Episode 63
So, she could have tampered with the antidote, but—
‘No way. That can’t be.’
It was unthinkable.
There was no way that person would do something like that.
“Well, whatever. I’ll kill you all.”
Clang!
The masked woman drew her weapon.
A bundle of long needles.
She intended to annihilate the expedition team using the poison mage’s signature assassination technique.
“You won’t take me down that easily.”
Jupien leveled her sword.
A dark shimmer rose from her blade, clouding the vision.
It was the Phantom Sword Technique.
Swish!
The fierce battle began.
Surprisingly, the fight didn’t end quickly.
For one, Jupien’s skill was no joke.
Though she had been defeated by Chris in a previous encounter, she was still a princess of the Dark Mage clan.
Her power far exceeded that of an ordinary third-rank warrior.
More importantly, the masked woman wasn’t even using half of her strength.
‘What a nuisance. If I used my true assassination technique, I could wipe them out in an instant.’
But that would leave traces.
She had to rely solely on the level of poison and assassination skills that only ‘Marisa’ used.
Still, the balance didn’t last long.
Even if she held back, a fifth-rank was still a fifth-rank.
A tiger pretending to be a cat doesn’t lose to a cat.
“Ugh!”
Bang!
The needles sliced through Jupien’s phantom images with a sharp tearing sound.
She coughed up blood.
“This power… You’re not Marisa.”
The masked woman smiled.
“What does it matter? You’re all going to die here anyway.”
Swish!
More needles flew.
Jupien barely dodged, but the other expedition members weren’t so lucky.
One by one, they collapsed to the ground.
The situation was desperate.
At this rate, the outcome was clear: total annihilation.
‘I have to make a move.’
Jupien’s eyes darkened.
Magic energy surged along her core.
The masked woman’s face stiffened as she sensed the complex magic intertwining.
Darkness swallowed the vision.
Nothing was visible.
Jupien’s sword split.
One blade, two blades… four, eight, sixteen.
The secret Phantom Sword Technique of the Dark Mage clan: “Dividing Blades.”
The higher the rank, the more blades could be created exponentially.
At Jupien’s level, sixteen was the limit.
But that didn’t mean it was to be taken lightly.
The illusions were indistinguishable.
And if you can’t tell the difference, you can’t ignore any of them—they were all equally threatening.
“Die.”
Suppressing the boiling energy within, Jupien swung her swords.
Sixteen blades struck simultaneously from sixteen different angles.
An unavoidable attack.
“!!”
The masked woman frowned.
She instinctively knew that with her third-rank strength, she couldn’t counter this attack.
There was only one option.
The needles in her hand darkened to black.
She manifested a black sword from the needles.
But it didn’t stop there.
The black sword’s nature transformed.
It became harder, more radiant.
It wasn’t just magic energy shaped into a blade.
It was as if a sturdy pillar had been embedded, imbued with an unyielding will that crushed all resistance.
Sword Steel.
Known as Aura in the Alliance, and Black Steel Energy in the Mage world.
A destructive power wielded only by true masters who have reached fifth rank or higher.
The moment she swung the Black Steel Energy, everything shattered.
The illusion of sixteen blades.
The darkness that consumed the vision.
Even Jupien’s swords.
Jupien dropped her broken blades and knelt, coughing up blood.
“Now, just die.”
The masked woman said coldly.
The darkness-shrouded needles sliced through the air.
Aimed precisely at Jupien’s forehead.
‘Ah… no.’
There was no way to dodge.
Jupien’s vision darkened with terror as she sensed death approaching.
‘I don’t want to die.’
Though she tried to appear strong, she was still a young girl—unable to face death calmly.
‘Please… someone save me…’
At the moment she whispered this meaningless wish, an unbelievable miracle happened.
Boom!!
With a deafening explosion like a bomb going off, the needles were blasted away.
Jupien’s eyes widened in shock.
Before her stood a boy.
Beautiful features.
Yet an incredibly irritating expression.
It was Christian.
The hall fell silent.
Everyone stared at Christian in disbelief.
He shrugged and said lightly,
“You’re late. The hero always makes a grand entrance, so I took my time.”
That wasn’t really the reason.
He had been waiting for the masked woman to reveal her true power.
Why?
To have proof.
Now that so many had witnessed her Black Steel Energy, she couldn’t deny it.
Christian glanced at the fallen Dark Mage minions and smirked.
“You got utterly crushed. Should’ve trained harder. Here, some medicine. I found it on the way, so take it.”
He snapped his fingers and tossed the medicine toward Jupien and the fallen minions.
Jupien caught it, her face full of surprise.
The medicine radiated a mysterious, pure energy.
It was unmistakably from the Uiseon Noble House.
So it really was Christian who had swapped the antidote!
“You… gave us the Uiseon Noble House’s antidote?”
Christian nodded as if to confirm.
“I suspected those poison mages would resort to dirty tricks. So I bought the Uiseon Noble House’s medicine in advance at the Dark Auction and swapped it out.”
‘Well, technically I just got the ingredients and made it myself,’ Jupien thought, clamping her mouth shut.
The other minions realized the same.
