Sossi Village, mountain behind the village
"Aaaaargh!! Damn it, the boar's here!! It's huge!
Is that even really a boar? Isn't it way too good at using magic?"
Asta was locked in a one-on-one brawl with the boar, fighting with everything he had.
"Shouldn't we help him?"
"I'm taking a break. I used up all my Mana and stamina flying both of you here."
"I told you I could carry us..."
"I told you, a man doesn't take back what he says. Besides, he'll be fine.
That guy's tough."
"But..."
"If you're that worried, then go save him yourself."
"I can do it! Hah!!"
Whoosh!!
Water Magic tore through the air—but the one it hit was Asta.
Well, he'd probably handle it somehow.
"Hmm..."
"What's wrong, Kadel?"
"Magna, can I head to Sossi Village first?"
"Huh? What kind of man abandons his friends?"
"I'll be right back."
"Yeah, sure. Go on, then."
"Thanks! Oh, and just in case, take this."
"What's this?"
"A magic signal transmitter. If something happens on my end, I'll press the button on mine, and a red light will come on over there."
"Thorough, aren't you? That's right—men shouldn't make other people worry!"
"Says the man who pushed himself too hard carrying two people on a broom..."
"Shut it, punk! Get going already!"
"Sheesh."
I mounted my broom and headed straight for Sossi Village.
The reason I'd suddenly gone off on my own was simple.
A little while ago, Mana had spread throughout Sossi Village. It wasn't an overwhelming amount, but it had covered a wide area.
It was strange for Mana to radiate outward from the center of a village like that.
If that meant it was artificial...
Then the Eye of the Midnight Sun's lackeys must have arrived.
Sure enough, when I looked from afar, thick fog blanketed the village.
And... two distinct sources of Mana were clashing inside it!!
I had to hurry. Otherwise, old Seihi would get hurt.
"Ugh! I can't see anything through this fog... But I've got a spell prepared for situations just like this!
Time Creation Magic: Chrono Mono Avatar!"
For all its quirks, it was a fairly useful search spell.
By spending some time, I could see the results of actions I would take moments later. In other words, I could simultaneously observe the outcomes of trying several different things.
Of course, it had drawbacks... It consumed more time and Mana than my other Time Magic spells.
And since I had to recast it whenever the situation changed, it gave me a terrible headache. I was cramming multiple streams of information into my head at once. It was like trying to read dozens of books simultaneously.
Understanding them was even harder.
"Just hold on a little longer!! Oh, right—I need to press this!"
Beep!
"If I buy some time, they'll make it here!"
At the center of the fog...
"Ghk!"
"G-Grandpa!!!"
"Chief! Stop! This is too reckless!"
"I can't... Just a little longer...! The Magic Knights will surely—
Gahk!!!"
"Grandpa!! You're bleeding!!!"
"Ghk... I'm fine. More importantly, be careful... Those people aren't ordinary opponents...!"
"You're holding out well for a lowborn worm with such a pathetic amount of Mana. Answer quickly, and I'll let everyone die without pain.
Where is the Magic Stone?"
"There's no such thing in our village!!!"
"Is that so...? A lie. Die."
"I'm a little late... but it looks like I'm not too late!"
"Who are you...?"
"T-That robe! He's a Magic Knight!"
"Grandpa! Your prayers worked!"
"I... see. I'm sorry... I can't stay conscious any longer..."
"G-Grandpa...?"
"Don't worry. He's still alive. Just wait.
Time Restraint Magic: Chrono Stasis."
"Grandpa?"
"Don't worry, kid. At the very least, I won't let someone die in front of you...!"
Chrono Stasis slowed the target's time to nearly a complete stop. If left that way, he could hold on for quite a long time, as long as the spell wasn't released.
More importantly, I needed my two fellow rookies and Magna to arrive on time!
"Sorry, but I'm handing the baton over to you."
"Hmm... It's not time yet, but I should eliminate an interference before it becomes a problem."
Piiing—bzzzzzt!!
Mana condensed in midair, forming a massive ice spike that came hurtling toward me.
"I really don't like the size of that thing!
Time Restraint Magic: Chrono Stasis!
And here—have it back!"
"You returned my magic? And it's faster, too."
I hadn't done much. I'd merely manipulated time to redirect it, then accelerated it further.
But it didn't seem to mean much.
"You're mistaken if you think I'd be struck by my own magic."
Shouldn't they be here by now? Seriously, how much longer did I have to hold out?!
"It'd be disappointing if you thought that was all I had!
It's not a Grimoire spell, but it's still pretty fast!"
Bang!!
I'd simply accelerated a sphere of pure Mana that I'd fired out. Its power wasn't bad, though it was nowhere near the Wizard King's level.
"Damn it, I can't see a thing through this fog... I need to use Mana sensing—huh?"
Before I could even use Mana sensing, another massive ice spike appeared right before my eyes. He must have prepared the spell beforehand.
If I dodged this, the villagers would definitely get hit...!
Then—
"Aaaaaaaaaah!!!"
"Asta!!!"
"Kadel, you almost got yourself killed, you idiot!"
