For the first time he saw him, Heutsz felt something strange inside him.
It wasn't because of a bad feeling, or a plan that didn't go according to plan. But because of one person.
Well... Wim...
The first time he saw him, Heutsz felt something strange about this boy's body; he had no mana.
It was most likely that the boy was suffering from Mana Disability, a condition that prevents a person from properly channeling mana throughout their body.
It was a curse.
Because every living creature possesses Mana and magic, even if they aren't Arcane or are just ordinary people who can only create Glint (Spark) magic.
However, people with Mana Disability are different. They can't use magic, and even trying to channel their Mana is difficult because their body rejects it.
Because of this, many consider anyone suffering from this condition to be a disgrace to the world of magic.
Even for Dark Arcane people.
That's what Heutsz believed. But somehow, all his beliefs crumbled as soon as he saw this boy.
Necromancer Heutsz: 'How can someone without Mana perform magic?' he thought.
Was this a hallucination?
No.
Was this because he was actually hiding his true power?
That wasn't true either.
He was also confused by this. This was the first time he had seen someone without magic perform magic without any magical tools.
In this day and age, there are many magical items used for those with Mana Disabilities, allowing them to still contribute in this way. However, conservative Arcaneists feel that the presence of these cursed individuals creates an uneasy feeling.
They believe that those with magic should remain on their stage, not those who are fake Arcaneists.
Wim was the same, using The Hidden device he wore on his right wrist as a means of using magic.
But the fire magic Heutsz saw was different. It didn't come from any of the magic tools he'd seen, and it was highly unlikely that someone without Mana would use fire magic.
The more he thought about it, the more he remembered a story he'd heard from his teacher.
His teacher had told him about a time when the Hive had conquered nearly 90% of the world.
The story was a true event that occurred during the fall of the Arcanum Era thousands of years ago. All the selfish and idiotic Arcane warriors were unable to use their Mana magic, while the Hive's forces were able to cast their magic thanks to the power of the Abyss, which prevented them from using magic.
This event gave the Hive a superior power, killing almost all the Arcane Perpetuals, whose powers were almost godlike.
They thought this would be a total victory for the Hive, as no one could stop them.
Until...
Necromancer Heutsz: 'Surely this isn't a deliberate coincidence?'
The emergence of valiant warriors aided the Arcane and wiped out nearly all of The Hive's forces, using just one elemental spell.
An elemental spell that couldn't be imitated, and couldn't even be used by just anyone.
Fire magic that didn't look like real fire, but rather flames that resembled the sun.
Lightning magic that not only gave the warriors speed, but accelerated their movements like a flash of lightning that struck nearly an entire Hive platoon.
And Gravity magic, a rare and extremely difficult spell to control, yet the warriors were able to control it as if it were second nature.
With such immense power, The Hive were significantly repulsed.
Their fighting strength declined drastically, and they ultimately failed to conquer the world.
But at the same time, the warriors also disappeared into history.
Heutsz's teacher couldn't tell him more because so much of history had been erased, making it very difficult to determine the warriors' origins.
However, there is one piece of history that remains that might still provide a clue as to who the warriors truly were. That's it.
The teacher showed a picture depicting these warriors.
Each warrior possessed a Spirit, or something resembling a Spirit, that shone, made of strange metal. It was small, spherical, and had conical wings attached to its body. It didn't fly by flapping its conical wings, but rather floated like a ghost.
From the characteristics his teacher had described, Heutsz knew it wasn't a Spirit, but an Automaton.
However, there had never been any Automatons in the Arcanum Era thousands of years ago, so it really didn't make sense for something like that to exist.
Necromancer Heutsz: "...Oh, now I understand..." He muttered as he looked at Wim, still holding his flaming sword.
He had gotten a clue from his teacher's story.
He also saw an Automaton that resembled the one his teacher had described, even resembling a picture he had shown Heutsz.
Necromancer Heutsz: "...Hehe... So the legend really exists, huh..." He muttered again.
Perhaps this was his lucky day, or perhaps his last, as he realized the lost legend had returned.
The legend of the Warriors with their Automatons who wiped out the vast armies of The Hive with only a few men, using strange magic they couldn't control, and having an Automaton as their partner.
They A legend lost to the history of the Wizarding world, the Iron Guardians.
...
(Wim's POV)
For the first time, Wim felt a feeling he had never felt before when thrown into this world.
It was a feeling of extreme shock.
Wim: "This... Is this really real?" he asked, looking at his flaming sword.
