Reader Mage 185-Simultaneous Casting

rlin silently watched the arena as it underwent repairs. He couldn’t help but bla himself partially for how it had turned out. He was the one who had brought up the idea of the Solar Flare spell to Yuri and advised her to use it; he was also the one who had brought up the topic of project Hail Mary. And all because of his desire to ensure that Prestige Academy ca out on top, no matter what, just so he could prove to his parents that he was good enough—that he could take care of himself.

How selfish!

He rose up from his seat and paced around the waiting room. It was a lot bigger now, considering he was the only one left within its walls, and a lot silent too. It was to the point that he could hear his own heartbeats, and the constant wailing in his head.

Then he shook his head.

Yuri had specifically told him not to be anxious, and now that the rest of his teammates had done their very best to make sure he was going into the last fight with Prestige Academy in the lead, he couldn’t afford to lose his bearing.

Now was neither the ti to be anxious nor selfish. Unlike the rest, he didn’t have the ability to generate a spell that could serve as a Hail Mary against Marcus, but what he could do was draw out the fight and ensure that it ended in a draw.

He had the stamina for that.

However, deep down, he didn’t want that. He wanted to win. The problem was that Marcus was an Advanced Tier I A-Class Mage, just like Nora. There was a difference between deconstructing the spell of such a mage in comparison to that of a C-Class Mage with the sa advanced tier. Even though, in hindsight, they ca across as the sa, they were a lot different. An A-Class Mage had a larger well of mana in comparison to a C-Class Mage, and this affected the output of their spells. rlin had co to realize this after engaging in so many training sessions with Hakyun and Chima. Even if the both of them were casting spells of the sa tier, Chima’s were always harder-hitting. That was because there was more mana behind his in comparison to Hakyun’s, which ant that there was more force.

The tier of spells were simply based on mana shaping skills and control, not their force. A higher tier of spell was a testant to the mage’s skills with mana, not how destructive their spells were. In fact, a mage with abhorrent mana shaping skills could prove to be more destructive in comparison to a mage with advanced shaping skills. After all, the forr would be unable to dial down the scale of their spells, and just send it out to explode, unknowing of what casualties may co of it.

For rlin, it was easier for him to deconstruct such spells because their link holding them together was weak and easy to infiltrate, just like a virus sneaking into the system of a body with weak immunity.

Whatever the case was, he wasn’t heading out onto the arena in a few minutes' ti to fight a C-Class Mage but an A-Class Mage, and that was who his focus should be on. More precisely, what he could do to win.

rlin took a deep breath and sat down, then he called for the System to present itself before him. Imdiately, blue words hovered before his eyes like a projection from a sci-fi movie.

[Blue Quests ongoing (2):

Strengthen your body, rlin Tyrrell. (The strength of a Mage not only lies in their prowess with magic, but also in their physicality. A better body makes a better Mage.)

Be clear of mind and spirit, rlin Tyrrell. (If you are quiet enough, you will hear the flow of the universe. You will feel its rhythm. Go with this flow. ditation is key. A better mind and soul makes a better Mage.)]

[Progress to leveling up Strength: 23.25%/100%]

[Progress to leveling up Agility: 09%/100%]

[Progress to leveling up Intelligence: 68.5%/100%]

[Progress to leveling up Perception: 56%/100%]

[Progress to leveling up Resilience: 21%/100%]

[Free Bonus Points received: 0]

The first thing that appeared before his view was the progress of his quests, and his mind flew back to the very first monts he had gotten them.

About six months had passed since then and in that ti he had been kept on his toes wondering when a new quest would be added to the frey by the System. Now, he’d co to realize that he was probably waiting on sothing that would never happen.

The quests were ant to strengthen him, and perhaps the System thought that the two he was given were enough to do just that.

rlin then shifted his attention to the more important thing that had brought him seeking the System out. His Interface.

The words before his view distorted, and in the next mont, new but familiar ones appeared.

