20demayo Chapter 209 Duel with a 3rd-Order Spell
Chapter 209 Duel with a 3rd-Order Spell
Chapter 209 Duel with a Third-Order Spell
After Kane slowly revealed the contents of the divination.
Malcolm, without the slightest hesitation, immediately challenged him to a deadly magical duel.
"This is against the rules—and completely unnecessary."
Hammond quickly stepped forward, attempting to mediate and defuse the sudden conflict.
Kane simply shook his head slightly, his tone calm yet exceptionally firm: "I accept your challenge to a duel."
In the divination just now, I had already foreseen your inevitable defeat.
Upon hearing this, Hammond and the others frowned, wanting to say something but unable to utter a word.
Malcolm laughed in anger: "Nord, are you looking for death?!"
Not only him, but all the high-ranking officials present, as well as the many monks watching from below the stage, were stunned and speechless for a moment.
It is not entirely impossible for a second-tier mage to challenge a third-tier mage head-on.
However, that often requires a team of several second-tier mages to work together to encircle and annihilate the enemy, or to launch an offensive in coordination with the army's formation.
At worst, they can only rely on underhanded methods such as poisoning or ambushes.
No low-level spellcaster has ever dared to challenge a high-level spellcaster to a duel in a public setting, one-on-one.
What they saw completely overturned everyone's understanding.
Many mages who were already hostile to Kane taking over as acting head of the Prophecy Division were now speechless.
Some even unconsciously revealed a hint of admiration in their eyes.
After all, most mages who study divination and prophecy are seen by others as unorthodox madmen.
In their view, Kane was clearly the kind of person who had been completely influenced by the Occupation Technique and become obsessed and fanatical.
"I'll be waiting for you at the training ground this afternoon. Enjoy the last moments of your life."
"No, I won't kill you. I'll spare your life," Kane replied calmly.
Malcolm was so angry that he laughed in frustration, then turned around, slammed the door, and stormed off.
Count Luke Parker, also an envoy of the Noble Council, looked displeased and followed closely behind.
Seeing the scene, Hammond and the others frowned slightly.
"The meeting is temporarily adjourned. Everyone, please leave now."
The monks who had been watching left one after another.
A moment later, only Kane, the five current deans of the academy, and Flint, who was standing to the side, remained in the council hall.
Hammond looked at Kane in confusion: "Mage Kane, our decision has already been passed. You didn't need to pay any attention to Malcolm's provocation."
"We will naturally resolve this through other means, as we are dealing with the Council of Nobles."
Kane smiled, neither confirming nor denying.
Hammond's plan was certainly sound, but he was barely elected dean in this way.
Firstly, they had to continue their endless tug-of-war with the noble council.
Secondly, it would be difficult to truly convince the monks within the academy.
Since that's the case, why not use Malcolm as a pawn to establish our authority?
Defeating him in public would not only silence the noble council but also naturally win the approval of all the mages in the academy.
The skeleton raised its eyes and understood Kane's plan from his expression, but it only frowned and did not say anything more.
The Dean of the Conjuration Academy, a gaunt woman named Lux, stared intently at Kane: "Master Kane, it is perfectly reasonable for Hammond and the others to recommend you as the Dean of the Prophecy Division."
But I only have one question: Was your divination just now false?
Kane looked at the female dean, who was the only one to abstain from voting, and smiled slightly: "Please believe me, Dean Lux."
As the incoming head of the Prophecy Division, I need a proper divination to pave the way for my inauguration.
Upon hearing this unvarnished answer, everyone reacted with varying expressions.
Flint's eyes lit up with a knowing smile, Lux raised an eyebrow in slight surprise, Hammond remained full of doubt, while the skeleton remained composed—
After all, they all knew about Kane's feat of capturing Bella alive, and they more or less believed it in their hearts.
This second-tier mage must be hiding some amazing trump card that no one knows about.
"In that case, we'll wait and see, and look forward to your performance this afternoon, Dean Kane." Ling Shu smiled slightly and spoke slowly.
In the afternoon, at the training ground.
The huge white stone square was filled with spectators.
The stands were packed with formal monks in red robes, apprentices in gray robes, and a large crowd of onlookers, creating a noisy and chaotic scene.
Unlike previous duels, this time there were many more people present.
On one side was a genuine Tier 3 War Mage, and on the other side was the newly appointed acting dean of the Prophecy Branch.
This acting dean openly claimed that he could rely on the prophecy to defeat the strong with the weak.
