REAPER SCANS
Necromancer Academy's Genius Summoner
[Translator - Ramen]
[Proofreader - Artethrax]
Chapter 519
Camibarez' counterattack using her sniping spell was certainly impressive.
However, looking at the overall flow of the duel, nothing big had really changed. Alizarin was still overwhelming her with the sheer volume of water he controlled.
Camibarez was simply too busy dodging attacks, dashing from one side to another every breath.
Jumping into the air to avoid the waves once again, she fired another 'Blood Chaser'.
But Alizarin wasn't letting his guard down anymore. He created multiple layers of waves as a shield and ducked, allowing the blood bullet to merely graze his arm.
"Ah!"
Swaaaaaah!!
This time, Alizarin didn't lose focus. A crimson wave crashed down on Camibarez, engulfing her and slamming her onto the floor.
After that exchange, only she found her barrier dropping even further.
"Pant… Pant…"
Barely escaping the wave, Camibarez wiped the dripping water from her hair and checked her condition.
Because of the Blood Storm she was preparing, both her blood and mana were being drained continuously.
As a knot of fear tightened in her chest, she touched the magic circle drawn on her wrist.
'If I cancel this spell and focus the remaining jet-black on long-range attacks instead…'
"Cami!"
Just then, she heard a voice ringing sharply from the audience.
It was Simon's.
"Don't get caught up in your opponent's rhythm! Think about what you need to prioritize!"
'Ah.'
Right.
What she needed to prioritize.
This was their home ground, their advantageous terrain, so of course they controlled the flow of battle. In this moment, no matter how much she was swept around by the waves and how wounded she was, she had to endure.
She started running again, and the waves controlled by Alizarin came crashing down in succession.
"How's that, Ursula!"
Alizarin spread his arms wide and laughed.
Seeing that great necromancer of the Ursula family fleeing helplessly against his dark magic, he couldn't help but revel in his own achievement.
"Yes, I wanted to enter Kizen, just like you!"
Alizarin had also taken Kizen's entrance exam a year ago.
However…
"You have no talent."
Those cold words were the first thing the interviewer said during the entrance exam.
"Unfortunately, for someone specializing in hemomancy, your blood is too weak."
The interviewer had rejected Alizarin, and when he failed the Kizen entrance exam after preparing for five years, he tasted despair as his life crumbled before him.
"But here in Moiran, the place that accepted me, I was able to rise again!"
With a flick of his hand, crimson waves surged from another canal, cutting off Camibarez' escape route.
Both her paths were blocked. She had no choice but to reach both hands forward and cast a Blood Wave of her own. But Alizarin countered it with the same dark magic.
Splaaash!
"It doesn't matter if my blood is weak! Like the waves of this great lake, I will rise again and again!"
Camibarez' Blood Wave crushed the first wave, and the second, and even the third, but by the fourth, her spell was eventually neutralized.
"You, born with Ursula's blood, would never understand my desperation, though!"
The fifth wave slammed Camibarez into the wall. She let out a choked groan as she crashed against the hard surface.
As the hit was registered, her barrier flickered, coming back red. Alizarin clenched his fist tightly in a sense of accomplishment.
I can win.
I can beat Kizen, and on top of that, an Ursula.
'I'll defeat you! And I'll prove that my blood can surpass Ursula's!'
"Gasssp… Gasssp…"
Cami's damp bangs drooped weakly, covering her eyes.
"…You're right. I can't understand your life or your desperation."
Forcing her legs back beneath her, she staggered back onto her feet.
"However, you don't understand my life, either. Please don't assume the path I've walked."
Shiiing!
At last, it was complete. She removed the magic circle attached to her body.
"Don't give me that bullshit! You have the great Ursula's blood, and—!"
"A half-blood!"
Screeched Camibarez.
"That is my identity! Never in my life have I considered Ursula's blood a blessing! Having this blood in an ordinary human body isn't a gift. It's a poison!"
Her magic circle activated. Like scattered petals, blood droplets burst in all directions as a red storm raged.
{Ursula Original - Blood Storm}
Ka-to-to-to-to-toosh!
A vortex of blood roared violently at the center of the arena.
"Despite that, I will keep moving forward!"
