The Great Mage Returns after 4000 Years – Chapter 175 – Choice and Awakening (1)
Translator: Seven
Editors: Ana_Banana, Yahiko
‘She can see it.’
This was Frey’s conclusion.
He wasn’t sure about the details, but he was certain Norn saw Anastasia’s attacks and what spells he would use before they were cast.
‘Can she see the future?’
Or was it a similar ability?
Although it might have been possible to read Anastasia’s movements, Hell’s Rain was much harder to predict.
This was a difficult opponent.
They were completely unable to even scratch Norn with normal attacks.
In terms of physical ability, she was on par with Anastasia, but the problem was that Norn was getting progressively faster.
The moment she became accustomed to her strength, the delicate balance they’d created would be broken.
And Anastasia’s defeat would certainly mean Frey’s death.
Crack!
“Kuk!”
Anastasia grunted as a spear stabbed into her shoulder.
She frowned and grabbed it.
Norn opened her mouth for the first time.
“You’re struggling.”
She lifted her spear.
Like a fish stuck to a harpoon, Anastasia went with it.
Then, she was slammed into the ground in that state.
Bang!
The ground was made of sand, but that did nothing to cushion the impact.
With an unimaginable scream, Anastasia coughed up a mouthful of blood.
Suddenly, Absolute Line shot out from Frey’s hand. Combined with Indra’s power, this attack moved faster than anything else.
Nevertheless, Norn dodged this attack without even looking at it.
She made it seem easy to avoid the rays of light that surpassed the speed of sound. (TL: *sigh*)
‘I have to limit Norn’s movements somehow.’
What could he do?
The opponent was a Demigod who was probably only a little below the Apocalypses. The higher her level, the higher her general abilities were.
Their bodies’ durability and resistance were no lesser when compared to monsters.
‘No spell below 7 stars would work.’
That meant he had to use 8 star spells.
Hell’s Rain failed once already. There was no need to use it again.
‘Another Sun, Tornado, Ice Age, Mantle Rage.’
Most 8 star spells had monstrous ranges. Not only would Anastasia be included, but even those still in the city would be in danger.
There might still be survivors in the city, so he wouldn’t willingly endanger them for no good reason.
‘…’
Frey suddenly had a thought.
If the range was too wide, why not shrink it?
‘I’ll condense it.’
Whoosh-
Ice started forming on his palm.
Norn looked at him for the first time.
Then, she threw Anastasia away and rushed towards Frey.
“Do you think I’d let you go so easily?”
Anastasia rushed after her.
The wound on her shoulder had already healed completely. The formidable amount of ME in her magic core healed the damage almost instantly.
Some energy would be lost as a result, but this was a Golem body created by the best alchemists on the continent.
‘It’s unbelievably efficient!’
Even if her body pierced 100 times, she would be able to recover instantly.
‘Even while using magic martial arts and imitating Lucid.’
Anastasia remembered Frey’s advice.
She couldn’t move exactly like Lucid. All she could remember was the reassurance she felt whenever Lucid stood in front of her.
Wizards were usually full of flaws when casting spells or planning strategies.
It couldn’t be helped.
There were moments when they had to desperately focus on making a plan, especially in the middle of fierce battles where one couldn’t even predict what would happen next.
But Lukas, Schweiser, and maybe even Iris never had to worry about their flaws.
Because Lucid was there. Because they could be completely confident that he would stand in front of them and protect them.
‘I have to let him feel the same.’
She had to assure Frey he was safe.
Only then would he be able to make use of his abilities more perfectly.
The moments when the Great Mage, Lukas Trowman, stood out the most, was when he could display his resourcefulness and tactical capabilities on the battlefield.
Anastasia believed in Frey.
So now, she had to make Frey believe in her too. That was her sole responsibility.
Pwak!
Suddenly, an explosive chill hit Norn.
Anastasia couldn’t help but look at this scene with a blank expression.
‘That spell…’
She was certain.
The range was much shorter, but this was without a doubt the 8 star spell Ice Age.
Anastasia couldn’t help but give an absurd smile.
‘Modifying a spell that was already created?’
This was none other than an 8 star spell. Hundreds of Wizards would have been needed to modify it.
Yet on this battlefield, in the blink of an eye, he’d boldly carried out such a risky modification and succeeded perfectly!
“Hahaha!”
As expected.
We needed you, Lucas.
Norn didn’t avoid the cold.
Instead, she gathered her divine power at the tip of her spear. It was the same method she used for Hell’s Rain.
She once again planned to destroy Frey’s spell head-on.
8 star spells, which looked like forces of nature at first glance, were just miracles created with mana. However, they could be destroyed with a higher concentration of divine power.
In truth, Norn’s judgement was correct. Unfortunately, there was something she overlooked, Anastasia.
To be exact, she overlooked the power Anastasia was hiding.
After all, even she, who could see the future, could not make decisions instantaneously.
Anastasia suddenly accelerated.
Paak!
For the first time since the surprise attack at the beginning, she managed to land a blow.
Norn’s brain shook violently because of the attack.
She was stunned for a moment, but her resilience as a Demigod showcased itself at that moment as she quickly came back to her senses.
However, Frey’s Ice Age was already upon her.
Shek!
The Ice Age that shot out from Frey’s fingers froze Norn’s body in an instant.
The rage of Norn, who had been frozen once again, erupted like a volcano.
“You can’t freeze me again!”
It wasn’t possible. Not unless he had Elliah’s power.
But he’d still tied her down. That much was unavoidable.
Piht.
