The Tribal Wars

Basia lifted her hand, signaling the Cumon warriors to withdraw their blades surrounding Heisen. Despite the lengthy conversation, Kakuzu remained in place, his intimidation somewhat diminished as he seemed on the verge of nodding off.

"Orives, go."

"Yes, ma'am!" Orives, the burly man standing next to Basia, stepped forward. Despite his small tribe, his strength was likely equivalent to that of a lieutenant colonel in the Empire, making him the second strongest in the settlement.

"Just so you know, you won’t stand a chance with the magic staff, Ka-ei."

"Well, let's give it a try. Are there any rules?"

"Rules? There are none. Just keep fighting until one of you falls."

"Understood."

With that, Heisen turned his back to Orives and started walking away. It was an extremely unguarded action. The burly warrior's expression grew grim.

"Are you mocking me? You're practically asking to be killed."

"In a duel, a superior warrior would not stab someone in the back. You say there are no rules, but this is to test my skills. In that case, Orives, you can’t do anything here."

Orives remained motionless until they exited the tent. Few could rival Heisen in terms of controlling the situation, a skill honed through extensive combat experience.

The two faced each other in a large open space within the settlement. Orives wielded a long staff as tall as himself, which served as his magic staff.

When he pointed the staff at Heisen, a massive dragon’s illusion appeared. The dragon opened its jaws wide, releasing a torrent of icy blades. Heisen barely escaped the attack, but the surroundings shattered.

"Watch out. The ice dragon has a fierce temperament."

"Indeed, I see now that I can’t win with Ka-ei."

The power difference was immense. The magic gem Orives used was probably of the 4th or 5th grade—high enough for a colonel in the Empire. While the magic staff’s quality was several grades lower, it still vastly outpowered Heisen’s magic.

"My mercy ends here. Don’t expect to dodge the next one."

Orives’s words weren’t blustery. He could likely deploy the troublesome icy blades over an even wider area.

"...Heh."

But Heisen grinned fearlessly.

Three years ago, Heisen had crossed the Black Sea—a feat considered practically impossible—and arrived on this eastern continent. He was astonished by the difference in magic systems. Previously, casting magic externally required two steps: chanting and sealing. Chanting involved verbalizing the magic’s principles using the energy generated in the brain’s left hemisphere, while seals involved drawing symbols to release the magic’s rules externally.

However, on this continent, the magic staff fulfilled these roles. The elimination of chanting and seals significantly shortened the activation speed of magic. The drawback was that the variety of magic one could cast was severely limited, making it impossible for an individual to cast many types of magic.

Despite its pros and cons, Heisen chose to adopt the magic staff system. He began anew, or more accurately, from a disadvantage, as the previous magic system had prevented him from using magic.

"You... what is that?" Orives looked at Heisen in astonishment. Behind Heisen, eight magic staffs floated in the air. Everyone in the Cumon tribe was equally shocked. Normally, a magician would use one type of magic staff, and even the most skilled could only manage four types.

"Oh, this? Realizing I couldn’t win with Ka-ei, I switched to another staff." Heisen tossed aside Ka-ei, and another magic staff landed in his hand.

"Damn it," Orives muttered, raising his magic staff. The dragon unleashed a broad arc of icy blades once more. But Heisen also raised his magic staff. This time, a gigantic shield appeared, large enough to cover his entire body.

"When you spread it over a wide area, the power weakens. In that case, this 'Earth Shield' created with a 10th-grade gem can counter it." Heisen blocked the attack, then stretched out his other hand, letting another magic staff fly into his grasp.

"Dual-wielding magic staffs? You... monster?" Orives involuntarily exclaimed. Typically, a magician wielded a single magic staff with one hand, but Heisen was already using two different staffs, one in each hand.

"If there’s never been anyone else in history who could do this, I might be proud. In the Empire, I heard Mi-Sil could do this too."

"Are you saying you’re on the same level as the Four Barons?"

Mi-Sil was one of the continent's most feared individuals. Heisen threw a harpoon-like magic staff. It flew at high speed and struck the illusionary dragon’s jaws, shattering them.

"Impossible. It broke."

