IMTDIK 19

Chapter 19

The Final Mana

The fight between those who wield swords was intuitive and fair. That’s why gladiators still existed in Serdes. Swordsmen’s duels were easy to follow—simple, direct, and yet deeply strategic. Watching them maneuver and anticipate each other’s moves was surprisingly entertaining.

The world of mages, however, was the opposite. Abstract. Merciless. Unequal. The gap between magic circles was painfully obvious. One mage advancing even a single circle higher could dominate the battlefield with over a 95% chance of victory. And yet… there was always that remaining five percent—the irregulars. Rare talents capable of overturning years of effort in a single day.

Ferda Valdrova, standing now before Vernel Marquis, was exactly that kind of mage.

“Magic Intercept?” whispered Vernel, incredulous.

It was a technique allowing a mage to seize control of an opponent’s manifested or launched magic and turn it back against them. A skill so advanced that only 5th Circle mages—masters who had fully understood the nature of mana—were thought capable of it. Yet Ferda was only a 2nd Circle mage—a Spell Blower, barely taken seriously by most.

“I’ve heard it’s theoretically possible with a 2nd Circle,” Vernel murmured, still stunned.

In theory, perhaps. But no one had ever successfully performed it. If Ferda’s attempt truly worked, it would be a momentous breakthrough in the history of magic.

Earlier that day, Ferda had decided to try Magic Intercept for the first time.

“As expected… it’s not that hard,” he had concluded.

If a Mana Walker mastered points, a Spell Blower mastered lines. Lines that could form planes, planes that could weave magic. And while Ferda had long forgotten most of his Grand Mage spells, he hadn’t needed to relearn them. The only technique he required was the simplest one: Magic Shot. Pure mana, without transformation into elements, was enough to deal with monsters.

He had captured countless monsters before, thanks to his work with the demon worshiper Thessalos, who insisted on live captures. Killing was easy; capturing required understanding. He had learned something fundamental: monsters that thrived on corrupted mana found pure mana lethal.

Injecting pure mana directly into their hearts temporarily halted their regeneration and strength. Simple, elegant, devastating.

Ferda’s first orb struck the monster bear’s forehead in a curved, invisible arc.

Boom!

Its head barely dented. The creature roared in rage, undeterred. Ferda turned to Burnell.

“Prepare a big one.”

While Vernel shaped a massive orb, Ferda launched a second, curving around the side. The bear’s roar grew, its fury ignited. That was the opening Ferda had been waiting for. Four smaller orbs materialized at his fingertips. Vernel’s larger orb flew toward him, and Ferda seized it, sending all five directly into the bear’s chest.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The explosions shredded its hide and flesh. The final orb, propelled by the momentum of the others, dug deep into the creature’s chest.

BOOOOM!

The monster bear was obliterated… almost. Its heart still beat. Its hyper-regeneration was stalled, but not defeated. Ferda focused, unblinking, on the pulsing core of its life.

“Time to go all out,” he muttered.

Vernel, meanwhile, felt the drain of his own mana like a suffocating fog. “Have I ever used this much mana as a scholar?” he thought. Never. Scholars always kept at least half their mana in reserve. But now, following Ferda’s relentless pace, he had almost nothing left. Only twenty percent remained. A few more orbs, and he would be completely exhausted.

And then Vernel noticed it.

His nose. Bleeding.

“Overload,” he whispered in horror.

Ferda, by contrast, remained calm—Red Circle steady—while Vernel, Blue Circle, panicked. Yet when Ferda’s calm voice spoke, it cut through Vernel’s fear.

“Vernel.”

“Y-Yes?”

“Focus.”

The single command refocused Vernel’s scattered mind. If Ferda could remain composed under pressure, so could he. Summoning courage, Vernel poured his remaining life force into mana, screaming:

“Rrrrrgh! Take my final mana!!!”

A massive orb flew into Ferda’s hands, who immediately hurled it at the monster bear. BOOOOM! The creature’s movements froze. Its regeneration halted. The battlefield tilted entirely in their favor.

Arwen and her subordinates charged, tying up the immobilized monster. Captured alive, without casualties.

When the dust settled, Ferda turned to Vernel.

“You alright?” he asked calmly.

Vernel, trembling, nose still bleeding, laughed weakly. “W-What did you think… about my… sincerity?”

“That was foolish,” Ferda replied coldly. “Risking your life like that? Idiotic.”

Vernel grinned faintly through the exhaustion. “Well, if the Regent is doing it… how could I not?”

Before Ferda could respond, Vernel collapsed, utterly drained. Gently, Ferda laid him on the ground.

“Are you alright, Regent?” one of Arwen’s subordinates asked.

“Don’t worry,” Ferda replied, brushing dried blood from his hand. “I may be reckless, but I’m not stupid enough to destroy my body in a fight. Some rubble from the mana explosion must’ve hit my face—hence the nosebleed.”

Vernel had given everything, and Ferda recognized the foolish courage behind it. He shook his head slightly, a mix of disapproval and quiet respect.

The chapter ended with the battlefield silent, the monster captured, and the mage who had bent the limits of power standing unshaken—proof that talent, when precise and fearless, could defy the unforgiving laws of the magical world.aa