Chapter 38: Familial Strife

Magnus glanced around and saw the juggernauts sprawled on the ground. Some were unconscious, while others moaned in pain, nursing concussions on top of their injuries. Mana spheres weren't fireballs; they were simply dense strands of mana heavily woven together in the shape of a ball.

Getting hit by them just left nasty bruises externally, but the real damage happened inside the body.

Practically every downed juggernaut had ruptured eardrums and damaged organs. Some, in their futile attempts to resist the explosions, had even broken their own bones. In a world like this, unless you could afford for someone to heal you, these kinds of injuries meant living the rest of your life as a cripple.

"You know, I half-expected you to run. Guess whatever Zeth's got hanging over your head is worse than what I did to these guys," Magnus quipped as he turned to the masked man still standing at the end of the alley.

The man hadn't budged much since Magnus started his 'experiment'. The shock was part of the reason why, but it was also because he was stuck between a rock and a hard place.

If I run, Zeth will hunt me down for sure, and then I'm dead... but I can't take this kid in a fight either.

As the masked man eyed the injured juggernauts, he gritted his teeth. "Dammit!"

With a scream, he sprinted towards Magnus like a madman. Seeing that, Magnus thought to himself casually.

Well, that was a dumb decision.

Turning to face the charging man, he didn't reach for Rokshaata, nor did he conjure a mana sphere. The masked man, seeing this, couldn't help but wonder what was going through his head. Still, he wasn't going to waste the opportunity. The moment he closed in on Magnus, he reared back one of his fists, aiming to knock him out with a single blow.

But in a burst of speed that defied any sort of reason, Magnus grabbed the man's fist the second it was thrown. The masked man instantly knew something was off; there was complete silence. Even though he had put all his strength into the strike, not a sound erupted when his fist met Magnus's hand.

"What the hell?" The masked man, bewildered, felt like he hadn't hit anything at all, yet he couldn't budge his arm, as if his fist had been locked in place by an immovable mountain.

Without a word, Magnus let go of the masked man's fist, and before he could react, he seized the man's wrist with his other hand. Clamping down with a grip that seemed impossibly strong for someone of his size, Magnus hoisted the man off the ground effortlessly just by raising the arm he was holding the man's wrist with. The man's arm snapped, making a gruesome sound as it bent unnaturally under the weight.

"Argh!" A scream burst from his lips as Magnus then hurled him away like a ragdoll. He sailed through the air, crashing into one of the unconscious juggernauts. The impact of one of the steel plates on the juggernaut's body hitting his head as he fell knocked him out cold.

"And that's that." Dusting off his hands, Magnus surveyed the bodies on the ground.

Now, what should I do? I can't just leave them here; they'll report back to Zeth. Calling the city guards is probably the best option, but I doubt any are around here. No one came, even after all the noise I made.

Magnus wasn't completely wrong in his thoughts. Truly, none of the city guards nearby noticed the commotion. In fact, even the citizens who had initially noticed it quickly ran in the opposite direction after feeling the vibrations and hearing the distant screams.

However, there were two people who did notice and didn't run.

These were the guards that the Major General had assigned to keep an eye on Magnus. From a distant rooftop, they peered into the alleyway, using their aura applications to enhance their natural eyesight.

"Alwen... didn't he just enter the academy less than two weeks ago? How's he already capable of using magic to that high of a degree?" The younger guard expressed his disbelief in the form of a question to his companion standing beside him.

Both of them had been quietly watching Magnus as he handled the juggernauts with his 'magic,' and it left them in awe. As a seasoned knight, Alwen was well aware of the different power levels and capabilities of mages. He had already been fairly impressed with Magnus when he dealt with Zeth and his men last time, but this was on a whole different level.

That should've been the Mana Sphere Spell, Apprentice Class Magic. It's a low-ranked spell, and it's not typically used for combat, so it's not optimized at all. A spell like that would drain an Apprentice-level mage's mana reserves in minutes if it's used recklessly. No, setting mana draining aside, even an Adept-level mage wouldn't be able to use a spell that many times so quickly without an incantation.

In the end, Alwen could only come to two conclusions, one of which mirrored Lazitha's own theory about Magnus.

Either this boy has been trained in magic before, and he's not really an unranked novice mage, or his talent is extraordinary. And not only that, but there were no mana fluctuations at all until after he fully cast the spell.

Everything he'd seen contradicted his own understanding of how magic worked.

"I'm not exactly sure how he did it, but it's clear that this Magnus is more special than we initially thought. No wonder the Major General wants us to keep an eye on him. If he can use such a basic spell to this degree," Alwen paused as his partner nodded, catching his drift.

"Who knows what he could do with more training? And that's assuming he's already shown us everything he's capable of. Maybe in a few years, we'll have a new Master-level war mage on our hands, or—" Alwen cut the young man off mid-sentence.

