“I’ve been thinking a lot these past few days. When we were kids, we must have been close, even foolishly talking about becoming adventure partners. We were good friends, weren’t we? So I don’t understand. Even if you were jealous because I was adopted, is that really enough to hate me this much?” Ye Chui asked slowly, his voice tinged with confusion.
The reason he had crossed into this world was because the original Wade had been attacked by Raiken and died, allowing Ye Chui to take over his body. In a way, he should be grateful to Raiken. But after searching through Wade’s memories, Ye Chui still couldn’t figure out why Raiken harbored such deep hatred. Was it just because he was adopted? That reason didn’t seem convincing enough.
“Why are you pretending you don’t know?” Raiken’s voice was sharp and cold. His eyes were red, either from lack of sleep or from the anger overflowing within him. He waved his hand, and his magic book appeared. “You know exactly what you did.”
“Huh?” Ye Chui thought to himself, anyone saying lines like that usually has some deeper story.
With a wave of his own hand, Ye Chui summoned his magic book to float by his side.
Then, something that had happened many times over the past few days occurred again.
“By the Demon Emperor’s arse, that’s his magic book? I didn’t believe it when people said someone awakened the most useless magic book in history, but now I have to believe it.”
“So small, so thin, so tattered, not even a cover left, just a plain white base page. Can a magic book like that even cast spells? They say this kid beat Kaimis and sent him to prison, but I reckon that’s not even true.”
“Good thing I bet all my money on Raiken. The outcome of this match is obvious.”
Most of the mercenary guild members had already seen Ye Chui’s magic book, but the crowd now included other onlookers, townsfolk, and even people like Green from other major magic guilds or mercenary groups. They all wore mocking expressions and let out jeering laughter.
This was a duel with no suspense, or so everyone thought.
Debbie, standing nearby, shared that view, though her version of “no suspense” was her absolute belief that Ye Chui would win. She pulled a bag of snacks from her pouch, beef jerky, a bit tough but still tasty, and began munching happily.
With a rustling sound, Raiken quickly flipped through his magic book’s pages. A wave of scorching heat rose before him.
Flames ignited in the air, appearing out of nowhere, like a flamethrower. The fire surged toward Ye Chui, who swiftly stepped back several paces, dodging nimbly to the side. In his fight with Kaimis six days ago, Ye Chui had discovered that by opening the camera on his iPad-like magic book, he could use a “target lock” feature. He’d been training this new ability ever since.
Strangely, though, Ye Chui wasn’t using the camera now.
The flames roared around him. His “Safety Guardian” ability triggered passively once, blocking a flame that nearly grazed him, but it consumed five percent of his magic power.
Raiken clearly knew some details about Ye Chui, including that his magic book had mastered the electric element, so he kept his distance. The flames that landed on the ground didn’t extinguish, and soon the small square turned into a fiery hell.
Ye Chui felt a slight pressure. Though Raiken had awakened his magic book less than two months ago, he felt far stronger than Kaimis. This wasn’t just because Raiken’s book had a blue cover; Raiken had a natural talent for combat, a mindset unrelated to raw ability. Kaimis hadn’t taken Ye Chui or Debbie seriously and even brought backup when confronting them, a clear gap in capability.
Still, it was only a slight pressure. For Ye Chui, it wasn’t a big deal.
“All he does is scurry around like a rat,” shouted the yellow-haired man named Tatak, letting out a shrill, grating laugh. “He’ll be burned to ashes by Raiken sooner or later. To think I had even a sliver of hope for him.”
“Didn’t they say he took down a wizard who’d been awakened for four years? Why’s he so useless now? What a boring game,” Melly, the seductive woman, remarked with a yawn. To her, Ryan’s duel was just an amusing diversion, but it wasn’t as entertaining as she’d hoped.
“I hope when this Wade kid gets burned to death, the scene’s pretty enough,” Ryan said cruelly.
Back then, Wade’s high magical potential had made him a prize coveted by their guild and others, even sparking private disputes. But Wade proved to be a failure, and that disappointment fueled Ryan’s murderous intent toward Ye Chui.
“All you do is dodge? Where else can you run?” Raiken suddenly shouted. The flames, fueled by his continuous magic, had filled the small square. With his shout, he flipped his magic book, activating another spell: “Flame Serpent.” Amid the roaring flames, the scattered fires around the square, which had been fading, flared up fiercely, merging into a massive fiery snake encircling the area.
Most critically, this serpent now had Ye Chui trapped within its coils.
Ye Chui realized he was surrounded by flames. His eyes narrowed slightly. It seemed Raiken had made significant progress for this duel, using the “Flame Serpent” spell in a way Ye Chui hadn’t expected.
The sight made those who cared about Ye Chui break into a cold sweat.
Only Debbie, her mouth stuffed with jerky, watched wide-eyed, like a moviegoer caught up in an exciting scene.
“Brilliant,” Tatak’s wild, piercing voice shouted.
It seemed the duel was about to end.
But at that moment, a few people, like Cass standing at the edge of the crowd, noticed something. His face showed a hint of surprise, an expression that quickly spread to everyone around.
A sharp, sizzling sound rang out, like water poured onto a burning fire. But it wasn’t a fire being extinguished; it was the fiery serpent. Thick steam billowed upward, and within the mist, Raiken’s flame serpent rapidly faded, replaced by a water serpent coiling around Ye Chui.
Basic attack spell: “Dance of the Water Serpent.”
“Water element?” Tatak, who had just shouted “brilliant,” gasped in shock. “His magic book has mastered water element magic too?”
“Brilliant,” Debbie shouted at the top of her lungs, swallowing her food.
