Chapter 48
Christian let out a dry chuckle.
On the surface, the terms seemed fair—but in reality, they were anything but.
‘Did Eshed say his current level was 4-star? Upper 4-star, even?’
To reach 4-star in your early twenties—that was an extraordinary achievement.
No wonder he was hailed as the greatest prodigy of the Dark Magi in his generation.
At 4-star mastery, the way one wielded magic was on a completely different level. Even using the same amount of magic energy, the power unleashed could be vastly different.
But still—
“Yes, I will do as you say.”
Christian accepted without hesitation.
Did Eshed realize?
That this was exactly the situation Christian had been hoping for?
‘To think I’d catch such a giant fish.’
Christian had deliberately downplayed his own abilities, expecting someone from the main line to challenge him—and planning to deliver a blow in return.
But Eshed? He was the jackpot of jackpots.
Christian fought hard to suppress a smile.
Eshed furrowed his brow, sensing something off.
“Christian, just so you know, if you mishandle the magic during the clash, your core could suffer serious damage.”
A blatant warning: “I’ll destroy your core.”
Christian shot back with the same bluntness.
“Yes, so please be careful yourself, Your Highness. It wouldn’t do if your precious core were damaged.”
“…What?”
Eshed blinked, momentarily stunned.
Then he burst out laughing.
“Alright, I’ll be careful. Hearing you say that only makes me more eager to see just how exceptional your magic really is.”
Despite his hearty laugh, Eshed’s eyes flashed with a cruel, burning rage.
They faced each other, as if about to shake hands.
But their clasped hands were the stage for a magic clash.
“You start. Raise your magic, and I’ll match it with the same amount.”
Christian didn’t hesitate.
He gripped Eshed’s hand first—and summoned his magic.
At first, just 1-star.
Eshed was about to smirk at the weak magic when his expression suddenly stiffened.
He sensed something was wrong.
A primal warning surged down his spine.
He must not face that magic head-on.
The alarm rang loud in his mind—but it was too late.
Christian squeezed harder.
His grip was a masterful technique of the Golden Hand, designed to seize the opponent’s body.
Eshed couldn’t pull away and was forced to raise his magic in response.
Still, perhaps out of pride, he only summoned the same amount Christian had said he would.
1-star magic.
But the moment their magics touched, the impossible happened.
Eshed’s magic shattered into pieces.
No—it wasn’t just shattering.
It was as if a wild beast had torn it apart limb by limb.
‘W-what?’
Eshed’s eyes widened as if they might burst.
He hastily summoned more magic.
2-star.
It was useless.
Christian’s magic was only 1-star, but it crushed Eshed’s 2-star magic like a sandcastle underfoot.
Eshed’s face drained of color.
‘This can’t be. How is this possible?’
Normally, magic clashes were like a tug-of-war, with both sides locked in a fierce struggle.
But this wasn’t a fight at all.
It was like an unstoppable disaster rolling in.
“Brag all you want… but you’re nothing special.”
A sharp, irritating voice cut through.
Christian sneered with unmistakable disdain.
“Is this the best you’ve got? What genius?”
Eshed gritted his teeth.
‘How dare he be so insolent!’
Memories from long ago flashed through his mind.
Back when Christian was hailed as a prodigy.
Eshed had been considered the most brilliant young talent among the Dark Magi.
But the moment Christian appeared from a branch family, that title had shifted to him.
—A prodigy who might surpass Eshed himself.
Eshed couldn’t bear the insult.
He had secretly plotted to bring Christian down.
A despicable move—but after all, a branch family was nothing more than a lowly footstool beneath him.
No hesitation.
And now, that lowly upstart had the nerve to glare at him with defiance.
‘Arrogant fool. I’ll crush you completely this time.’
Eshed’s eyes gleamed with murderous fury.
Contrary to their agreement, he summoned all of his 4-star magic.
Whoosh!
A fierce surge of magic erupted from Eshed’s core.
If the earlier magic was a small tributary, this was a raging ocean wave crashing toward Christian.
A force incomparable to Christian’s 2-star magic.
“Th-this…!”
The retainers murmured anxiously.
They didn’t fully understand what was happening between the two.
All they knew was that Eshed had unleashed 4-star magic, and Christian was in grave danger.
As everyone braced for Christian’s downfall, he thought quietly to himself:
‘Bingo.’
A wider smile spread across his lips.
An unexpected, incredible opportunity.
‘He’s practically handing me his neck to slit. I couldn’t be more grateful.’
Christian planned to deal as much damage as possible to Eshed’s core this time.
If Eshed had stuck to 2-star magic as promised, the damage would have been limited.
