I Became a Magical Genius After Regression

Chapter 25

“Tsk tsk, don’t you have any learning ability?”

It was mockery and contempt, repeated countless times.

But even at those words, Nilson could only breathe heavily.

He no longer had the strength to respond.

It was always like this.

When he was far away, magic arrows would fly at him.

If he dodged or deflected them and got close, then attacks precisely targeting his vital points would come.

Eyes, throat, groin, bent knees, and so on.

They came at timings and to places that he couldn’t afford not to block, so he couldn’t just take them with his body.

If he delayed blocking them, the next spell would be used, and Randel would retreat far back.

And then the barrage of magic arrows would repeat.

‘Ah…’

At this point, Nilson felt an overwhelming sense of despair wash over him like a tide.

It was a fight between a 1-circle mage and a knight trainee who had held a sword for over five years.

This wasn’t a matter of winning or losing.

Winning was as natural as breathing, and the key was how subtly he could toy with his opponent.

That way, he could subtly make an impression on the knights who wanted this.

Of course, this included the young lord and Manwellin.

But instead of showing overwhelming prowess, he was being toyed with so miserably… and losing?

Will I be able to hold my head up in the future?

Will I be able to become a full-fledged knight?

What about the gazes of my peers? Even if I become a knight, what about the future?

No, that’s not the problem.

Why did the world give such talent to that lowly guy instead of me!

Snap.

At that moment, Nilson felt something thin snap in his head.

“You b*stard!”

Bang!

Overwhelmed by inferiority, Nilson stomped the ground.

Nilson charged recklessly towards Randel. His eyes were already flipped with rage.

But his speed was unusual. He closed the distance that had been quite far in an instant.

From Nilson’s body, a faint green haze was already rising.

It was proof that he had squeezed out not only all the remaining mana in his body but also some of the mana that maintained his life force to strengthen his body.

“No! Stop!”

Manwellin shouted in a voice that seemed to tear apart.

But Nilson couldn’t hear that voice.

He charged straight at Randel’s head.

‘I will kill you!’

It didn’t matter if magic flew at him.

‘Even if I can never hold a sword again, at least you!’

With bloodshot eyes, Nilson kept charging.

But it was strange.

No magic flew at him.

Nilson smiled triumphantly. He thought it was because his momentum had scared them.

“Die!”

Nilson shouted as he swung his sword down.

It was an attack aimed precisely at the head.

Even though it was a practice sword, it had an iron core inside. Moreover, it was reinforced with mana.

If it hit, the head would… burst like a watermelon.

Nielsen stared at Randel’s face with eyes full of madness.

A face soaked in fear should have been aroused by sadism—

“…….”

It was strange that it wasn’t.

Surprisingly, Randel wasn’t stiff at all.

He wasn’t angry or scared.

He just looked nonchalant, speaking with his eyes.

[What are you looking at?]

Nielsen had a strong feeling that something was wrong, but it was already too late.

The moment Nielsen swung his sword down.

“Dig.”

With Randel’s words, the ground Nielsen was standing on with force sank as if it had been dug out with a shovel.

Naturally, the attack missed in vain.

At the same time, Randel took a step forward and raised his knee high.

Thud.

Nielsen’s jaw, caught at the end of the knee, jerked up.

But there was a good point. Nielsen’s body, which had been leaning forward, was straightened again.

“You b*stard…!”

In a situation where anger made it hard to feel pain.

Nielsen, barely holding his stance with bloodshot eyes, swung his sword horizontally this time.

Whoosh.

The unstable posture meant the strike lacked power, but it was at point-blank range.

At this distance, even a wizard’s grandfather couldn’t dodge it.

This time, Nielsen grinned. His blood-soaked gums glistened.

If nothing else had happened, things would have gone according to Nielsen’s plan.

For instance, if his opponent hadn’t been Randel.

“Hmm.”

He had already experienced countless situations where he faced an unavoidable sword coming at him from an unstoppable direction.

What did Randel do every time in such situations?

The answer was simple.

Just endure it with your body as much as possible without dying.

How many times had he been stabbed and slashed by the sword?

