Chapter 16
. Winter of Icerock
The first training for the Magic Corps members.
“Magic is implemented in three main ways.”
As I spread my fingers, the soldiers sitting in front of me sparkled with interest.
“Composition, Imbuing, Command.”
Composition is shaping the form of magic.
Imbuing is assigning the order and rules you set yourself.
Command is forcing the composed magic to follow the order and rules you have imbued.
“Therefore, the spells inscribed on your engravings also follow the structure of composition, imbuing, and command.”
The soldiers murmured “Oooh” and nodded in agreement.
“When you cast magic, chanting the spell can slightly increase its power. The problem is…”
Looking at their sparkling eyes, I sighed.
“Who here remembers the spell engraved in your own engraving?”
“…….”
“…….”
Of course.
No one raised their hand.
They looked like fools who couldn’t even think of raising their hand.
I had no choice…
“Everyone, take off your tops.”
I had to check them one by one.
“Why… do we have to take off our tops…?”
“Commander, we…”
“…Shut up and take them off.”
By now, their reactions no longer angered me; I spoke with a voice as cold as ice.
“If you don’t want your skin torn off.”
“…Yes.”
“…Understood.”
The soldiers sat in line, baring their backs.
Just as I had done with Hogg, I placed my hands on their backs, flowing mana into them to start interpreting the engravings.
Most of them were engraved by that one Bernard, but each had a different form.
Being inexperienced, it seemed they had adjusted the form and spells several times.
There was no other way; I had to interpret every engraving for all the soldiers.
The only saving grace was that it was only a “Double Chain” at most.
“<Gather the flames, then explode>… <Let the fire burn here>… <Blazing, burning fire arrows>… This is considered a spell too…?”
As I interpreted and read aloud the inscriptions, the soldiers wrote down the spells engraved on themselves onto the paper they held.
Every single one was at a level that made me shake my head.
The composition was ambiguous, the imbuing weak, and the command uncertain.
No wonder the spells were unstable.
It would have been nice if I could let them re-engrave like I did for Hogg, but unfortunately, that was impossible.
Unlike Hogg’s incomplete engraving, the engravings on them were fully completed.
Trying to overwrite it with a new engraving would require literally ripping out their hearts.
In short, it was impossible.
So there was no choice.
They had to make the most of what they already had.
“Wouldn’t it be better to just give them new engravings?”
Hagen raised his hand, holding up the pathetic spell he had copied.
“Do you think engravings can be made however you want?”
I punched him on the head.
“This only forcibly holds mana. If your body can’t withstand the amount of mana being held, it might go berserk.”
“Be… berserk?”
“When mana goes berserk, it has to be stabilized by controlling the flow, but you have no path for mana to flow. What happens if you pour water where there’s no path?”
“It… overflows…?”
“When mana goes berserk, your body will do just that.”
I pressed my finger into Hagen’s chest.
“So make what you have fully yours first.”
Hagen swallowed and kept nodding repeatedly.
I pulled my finger away and chuckled lightly.
“Think about new engravings after that.”
It was necessary.
Elios Spelder had reached the 6th Circle, but that wouldn’t be enough to defeat a dragon.
Dragons were creatures practically born for magic.
They didn’t need to form circles; from birth, their bodies already had paths for mana to flow.
A heart full of nearly infinite mana—a Dragon Heart.
A creature whose breath alone had the power of high-level magic.
Therefore, something above the 6th Circle was required.
Even for me, to defeat a dragon alone, I’d need at least the 8th Circle.
If alone, that is.
Even with the magic I possessed, reaching the 8th Circle would take considerable time.
Then I didn’t have to fight alone.
There’s no beating a group with just one person.
Train the soldiers to be competent, prepare them fully, and then fight.
The Magic Corps soldiers were under my guidance, the combat unit under Gardner, and Ronan personally trained by Siruela.
If everything went as planned, by the time I reached the 4th Circle, we would have sufficient force.
At most, 2–3 years.
To achieve that, we first had to survive the coming winter.
“Here.”
I pointed to the snow-covered ground.
Hogg, standing behind me, nodded and picked up a pickaxe.
Then he started smashing the ground I had pointed to.
When the frozen ground broke, he switched to a shovel and began digging.
Hogg, imbued with <Super Strength>, wielded power far beyond ordinary men.
It was equivalent to a dozen men combined—a force like a real bull or bear.
“Is this pit… good enough?”
“Perfect.”
Hogg grinned widely at my thumbs-up.
