Wizards begin with Occlumency.

Chapter 244 A Self-Inflicted Trap

"Holy crap!"

Is he sick?

"Why go through all this trouble when you clearly had the ability to kill them outright?"

The three-point wizard Vina was completely taken aback by Link's outrageous move and started cursing angrily.

"hehe……"

The Shadow City leader, a sinister-looking man who seemed to enjoy the spectacle even more, was more eager than Sandra to speak first and launch into a sarcastic remark.

"Only trash like you, whose brain is filled with nothing but fucking and killing, would think that this pretty boy you think he would be just like those real pretty boys you've ravaged—simple-minded, disregarding the situation, and blindly killing."

The leader of the White Tower Alliance, "The Scholar," interjected, praising in a low voice:

"A perfect wizard must be rational and pursue maximum benefit. If killing is merely for the sake of killing, it not only fails to bring assistance but also harms interests. So, why kill at all?"

As he spoke, the "scholar" stared intently into the eyes of the three-pointed wizard Vina, and solemnly admonished her:

"Human beings have two of the most primal desires: sexual desire and the desire to destroy. In you, both have been amplified to the extreme. If you continue to indulge in this way, you will no longer be a wizard, or even a human, but a monster driven by desire, knowing only how to mate and reproduce all day long, without any thoughts of your own."

Sincerity is the greatest weapon.

The scholar's words were not intended to be sarcastic or mocking; on the contrary, they were most damaging to the three-point wizard Vina.

A few simple words forced her to confront her most authentic and ugliest side, and also led her to foresee the most unacceptable and unbearable ending.

For a moment, they forgot that the Shadow City leader had directly called her "trash."

An eerie silence fell over the spectator room.

Nobody wanted to talk.

This includes Sandra, who has almost won the bet, and Lanny Taylor, whose thoughts are becoming increasingly subtle.

The world of competition.

The second hour passed.

The remaining four teams once again learned the locations of the other teams.

Looking at the map projected by the stopwatch-style special equipment, my cousin suddenly broke free from the "mental maze" state.

Looking at the safety circle that was just one step away from being crossed, a cold sweat broke out on my back.

Looking around, good heavens, the three Rukia had already stepped out of the safety zone.

Fortunately, the two outer members helped their seriously injured companion and fell behind, still within the safety circle.

"That was close! Just one step away."

My cousin had just felt so fortunate that he hadn't even had a chance to warn the others to stop.

A white beam of light suddenly descended from the sky, taking away Rukia and the three outer members.

The moment he was enveloped by the pillar of light, his cousin suddenly remembered his younger cousin Hawk, whom he had personally locked in the cave, and his two teammates who did not obey the orders of the Rukia family.

He's the one who got himself into trouble.

My cousin was suddenly filled with such regret.

A team that loses five or more members will be automatically eliminated.

Such are the rules, and there is no room for resistance.

the other side.

Link had already used the map and flown at supersonic speed to quickly find "Freedom to Do Anything".

"Tsk..."

Seeing the state of "being free to do anything," Link couldn't help but gasp in astonishment.

awful!

That's so tragic!

Everyone was injured or bruised; fractures were considered minor.

Even Jasmine was covered in black smoke from being burned.

His face was dark and he lay helplessly on the ground, his chest rising and falling, breathing through his mouth and nose.

Beside Jasmine was Tiffany Colonna, who had never seen the "mad dog" fighting style before, and was thus forcibly defeated by Jasmine, who was slightly weaker.

I've never seen anyone so reckless.

In order to unleash a spell that requires close-range aiming, he dared to withstand the fiercest attacks, disregard his injuries, and forcefully advance to the appropriate distance.

Moreover, it wasn't just Molly Kidman who was like this; everyone else, including Betty with her shy smile, was also "free to do whatever they wanted."

Perhaps it was precisely because they lacked that certain spirit, that they didn't have the daring, reckless drive to fight, regardless of casualties,

Despite Tiffany's team being the stronger one, and having a ten-on-nine advantage, they were ultimately defeated in a fight that resulted in mutual destruction.

Looking back on the battle, Tiffany felt some regret, thinking that she shouldn't have agreed to Molly Kidman's request for a friendly sparring match using only witchcraft and no magical artifacts.

"You're all crazy! You're all crazy!"

Sensing Link's arrival, Tiffany gritted her teeth, got up, straightened her posture, and started complaining to Link.

"No madness, no life."

Link replied calmly, "We've always only had ourselves, maybe with our partners at most. We can only survive, and live better, by becoming a madman."

Tiffany was speechless upon hearing this.

As a member of a pure-blooded family from the West Coast, Tiffany only falls at a disadvantage in terms of material conditions when facing members of the major families at the Academy headquarters.

