Vala was confused by how that small sack could possibly contain a crossbow that was at least twice the size of the bag in which it had so obviously been stored until just a moment ago.
'A magical artifact? Or maybe a general spell?' Vala wondered to himself.
But before he could even begin to seriously ponder the true nature of that bag, an arrow glowing with an intense red light suddenly shot out of the crossbow. It was already loaded and ready to fire, and it flew at a speed comparable to that of a bullet.
Taken completely by surprise, Vala immediately maximized the mana he was pouring into his physical enhancement spell and hurriedly moved out of the arrow's trajectory. Since agility was not his forte, he barely managed to avoid it in time. The arrow flew straight past him, pierced the ground behind him, and exploded into flames the instant it made contact.
Macro immediately reached into the bag again, pulled out another arrow, and swiftly loaded the crossbow. Without hesitation, he fired once more, this time aiming directly at his opponent's barrier.
But now Vala was prepared.
"Blood Wall: Coagulated," he chanted.
A bright burgundy magic circle appeared in front of him, and from it erupted a rectangular mass of blood, no taller than a person. At first glance, it looked like a liquid wall, but just before Macro's arrow reached it, the blood instantly solidified, becoming as resistant as a thick steel slab.
Once again, when the arrow collided with something—in this case, the hardened wall of blood—it exploded into flames. However, it caused very little actual damage. The only visible change was that the area struck by the flames darkened in color, shifting from deep burgundy to a scorched, dark brown.
"You know, Macro, this isn't the first time I've seen one of those crossbows in action," Vala said, his voice dripping with bitterness and contempt. "It was demonstrated to my unit a few days ago during one of our exercises. Can you imagine how betrayed I felt when I found out that my 'dear friend' Macro had been stupid enough to ignore my words and secretly build this ridiculous toy anyway?"
He paused briefly, then continued with a scoff. "Although, I must admit, once I actually saw it in action, I felt a little foolish for worrying about it four years ago. After all, my magic is still far superior!"
Still standing behind his blood shield, Vala raised his voice and shouted, "Go, and end this failure once and for all!"
The needles floating above his head—now grown to the size of pens—shot forward again, this time moving with at least twice their previous speed and power.
"Queen Alberia," Caesar asked curiously, "could you explain the trick behind that bag Minister Macro is using? No matter how one looks at it, a container like that should never be able to hold both that bracelet and a crossbow, not to mention the arrows."
Even though Lucas was fairly certain he had already figured out the answer himself.
Fortunately for him, this was something he could explain. Once he had learned that Macro would be participating in the tournament, Lucas had grown very curious about how the Minister of Technology fought. After all, Macro had never given off the aura of a warrior. Because of that, Lucas had asked Sequoria about it beforehand, and she had happily explained everything she knew, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
'Looking back, I probably should have realized then that she's a fan of this kind of event…' Lucas thought to himself.
Before answering the famous roman general's question, Lucas glanced at his new mother, silently asking for permission. He didn't want to reveal anything that Macro himself might prefer to keep secret.
Sequoria simply smiled gently, signaling that it was fine.
So Lucas straightened his posture, focused, and slipped into the role of queen as best he could.
"From what I've been told," Lucas began in a regal, composed voice, "that bag is a magical artifact passed down to every Minister of Technology, along with the general spell used to create it."
He continued, clearly pleased to finally be able to explain something in detail. "The spell is called Infinite Pocket. It can be applied to any type of container, infinitely expanding the number of objects it can hold while maintaining its original size and appearance. In addition, the container's weight always remains the same as when it was empty, regardless of how many—or what kind of—objects are placed inside."
"Normally," Lucas went on, "the duration of the spell depends on how much mana is used. With sufficient mana, the effect can last up to two days. If the spell is recast on the container while it's still active, the duration extends further based on the additional mana supplied."
He paused briefly, then added, "However, none of these time limitations apply to the artifact currently attached to Macro's belt. That bag has the spell permanently active and doesn't require mana to be recharged."
"There's more," Lucas said, warming to his explanation. "The spell usually has another weakness: objects placed inside must be able to physically pass through the opening of the container. But that restriction doesn't apply here. For this bag, all you need to do is bring an object close to it with the intention of storing it. The object will automatically shrink just enough to fit inside."
