I Was Mistaken as a Genius Mage in a Game-Chapter 89

Maltiel’s skin and wings, crossing the sky at hundreds of kilometers per hour, were burning red due to the friction heat.

As soon as the barrier that Bell had deployed around Bellarand collapsed, this monstrous being with dark skin spread its wings and flew east without looking back. It was a swift departure from the dark, desolate Bellarand.

The black earth of Bellarand was no longer visible, and now, it was soaring over an unfamiliar, tranquil mountain range.

Despite being hundreds of kilometers away from the battlefield, Maltiel remained alert.

The opponent was the swordsman.

As he had done before, he could not make his mutated creatures attack the wounded soldiers to bind the swordsman’s movements. Grisha was standing beside the wounded, and with a priest of that level focusing on defense, their subordinates alone wouldn’t be able to break through.

Laguel probably wouldn’t last even a minute against the swordsman.

The pursuit had already begun, and one of them, either himself or Mikael, would likely die by the swordsman’s hand.

‘It doesn’t matter who survives between the two of us.’

In Maltiel’s judgment, Mikael was a highly capable Great Commander. He held hundreds of high-ranking mages hostage and studied magic every day, thoroughly uncovering the weaknesses of many spells through them.

While his military knowledge and ability to respond to unexpected situations were lacking compared to Maltiel, in 40 or 50 years, when his experience had accumulated, those weaknesses would likely disappear...

“Aaaaaa!”

“Aaaa...”

Whoosh!

A massive golden orb streaked across the corner of Mikael's vision as he flew with his wings spread wide.

...The unknown scream was an added bonus.

“...?”

Maltiel was startled and instinctively stopped flapping his wings. He couldn’t understand what was happening.

Could it be the swordsman? No, if the swordsman had chosen him, his head would have fallen off his body without having the chance to even think.

It wasn’t the swordsman. Then what was that golden orb just now?

“One point. Lack. Unification and compression.”

A faint spark burst through the dense trees below.

A cool sensation swept past Maltiel’s neck. The sharp survival instinct unique to Great Commanders screamed at him to move immediately.

Without hesitation, Maltiel spread his wings and accelerated straight ahead.

“Bolt.”

The next moment, a blinding flash of white light surged from the dense trees.

Hundreds of millions of volts of lightning stretched through the air, piercing through the spot where Maltiel had been standing.

The surrounding air began to ionize. The massive energy from the lightning transferred tremendous heat to the air, and soon, an updraft formed, carrying the ionized air upwards.

Maltiel lowered his head in the direction where the column of light had erupted. Trees were ablaze, and the evaporated moisture created a faint mist that surrounded them.

Through the burning flames, a white-haired old man appeared. He was dressed in a robe caked with mud and holding a large staff in both hands, unmistakably a wizard.

‘...A skilled 8th Circle wizard. His magic swells inside his body as if it could overflow, and his eyes are so cold that describing them as calm is an understatement. But...’

Maltiel smiled faintly at the wizard below him.

“It seems the swordsman chose Mikael after all.”

The next moment, Maltiel’s figure vanished without a trace from the air.

A delayed gust of wind twisted the updraft that had soared into the sky, and soon, the ground where the white-haired wizard had been standing shook with a loud shockwave.

The surrounding trees were uprooted, and several trees slammed to the ground covered in fallen leaves.

The fallen trees rolled down the mountain path, and the shock sent the leaves that had risen high into the sky to collide with other burning trees, quickly turning to ash.

With a single step, Maltiel shook the entire mountain.

‘...Quite reckless.’

Alter Heindel, the white-haired wizard, thought as he turned his head toward the Great Commander who had landed beside him.

If it had been Maltiel under normal circumstances, he wouldn’t have pushed so aggressively against a wizard whose identity was still unknown. He would have analyzed the opponent’s magic, identified their weaknesses, and then slowly tightened the noose.

But now, the situation was very different.

The swordsman had already flown toward Mikael, and it was unclear when he would return after dealing with his comrades.

Even if it meant taking some risk, it was necessary to quickly eliminate any magical threat and escape.

‘There’s no escort around the wizard. They haven’t formed a proper formation yet. If we’re going to settle this, it’s better to hurry.’