But this time was different.

Because there was magic.

“Shield.”

Ka-ga-ga-gak.

As Randel stretched out his hand to the left and muttered, sparks flew from the blade of Nilson’s sword, which was about to slash his waist.

Something translucent appeared in the air, blocking the path of the sword.

A magic that protects the caster, Shield.

Of course, the circle was low, so the size of the shield was only about as big as two open palms.

Moreover, it was too weak to completely block Nilson’s sword.

Kwa-chang!

As expected, the shield seemed to hold for a moment, then shattered immediately.

But that was enough.

It bought Randel time to move.

“You b*stard, you’ve crossed the line. You started the fight and now you’re trying to kill me?”

“Huh?”

“Clench your teeth. That way, it’ll shatter nicely.”

A different voice than before.

While Nilson was making a dumbfounded sound at the voice that seemed to be a beast growling with condensed anger.

Puh-uk.

The fist of a magician, not a knight, but a fist strengthened to the limit with mana, turned Nilson’s jaw once again.

Wood-deuk!

* * *

The next day.

Randel was busy from the morning.

After washing his body, he changed into the clothes brought by the butler and left the room.

And the place he went to was the lord’s private dining room.

A place where only the direct family of the lord could enter, but the lord often invited those he cherished here.

Today, Randel was the protagonist.

“I greet the lord.”

“Oh, Randel! Come in.”

As he entered the not-so-large room, the lord, seated at the head, welcomed Randel.

Opposite him sat another person, someone Randel also recognized.

It was the captain of the territory’s knights.

With a stern appearance, he had a solid-looking body. He looked like a typical loyal knight and a veteran who had experienced numerous battles.

The knight captain greeted Randel first.

“It’s the first time seeing your face directly. I’m Narhan, the knight captain.”

“I’m Randel. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Randel greeted a bit awkwardly.

It was understandable, considering he had just knocked out the top prospect of the knight order yesterday at lunch.

‘I heard he lost all his teeth and can’t even chew his food properly now.’

It wasn’t just about not being able to eat.

The trainees’ training regimen was enormous. Could he keep up with that training in a state where he couldn’t even eat properly?

He would soon lose all his weight due to lack of nutrition.

Eventually, he would have no choice but to be slowly eliminated.

‘Well, considering I was trying to kill him outright, it’s a minor injury.’

At first, he was annoyed because they were trying to humiliate him, and he wanted to repay them in kind, fearing that if he was easily defeated, his family might be looked down upon later.

But who would have known he would go into a sudden rage, burning even his life force?

“Hahaha! Don’t be awkward, take a seat.”

“Yes, my lord.”

As everyone sat down, the meal began to be served.

It wasn’t a wealthy territory, so there wasn’t anything grand.

Just an appetizer, a main course, and a dessert.

When the lord picked up his knife, the knight captain and Randel also started eating.

As Randel was eating the tangy pickled vegetables served as an appetizer, the lord spoke.

“Your table manners are excellent. I heard both your parents are commoners, is that right?”

“Yes, that’s correct. I didn’t learn it formally, I just picked up the manners by ear.”

“For that, it’s very natural.”

“Thank you.”

Seeing Randel like that, the lord smiled faintly.

Then, putting down his fork, he spoke.

“But I heard something interesting happened at the training ground yesterday…”

At that moment, the knight commander stepped forward.

“I apologize. It was all my fault.”

“What do you mean?”

“I failed to properly manage the knights under my command. Even though the knights were present, they neglected the sparring and just watched as it got too heated.”

“Hmm.”

The lord nodded in satisfaction at the straightforward answer without any excuses.

Randel was also surprised.

He thought the knight commander would surely side with the knights, but he admitted it cleanly.

“Commander. Randel will be an important pillar of the territory in the future. But you know the limitations of a mage, don’t you?”

“Yes, I do.”

“A mage is a vulnerable being without protection. So who will protect the mage of our territory?”

“Of course, our knights will.”

“Exactly. So remember that the two are not competitors but complementary to each other. This also includes the relationship with Sir Kapus.”