Kane walked through the long passageway and onto one side of the field.
He stood in his place under the watchful eyes of everyone, feeling the weight of countless gazes, and remained silent with his eyes closed.
With the appearance of this key figure in public opinion, many monks had mixed feelings.
The appointment of the Nords, the mortal enemies of the Sussas, as acting dean was difficult for many to accept.
However, it would be equally humiliating to allow the council of nobles to impose its appointed dean on the academy.
Time slips away bit by bit.
Kane waited quietly, wearing only a light, standard red robe, the hem of which was not long for ease of movement.
Apart from a few daggers, he carried nothing else.
As time passed, everyone grew increasingly impatient, but the other protagonist still hadn't appeared.
Just then.
boom!
The door to the other passageway was pushed open by four soldiers.
Count Luke Parker bowed obsequiously as Malcolm, dressed in an elaborate and heavy robe, emerged from the passageway.
Kane's gaze remained calm and unwavering as he watched the war mage from the Free City step onto the opposite side of the arena.
Malcolm smiled and opened his arms to the audience, seemingly enjoying the attention.
"Mage Malcolm, please begin quickly; you have already wasted a lot of people's time."
Hammond's cold voice came from the stands.
Malcolm laughed and said, "Why bother, my future colleague?"
This will allow the entire hospital to see what kind of person their future dean is.
As soon as he finished speaking, he finally dropped his affected act, turned to look at Kane, who had remained silent, and his eyes were instantly filled with intense malice: "Nord, I've investigated you. Your achievements are nothing to me."
Surrender now, and you can go back to Nord to find your mother; otherwise, I'll send half of your body back.
Kane smiled faintly upon hearing this.
From the intelligence provided by Logan, he already knew that the other party was a person who liked to bluff and had an exaggerated and flamboyant style.
All those actions were just to put psychological pressure on the opponent.
As a war mage who travels from place to place and makes a living by fighting, how could he only be arrogant?
Malcolm has survived to this day precisely because of his meticulous cunning and ability to repeatedly mislead his opponents.
However, this meticulousness also means that he is naturally suspicious and overthinks, making him prone to excessive hesitation when weighing the pros and cons.
In yesterday's arcane divination, or rather, arcane deduction, Kane had already discerned all of the opponent's plans.
However, for now, he intends to make the other party aware of their predicament first.
Kane spoke calmly: "Mage Malcolm, are you ready to act? I am prepared to return to the Prophecy Division to meet my new subordinates and students."
""
"You're asking for it!" Malcolm narrowed his eyes, but did not move immediately. He simply placed his left hand on the ring on his right hand.
Kane watched this scene with a smile and said, "Then, let's begin."
Seeing his composure, Malcolm was filled with doubt and gave Kane a deep look, then pointed slightly to the ground with his left hand.
Let's test the waters first and see what's really going on.
Eight stone cones materialized on the ground and, like crossbow bolts, shot straight at Kane with a whooshing sound!
Just as the stone cones were getting close, their speed suddenly increased again, becoming too fast to catch.
However, Kane simply tilted his head slightly and twisted his body, managing to avoid all the stone spikes.
The opponent didn't even use any spells.
Malcolm paused, then looked up at the group of deans ahead: "Dean Hammond, isn't this a spellcaster duel? Is this even allowed?"
Hammond smiled slightly: "A spellcaster who has exhausted their spell slots can still win through melee combat. What's wrong with that? Is the renowned war mage actually afraid?"
Malcolm's lips twitched as he looked at the motionless Kane and gritted his teeth, saying, "You're out of luck—I'll let you die here!"
This is getting serious.
Kane's eyes flickered slightly.
Malcolm no longer hesitated, flicked the ring with his right hand, and his speed suddenly increased.
He pressed down with his five fingers, and countless stone cones shot into the air, then poured down like rain, like a volley of crossbow bolts fired by an army!
Faced with the dense array of stone spikes, Kane suddenly drew his sword, a curved blade wreathed in shadow, and gripped it in his hand.
With his blood rushing, he unleashed his full potential, approaching the speed of a third-tier warrior, and charged towards Malcolm!
The stone cones fell behind him, but they couldn't keep up with his speed.
Even if a shot occasionally landed, it would be cleaved in mid-air by the shadowy scimitar.
100 meters, 80 meters, 60 meters — the distance is rapidly closing.
"What the hell is this?! Isn't he supposed to be a second-tier spellcaster?!"