"The other teams from various organizations all withdrew from the competition because of you, right?"

With her mind racing, Tiffany changed the subject and asked this question.

"Perhaps."

Link smiled. "If it were really because of me, would the academy give me any other reward?"

"Perhaps."

Tiffany returned his words verbatim, then pulled out a stopwatch-style special equipment and surrendered to Link Grand's team.

Without any hesitation or fuss, it was decisive and efficient.

Ten white beams of light fell, taking Tiffany and her team away.

"How is it? Is it still okay?"

Link walked over to Jasmine, who was exhausted after quickly defeating one person and then gritting her teeth to take down Tiffany, and asked her with concern.

He wasn't just focused on talking to Tiffany; once he arrived at the scene, he kept throwing all sorts of healing and restorative spells at Jasmine.

Under Link's care, Jasmine's complexion gradually turned rosy and she regained her vitality.

My breathing is much smoother, and my chest is rising and falling more powerfully.

Bending down, Link reached out and picked up Jasmine. He wanted Jasmine to stand so that she could breathe more easily and recover better.

As a result, Jasmine acted spoiled and threw herself into Link's arms, as if she had no bones and was limp, only able to stand up with Link's strong embrace.

Link tried to get Jasmine to stand up on her own several times, but to no avail, so he gave up.

Only a small, cleansing magic trick could be used to summon a gentle breeze to cleanse the black smoke off Jasmine.

"Get up, everyone, and recover. There might be another battle waiting for you."

Looking around at the group of guys and the socially awkward group lying haphazardly on the ground, Link spoke in a flat, cold tone.

Are you kidding me? Do these guys really think they can hide their condition from Link's senses?

Jasmine was indeed exhausted, having fought off two opponents with great effort.

In particular, one of her opponents was Tiffany Colonna.

However, the "Brotherhood" and "Social Anxiety Group" are not that tired.

Even if he was indeed injured, it wasn't to the point where he was lying on the ground unable to get up.

They all put on this act because they were afraid of being questioned by Link.

The team leader is working herself to the bone for the team's victory. You all need to ask yourselves if you've fulfilled your duties as her subordinates.

Sensing something amiss in Link's tone, they dared not feign death any longer. They all stood up, composed themselves, and prepared to set off again.

However, there's no need to play another friendly match.

The team, composed of senior first-level wizards, surrendered less than a minute after Tiffany's team teleported out of bounds.

Twenty white beams of light descended simultaneously.

The competition area in the world of the game suddenly became deserted.

The team competition ended in just two hours.

According to the original schedule, the safe zone would have been reduced by a full nine times.

In terms of time, when designing the competition format, it was assumed that the team competition would be decided within 8 to 10 hours.

The reason for such a large deviation is that Link is far too overpowered at the level of a first-level wizard.

The reason is definitely not that the competition format is unreasonable.

This left not only the other four team leaders speechless.

Even Sandra's feelings weren't simply the joy of winning the team competition; there were other complex considerations as well.

For example, how to treat Link Grand in the future.

No wonder when he proposed recruiting Link Grand, his third uncle, who held the positions of dean of both the local junior and senior academies, smiled knowingly and bluntly said, "You can't recruit him."

Judging from today's performance, a genius of this caliber is indeed not someone she can recruit.

They must have been targeted long ago.

I don't know if it was my third uncle or one of my other two uncles.

Sandra's reverie didn't last long before she was startled awake.

"Will the individual competition still be held?"

Upon receiving notification that the team competition had ended, the University of Mesopotamia team leader immediately returned to the spectator room and asked directly.

Moreover, the questions asked seemed rather strange.

"I don't know."

The cold-looking man leading the Shadow City team instantly understood their intentions, and shrugged.

"If that pretty boy with gold-rimmed glasses named Link Grand still participates in the individual competition, what difference does it make whether or not the individual competition is held?"

He has already decided that he will kill at least four people, not to mention the first one.

Is it that the life of a first-class wizard from Mesopotamia University is worthless, or that the life of a first-class wizard from Shadow City is worthless?

The White Tower Alliance "scholar" then abandoned his "specimen expert" demeanor and became serious, saying earnestly, "I think we should consider limiting Link Grand's appearances. That way, it's fair for the individual competition to continue."

"Agreed!"

The leader of the Flame and Metal Merchant Guild, the three-point wizard Vina, went even further, saying, "Link Grand must be detained and subjected to the most rigorous checks to verify whether he is indeed a first-level wizard and whether he cheated in the team competition."

The four wizarding organizations were perfectly in sync regarding their actions against Rivosos Academy.

Without prior consultation, they immediately joined forces to put pressure on Sandra.

"Hmph."

Sandra sneered.

"You can't afford to lose, can you?"

