A phenomenon so strange, so world-shaking it could alter the entire world of mages…
Was about to occur!
As the fiery aftershock of the Fireball spell faded, the penitent nun and the orc nun not only remained standing—they stood tall and unshaken.
Samimi dusted off her nun’s robe with graceful ease, her demeanor relaxed and casual. She didn’t look like someone who had just survived a duel—more like someone on a leisurely outing.
This was because Niubao had stepped forward and blocked the Fireball. She drew her sword and swung it theatrically, looking valiant and heroic, as if she had slashed the massive fireball in two. In reality, though, physical attacks couldn’t normally stop magical ones.
It had been explained before: when faced with a magical assault, even a heavily-armored knight’s best option was to dodge, not to block it head-on.
Only magic could block magic. Even if one could withstand the flames, the resulting shockwave would still damage internal organs.
No matter how strong a warrior was, they could train their muscles to be invincible, but they couldn’t toughen up their organs. Actually, in a fantasy world like this, maybe someone could train their organs too—so let’s not rule anything out. Anything is possible.
Still, in theory, only one ability could effectively block magical attacks: the Magic Shield.
Which was why—
“What? How can this be!?”
“What’s that thing on the orc nun!?”
“No way! This is impossible!”
“She’s not even a mage! She’s not a mage!”
The moment everyone clearly saw what was happening on the orc nun’s body, all the mage apprentices gasped in shock.
And not just the Fire School apprentices—mages of all elemental disciplines were exclaiming in disbelief. Even the magic instructors stood frozen, mouths agape.
The disturbance even reached the higher-ups at the Continental Magic Academy. Several Archmages rushed out from their workshops to witness this monumental event.
Why?
Because atop the orc nun’s body shimmered a dark crimson Magic Shield, covered in thorny patterns—bizarre and breathtaking.
“How does she have a Magic Shield!? Where’s the source of her magic?!”
The most shocked of all was the Red Lion on the dueling platform. He pointed furiously at Niubao, all confidence gone, cold sweat pouring down his face.
In this stagnant world of magic, where minds had long since calcified, any major upheaval would send shockwaves through the entire community.
And now, a supposedly non-magical person had somehow deployed a Magic Shield?
This wasn’t a disruption anymore—this was a cataclysm!
“What’s that thing she’s wearing on her head?”
“Dark crimson mana? What element is that?”
“A crown? Mana crystallized into form!”
Soon enough, they noticed something peculiar: the orc nun wore a crown of thorns, seemingly formed from condensed magical energy. That had to be the key.
Everyone in the academy had their eyes glued to her. If it weren’t for the protective magic barrier around the dueling arena, they’d have rushed up with magnifying glasses to study her.
Following the clues, they quickly noticed dark crimson magical energy emanating from the far-rear-positioned Penitent Nun.
Though Samimi stood still with her hands in her pockets, her grimoire floated beside her, pages flipping rapidly. A fully automated spell array was in motion.
There was no doubt—she was the mastermind behind this mysterious phenomenon!
“Samimi… What did you do…”
The second-most shocked person in the audience was Bémore, hiding among the Fire School apprentices. She had pushed back her hat brim, standing on tiptoe for a better look.
Staring at Samimi’s dark, elegant silhouette, she trembled. Even her fellow Fire School vice-chairperson beside her wore a confused, uneasy expression.
She couldn’t comprehend that this Samimi—the same weaselly trickster they’d kicked from the team just a short while ago—was standing there like this now.
Even more bewildering: Samimi was a mage!?
That meant… she had the same class as Bémore!?
“Ah… ahhh…”
The third-most shocked was Rebecca, the priestess girl. Her mental state was rapidly unraveling. Hugging her head, she stared in disbelief.
She had betrayed the church. She had betrayed her church sisters.
But now… the very sisters she betrayed had frightened her new backers—the vice-chair of the Fire School—so badly he was nearly soiling himself.
She had backed the wrong horse. She’d lost everything. There would be no place left for her now.
“I don’t care what kind of tricks you’re pulling! Before absolute strength, all of it is worthless! [Great Fireball Spell]!!”
And now we return to the first most shocked person: the Red Lion.
Gritting his teeth, he raised his ruby staff and began channeling a far more potent flame spell.
In an instant, an enormous fireball began to form above him—several times larger than the previous one. The air around them turned scorching hot.
With a dramatic swing, the Red Lion hurled the mega fireball toward Samimi and Niubao.
Even with the Magic Shield, there was no way Niubao could tank this kind of power head-on. While the smaller fireball earlier could be absorbed without much drain, this Great Fireball might just shatter the shield entirely.
In mage duels, if all you do is rely on Magic Shields to absorb hits, you’re just a punching bag. The defender always burns more mana, and eventually they’ll run out first.
Magic must counter magic. You couldn’t just let the enemy keep blasting your shield.
Returning fire—that was the essence of mage battles.
So pure defense wouldn’t cut it. Samimi, as a transmigrator, obviously understood how magical duels worked. She would never let Niubao stand there and tank hits.
Escaped\nNewlines\tTabsAnd\BackslashesForTesting“[Defense Boost].”
Escaped\nNewlines\tTabsAnd\BackslashesForTesting“[Strength Boost].”
Escaped\nNewlines\tTabsAnd\BackslashesForTesting“[Endurance Boost].”
Escaped\nNewlines\tTabsAnd\BackslashesForTesting“[Weapon Enhancement].”
Escaped\nNewlines\tTabsAnd\BackslashesForTesting“[Blow Resistance Boost].”
Escaped\nNewlines\tTabsAnd\BackslashesForTesting“[All-Attributes Amplification].”
Escaped\nNewlines\tTabsAnd\BackslashesForTesting“[Mystic Art: Sanctuary].”
Samimi chanted rapidly, layering one buff after another onto Niubao, establishing a powerful defense field.
Escaped\nNewlines\tTabsAnd\BackslashesForTesting“[Fire Resistance Up].”
Finally, she applied a highly targeted enhancement—perfectly designed to counter Fire Mages.
But even with this, it wasn’t enough to counteract a fire spell head-on. Buffs could only harden defense. To truly negate magic, you needed more magic.
Outside of the Magic Shield, Samimi knew only one offensive spell.
Escaped\nNewlines\tTabsAnd\BackslashesForTesting“Enchantment: Phantom Rose Sword!”
She closed her eyes, focused, and began chanting an ancient incantation.
This time, however, she wasn’t enchanting herself—but Niubao.
The golden sword in Niubao’s hands began to glow with the light of a rose. Along its blade curled strands of dark red thorny vines.
This was a spell—not just a support buff. Like the Magic Shield, this sort of enchantment wasn’t normally something you could cast on others.
But through the Thorn Crown, Samimi had done it—bestowing the Phantom Rose Enchantment onto Niubao’s golden sword.
Once enchanted, that sword was no longer mere steel—it had become a magic weapon. And by definition, something that could be called “magic” could now interact with, and cancel out, opposing spells.
In plain terms—
Niubao’s sword could now slash through enemy magic attacks!