Lucas finished his explanation with a satisfied expression on his face, clearly proud of himself for having answered Caesar's question so thoroughly.
From Sequoria's point of view, that expression was unbearably cute. She had to fight the urge to jump on Lucas right then and there and give him the tightest, most affectionate hug he had ever received.
"I see, so there's no real limit to what that bag can hold…" Caesar said, now clearly fascinated by the magical artifact. After a moment, he added with a slightly puzzled expression, "But even the spell alone seems incredibly useful, and since it's a general spell, it strikes me as strange that today is the first time I've ever seen it used."
A thunderous yet distinctly cheerful voice immediately corrected him.
"You're wrong there, boss," the voice said. "It's true that there's no limit to the number of objects you can put inside it, and even things that normally wouldn't fit can be stored, but there is still a limit to the size of what it can hold. If I remember correctly, nothing larger than a standard two-door wardrobe. And, of course, nothing living can be placed inside."
Lucas turned around in surprise and realized that the one who had spoken was Roterberg. He was the only one startled by the dwarf's sudden presence in the royal cabin, however. The others had already seen Roterberg enter while Lucas was focused on answering Caesar's question. Because Lucas had been concentrating so intently, he hadn't heard the heavy footsteps or the sound of armor at all. A faint blush of embarrassment appeared on the current queen's face.
"That still doesn't explain why such a spell isn't more widespread," Caesar said, clearly unconvinced. "Even with those limitations, it seems extraordinarily useful."
"That's absolutely true," Roterberg replied with a nod. "You wouldn't believe how many blacksmiths back in my hometown would kill to learn how to use that spell. But there's a problem. It's an extremely difficult spell, and they say it usually takes at least a full century to learn, and that's if you're lucky."
He scratched his beard and continued, "Even Macro himself, without relying on that magical artifact, still can't use the Infinite Pocket spell. He told me that it's the duty of every Minister of Technology to eventually learn and master it, and then pass it on to whoever holds the position next."
Caesar's eyes remained wide for several seconds before he finally relaxed. "I see. A hundred years is certainly far too long for a human to learn anything," he said thoughtfully. "Most of us don't even live to see seventy."
"Exactly," Roterberg agreed. "And even among us dwarves, who usually live to be around a hundred and forty, I can count on one hand the number of people I know who can actually use it."
He ended his explanation with a booming, hearty laugh.
At that point, everyone's attention returned to the battle in the arena, which was clearly reaching a more intense phase.
The needles took less than a second to reach Macro. Once again, he immediately activated his shield, desperately trying to intercept the five projectiles, which were now significantly larger and much faster than before.
Four of them slipped past the shield yet again, tearing through Macro's body and leaving four new holes behind. This time, the pain was unmistakable, and the wounds were clearly visible. If this had been a battle to the death, Macro knew that his life would have ended right there, as his opponent had deliberately avoided striking any vital areas.
At the very least, this time Macro had managed to parry one of the five needles.
Unfortunately, the needles had grown large and dense enough that they were no longer destroyed upon contact with the high-pressure water shield. Even so, the impact was enough to force Vala to recall that needle along with the other four, even though it hadn't struck its target. Perhaps he didn't want to risk it being hit again and potentially destroyed, or perhaps he believed that the four successful strikes were already sufficient.
All five needles quickly floated back into position above Vala's head. Now, attached to the four needles that had struck Macro again, were second strands of blood—thicker and more pronounced than the first—connecting them directly to the four new wounds. The amount of time Macro had left was shrinking rapidly.
But the young elf did not give up.
Even though his head was beginning to spin from the blood loss, he reached into his bag, drew another arrow, and moved swiftly around the solid wall of blood in front of Vala. As he ran, he immediately loaded the new arrow into his crossbow and fired it without hesitation.
Unfortunately for Macro, Vala was ready this time as well, and even his swift movement failed to take his opponent by surprise.
A split second before the arrow could reach Vala, he cast, "Blood Wall," and a bright burgundy magic circle appeared in front of him. The instant the arrow flew above it, another wall of blood burst violently from the circle, striking the arrow mid-flight and forcibly altering its trajectory, preventing it from reaching Vala.
