Chapter 1440: The Drawing of Fates
The Drawing of Fates
Redrick was led through the Central Academy grounds by one of their teachers, his steps echoing faintly as they moved away from the main event area. Their destination was a separate building, a broad, high-roofed structure that resembled a magical sports hall.
From the outside, it looked grand enough to host a full tournament. But when they stepped inside, Redrick immediately noticed the difference: the place wasn’t open to the public. The stands were empty, the floor polished but unused, and the lighting was set low. Whatever this meeting was about, it wasn’t meant for spectators.
Five people had been called here in total, Redrick included, and as his eyes swept the room, he recognized four other teachers from various academies. One of them represented the Central Academy itself. Yet aside from them, the hall was silent and bare.
It didn’t take long before quiet murmurs began to pass between the teachers. None of them seemed to know why they had been gathered.
“Hey,” a voice called, breaking Redrick’s idle scanning. The speaker was a male teacher from BIMM Academy, leaning casually against one of the lower stands. “I wanted to ask, what’s Wilton been doing this year to bring in such talented students? The only reason Lee Roy’s with us and not the Central Academy is because of his… let’s just say special relationship with our principal.
“But you guys?” He gave a half-smile. “For you to pull off what you have? It’s incredible. You don’t happen to have some secret deal with another land, raising mages in secret, do you?”
Redrick gave a small chuckle, shaking his head. He didn’t even know how to begin answering a question like that, though, fortunately, he didn’t have to. The sound of footsteps drew every gaze forward.
From the far side of the hall, the Grand Magus himself walked toward the stage.
As he ascended the platform, a magical device behind him flickered to life, projecting an enormous image onto the wall. Scenes from the past year’s battles filled the space, sparks of magic flying, bursts of light and elemental energy colliding, warriors clashing in moments of fierce spectacle.
By the time Ibarin reached the center of the stage, the teachers were watching him in silence. It wasn’t just the students who looked up to him. Even among seasoned mages, his presence demanded attention.
“It’s a pleasure,” Ibarin began, his voice carrying easily in the quiet hall, “to meet those who are shaping the next generation of mages. I imagine some of you are wondering why I’ve called you here, especially with several hours still left before today’s event begins.” His expression softened into something almost reassuring. “Worry not, no one is in trouble. This meeting is entirely about the event itself.”
The display behind him shifted again. This time, ten faces appeared, each one crisp and unmistakable. The teachers immediately understood. These were the ten students chosen to take part in today’s singles matches.
“This year,” Ibarin continued, “we’ve decided to change things up. Each academy is allowed to put forward two students instead of one. We also have, within our ranks, some of the finest healer mages not only in the academy, but perhaps in the world. That means we can afford to push the limits and give the audience a greater spectacle than ever before.”
His tone deepened, his gaze sharp. “However, there is an issue. Depending on the match-ups, a mage could be placed against an opponent who has an overwhelming elemental advantage. In those cases, the fights might feel… less than fair.”
“So,” Ibarin said, his tone shifting into something almost playful, “to build excitement, I wish to invite all of you here today to personally determine the opponents for your students’ matches.”
He tapped his foot lightly against the stage floor. A magical ripple spread outward, and in the center of the hall, a strange circular object shimmered into existence. Inside, ten glowing spheres floated, drifting in constant, hypnotic motion.
“These balls are numbered from one to five,” Ibarin explained. “Two of each number. The rule is simple, the teachers who draw the same number will have their chosen students face each other. Once you pick a number, you must immediately declare which student from your academy will be assigned to it. This, I believe, is the fairest method possible. And so there is no suspicion of anything happening behind the scenes… I have invited you all to witness, and participate, together.”
Murmurs passed through the teachers. This was unusual. In all the years of the event, nothing like this had ever been done before. The Central Academy had never needed such theatrics; no one in their right mind suspected them of manipulating results. Why would they?
After all, the outcome had always been the same. Year after year, the Central Academy’s representatives dominated every match. Last year’s champion had been particularly brutal, fighting through four opponents from the other academies in succession and still winning decisively at the end.
