Chapter 310
At Chris’s flick of the hand, crackling lightning spears reappeared—this time, quite a few more.
Ten spears of electricity materialized all at once.
Of course, they were still only three-star spells.
“You really think something that weak can stand against my abstract parade of distorted tremors…?”
“Enough talk. Watch closely and focus.”
Chris gestured sharply.
“I’m going to show you what real magic looks like.”
Crackling and sizzling, the ten lightning spears shot out in all directions, resonating with each other to create an intense electric field.
It was a four-star Lightning Chain phenomenon.
But even so, it was meaningless.
Against Lanya’s miracle magic that dominated the very fabric of space, this was nothing.
Crash! Crash! Crash!
“!!”
Lanya’s spatial magic began to collapse entirely.
“Ugh?!”
A trickle of blood ran from Lanya’s mouth.
The breaking magic had dealt her a blow.
“W-what is this?”
“Still don’t get it, even after seeing it with your own eyes?”
Chris sneered arrogantly.
“This is reality manipulation through the rearrangement of the phase plane.”
“!!”
In simple terms, it was a method of embedding one’s will into magic by manipulating the spatial dimensions of the spell.
A trick Chris used often.
‘It’s simple for me, but it’s not an easy feat.’
Just as a knight needs a Black Steel Sword or an Aura Blade to channel their will, magic required a vessel to hold that intent—a ‘True Steel’ spell.
The same applied to mental magic and miracle magic.
But Chris had artificially created such a vessel by manipulating the high-dimensional spatial laws of magic itself.
“…”
Lanya froze, clearly shocked, and fell silent.
“Well? Looks like I won this bet. You’re mine now.”
Lanya bit her lip tightly.
“…You’re not having weird thoughts just because of my beautiful face, are you?”
“What nonsense. Are you crazy?”
Chris shook his head and snapped his fingers.
Crack!
A black crescent-shaped mark appeared briefly on the nape of Lanya’s neck before vanishing—it was a brand.
“…What’s this energy? Why magic?”
“Oh, I’m moonlighting as a hero, but actually, I’m a demon mage.”
“!!”
Chris dropped the act, revealing his true face.
“I’m Christian, the Dark Mage.”
“!!”
Lanya reacted dramatically, as expected.
“Stop! Don’t say such crazy things! This is fraud…! It’s invalid!”
“I never lied. It’s true I’m a hero. And it’s true I intend to use you as a pawn for the world’s sake.”
“Shut up, you bastard!”
At that moment, a familiar voice called out.
“Where are you? Ah, there you are with Lanya.”
“Brother Evan!”
Lanya’s eyes lit up with hope, as if reinforcements had arrived.
“Help me! That demon mage is—!”
“I know. He’s probably playing the villain again for the world’s sake.”
“Huh?”
Evan placed a hand on Lanya’s shoulder and spoke firmly.
“It’s natural you’d misunderstand him. He’s easy to misread. But soon, you’ll see that everything Christian does is for the world.”
“…”
“Congratulations on joining Christian’s cause.”
Lanya opened her mouth in surprise.
They had known each other for a long time.
Evan was one of the few great people she respected.
So what was with that reaction?
‘Has Brother Evan lost his mind?’
Lanya turned her gaze back to Christian.
“…So what are you planning to do with me? You took in a genius like me as your subordinate, so you must have some big scheme.”
“Not really.”
“…What?”
“You’re too weak right now. Not worth using.”
“!!”
Lanya’s face flushed bright red.
But she had no choice but to stay silent after Christian’s next words.
“You’ve reached seven stars, but your foundation is lacking. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have fallen so easily to my simple trick. To think you call yourself a genius.”
Christian sneered.
“Genius? More like frozen to death.”
“…”
Lanya bit her lip hard.
Her pride was deeply wounded.
‘If you want to provoke Lanya, the best way is to crush her pride.’
When her pride was hurt, she’d flare up with fiery passion.
‘In my past life, she was shocked by my genius and burned with determination.’
In other words, Christian’s mean attitude was entirely for Lanya’s benefit. Really, truly.
“I’m going to teach you how to manipulate reality through phase plane rearrangement, just like I showed you.”
“!!”
“Since I demonstrated it myself, I won’t give you much time. You have to master it within half a year.”
An absurdly short deadline.
But—
“It took me less than a month, but considering you’re a slow learner, half a year should be enough.”
“!!”
Lanya clenched her fists tightly.
“…I will do it. I will master it and humble your arrogance.”
Her pride ignited, so she’d probably manage it in three months.
‘After all, this technique was originally invented by Lanya herself, and I just learned it by following her.’
Christian nodded and turned his back.
He was done here and ready to leave.
But Lanya followed him.
“Why? You’re done here.”
“I can’t leave like this.”
“Hmm?”
“I must stay by your side and show you my greatness.”
Lanya gestured proudly.
“…You mean you’ll help me?”
“Not help. I just want to properly demonstrate my greatness to you! I won’t allow you to think I’m an idiot!”