Camibarez brought her arms together and stretched them forward.
"Because there are people here who accept me and people who I want to stand beside until the end!"
As the Blood Storm roared, it advanced forward.
Alizarin quickly altered his magic circle, draining every drop of his jet-black to turn his crimson waves into vortexes. Five crimson vortexes erupted from all sides—Blood Storms of his own.
Then, Camibarez' Blood Storm clashed against the five crimson mimicries.
Bwoooooooooosh!
However, Cami's Blood Storm only became stronger from the clash. The five vortexes collapsed, and her attack surged straight toward Alizarin.
'This can't be!'
The situation had completely reversed.
Now, it was Alizarin who had to turn and flee, the red vortex devouring everything around him in pursuit.
'I can't run fast enough!'
As he fled, Alizarin let blood droplets fall into the canals. The water wobbled, and crimson waves began to rise.
'Blood Storm!'
The sixth crimson Blood Storm crashed into Camibarez', but it was effortlessly shattered, dissolving back into water.
'Blood Storm! Blood Storm! Blood Storm!'
Even as he ran, Alizarin kept casting Blood Storms, but each one was crushed upon colliding with Camibarez' overwhelming storm.
'Blood St— Kugh!'
His jet-black was completely drained. Even if he scattered blood, the crimson waves only rose halfway before collapsing back into the water below.
The tenth blood storm that was advancing was his final one. He desperately watched on with trembling lips.
'Please!'
The image of victory over Ursula, the pinnacle of blood.
That image blurred as he watched her Blood Storm remain unscathed even after clashing against the exact same spell.
At last, the original Blood Storm and the tenth of his collided, and…
Ka-tooooosh…!
They crashed into each other, canceling out and shattering. The vortex exploded, sending a massive shockwave into the surroundings.
"Watch out!"
"Kyaaaah!"
As if they had been thrown into the eye of a typhoon, suddenly, clothes and belongings flew everywhere in the audience seats, causing chaos.
Alizarin's lips twisted into a grin.
'…I-I blocked it on the tenth cast! I did it!'
* * *
Reaper Scans
Translator - Ramen
Proofreader - Artethrax
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* * *
There was no time to celebrate. Alizarin had lost track of his opponent in the chaos, and he had to urgently look around to find her. By the time he did, Camibarez was already charging in behind him, a flash going across her eyes.
'Is she using combat dark magic?!'
Camibarez reached her arm forward, and Alizarin, still recovering from the impact, quickly took a defensive stance.
Alizarin blocked her sharply thrust palm with his elbow.
'Now, counteratta—!'
But…
Fwiiiiiip!
It happens that, rather than blocking it, Alizarin was flung sideways, his guard unbroken.
It was Camibarez' original combat dark magic skill, praised by even Hong Feng, a technique that repelled anything it touched with immense force.
{Camibarez Original - Bark Beating}
Thuuuunk!
Alizarin slammed into the opposite wall, coughing and spluttering as he landed. His barrier flickered red.
Seeing that her attack landed, Camibarez returned her arm back into a readied stance.
'Huh?'
Her eyes moved down.
From a puddle on the floor, she saw her own reflection. She saw that she was drenched in Alizarin's blood.
'Why is there blood?'
Her last strike couldn't have made him cough up blood. Bark Beating only repelled opponents. It wasn't a technique that caused internal injuries.
Then there was only one answer…
'He coughed up blood on purpo— Huh?!'
Soaked in Alizarin's blood, her eyes began to shake wildly.
Meanwhile, looking at her, Alizarin made a triumphant smile while staggering.
'Phew! Somehow, I made it work!'
Just like the 'SM-1' blood Simon used to create his Cloud, each necromancer's blood had its own unique properties.
Alizarin's PU-4 blood, which had been rejected by Kizen's interviewers, was specialized in 'imbuing' and 'parasitism'. He had used this to manipulate water, and in theory, he could control monsters or even people.
Of course, it wasn't yet capable of really controlling a person.
However, by now, Camibarez…
'What she's experiencing right now should be on par with facing all sorts of mental curses.'
Her brain would be a jumbled mess, at best showing her hallucinations. In fact, from the outside, Camibarez just stood there blankly, her arms hanging limply at her sides.