Malcolm's expression changed drastically.
He had only ever seen such speed from a few titled assassins.
Those assassins were all the ace assassins of various major killer organizations.
In fact, not only him, but also Hammond and others subconsciously widened their eyes.
Damn it, we absolutely cannot let him get close!
Malcolm swung his hand violently, and the ground suddenly rose up and collapsed, rocks shattered, and the entire terrain of the field changed dramatically in an instant!
However, in the next instant, Kane stepped onto the stone wall and went against the flow to climb up.
The protruding rocks, boulders, and fragments seemed to disappear entirely beneath his feet.
"Spiderwalking?!" Malcolm gritted his teeth.
He wasn't unaware of the spell, but it was usually only used to provide assistance to others. This was the first time he had ever seen a caster use it on himself in actual combat.
But this at least proves that Kane is indeed only a second-tier mage.
What alarmed him even more was that Kane seemed to have already figured out all of his fighting habits:
The moment he opened his mouth to chant "Earthquake Technique," his opponent simultaneously unleashed the Spider Technique.
"Impossible—how could he possibly have predicted my prediction?"
"We must create distance immediately!"
Malcolm stomped on the ground, and a huge stone pillar burst forth from the earth, lifting him more than ten meters into the air.
At the same time, his lips moved slightly, and he rapidly chanted incantations: Acceleration, Shield, and Blade Protection—
One after another, magical lights flashed on his body.
Reaching its highest point, he looked at Kane, who was now within thirty meters, gritted his teeth, and roared, raising one hand sharply: "Missile Storm!"
Above his palm, countless pale blue etheric bullets rapidly condensed.
With a wave of his hand, etheric bullets rained down like a storm!
"Damn Nord freak, die!"
However, just as the etheric bullet was about to hit the ground, a thick cloud of mist suddenly spread out, instantly enveloping the entire duel plaza.
He predicted it correctly once again!
Malcolm's expression changed drastically. Without time to think, he pointed his staff directly at the ground: "Smash the ground!"
The earth within a radius of three thousand meters collapsed and shattered in response!
boom.
The loud noises echoed incessantly, but everything inside the venue became blurred under the thick fog.
Not only him, but everyone in the audience was also shocked by the terrifying destructive power.
Logan Sussas and Flint looked worried, Hammond frowned, and the skeletons and spirits wore solemn expressions.
Many young monks and their apprentices stood there dumbfounded, at a loss for what to do.
"This devastating power—is this the war mage born for slaughter?"
Perhaps only Dean Hammond in the academy can compare to him —
"That Nord mage—could he be dead?"
As they whispered among themselves, Logan Susas's worry deepened.
Time passed slowly, but the field remained shrouded in thick fog and deathly silent.
After waiting for several minutes, Malcolm finally couldn't hold back any longer.
He burst into wild laughter, spreading his arms wide towards the deans in the stands: "Can you declare my victory now, my colleagues? He's already reduced to ashes!"
After the words were spoken, the room fell silent.
However, at that moment, a commotion suddenly broke out in the audience. Malcolm's heart tightened, and he abruptly looked down at the stone pillar at his feet.
The thick fog was slowly dissipating, and the Nord he had assumed was long dead was slowly emerging from the fog.
The other person's clothes were torn and ripped in many places, but the faint smile that the man loathed still lingered on his face.
Malcolm's expression turned serious. He gritted his teeth and pressed his hand on the ring, his mind racing.
His two most prized third-ring spells only managed to damage the opponent's clothes.
The person appeared to be unharmed.
On the other side, Kane, with a calm expression, slightly raised his head and looked at Malcolm, who was perched high on a stone pillar.
On the surface, he remained calm, but in his heart, a sense of gravity had already set in.
Before the duel, he had gathered a lot of information about his opponent and simulated all possible spells through arcane deduction.
However, those two three-ring spells still managed to break through all the defenses.
The shield spell and elemental absorption were no match for the terrifying destructive power of the third-circle spell; even his own physical body was nearly torn apart.
If it weren't for the use of cloud and mist techniques to conceal his true nature, his secret to immortality and recovery would probably have been exposed long ago.
"However—the time is almost right; it's time to use the secret we've deduced."
Kane looked at Malcolm, who heard a voice that only he could hear.
"You—you fled here voluntarily from the Free City-State, didn't you?"
Upon hearing this, Malcolm's expression changed drastically, and his hands froze in mid-air.
"What exactly do you know?!"