Magic Academy's Genius Blinker - Chapter 290

Chapter 290

League of Spirit (3)

[In a moment, you will be moved to the battlefield ‘Rainy Ruins’.]

The familiar alert message unique to the Stella Dome echoed in my ears, and in an instant, I was transported to the ruins.

Whoosh!

I closed my eyes and opened them to see the ruins spread out before me. A control tower, completely out of place with the ruins, stood tall, and in front of it, small guardian towers were arrayed.

“Oh, so this is the battlefield.”

“It doesn’t feel much different from the Stella Dome’s illusion training.”

Aiselle poked at the ground and then brought her hand to her waist. It was a habit to try to draw her staff, but she felt nothing.

“Ah.”

Only then did she realize that all weapons within the battlefield must be purchased from the shop.

“You can open the shop from the control tower. Initially, you’re given 1,500 mana, and it’s standard to buy a staff and a mana stone.”

It’s a given that weapons and mana are essential for using magic.

After confirming that each of them had purchased a wand, a staff, and a mana stone, Flame continued her explanation.

“As you know from reading the strategy book, upgrading your staff is important, but so is buying items like robes and boots.”

The types of items were already memorized, but it was still unclear which item was good in which situation.

Because there was no match experience.

“Now you need to choose your magic. It’s best to pick only one powerful magic. They’re called ‘ultimate’ skills, and the stronger they are, the longer their cooldown, so you can’t use them often.”

“So, you’re saying to fill one slot with a spell that can only be used once per battle but can change the tide of the battle?”

Hae Wonryang asked, and Flame nodded.

“That’s right. Well, sometimes people use two or three for strategic reasons, but it’s not common. It’s inefficient. Once everyone has chosen their magic, there’s a second essential magic you need to take.”

“…You mean the ‘Shield’ magic, right?”

The available magic is fixed. Since it said ‘all magic’, the Shield magic is naturally included.

Here, the first problem arises.

“What about you, mister? What are you going to do?”

“What do you mean, what am I going to do?”

Baek Yu-seol showed Flame his magic registration slots.

Just one magic, Blink.

That was all.

“Hmm… are you really okay without a shield? It’s one of the essential magics. This one magic can decide the outcome of a battle.”

“Well, I’ll try not to get hit.”

Without even a basic shield, being exposed to magic could literally lead to instant death.

The only saving grace was that there were items that could protect you from enemy attacks, even if they had long cooldowns, and that basic defense increased slightly with each robe upgrade.

However, having to invest more in defense than others was already a penalty.

He was an extremely offensive dealer, yet he had to invest resources in defense that should have been used to increase his attack power.

Even though he tried to reassure himself by thinking, ‘It’ll be fine because it’s Baek Yu-seol,’ his expression looked very uneasy. He wasn’t confident in his own abilities.

‘Moreover, I can’t use Blink freely within the arena…’

In reality, he could use Blink अनलिमिटेडly, but in the arena, he had to consume a fair amount of mana.

On top of that, as an offensive dealer, he didn’t even have any attack magic to quickly subdue enemies.

No matter how much it was Baek Yu-seol, he had too many penalties in the arena.

‘Come to think of it…’

Flame felt like a fool for having been so sure of victory until now. The numerous conditions that allowed them to wield powerful forces in reality were rendered useless here.

‘So that’s why.’

There was a reason why Gayurin, who should have known about Ma Yuseong, Baek Yu-seol, and Hae Wonryang’s reputations, picked a fight with Flame.

No matter how powerful they were in reality, in the arena, Gayurin’s team, who had specialized training in operating with limited resources, would be more skilled.

“Mister. Are you sure you’ll be okay?”

“Yeah. It’s fine. Let’s just have a practice match. I need to get a feel for it too.”

Flame, using her host privileges, set up the arena system to summon AI players to the opposing team’s side.

Although these AI with artificial intelligence wouldn’t show performance beyond a certain level, they would be sufficiently threatening to novice players.

“I’ll set the AI difficulty to level 1. We’re completely blank slates, after all.”

Then, Ma Yuseong suddenly spoke up.

“There are higher difficulty levels? Can’t we do the hardest one?”

“I understand why you’re interested, but that’s impossible. Stella’s highest difficulty is tough even for professional players to handle.”

“As the difficulty increases, the AI gets buffs to their mana and items. The magic with a 90% hit rate set by the Stella Dome system is scary, and their ghost-like reaction speed is also frightening, but you can’t beat them in terms of growth in the first place.”