Traditionally, the event followed a tournament format, narrowing down to two finalists who would face each other for the title. This… was different. A reshuffle of the rules. Still, given the strange circumstances surrounding this year’s gathering, perhaps they truly did just want to change things up.
“Alright,” Ibarin said at last, scanning the group. His gaze settled on one person. “Since the star of the show so far has been from Wilton Academy… why doesn’t Wilton’s representative come up first?”
Redrick blinked, caught off guard. “Me?” He hadn’t expected to be singled out so soon. If they wanted to add this kind of twist, it might have been more exciting to do it on stage during the actual event, in front of the crowd. But perhaps there was a reason for doing it behind closed doors.
Still, if it was just a matter of picking numbers, there was little harm in playing along.
Stepping forward, Redrick approached the strange circular device. The surface was cool beneath his fingertips as he reached into the shimmering sphere. The balls inside seemed to dance away from his grasp at first, as though testing him, before one finally rolled into his palm.
He pulled it free. The number glowed faintly in his hand.
“One,” Redrick announced.
A hush settled briefly over the group as he looked toward Ibarin. “For this…” He gave his answer without hesitation. “I pick the student, Raze.”
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Chapter 1441: Mana Overflow
Mana Overflow
“Oh, very interesting,” Ibarin remarked, his eyes narrowing just slightly in curiosity. “I don’t believe we’ve yet seen the two students you’ve selected showcase their skills in this event. Could it be that you’re holding back a special trump card?”
Redrick responded with a polite bow, the gesture one of respect toward the Grand Magus standing before him. When he straightened, there was a faint, confident smile on his lips.
“I suppose we’ll see in a few hours,” he said. “They won’t be a secret for long. And I imagine it’s the same for the Central Academy, isn’t it?”
He glanced toward the large display behind Ibarin. The two chosen from the Central Academy stood out immediately, George, whose gravitational powers had already drawn attention earlier in the event, and Kayzel.
Even among the teachers from the other academies, Kayzel’s name was known. His background was unique enough that his participation alone was a point of interest.
“As they say, save the best for last,” Ibarin said smoothly. “Remember, however, that there are still the group stages to consider. Fighting as part of a team is a very different challenge from fighting one-on-one. And of course…” His lips curved faintly. “…we have the special teachers’ event.”
Once again, Redrick inclined his head in a respectful bow as he stepped down from the stage. He couldn’t help but be a little surprised. For someone of Ibarin’s stature, and considering the underlying tension between them, the Grand Magus was speaking to him far more than he would have expected.
“I hope,” Redrick said as he moved to leave, “that we’ll have a chance to see the Grand Magus display his skills. That would be quite the show.”
Ibarin’s expression shifted, becoming almost dismissive. “Unfortunately, I refrain from participating in these events. I prefer to keep my two positions separate, and it would be unfair to involve myself directly. This isn’t an event about the Grand Magus, it’s about the academies.”
One by one, the other teachers stepped forward to select their numbers. As the matches began to take shape, a pattern emerged. Nearly every participant from the other academies was someone who had competed in the previous event, paired alongside a second student who was new to the competition.
The most notable selection was from Lunaton Academy, a student who had already impressed spectators by transforming into different animals during an earlier demonstration. His chosen opponent was another with the rare ability to change into various animal forms, making that match one of the more unpredictable pairings.
For the Central Academy’s remaining selections, the numbers drawn ensured they would face students from other academies rather than anyone from Wilton.
But the way the event was structured meant one thing was clear: if Wilton’s competitors won their matches and the Central Academy’s competitors did the same, the finals could very well feature not one, but two high-stakes singles matches, pitting Wilton Academy and the Central Academy directly against each other.
The event rules were simple: students from the same academy would never be matched against each other. That wasn’t the point of the competition. If a teacher drew a number already assigned to someone from their academy, it had to be placed back into the container and drawn again.
Now, only two balls remained in the swirling device, and they were clearly a pair, marked with the same number. That meant there was no mystery about the final match-up.
Lee Roy, one of the strongest contenders in the entire event, would be facing Liam, a competitor no one seemed to know anything about.