Of the four of you, which organization doesn't have a longer history than my Rivos Academy? How many geniuses have you produced or seen?

Link Grand's performance did indeed surpass that of the vast majority of first-level wizards, but it was neither unreasonable nor unique.

Our Rivosos Academy has produced several throughout its history, not to mention the West Coast, and the entire wizarding world.

As she spoke, Sandra even stood up and pointed at the four team leaders, berating them:

"You're all pretending to be ignorant, do you really think I don't know what sinister thoughts you're hiding in your hearts?"

Isn't the goal simply to exclude Link Grand from the individual competition's entry list?

Stop spouting nonsense.

Aren't you ashamed when you say it yourselves?

Have some shame.

The four team leaders still had some sense of shame and did not deny Sandra's words with sophistry.

They simply chose to reveal their true intentions.

Moreover, the one who stabbed them in the back was none other than the University of Mesopotamia, a long-time ally of Rivosos College.

The team leader from the University of Mesopotamia made a resolute statement:

"If you insist that Link Grand participate in the individual competition, the University of Mesopotamia will continue to withdraw from the competition."

They then filed an appeal with the Tower of the Great Sage Michel, requesting that the results of the competition be declared invalid.

The allocation of "educational resources" for the next fifteen years will be decided separately.

"I agree! Shadow City and the University of Mesopotamia stand together."

The sinister-looking man who led the Shadow City team was the first to speak up and express his opinion.

"The White Tower Alliance reports."

The scholar leisurely opened the large book and began to speak.

"How could such a lively event be complete without our Flame and Metal Trading Company? We'll get involved too."

The three-point wizard Vina decided to add a piece of firewood to make the fire burn even brighter.

An even greater pressure than before suddenly fell on Sandra's shoulders.

The Great Sage's Tower of Michelle is the force that most wants to suppress the Rivosos Academy.

If this were to be involved, the situation would undoubtedly be very unfavorable for Rivoss College.

At this critical juncture when the entire academy is scrambling for resources to advance to the rank of Great Sage Soth, the allocation of "educational resources" from the Supreme Council is of paramount importance.

Lanny Taylor watched Sandra being surrounded and couldn't help but feel worried for her.

It wasn't out of so-called loyalty, but rather because she, as an observer, discovered a blind spot.

If Sandra hadn't discovered this and hadn't handled it properly, it could have potentially harmed the interests of both the Academy and Link.

From any perspective, Lani still didn't want to see this situation occur.

Just as Lanny was considering whether to risk alerting Sandra, there was a knock on the door.

"Enter."

The leader of the University of Mesopotamia shouted a message.

The door opened, and the leader's henchman entered.

"What is it?"

The University of Mesopotamia team leader glanced at his follower and asked loudly, seemingly deliberately.

"Report, urgent document from the administration office."

"read."

"Yes."

The henchman swallowed hard, barely managing to keep his voice steady under the intense gazes of several men, and read, "The entire Rukia family has switched sides. Please ensure Rukia's safety during the competition and prevent her from falling victim to the clutches of Rivosos Academy."

The contents of this urgent document had not even been finished being read when it caused a stir.

The three-point wizard Vina laughed wildly.

She lost the bet and needed to record a video to wipe away the gloom of the Dark City.

It's been years since the West Coast has seen an entire family defect.

Moreover, this occurred between Rivosos College and the University of Mesopotamia, longtime allies.

That's absolutely ridiculous!

The Shadow City leader, a cold-looking man, frowned, sensing something amiss.

You can just switch sides like that?

That's too easy.

There must be more to this story than meets the eye.

The White Tower Alliance "scholar" abruptly closed the thick book, shut his eyes, and recalled several scenes and conversations that had occurred during the team competition.

"It's a matter of life and death."

"Someone has to make the sacrifice, why can't it be me?"

"This is none of your business. Come out and fight. You're on your own."

It turns out that Link Grand had indeed guessed Rukia's true intentions correctly.

He knew he was no match for Link Grand, yet he desperately sought to fight, truly seeking death.

This is one of the pledges of allegiance that the Lucia family has given to the University of Mesopotamia.

If you want to switch allegiances, you naturally need to make proper cuts.

Regardless of whether they can stifle the super genius of Rivoss Academy, at least they have made their stance clear, even at the cost of sacrificing their own future geniuses.

This level of sacrifice is certainly not enough to gain the trust of the University of Mesopotamia.

In other areas, something even bigger is happening simultaneously.

Inside a building designed in the style of the Colosseum.

Link teleported back to his room from the competition world and discovered a message from the wizard Celine that had been blocked for over an hour:

"The Rukia family has leaked the coordinates of the Fairy World, and the Paro Legion is surrounded by Abyss Demons."

"Kill all Rukia!"

(End of this chapter)