Wizard: Scamming a Demon God

Chapter 226: Chapter 181: Eve of the Decisive Battle

Time quietly flowed by while Isaac buried himself in his research. At the same time, a dark undercurrent began to stir within the Itra Kingdom, seemingly plotting some grand scheme.

And as for Isaac and his companions, were they completely in the dark?

「And so, three months passed...」

CRACK~

In the castle’s study, Isaac cracked his neck, a satisfied smile spreading across his face as he looked at the manuscript before him. The last Privilege Magic was complete. With this, he had successfully developed Privilege Magic for attack, displacement, defense, and immunity.

This meant Isaac’s combat system had finally taken shape!

Meanwhile, during these three months, the others had also made significant progress. Philo and her team discovered several rich mineral deposits. Escorted by Smith and the Great Sword Demon Legion, a steady stream of ore was delivered to Roton Fortress. There, it entered the fully operational Demonic Puppet Factory and was converted into Demonic Puppets. After Isaac performed the Activation, these puppets were sent to the occupied towns on the front lines to replace the garrisons and Civil Servants.

In truth, they had already produced enough Activated Demonic Puppets to supply the current towns two months ago. However, they didn’t act rashly. Instead, they chose to continue quietly amassing power, producing enough Activated Demonic Puppets in advance to garrison and manage the entire Itra Kingdom.

They would settle everything in one decisive battle!

Of course, another factor was that Isaac’s ”Divine Skill” had not yet been perfected.

But it was Lorna who made Isaac happiest. Aided by the Privilege Magic ’Lorna’s Study Time,’ her progress could only be described as advancing by leaps and bounds!

She didn’t just break through to Tier Two and become a Great Witch; she also awakened an ultimate ability called Summon Giant Dragon. She could call upon a Tier Three Giant Dragon to aid her in battle, giving her the power to hold her own.

Furthermore, her reserves of Knowledge had grown immensely. She could now rival most Arcane Mage Apprentices in terms of what she knew!

While comparing a Tier Two to a Non-Rank might sound a bit shameful, some things can’t be judged by Level alone.

Among all Casters, Arcanists are arguably the most erudite. This is because they enter a Mage Tower at the age of eleven or twelve to become beasts of burden... er, to begin their studies.

Not only is their curriculum vast, but it is also highly systematic. In terms of pure erudition, many Tier Two Grand Wizards could not even measure up to them.

So, it was quite impressive for Lorna to have achieved so much in such a short period. It was clear she had put in a great deal of effort.

’Even if it wasn’t voluntary.’

’But that didn’t matter.’

This aspect of her growth pleased Isaac more than her progress in Magic Level and Magic. For a Witch, things like Magic Level and new Magic spells would come eventually. They could laze around all day and still stumble their way to Tier Two.

Knowledge, however, was different. It not only determined her future potential but also greatly broadened her horizons.

The most obvious difference was that it now took a bit more effort for Isaac to lock Lorna in a dark room to study.

Of course, not everyone had made progress. Or rather, Isaac couldn’t detect *everyone’s* progress.

Take Angel, for example. Isaac could only tell from her aura that she had made significant progress, but as for the specifics of her gains...

He had no idea. He and Angel rarely communicated. The vast majority of their interactions consisted of a nod or a simple handover of work. Beyond that, there was nothing.

Stepping out of his study, Isaac walked onto the training grounds. He gazed at the sky, narrowing his eyes. A phantom materialized beside him—it was Philo, who was out campaigning with Remington.

”I’m ready on my end. We can make our move at any time. What about you?”

”I’m ready as well,” Isaac replied, turning to Philo curiously. ”Why the sudden urgency? What happened?”

A thought-form—a means of medium-to-long-range communication. It was said that powerful Wizards could even cast Magic through their thought-forms, much like an avatar, which was a terrifying prospect.

However, Isaac and Philo had not yet reached that level. To them, a thought-form was merely a phantom used for Observation and communication. Not only was its range limited, but it also required a Magic Array to be set up in advance, making it a very cumbersome process.

Of course, once established, the returns were considerable.

”I haven’t found any specifics, but the other factions seem to be uniting. It’s not normal.”

”Other factions?” Isaac raised an eyebrow. ”Including the Kingdom Army and the Rebel Army?”

”Yes, including them.” Philo’s expression was grim as she nodded.

”It seems they’ve caught on to parts of our plan,” Isaac said with a casual, light laugh. ”But it doesn’t matter. As long as no High-level Mages interfere, the outcome of this War is already decided.”

Philo’s pupils contracted slightly. She keenly noted his wording—*as long as no High-level Mages interfere*.

’Does that mean they could win even if a High-level Knight intervened?’

’This guy...’

’Is he that confident?’

