The God of Magic: Archmage Academy (OP, LitRPG)

Both in the past and in the present, a duel was a sacred thing. Susanna and Snake had agreed, and now it was out of Sen’s hands. He only hoped he was wrong about Snake having some secret advantage. But he couldn’t shake this feeling.

The other students gave them a wide berth, a circle in the center of the ballroom. Susanna looked like divinity in her golden dress. Snake looked like a serpentine demon in a suit. Sen gritted his teeth. Tonight wasn’t the night for this. It was supposed to be fun and relaxing. Snake had turned it into a duel. 

“Terms?” Susanna asked him, readying herself.

“To surrender or inability to fight,” Snake said. 

Sen furrowed his brow. Inability to fight? That was incredibly specific. Death. Surrender. Incapacitation. Those were common terms. But inability to fight? Why had he worded it like that? 

Susanna nodded consent. She was confident in her ability to handle Snake. To be fair, her inherited power had been crafted and honed over generations. She might still be a student at the academy, but she was on the brink of graduation. Sen was sure she had some important position already lined up for her once she graduated. A battle against Snake shouldn’t be a problem for her. In theory. 

In practice, Snake was unpredictable, dangerous, and had less to lose. He hoped she took Snake seriously. 

Since the ball was a student-only event, there weren’t any faculty supervisors. Instead, Oliver oversaw the duel, though nervously. He looked at each of them and asked if they were ready. A simple nod from Snake, and an ‘I am’ from Susanna answered his question. Oliver nodded.

Sen and Mori exchanged a glance and erected an invisible barrier to protect the onlookers and keep magic contained within a reasonable zone. Oliver noticed and waited for them to finish.

When it was done, he lifted his hand, then let it drop. “Begin!”

Whatever Snake’s plan was, it crumbled in an instant. Susanna conjured more of the golden men she’d utilized in her ball entrance. Four of them formed, all Girch-sized. Snake leapt forward, scaled hands reflecting the blue light of the ballroom. The golden men converged on him. He was crushed in an instant. Snake was only barely visible as the men piled on top of them, reaching back and driving down massive fists into his back. Snake was forced to cover his head and weather the blows. After a moment, the four men converged into one giant man, twice as large and wide as before. It lifted Snake into the air by the back of his suit and then slammed him into the ground face-first. 

Susanna held up a hand, and the golden man dissipated, the energy returning to her. Snake was slow to rouse himself. He rose to his feet with a wince. His suit was ripped to pieces, and his body was covered in scratches and wounds all over. Susanna had pushed him to the brink in seconds. Sen worried she’d underestimated Snake, but the truth was, Snake might have been the one to underestimate her. Snake stumbled to the side, but caught himself. He sneered at her, serpent's fangs just barely visible. “I’ll tear you apart, Susanna.” 

Susanna smirked. “Will you? From the looks of things, you’re the one struggling here, Snake. Perhaps second place is too high for you. Perhaps you shouldn’t be on the leaderboard at all? Slither home, pest.”

Rage exploded in Snake’s eyes, and he dashed forward.

Susanna flicked a bored hand. A giant golden arm shot out of the ground and grabbed Snake by the neck. It continued crawling out of the ground until Snake’s body floated mere feet away from the ceiling. He grabbed at the large hand, trying to free himself from it. The pressure around his neck was too great, and he couldn’t breathe. Snake gritted his teeth as he struggled. Kicking his feet. Surrounding his hands with venom. Nothing worked. Susanna had him trapped.

“Surrender. It’ll be a lot less embarrassing than passing out in front of everyone,” Susanna said. She was playing this up for show. She could end this now. Finish him off and claim victory. But despite what she’d said, she was dragging it out. She was making an example of him to deter future challengers. 

Some of the fourth-year girls she’d spent most of the night with giggled. Susanna turned to smile at them. 

And that was when she lost the duel. 

Snake’s move was subtle. Sen almost didn’t notice until it was too late. 

He caught the trace of a spell, but it was only a hint. He focused on it and heard its name. 

“Shed Skin Venom.”

It was then that he noticed movement. Invisibility wasn’t a skill most people could use perfectly. There were levels to it, and to the trained eye, a weaker invisibility spell was visible depending on the lighting. The lighting in the ballroom was perfect for it. That was how he noticed Snake had somehow escaped. The ‘Snake’ in the grasp of Susanna’s creation now hung limply. Like a bodily copy without a soul. The real snake was obscured by light and only feet away from the top-ranked student. 

Sen’s eyes widened, and he called out a warning. “Susanna! Watch out!” he cried. 

Susanna’s eyes focused on the copy of Snake in the construct, and it dawned on her she was in danger. “Golden—” Her spell cut off half-cast, and the golden hand in front of her fell to the ground in droplets like rain. Susanna looked down at the hole in her chest. She stumbled forward, doing everything in her power to stay standing.

Behind her, Snake stood with a golden sphere in his hands. Blood covered it and the tips of his serpent claws and fingers. 

“What just happened?” someone asked.

“Oh my god! Susanna!” one of her friends called out. 

Sen shook his head. Snake had ripped out the magic artifact the Tower family was known for, a golden sphere that encased their hearts. He could only imagine what damage Snake had done to that precious organ in the process. 

Sen dispelled the barrier. She needed medical attention. Now. “Oliver!” he called out. 

“Match!” Oliver called it. He hurried forward, reaching Susanna at the same time as Sen. Girch pushed through the crowd with powerful arms. 

“I need space!” Sen called out. Girch nodded and glared at those around them. People stopped trying to lean in to see better. 

Oliver shook his head. “She’s losing a lot of blood, Sen.”

He could see that. Blood pooled in Susanna’s chest, and she struggled to breathe. He’d use his strongest maximizer to heal this wound. “Total Restoration Max—”

Susanna choked on her blood, reaching out to stop him. Her eyes locked onto Girch. 