For a brief moment, Macro was confused as to why Vala had chosen to block the attack in that particular way. Solidifying the wall as he had done earlier would have required far less precision. But then Macro remembered another characteristic of the prodigy's Derived Magic, and his expression changed instantly as he activated his water shield without hesitation.
"Shape Change: Blood Blade."
With those words, the wall of blood warped and reshaped itself, transforming into a massive vertical blade as tall as Vala himself. It shot toward Macro at incredible speed, slicing through the air with a sharp, violent howl.
The blade slammed into Macro's bracelet and water shield with tremendous force. Even so, the shield managed to hold, forcing Macro back only a couple of steps. Considering the condition his body was in, it was nothing short of a miracle that he wasn't knocked flat onto the ground by the impact.
A moment after the blood blade was stopped, without any further action from Macro, the water abruptly ceased flowing from the bracelet. The bracelet itself remained intact, but the gemstone embedded at its center had been sliced cleanly in half. The remaining water slowly leaked out, dripping onto the arena floor.
'Damn it… I knew it,' Macro cursed inwardly. 'I should have added a protective barrier for the gem using that special glass I received recently… I shouldn't have been so stingy.'
"Well then," Vala said, his voice dripping with satisfaction, "finally, that annoying stone is gone. So, 'my friend,' how about we finish this match the same way it started…"
His tone made it abundantly clear that he no longer had any doubt about his victory.
Macro took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down and focus as much as his battered body would allow.
The decisive moment had arrived.
Vala extended his open hand and, with a voice distorted by exhilaration, chanted, "Torrent." Just like at the beginning of the match, an enormous volume of water erupted from his hand, surging forward like a raging river.
At the same time, Macro raised his own hand and shouted, "Earth Wall!"
A wall of earth, slightly taller than him, rose from the ground in front of him, completely blocking Vala's line of sight.
"Do you seriously think that a wall created by a spell from a failure like you can stop one of my strongest spells?!" Vala shouted, laughing maniacally.
And, as expected, the earthen wall began to crumble almost instantly, barely a second after the torrent collided with it.
But then Vala's laughter abruptly stopped.
Just as the wall was about to be completely destroyed, Macro cast the spell again.
"Earth Wall!"
The collapsing wall was immediately replaced by a new one, once again shielding Macro. It didn't last long either.
"Earth Wall!"
Again, the wall shattered.
"Earth Wall!"
"Earth Wall!"
"Earth Wall!"
"Earth Wall!"
"Earth Wall!"
"Earth Wall!"
"Earth Wall!"
"Earth Wall!"
"Earth Wall!"
Macro had to cast the spell ten more times in succession to fully block Vala's Torrent. Through sheer desperation and stubborn will, the young minister managed to stop the spell once again.
But by now, his mana was practically zero.
Worse still, because of the Blood Needles, so much blood had drained from his body that it was a miracle he was still standing at all.
Even so, Macro kept his eyes locked on his opponent, filled not with fear, but with unwavering confidence.
Vala hated that look.
Yet, seeing Macro's condition, the arrogant smile—the smile of someone certain of victory—never left his face.
Gathering what little strength he had left, Macro raised his Elemental Crossbow and aimed it directly at Vala. The arrow already loaded into the weapon began to glow with an intense purple light. Then Macro pulled the trigger, releasing the final arrow of the match.
Vala immediately responded, "Wall of Blood: Coagulated," fully confident that this would once again block his opponent's last, desperate attempt. A solid wall of blood formed in front of him. This time, to be safe, he infused it with even more mana, making it significantly more resistant than before.
But before he could even process what was happening, the purple arrow—wrapped in crackling plasma and moving at lightning speed—pierced straight through the wall of blood and into Vala's chest, tearing a massive hole just beside his heart.
The prodigy's eyes widened in disbelief.
Then, realizing what had happened, he let out a sharp, genuine scream of pain.
"You bastard! It hurts! What did you do?! It hurts, it hurts, it hurts—damn it, it hurts so much!"
Vala collapsed onto the ground, writhing and moaning as tears streamed from his eyes. The wound was not instantly fatal, but without immediate treatment, it would have led to his death. And because the young genius had never experienced anything even remotely similar in his entire life, the pain was overwhelming. He was completely incapable of continuing the fight.
With a single, decisive strike, Macro had defeated the second person he had admired most.