Maltiel clenched his fist, and a dark light began to gather in his hand. It coiled around /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ his fist like a gauntlet, absorbing the light emitted by the fire and the sun around him.

Alter Heindel, for the first time in a long while, felt a chill akin to a blade hanging over his neck.

The dark light in Maltiel’s grasp began to devour everything it touched and shot toward Alter’s head.

In the split second before the head of the Giant from the Lightning School was shattered...

BwooOOO!

A sudden horn blast filled the forest.

There was no time for planning.

We didn’t have even the slightest margin to formulate a strategy.

No matter how experienced or skilled the soldiers were, none of them had ever flown through the air at over 300 kilometers per hour, riding a massive golden orb.

Most soldiers, when spinning through the air, would be busy holding their weapons tightly to prevent anyone else from getting hurt.

If you are reading this translation anywhere other than Novelight.net or SilkRoadTL, it has been stolen.

No one thought about how to act when meeting Maltiel.

Except for one person.

“Everyone, wake up!”

The golden orb we were riding crashed into the mountainside. Broken branches and crushed leaves were scattered beneath us, and my robe was covered in dirt.

It felt like my stomach was flipping. I kept gagging, and my breath was heavy.

“We need to bind Maltiel’s feet.”

Alter Heindel, with his large staff that was almost as big as his body, leaned on it and began descending the steep slope. While most of the soldiers were still dazed from the chaos, the old man, over eighty years old, was the first to rise.

I looked at Alter as he descended the mountain path, feeling awe. How could he still be so spry at his age?

“Command.”

Alter looked up at me as he descended the slope.

When our eyes met, I couldn’t believe they belonged to a man over eighty.

The gaze was intense, cold, and full of power, causing an inexplicable flutter in my chest.

“I’ll be the decoy. Use me as you wish.”

That was all he said.

“...What, what?”

“One point. Lack. Unification and compression.”

Alter settled on a fallen tree and raised his staff.

The mana gathered at the tip of the staff and began to transform into bright lightning.

“Commander, orders.”

Rex pulled my arm, which had been on the ground, and helped me up.

Seeing the lightning gathering at the end of Alter’s staff, my frozen thoughts began to move again.

“Bolt.”

This 𝓬ontent is taken from fгeewebnovёl.co𝙢.

The burning leaves scattered around Alter, and soon another burst of flames erupted into the sky from his staff.

As soon as I realized the situation, the lightning burst from the tip of Alter’s staff. The soldiers quickly ran down the slope to guard the wizard.

At that moment, Alter’s words flashed in my mind.

“I’ll be the decoy. Use me as you wish.”

“Stop!”

Alter had made his intentions clear to me.

“All troops, behind the trees! We’ll lure the Great Commander down!”

There was no time to think further. The staff had already released the lightning, and soon the Great Commander would be coming for Alter’s neck.

“...!”

The soldiers, who had been rushing to guard the wizard, immediately stopped at my command and hid in the shadows.

The situation had already unfolded.

The best thing to do now was to follow the movements of that old man.

“Rex, Artifact!”

I couldn’t understand how Alter was acting so boldly. If I had taken even a second to think, I would have lost my life. It was so bold it almost seemed reckless.

An impulsive act.

Yeah, it’s a little rude to say this about an old man over eighty, but Alter’s actions were full of reckless courage.

The fearless look in Alter’s eyes, the gaze of an elderly man who had achieved what others couldn’t, lingered in my mind.

‘From here on, it’s an impromptu performance.’

Alter was playing the drums. The bright cymbals signaled the start of the music, and he set the ‘rhythm’ for the base.

What came next, whether it was unpleasant noise or a brilliant jazz performance, was entirely up to me.

One thing was for sure: hesitation would be a mistake.

If I let anxiety or fear hold me back, the opportunity would be lost. The light only stays for a moment, and we need to catch it.

I had no time to doubt if I had the qualities to command these soldiers as a general.

Right now, the only option was to move in time with the rhythm.

Boom!

Soon, a tremendous shock began to shake the ground beneath my feet. Trees uprooted from above rolled down the mountain path, crashing into other trees.

The burning leaves scattered, and the dark light flowing from Maltiel’s hand headed straight for Alter’s head.

“It’s in the way.”

In that moment, Maltiel’s dark fist aimed to erase the old giant’s head.

Bwoooo!

The horn blasted again.