Merodach, known far and wide as the most powerful sorcerer in the land, descended from the sky in a flash of dark magic, eager to demonstrate his superiority. With a wave of his hand, he conjured towering walls of black flame, encircling Alious in a searing inferno. The air crackled with heat, and the flames twisted like serpents, closing in on the old wizard.
But Alious barely flinched. His eyes, still sharp despite his age, twinkled with a trace of amusement. With a raspy chuckle, he waved his hand and conjured a strange white substance in the air. It drifted lazily before spreading over the flames.
The fire vanished instantly.
Merodach’s expression turned to confusion as Alious explained, almost casually, “Monoammonium phosphate… Potassium bicarbonate… works like a charm. Like a fire extinguisher, really.” The mocking tone in his voice cut deeper than any spell, and Merodach’s face twisted with rage. Alious had used simple alchemy to extinguish his most terrifying fire magic.
With a furious growl, Merodach descended to the ground, his expression now filled with disbelief. "What is this trickery?" he snarled. "Chemical compounds? You’re not even using magic!"
Alious smirked, shaking his head as if disappointed. This is the wizard everyone fears? What a joke, he thought. He glanced at Merodach, his eyes glimmering with disdain. My disciple, Aethyr, can cast better flames than this.
"Step aside, my good sir. I have no quarrel with you. Move along, if you would be so kind," Alious said, his voice light but laced with mockery.
Merodach’s face darkened as he felt the sting of humiliation. The air around him pulsed with energy as he gathered his mana, thickening with menace. "You think you're clever, old man?" Merodach’s voice was like thunder as he raised both hands to the sky. Black lightning crackled in his palms, spiraling into a deadly spear charged with thunderous force and dark energy.
He released the spell with a violent roar. The sky tore open as the black lightning hurtled toward Alious, crackling with destructive power that could shatter stone and rip the ground apart. The sound was deafening, and the very earth trembled beneath the might of the spell. Onlookers watched in horror, certain that Alious could not survive.
But Alious moved with the calm grace of someone completely unconcerned. He raised his staff, lightly tapping the ground. Iron rods shot up from the earth around him, grounding the lightning before it could even touch him. The deadly black energy was redirected harmlessly into the earth, crackling away into nothing.
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Alious stood unharmed, surrounded by dry sand, as the last of the lightning fizzled out.
Merodach was left seething, his eyes wide with disbelief. "How... how is this possible?" he spat. His anger grew as the realization sank in—his A+ tier magic, one of his most powerful spells, had been neutralized with such ease. It was as if he were facing not a mere wizard, but something more.
Before Merodach could summon another spell, Alious gently raised his staff. For a moment, Merodach thought the old wizard would finally unleash his own devastating magic in retaliation. The warlock braced himself, shifting into a defensive stance, his eyes glowing with dark energy. He began casting a barrage of elemental spells—fire, ice, lightning—hurling them in rapid succession. The force of the spells rippled through the air, but Alious didn’t so much as flinch.
With a flick of his staff, the spells transformed mid-air. The fireball became a swirl of harmless flower petals, the ice shards turned into grains of sugar, and the final strike of lightning dissolved into a sparkling mist.
Merodach’s fury reached its peak, but before he could react, Alious gave a single, simple wave of his staff. Merodach’s dark magic, surging with energy, twisted into something utterly absurd. The magic forming at his fingertips morphed into a sticky, melted cheese that slathered all over Merodach, dripping down his staff and armor, staining him in a wave of oozing embarrassment.
A loud, wet splosh echoed as the cheese exploded, covering the warlock from head to toe.
Alious merely sighed as he continued to walk forward, his staff gently tapping the ground as if none of this was worth his time. "Cheese?" Alious muttered to himself. "I must be hungry…"
Merodach stood frozen, humiliated and trembling with rage, cheese oozing down his face. The once-feared warlock now looked utterly defeated, not by power, but by Alious’s sheer wit and casual mastery over magic.
Just as the chaotic scene reached its peak, Master Grandir appeared, flanked by a group of masters from the college, including Master Sarphin. The Phalanx came running from the side, weapons at the ready, prepared to intervene in what they thought was a deadly battle. But Master Grandir, with a calm wave of his hand, signaled for them to stand down.
“He is no threat,” Grandir said with a quiet authority. His eyes met Alious’s, and though no words were exchanged, the two shared a silent understanding. Master Grandir’s gaze softened ever so slightly—his old friend had returned.
Alious, without a word, nodded back, his face showing no trace of the mischievous grin he had worn earlier. The two wizards, once equals in their prime, now stood together again. With a single gesture, Grandir invited Alious to follow him, alone, into the depths of the college, leaving Merodach to stew in his frustration and anger, throwing a tantrum behind them as the crowd dispersed.