The Book Eating Magician

Ku kwa kwa kwang!

In a space where sound didn’t exist, the normal roar wasn’t heard, but a powerful shock wave burst out from Theodore. This was the best of a 9th circle magician! The plasma body was empowered by accelerating spells and gaining power and speed. Its destructive power could carve out a mountain. It would be difficult for even an ancient dragon to survive if hit by this.

This was obvious.

‘Kuk! This is ridiculous!’

The moment that he clashed with Wrath’s silver outer wall, Theodore realized the absurdity of this. His instincts told him that it was impossible to break through this outer wall with the collision of his accelerated plasma body. Indeed, his intuition was right without any errors.

Kukukung...!

At the point where Theodore collided, there was a crater with a radius of 20 meters on the outer wall. A few pieces of debris from the outer wall were thrown into space, and Wrath slowed down to 9.8 kilometers per second. This was the best result of Theodore’s preemptive attack. For a monster several kilometers in diameter, a crater with a radius of 20 meters was no different from an insect bite.

“No, not yet!”

However, Theodore didn’t feel despair at this extraordinary gap.

“I already knew you were such a monster!”

Theodore had heard it several times. Wrath was the final weapon of the Seven Sins and was a destruction that no one could prevent. It couldn’t be prevented or avoided. The only way to survive was to escape outside the planet.

“―I will smash you!”

Theodore had come here in order to overturn the hopeless future.

Synergy-Harmonize.

Magic power, which contained four elements, rose up around Theodore’s body. Abraxas, the most powerful attack magic he could use, formed and pushed at Wrath’s outer wall. The pressure of the wall reduced but didn’t disappear. Abraxas’ strength couldn’t stop it completely. Theodore quickly completed the fusion magic and reached out a hand.

Great magic Abraxas (ΑΒΡΑΞΑΣ).

Divine Artefact Heavenly Sword.

He fused it with the Heavenly Sword, recreating the attack that had split apart Cheonju Castle.

Fusion Complete: Unprecedented God-Sword.

It was a force that was two or three times stronger than before.

――――――――――!!

If it had been possible to make noise, the unpleasant noise would’ve spread out over a few hundred meters. As soon as the Unprecedented God-Sword penetrated the outer wall, there was an unpleasant vibration in the area. That might have been due to Wrath’s defense function working or it might be a feature of the metal that made up the outer wall.

‘I don’t know!’

‘Don’t look at unnecessary situations.’ Theodore focused his concentration on the god-sword, trying to push it 30 meters deep. According to the characteristics of Wrath that Glutton had mentioned, Wrath would respond to this attack immediately. So, Theodore had to gain as much as of an advantage as possible before Wrath pulled out the countermeasures. It wasn’t as exciting as cutting Cheonju Castle, but the god-sword continued to move forward.

The god-sword pierced through 30 meters and then several meters per second after that. Theodore didn’t know what this felt like to Wrath, but he knew it wouldn’t be pleasant!

[Detecting the attack of a divine weapon. Analyzing the properties of compressed magic power and the collapse of the four elements. The elements can’t be defended against. Suggesting the destruction of the divine weapon that is the medium. Repair.] The logic circuit built into Wrath responded promptly to the means of attack. [Generating a killer bot, fixing the force pattern of the core to ‘deicide.’ Command to move until the object is disarmed.] (TL: Deicide - killing/killer of a god)

This was the first time Wrath was encountering Theodore’s magic, but it had experience dealing with gods in countless ways. After detecting the divinity in the attack, Wrath summoned the weapon that was a god’s nemesis—Killer Bot. It was an autonomous maneuver-type weapon made by consuming a large portion of Wrath. In the past, the Killer Bot was designed to confront the gods and heroes who opposed Wrath.

[13 Sword Breakers are created.]