The teachers leaned forward slightly, their earlier formal composure giving way to a spark of anticipation. This match, they imagined, might prove to be the most exciting of the day, not because they expected an even fight, but because Liam was such an unknown.
Wilton Academy had been surprising everyone, match after match. Still, in the eyes of most here, the Central Academy losing seemed almost impossible. Nearly every academy in the world had shifted its training focus toward combat magic, and the Central Academy had perfected that approach over years.
In truth, Lee Roy was perhaps the only one they believed might have the skill to claim a victory over one of Wilton’s chosen representatives.
“Although we already know who the last two will be,” Ibarin said, his voice carrying across the room, “for the sake of ceremony… why don’t you come to the stage and pull out the final number?” His eyes turned toward Redrick.
If this was simply to wrap things up, Redrick was happy to oblige. Stepping up onto the stage again, he approached the large oval container. The surface shimmered faintly as he reached inside, the two remaining balls shifting lazily within the magical field.
And then,
The projected images on the massive screen above began to flicker. At first it was subtle, like a momentary distortion in a mirror, but the effect quickly grew more violent. The visuals dimmed, then flared, glowing far brighter than they should have.
At the same time, the magical devices scattered throughout the hall, the ones powering the special effects, began to hum with an unnatural intensity. Runes etched into their surfaces lit up one by one, feeding on mana at an alarming rate.
“Is that… an overflow of mana?!” one of the teachers shouted, alarm etched across his face. “It’s happening to all of them! Get down from there, it’s going to blow!”
But the warning came too late.
In the space of a heartbeat, every device surged to its peak, mana erupting outward in a blinding flash of light. The shockwave followed instantly, a deafening BOOM that tore through the air. The roof of the building split apart, fragments raining down as the explosion rolled outward.
The burst of mana was so strong that students elsewhere on the academy grounds felt it, a pulse in the air, a prickling along the skin. Heads turned toward the source, eyes narrowing in alarm.
Teachers and staff rushed toward the scene, forming a perimeter within moments. Spells were cast, walls of magic erected to block both the view and the approach of curious onlookers. The smell of smoke hung heavy in the air.
“What was that?” Liam asked, his gaze fixed on the distant column of smoke curling upward into the sky.
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Chapter 1442: The Warning They Ignored
The sudden blast had come from somewhere within the event grounds. It wasn’t deafening enough for the noise to roll across every corner of the venue, but the sharp tremor in the air was unmistakable for anyone close by. The ground itself had given a faint shiver, enough to set a few loose decorations swaying. Those nearby paused mid-step, glancing toward the source with alarm in their eyes.
Word began to spread quickly, whispers turning to quiet speculation. The story changed with every retelling, but the tone remained the same: something had gone wrong. A small crowd began to form, drawn by the pull of curiosity and the low buzz of conversation.
Raze stood at the window of his room, his gaze fixed in the direction of the disturbance. The sunlight caught the sharp angle of his expression.
It could be nothing, he told himself, though the thought carried little conviction. But knowing who’s involved in all this, it’s better if I see for myself.
By the time he stepped outside, the rest of the Wilton Academy students had already gathered, the two teachers walking with them. They kept their masks on, each face hidden beneath the crafted disguises, as they moved as one group toward the growing commotion.
They weren’t the only ones making their way over. Students from other academies were converging on the area with their own teachers in tow. None of them, however, were being allowed close to the scene.
Four staff members stood in a half-circle about ten meters from the damaged building, their bodies forming a human wall in front of a strange barrier. The barrier shimmered with a swirl of shifting colors, blues, purples, and greens chasing each other across its surface. It reminded Raze faintly of a portal, though without the violent pulse of energy. This was more controlled, yet still unstable, like oil floating over water.
The staff stood tense, eyes on the crowd, their stances making it clear that no one was getting past without permission.
“We advise everyone to continue enjoying their time at the venue!” one of the staff members called out, his voice carrying over the murmur of the crowd. “Due to the current incident, for your safety, it is best if you stay away from this area.”
The words didn’t have the intended effect. Instead of dispersing, the crowd only leaned forward, craning necks to see more. Curiosity was a stronger pull than caution, and more guests drifted toward the commotion from other parts of the venue.
