The Legendary Programming Mage

(Warning ⚠️: This Chapter Is Tech Heavy)

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"Huh?"

Boom!

Those were the only words that could escape my lips in the split second a bright light shot from the sky.

In the next instant what stood in front of me wasn't nothing, but a dragon-like machine.

'What's going on?'

Knowing the academy, there was no way they would create such a surprise test.

Plus, the mechanism in front of me sent chills down my spine.

This was dangerous.

A sharp gust of wind clawed at my face as the mechanism ate me whole.

It was dark inside.

Completely without any light.

I quickly channeled mana into my eyes to increase my vision, and that was when I saw the interior.

A multidimensional maze, with a lot of curves and turns and probably more dangers than running on the street with headphones can bring.

Whoosh.

My ear immediately picked up a faint sound and I flew some distance away.

Seven blades flew from God knows where at me, nearly piercing my skin.

"Help! Please, someone, help me!"

I glanced sideways.

Alex.

His face twisted in terror, limbs flailing as he tried to dodge the blade only for the spinning blade to graze him.

'Damnit.'

I turned back to the mechanism in front of me and loosened my clenched jaw.

I was the villain now, the Apex.

If I were to escape from this place alone and let the young man die, then the first years' hatred toward me would surely increase.

It wasn't like I was some saint who couldn't kill a person.

I had killed my fair share of people; if I were to count those I indirectly killed, I was technically a mass murderer.

What was one more life that I couldn't sacrifice?

"Help me, please!" His voice cracked, grating in my ears.

I told myself to ignore it, but...

...it seems fictional worlds did have an effect on people.

Tsk.

My tongue clicked against my teeth in pure irritation.

Why me? Why now?

The rational side of me screamed to keep going.

But that stupid-ass side—the one I despised—was already turning back.

Not for him. Never for him.

But because I refused to be the kind of man who could ignore a plea hurled directly into his face.

Yes, I was their god and their lives mine.

Only I had the right to take it.

Using my most rational excuse I turned back and grabbed the Alex guy by the collar.

He yelled, flailing like a fish tossed on land.

Disgusting.

After all the grinning and scheming you get scared once things go bad?

Flick. Flick. Flick.

In an instant holographic screens appeared around me showing everyone holding their breaths watching us.

I forced out a grin. 'If I'm going to make a name for myself it was now or never.'

I was almost certain that this thing in front of me wasn't for first years; hell, not even second years could perform this.

But I was Allen Vanderbilt Park; this was nothing for me.

I channeled mana through not just my eyes but my entire body as I activated Flashstep simultaneously.

Zoom!

The instant I pulled Alex clear, my path collapsed. The blades, walls, and lasers shifted faster, cutting off every obvious route.

This wasn't a test of speed anymore. It was a puzzle.

But it wasn't a puzzle I couldn't crack.

My mind went into full-throttle mode.

'It has been so long since I did this.'

I was going to have a damn headache tomorrow.

The spinning blade was set to rotate in a deterministic loop.

If I were to look at it objectively and interpret the timing then (i : blades) rotates (i, 0.6s).

That meant no matter what its set arc was already predetermined.

However I couldn't dismiss the probability that each blade followed a different path.

Hmm...

No, different stages.

Stage one followed the same rules; the deeper you went the more complex the intervals.

Faster.

I needed to go faster.

I was a genius in my past life who could hack in seconds, but this was a fantasy world; I had another weapon.

Stimulate my brain to the max.

If I let the blade's schedule run, then the corrupted process would be terminated.

That meant the more I tried to change the blades' trajectory the harsher and more unpredictable it would get.

'Figures why only third years do it.'

Wait.

Looking more closely at the mana traces, I could see something akin to a path made by someone or something.

I immediately matched my mana with it, encrypting a certain code onto it... a pointer.

As long as I used the mana traces as reference or some sort of traceback I wouldn't get lost.

I moved immediately following the traces made by that person.

The movements were precise and calculated.

It was surely from a pro.

As I moved through the maze without paying attention to any of the traps, I saw the trace make an insane curve.

'What the hell?'

I couldn't do that.

No, I could.

I am Allen Vanderbilt Park after all.

I didn't stop, remotely controlling the codes inside my body to perform a singular task.

'return to main(route).'

I aborted the original thread. Mid-Flashstep my body came to a halt and turned, a twist I couldn't normally do, making my body stand back in the same stance I was at the start.

I was back on the traceback route.

Alex whimpered under my grip as his quivering lips finally found the strength to mutter something:

"This is... this isn't meant to be possible."

"Shut up." My eyes scanned the chaos. "I'm the Apex, remember? Don't put me in the same leagues as yourself."

Alex's eyes filled with tears as he began welling. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry I didn't trust you, Mr. Apex."

'What the fuck is wrong with this one?'

We were finally on the last lane.

I didn't know how long we had been here or how much time had passed.

That was always how it was when I locked in.

It wasn't a zone since I could enter it whenever I pleased but I was close enough.

The maze began shifting itself again; this time it didn't just throw one or two things at us.

Everything—all of it—came at once.

It was obviously an obfuscated algorithm, rewriting itself to patch obvious exploits.

It was quite laughable, really.

The same system that made people scared as hell was now covering its weaknesses not to kill me.

The faint trace began to disappear.

At first it tried to dance around it, but the attacks slashed at it, then it just vanished.

It was me and myself.

A backdoor—I had to find a backdoor to exploit it with.

// Pattern located: blade-gap = 0.002s // exploitable if (blade_gap < threshold) Flashstep(exploit_mode);

A wide grin formed on my face as I flashed through the blades, poisoned daggers and dragon-like maws.

As long as there was even the slightest gap my body would sense it and I would move.

Ding!

『 User's mana has passed a certain threshold 』

『 Heavy mana usage drain enabled 』

'Shit.'

It wasn't just my mana.

My muscles screamed. My vision was starting to get blurry.

"I really need a nap after this."

This was the last wall. The last obstacle.

I poured everything into my legs—

Zoom!

The Flashstep cracked like thunder.

I zipped past all the mechanisms at once, my mind calculating before my body even moved.

My mind was getting hazy from the overload of information.

But if I failed now, it would be a disgrace to my name.

Boom!

After passing the last gadgets we broke through.

However, my speed was still as much, and we weren't headed to the smaller island but where the students were.

I slowly began stopping my mana flow.

Once I was almost at the edge of the cliff I used the same technique I used to jump in the air; only this time I used it as a first footing.

Zrrrrr...

My legs scraped against the ground as both of us finally landed on stable footing.

Behind us, the maze sealed itself, erasing the path as it vanished back into the sky.

I dropped Alex onto the ground, a long breath escaping my lips.

I looked up to the sky, my hair framing my face.

'Damn, I can't even see the sun because of my hair.'

I turned my head slightly only to see everyone staring at me with open mouths.

The teachers were even more stunned than anyone.

The silence lingered for a moment before a peculiar girl asked.

"What was—"

Before she could even finish a loud sound echoed in my ears.

All the students were shouting, the boys celebrating like their football team had won a match, while the girls squealed like they'd won the latest branded bag.

'They are so noisy.'

I had won.