Outers (3) Translator: Notalk

Rewriter: Wynn

Brigitte pulled her chair forward and clenched her fist. If this wasnt intentional theres no way. The calm and collected Professor was nowhere to be found. Her voice was trembling with anger. Of course. The reason why he insisted on taking charge of the Tower of Magic sponsorship. I thought something was fishy, but this is just despicable! To think hed be this cheap!

In truth, Desir hadnt expected Professor Nifleka to go to such means. For a professor to blatantly show such bias was unthinkable.Was it because I defeated his Blue Moon Party?Desir couldnt determine why the professor would go to such lengths. In any case, the buffoons motives didnt matter. What did was the current situationthe deadline had passed. There was no point in complaining.

Seeing the look of loss on Desirs face, Brigitte immediately reassured him. Ill look for anything I can do to fix this. For now, go and rest.

Desir nodded at his teacher, and returned to his office. He didnt have much hope that her intervention would solve the situation.

On top of all that, the Tower of Magic has a very rigid schedule.

As Desir traipsed back to his papers, he came to the conclusion why Nifleka acted so brashly. At the realization, Desir felt an uncharacteristic anger boiling up inside of him. He laughed bitterly.So youve decided to act first.His eyes gleamed as he hatched a plan.Two can play that game.

Now seated in front of his mountain of paper again, he flipped open the piece of paper in his pocket. It was the timeline of events he had written down prior. Skimming down the list, he traced his finger until he got to what he was looking for. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.I can be just as cheap.

3 Points. Attack on Tower of Magics Aeurelli Branch July 7th

It was a late summer night, and the air was brisk. A man with a handsome mustache dressed in neat clothes took long strides along the street engulfed by the night fog. His name was Criken. Criken was extremely tall, with a well-built frame. His eyes peered up into the night sky, before falling on a boy running toward him with a bag full of rye bread. His shabby appearance gave Criken more than enough information about this child. The hard rye bread in his arms was precious food for his family.

Criken moved aside as the boy continued to run, but they still bumped shoulders. The bread bag flew into the air, and a look of panic showed on the boys face. Suddenly, something strange happenedthe bag stopped in mid air, as if somebody were holding it. Criken grabbed the bag out of the air, and peered at the fallen boy.

Sorry, sir. The boys eyes were downtrodden at his mistake.

Its alright. Are you hurt? Criken offered his outstretched hand to the boy and helped him up. After he stood back up, Criken wiped away the soot on the childs face. Where are you headed?

Im heading home to my family, sir. The boy gave a quiet smile to the man who helped him up.

With this bread? Criken asked.

Its for my little sister, sir. She isnt able to come out of the house, said the boy. His eyes looked earnestly up at the towering man in front of him.

Crikens intuition was correct, and he nodded in understanding. Dont walk around outside so late. Your sister will worry.

The boy nodded his head fiercely. Yes. Thank you, sir. He stared at the bag of bread in Crikens hands.

As Criken moved the bag to and fro, the boys eyes were mesmerized by it. He smirked. Right. I should give this back. Criken held out the bag to the boy.

Thank you, sir! the boy exclaimed. Just as the boys hands touched the bag, Criken suddenly turned it upside down and emptied its contents onto the floor.

In shock, the boy asked what he was doing. Criken responded by crushing the bread underneath his feet. They broke apart into crumbs and mixed into the dirt, completely inedible. A faint look of amusement appeared in Crikens eyes as he wandered past the bewildered boy. He was feeling quite cheerfulwhenever he was about to do something important, he would have a bit of fun with things like this.

As the moonlight faded away and the darkness grew deeper, the street lights flickered and the shadows disappeared. He rounded a third corner until he could no longer see any lit street lights. Surrounded by pitch black darkness, he stopped in his tracks. In front of him laid a giant metal door embossed with the wordsTower of Magic, Aeurelli Branchin an elegant cursive. At this point, he tossed his fedora aside, revealing a mask shaped like a shark with horns. In the dead of night, he said a single word.

Assemble.

Restless shadows stirred from the seedy underbelly of the city, and 80 silhouettes stood behind him. Each of them wore masks adorned with skulls and dark black cloaks, merging with the darkness. The masquerade began channeling all manners of spells. Waves of mana rippled through the air as a menagerie of spells clashed with the gate. A powerful magic barrier activated, nullifying the slew of magic that struck the metal gate.

As expected of the Tower of Magic.