“Aha…”

“Do you get it now? So we…”

Having said that, Flame noticed something strange in the atmosphere.

Baek Yu-seol, Ma Yuseong, and even Hae Wonryang and Aiselle had sparkling eyes.

“These crazy bastards…”

In the end, Flame, who had her finger on the [Level 1] difficulty, had no choice but to move her hand to the far right, to [Level 12].

“Sigh, I don’t know if we’ll get ripped apart without being able to do anything.”

Press!

[Level 12 AI has appeared in the enemy team’s formation.]

[1 minute until the match begins.]

[Good luck.]

***

The League of Spirit matches, also known as Stella’s internal battles, had a long and respected tradition, making them quite popular even among outsiders.

As the most popular sport in the world, Stella focused on professionally nurturing players, and outside experts often visited Stella.

This was to recruit young, talented players for their teams early on.

Magic warriors had to graduate from the academy to become official magic warriors, but League of Spirit players could quit school and start their careers at any time.

This year, in particular, many promising players had entered the first year, and even the best geniuses who were making waves as magic warriors were participating in the matches, so it was impossible for professional team owners, coaches, and players not to be interested.

“Tsk, those arrogant brats. Disgusting.”

A young professional player shook his head as he said this.

“There are always those kinds of cocky kids, then and now.”

The numerous officials watching the students practicing through dozens of monitors in the spectator seats could immediately tell who this player was referring to.

‘He’s badmouthing Flame’s team.’

‘Well, it’s understandable.’

League of Spirit was clearly a sport, and the fact that they didn’t fight with their lives on the line often led to them being looked down upon by magic warriors.

But even though it was a sport, did they really know that fierce battles and wars that could never be lost were waged every day within it?

In League of Spirit, just like in real combat, or perhaps even more so, one had to be skilled in strategy and tactics to win, and every year there were cases of ignorant magic warrior hopefuls jumping into League of Spirit.

“I know those kids are impressive, but… I think they’re underestimating League of Spirit too much.”

“They’re acting like that because they’re underestimating it.”

Numerous teams were having practice matches in their respective arenas, but Flame’s team was a bit unique.

They looked dazed as if they had just arrived at the arena for the first time, and they didn’t even know what items to buy, so the team leader had to explain it to them for a long time, making it obvious that they knew nothing about the game.

“They’re completely disrespecting League of Spirit.”

The fact that they had applied to participate in Stella’s internal matches without even having any match experience was quite arrogant in itself.

Apart from the professional players’ seething anger, the team officials who had come to recruit young players shook their heads.

‘That team is a mess.’

‘Tsk. I had high hopes because they were said to be geniuses among geniuses, but this is all they prepared. I’m a little disappointed.’

The next scene made it impossible for the professional players to hold back their laughter.

[Level 12 AI has appeared in the Red Team’s formation.]

Their practice opponents were AI. The AI that only the most novice of novices, who knew nothing, would face.

But the difficulty was strange.

“They don’t even seem to know the difficulty levels properly.”

“Level 12 difficulty is hard even for high-ranking amateurs to handle.”

“It’s inevitable, since there’s an overwhelming difference in equipment from the start.”

“Their use of limited magic is also exceptional.”

Those cadets who were called geniuses would soon be in despair.

They had lived lives of being called geniuses and knowing no defeat, thanks to their diverse magic, various attributes, and vast mana, but it would be completely different within the League of Spirit arena.

“What magic did they choose?”

There were only seven magic that could be selected.

Among them, it was standard to take a shield, and for the Knight position, they had to take a power jump type of magic, making it even more limited.

“Hmm?”

However, upon seeing the magic chosen by the five young boys and girls, the officials couldn’t hide their disappointment.

They had expected inherited magic from the Tower of the Full Moon or unique bloodline magic, but the magic they had chosen was extremely ordinary.

Bloodline and inherited magic consumed a lot of mana, making it a waste to use up a magic slot, but they could also be a trump card to turn the tide of battle, so their choices were hard to understand.

“The only unusual ones are… that middle school-aged girl and Baek Yu-seol.”

“It’s Flame, Director.”

“Ah, yes. I’ve heard of her. She uses the magic of angels, right?”

“Yes. She can use all the magic of different races like elves, dwarves, and beastmen.”

