Surviving the Magic Academy With Just Intelligence Stats-Chapter 73: Golden-Eyed Tyrant [PART 1]

General Autumn found himself sprawled at the bottom of the massive crater, his mind struggling to piece together what had happened. One moment, he’d been surrounded by golden light and time magic, and the next he was lying here, disoriented and humiliated. Looking down at himself, he realized his ornate military uniform – proudly adorned with medals bestowed by the Emperor himself – had been almost completely disintegrated, leaving him with nothing but shorts. The indignity of it fueled his rage.

"That dishonorable dog," he muttered, clenching his fists so tightly that blood seeped between his fingers. "He attacked while I was speaking – no martial ethics whatsoever." His face hardened as he began levitating upward. "What else should I expect from Kingdom filth? Though I do admit that I had underestimated him slightly, but I won’t underestimate him again."

As he ascended, Autumn prepared himself mentally for a proper battle. Despite the sneak attack, he was confident in his abilities as one of the Empire’s legendary Four Generals. Each was considered a force of nature, worth an entire army alone – but what greeted him at the crater’s edge defied comprehension.

In the brief moments he’d been incapacitated, the tide of battle had shifted dramatically. Across the entire battlefield, Friedrich had deployed his Transcendent Time talent on a scale Autumn had never witnessed. His million-strong army stood frozen in time, golden chains binding them in place as Kingdom soldiers methodically cut them down. The sight was surreal – like watching insects trapped in amber being systematically exterminated.

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"How is this even possible?" Autumn whispered, genuine shock breaking through his battle-hardened composure. No single individual should be able to affect so vast an area with such precise control. Friedrich wasn’t merely a powerful noble – he was wielding power that approached the divine tier.

Rage overwhelmed the general’s tactical mind. "FRIEDRICH!!!" he roared, the veins in his temples bulging. Friedrich turned slightly to look at him, quickly taking in the general’s changed appearance, his uniform had been reduced to tatters, his exposed skin marked with seeping wounds, and scattered patches of his hair had turned stark white from the temporal assault on his body.

"How dare you sneak attack me!" Autumn bellowed, channeling his fury into raw power as he charged directly at the floating figure of Friedrich. The Golden-Eyed Tyrant merely observed his approach with detached interest, making no apparent move to defend himself.

Yet when Autumn reached Friedrich’s position, his fist passed through empty air. Looking up, he spotted Friedrich several meters away, casually waving as if greeting an old friend. Below, the slaughter of his frozen forces continued unabated.

"The bastard is stalling me," Autumn realized. Friedrich wasn’t avoiding combat out of fear – he was strategically eliminating the Empire’s numerical advantage before focusing on the real threat. It was coldly efficient and utterly infuriating.

Autumn surged forward again, pushing his body to move at speeds approaching light itself. Each time, the result was identical – Friedrich would simply not be where he appeared to be, materializing nearby with that same mocking wave. Time and space themselves seemed to bend around the Rothschild patriarch.

After the fifth futile attempt, something inside General Autumn snapped. Energy crackled visibly around his bulging muscles as he roared, "I’m done playing these games!" His voice carried the raw power of a thousand thunderstorms. "Let’s fight like real men!"

He launched himself forward once more, but this time, he felt a shift in the energy around him. The very air grew thick, and everything – birds in mid-flight, dust motes, even light itself – came to a complete standstill. Time had frozen completely, except for Friedrich who calmly began floating away from the immobilized general.

Yet something unprecedented occurred. Around Autumn’s frozen form, hairline fractures began appearing in the fabric of reality itself, as if time were a glass panel cracking under immense pressure. Friedrich turned back, golden eyes widening in genuine surprise.

"Huh?" was all Friedrich managed before Autumn’s fist connected solidly with his face, shattering the temporal lock completely.

"I said I’m done playing these games," Autumn growled as time resumed its normal flow. The force of his blow sent Friedrich hurtling toward the ground below, leaving a golden trail in his wake.

The watching soldiers on both sides fell silent, witnessing the seemingly impossible scene.

…

Friedrich’s body hurtled toward the ground with alarming velocity, trailing golden sparks in his wake. General Autumn watched with savage satisfaction, a triumphant smirk spreading across his face.

"Not so arrogant now, huh?" he called out, his voice dripping with contempt. The moment of victory was intoxicating – he had accomplished what many thought impossible: landing a direct hit on the Golden-Eyed Tyrant.

But his celebration proved premature. As Autumn observed Friedrich’s plummeting form, something unnatural began to happen. The falling figure started to convulse in midair, its outline blurring and shifting. Within seconds, Friedrich’s body transformed completely, morphing into an enormous golden clock that rotated with impossible speed. The clock’s brilliant golden hue began to fade, transitioning first to stark black and white, then becoming increasingly transparent until it vanished entirely.

"What?" Autumn gasped, his triumphant expression replaced by confusion and growing unease. The battlefield below him continued its one-sided slaughter, Friedrich’s time magic still holding his army immobile.

Then, he felt it – the light touch of fingertips on his shoulder. A sensation that sent ice through his veins. In all his centuries as a general, no one had ever approached him undetected. Such a feat shouldn’t be possible given his heightened senses and combat instincts.

Pure survival instinct took over. Without even turning to look, Autumn exploded with power, propelling himself forward at breakneck speed. He didn’t slow until he was miles away, his heartbeat thundering in his ears. Cautiously, he glanced back, scanning the horizon for pursuit. The sky behind him appeared empty.

A sigh of relief began to form in his chest – cut short by another touch on his shoulder.

"I’m cooked!" The thought flashed through his mind in the microsecond before a devastating blow crashed into his back. Unlike before, there was no opportunity to escape. The impact sent him hurtling back toward his original position, his body bent backward at an unnatural angle from the force of the strike.

Within an instant, he found himself precisely where he’d started, the transition so abrupt it felt as though reality itself had been rewritten. Before he could regain his bearings, Friedrich materialized before him, delivering a punishing blow toward his stomach. This time, Autumn managed to raise his arms in a partial block, deflecting some of the force.

But victory was short-lived. Another crushing impact slammed into his back, catching him completely off-guard.

"Just how many of you are there?" he snarled, desperation edging into his voice. For a fleeting moment, the attacks ceased, giving him precious seconds to assess his situation.

Slowly raising his gaze upward, Autumn’s eyes widened in horror at the impossible sight before him. The sky was filled with thousands of identical Friedrichs, each one regarding him with the same detached golden stare. Some appeared slightly transparent, others more solid, but all wore the same expression – the calm, calculated look of a predator toying with its prey.