"As if! I was going to block it dramatically and show off my proud Time Magic."
"Liar!"
"I'm not."
"More importantly, you guys...! Why are you doing something so cruel?!
Who the hell are you?!"
"I wasn't told that members of the Magic Knights would be arriving in a group.
I suppose this is an assignment beyond the request. That strange black-haired brat at least noticed our presence, but how did the rest of you get inside the barrier?
Black Rain... The outcast rabble among the Magic Knights, famous for being unruly and unrestrained."
"Just as I thought."
"What do you mean, 'just as you thought'?"
Noelle asked at my mutter.
"Those guys had advance knowledge of the Magic Knights' mission."
So William... no, Patolli and Gaderois had already betrayed us.
"Then that means...?"
"It's only a guess, but there must be a traitor among the Magic Knights or someone close to them leaking information."
"T-That can't be..."
"Hmph... You're wasting my time. Five minutes. We'll swiftly eliminate these useless villagers who know nothing and find the target."
"Don't ignore us!!"
"Mist Magic: Illusory Mist Vortex.
Don't think you can approach Heath so easily, fools. Lose yourselves in the fog."
"Who's going to get lost in it?!"
"Unbelievable. You can tear apart even magic with no physical form!
Asta, I'm counting on you! I'll treat the old man!"
"Yeah! Leave it to me!! I'll beat the hell out of you, right up to your neck!!"
"Black-haired brother!! Grandpa's going to be okay, right?! He'll get better?!"
"Yeah. He'll definitely get better, so stay still."
After releasing Chrono Stasis, I slowly began rewinding old Seihi's time.
Reversing it all at once would put too much strain on both me and the badly injured old man.
"How long do you think you can hold out?"
"Damn it!! Accelerated Bullet!!"
Using several spells at once was difficult... And I had to protect all these people. Still, I had to do everything I could!
"Time Magic: Accelerated Bullet x Chrono Stasis!!"
I kept using Chrono Stasis to redirect the two Accelerated Bullets I'd fired, protecting the villagers as best I could!
"Ghk!"
"To think one of you can't even control her Mana properly."
Noelle...
"Black Rain seems severely understaffed."
The barrage only grew fiercer.
"You're feeble animals who can't even protect yourselves.
Abandon them, and you Magic Knights can live!"
"Like hell we would!!"
"A real man doesn't abandon anyone!!"
"If I'm going to become the Wizard King, I can't lose a single person!!"
"...Noelle!!"
Noelle's Grimoire shone with a majestic blue light, and a gigantic water barrier rose up around us.
"This thing's incredible!"
"Hmph. It's nothing special."
"You little brat, Noelle! See? You can do it when you try!"
"What... is this Mana?"
"Asta, are you ready?"
"Yeah! I'm counting on you!!"
"Time Acceleration Magic: Chrono Silares!"
With my magic empowering him, Asta shot forward like a bullet.
"Ooooooh!!
I don't have any Mana! But I'm taking you down!!"
"Idiot Asta!"
"D-Did he do it?"
"Wait! Noelle! What happened to that line?!"
"W-What? Did I say something wrong?"
Looking closely, I saw a small patch of ice beneath Asta.
She must have used it to slow him down and reduce the damage from his landing!
"Even if you can negate magic, you're still only human yourself. Then it's my turn."
"Tch. Time—!"
Fwoosh!
Before I could cast my spell, ice launched by Heath pierced Asta's abdomen.
"It's magic made of absurdly powerful Mana. But it's only a matter of time.
I should be able to make an opening large enough for one person to enter."
When Heath placed his hand against Noelle's barrier, it slowly began to freeze.
"Not yet!!"
Asta, who I'd thought had fallen, rose to his feet once more.
"Too slow."
Fwoosh!
Asta was struck by the same spell again.
"Aaargh!!"
"Asta!!"
"You're remarkably tough to still be alive. But with those injuries, you can't even swing your sword properly."
"I'm not done yet!!!"
"You're not even a boar."
After that, Asta was hit by magic again and again, but every time, he got back up.
"You can get outside this magic easily, right?"
"Uh... yeah, probably."
"Magna, I'm going too."
"But you need to heal the old man."
"The treatment will keep going until he's better anyway."
Since he was recovering gradually in the first place, it didn't use much less time or Mana.
"Then we're leaving the villagers to you, Noelle!"
"I'm counting on you!!"
"W-Wait!"
It was easier than I'd expected to simply walk out of this barrier...
"Unfortunately, you'll die in one minute."
"Like we'd let that happen, asshole!!"
"Wipe that face off your head, you pale corpse-face!!"
"If you want to kill him, you'll have to get through me, his senior, first!!"
"And me too!!"
"Magna! Kadel!"
"You're a man, aren't you, Asta?!"
"Fools. Did you come here to hasten your own deaths? Thirty seconds."
"Don't be ridiculous! Even if we had thirty minutes, you wouldn't be able to beat us!"
I had to focus!
"All right, let's go, Asta! It's a baptism by fire."
I'd guide the ball Magna hit into the perfect position for Asta to send it back!!
