Extra Of The Magus Academy

'This idiot!' Ash groaned in exasperation.

He knew what kind of person Seth was, and what he would do to anyone who dared hurt his twin brother. That was precisely the reason why he didn't want to fight Kellion.

'I also can't properly defend myself since I have no idea if Raven Nightshade is watching me, so I have to hold back no matter what.'

All in all, if he was to fight Kellion here, it would only end in one way.

'I'll get beat up!'

"Here I come, runt! Make sure you send the message to your brother!"

'Damn! He's giving me no choice in the matter, huh?' Ash gritted his teeth. 'Do I really have no choice but to fight?'

No!

The lack of options was always an illusion.

'There's always another choice, and right now… it's to flee!'

Ash swiftly cast as many enhancement Spells as he could on his body, and then instantly used Spirit Arts.

Compared to most peple his age, he could summon his Spirit's powers very quickly.

Thanks to that, he had a head start.

WHOOOSH!

In a blur of motion, Ash vanished from his previous position, quickly hurrying towards his dormitory.

"Where do you think you're going?"

BWUUUM!

Kellion's body was instantly filled with power as crimson energy coursed through it.

He set his eyes on Ash and licked his lips, his glowing crimson eyes locked on the fleeing boy the same way a predator would look at prey.

BOOM!

A single leap shattered the ground that he was on, propelling him towards the swift escapee.

Within a single moment, he caught up to him.

"Hahaha! You thought you could escape me?!" Kellion grinned immensely, staring at the shocked face of his prey.

He took great pleasure in the despair that the boy showed him.

'This is the gap of power between me and you. It's why I can never consider you to be anything but a rat.'

And no one made deals with rat.

WHOOOSH!

He sent his fist flying at Ash, clearly intending to halt him in motion and also give him a bruised face in the process. If he managed to block the attack, the force he put in his fist would be enough to knock him down, which would also create mutliple bruises due to the current speed they were both operating at.

However, a strange thing happened once the blow connected.

Fshuuuuu!

There was no impact! It was almost as if the person he hit wasn't actually there, but was instead a reflection of light… perhaps some kind of smokeshow.

"W-what is happening here?!" Kellion gasped as he halted his movements and looked around him.

This was when he realized something.

'I've been running in the opposite direction from his dorms… why? Why would he run further from his dorm… unless he never did.'

Kellion was still confused about its exact mechanics, but he understood what the trick did.

'It made me chase a phantom while he made his way to his dorm… But how did he do it?'

That was something he couldn't quite figure out.

Perhaps he never would.

'I guess I was wrong about you.' His grin widened. 'You're not a rat… but a snake.'

No longer having the confidence to catch up to Ash, nor the motivation to go through with the plan anymore, Kellion decided to return to his dorm.

********

"Haaa… whew!"

Ash collapsed in his room as he managed to reach it right before his muscles nearly collapsed in exhaustion. Explore more adventures at My Virtual Library Empire

His Magia had practically run empty and his body was screaming in pain.

It hurt him immensely, but he kept it all in and did his best to endure the agony that he was going through. This was the consequence of him pushing himself to the very limits, and he had to do this much so he could escape from Kellion.

'Right as I activated my Spirit Art, I used [Vanish] to hide my presence and used [Mirage] to create a duplicate and commanded it to run off.'

The reason he was able to fool Kellion was simply due to the nature of the situation and how excited the boy was. Not only did Kellion have a very low attention span, but he tended to overlook a lot of details whenever he got excited or agitated.

'I was also able to distract him with how flashy my illusion was. All I had to do was stand still and let him chase after my mirage… for as long as possible.'

There were two reasons why this was a last-ditch option that Ash would not be able to use in any normal situation.

'One, the [Mirage] Spell drains a lot of Magia and mental energy. In fact, it's usually taught to students in the Intermediate and Advanced Stage due to how difficult it is to cast and maintain.'

In fact, in Academies like the Asura Spirit Academy, which focused on raw power, the Mirage Spell was usually never taught due to how much it deviated from their method of training.

Plus, due to the Magia it consumed, many would consider it inefficient—especially with its many flaws that could be easily recognizable if one paid enough attention.

'I only got away with it because Kellion is an idiot.'

Once Kellion chased after his mirage, he also had to enhance himself and run as far as possible to his dorm in order to ensure Kellion never chased after him once the mirage's effects wore off, or Kellion attacked the mirage and saw it for what it was.

A part of him figured Kellion would just give up at that point, but he couldn't take any chances.

'The riskiest part of everything is that Raven could have been watching me.' Ash sighed. 'But this does nothing to prove his case, as he must already know that I can use [Fusion], so it shouldn't be too surprising that I can also use an advanced Spell like [Mirage].'

Plus, if he used Mirage to somehow help Elma and was her conspirator, then surely his Magia Signature would be on the crime scene.

But since it was not… Ash knew Raven would never make the connection.

'More importantly, I need to consider my current situation.' He sighed. 'I'm too weak to compete in the Exchange like this, and I really need those Spirit Stones.'

He had tried the reasonable method, but that had clearly backfired on him.

'The Exchange begins in just a few days, which means I no longer have time to dawdle.'

If there was any risky or unsavory plan at his disposal, this was the time to use it—even if it meant swallowing his pride.

If it ensured his ultimate victory, Ash was willing to do it.

'I'll have to stoop to conquer.'

***********

[The Next Day]

Kellion and his seniors walked side by side as they went on a walk.

This was clearly done to keep a closer eye on the unruly boy, especially after he snuck out the previous night. It was clear that Kellion felt miserable in the group, however, this was the only way he would be allowed to leave his dorm for a walk.

As he cursed under his breath, doing his best to keep his emotions under control, he noticed someone from the corner of his eye. The boy stood a small distance from him, both hands in his pockets as they both stared at each other.

"H-huh…?"

He blinked once. Then twice. Then thrice.

Kellion even had to pinch himself just to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

"Seth… Zephyr?"