...Proof of the world's strongest power. This man has spent decades honing himself for that sole purpose. Unlike me, who inherited the Grand Mage's power after only a single day of suffering.

Come to think of it, the reason Ande kept seeking power and became an enemy of Sara and the others was, in a way, because the Grand Mage told him to strive to be the strongest...

“...To think I would meet my master's disciple in a place like this. Fate truly is an amusing thing. Now then, let us resume our duel.”

“W-Wait a minute! The Edwards royal family has a descendant of that Grand Mage! Ande, you're the Grand Mage's disciple, aren't you? Then you wouldn't want to see his descendant being executed, would you?”

“...I see. So the royal family has my master's descendant. But that can't be helped. I have no obligation to stop this duel just to save them.”

“What?!”

“...Do you even know how many descendants my master has?”

“No, I don’t. Maybe around a hundred?”

Even in the documents I got from Gina, there were about eighty...

“...Even by a conservative estimate, there are over a thousand.”

“That many?!”

“...That fool of a master took a different woman to bed almost every day in every village and town he visited. Even when I tried to stop him, it was futile.

Other than that, he was a respectable master, but when it came to women, he was the worst. And since he never thought ahead and just spread his seed recklessly, there must be an uncountable number of his descendants.

Sorry, but with that many descendants, I can't be concerned about each and every one of them. Besides, with so many, it's questionable whether they’re truly my master's descendants in the first place.”

Damn that Grand Mage! It wasn’t enough that he had his harem wives, so he went around doing that in every village and town he visited?!

“...To become the strongest in the world, it seems I must defeat you, my fellow disciple. But don't worry, since you appear to be my junior disciple, I don’t intend to take your life. There are still many things I want to ask you.”

“That makes no difference!”

Even if I survive, if I lose this fight, Sara will die. That’s unacceptable!

“...Then come at me with everything you have! Here I come!”

Damn it! He’s not backing down!

“Earth Needle!”

“Guh!?”

Suddenly, sharp earthen spears sprout from the ground around me, aiming straight at me. Since they come from all directions, dodging by moving quickly to the sides is impossible. Meanwhile, Ande himself is charging toward me at high speed, just like before.

Damn it, what does he mean by not taking my life?! Just because we both know we're covered in barrier magic from the previous exchange, this is overkill!

With a loud bang, I leap high to evade the earthen spears closing in from all sides.

“Fire Lance!”

But as if he anticipated my aerial dodge, he fires another attack.

“Damn it!”

I can’t use flight magic. Desperately, I create footholds in the air using wind magic, forcibly shifting my trajectory to barely dodge the flaming lance.

“...Too naive! Fire Ignition!”

But then, Ande follows up with another attack. In the brief moment my eyes left him due to our exchange, he had already closed a significant distance. My posture is bad, making dodging impossible this time.

Crack!

A massive explosion of flames at close range shatters the barrier magic I had just restored.

“Damn it! Air Blast!”

“...Ngh!?”

I generate a violent gust between myself and Ande, forcefully creating distance.

Damn it, every one of his spells packs too much power! My barrier magic should be strong enough to withstand even high-tier spells from ordinary mages!

And in the initial exchange, despite both of us being in motion, our barrier magic broke from mere punches. He claims to be a disciple of the Grand Mage, so why is his physical ability so absurdly high?!

It’s clear now—I need to stop taking to the air. Without solid footing, dodging his attacks is too difficult. If I stay on the defensive, I’ll lose. I have to attack!

“Stone Bullet!”

Pouring more power into the spell than before, I unleash a barrage. I can’t manage a full-surround assault like Ande did, but I aim to minimize his escape routes. Around twenty massive rock shards hurtle toward him.

“...It seems you’re finally getting serious.”

“What?!”

But Ande doesn't flinch at my Stone Bullet. He charges straight at me, dodging with minimal movement. When he can’t dodge, he punches the rock shards, altering their trajectory. How the hell is that even possible?!

“Lightning!”

“Ugh!?”

A bright flash bursts before my eyes. No power, just speed—so fast that even my perception skill can't track it. Though my barrier magic blocks it, Ande’s real aim was to momentarily rob me of my sight.

“Air Bullet, Fire Lance, Earth Needle!”

“Damn it! Stone Bullet, Water Wall!”

Mid-to-high-level spells of various elements rain down from all directions. Shit, he wasn’t even trying before, was he?!

Crack, crack!

I counter his spells with my own while dodging at high speed, but I can't neutralize them all. My barrier magic begins to peel away as I take hits.

“Thunder Lance, Explosion, Ice Burn!”

He follows up with a relentless barrage. This is ridiculous! He’s casting powerful spells without pause!

Shit! I need to create some distance!

“AIIIIIR BLAASTTTT!!”

“...Tch!”

Panic-stricken, I pour my magic into a wind spell, blasting away both Ande’s attacks and himself, forcibly creating space between us.

“Ow...”

Somehow, I managed to retreat, but my barrier magic is completely gone. Not only that, but the armor—said to be the hardest ever created by the Grand Mage—is now dented, and blood is dripping from my left arm.