"Before we start making bets, let's deal with the current situation. If the city guards find him right now, he'll end up detained, even if he is a student at Takerth Academy." Alwen's partner understood what he was getting at. Although they knew that Magnus had acted in self-defense, all anyone else would see would be several suspiciously buff and masked men lying injured and unconscious, while a boy without a scratch stood nearby.

"Hmm, how about I go down and pretend to be a city guard? We already look the part, so I'll escort him away. Then we can quickly grab the culprits and send them to the city jail. The Major General can take them in for questioning later." Hearing his partner's suggestion, Alwen paused for a brief moment to think it over before nodding in agreement.

"Alright, I'll drop in once he leaves the area." Back on the ground, Magnus found himself standing in the alleyway for nearly five minutes, pondering his next move.

You know, I should've tried to learn some magic rope spells. That way, I could just leave a message and disappear, like Spider-Man.

"Hey! What's happening here?"

A sudden voice broke Magnus's train of thought. He turned around and spotted a young man in armor behind him. Seeing it from someone else's perspective, he realized the situation looked pretty bad.

"Oh, shit... Wait, hold on! Before you slap on the cuffs, you gotta know this was all in self-defense." Magnus tried to sound convincing as he looked at the young man, who was inching closer with his hand on his sword hilt.

"Don't move! Tell me your name and explain what went down here!" Seeing that it was a city guard, Magnus decided it was probably best not to lie. Magnus quickly gave the guard, whom he learned was named Kolten, his name and laid out the whole story, making sure to mention he was a student at Takerth Academy.

He didn't consider himself the type to play the status card, but he definitely didn't want a one-way ticket to jail, so morals be damned.

"Hmm, Zeth is a name we've heard before. He and his men have been causing a lot of trouble in this area lately. Alright, fine, I'll take your word for now, but if I find out you've been lying, expect the city guards to be paying you a visit." Kolten threw in a half-hearted threat and then informed Magnus that he was free to go, which took him by surprise.

Just like that? He asked a few questions, and he's just letting me off? Was it because I mentioned that I'm a Takerth Academy student? Most of them are nobles, so maybe he doesn't want me to get mixed up in this.

Either way, Magnus felt there was no reason to linger and give the guard a chance to change his mind, right? After Kolten said he was free to go, Magnus left the alley and started heading back to Jerel's smithy. Once he was at a safe distance, Alwen leaped down from one of the roofs, landing near Kolten with a thick rope in hand.

"Alright, let's get this mess cleaned up."

=====================================•=====================================

Back at the smithy, a few minutes after Magnus left, an oppressive silence filled the room. Jerel, wanting to break the tension, was the first to speak, forcing a strained smile as he did.

"You know," he began, "even the last time you came here, you were in your maid uniform. But now you're all dressed up and out with Magnus? Is there something I should kno—"

"Stop, just stop," Celia interjected, her words cutting him off like a blade. Her voice sounded cold and distant, as if she were talking to a stranger rather than her own brother.

Jerel's shoulders slumped, and he let out a defeated sigh. "Okay... So, if you don't want to talk about that, what do you want to talk about?" His voice lost the earlier enthusiasm it had just moments ago, and even the smile he had been wearing disappeared entirely. As he met Celia's gaze, her dark eyes locked onto his with an intensity that seemed to pierce right through him.

"You promised me you were done…" There was a quiet anger hidden in her voice as she uttered those words. Closing his eyes, Jerel opened his mouth to say something several times but kept cutting himself off, struggling to find the right words for a few moments.

"I see, so Magnus told you about what happened?" When Celia heard his admission, her fist clenched tighter, and the anger that had been simmering beneath the surface started to seep into her voice. Her words grew sharp and heavy, each one louder than the last.

"He didn't... In fact, he believed that you, of all people, after everything that happened, would actually tell me the truth for once without me having to pry it out of you like always!" By the time she had finished yelling, she was no longer staring at Jerel with a cold gaze. Instead, her eyes bore into him with an emotion she herself couldn't quite describe, one that made her body shake as she spoke.

"It was over; you told me it was over; every time I came to see you, every time I…" Celia could hardly find the words as she stared at Jerel. Every emotion inside her was boiling over; every feeling was trying to force its way out of her mouth. Yet the one emotion that took the forefront, despite it all, was vulnerability.

"Just- just tell me why? Why did you lie to me again… Please, just tell me there was a reason this time. Tell me anything..." Her voice trembled with a pleading tone, and her dark eyes, carrying the briefest trace of hope, met Jerel's. She was searching for something, praying that he would utter a single word.

But all she found in his eyes as they looked back into hers was self-loathing, and that trace of hope she had vanished. It was the same expression she had seen so many times, over and over again. A worn face of pure loss, one that was never going to open up to anyone.

