Let us reassess Karuma's abilities.
Both his magic capacity and magic output far exceed human limits, and his resistance to magic is off the charts. His base specs already place him in a realm humans cannot reach, but what is most terrifying of all is his special trait.
Any magic he sees once, he makes his own in the blink of an eye.
Even Ermes still requires time depending on the spell, but Karuma can counter every magic at first sight. In terms of replication, he could be called a complete superior counterpart.
The secret lies in his body. His very flesh is woven from magic that transcends all norms, and that magic learns and evolves according to Karuma's will, adapting to whichever spell suits him. There is no need to analyze or understand the magic—it simply grows stronger of its own accord, however he wishes, however he imagines.
Yes—however he wishes.
Without understanding a thing.
Just as he desires.
──
what
my
body
has
evolved
into
,
its direction
and its flaws
not a single thing
was I aware of
.
That is the fundamental difference between Ermes and Karuma.
Whether one can logically and methodically comprehend one's own evolution. Awareness of, and systematization of, the act of "analysis and understanding." The reason replication takes Ermes so long—that the time invested is itself proof of mastery. By ignoring that very thing, a gap is created.
To put it simply: "evolving in the wrong direction."
That is, as far as Ermes could determine, the one and only strategy for defeating Karuma.
To that end, he had fought Karuma on multiple occasions. While revealing as little magic as possible, he gathered information relentlessly. What was the opponent's magic output? How was he evolving from there? What traits could be expected?
And above all—what kind of opening might emerge?
And so, through continued combat and analysis, observation and study—he arrived at it.
The path to defeating him. Closer than he had imagined. Present from the very beginning. So obvious, in fact, that he had been slow to notice—a weakness.
To give it shape, he needed, above all else, to reconcile with "him."
◆
"You
are
Karuma's
natural enemy."
The reconciliation had proceeded more or less smoothly, settling into what could arguably be called the best possible outcome given both parties' circumstances and positions. From there, an opportunity to talk presented itself.
So Ermes addressed "him"—the First Prince, Herc—after his argument with Leila had subsided, in a room at the base.
"……What?"
"Surprised? You, whose magic has never worked against Karuma. You, who have probably been beaten by Karuma more than anyone else in this entire country. And now you're told something like this out of the blue."
He understood well enough that they were past the point of being polite. So Ermes said it without any sugarcoating, and Herc showed an expression of shock.
His face alone was answer enough.
"The truth is the opposite. Rather, the fact that you're still alive despite being beaten so badly—that in itself is proof that you, and your magic, are somehow a special factor to Karuma."
Well, that said, it wasn't as though mere compatibility allowed Herc to survive against that monster. At best, it elevated the situation from "certainly dead" to "nine-nine point nine percent dead."
What clawed back that last fraction of a percent was Herc's extraordinary tenacity—the sheer amount of time he had spent throwing everything he had at the enemy and refusing to stop fighting. For that fact alone, Ermes paid his honest respect.
"That is precisely why we made it in time."
Having conveyed everything without reservation, Ermes continued.
"There is more evidence. Karuma holds genuine interest and respect for magic itself. His contempt was directed only at the caster. In fact, he pitied magic for being used by someone like that, and he actively tried to recover the spells."
And yet.
"Yours is just halfhearted coolness that got boring."
"Among them, the most tedious one was probably that magic."
"——Ah."
"Yes. Only against you did he
loathe the magic
itself."
The countless words Karuma had directed at him up to now. Recalling those that concerned his Bloodline Magic, Herc gasped in surprise.
Combat between magic users hinges on compatibility.
Ermes was a defensive type who adapted to his opponent—which meant that Karuma, who shared the same system but possessed a vastly superior speed of response and evolution, was his natural enemy.
For Karuma, however—Herc's magic, the ice Bloodline Magic known as "The Great Serpent of the White Calm," could serve as his natural enemy.
"So what do we do?"
"I will
widen
the gap. That one vulnerability concealed within Karuma's seemingly omnipotent and invincible nature—the one he himself doesn't know about—I will enlarge it, make it more lethal. To accomplish that, I will fight first and guide the direction of his evolution."
The specific steps were already mapped out in his mind.
First, he would unleash every spell he possessed at full power. If countering was Karuma's forte, then Ermes would switch magic faster than Karuma could possibly respond, hammering him with it relentlessly.
Then, he would let the results speak for themselves. You'll die at this rate. At your current speed of evolution, you'll never catch up. You'll be whittled down and killed.
If he did that, Karuma would, without question, refuse to accept the outcome. And in accordance with that desire, Karuma's body would evolve.
To adapt more quickly. To evolve faster than before.
To bring the "change" property of his body to its absolute fullest. To the point where he had to
keep
"changing"
constantly.
So that the "stagnation" property of "The Great Serpent of the White Calm" would pierce him like nothing else could.
……There was apparently a peculiar island somewhere in this world.
Due to its environment being so radically different from the rest of the world, the creatures inhabiting it had developed bizarre ecosystems and undergone strange evolutionary paths. As a result, if any of those creatures were transplanted elsewhere, they would be utterly unable to adapt and would face extinction.
Having evolved to fit such a specialized environment, they had lost all capacity to adapt to anything else.
He was no biologist, but he had heard from books in Rose's estate that such a place existed.
Then—couldn't magic accomplish the same thing?
That was the genesis of this strategy against Karuma.
"……"
"Before I say anything else, this is an enormous gamble. Of course, if I can finish him during the initial phase while I'm bombarding him with magic, then all the better. I'll be aiming for exactly that with everything I have."
At this stage, he could not bring Herc along.
Or rather, he couldn't even give any indication that they might cooperate. If Karuma's magic perception detected that, there was a chance—even if Herc himself didn't realize it, Karuma's body itself might sense that "this evolution is dangerous"—and reject the very evolution Ermes needed.
"Guiding someone's evolution" was a tightrope of that magnitude.
"So for now, Your Highness, please fight as you see fit. Don't even give him the impression that you might come to my aid—go all out in your own battles as though none of this concerns you. In fact, feel free to forget everything I've just told you, whether you wish to or not—"
And so Ermes, the boy who had realized he could not defeat Karuma alone and concluded that a collaborating mage was necessary, chose his former enemy as his ideal partner.
He presented one key insight gained from this battle, and concluded thus:
"I shall
force my victory
upon you
as I please."
Hearing this, Herc laughed—without the faintest trace of humor.
"……I really do hate your guts. Probably always will, from now on."
With those words of contempt, he watched Ermes leave.