A design was instantly generated. Theodore sensed the situation one step ahead, but he was confused when he saw the monsters coming out of the hard outer wall. They had forms similar to humans, but instead of having hands, there were sickle-like blades similar to those of a praying mantis? The pale inanimate body was just one of the reasons for his confusion.

-Killer Bot! You must’ve made Wrath angry if it is already bringing this out.

“What is it?”

-Be vigilant. I don’t know how it is designed, but 13 of them can tear apart a grandmaster.

As Gluttony spoke, they moved.

Syuok!

They were fast because there was no air resistance. The killer bots moved at supersonic speed and were able to get past Theodore’s defense. Almost simultaneously, a gossamer-like web poured down. Theodore’s neck got shivers as he sensed his imminent death.

「 Time Acceleration! 」

If he focused on destroying the outer wall, he would be torn apart. Theodore read the future and accelerated his time by 30 times, escaping before he was completely surrounded and defeated. An acceleration of more than 20 times was unreasonable for him, but it was the only way to escape. One killer bot was as fast as Randolph Clovis.

‘The weapon—the blades for hands—are also irritating.’

Neither magic power nor aura could be felt, but there was an ominous feeling. The discomfort caused by his foresight told him to avoid the net. Theodore had escaped the net, but the killer bots moved again. They didn’t use a mechanical type of walking but a footwork that could be seen in martial arts.

Theodore’s brows furrowed. “They know how to use techniques? If I brought Gladio... No, then another one would’ve popped out. What annoying pieces of tin.”

There was no answer. No, their voices weren’t even heard. Theodore summoned the air stored in the vicinity of his mouth and breathed like he was on the ground. That’s how he was talking to himself. It was a type of self-suggestion to overcome the anxiety and fear filling him.

Kakiing.

Theodore held Soul Calibre with his left hand and the Heavenly Sword with his right hand as he faced the killer bots.

“Hey, aren’t you coming?”

Whether or not Theodore’s words were transmitted, the killer bots understood the provocation.

Syuok!

The killer bots once again accelerated.

‘Ha, I’m sorry but I am already accustomed to this speed.’

However, a trick wouldn’t work twice on a magician. Supersonic? An attack that he couldn’t react to? It wasn’t necessary for his body to respond to that. He just needed to respond to the enemy’s speed. A magic circle with a radius of 10 meters appeared under Theodore’s feet. Six killer bots stepped forward while seven retreated. Were they trying to figure out Theodore’s intentions by putting in half the number first?

「 Time, 」 Theodore said solemnly as he raised his blades, 「 Return. 」

Simultaneously, the bodies of the six killer bots that ran into the magic circle were shattered. Theodore laughed at the terrible performance that didn’t include a regenerative power. “I cut it three seconds ago. How does it feel to be a tiger moth?”

As mentioned earlier, the technique of interfering with the time axis wasn’t meaningful to a transcendental existence. It was because the resistance was so intense that the time magic was essentially invalidated. However, it was possible to use a technique like Time Acceleration which affected his body or on a space other than the enemy. The trick that Theodore used was to cut the air in advance.

[Checking the use of time magic. Time Restore, which calls a few seconds to remove the six killer bots. Raising the enemy’s risk level by two stages. Give the ability to detect magic to the remaining seven killer bots. Create 13 identical objects.]

Nevertheless, Wrath just increased the number. The eyeballs on the flat faces of the killer bots emitted a red ray. It was an eye magic to detect time and space magic.

This was an evil eye that was more obvious than Orta’s.

“...It really turns things around.”

This was more difficult than fighting the heavenly demon. Theodore stopped thinking when he saw 13 killer bots emerge behind the already existing ones. His purpose was to buy time before reaching the material world. He needed to clean up these cans as soon as possible.

Hidden technique.

Theodore crossed his two swords. “Boundary of Heaven and Earth.”

Lights protruded from the ends of the swords. The power of the technique wiped out five killer bots without a trace, and the remaining 15 killer bots ran through the gap. On the asteroid that was flying at 9.8 kilometers per second, the second match between a magician and the slaughtering machines began.