[ATTRIBUTES]

STRENGTH: LV. 46

AGILITY: LV. 50

INTELLIGENCE: LV. 40

PERCEPTION: LV. 22

RESILIENCE: LV. 63

The numbers were a lot higher than what rlin had started with, and yet there weren’t any surges of excitent washing over him. His nervousness as the clock ticked, announcing his match drawing close, left him far more on edge than he would have thought. Regardless, he sought out his silver lining in the words hanging before him.

rlin was now what could be considered superhuman. His Strength being at level 46 placed him at the point where he had no problems wielding items with great weight with little to no problems, and blasting doors open with a single punch—of course he’d had no chance to try the latter out yet, but he was certain it was true, because it nestled in the back of his head like a distant mory that kept eluding him.

His other Attributes were no different. With his Agility at level 50, he was nearly what could be referred to as a peak athlete. He had tested this specifically a few days back, handing his bow and an arrow to Hakyun, and asking the boy to fire it at him. Hakyun had thought the attempt stupid, but rlin had only had to tell him that he was testing the System out for the boy to jump right into action. rlin had succeeded in dodging the shot. His reaction ti was now at about 165 milliseconds, and he could attain an average of 42 kiloters per hour via a sprint.

As for his Resilience, his attribute that had seen the most growth. Which was no surprise, really. It grew when his Strength grew, and it also grew when his Agility grew. It was like eating from two plates at once. And that was why it was his most special attribute. In his current state, his muscles were firr, his bones were denser, and his body could resist extre changes in climate. However, his internal structures were still susceptible to attacks.

Then there was his Perception, which was currently his weakest attribute; the slowest to grow. And that was because it had only one place to earn points from. Trance.

Currently, rlin could detect presences at a high rate, though it’s dampened by its dependency on the mana surges of the mage. Basically, he could easily detect an S-Class Mage because of their overwhelming mana, and have issues with detecting a D-Class Mage because they had very little. Also, if the S-Class Mage had great control over their mana, it would be nearly impossible for him to detect them.

He was reliant on the mage shaping a spell or being unconscious of their mana spilling out due to either their lack of skill or the large quantity they possessed.

It wasn’t an attribute he could depend on.

Then there was his Intelligence. The attribute that controlled his ability to deconstruct magic—at level 40.

At the stage he was currently in, D-Class Mages posed no problems to him. He could hear it at the back of his head, that deconstructing the Advanced Tier III spells of D-Class Mages would cause him no harm and would be as easy as slicing a child’s birthday cake in half.

However, that had never been his benchmark for success. It was Nora—an A-Class Mage.

At his level, he could only deconstruct the Tier I and II spells of an A-Class Mage, and that was with putting it at the back of his mind that his body would cry out in response.

On the bright side, that ant that he could take on Marcus. The boy was an A-Class Mage, and hopefully not one that had achieved the pinnacle of spell-casting.

Regardless, rlin had a plan. He’d worked on it in his duel against Jaehyun, and as long as he proceeded with not only caution but smartness, he could achieve a favorable outco.

“Simultaneous casting,” rlin muttered to himself.

To a mage that would be casting more than one spells at once; to rlin that was deconstructing spells and using the rest of his arsenal at the sa ti.

The speakers in the room chid at that mont, and rlin’s attention was drawn to the TV screen. The arena was fully repaired, most of the crowd were seated once more, either holding snacks or drinks, or both, and then a portrait of himself and Marcus Reed appeared over it all rather theatrically.

THE FINAL DUEL OF THE SECOND ROUND OF THE TOURNANT WILL BEGIN IN FIVE MINUTES. CONTESTANTS RLIN TYRRELL AND MARCUS REED, PLEASE CHANGE INTO YOUR BATTLE WEARS AND MAKE YOUR WAY TO THE ARENA. FAILURE TO COMPLY WILL RESULT IN DISQUALIFICATION AND A WIN POINT ADDED TO THE OPPONENT!

rlin took in a deep breath, and the System disappeared out of his view. He rose to his feet, patted himself down, and nodded.

“Let’s do this.”