A Genius Boy Who Was Exiled From His Family Home for “Not Being Able To Use Magic” Becomes a Witch’s Apprentice and Masters All Magic in the Right Way. This Is How You Use Your Magic, You Know?

Chapter 189. Overcoming

As Hermes takes his stance, he begins to think.

──In the end, this is nothing more than an exhibition match.

The Northern Alliance has collapsed. With the defeat of its twisted leader, the Archbishop, everything fell apart. Since Sara has already taken the minimum necessary measures and confined him within a barrier, there is no chance of recovery. Moreover, with the high-ranking captains who were brainwashed by the Archbishop regaining their senses, there is no longer any reason for the Northern Alliance to fight.

……However. That is only true for those who were ‘brainwashed.’

For the majority of the soldiers who were in their right minds, it’s a different story. Few would readily accept being told, “Sorry, the ones giving the orders were being manipulated. So it’s over, you lose.” Especially in a culture that strongly values meritocracy.

That’s why this match exists.

The goal is to show that they fought properly, and to demonstrate enough strength for the other side to accept the outcome. In that sense, there’s no need to win. Of course, winning would be ideal, but with Hermes’ strength, simply showing his full power would force them to accept the result, regardless of whether they wanted to or not. There’s no need to determine a winner or loser; they could even end it at an appropriate point. If they fight normally, the purpose will be sufficiently achieved.

Therefore, the conclusion.

──There’s no need to push himself to the point of injury to defeat Lucius.

But.

(……What is this feeling?)

Even after understanding all of that, Hermes can’t help but think.

──Until now, every opponent he has faced has been someone he ‘had to defeat’.

Those he had to oppose ideologically, those he despised, or those who were biologically incompatible. He has only ever fought those he had no hesitation in defeating.

But Lucius is different.

They can communicate. Ideologically, they might even find common ground. Emotionally, Hermes even feels respect for him.

And yet, for some reason.

More than anyone else he has faced before.

Hermes──feels this.

(I want to──defeat him.)

“!”

Perhaps sensing the change in Hermes’ fighting spirit and aura.

Lucius also takes his stance.──A smile of exhilaration, one he has never shown before, appears on his face.

“Shall we begin?”

“Whenever you’re ready.”

After exchanging these brief words.

The final clash of the Northern Rebellion begins.

With a step that could split the earth.

Converting every ounce of that force into propulsion, Lucius’ godlike speed charges forward.

“──”

Hermes, while retreating, begins his counterattack.

First, a series of generic reinforcement spells that require no incantation. Simple, yet each one far surpasses the abilities of an average magician.

However──his opponent is Lucius.

“Hah, haa!”

Continuing his charge.

With precision swordplay that leaves no room for error, combined with his unique ability to ‘cut magic.’

He slashes through every deadly spell coming his way, breaking through Hermes’ defenses head-on. Hermes’ magic only serves to slightly delay him, far from stopping his momentum.

……Of course, Hermes knew this much.

The young man before him is a monster who even broke through Katia.

An irregular, a true heretic who can likely cut through anything related to magic, based on principles even he himself doesn’t fully understand. It’s better to think of him as an absolute ‘rule’ embodied in a monster.

Therefore.

Taking that into account──he has prepared countermeasures.

……Looking back, ever since the coup d’état in the royal capital, he has been losing almost every direct magical confrontation. Whether it was against the magical army in the capital, his first encounter with the Archbishop, or──most notably, his first battle with Lucius.

And yet.

After those defeats, recognizing his own shortcomings.

──It’s unthinkable that he hasn’t evolved.

“……Spell Reenactment.”

With that certainty and the pride of his accumulated efforts.

Using the brief time bought by his reinforcement spells to the fullest, without holding back.

Hermes──unleashes his trump card.

◆

(──It’s coming.)

From the movement and surge of magical energy, Lucius instinctively knows. Hermes’ greatest attack is about to be unleashed.

This battle began with both sides already exhausted. Although Sara had healed them to some extent, Hermes had suffered major injuries just before, and Lucius had also expended a significant amount of energy breaking through Katia.