"Crimson Flame. A magic staff specialized in single strikes. It’s inefficient, usable only once a day, but its power is equivalent to an 8th-grade gem."

"Unbelievable. My gem is 5th grade!"

"That’s the difference between you and me." Heisen smiled, picked up a new magic staff, and swung it. But it had no effect.

"Ha, a bluff." Orives felt relieved, so he raised his magic staff.

"Sorry, but the game’s over. I'll go all out." The dragon’s illusion reappeared, charging up an attack more powerful and widespread than before. Heisen had no way to dodge or defend against it, or so Orives thought. But Heisen felt certain of his victory, smiling.

"In a duel between magicians, deception is key. You’re excellent on the battlefield but not suited for duels," Heisen whispered. He swung his magic staff, and a paper-like shadow flew from Orives’s blind spot, wrapping around him. Confused, Orives shouted.

"A duel is supposed to be one-on-one! Who...?"

"This is the magic staff's effect. It transmits magic remotely." Heisen had thrown away Ka-ei to avoid detection, then moved to Orives’s blind spot to release the shadow. The first swing of the magic staff was a bluff to lower Orives’s guard. Orives was strong but straightforward, easily outmaneuvered.

The Blue Queen lifted her hand and made a declaration.

"The match is over."

"It took some tricks, but this is my current strength."

"Are you dissatisfied? I’d prefer a straightforward fight, but I lack the gems."

"Tricks? You call that a trick?" Basia muttered, sweat forming on her forehead.

First of all, Heisen was from the western continent. Magic staves didn’t exist there, and one had to rely solely on their own body to cast magic. While this allowed for casting a variety of magic, it also required chanting incantations and using seals, taking time to cast magic.

In contrast, staves eliminated the need for such actions. This proved advantageous in battles where split-second decisions determined life and death.

He was contemplating this. He aimed to possess numerous staves and use them according to his opponents' characteristics. The appearance of eight staves behind him was the result of his mastery of "Illusion Permeation," which renders things invisible, and "Psychic Guidance," which allows for manipulation of matter.

As the explanations ventured beyond the western continent, Basia’s expression turned puzzled.

"There was no sign that you were enthusiastic about such staves."

"Yes, this."

Heisen showed Basia what appeared to be two small chains fastened to a ring on his little finger.

"No way. Are these staves?"

"We make them from processed gemstone fragments."

"I can't believe it. Small things can achieve such feats."

"By significantly limiting the range of effects, the abilities are narrowed down to simpler movements. By imposing such restrictions, yes."

"... Achieved?"

Basia couldn't help but smirk, but Heisen couldn’t see it any other way. Currently, illusion permeation can only dispel eight staves. Psychic guidance also had an effective range of about three meters and could only perform movements that fit in the palm of an empty hand.

"I can provide you with staves tailored to your use. If the stave craftsman’s level is low, they have no choice but to adapt their staves to their own characteristics."

Heisen considered this a fundamental mistake. The variation in stave quality signified the strength of the nation and the race. By bringing this up, he proved that they were a people resistant to invasion.

"I told you this to demonstrate my stave craftsmanship capabilities."

Of course, these were staves that were only necessary for Heisen. Even ordinary magic users had difficulty handling just one stave.

"It's a monstrous act outside the standard."

"There is no such thing. It's still."

"Still? Use eleven different types of staves. There are no others on the continent who can do such things."

"My target's prototype is far away because the quality of the gem and the stave cannot keep up."

"It's too terrible to become an ally. But it's far better than being an enemy."

"I appreciate your understanding."

Queen Basia nodded and shouted at the Cumon warriors.

"Everyone! Today, we will conclude a ceasefire agreement with the Empire. Did you understand?"

"Oo!"

The Cumon warriors responded with a unified shout. Most of them shook their heads in disbelief, clearly overwhelmed by the unexpected turn of events.

Heisen's demonstration had left a significant impression, with the Cumon tribe witnessing a level of skill and magic that was beyond their usual experience. Basia's declaration and Heisen’s impressive display of magic staves had clearly swayed the warriors' opinions, marking a significant shift in their perspective.