Criken gestured forward with his chin, and a number of heavy-set men stepped forward to pound and grind down the gate. The door began to yield in reaction to the overwhelming force. Keep going, said Criken. We cant let it adapt.

Additional clangs rang out from the door, as the enchantment weakened. As the mana could only flow in one direction, it could only activate one spell at a time. The enchantment could only augment its physical or magical durabilityeven with the greatest source of mana in the world, it wouldnt matter. Criken smirked as the door opened with a boom.

An ear-splitting alarm rang outthe intruders entered the Tower of Magic. Security guards and mages poured out from the Tower of Magic and formed ranks, with the defensive towers manned and sights readied on the incoming masked foes. Criken was taken aback at their quick response time, but that didnt deter him. He signaled his subordinates to charge.

The masked marauders let out a war cry as they engaged the incoming forces. Sounds of steel clashing, roars of triumph, and explosions echoed throughout the battlefield. In the chaos, Criken quietly left the battlefield, with 6 of his subordinates in tow.

[Invisibility.]

The high-level spell refracted light to make one disappear from sight. They tore away from the fight as the security guards continued to flood onto the war zone. They really came!

Criken and his men skirted off to one side. He glanced at the guards as they went down the stairs, and then smiled to himself. Everything was perfect. With the Tower of Magics forces gathered on the lower floors, they wouldnt be able to prevent him from accomplishing his goal. The only thing which bothered him was how quickly they reacted.No matter. Everything is according to plan.

The 80 men were merely a distraction. The main forces had dispersed from the upper floors, and he leisurely walked up the stairs.

Tower of Magic20thFloor.

Compared to the floors below, the 20thfloor was rather small. As he entered the top floor, his eyes were drawn toward a safe. Criken, wary of additional traps, conjured a magic formula in front of him as he took careful steps toward his prize.

[Earth Rage.]

3rdcircle attack spell. The barriers layered on top of the safe were expelled by the tide of mana exerted by Criken. The safe was laid waste to and inside, a strange object illuminated the surrounding area. 2ndtier magic crystalRuigenells Tear. The brilliant blue light danced across Crikens palm, and the crystalline object pulsed like a beating heart. His eyes shined with greed and he reached out to grab the magic crystal

Thats enough. A young boys voice rang out.

Startled, Criken turned around. It was an incredibly beautiful boyno. He was so beautiful that it was difficult to tell if it was a boy or a girl. His voice was firm. Please surrender, Outer.

This was outside of expectations. You were hiding forces in reserve? Interesting. Crikens voice wavered as he tried to determine how they figured his plan out. This means that you had to have known our plans, our identity, and even our objective His voice trailed off. Who are you? His eyes narrowed as he tried to read his opponent.

Pram Schneizer raised his sword with his eyes trained on his target, and said With the authority of Hebrions Single Ranker, I place you under arrest. You would do best to surrender.

I refuse. With that, Criken snapped his fingers and his companions lined up in front of him.

[Elans strength resides in me.]

[Wave of Flame.]

The mages created their constructs and aimed their sights at Pram. In response, Pram likewise used the time spent casting to analyze the enemys strength.

4 mages, 2 swordsmen. Based on the spells being cast and the reactions of the swordsmen, these guys cant be much stronger than 2ndCircle and Pawn-rank.

[Fireball.]

[Ice Spear.]

With the first two spells completed, the mages sent them careening toward the lone swordsman. A glint in Prams eye shined as he swung his sword toward the incoming blasts of elemental energy. His Blanchume rapier bisected the Fireball and the Ice Spear left nary a scratch on Prams head as they shattered into fragments of mana.

He cut the magic?

Anti-magic sword!

Seeing the change in atmosphere, Pram leaped forward to subdue the mages. In response, the knights stood in an ironclad formation preventing Pram from making it to his quarry. The mages began casting a new salvo of spells with everybody back in position. The morale was high for the intruders, getting ready for Prams execution, but

Its useless.

Pram disappeared in an instant. The swordsmen quickly frantically looked around, trying to find the blue-haired boy, only to discover he was already on top of their mages. This was the difference of rank: these Pawn-rank soldiers had no hope of matching up with the Knight-rank prodigy. A dull smack sounded and the first mage crumpled to the ground. Their expressions turned grave as Pram moved onto his next target. As he neared, a pulse rose from the ground and caught his foot.

[Entangle]

2ndcircle snaring spell. Prams battle senses were hardy, but he was in disbelief.No way. There werent any mages casting spells

He had missed it. There was a mage just outside of his vision, and now he would pay the price.