But what good was such an outstanding advantage if the magic she could use was limited?

Even so, Flame’s magic slots were filled with unique magic they had never seen before, so the officials looked at her magic with curiosity.

“That guy named Baek Yu-seol… did he really only take one magic?”

“Is he bold or just stupid?”

“According to rumors, he can only use Blink due to personal reasons.”

“Who cares about that? I don’t know how he performed in reality, but he’s useless in League of Spirit.”

With only the Blink magic for mobility and no offensive magic to provide decisive blows, Baek Yu-seol was nothing but a burden in League of Spirit.

“It would be better if he wasn’t here. He’ll just give mana to the enemy team if he dies.”

“That’s true. Haha.”

Knowing that Baek Yu-seol’s reputation was outstanding, the professional players focused their attention on him, hoping to see him get a bitter taste of defeat in League of Spirit.

The other matches had long since disappeared from their sight.

“They’re finally moving. I’ve been waiting for a long time.”

League of Spirit matches basically started with five players scattered along three paths, protecting their towers while eliminating enemy monsters that approached.

It wasn’t necessary to kill the monsters from the beginning yourself.

Since the friendly towers fired long-range attacks, it was possible to gain mana by landing the final blow on monsters that had taken damage and had their HP reduced.

Especially in the early game when mana was extremely scarce, it was better to play like that…

“Pfft.”

“What is he doing?”

“The reputation of being a genius is crying.”

Ma Yuseong, who was in the ‘central lane’, which had the biggest impact on the team’s victory or defeat and morale, started acting foolishly from the beginning. He started by mindlessly spamming magic on the mini-monsters.

In the early game, there were few usable magic, and the sight of him recklessly firing them off whenever the cooldown was over was the epitome of a novice and utterly ridiculous.

“Huh?”

In the end, Ma Yuseong was able to obtain resources by killing all the mini-monsters, but his mana quickly depleted, so he had to return because he couldn’t attack the monsters that advanced afterward.

As a result, all the monsters were offered to the friendly tower, making them disadvantaged in terms of resources from the start.

“He must be used to having a vast amount of mana.”

The other lanes were in better shape. The girl named Flame, who took the ‘upper lane’, showed a wise appearance of using the tower appropriately while using magic aggressively, and Hae Wonryang and Aiselle in the ‘lower lane’ also quickly realized the know-how and conserved their mana.

Meanwhile, what was Baek Yu-seol, who was exploring the ‘alley lane’, doing?

In the Rainy Ruins map, there were several winding alleyways like a maze, and there were monsters summoned based on the mana the players had bet.

Although Baek Yu-seol hadn’t invested a single bit of mana and Hae Wonryang also had very little mana, Ma Yuseong, Flame, and Aiselle’s mana were so high that the alley monsters exceeded the average and were roaming the alleys.

“Hmm? That kid seems to have played a few matches before, doesn’t he?”

Alley monsters were quite a headache to deal with in the early game. Their attack power was surprisingly painful, and their defense was high.

However, Baek Yu-seol skillfully dodged the alley monsters’ attacks and managed to kill them without taking a single hit.

It was a feat that would have been impossible without having played several matches before.

“No. It’s his first time. Didn’t you see him registering his magic earlier? It could be a switch, but magic registration is proof that it’s his first match.”

“Hmm.”

Around that time, the players and team officials thought that these young boys and girls were strange, and their hunch was correct.

The novices, who had seemed like blind men fumbling around and not even understanding the rules properly, started to move actively.

They showed rapid growth, killing mini-monsters with efficient movements and magic, and even showing an aggressive appearance of trying to push the opponent in time with the appearance of the next mini-monsters.

[Blue Team has been killed!]

However, that was it.

The level 12 AI was not to be taken lightly.

The AI, which had appeared with high-performance items equipped from the start, was already using more than four types of magic and began to pressure Flame’s team.

Flame’s team, which still hadn’t properly obtained resources, had few usable magic and poor items, so they were inevitably pushed back by the overwhelming difference.

Flame’s team’s continuous deaths.

The widening growth gap and the collapsing turrets.

It was a complete defeat, with nothing more to see.

“Sigh, it ended up like that after all.”

“It was more anticlimactic than I thought.”

“If they had faced the level 1 AI first and gradually worked their way up, we could have at least predicted their skill level. They ruined it from the start because they were full of themselves.”

“Haha, it’s better this way. Their pride must have been crushed. They must have realized how powerless they are in the League of Spirit arena, right?”

