However—
The moment Yuuki flashed in front of him, the last shred of hope inside Gueldre Poizot vanished completely.
Yuuki grabbed the massive boulder once more and smashed it straight down toward Gueldre's invisible body.
"You've got to be kidding me! I'm a Magic Knight Captain!!"
Gueldre's stiff expression twisted into fury as he roared.
"Permeation Creation Magic — Invisible Soldiers!"
His mana surged violently.
In an instant, far more invisible soldiers than before manifested—armed with spears, shields, and various weapons—as they completely surrounded Yuuki and charged in unison.
"Roar!"
The salamander perched on Yuuki's shoulder opened its jaws once again, unleashing an even fiercer torrent of flames.
Every single soldier was incinerated instantly.
"Other than Permeation Magic itself being troublesome,"
Yuuki said coldly,
"the rest of your magic isn't worth mentioning to me."
Holding the enormous boulder, he aimed once more at the enraged Gueldre and slammed it down with full force.
Thud!
"AAAGH!"
Gueldre screamed as his eyes rolled back, forcibly knocked out of his permeation state.
At that moment—
The composed, leisurely Gueldre was gone. Blood streamed down his face as his body twitched uncontrollably.
"…Tch. Guess that's what you'd expect from a captain."
Yuuki looked genuinely surprised.
With Beast Magic reinforcing him, he knew better than anyone how terrifying his strength currently was. That blow had been delivered without the slightest restraint—an ordinary mage would have been reduced to pulp.
Yet Gueldre was merely unconscious.
"Chain Magic — Demon-Binding Iron Shackles Formation."
Clatter—clatter!
Black chains materialized in midair, binding Gueldre tightly. Now that he'd exited his permeation state, magic worked on him once again.
"I… remember now… y-you're that kid… the one who used Replication Magic during the entrance exam…"
The pain forced Gueldre partly awake. He stared at Yuuki in disbelief as he muttered weakly.
Thunk!
Yuuki chopped the back of Gueldre's neck with a hand strike, knocking him out cold once more.
"What an annoying ability."
Yuuki muttered as he picked up the fallen grimoire and completed the replication.
Gueldre had clearly underestimated him—otherwise subduing a captain so quickly would've taken far more effort.
Shh—
Yuuki sliced open extradimensional space and tossed the unconscious Gueldre inside.
Letting a Magic Knight Captain die here would be a waste.
Gueldre still had uses.
"Counting Space Magic, Fate Magic, and Permeation Magic…"
Yuuki felt the familiar swell of mana within his body and murmured softly,
"I've now mastered three Underworld-tier magics."
As a captain-class mage, Gueldre boosted Yuuki's already massive mana reserves by nearly ten percent.
"…Next comes the most important step."
Yuuki's eyes glinted faintly.
Since he intended to build everything upon the Ten Sephiroth, he naturally planned to gather ten Underworld-tier magics as the foundation of the Kabbalistic Tree of Life ritual.
Thankfully—
Underworld-tier magic was extremely rare.
There wouldn't be too many choices to agonize over.
Space magic rippled.
Yuuki vanished from the prison.
Clover Kingdom Border — Hage Village
When the countless light swords vanished without falling, the suffocating tension dissipated in an instant.
Mariella, Neige, and Rebecca withdrew their mana in sequence, dismissing the defensive spell.
"That's a relief… everyone's safe."
Sister Lily let out a deep breath and hurriedly comforted the frightened children.
"Big sis, you're amazing!"
"That spell was huge!"
"Why didn't you ever use magic before?!"
Marco, Luca, and the others rushed toward Rebecca, eyes sparkling with excitement.
"Your sister's strength isn't something you brats can understand."
"And I've told you—no shouting!"
Rebecca's emerald eyes were gentle, but she put on a stern face, lightly knocking each child on the head in turn as she scolded them.
Sister Lily glanced at the group, then bit her lip and approached the cold-faced Mariella.
"…May I ask what's really happening? Is Yuuki okay?"
Mariella replied succinctly,
"I don't know much myself. There's no need to worry about Yuuki-sama."
"As for your questions… you'll likely have answers soon enough."
She turned to Rebecca without leaving room for further inquiry.
"We're leaving."
"Thank you for taking care of them, Father."
Rebecca bowed deeply.
Moments later, the three vanished into a spatial corridor.
"…What a headache. I don't understand any of this,"
the priest muttered, scratching his head before patting Sister Lily's shoulder.
"Whatever's happening, let's stay cheerful."
"Yuuki, Asta, and Yuno aren't kids anymore."
"Whatever they're doing, I'm sure they have their own reasons."
He turned to the children and grinned.
"So—how about sweet potatoes today?"
"Yaaay!"
"Roasted sweet potatoes!"
"Sweet potato tempura!"
"I want them fried!"
Laughter instantly filled the courtyard, replacing the looming sense of catastrophe.
Sister Lily burst into a small laugh, watching the carefree priest with helpless amusement.
Common Realm Castle — Courtyard
Domina looked exhausted. Even her golden hair seemed neglected—but her eyes were bright.
"That damn brat Yuuki really treats me like free labor."
She complained loudly while handing an hourglass-shaped magic tool to Mariella, Rebecca, Neige, and Fana.
"This is a single-use barrier magic tool I developed based on that barrier hourglass. It can isolate mana completely."
"Ah—haaah…"
Her voice grew sluggish as she rubbed her eyes and let out a huge yawn.
"You really need rest," Fana said softly.
"And whose fault do you think that is?!" Domina snapped.
"First he makes me run all over the Clover Kingdom, then asks me to research mana-isolating tools!"
"Yuuki-sama only asked you to try making them,"
Mariella said, staring at the device in her hands, amazed.
"No one expected you to actually succeed."
"That's because I'm a genius!"
Domina said smugly—then frowned curiously at the four of them.
"Still… Yuuki had all of you involved, and asked for these tools specifically."
"So, tell me—just who exactly are you planning to fight?"
(End of Chapter)
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