"Take this! Every last bit of my Mana!! One Ball, Fighting Spirit!!!
Fire Magic: Exploding Buckshot!!
Ooooooh!!!"
"Accelerated Bullet!!"
I wanted to squeeze out all my Mana too, but a little of it—and time—was continuously being spent healing old Seihi.
"It's too bad I can't use it all..."
"Is this the last magic you could squeeze out?
There are far too many pointless attacks."
"They're not pointless!!!"
Asta leaped behind Heath and effortlessly reflected the magic Magna and I had fired.
"Ooooooh!"
"At this rate, that idiot might miss."
"Not yet!! My body can still move!!"
"W-Wait—"
"Like hell I'll wait!!!"
"That was the second time he's brought it down that cheerfully since the exam."
"We beat him..."
"Big sister!"
"This time... we really beat him!!"
Fwoosh!!
Bang!!
Flame Magic shackles and the Time Restraint Magic Chrono Stasis activated simultaneously around Heath's unconscious body.
"You were thinking the same thing?"
"So were you, Magna."
"Flame Restraint Magic: Flame Chain Binding Formation!
I had it prepared in advance!"
"You're more capable than you look. I'll give you that."
"Quit yapping! I'm your senior! What's with you looking down on me?!"
"You're the one standing below me."
Boom!!!
"Uh... the barrier..."
"It's cold!"
"Hahahahaha! You've still got a long way to go, Noelle!!"
Thankfully, we captured every enemy without letting a single one escape.
"Oh, right. What about old Seihi?"
"Oh, he's over there."
"...Thank goodness. He's asleep."
"How do you like that...? Even lowborn people... can win!
What do you think, damn it?! Ugh..."
After shouting, Asta collapsed face-first onto the ground.
"Asta! No, is he asleep?!"
"Wow. That flustered slipping pose! It's straight out of a comic! Well, it is a comic—"
"What's a comic?"
"Ah, it's nothing."
Do I really need to watch what I say...? More importantly, are there no comics in this world?
"Anyway, he's truly unbelievable."
"He's always been that kind of idiot."
"We're alive!"
"And he's still just a boy."
"Is he really a lowborn like us?"
"Magna, all of you... thank you."
"You don't need to say that!"
"It was nothing."
"We only did what Magic Knights are supposed to do!"
"They're our saviors!"
"What's that? An Anti-Bird?"
When had Nero gotten there? I definitely hadn't seen her when I rode over on my broom.
Ah, she flew away. Was she going to bring back the Magic Stone...?
"Magna!!"
"You! Nick! What is it?!"
"There's something I want to say before Grandpa wakes up!"
"Heh heh heh! Magna, manliest of all men, will hear whatever you have to say!
Go on!"
"I think Grandpa had regrets."
"Regrets?"
"Just listen quietly, Asta."
"He regretted giving up on his dream of becoming a Magic Knight when he was young. But he's happy that Magna is carrying that dream for him!!"
"I see...!"
"And... do you think someone like me, who couldn't do anything in a situation like this, could join the Magic Knights too...?"
"Of course you can. Nothing is impossible. You seize the future with your own hands!"
"I got in even though I'm a lowborn with no Mana at all!
But you'll have to work really, really hard!"
"Keep at it, kid! If you work hard, even the impossible becomes possible!"
"Put some spirit into it!"
"Do your best."
"Okay!"
"By the time you join the Magic Knights, I'll have worked even harder, done even more, and gotten even closer to becoming the Wizard King!"
"Then by that time, I'll have surpassed Asta and become the Wizard King myself."
"Whaaaaat?!"
"There you two go saying stupid things again!
But dream big! That's what it means to be a man!"
"We'll be waiting, kid!"
"Okay!"
"Yeah!"
Peck peck peck peck peck peck peck!
Nero, having safely retrieved the Magic Stone, began furiously pecking Asta while holding it in her beak.
"Aaaaaah! It hurts, it hurts, it hurts!
What grudge do you have against my head?! You stupid bird! You want to fight?! You little—huh?
What's that stone?"
"That is a talisman that was kept in my home."
"Grandpa!!"
"Old Seihi!! Thank goodness you're safe!"
"It's thanks to that young man treating me."
"It was nothing. More importantly, a talisman?"
"Heh heh heh. Take it with you. That bird friend of yours seems rather fond of it.
It's the only thing I can offer you, after all."
"I-Is that so?"
Nero had now settled atop Asta's head as if it were her own nest.
"S-So cute!
You can come over here too!"
Noelle was jealous of that.
"Is she up there because Asta's hair looks like a bird's nest?"
Peck peck peck peck peck!
Round two began.
"Ow ow ow ow!! Wait, do you have a grudge against my head? I'll turn you into grilled bird! Get back here!!
Aaaargh! I said it hurts!!"
The story I made.
The story I changed.
One where nobody was hurt.
One where nobody died.
A happy ending for everyone.
Was this the ending I had created...?
Old Seihi was never supposed to be here.
Normally, he would probably have been in a grave by now...
But I saved him.
No one was grieving.
No one was crying.
Simply proud of that fact, I watched the beautiful red sunset stretch across the sky.
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