“Now, get in.”
He entered the pit and reached out.
I flowed mana into his fingers.
A faint blue light shimmered on his fingertips.
Using his mana-charged fingers like a pen, he drew on the pit.
Instead of chanting, each character was carved clearly, letting mana inhabit this spot.
“Done.”
“Wh-what’s that?”
Helping me out of the pit, Hogg asked.
“It’s a trap.”
“A tr… trap?”
“Yes. Cover it again so it’s invisible and move quickly.”
I tossed the shovel back to Hogg.
“I need to make a few more.”
The blizzard began.
Even by morning, the sun wasn’t visible.
The snow pouring and whipping around obscured everything.
Only the faint brightness hinted at morning.
All outdoor activity was prohibited, and the guard rotations on the watchtowers increased.
When not on guard, soldiers had to take absolute rest in the barracks.
Although called “rest,” everyone was tense and hardly spoke.
With snow falling so heavily, no one could even predict how quickly it would accumulate.
Once it piled up, they would come.
Except for the newcomers—Esric, Ronan, and Hogg—the other soldiers had experienced at least one winter before.
Such a blizzard was a signal that the winter of the snowy mountains had come.
And the monsters always came with the winter.
Ding ding ding ding―!
Amid suffocating silence, a sharp alarm rang.
“Flooding!”
“Snowworms are coming!”
The screams of soldiers on guard pierced the blizzard.
As if waiting for the cue, all soldiers in the barracks jumped to their feet.
No orders had been given.
The will to survive.
Instinct to live.
They moved on their own.
“Grab your shields!”
“Check your weapons again!”
“Stay close and move!”
Veterans shouted commands in between.
The soldiers took their positions with shields, spears, swords, and axes.
All their movements differed from the chaos a few days ago when only a dozen had appeared.
They had anticipated this since the blizzard began.
They were mentally prepared, even wishing for it to come sooner.
Kugugugu…
The ground shook.
It wasn’t the soldiers.
The vibration came from beyond the barrier.
It traveled from my feet to my knees.
My waist felt like it might give out, my heart throbbed violently, and my head spun.
Flooding.
“Everyone, get ready!”
Under Gardner’s command, the soldiers took formation at the fortress gate.
The first line held large rectangular shields.
The second line wielded long spears.
The third line, the combat unit, carried swords and axes.
The remaining 52 Magic Corps members paired up and climbed the watchtowers.
At the tower closest to the gate stood the newly appointed Magic Corps commander, Esric Spelder.
“All soldiers.”
In the center of the combat unit’s third line stood Siruela, towering.
His calm eyes and voice showed no tremor.
“Hold your positions.”
He felt like a massive tree standing firm.
Even from the watchtower, it was hard to see.
The blizzard and wind made everything hazy.
Yet, even with such vision, I could see the massive shadows approaching, pushing and crowding each other.
“So disgusting…”
Counting was pointless.
It was truly flooding.
They poured down like an avalanche, shaking the ground.
“Shall we try to stop the momentum first?”
The contractor casts magic.
I snapped open my summoned book.
On the open pages, the magic spells appeared densely.
I couldn’t overcome the numerical disadvantage.
Then at least I could try to reverse the momentum.
“<Blazing flames, rising sun, blooming flower>.”
In large-scale battles, the movement of troops is exposed.
How you observe and protect your troops before the clash is crucial.
“They won’t have mages among them,” I thought.
“<Do not grant life, do not shine, just fall and harvest>.”
Flames ignited in my palm, instantly growing larger.
Flying over the fortress roofs and walls, the flames melted the snow around them.
It looked like a massive fireball but had completely different destructive power.
Previously, I had called it a “small sun” metaphorically, but this time, it was an actual miniature sun.
“<Little Sun>.”
The miniature sun hovered above the snowworms’ heads.
Before it hit the ground, it exploded, releasing all the stored flames.
A massive fire surged, spreading in all directions.
Despite careful distance adjustments, the heat reached the fortress walls.
The swirling snow melted instantly into water.
The contractor’s privilege amplifies the magic’s power.
The unexpected amplified power had been an oversight.
But the soldiers, frozen stiff, felt slightly relieved.
Kkiiik—!
The snowworms that survived the <Little Sun> explosion screamed and charged through the lingering flames.
As the snow cleared, the creatures became fully visible.
The ground, melted by the falling sun, was soon covered white again by their masses.
Yes, this wouldn’t end so easily.
The battle…
The winter of Icerock had only just begun.