The flaming sword he wielded was a different form of the hilt of his broken sword, The Hidden.
The blade no longer glowed blue, but orange with a fiery effect burning the blade.
From the description, this was no ordinary flaming sword, but a Fuse sword. A name that sounded new to his ears.
Deep in thought, Wim was slightly amazed by its appearance. Because it looked so realistic.
Wim: "Wait a minute, this isn't the time to be amazed," he said, realizing his current situation.
He glanced back at Necromancer Heutsz, leaned forward, and sprinted toward Heutsz.
Necromancer Heutsz: "Even with that little flame, don't expect it to turn things around, kid!" he shouted.
Craak!
Bones emerged from the ground again, attacking Wim, who was charging toward Heutsz.
However, with his Mana Detection skill, he was able to predict the attack pattern.
One by one, Wim managed to dodge the bones, but he couldn't rely on his own movements. He began to use his own Fuse sword and began swinging and cutting them one by one.
Slash! Sling! Slash!
The bones shattered and burned to ashes.
Necromancer Heutsz: "Impossible!" Shocked, he didn't even realize how powerful he was.
For the first time in his life, Heutsz realized that this was what his Hive Ancestors felt during the Fall of Arkanum. When they faced the Iron Guardians.
A fear experienced by those who had to face these Iron Guardians, despite their numerical superiority compared to the Iron Guardians, who were outnumbered.
But Heutsz couldn't give up; he still had a mission to complete. A mission beyond capturing the Unio students.
The mission of the Seven Apostles.
Meanwhile, Wim, busy swinging his sword, finally managed to approach Necromancer Heutsz. Just a few more steps and he would...
Lord Undead: "Roooooaaaarrr!!!"
Wim: "!"
A giant shadow appeared from beside Wim. Lord Undead.
Wim was about 10 steps away from Heutsz, while he was almost 5 steps away from the Undead Lord.
Wim couldn't change his target now, and he had to quickly defend himself from the incoming Undead Lord.
However, just as the Undead Lord was approaching Wim and began to swing its sword, a crystal sword suddenly flew out and stopped the Undead Lord's sword swing.
Clang!
Wim: "!"
Necromancer Heutsz: "!"
Lucius: "Haaaaa!!!"
Clang!
Lucius began attacking the Undead Lord, pushing him away from Wim.
Lucius: "Wmmm!!" He shouted, as if he wanted to say something.
Wim: "Okay!" Wim knew what Lucius was trying to say, nodding his head.
Quickly, Wim refocused on Heutsz and prepared to slash him.
Necromancer Heutsz: "You damn brat!"
Heutsz activated his Bone Barrier, protecting himself with a wall of bones.
Wim then slashed at the bone wall, shattering it.
Slash!
However, as the bone wall opened, Heutsz was ready to use his Cane Gun again. He was ready to shoot him.
Necromancer Heutsz: "Hehehe, this is the end for-... Eh?!"
But before he could finish his sentence with a wry smile, Wim disappeared in front of him. All that remained was a small tube that he threw while Wim used Teleport to retreat.
Learning from his mistake, Heutsz knew this wasn't just any ordinary tube. He quickly began to cover his eyes.
Biiiiiiiiing!
A flashbang illuminated Heutsz, while Heutsz took a few steps back to avoid being blinded.
Wim then charged towards him again.
Since Heutsz had entered Wim's Teleport range, he took advantage of this opportunity.
Wim: "This is the time..."
Blip
Wim: "Haaaah!!!"
Jabb!
Necromancer Heutsz: "Keuk?"
Wim thrust his Fuse Sword towards Heutsz, sending them both flying.
The sword pierced Heutsz's heart, and to his utter surprise, the Fuse Sword burned his heart to ashes upon impact.
The system responded quickly, a familiar notification sound ringing in Wim's ears.
[Congratulations, you have successfully completed the Main Quest: Episode 4 *The Necromancer.*]
[The reward is increased Status EXP and a special item.]
Wim lay still for a moment, lying on the ground. The fire on his sword slowly extinguished. He took a deep breath, his body starting to feel lighter, though the traces of battle still left tremors in the ground.
Art appeared beside him, floating in a small blue light.
Art: "Wim, we did it!" he said cheerfully.
But Wim could only lie there without saying a word.
For the first time, he felt the hardships of living in a world like this, to the point where he complained about the lack of a comfortable sofa.
Wim: "Huh... I guess I should just ask for a week off from the academy," he complained, still holding the gunshot wound in his stomach