Lanya shouted with a sour expression, and Christian nodded.
‘Well, it can’t hurt. I need to cause a big incident anyway.’
“Then follow one of my orders. It might be a little difficult.”
“Tell me anything.”
Lanya scoffed, but her eyes widened at Christian’s next words.
“W-wait a minute?”
“What? You said it confidently but now you’re backing out?”
“N-no, it’s not that…”
Lanya’s face turned pale.
“…Are you thinking of rebellion?”
“Why?”
“Why? Because you’re planning to attack the Imperial Palace, aren’t you?!”
Indeed.
Christian’s request was to manipulate the palace’s defense system.
He planned to overturn the Imperial Palace.
After that night’s banquet, the political situation in the Imperial Capital spiraled like a storm.
“Among the three princes, one has allied with the demons?”
“Do you really believe that?”
“But the hero said it himself. It can’t be ignored.”
“Who could it be?”
“Could it be the Second Prince?”
“Are you crazy? The Third Prince is more suspicious.”
“Watch your mouth!”
The capital was in uproar.
Meanwhile, deep within a shadowy chamber far from the public eye, a figure cloaked in robes spoke through a crystal orb.
A ring bearing the royal crest peeked from beneath the robe’s hem, revealing the man was one of the princes.
“What’s going on? The hero caught on?”
[It’s troubling. Even the hero noticed our event at the Demon King’s Castle.]
An astonishing revelation.
One of the princes was indeed in league with the Demon King’s Castle!
“If the hero discovers what you’ve done—”
[Don’t worry. Our Demon King’s Castle leaves no trace.]
“How can you be so sure? The opponent is the hero!”
The man’s voice rose anxiously.
The figure in the crystal orb fell silent for a moment, then spoke coldly.
[How arrogant. Who do you think you’re shouting at?]
“!!”
The man’s face turned pale.
“C-cough?!”
His body trembled violently.
He was cursed.
“P-please… spare me…”
[Do you think being a prince makes you special? Remember, without our blessing, you’re nothing.]
“I-I understand. P-please… cough!”
The man nodded desperately and was finally released.
[Don’t ever be so arrogant in front of me, the Wraith.]
An incredible truth.
The figure beyond the crystal orb was the head of the Cursed Magic faction, the Wraith—a demon mage who had reached the pinnacle of eight stars.
“I-I understand.”
The man looked thoroughly cowed as he stared into the orb.
The voice on the other side spoke calmly again.
[Don’t worry about the hero. We have a simple solution.]
“W-what is it?”
[Hasten your claim to the throne.]
“!!”
The man’s eyes flickered.
“B-but I haven’t received the succession rights yet. The Crown Prince is stubborn.”
[Don’t worry about changing the Crown Prince’s mind. We will intervene. The Crown Prince will kneel before you and hand over the succession.]
The man’s face brightened.
He had used the cursed magic’s power to eliminate or subdue many rivals.
The Crown Prince wouldn’t stand a chance.
[However, directly dealing with the Crown Prince is a heavy burden for our Demon King’s Castle. There is a condition.]
“What condition?”
[If you ascend the throne, use the Imperial Army to strike at the Dark Alliance’s rear.]
“!!”
The man’s eyes hardened.
But he nodded soon after.
Though it would spill much blood, the deaths of a few insignificant soldiers meant nothing to him.
“I will obey your command.”
Thus, a chilling conspiracy began to take shape.
Meanwhile, Christian was—
“…What are you doing?”
“Can’t you tell? I’m resting.”
He was lazily slacking off!
Ruina looked utterly exasperated.
“No, now is not the time to be so carefree! You’re turning the Imperial Capital upside down!”
“So, what’s the deal? We’ve shaken things up enough; it’s time to take a break. Ah, this dessert is delicious. I’ll grab some more. By any chance, can we get some Fire Dream Wine from Hwangdo?”
“That’s a legendary drink—you can’t just get your hands on it! Seriously, this isn’t the time to be so relaxed. The princes’ movements are looking suspicious…”
Ruina, who had been chatting away until then, suddenly fell silent.
She’d caught on to Chris’s real intentions.
“Don’t tell me you’re waiting for the princes to make their move?”
“Bingo.”
Chris nodded.
“I’ve already set the bait. They’ll struggle hard, and when they do, we just swoop in and catch them.”
No one knew exactly what Chris was planning.
But one thing was certain: whatever schemes the princes were plotting, it was all playing right into Chris’s hands.
“By the way, how’s our self-proclaimed genius at the magic tower doing?”
In the corner, Lanya was sprawled out with a messy face, surrounded by large sheets of paper covered in calculations for a magic circle.
Gone was her once-proud demeanor—she looked like a complete wreck.
“Manipulating the royal palace’s duel system might be beyond your reach. I think I overestimated your abilities.”
“Hmph, don’t be ridiculous. I can handle it just fine.”
“I think your sum of the eight formulas for the 5-variable, 7-rank magic circle is off.”
“Ah! Shoot. I knew that too, you know?!”