As silence once again created a gap between them, Celia's anger dwindled. She looked down at the ground before eventually letting out a sarcastic laugh, directed at Jerel but also at herself.

"Of course… I'm so stupid… Why did I expect anything else from you?" With that, Celia turned and walked out of the shop's door, holding back the tears swelling in her eyes.

Jerel watched her back as she left, not chasing after her or saying a word, but instead leaning against the counter behind him as he let out a dejected sigh.

I'm sorry, Celia…

•

Rounding the corner, Magnus finally arrived on the street where Jerel's smithy was located.

"That whole thing took way longer than I was expecting," he muttered to himself. As he walked, thoughts about whether Celia and Jerel had worked things out filled his mind. However, as he approached the smithy, he noticed someone crouched down outside the store building.

"Celia? Why is she standing outside?" Magnus wondered aloud. Approaching her, he decided to break the silence first.

"Hey, Celia. Sorry that it took so long; I ran into a bit of trouble. Were you waiting for me out here?"

Hearing his voice, Celia stood up and looked over at him. The moment their gazes met, Magnus couldn't help but notice her slightly red eyes.

Oh… I guess that talk with Jerel didn't go well.

Seeing Magnus looking at her face, Celia quickly straightened herself out, rubbed her face with her sleeves, and said something before he could.

"Oh, hey Magnus. I was just um… lost in thought and wanted to think out here. I'm fine, though." She spoke while putting on a casual smile, or at least trying to, but it was clear her heart wasn't in it. Seeing her like this, Magnus was tempted to ask what happened, but before he could, Celia spoke up again.

"Magnus, I know how this looks, but trust me, I'm fine. I just made a little mistake, is all. Can we just go? Head out to the forest, I mean…" It was obvious she wanted to avoid talking about what had happened as much as possible.

For a moment, Magnus just looked at her and sighed internally.

"Sure, let me just talk with Jerel for a second." He decided not to press the matter, respecting her wishes. He understood what it was like to be in that situation. To have an obvious issue in yourself, one that everyone on the outside could see, but still denying any help. It was just like how he and Wendy saw each other's flaws but never bothered trying to discuss them, let alone fix anything.

You simply couldn't help people who weren't ready to be helped. Seeing that Magnus wouldn't push further, Celia felt relieved and said she would wait outside.

Magnus only briefly talked to Jerel, warning him about running into some of Zeth's men and advising caution. Jerel didn't seem to be in the mood to talk about what had happened, but he thanked Magnus nonetheless.

"Alright, let's go," Magnus said to Celia as they headed back outside, and the two of them began to make their way to one of the city gates.

There was less talking this time compared to when they were walking earlier, but surprisingly, it wasn't awkward. This wasn't a silence like the one between Celia and Jerel; instead, it came from the fact that the two of them had grown accustomed to each other's presence.

Sometimes they spent entire hours in comfortable silence, whether at the Major General's Villa or at the dorms. Sometimes it was because they were reading; other times it was because they were just enjoying a cup of tea. As they drew closer to their destination, thoughts of her brother eventually faded into the background, giving way to questions about their current task.

"So, what kind of experiment are we doing this time?" Celia inquired.

Magnus replied, "Well, for starters, I've finally started to learn magic, so I want to see how far I can push its limits." Just the mere mention of magic always brought a soft glow to Celia's face.

He didn't fully understand why, but she was undeniably passionate about the supernatural, magic, and knowledge in general.

"But is it really okay for you to experiment with magic outside of the academy? Aren't there rules or something?" This had been a lingering question for Celia, even before Magnus entered the academy.

It's just that, previously, she didn't have someone who could provide an answer. After pondering it for a moment, Magnus responded casually.

"Well, from what I know, aside from the rule against unauthorized teaching of magic, the laws mages follow aren't much different from those for normal folk. Essentially, as long as we don't disrupt public order or do something against the academy's interests, we're free to use magic whenever we want."

Celia was somewhat surprised by how lenient the rules of magic seemed, but it also sort of made sense when she thought about it. With the number of favors academies like Takerth did for the nobility, it was only natural that they received a fairly long leash in return. Then again, even if a mage did break the law in some remote town, who would have the guts to stop them?

"I see. Well, that aside, if you're just going to test out your magic, you don't really need me to go with you, right? I mean, don't get me wrong, I definitely want to watch, but there's not much I can do in terms of assisting." Celia loved getting involved in this kind of stuff, but she also didn't like feeling useless.

She couldn't abide by receiving rewards or perks without earning them, which was a major reason why she had agreed to be Magnus's assistant in the first place.

"Well, there is something else I wanted to test out on top of that. It's just... I'm not a hundred percent sure how it works yet."