"【Element Javelin】!"
Perched atop my Mana Foothold, I unleashed a relentless barrage of spears upon Ozwell, who had been sent crashing to the ground.
A deafening roar followed as a massive cloud of dust choked the air. Suddenly, a gargantuan mass of reddish-black mana surged out from the haze, hurtling straight toward me. It was Ozwell's counterattack.
"...【Reflective Wall】."
I manifested a translucent grey barrier before me, intending to deflect the mana mass the moment it made contact.
"—!?"
But the mana mass didn't bounce. It shattered my wall instantly and kept coming.
Startled, I relied on the kinetic vision and reflexes I’d enhanced through 【Culmination】 to narrowly dodge the projectile. 【Reflective Wall】 was supposed to be capable of reflecting almost any attack. In fact, the only thing that had ever broken it before was a strike from Oliver during his rampage a year ago.
That meant this mana mass possessed power on par with the Hero's.
"Hahahaha! You’re going all out from the start, aren't you, 《Dragon Slayer》? Too bad for you! This level of power won't even graze me!"
As the dust settled, Ozwell stood there unscathed, a sneer plastered on his face.
…It seems safe to assume there’s no significant difference in his resistances across the elemental systems.
Some magic beasts possessed vulnerabilities that varied depending on the type of magic used. Current Ozwell appeared to be a Majin, much like Gary’s final form when he tried to assassinate Princess Lucila two months ago. A Majin was a human who had integrated the characteristics of a magic beast into their own body.
While I didn’t know which specific beast Ozwell had absorbed, I used 【Element Javelin】 to test for any elemental weaknesses. Learning that there were none was a significant find in itself.
"My experiment has only just begun! Don't go dying on me so easily, 《Dragon Slayer》!"
Before I could plan my next move, Ozwell lunged.
The mana dragons sprouting from his shoulders unhinged their jaws. Titanic amounts of mana gathered at their maws before being unleashed in a twin breath attack. While the blast wasn't particularly wide, the sheer density of the mana was staggering, and it moved with incredible velocity.
Still, it wasn't too fast to track. I shifted my position to move out of the line of fire.
—Or so I thought. The attack possessed a homing property; it swerved mid-air, curving toward my new position.
"—【Fifth Form: Mont Fünf】!"
I abandoned evasion and committed to defense. My magic sword transformed into a heavy shield, and I braced for the impact.
"Judging that dodging would be difficult and immediately switching to a shield... How very rational of you."
"—!?"
Even with my five senses sharpened by 【Culmination】, I didn't detect his approach. Ozwell’s voice came from directly behind me.
"Here, have some payback!"
Ozwell clasped his hands above his head and brought them down in a crushing blow. I tilted my shield's defensive barrier upward and invoked 【Gravity Manipulation】 to hinder his swing. Even so, the sheer force was too much to nullify completely. I was sent hurtling into the dirt.
"Gah!"
I immediately mitigated the internal damage with 【Exheal】, only to find a storm of icicles raining down on me like frozen needles. I angled the face of my shield skyward to weather the barrage.
"Come on, come on! Let's throw in some lightning and tornadoes, too!"
Ozwell spoke with manic glee. Multiple lightning strikes and a colossal vortex descended upon me. Their scale and power easily eclipsed the special-grade spells 【Mjolnir】 and 【Thousand-Blade Cyclone】. Giant fireballs rained from the sky while the earth groaned and split apart. It was a localized apocalypse.
The sudden environmental shift caused thick, unnatural clouds to blot out the sun, plunging the area into shadow.
"How do you like it, 《Dragon Slayer》? This is the pinnacle of magic—the critical point of the principles! It is a domain a mediocre man like you couldn't reach in ten lifetimes! Ahahahaha!"
As I dodged and blocked the onslaught, Ozwell’s boastful laughter echoed through the chaos.
The critical point of the principles? If I recall, the 'principles' refer to...
The word snagged in my mind. I had heard about the "Principles of Magic" long ago. Grandpa had explained it to me back when I was just a child learning the basics.
"Listen well, Orun. I am going to teach you magic, but first, you must understand the prerequisite: the Principles of Magic."
"Principles...?"
"That is right. To put it simply, they are the laws unique to this world."
"Principles... laws... Hmm..."
"Ho-ho-ho! A thirteen-year-old wouldn't understand just yet. However, in the future, you will surely encounter these principles, directly or indirectly. When that day comes, you will understand what I am telling you now. For now, just keep the idea in the back of your mind."
"Okay! I understand, Grandpa!"
"Mm, a good lad. Now, let us talk about magic itself. In this world, magic is a technique that triggers phenomena using mana in accordance with the principles—"
"In accordance with the principles? But isn't magic just about building spell formulas?"
"Strictly speaking, they are different, though 'following the principles' can be rephrased as 'constructing a spell formula.' Activating magic is a two-stage process: spell construction and mana infusion. It sounds complicated, but both can be done intuitively. You can do it as naturally as breathing, without a second thought."
"Then magic isn't that hard after all."
"Only if you just want to cast it. If that is all you do, you are nothing more than a simple magic user. Because the vast majority of people use magic intuitively, you must strive to use it theoretically."
"...? Why?"
"Because that gives you an advantage. A formula built intuitively is magic that produces a fixed effect regardless of the situation. In other words, 'General-purpose Magic.' Conversely, if you build a formula theoretically, the spell takes the most optimal form for that specific moment. That is 'Specific-purpose Magic.'"
"I see, I see..."
"It is self-evident that Specific-purpose Magic is superior under the right conditions. That is why I want you to construct formulas theoretically, adapting to every situation. If you master that, you might even develop your own original magic."
"Original magic!? I want to make one! I want a spell that can blow away any enemy in one hit!"