* * *

Kaaang!

There was a sound as sword and sword collided. Theodore kicked the cut apart pieces of a killer bot and pulled back his right hand. A strange impact was accumulating on the right hand which held the Heavenly Sword. Was it a coincidence? Theodore thought about it as he stabbed Soul Calibre into the head of a killer bot.

Jjeok.

The killer bot didn’t stop moving despite its head being split into two. Unlike humans, there was no brain. The persistence of the machines even after being cut into several pieces reminded him of the trolls. However, once Theodore used Hellfire, the movements stopped.

‘This is the 93rd one... They are easier to destroy than I thought, but if this continues, I won’t be able to block Wrath. What can I do?’

The killer bots were moderately threatening. He could somehow hold on when facing 20 at once. The problem was blocking Wrath. Wrath had slowed down for a bit, but it had now recovered to a speed of 10 kilometers per second. The crater on the surface caused by the plasma and Heavenly Sword were completely restored.

“...Dammit.”

Whenever he tried to think, a few killer bots would interrupt him. Was it their role to hold onto Theodore’s ankles? Theodore stared at the glowing red light and pointed his sword.

「 Time Acceleration! 」

He made a swift cut. Time seemed to have stopped in the black and white world. In fact, his senses had accelerated so much that his optic nerves couldn’t distinguish color. Theodore drove the Heavenly Sword into the chest of the killer bot. Soul Calibre was a pretty good offensive tool but it wasn’t comparable to the cutting power of Heavenly Sword. The Heavenly Sword killed the machines in succession and searched for its next sacrifice.

Kang!

Then the sharp blade broke at the midpoint.

“...Eh?”

The divine artifact was damaged. Theodore stopped at the unexpected situation, and two killer bots dug in through this gap. Their curved blades like those of a praying mantis danced around. The barrier Theodore had created reflexively was cut apart, and his red blood dripped down. It might’ve been a fatal wound if he hadn’t been using Time Acceleration.

[Confirming the destruction of the divine weapon. Continuing the battle by converting the killer bots into human form.]

Then the form of the killer bots changed. The two arms increased to six, taking the form of hands rather than blades. The killer bots resembled the asura that was seen in Buddhist mythology of the East, and they emitted a tremendous force.

“Hah,” Theodore laughed bitterly.

The Heavenly Sword had broken. One excellent means of attack had disappeared.

‘The impact that was accumulating before... It meant the Heavenly Sword being damaged. It happened every time the blade collided with these guys.’

He hadn’t known it but the killer bots made by Wrath had the power to destroy a ‘god.’ When touched, the god would lose strength, and if the exposure was constant, they would lose full strength. Wrath had destroyed a number of gods so far and was a natural enemy of the gods. It wasn’t something a sword which contained the power of a god could endure.

“But half still remains.”

Theodore watched the slow approach of the remaining killer bots and held the half blade that remained. It was a bit more difficult than before. Now that they had achieved their purpose of destroying the Heavenly Sword, it meant they would concentrate on killing him.

“Not yet, you cans!”

Theodore continued using the half remaining Heavenly Sword, instead of using magic to fill the gap. According to mythology, this god-sword was obtained from a demonic beast. The original name was Ame no Murakuma no Tsurugi, and it was obtained from the body of a serpent with eight heads. If so, it was possible to invoke the demonic beast using this sword.

「 Aura, the snake that made eight valleys with its head and tail. 」

The pattern on his right hand emitted light again. As long as he had the power to control this material world, no sacrifice was needed for Theodore’s summoning magic. All he needed was an intermediary for the summoning.

“Show yourself here! Yamata no Orochi!”

The Heavenly Sword in Theodore’s hand turned into a handful of dust. A gap was torn in the dimension, and a monster descended.

■■■■■■■■■■■■―――!! The eight-headed dragon, which spanned more than half the width of Wrath, let out a terrifying roar.