The attack pierced her, but Frey clicked his tongue.
She had twisted her body to the limit just before it reached. Originally, he had been aiming for her heart, but he only managed to pierce her left shoulder instead.
Of course, it was still a meaningful blow.
At least it meant that she wouldn’t be able to use her left arm for the rest of this battle.
Nevertheless, it was a shame.
“That power isn’t something you can handle!”
The ice broke following Norn’s outraged roar.
But Anastasia prevented her from acting impulsively and charging towards Frey.
Frey also realised that Anastasia’s movements were much lighter and faster now.
‘Did she increase the output?’
Probably.
The inherent power within her was 1 million ME, and the ME expended to perform simple actions was almost insignificant. But if it was such a tough fight, then it would be a completely different story.
‘It’s at least 10,000 ME per minute.”
Her fists contained enough strength to destroy a castle. So that much consumption was inevitable.
However, the problem was that Anastasia had increased her output. While her physical ability might have increased accordingly, it was a double edged sword.
Considering the ME she’d consumed so far, no one knew just how much she would be able to fight in the future.
But she still decided to take the risk.
Norn was strong. She was an enemy whom Frey and Anastasia would not have been able to deal with in the past, so she had to use this opportunity.
At the moment, she was still not completely used to her body. So this was the perfect chance to take the upper hand.
Anastasia’s judgement was correct.
Bam bam bam!
Norn and Anastasia engaged in a brutal melee battle. One with her fists and the other with a spear, they destroyed the buildings around them like they were simply sandcastles.
Despite the dust cloud they created, Frey could see that Norn was at a disadvantage.
This was inevitable.
She had to deal with Anastasia’s sudden increase in power, her left shoulder injury, and Frey’s harassment.
‘This is our chance to win.’
All that was left was to find a flaw.
After using his spells to disturb Norn’s concentration and force an error, he would be able to use Absolute Line to end the battle.
He was certain that he wouldn’t miss this time.
“…!!”
His instincts screamed.
Puk.
But a dagger stabbed him in the back before he was able to fully register what was happening.
Luckily, he’d managed to twist himself in order to make it miss any vital spots, but his back was still wounded.
Frey stumbled.
That wasn’t all. He felt something approaching him.
It wasn’t Norn. She was still locked in combat with Anastasia.
Crackle!
Electricity was released from his body, forming a membrane around him. Something hit his Lightning Barrier immediately after.
Frey took a deep breath while looking at the man who had appeared.
The man pretended to brush dust off of his clothes as he said.
“You’re pretty amazing for a human. Did you sense my divine power at that moment?”
“…are you… also a Demigod?”
“That’s right.”
He was a strangely small, ugly-looking boy. Probably not more than 100cm tall.
His back was hunched, and his nose was long. His eyes were long slits.
His appearance was more similar to that of a Demon or an Imp rather than that of a Demigod.
The Demigod smiled and said.
“You’re probably the core of the mortals. Lord’s judgement wasn’t wrong.”
“Lord…?”
“He brought me to this desert.”
Frey looked confused, but the Demigod, Sunsir, didn’t feel like elaborating.
He was a being who could move in the shadows, and even other Demigods were unable to find him. On the continent, Lord was the only one who could see through his cover.
Even Agni didn’t know that Sunsir was in the desert.
Sunsir looked at Frey.
He was definitely extraordinary. At the final moment, he had sensed his divine power and managed to avoid the fatal blow.
This was something that even some Demigods were unable to do.
Originally, his dagger would’ve been stuck right in his heart.
Sunsir was Lord’s most covert weapon. His hidden dagger.
In fact, most Demigods didn’t even know of his existence.
So at first, he wondered. Should he reveal his presence just to kill a human?
He felt it was a bad choice.
However, when he saw this human for himself, that thought quickly disappeared.
‘This guy is dangerous.’
Norn had returned to her original form.
In this form, her strength was comparable to an Apocalypse’s. So at first, Sunsir simply observed the situation.
Because he thought she would be able to defeat these two in an instant.
After all, they were fighting against a Demigod, a powerful one at that. But in the end, he was made witness to the strange scene of these two people suppressing Norn.
Therefore, Sunsir stepped up.
If he remained in the shadows, Norn would certainly be defeated.
“Goodbye.”
Sunsir muttered softly.
Just as Frey was about to respond, his body shook heavily and he felt the world begin to spin.
“The blade I cut you with is covered in Ananta’s poison. There’s nothing you can do about it, Wizard.”
Even Sunsir’s voice had become very faint.
Frey couldn’t believe it.
He never imagined something like this could happen.
A Demigod who hid his power and specialised in sneak attacks? Did he ever calculate such a possibility?
‘Kuh…’
He didn’t think so.
He didn’t know where his thoughts came from, but he felt disbelief at his current situation.
He was just going to die here? In such vain?
It was a completely unthinkable end.
Frey clenched his jaw.
He desperately tried to hold on to his fading consciousness, but it wasn’t working.
He felt the taste of blood on his tongue, but despite biting his lip so hard, there was no pain.
He felt his entire body become paralysed.
He felt his consciousness sink.
‘…’
Frey fell forward, and Sunsir walked towards him.
This human was extremely dangerous, so he intended to assure his death.
His mission would be over when Anastasia, who was fighting against Norn, was also killed.
However, Sunsir suddenly stopped walking.
Paat.
Light seemed to gush out of Frey’s body.
No, it wasn’t his body.
The light came from the bag hanging at his waist.
(TL: *squeals in excitement*)
