Chapter 27 The Final Match

To everyone's surprise, when the judge announced the start of the match, both Rollin and Simone stood still, as if they had made a prior agreement, making no move to begin the battle.

"Rollin, you truly didn't disappoint me. You weren't defeated by those incompetent fools before, and now you stand before me, Simone, in the final!"

"So you saw me as your opponent from the very start of this tournament?" Rollin's eyes flashed as he spoke slowly.

"It goes far beyond just this tournament! From the very first class of the Dark Arts, the moment Professor Harvey made you class monitor, I marked you as my rival! I want the professor and our classmates to see that I, Simone, am stronger than you, Rollin—not just by a little, but by a great margin!" Simone's words seemed to have been bottled up for a long time, and now, facing his opponent, he poured them out in a rush.

Rollin felt much the same toward Simone. Though he rarely attended the Dark Arts lectures, every time he did, Professor Harvey and the others would heap praise on Simone, who had replaced him as class monitor. They all believed Simone, apart from Thomas, was the most promising necromancer candidate in Potter Academy.

Especially in the early matches of this year's tournament, Simone had crushed his opponents with overwhelming superiority. This had piqued Rollin's interest—what exactly allowed this man to be so dominant? He looked forward to this final duel with great anticipation.

"Rollin, shall we begin? The students below are growing impatient! Don't worry, I won't let you lose so quickly—that would be far too dull," Simone said with a wicked grin.

"As you wish!" Rollin replied, wasting no more words and preparing for battle.

With a hiss, Rollin struck first, casting a Lightning Bolt.

A bolt of lightning descended rapidly toward Simone’s head.

From Cous, Rollin had learned that apart from Light magic, lightning and fire were particularly effective against the Dark Arts. So, he chose to open with a lightning spell.

With a swift movement, a shadowy, black blur appeared beneath Simone’s feet, imbuing his steps with agility as he easily dodged the lightning that threatened him from above.

The Dark Arts auxiliary spell—Shadow—was similar to Lightning Speed, a spell that enhanced movement. Rollin was well aware of this and had never expected a mere Lightning Bolt to defeat his foe.

Without pause, Rollin quickly chanted three spells in succession, sending three fireballs, each the size of a human head, hurtling toward Simone from different directions. The attack blocked every route of escape; if Simone tried to dodge backward, he would fall off the stage.

Thanks to the white stone in his upper dantian, Rollin had grown exceptionally adept at fire magic. As the three fireballs surged forward, even Monroe, the fire magic instructor in the audience, nodded in approval and praise.

Yet Simone, cornered with all escape blocked, showed not a trace of panic. Just as the fireballs closed in, a white bone shield appeared in his right hand. The Shadow spell activated at his feet, and he darted to the right with remarkable speed.

With a resounding crash, a fireball smashed into the bone shield, scattering sparks in all directions. The searing heat failed to damage the shield in the slightest; the fireball simply dissipated, and Simone used the moment to slip away.

"Bone Shield!" Rollin exclaimed involuntarily. This was a powerful second-tier necromancy defense spell. Could it be that Simone had already condensed his own Necromancy Space? Otherwise, how could he cast such spells? Rollin was thoroughly astonished.

"Watch your step, boy!" At that moment, while Rollin was still reeling in surprise, Cous’s voice rang out in his mind. Instantly alert, Rollin triggered Lightning Speed and leapt far away.

With a thunderous crack, a sharp bone spike as thick as an arm erupted from where he had just stood, shattering the stones and earth and sending dust billowing across the stage.

Necromancy Tier One spell—Bone Spike. Rollin drew a sharp breath. Without Cous’s warning, he would have been caught off guard. He had not expected Simone to wield necromancy with such ease.

Necromancy had been Rollin’s trump card. He had planned to surprise Simone with it and win in one swift stroke. Instead, Simone had used it first, catching him off balance. Now he understood why Professor Harvey and the others held Simone in such high regard—he truly was gifted. Rollin had painstakingly condensed his own Necromancy Space only recently, under Cous’s guidance.

But Simone had made rapid progress just by studying Thomas’s notes. Rollin remembered Professor Harvey saying Simone might take ten years to condense his Necromancy Space, and he had felt smug about his own advantage. Now he saw that Simone was every bit his equal!

"Using necromancy itself as a catalyst to cultivate the Necromancy Space!" Cous’s voice, shaken, echoed in Rollin’s mind.

"Uncle Cous, what does it mean to use necromancy as a catalyst?" Rollin quickly asked in his heart.

Since they were in the midst of battle, Cous wasted no time in riddles and explained rapidly, "Don’t worry, boy. That fellow hasn’t truly condensed a Necromancy Space. Using necromancy as a catalyst is one way to cultivate it, but it’s a method that puts the cart before the horse. The Necromancy Space is the foundation for all necromancy. Forcing necromancy spells without it not only greatly harms the caster, but also limits them to only the lowest tier of spells. He can’t use any advanced necromancy at all!"

"It harms the caster?" Rollin asked, dodging another attack with Lightning Speed.

"The cost is measured in lifespan! That’s why this is considered the lowest method of cultivation," Cous replied.

"To sacrifice one’s life to master necromancy—Simone is truly mad," Rollin could not help but sigh.

Cous gave a cold snort. "I’d wager most people aren’t even qualified to be this mad. In over three hundred years since Thomas, how many have studied his notes? Only Simone has reached this step. I must admit, the boy has some talent!"

After this brief exchange with Cous, Rollin’s mood finally calmed. If Simone had managed to condense a Necromancy Space just by reading Thomas’s notes, without the guidance Rollin had received, it would have been a shattering blow to his confidence.

Fortunately, Rollin was intimately familiar with these necromancy spells, allowing him to narrowly evade Simone’s relentless attacks.

Seeing his prized necromancy spells so easily dodged, Simone showed no disappointment. Instead, a feverish excitement lit his face. "Rollin, you’re impressive—managing to last this long. Congratulations; you’ve earned the right to witness my strongest magic!"