Philo gave Isaac a deep look. She knew he had been researching Privilege Magic, but even so, there was no way it could be *that* powerful, was there?

’That’s a High-level Knight we’re talking about!’

But Philo said nothing, only nodding. She hadn’t known Isaac for just a day or two; she had long since witnessed how absurdly capable he was. So forget a High-level Knight—if Isaac were to claim he could take down a High-level Mage right now, she would... believe him!

She might have a tiny sliver of doubt, but in the end, she would definitely still believe him.

’After all, the guy was just that ridiculous!’

”Then I’ll begin on my end.”

”Mhm. I’ll have Smith coordinate with you. Let’s take the entire Itra Kingdom within a month.”

Philo nodded, and her figure dissipated.

”Alright, you can come out now,” Isaac said, glancing at the corner behind him. ”You heard all of that, so why don’t you tell me why those factions have united.”

”Hehe, I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop,” Lorna said, peeking her head out from behind the corner. She walked over to Isaac, scratching her head with an embarrassed laugh.

After a moment of contemplation, she said, ”There are two reasons. First, we’re too strong. To put it bluntly, this War is just a game of divvying up the spoils, and...” Lorna glanced up at the sky, a flicker of awe in her eyes. Only after learning about these things herself did she realize just how heaven-defying Isaac’s actions were!

”Furthermore, as the strongest faction, not only will we claim the lion’s share of the treasury, but we’ve also completely taken over the most important blood sacrifice ritual. As long as they still have any desire for that treasury, they would never just give up.”

After a pause, Lorna continued, ”Second, the one who united them must be the Itra Royal Family! Our intentions were impossible to hide. Over the past six months, Philo’s group has established what is essentially direct rule over the territories they’ve occupied. If the other factions hadn’t realized our goal by now, this Kingdom would have already collapsed.”

”Mm, not bad. It seems all that reading paid off,” Isaac said, patting Lorna’s head with a gratified expression. She dodged his hand with an annoyed look. At the mere mention of the word ”reading,” her face paled, and she tensed as if ready to bolt at any second.

Clearly, the Privilege Magic ’Lorna’s Study Time’ had left her with considerable psychological trauma.

”Alright, you can stop studying for now,” Isaac said with a slight smile, gazing into the distance. ”We’ve been building up for long enough. It’s time to make our move.”

In truth, both he and Philo could have easily investigated the Itra Royal Family’s schemes. They could have even disrupted their plans and prevented them from proceeding so smoothly.

It was just political maneuvering. He’d seen it a thousand times before.

Besides, even if Isaac wasn’t an expert, Philo was.

She was only restricted from bringing in troops on a large scale; bringing in a few strategists was no problem at all.

But neither of them paid these matters much mind. There was no need. In the face of absolute strength, all schemes and plots were meaningless!

In the Itra Kingdom as it stood, Isaac was, for all intents and purposes, invincible!

This held true even when accounting for the Itra Royal Family!

This was because they had no High-level Mages. As for their Tier Four ancestor, it was impossible for him to make a move against them. Or rather, Isaac and his group were hoping he *would* act. That would give the powerhouses of the Empire a legitimate reason to eliminate him.

A Tier Four Miracle Knight. To most small and medium-sized factions, such a being was no different from a God. But to the Empire, it was nothing special. Isaac’s own father was not far from that realm, and their family had only recently been promoted to the rank of Count.

A special Count, to be sure, but it was still a testament to the Empire’s might.

”I have a mission for you.”

”Who needs killing? Just tell me!” Lorna’s face lit up with excitement at the thought of not having to study.

”Haha,” Isaac chuckled and shook his head. ”You don’t need to kill anyone. Your mission is to guard Roton Fortress alongside the Silver Knights.”

”Huh? Me?” Lorna asked, pointing at herself with a dumbfounded look.

”Don’t underestimate yourself. You can summon a Tier Three Giant Dragon now. In a real fight, even I might not be your match. So, have some confidence,” Isaac said, patting her on the shoulder.

”But...” Isaac’s trust gave her a bit more confidence, but her expression remained conflicted. ”But, can I really do it? Miss Claral’s Summoning time is so short, only three minutes. Can I really hold the fortress?”

Miss Claral was the Giant Dragon with whom Lorna had a Summoning contract—and a Pure-blooded Giant Dragon at that!

”Three minutes...” Isaac couldn’t help but laugh. ”That’s a Pure-blooded Giant Dragon. Even as a whelp, she’s not someone ordinary people can handle. On this battlefield, three minutes is a very long time. So be confident. You. Are. Strong!”

Isaac said, patting Lorna’s shoulder again.

Lorna’s progress had been too rapid lately, her power increasing in sudden spurts. This led to a problem: while she had the strength, she lacked the confidence to wield it.