Girch looked conflicted. “We need Sikar. You can’t heal her without fixing the construct. If you do, then—”

Metal clanged to the ground. Sen looked up to see Snake looking back at them. He’d ripped her construct in half. “Then she’ll lose her powers,” Snake finished the sentence. “That’s too bad.” 

Behind him, the ranking adjusted. Snake was number one. Susanna dropped to second place. Sen looked up at Oliver. “Go! Get Sikar now! She doesn’t have long.” 

Oliver nodded fervently and stumbled over himself trying to move. 

Mori knelt beside him. “She can’t wait much longer. We need to act.”

Susanna’s eyes pleaded with Girch. 

“No,” Girch insisted. Though he looked at Susanna with concern. “The artifact surgery isn’t possible at her age. If you heal her, her life as a magician is over.” 

“If I don’t, her actual life is over,” Sen spat back. 

Girch looked down at that, his mind a mix of emotions. 

Sen turned his thoughts to Tutor. “Could we repair the artifact and then resurrect her?” He’d prefer not to take a risk like that, but with Mori and him working together, they should be able to stabilize her soul. 

[Her artifact is bound to her. It won’t be possible to repair it if she’s dead. Resurrection isn’t feasible here.] 

“Mori, how much longer can we wait?” Sen asked. 

“We have seconds at best. We can save her, working together, but if we wait, that’s it,” Mori said. Of the two of them, his mastery of healing spells was more profound. Sen had to make a call. 

He looked up at the doors to the foyer and stared, hoping Oliver and Sikar would pop through any second. 

A second passed.

Another. 

“I’m not letting her die. Not for this,” he said. 

Susanna shook her head. Her face was pale now. Girch closed his eyes and looked away. It was the closest they’d get to his agreement. 

Sen and Mori focused their powers together and concentrated on her crumpled heart. “Total Restoration Maxima!” they spoke in unison. 

Susanna’s eyes widened, and she sucked in a deep breath of air as the blood in her lungs evaporated into nothing. Her wound closed, and with it her dress healed as well. The damage was extensive, and it would drain her mana as well as theirs. But she would live. 

The doors to the ball nearly fell off the hinges as Sikar pushed himself inside. “Where is she?” he demanded. His eyes locked on Sen, and the healing Susanna. For a moment, Sikar looked relieved. Then he noticed the glimmering gold magic artifact several feet away, and his eyes opened in horror. He shook his head. “No…” 

He ran over and fell to the ground, covering her. “How long ago?”

Sen shook his head. “What?”

“How long ago did you heal her?” Sikar demanded.

“Just now,” Sen said. 

Sikar stared at her and then looked at the construct. His eyes glided up toward Snake, who stood over it, blood still drenching his hands. Sikar was normally a fairly objective man, but the look in his eyes as he stared at Snake now was one of hatred. “There’s nothing we can do,” he said finally. 

Susanna’s eyes opened slowly as her condition stabilized. She looked up at Sikar, and hope filled her eyes. But that hope died when she saw the sorrowful expression on his face. 

She tried to sit up, but winced. Sikar placed a careful hand around her back and helped her. Girch hurried over as well. He lowered himself, grabbing her arm to wrap around his shoulder so he could support her. But Susanna pulled away. “Stay away from me.”

Girch took a step back. Suddenly, he looked like he were the one that had been pierced through the heart. “Susanna…”

“You were supposed to protect me. Now, what do I have? Nothing. You betrayed my trust. I could’ve held out. I don’t expect outsiders to understand, but you…” She turned away from him and lowered her gaze. 

Sikar’s eyes were clenched shut. He supported Susanna and slowly led her out of the room. 

Girch looked on the verge of tears. He shrank back and made his way toward the rear door, ducking to disappear through it.

“Did we…did we do the right thing, Mori?” Sen asked.

Mori was silent.

A comforting hand touched his back, and Sen looked back to see Milim squatting behind him. “You saved her life,” she whispered. 

He couldn’t find the comfort he wanted in those words. Would he have wanted to be saved? If it meant never using magic again? Sorrow, doubt, and confusion turned to anger. He stood and glared at Snake. The boy was still staring at the ranking board. He dared to smile as if he’d won some victory. 

Sen stomped toward him. “Snake.”

Snake turned to meet him. They stared at each other. 

“What?” Snake demanded. “It was a duel. She lost. You didn’t cry when she tried to choke me to death, so don’t cry now.” 

It was all Sen could do to hold back the mana raging within himself. “You didn’t need to destroy her artifact. You could’ve struck her and ended it without that. That was intentional,” Sen spat.

Snake nodded. “It was. She lost the ability to fight. I was clear about my intentions,” Snake said. He spoke as if that made it all right. As if his evil act was justified in his words. 

“Then let me be clear about mine, Snake. I am going to take everything away from you, the same way you took everything from her. Remember this victory. Remember this moment. Enjoy it. Not long from now, thinking back to today will leave a bitter taste in your mouth. You’ll regret this.”

Snake leaned forward and stared at Sen with eyes full of hate. “Try it. I’ll break you too.” He brushed past Sen, bumping his shoulder. But without meaning too Sen had activated all of his hybrid stats in anger. Snake looked like he’d hit a brick wall. He glared at Sen and rolled his neck before leaving the ballroom. 

Sen glared at him until he left, and then he knelt down and picked up Susanna’s broken construct. Even if he killed Snake. Even if he injured him or stole his magic, the way Snake had stolen Susanna’s…that doubt would still be there.

Had Sen made the right decision? Could Sikar have saved her magic if he’d just waited? 

It was a question that would haunt him for a long time; he could feel that much in his soul. 

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