From their armored stance at Baron Castle before the mission to all the reckless acts they’d witnessed—it was all a deep strategy to thwart the poison mage’s conspiracy.
They had only been criticizing Christian without knowing this, and now no one could find words to say.
At that moment, the masked woman spoke coldly.
“…So you’re the Dark Mage’s rogue. Clever, but foolish.”
Clang!
This time, she drew a dagger.
“If you saw the Black Steel Energy, you should have run. I’ll kill you here too.”
Darkness thickened again.
A destructive power far beyond the black sword.
‘No doubt I have no chance against a fifth-rank warrior.’
Whether warrior or mage, each rank brings explosive growth in power.
From first to fourth rank, the changes are less dramatic.
First rank: magic energy accumulation.
Second rank: magic energy manifestation.
Third rank: black sword.
Fourth rank: black sword transformation.
But from fifth rank onward, it’s like shedding a skin—dramatic changes occur.
Fifth rank: Steel Energy.
Sixth rank: Willpower.
Seventh rank: Domination.
Eighth rank: Absoluteness.
Ninth rank: Transcendence.
At these levels, the gap is so vast that lower ranks can hardly contend with higher ones.
No matter how talented Christian was, he couldn’t bridge that gap.
Yet he still wore a calm expression.
“Foolish.”
“…What?”
“Well, that’s why you tried such a cheap trick. Do you think a genius like me would enter a fight I can’t win?”
Christian never fought losing battles.
Or rather, his specialty was turning impossible fights into victories.
“Watch.”
Then.
From the opposite side of the canyon, a group appeared.
Dark Mage minions!
“Christian!”
A furious shout came from a girl leading them—Marisa.
‘Perfect timing.’
Christian whistled inwardly.
He had deliberately lured the Dark Mage minions to this place, timing it so Marisa would come to the rescue.
Thanks to the signal magic device he’d taken from Marisa, it was easy.
“Christian, I won’t let you get away…!!”
Marisa was so angry that her usual calm, intellectual demeanor vanished, replaced by a charging fury like an enraged bull.
But then she suddenly stopped.
The situation was strange.
“What is this…? My poison?”
Marisa looked around, bewildered.
The Dark Mage minions lay defeated, and the lingering traces of her independently developed ‘Blue Flower’ poison filled the air.
And the masked woman?
“…….”
Under Marisa’s gaze, the masked woman looked troubled and covered her face with her hand.
The worst possible scenario had unfolded.
The one person she must never face here was the Dark Mage minions—especially Marisa.
That was why she had deliberately come near the Dark Mage territory to carry out her plan.
“…Who are you?”
Marisa asked in a low, cold voice.
“You must be one of the Dark Mage’s minions. State your name and affiliation.”
“…….”
The masked woman naturally gave no answer.
Marisa’s expression grew even colder.
At that moment, Christian sneered.
“What are you asking? She’s probably a traitor to your clan anyway.”
“!!”
“Her goal is obvious.”
Marisa immediately guessed the truth.
‘She’s trying to steal the relic. And frame me for it.’
A near certainty.
Marisa ground her teeth and ordered,
“Everyone, subdue her and force her to kneel!”
“Yes, ma’am!”
The Dark Mage minions charged at the masked woman.
‘This is bad.’
The masked woman looked troubled as she faced them.
She was different from when she fought the Dark Mage minions before.
It wasn’t that she hesitated because they were from the same clan.
The members of the renowned magic family didn’t share such tender bonds.
“If I use my unique poison or the Black River Technique, my identity will be exposed.”
The masked woman gritted her teeth.
When facing dark magic users, she subtly infused her own secret techniques into her basic poisons and shadow magic.
Though she mimicked a third-rank spell, its power was practically on par with a fifth-rank.
But the poison magic users would recognize it instantly.
She couldn’t reveal any trace that might give her away—fighting while binding one hand and one foot was no different.
Exactly as Chris had intended.
And Chris wielded a dirty trick that any magic user would despise.
A broken holy sword.
Chaaang!
The masked woman dared not underestimate it and hastily retreated, narrowly dodging the blade.
At that moment, Marisa and Chris locked eyes.
“…You.”
“What? Gonna tell me to apologize again?”
“No, it’s not that.”
Marisa hesitated, biting her lip as if she wanted to say something, but then shut her mouth with a complicated look.
“…Never mind.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. Cover me. I’ll take her down.”
Taking down a fifth-rank magic user.
Even with her claws tied, a tiger is still a tiger—it sounded impossible.
But Chris was determined.
It’s possible.
Everything was unfolding according to his plan.
If it went on like this, it could be done.
Chris pressed the masked woman with fierce momentum.
The holy sword was definitely a cheat code.
The masked woman couldn’t dare face it head-on and was forced to keep dodging.
But that wasn’t all—Marisa’s shadow magic supported Chris.
From the blind spots, poisoned needles and throwing stars flew through the air.
“Damn it.”
The masked woman grew increasingly anxious.
She’s only a third-rank under normal circumstances—what’s with these moves?
It wasn’t just the holy sword that was troublesome.
Chris anticipated every move the masked woman made and countered flawlessly.