Magician in Type-Moon

Page 484

He is the magician of the Wandering Sea, independent of the planet, almost out of touch with time.

For him, time was not a shackle, but rather a continuation of freedom.

As long as he lives, he can keep starting over and rewriting those missed, misjudged, and failed choices.

But this child before him, Just, without any remorse, pushed himself into a dead end from which there was no turning back.

Kiz's doubts gradually accumulated, and he couldn't help but re-examine Just's almost insane behavior—he used the way of burning his own life to achieve some goals that he couldn't see through, knowing that such self-sacrifice was meaningless and even worthless.

He tried to understand this person's behavior from the perspective of his own values, but all he got was repeated setbacks.

What is this for?

What is the reason for such persistence?

Kiz lowered his head slightly, squinted his eyes, and the confusion in his heart grew stronger.

He couldn't understand why Justin would choose this path that was destined to lead to death—this kind of extreme persistence, or even death itself, could no longer be exchanged for any reward.

As a magician who also values ​​"value," he couldn't understand this choice because it wasn't an act of "value exchange."

In Kitz's eyes, all of Just's actions were utterly meaningless—in fact, this act of self-sacrifice was simply beyond the measure of reason.

Even in the current course of action, this is a completely unreasonable and worthless game.

Kiz had figured it out—Just's attacks were never aimed at him, or rather, "killing Kiz" was not a high priority.

He was merely burning his own life force, gradually consuming the clones of light, defeating them one by one, like a transaction that yielded no benefit.

Totally not equal!

Such actions completely deviate from the fundamental principles of magicians and abandon the ironclad rule of equivalent exchange. A worthless sacrifice, a loss with no return.

So, why?

This seemingly illogical behavior must have some deeper consideration behind it. Kiz knew that the child before him was not a reckless fool, but an alchemist from the Atlas Institute—a monster with super-fast and segmented thinking abilities. Those extremely rational people hidden in the shadows of the world would never do anything meaningless.

The alchemists' way of thinking meant they could almost calculate the future. Every variable was analyzed, dissected, arranged, and combined in their minds until they found the optimal solution.

What is he calculating?

Kiz was puzzled. He certainly understood the child's talent; he was born for alchemy, even surpassing conventional magicians. With his ability, even without following the traditional path of a magician, he could climb to the pinnacle of alchemy, perhaps even—

It will not lose to the Six Sources of Atlas Academy.

This judgment is not an exaggeration, but a conclusion reached by Kitz after observation, deduction, and calculation.

The Six Sources symbolize the pinnacle of the Atlas Institute, representing the ultimate manifestation of alchemy. While Juste hasn't yet reached that level, he's already standing before that door, and might even... be able to push it open.

However, this child is now driving himself to his death in the most foolish, inefficient, and self-defeating way.

what does this mean?

A sense of unease crept into Kiz's heart.

How many more times can he use his Noble Phantasm?

Alchemists never make unnecessary sacrifices.

So what kind of future did Juste see that made him willing to sacrifice himself in such a way?

All of this was too abnormal, even causing Kiz to feel a strange, indescribable feeling—an almost unsettling emotion that surfaced uneasily.

Even so, he remained calm and composed, calmly directing the remaining light clones.

His every command was incredibly precise, like placing a piece on a chessboard, gradually adjusting the warriors, who were formed from magic, to their optimal positions.

Whether intercepting, surrounding, or directly confronting, all actions were carried out without the slightest disorder, as if they had never been affected by Just's madman-like offensive.

—Extremely calm.

But beneath the surface of calm, are there truly no cracks whatsoever?

--seven!

Gunshots rang out again, echoing in the stagnant space.

The number of Swordsmen of Light has visibly decreased. With each pull of the trigger, Just's bullets accurately take away the existence of a clone, at the cost of his own continuous disintegration.

His body had mostly disintegrated, his skin like a statue eroded by the wind, cracks spreading along his limbs and torso, magic peeling away along with flesh and blood, revealing the crumbling bones beneath.

But he still didn't stop.