One by one, the officials turned their attention to other arenas with mocking smiles.

Strangely, however, those who were professional players or former players couldn’t take their eyes off of Flame’s team’s match.

Even though they were in a situation where they were completely defeated and couldn’t do anything.

“Hey, why are you still watching that match? Are you going to watch them get completely destroyed until the end?”

“No, it’s not that…”

The player pointed at Ma Yuseong’s individual screen with his finger.

“Look at that.”

“What? He’s getting completely thrashed, isn’t he?”

“Do you really think so?”

It was funny that someone who couldn’t even watch a match properly was acting as a coach, but the player explained, swallowing his words.

“At first, he didn’t counter the opponent’s magic efficiently. He always lost in the exchange of magic, and he took more damage.”

“That’s right. It’s a disgrace to the name Ma Yuseong. It’s still the same now, isn’t it? He’s just getting beaten up one-sidedly.”

“Yes. It’s strange that it’s the same.”

“What?”

At the odd statement, the coach expressed his doubts.

The player said.

“When the AI grew by 10, those kids only grew by 1. Now that we’re in the mid-game, there’s no need to even mention the growth gap.”

“Yeah.”

“But… he’s showing the same trade-offs as in the early game.”

“Hmm?”

Come to think of it, it was strange.

When there was a difference in growth, it was common to be unilaterally attacked and killed, let alone trading blows.

But to have the same level of trade-offs as in the early game?

That meant…

“Ma Yuseong has completely analyzed the enemy’s patterns. Furthermore, he’s using it perfectly and efficiently. He’s countering and responding to all of the enemy’s attacks. If it weren’t for the cheat-like growth of the level 12 AI, he would have crushed the opponent by now.”

“Hmm…”

When he heard it, it seemed to make sense, but he was still half in doubt.

Dodging enemy attacks with movement without using magic, using minimal mana to whittle down the enemy’s HP, and then landing a powerful blow for a critical hit – such plays could be seen even at the amateur league level.

‘Hmm? Wait a minute.’

Amateur league?

As he thought that far, the coach suddenly felt a chill down his spine.

‘Didn’t they say it was their first match?’

The other officials who overheard the player’s words also turned their attention back to Flame’s team.

The situation was the same as before.

Flame’s team was being unilaterally beaten.

However, when the growth gap widened, it was normal to be overwhelmed by the difference in power, so why were they fighting in a similar manner to the beginning?

“Still… novices are novices. They don’t even have vision control. They’re not even installing basic ‘radars’ on the map.”

So there was something even more surprising.

“Normally, you would secure vision through radars or anticipate and respond to enemies in areas without vision… but those kids are purely relying on their reaction speed and momentary senses.”

“But it’s no use. Their cooperation is a mess. They can’t even have a proper fight.”

The so-called ‘team fight’, where all five members gathered to fight, was a complete mess.

They didn’t share each other’s magic, so there was no coordination, and their attacks even interfered with each other.

But the individual battles were showing incredibly impressive skills.

“This…”

They thought to themselves.

If they played one more game, they might actually be able to beat the level 12 AI.

Since they had shown such rapid growth, if they faced the same opponent again, there was a small chance they could win!

That was the conclusion the players had reached.

[Blue Team has been defeated.]

Soon, Flame’s team’s control tower was destroyed, and their defeat was declared. The players looked at the arena with anticipation. They were even urging them in their minds to quickly move on to the next game, as they had just finished their first practice.

However, they didn’t know Flame’s team well enough yet.

-Aah~ I’m so tired!

-Don’t you think we’ve practiced enough?

-No?

-I think we’ve practiced more than enough, can we go eat now?

-I’m hungry too, Yu-seol.

-Agreed. If we don’t have dinner at exactly 7 PM, our biorhythms will be disrupted.

-Hey, you crazy bastards! We’ve only played one game!

-We’re going to eat spicy pork cutlet and cold noodles for dinner. You don’t have to come.

-Uh… I can’t resist that. I’ll go too.

-Ah! Me, me too.

And so, the five young boys and girls disappeared from the arena and disbanded.

The match ended with just one game.

“…Huh?”

The professional team officials who were watching this on the monitors stared blankly at the place where they had disappeared, with dumbfounded expressions.

“What’s up with them…?”

They began to doubt whether they were even serious about the matches in the first place.

End of Chapter