Alizarin forced his trembling legs to move, rushing toward the incapacitated Camibarez.
'I have to finish this with combat dark magic before she snaps out of it!'
He sprinted forward with all his strength, gathering every last drop of his recovered jet-black into his fist. Then, he swung it at her with full force.
"Mm!"
Alizarin's eyes widened in shock.
It was blocked.
With just a single, small, outstretched finger, she effortlessly stopped his jet-black-infused punch.
No, he was being overpowered instead.
Her face was colder than ice, and those empty, soulless, monstrous eyes stared straight at him.
'Her atmosphere chang—!'
Before he could even process that thought, his vision flipped upside down.
He was flying away.
Thud!
After slamming into the opposite wall, the same wall that he had just ran from—swoosh!—Camibarez appeared in front of him.
Pow!
His head snapped to the side before he could grasp what was happening.
Thunk!
This time, pain shot up from his gut. He doubled over, and Camibarez, with those expressionless eyes, grabbed his hair and slammed her knee into his nose.
Thuuuuuud!
His head snapped back. The impact crashed through his barrier, and blood gushed from his nose.
The spilled blood from his nose splattered onto Camibarez' face once again, making her image even more terrifying.
Thud!
Pow!
Crush!
What unfolded was one-sided violence. Every audience watching was left speechless.
The sight of her gripping his hair and smashing his face into the stone floor was nothing like the Kizen schoolgirl they had first seen.
She looked like a completely different person.
{Camibarez Original - Bark Beating}
Bark Beating, a technique meant to repel, was now cast with Alizarin pinned to the floor.
His head bounced up like a rubber ball, only to be caught by her hand and slammed back into the floor.
Thud!
Thunk!
Thunnnk!
His barrier had long been shattered, yet she didn't stop.
The surrounding audience shut their eyes or turned away. Benz, watching from the audience, quivered his lips.
"C-Cami…!"
The shy girl who had once handed him a towel with a gentle smile was nowhere to be seen.
"St-Stop already…!"
Just then,
A coat momentarily blocked Benz' view as it fluttered.
Just as Camibarez was about to slam Alizarin's forehead into the wall…
Step!
A broad figure stopped her, causing her to freeze. The black coat, caught in the wind, fluttered gently before settling down. As it stopped moving, so did she.
"Well done, Cami."
A kind voice echoed in her ears.
"The duel is over now."
"…"
Simon had appeared and embraced her firmly. Benz' jaw dropped while Meilyn turned bright red and covered her mouth with her hand.
Already rushing over to stop her, the referee saw Simon looking him in the eye and quickly raised his arm.
"Th-The duel is over! The winner is Kizen's Camibarez Ursula!"
Simon closed his eyes and tightened his arms around her.
"It's over now."
Her hollow eyes moved coldly. She was staring at Simon's white neck.
Sshh…
Her mouth slowly opened. Sharp fangs glinted as they crept toward Simon's neck.
"Don't lose to the nature of your blood, Cami."
Said Simon firmly.
"Show them who you are, how incredible you are. Stand tall against the will that tries to control your body."
Simon gently wrapped the back of her head.
"The only one who can control you is yourself."
"…"
And with that, like magic, life returned to Camibarez' empty eyes. Her large, purple eyes were welling up with tears.
"Simon…!"
"Yeah."
Simon hugged her.
"You did well."
He felt the tension in her body, which was raging like a wild animal just a moment ago, finally calming down. Soon, Camibarez wrapped her arms around Simon's back as well.
"…Thank you."
Jane, who had been preparing a binding curse, let out a relieved smile and threw a glance at the other adults.
It was a silent message not to lay a hand on her student.
At her gaze, the necromancers hesitantly lowered their arms while the medics carefully placed Alizarin onto a stretcher.
After briefly assessing his condition, they signaled to the security team that he was fine.
"Oh, right."
Simon flashed a smile and looked at the referee.
"This doesn't count as interfering in a duel, right?"
"Huh? Oh, uh, no! You stepped in after his barrier gauge was completely shattered, so…"
"That's a relief."
Sniffing at Simon's familiar scent, Camibarez slowly rested her face against his chest as if seeking support.
She could hear his heartbeat, and…
It was warm.
——
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