“I will keep that in mind.”

The knight commander answered obediently but with a somewhat reluctant expression.

Was it because the lord didn’t side with the knights?

That wasn’t it.

He just had doubts about the lord’s words.

The lord just said that a mage needs protection to fully exert their abilities.

That’s true.

Although there is double casting, which allows using multiple spells simultaneously, the presence or absence of protection is significant.

Casting defensive spells while occasionally attacking.

Or just blasting attack spells from behind.

There was no need to think about which was stronger.

So the true might of a mage is only fully displayed when they have protection.

‘But… will that boy be the same?’

Yesterday, I summoned the knights and reprimanded them.

And then I heard it.

The reason why they didn’t stop the duel midway.

Surprisingly, it wasn’t because they wanted Randel to be utterly humiliated.

They were too shocked to even think of stopping it.

No, who could imagine a wizard casting spells without any incantations?

That wasn’t all.

It seemed like the mana in his circle was infinite, as the spells kept flying endlessly. Did he shoot at least 70 Magic Arrows?

And it wasn’t just random shooting.

He accurately saw the sword flying towards him, identified its weak points, and then shot the Magic Arrow.

It was something that couldn’t be dreamed of without considerable courage and real battle experience.

‘I was told he was the son of a herbalist. Does that mean this is what talent looks like…?’

Thinking that gave me chills.

Even later, when his circle rises, if he flies around like that, would he even need a guard?

Of course, high-circle magic is different, but still, I couldn’t help but feel a heavy heart.

It was both fear and awe.

‘No, I don’t need to think like this.’

The knight commander shook his head.

What does it matter what emotions arise?

When Randel graduates from the academy and returns to the territory, he will become a comrade who fights back-to-back with us.

Then the territory will become impregnable.

Thinking that way was the loyalty of a knight.

The knight commander bowed his head and apologized to Randel.

“I apologize. It was my fault for not managing my subordinates properly.”

“No, there’s no need for you to apologize directly like this.”

“It is something I must do. I will also firmly warn the knights and soldiers. From now on, you will be treated the same as our knights.”

“Thank you for your words.”

Randel accepted the apology with a smile.

The knight commander was also a quasi-noble and owned a manor granted by the lord.

With the yield from there, it was not an exaggeration to say he was a small lord within the territory.

It wasn’t easy to apologize with that position, but seeing him do it like this, it seemed just as I had heard.

‘Did they say this man helped Manwellin escape?’

I heard that after sending Manwellin away and defending the place, this man also had his head hung at the castle gate.

Manwellin saw it from afar and shed tears of blood.

“Good, very good.”

The lord, who was watching, said to Randell.

“The commander is my vassal, so the commander’s mistake is also my mistake. Randell, if there’s anything you want, just say it.”

“Haha… If you ask me like that, I don’t know how to refuse.”

“You’re much better than those who claim credit for things they didn’t do. Speak freely. I heard from Manwellin that you’re interested in the items in the storage?”

“No. I haven’t even finished researching what I got last time, so it’s fine. Instead, could I ask for some magic stones?”

“Magic stones?”

“I’m also interested in artifact creation… It doesn’t matter if they’re the lowest grade or have scratches. As long as they contain mana.”

“Hmm… I’ll look into it. There should be a few that came in from the pioneer base.”

“That will be enough. And…”

“And?”

“There are people who have been kind to me, an old father and his daughter. But the daughter is sick, so could you send a healer?”

“That’s not difficult. I’ll tell the steward.”

The lord readily agreed.

Right now, Randell could ask for anything, and it would be granted.

He must have heard all about the process and results of the duel.

With such a genius working as his vassal in the territory, what wouldn’t he do for him?

At this rate, he might even seriously consider it if Randell asked for his daughter.

‘Of course, that would never happen.’

Is there anyone here, or in this territory, who knows Manwellin’s character better than Randell?

Of course, Manwellin before the regression might have gone through a series of hardships that shaped his character.

But what if not?

‘I hope she meets a good man. Anyone but me.’

Randell looked out the window as he ate.

The time to leave the territory was approaching.