The muzzle was slightly raised, and in the dark chamber, the last few bullets, the last bullets of life, lay quietly, as if awaiting their fate.

Just pulled the trigger again.

Almost simultaneously, another swordsman of light transformed into spiritual light and dissipated into the air, like a candle flame suddenly extinguished, leaving no room for struggle.

--six!

Kiz's voice echoed in the stagnant space, low and almost agitated: "Madman! What's the point of what you're doing? Even if you still want to save humanity, why are you throwing your life away here?"

The gunfire continued unabated, with Just continuing to precisely fire at each of the light clones, as if his life at this moment consisted only of pulling the trigger.

Kiz frowned slightly, a strange sense of irritation rising in his heart.

This is not like him.

Having lived through countless years and experienced the mysteries and desolation of the Wandering Sea, his emotions were not supposed to fluctuate during the battle, nor would they be swayed by the actions of his opponents.

However, at this moment, Juste gave him a vague sense of disbelief—

He seemed to be facing his own shadow.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

--five!

--Four!

--three!

The only response to Kiz was the continuous gunfire, each shot leaving a distinct mark in the air, shattering the silence.

With each strike, the Swordsman of Light shattered and vanished instantly, like glass struck by a hammer.

At this moment, as time quietly passed, Kiz suddenly realized that, without realizing it, the situation before him had become extremely delicate.

Only the last two Swordsmen of Light remained, firmly guarding Kiz's side. The other clones had long since vanished into light under Juste's gunfire, disappearing without a trace.

In this situation, a complex emotion began to rise in Kiz's heart—he hesitated.

He didn't know how many more shots the already battered and broken rogue alchemist Just could fire.

While Noble Phantasms don't require a high level of magical energy, using them almost a hundred times in a row is still quite frightening.

Even if you squeeze the cells repeatedly, and even compress the soul and memories, it's still impossible.

"Where does his magic come from?"

This question lingered in Kiz's mind. He instinctively felt that Juste's body had reached its limit and there was no more magic power to support it.

But he still hesitated.

Because if the other party were to fire a third shot, he might actually kill him.

Nothing today, just getting an IV drip at the hospital.

16 chapters missing

Nothing today either, I'm still not better.

I owe 18 chapters, and I expect to resume updates tomorrow.

Chapter 541 Making Things Difficulter for Yourself

Kiz knew he could no longer stand idly by.

The situation is out of control. Almost all the Swordsmen of Light have been completely wiped out by Juste, and the two remaining clones are just the last line of defense.

Juste's body was already broken beyond recognition, and he should have been unable to continue fighting, yet he still held his gun, still aimed, and might pull the trigger again—like a dying ghost demanding one last chance from fate to change the world.

Kiz could not allow this possibility to continue.

He must take the initiative to break this deadlock, rather than passively waiting for an unknown outcome.

He couldn't gamble—gamble on whether Just could fire three more shots.

But how should we proceed?

Kiz's mind raced as he analyzed the current situation.

It's not hard to understand that Matou Ike has already sent everyone except Just out. His goal is clearly to use "Imagine Collapse" to destroy the Reality Marble, or even blow it up completely.

If successful, this approach will inevitably trigger a violent and devastating impact within the barrier.

Therefore, excluding all beings who are not the Lords of the Barrier to ensure they are not affected is indeed a reasonable arrangement.

However, all of this was forcibly frozen by Kiz's "stagnation".

The collapse that should have already begun was suppressed at the critical point and failed to be fully released.

In other words, the situation remains unresolved, and everything is still under his control.

Why didn't Matou Ike throw Just out as well?

Without a doubt, given the current situation—

Although the reason why that reclusive alchemist was so resolute is unknown, his attitude of facing death was vividly displayed.

Since Just has already chosen to die, Matou Ike has no reason to save him.

...That makes sense.

Is this really reasonable?

Kiz's gaze sharpened slightly as he looked at the last two swordsmen of light guarding his side.

He originally thought he had complete control of the situation and had all the variables under his notice, but at that moment, a strange thought emerged.

Something's not right.