this! I refuse! I-I was told he was just an S-rank mage!”

“When did you ever set a rank limit for the soldiers? What’s with this nonsense?”

The rules set by the Rule Maker weren’t always identical; they were likely structured according to Vesta’s own design. Of course, that came with its own set of penalties, but fighting with a small, elite force should have given the raid party the advantage. However, Vesta had misjudged Balak as a mere A-rank dungeon and had neglected to set a rank restriction. In the end, the match had been decided the moment the rules were explained.

Taehyun stood, gesturing toward the opposing side.

“In any case, I won again. Time to hand over the Zen and equipment from our wager, right?”

“Grrrraaaah!’ Dammit! Dammit all to hell!”

“Ah, don’t drag this out. Fork it over. If I have to annihilate you, I’ll only get a fraction of the Zen you’re holding.”

“The next battle… I will win the next battle! I swear it, Taehyun Yooooooooo!”

And just like that, thirty million Zen and two pieces of S-rank equipment were transferred neatly into Taehyun’s possession.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep