Akatsuki Translations

Astarte widened her beautiful eyes that reminded one of a ruby, gaping open her mouth which had been firmly shut until a moment ago, staring at Mirage.

It wasn’t just surprise at his sudden appearance via teleportation magic, nor disbelief at the fact that despite his lateness, he bore a nonchalant demeanor.

Mirage’s mask was smeared with dark red blood, his uniform, the same as the one adopted by the Demon Lord’s army of which Astarte was a part, was scorched and torn, similarly smeared with blood.

His condition was one of utter damage. The other officers froze, wearing similar expressions of shock.

“Wait, has the meeting already ended? It would be a waste if it turns out I didn’t need to figure out a way to handle the Wicked Dragon after all. After all, I’ve gone through all this trouble and injury investigating it…” -Mirage

If one were to encapsulate the feelings of everyone present in the conference room, it would probably be ‘unfathomable’.

Just moments ago, everyone was dominated by the dread that they could do nothing about the Wicked Dragon, and yet Mirage was declaring that he had found a way to do just that.

“Mirage-dono, are you serious about handling the Wicked Dragon? We feel it’s a difficult task, especially in the absence of Belzebuth-sama.” -Elder

The elder questioned Mirage as if speaking on behalf of everyone.

There were many points to challenge, but the most crucial matter here was whether they could defeat the Wicked Dragon.

Though his eyes were mostly hidden beneath wrinkled, sagging eyelids, the elder directed a penetrating gaze toward Mirage. His attitude was understandable.

Everyone knew of Mirage’s strength, just like Astarte, but that was only as a deputy.

“Well, honestly, whether Belzebuth-sama is here or not, it wouldn’t make a difference. Even the Demon Lord might find it impossible.” -Mirage

“Oh? That’s quite a bold statement. Could you share your basis for such a claim?” -Elder

Now, all eyes in the room were focused on Mirage, their gaze sharp and probing.

With his current words, it sounded like even if Belzebuth and the Demon Lord Lilith found it impossible, he could handle it.

He could easily be dismissed as a young upstart, inflated with his own promotion. This attitude was clearly discernible to everyone present.

“Well, I don’t know the true extent of the Demon Lord or Belzebuth-sama’s powers, but when you approach the Wicked Dragon, magical energy gets absorbed, rendering magic ineffective. So, no matter who it is, the result is the same. This applies to enhancement magic as well. Not only do attacks not land, defense drops too. As you can see, I misjudged the distance where I could activate magic, and that’s how I ended up like this.” -Mirage

Mirage, covered in blood, made a joking gesture with both hands, but everyone’s faces remained stern.

Even if they hadn’t reached a final decision, everyone probably predicted that if they were to carry out the operation without Belzebuth, they would inevitably have to engage in close combat.

But hearing for the first time that magical energy would be absorbed and enhancement magic couldn’t be used, made engaging in close combat seem like a suicide mission.

The next strategy that came to mind was clear, and another officer voiced his question.

“Then are you saying our only option is long-range magic attacks? But, Mirage-dono, I believe you’ve seen the reports.” -Elder

“Of course, I’ve read them. And yes, long-range magic attacks are useless too. I suppose even Belzebuth-sama’s Muspelheim would barely singe the surface. I used magic of similar power, but it only served as a distraction. Well, thanks to that, I managed to return here.” -Mirage

At Mirage’s laughter, saying he had a narrow escape, the girl finally reached her limit, her body trembling with anger, she slammed the conference table three times.

“S-stop joking around! What you’re saying is ridiculously absurd, and it’s a grave insult to my father and the Demon Lord. My father’s Muspelheim is a unique magic that no one else can replicate. It’s a blazing flame that can incinerate even a fire dragon. And you’re saying it’s only a distraction? Know your shame!” -Astarte

Muspelheim was a magic that could be described as Belzebuth’s trump card, and Mirage had seen it once before.

Even Mirage, a prodigy in the art of magic, found himself unable to imitate it, a sentiment shared by Astarte. The fact that their efforts proved futile was hard to believe, and it was not unreasonable for them to feel that their beloved father had been insulted.

“Anyway, I think all of you won’t be satisfied with words alone, so I’ll ask you to judge after you see the magic I’ve unleashed on the Wicked Dragon. I’m going to teleport us for a demonstration, so please be careful not to move from your spot.” -Mirage

Saying that, without waiting for any consent, Mirage forcibly teleported everyone present in the conference room. Their destination was a familiar training ground, a place used exhaustively in their training against Belzebuth.

This spacious area, enough for a hundred soldiers to rampage, was ideal for a large-scale magic demonstration.

“Ah, everyone, please step back a bit. I’m still pretty inexperienced and might unintentionally involve you due to lack of precise control. Just to be safe, please each create some sort of barrier with your magic.” -Mirage

Despite the exaggerated nature of his request, the officers obediently retreated towards the entrance, as Mirage had instructed. Mirage confirmed their compliance, then crouched down, right hand touching the ground, and began to stir his magical energy.

Those who couldn’t detect magical energy wouldn’t feel anything. However, when a misty aura began to appear around Mirage, the officers, deducing it to be ice magic, began to chant fire magic and create walls of flame. It was common knowledge amongst magicians to counter ice and snow with fire.

“From the realm of ice that existed before creation, manifest here…Niflheim!” -Mirage

For Mirage, who typically forewent chants before casting magic, this was unusual. With his magic cast, it was as if time had stopped. The officers, viewing from the rear, seemed to be at a loss for words. The entire training ground, including the ceiling, had literally frozen over. Even the clothes of the officers, who should have been watching from behind, were frosted over.

This magic, which instantaneously drained all the heat from the surroundings and created a situation akin to being sealed in the icy realm from mythology, was a new magic developed by Mirage after witnessing Belzebuth’s magic.

Even Mirage, who prided himself on his superior understanding of magic, couldn’t replicate Muspelheim. Normally, one would give up on such an impossible task, but Mirage simply thought to create a similar spell with the opposite attribute.

Ideally, he would have refined the spell a bit more before countering Belzebuth’s Muspelheim, but he was confident that even now, it had been sublimated to the point where it could offset the power. In competition with the mythological land of Muspelheim, a land of scorching heat, he named his spell after Niflheim, the land of ice, reflecting Mirage’s confidence in his magic and a subtle rivalry.

“Ah…choo! What the hell is happening?” -Officer

“This magic…it extinguished ours with mere aftershocks…” -Officer

“Ah! My hair is frozen!” -Officer

It was no wonder the officers were making a fuss, their breath white in the air. Despite Mirage having cast his magic in the opposite direction, the aftermath was still causing substantial damage.

And Mirage, the caster, had his right arm completely frozen, with frost settling on his mask and clothes. Everyone, shivering in the cold, used their magic to warm themselves, looking as though they were survivors stranded on a snowy mountain.

“Leaving aside the principles for now, this is the magic I developed based on Belzebuth’s Muspelheim. As you can see, I’ve attempted to focus on the opposing attribute. However, it only served to slow down the Wicked Dragon, and I believe you can guess the effect of other spells. Oh, I’m about to teleport us back to the conference room, so if anyone is still casting magic, please stop to avoid starting a fire.” -Mirage

Regardless of the officers’ confused state, Mirage promptly teleported everyone back to the conference room. The issue of cleaning up the frozen training ground was ignored, with everyone quietly returning to their seats.

Their expressions had shifted from shock to fear. Even the seasoned veterans understood just how terrifying the situation was. No one could launch a stronger attack than the magic they’d just seen, and it was not effective against the Wicked Dragon. Even the elder was furrowing their brow, displaying an unusually troubled expression.

“Now that everyone has fully grasped the terror of the Wicked Dragon, I would like to propose a strategy to defeat it.” -Mirage

The heart of everyone in the room could be read from their expressions: When would this masked man stop startling them? However, Mirage was simply relaying the truth, devoid of any exaggeration or deceit.

Therefore, he appeared eerily calm, unfazed by the reactions around him. Although that did not mean his heart was calm. But, nobody seemed to notice that yet.

“Firstly, as I mentioned, our attacks are ineffective against the Wicked Dragon due to two main factors. Please take a look at these scales I managed to scrape off the dragon.” -Mirage

With that, Mirage took out several pitch-black scales from his pocket, handing them to Astarte seated in front of him, and an officer next to him. Everyone took turns examining the scales, tapping them with their fingers, trying to pierce them with a knife, freely testing their durability.

Some even tried to snap them, but they remained unscathed. However, Mirage claimed that he had scraped off those scales. The question of how he had managed to do so was undoubtedly on everyone’s minds. Once everyone had a look at the scales, Mirage began speaking again.

“The first factor, as you may have realized, is the Wicked Dragon’s robust scales. The second is enhancement magic, or something of that sort, different from the one we know, which makes its body more formidable. Additionally, this magic absorbs the magical energy around it as a side effect. Therefore, casting magic at a close range becomes difficult.” -Mirage

As Mirage explained this, the officers listened intently, taking in every word. But, so far, all they had heard were stories highlighting the strength of the Wicked Dragon.

“However, even long-range attacks are not very effective. Furthermore, as a counterattack, the dragon can release a large black spear-like magic from its mouth. Some of you may have seen it earlier.” -Mirage

At his words, several officers nodded, recalling the sight. It seemed that the dragon’s counterattack, when rocks were rained down from the sky, was visible even from this distant location.

“But it seems that the dragon cannot repeatedly use this attack, probably because it uses a large amount of magical energy. In such cases, it either absorbs the magic in the surroundings to recover, or if it sees an enemy, it approaches to unleash a breath attack or a direct attack.” -Mirage

Using his teleportation magic to vanish at will, Mirage had repeatedly attacked the Wicked Dragon to understand its behavioral patterns, testing out various scenarios. As a result, there were times when he got too close, his teleportation was delayed, and he was directly hit by the dragon’s breath, even getting smacked by its tail.

“It seems that the Germanian Army took advantage of this behavior to lure the Wicked Dragon towards the demon territories. Due to its ability to absorb magic, the dragon instinctively moved from human territories, where magic was less abundant, to demon territories where it was more plentiful. Like a beast that moves to a place where food is available when its food source runs out. Even though it consumes magic, its magic perception accuracy is low. It’s likely just moving towards where it senses a larger amount of magic.” -Mirage

Mirage concluded that the dragon’s movements were based on magic absorption rather than perception, as it did not detect him even when he was invisible and using teleportation magic. Even though he joked about the ferocious dragon being akin to a beast, the atmosphere in the conference room remained heavy. The main concern was whether there was a way to fight such a terrifying monster, and all eyes were focused on him, pleading for an answer.