“What do you think happened here?” Liam asked, his voice low but tight with interest.
“Looks like some kind of accident,” Beatrix said, though her eyes stayed fixed on the barrier, scanning for details.
“Man, if it is,” Yolden added with a smirk, “the Central Academy really can’t catch a break, huh? If something blew up here by accident, that’s not exactly the kind of ’perfect reputation’ they like to brag about.”
Several nearby guests nodded in agreement. It was exactly the thought on their minds, Central Academy’s polished image had already taken a few dents, and this would only add to the whispers.
Fortunately, the building that had been affected wasn’t one the public could freely access. There had been no scheduled events there, so theoretically, no one should have been hurt.
At least, that’s what they assumed.
“Oh, you’re the two teachers from Wilton, right?”
The voice came from a staff member wearing the BIMM Academy badge. She approached quickly, her expression tight. “I was inside just moments ago. I wanted to let you know, I think Redrick is still in there, and he might be hurt!”
“What?!” Panla’s head snapped toward her, alarm clear in her tone.
For an instant, the Wilton group wondered if she meant Raze, disguised as Redrick. But with Safa standing with them in plain view, she shook her head, it had to be the real Redrick.
They listened intently as the teacher described the situation. On the other side of the barrier, healers were already working on Redrick, with Ibarin present as well. They were doing their best to stabilize him.
“How could an accident like that have happened?” Luka muttered, frowning deeply.
“I don’t think it was an accident,” another voice cut in.
The group turned toward the sound, and saw Raze striding toward them, mask gone. His face was fully exposed, and several students from other academies recognized him instantly.
“You think he’s strong?” Bones muttered under his breath.
“It doesn’t matter,” Kayzel replied dismissively. “He wasn’t the first-ranked student. The only one we were told to watch for, we already dealt with. So they’re nothing.”
Raze ignored the remarks entirely. From the facts as they’d been presented, only one conclusion made sense: Redrick was the only one injured, and Ibarin had been nearby. That was no coincidence.
“Come with me,” Raze said simply. “With Safa, we should be able to heal him.”
The Pagna students didn’t hesitate, they fell in behind him immediately. The teachers, however, hung back, staying with the others in the crowd.
“Are they going to be okay?” Chiba asked softly, her eyes following Raze. “I’m worried they might cause a problem.”
When Raze reached the barrier, the four staff members immediately stepped forward to block him.
“Stop! Students are not authorized to pass,” one said firmly, planting himself in the center of the path.
“Our teacher is on the other side,” Raze replied, his voice calm but edged with steel. “And we have someone who can help.”
The Wilton students exchanged a look, then, in perfect unison, removed their masks. Gasps rippled through the onlookers as their faces were revealed.
“I’m telling you now,” Raze said, his tone low but unyielding, “we’re going through.”
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Chapter 1443: Breaking the Barrier
The reaction from the crowd was instant, and impressed.
For days now, guests and competitors alike had been wondering where the Wilton Academy students had been hiding themselves. Some had even speculated they were simply sitting out the preliminary events, lying low in their dorms until the real competition began.
Now those theories vanished in a heartbeat.
The crowd could see them clearly, all of them wearing identical, ornate masks, items that concealed their identities completely. The surface of each mask shimmered faintly, the runes carved into them pulsing with a subtle magical rhythm.
“Oh, that’s quite the enchanted item they’ve got,” one voice murmured. “I wonder if they prepared those in advance.”
“It has to be,” another replied. “You think you can just find an enchanter who can work like that? Even at the Central Academy, they’d struggle.”
Now that the Wilton students had revealed themselves, Raze had expected the staff to take it as a sign of good faith, to recognize who they were and grant them entry to the other side of the barrier. But instead, the staff members merely smiled in that practiced, dismissive way.
“We have orders not to let anyone through,” one said flatly. “You must understand, it’s quite useless for you to try. You’ll only get in the way.”
The man’s tone was patronizing, his gaze sweeping over the Wilton students as though they were children playing dress-up.
“We already have the best healers in the Central Academy working on it,” he continued. “Do you really think a student could do anything about the situation?”