With a small amount of magic, Eshed could have retreated before suffering fatal harm.
But now, Eshed had gone all out, creating the perfect opening.
In a magic clash, once you summon your full power, you can’t back down halfway.
Eshed was trapped.
Of course, so was Christian—but the outcome was already decided.
Boom!
Their magics collided.
Eshed at 4-star.
Christian, only 1-star—and not even at full strength.
Yet Christian’s 1-star magic did not falter against Eshed’s 4-star.
Instead, Eshed’s magic wavered, struggling under the pressure, beginning to scatter.
Eshed’s face twisted in disbelief.
“An idiot who thinks he’s so great.”
Christian’s mocking voice rang out.
Eshed had no reply.
Christian had now summoned his full power.
Upper 2-star magic.
Though the level was 2-star upper, Christian had absorbed ebony with perfect efficiency, boosting the amount of magic far beyond 3-star.
As the flood of magic intensified, Eshed finally began to feel the purity of Christian’s dark magic.
‘Over 70%? No… could it be 80%? No, even more? This can’t be…’
It was pure—so pure it was terrifying.
But that wasn’t all.
Christian’s magic was cunning.
It didn’t just tear Eshed’s magic apart like before.
It coiled around Eshed’s magic like a serpent, trapping it.
Then, as if swallowing it whole, Christian’s magic devoured Eshed’s.
Eshed’s magic vanished, consumed like prey in a snake’s jaws.
As a result, the blood vessels leading to Eshed’s core were left completely empty.
‘No, this can’t be.’
Eshed’s face turned deathly pale as he sensed the impending catastrophe.
He desperately gathered his remaining magic to shield his core—but it was no use.
Christian’s magic surged straight into Eshed’s core.
“Gah!!”
“Your Highness Eshed?!”
With a single strike, Eshed spat a mouthful of blood.
His core had taken a massive hit.
But Christian didn’t stop.
‘This chance won’t come again.’
He knew all too well how low Eshed would stoop if left unchecked.
He had to clip his wings now.
But then, interference.
“Enough!!”
It was Marquis Langham.
Not just a shout.
Langham’s aura surged through the air like a storm.
A manifested force of a 7-star magic user.
If Christian didn’t withdraw immediately, he would suffer a fatal blow.
‘Cowardly.’
But Christian had anticipated this.
Instead of attacking the core again, he chose another tactic.
As he withdrew his magic—
Bang!
He created a vibration.
A delicate art, matching the magic waves of the opponent’s core with his own.
The fierce resonance shook Eshed’s core violently.
Eshed coughed up more blood and collapsed, unconscious.
“Your Highness Eshed!!”
“What are you doing?! Get a healer here at once!!”
The retainers panicked.
Eshed was swiftly carried away by healers who appeared like a gust of wind.
“What… what just happened?”
The retainers stared wide-eyed at Christian.
Something impossible had occurred.
Marquis Langham approached, his gaze cold and sharp.
“…Christian, you.”
His voice was filled with unmistakable anger.
But Christian stood tall, unbowed.
There was no reason to yield.
‘Bowing won’t earn me any favors.’
“I apologize for what just happened. I never imagined Your Highness Eshed would be unable to withstand even that.”
“!!”
“More than anything else—”
Christian glanced around.
He caught the horrified looks of the retainers watching him.
They couldn’t believe what they had just witnessed.
He needed to turn those gazes into awe directed at himself.
Only then could he claim the Dark Magi.
He took a decisive step toward that goal.
“This Magi is rough,” he said.
The entire hall held its breath.
From Christian’s hand, the Magi began to flow forth.
Endlessly dark.
Pure darkness, untainted by a single speck.
For the first time ever, a Dark Magi of perfect purity was revealed before everyone’s eyes.
“This should be enough proof that I’m superior to the other nobles,” he declared.
The hall sank into a deathly silence.
No one dared utter a word.
The shock was that profound.
The moment Christian—the so-called reckless outcast—shattered the very foundation of the Dark Magi.
A Dark Magi of flawless purity!
The Dark Magi world was turned upside down.
“Ninety percent purity?”
“Not just ninety percent—higher than that!”
“That’s impossible. That outcast?!”
At first, disbelief rippled through the crowd.
It was simply too incredible to accept.
But there were too many witnesses.
And Christian’s shockwaves didn’t end there.
“Are you saying he truly defeated the other young nobles, including the Elder Lord, by his own skill during the Holy Black Ceremony?”
“Yes. Lord Alos of the Tiramain Count family testified—there was no trickery involved.”
The events of the Holy Black Ceremony were being reexamined.
“Prince Eshed was defeated in the Magi clash?”
The mages spoke as if they couldn’t believe it.