With neither side having the luxury of probing the other……a quick decisive battle is what both desire.

(Well then, what is it!?)

Feeling the premonition of a grand spell, Lucius doesn’t hide his excitement. He tightens his grip on his sword, preparing to counter whatever comes──

Hermes announces the spell.

“Spell Reenactment──[Mistle Teinn].”

(…………What?)

Lucius is confused.

Because the spell Hermes declared, despite the clear buildup of a grand spell, is Mistle Teinn, the magical archer.

A spell Hermes is most familiar with──but in other words, a completely ordinary bloodline magic.

Too ordinary for such a buildup.

As Lucius furrows his brow, wondering what’s going on, Hermes──takes an action that is, in a way, even more surprising.

He gathers the magical bullets scattered behind him──converging them.

Into a single, massive magical bullet……and fires it at Lucius in one breath.

(──What, is this?)

Lucius is baffled.

What Hermes did isn’t particularly special. In some cases, it’s more effective to unleash a single powerful blow rather than multiple weaker ones.

But──against Lucius, this is the worst possible move. Because,

(This is practically asking me to cut it down.)

Yes, Lucius can cut magic.

So Hermes’ current attack is like making the target bigger. For Lucius, it’s incredibly convenient.

Of course, the concentrated power and speed are formidable, and cutting it would require considerable focus──but that’s all.

And once he cuts it, Hermes will be left wide open. Having poured all his magical bullets into this one attack, it will take time to generate more or cast another spell……and Lucius isn’t one to let such an opportunity slip.

(Does he think I can’t cut a powerful spell?──That’s underestimating me too much.)

The overwhelmingly powerful magical bullet approaches. But both experience and instinct tell him it’s no problem.

Following that, Lucius takes his stance. With focus, he prepares to cut through the magic, then swing his sword to deliver the final blow to the defenseless Hermes──

At that moment.

Hermes points at him. And then──opens his mouth.

“──[Hlidskjalf].”

An impossible ‘incantation’ is uttered.

Immediately after. The [Mistle Teinn] hits Lucius──and at the exact same time.

[Hlidskjalf] rains down on Lucius.

“What, the──!?”

Even Lucius is caught off guard.

Instinctively, he shifts his focus to the more threatening [Hlidskjalf]. He succeeds in cutting it, but he can’t deal with the original [Mistle Teinn] in time, and tries to block it with a generic magical barrier……

“Ugh──!”

But the attack is a bloodline magic, concentrated into a single point with increased penetrating power.

There’s no way to fully block it──direct hit. Like a withered leaf, Lucius is sent flying.

(No……way……)

Even so, Lucius is a seasoned warrior.

In the fraction of a second before the impact, he uses every ounce of his agility and magical control to minimize the damage.

Though still heavily injured……he stands up, showing a look of genuine shock for the first time.

The reason, of course, is what just happened──the phenomenon Hermes created.

There was a critical gap in information that Lucius couldn’t account for. That is,

(He──Hermes, wasn’t supposed to be able to activate multiple bloodline spells at once!?)

That’s what the information he had gathered suggested.

So, did he gain that ability during this Northern Rebellion?──No, if that were the case, he would have performed better in the battle against the Archbishop.

Then, it must be something else. Not the simultaneous activation of bloodline spells. Following his intuition, Lucius analyzes the magical energy and the phenomenon that just occurred, as well as the strange incantation Hermes uttered……and arrives at the answer.

“……No way.”

Even as he realizes it, Lucius himself can hardly believe it.

With a look of utter disbelief──he speaks.

“You pre-cast the Bloodline Magic and delayed its activation……? No, no, is such a thing even possible──?”

◆

“……Impressive. You’re correct.”

Praising Lucius for immediately figuring it out, Hermes mutters.

──[Delay Spell].

If he were to give it a name, that’s what this new technique would be called.

As Lucius said, it involves pre-casting a Bloodline Magic and storing it, then releasing it with a brief command at the appropriate time.