The choice of words made the surrounding guests stiffen. Up until now, most had only assumed there might be someone injured on the other side of the barrier. The staff member had just confirmed it.
For Raze, that was all he needed to hear.
If Redrick is hurt, there’s a chance it’s because of me, he thought grimly. Maybe something I did when I met Ibarin earlier annoyed him. If Redrick is badly injured, if his life is at risk, and the Central Academy healers are anything like the ones who couldn’t treat Piba and Moze… then I doubt they’ll be able to do much for him. That’s assuming they’re even trying.
His decision was instant.
“I’m telling you now, we’re going to see our teacher,” Raze said, his voice carrying across the space as he stepped forward.
The nearest staff member moved to block him, but Raze didn’t slow. He pushed past, his shoulder brushing the man aside.
“Hey! What do you think you’re doing? I already warned you!” the staff member barked. Flames flickered to life in his hand, growing into a concentrated sphere of heat. He brought his arm back, preparing to launch it directly at Raze.
But before the spell could fire, Raze turned on his heel. His hand shot out, seizing the mage’s wrist in an iron grip. In one smooth motion, he forced the arm upward, the fireball shot harmlessly into the air, bursting into embers against the open sky.
The move didn’t end there. Raze’s boot slammed into the ground, and ice magic rippled outward from the point of impact. Frost raced over the ground beneath the mage’s feet, snaring his legs. With a sharp pull, the man’s balance broke and he crashed onto his back. The ice climbed higher in an instant, sealing around his lower body and locking his arms against the frozen surface. He struggled, but the bindings held firm.
The other three staff members reacted fast, moving in to surround Raze.
They didn’t make it.
Beatrix spun on her heel, slamming her shoulder into the first one and driving him to the ground with enough force to leave him dazed.
Liam’s sword materialized in his hand in a blink. He sliced through the glowing threads of a spell mid-cast, the magical energy unraveling like severed silk. In the same motion, he angled his blade so its edge hovered at another man’s neck, forcing him to freeze in place.
Dame met the third head-on. He hooked the man’s arm, yanked him forward, and drove a brutal headbutt into the back of his skull. The staff member crumpled instantly, groaning before going still.
It all happened in seconds. Three moves. Four opponents down.
The crowd erupted into murmurs, the sound tinged with disbelief.
“They just… took out all of the teachers,” Nannan breathed. “Teachers from the Central Academy.”
“Not just that,” George added, eyes wide. “Apart from that Raze guy, I’m not even sure any of them used magic.”
While most onlookers were stunned by the display, Kayzel was watching something else. He noticed that when the teachers had gone for Raze, the young mage hadn’t even glanced back. It was as though he’d been certain the others would cover him, completely confident no harm would come his way.
“Are these people crazy?” Lee Roy said, folding his arms. “Maybe they got the jump on them because no one expected anyone to attack Academy staff… but they just assaulted members of the Central Academy. I doubt the Academy’s going to let that slide.”
The question was, who was going to punish them?
The Central Academy teachers standing with their own students made no move to intervene. Some of them shifted uncomfortably, as though weighing the risk. In the back of their minds, they couldn’t help but imagine the embarrassment of trying to stop the Wilton group… and failing in front of everyone.
Raze didn’t slow. With Safa at his side, he reached the barrier. Placing his hand against its swirling surface, he pushed. Magic flared in response, parting just enough to create a narrow opening. He and Safa stepped through, and in the next heartbeat, the breach sealed behind them, cutting off the view from the outside.
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Chapter 1444: Breaking the Grand Magus’s Composure
Raze had torn through the barrier in mere moments, a feat that would have taken most others, even some of the staff members, several minutes just to figure out.
And not only had he broken through, but immediately after stepping inside, he had… adjusted it. Released wasn’t quite the right word. He hadn’t dispelled it completely; rather, he had temporarily shattered a section, slipped through, and then allowed the spell to resume its function as if nothing had happened.
Everyone watching, students from other academies, staff members, and onlookers alike, was beginning to realize something. The boy with the stark white hair might just be the one to watch out for in the singles event… and perhaps in the group event scheduled for the following day as well.