"Ho-ho-ho. That would be quite the spell. Then you had better deepen your understanding of the craft."
"Yeah! I'll do my best!"
Recalling that conversation brought a brief wave of nostalgia, but I quickly shook it off and focused on the present.
So this is the 'critical point.' The pinnacle of magic.
I had always known that magic had the potential to manifest natural disasters, but seeing it firsthand was staggering. It would be suicidal to charge into this without a plan, and even my special-grade spells would struggle to compete.
However, with my accumulated knowledge and experience, I could break through. To do that, I needed—
『Luna, can you hear me?』
The path through Selma-chan's 【Telepathy】 was still active. I reached out to Luna.
『Orun-san!? Are you all right?』
『Yeah, for now. Luna, I need your help. Can you do something for me?』
『If it's within my power, anything! The enemy stopped sending reinforcements, so we’ve managed to stabilize things here. What do you need?』
Luna’s response was immediate. With Twilight Moonbow assisting our team, the magic beasts were no longer a primary threat. If anything, the apocalyptic storm Ozwell was conjuring was probably scaring them more than the monsters were.
『Thanks. I need you to gather Seirei around me. Wind Seirei are preferred, but any attribute will do—just gather whatever is most abundant in this area.』
Ozwell claimed this was the critical point of the principles, but his execution was sloppy. The formula might have reached the peak of the principles, but he was still using ordinary mana to power it.
Magic is composed of spell construction and mana infusion. If he had used Seirei—spirits specialized in an elemental system—for the infusion instead of raw mana, the power would have reached an entirely different level.
Of course, it wasn't entirely his fault. Humans are contradictory creatures; we can flow mana into formulas, yet we lack the innate ability to perceive it. While some special ability users can sense mana, Luna was the only one who could perfectly distinguish and command the Seirei.
Because I’d spent so much time with Luna, I could tell when Seirei were present based on the density of the mana, but I couldn't identify their specific elements. That was why I needed her.
『Understood. There are... a lot of wind Seirei here. I'll send them to you right away!』
『I'm counting on you. Can you find my location?』
『Yes, I've already locked onto you. I’m using 【Sense Connect】 with Gnome’s help.』
【Sense Connect】—an expanded interpretation of 【Seirei Command】. She couldn't maintain it for long, but the benefits were massive. If Luna could master this level of spatial awareness, she would become a terrifying force on the battlefield. By substituting mana with Seirei during infusion, she could theoretically extend her range to hit targets from miles away—unrivaled, long-distance bombardment.
『Got it! Do it!』
As soon as the mental link closed, I felt the mana density around me begin to skyrocket.
『Orun-san, I’ve gathered all the wind Seirei in the vicinity and sent them to your position!』
『Great job, Luna. You’re a lifesaver!』
I thanked her and immediately moved into the final phase of my plan.
"—【Rock Wall】."
First, I encased myself in stone to shield myself from the storm without needing to hold my shield. The wall would only hold for a minute, but a minute was all I needed.
I deactivated the magic shield, returning it to its base form: the pitch-black longsword, Schwarzhase. Then, I began converging the wind Seirei swirling around me, creating a mass of hyper-dense, spirit-infused mana.
I began rewriting a portion of my original magic’s formula to accommodate this new energy source. I was crafting a Specific-purpose Magic—a spell optimized perfectly for this single moment.
"Ahahahaha! Not even going to fight back? Are you dead already? How anticlimactic, Orun Doura!"
Ozwell’s mocking laughter drifted down from the sky. Go ahead. Keep laughing.
"...Just in time."
Cracks were spiderwebbing across my stone shell, but I was ready.
"This should be enough to cleave through even a disaster. —【Alteration】!!"
I flooded the modified formula with the converged wind Seirei mana.
Reacting to the spell, Schwarzhase dissolved into raw mana before reforming into a blade. But this was no ordinary magic sword. Pitch-black wind spirits spiraled around the edge, and the blade itself had taken on a slight curve, mimicking the shape of a katana—much like Fuuka’s cursed blade, Asanagi.
By witnessing Ozwell’s "pinnacle," I had been able to elevate the formula for 【Alteration】 to the critical point of the principles. Combined with spirit-infused mana infusion, this was truly the highest form of magic.
I dropped my center of gravity and took a low stance.
"...The image is a god-speed strike, like Fuuka’s iai. A slash that severs the entire area in a heartbeat, like a kamaitachi."
I spoke the words aloud to crystalize the mental image. Just as the stone wall around me shattered, I struck.
"—Fuma Blade."
An ink-black, wind-wrapped slash tore through the battlefield in an instant.
But I didn't stop there. I channeled my final trump card into the strike.
—【Impact】.
It was my signature move since the days of the Hero Party, a spell that had saved me from countless deaths. It was a magic that utilized a "glitch" in the world.
To put it simply, 【Impact】 did not follow the principles. In a world where all magic was bound by the laws of the principles, this spell stood outside of them entirely. Why a magic that defied the laws of the world even functioned was something I didn't fully understand. Grandpa had hinted that he knew the truth, but he never told me, only assuring me that it was safe to use.
I had just layered 【Impact】—the magic that defied the principles—on top of a slash that represented the pinnacle of those very principles.
There was nothing in this world it couldn't cut. Not even a natural disaster.
The pitch-black arc of energy tore through the apocalyptic storm and reached Ozwell.
"—Wha!?"
Ozwell tried to evade the strike, but its velocity was beyond his comprehension. He was a fraction of a second too slow. His left arm was severed cleanly from his shoulder.
The black slash continued upward, bisecting the thick layer of clouds and carving a path through the sky until the blue light of day shone through once more.
"...For something I pulled off on the fly, that went pretty well."
A faint smile touched my lips as I surveyed the result. My work finished, the magic blade dissolved, and the sword in my hand returned to its usual form.