But……the true brilliance of this technique lies in the fact that it can be maintained even while another Bloodline Magic is active.

That’s what led to the current situation. The simultaneous activation of [Mistle Teinn] and [Hlidskjalf] was made possible by this.

Originally, Hermes’ weakness was his inability to activate multiple bloodline spells at once. This led to another weakness: having to re-cast spells every time he switched between them.

That’s why the timing of his spell switches had always been a vulnerability.

……Until now, it hadn’t been a problem.

He only faced opponents he could defeat with that limitation, and more importantly, his true focus was on magical research──’reproducing magic in a better form.’ So the costs and efforts required, such as incantations, were somewhat overlooked by him.

But he can no longer afford that.

His existence has become known to the nation, and opponents who can effectively counter him have appeared. If he leaves his weaknesses unaddressed, he can’t defeat them.

──And Hermes is not one to hesitate in evolving.

Thus, he arrived at this solution.

Understanding and analyzing his own shortcomings……and building upon the ideas from the Northern Rebellion and Lilliana’s magical developments, he grasped a new direction──’simplifying magic.’ This technique was a byproduct of that.

[Delay Spell].

A second blade he kept in reserve in case the plan centered on Nina failed, to defeat the Archbishop──but in truth, it was developed specifically to counter Lucius.

Because……Hermes thinks, as he stands up and raises his sword toward Lucius, declaring.

“……Honestly, I intended to defeat you in one go, but the fact that you managed to counter it, even barely, stings a bit.──But if that’s the case, I’ll just repeat it.”

He is confident that even if the trick is exposed, it won’t matter.

……Lucius is the embodiment of the absurd.

A being with an absolute rule: he can cut through any magic. If Hermes were to obsess over opposing that, he would only be trampled by that absurdity.

──Then, he should do the same.

Overwhelm Lucius with an equal level of absurdity. Impose an absolute rule, an impossibility, upon him.

That’s the conclusion Hermes reached.

“……No matter how incredible your physical abilities or your power to cut magic.──You only have one sword to cut magic with. So it’s fine.”

That is.

“After all, no matter how strong you are──you can’t cut both left and right at the exact same time, can you?”

“──”

That is the extremely simple, and thus impossible to counter, method to defeat Lucius.

Namely──’simultaneously striking from two different directions with two bloodline spells.’

By guiding Lucius’ movements and creating an unavoidable situation, he forces Lucius to take at least one of the two overwhelmingly powerful spells.

Hermes can do that now. In fact……he developed this technique specifically for that purpose.

His magic. The crystallization of his thoughts. The result of a lifetime of effort.

He won’t allow it to be casually cut down──that’s his stubbornness.

“…………”

Hearing this overwhelmingly absurd strategy, Lucius is momentarily stunned, then──

“──Hahaha.”

He laughs, almost involuntarily.

Not to mock, not to belittle.

But simply──with the tone of someone who has seen something incredibly delightful.

“……I’m often teased for being a muscle-brain. Especially by my sister──probably more than anyone else.”

He continues.

“But this is completely unfair. After all──even you, who are clearly a strategist, have resorted to this!”

“That’s unfair. I arrived at this conclusion after thoroughly logical consideration.”

Hermes responds, half-serious──but with a rare, almost lighthearted tone.

The others, like Katia, are surprised by this exchange……but Hermes pays no attention to them now.

As both sides prepare to resume the battle.

Lucius, once more, speaks.

“……One last thing. You probably won’t understand, and you might just be surprised if I say this out of nowhere.”

This, too, is different from before.

With a tone filled with deep emotion, he says one thing.

“Let me just say this.──I’ve been waiting for a magician like you.”

“……Yes, I’m honored.”

Hermes doesn’t fully understand, but……he can tell that these words come from a place of deep struggle and experience.

So, with sincerity, he responds. Lucius’ smile grows even wider──now filled with an even more defiant fighting spirit.

Once more, they kick off the ground.

And before the eyes of everyone present──an overwhelmingly brilliant and fierce clash resumes.