It was starting to feel like Wilton Academy still had a trump card they hadn’t revealed until now.
When Raze and Safa stepped through to the other side, the sight that met them was enough to stop anyone in their tracks. Part of the building had been destroyed.
The front wall had a massive hole in it, as if someone had hurled a fireball straight through. From the reports he’d heard, Raze could picture the other staff members having only seconds to react, throwing up defensive spells just in time to shield themselves from the brunt of the blast. That would explain why they were unharmed… at least physically.
As for Redrick, the story was different.
From what Raze had gathered, Redrick had been standing right on stage, practically next to the malfunctioning equipment when the mana overflow had occurred. Only the very best of mages, or someone who had been expecting it, could have reacted in time. That fact alone gave Raze even more reason to suspect a certain someone.
Outside, lying on the ground, Redrick had been moved into the open air. Two Light mages were crouched beside him, working desperately. His skin was scorched, patches of it blackened. His body bore the deep marks of impact, and his clothes were tattered and singed to the point that most of them barely clung to him.
He wasn’t just injured, he was in terrible shape.
So much so that the Light mages seemed to be doing little more than easing his pain for now.
But it wasn’t Redrick that Raze focused on the most, it was the man standing over him.
Ibarin.
The moment Raze spotted him, Ibarin’s head lifted, his sharp gaze narrowing as he registered the newcomers. His voice carried a note of displeasure as he spoke, clearly recalling that he’d given explicit orders for no one to enter this area.
“That’s… Safa… and another student from Wilton Academy?” he muttered, already starting toward them.
“I’m sorry,” Ibarin said when he reached them, his tone clipped. “But no unauthorised personnel are permitted beyond this point. This is not something students should be seeing. How did you get in here? Who was it that let you through?”
The question wasn’t just for them, Raze could tell. Ibarin was already wondering which fool on his staff he’d have to deal with once this mess was over.
“We found out that it was our own teacher who had been injured,” Raze said evenly. Since he hadn’t prepared Safa for how to handle Ibarin without provoking him, he stepped in before she could speak, taking control of the conversation.
“So,” he continued, “we politely asked those outside if we could come in. After all, with Safa’s healing abilities, and her God Eyes, she might be able to do something.”
For a brief moment, Ibarin’s jaw tightened. That single flicker of movement told Raze more than words could. Now, Ibarin clearly wanted to know which fool had allowed the two of them to get past the barrier.
“As I said before,” Ibarin replied, his tone firm, “I don’t believe it’s wise for either of you to be here. I assure you, we have the best mages tending to this.”
But Raze didn’t slow down. What had started as a conversation was now turning into a quiet standoff. He stepped past Ibarin, closing the distance between himself and Redrick.
“Safa is already here,” Raze said calmly, “and he’s our teacher. We’d attempt to heal him regardless. Since we’re here, she might as well do it now. And besides…” His eyes locked with Ibarin’s. “You already know how powerful her healing is, especially with the God Eyes.”
The God Eyes didn’t just enhance Safa’s Light-based healing, they transformed it. Where other healers cast a broad wash of magic over the body, hoping to mend everything at once, Safa could channel her energy like a needle, targeting the exact points that needed repair. Her magic wasn’t wasted; every drop was focused. That precision meant she could heal more with less, and tackle injuries that would overwhelm others.
In any wound, some parts suffered more damage than others, and Safa could see those places with perfect clarity.
Raze made a small, deliberate gesture, signaling her to move forward. He walked at her side, not behind her, making their approach feel less like a request and more like an unspoken decision.
When Safa knelt beside Redrick, the two Light mages already working on him looked to Ibarin as if awaiting his command. He hesitated, glancing toward the barrier. On the other side, there were dozens of eyes watching every movement.
He said nothing.
Safa’s magic flared to life, threads of warm Light weaving into Redrick’s burned skin and torn muscles. The change was almost immediate, wounds that had only been soothed moments ago began to truly knit together, flesh repairing itself before their eyes.
It’s a good thing you didn’t stop her, Ibarin, Raze thought, his gaze flicking toward him. Because if you had, that barrier would have fallen… and everyone would have seen exactly who you are.
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