Parkline, the master of the Red Magic Tower, was fundantally indifferent to rumors. He found exploring antiquity far more enjoyable than indulging in gossip.
However, it wasn’t that rumors didn’t reach his ears. Specifically, the rumor that ‘Marquis Palatio and Penia Crysinne are involved in a very intimate relationship recognized by the Blue Magic Tower Master!’ was consistently heard by him.
In fact, given Parkline Argulus’s personality, no matter how often he heard or verified the rumor, he remained uninterested. Recently, however, Parkline had been paying attention to the rumor about Marquis Palatio and Penia Crysinne, which he would usually ignore. The reason was—
“Hmm—”
—Celai Mikardo.
“Seems like you’re having fun?”
“Is that so? Well, if you say so, it must appear so.”
Celai, who seed overjoyed, expressed his exhilaration with his entire body. He knew when this excitent had started.
‘It was after the rumor about Marquis Palatio broke out.’
Indeed, since then, Celai, just before entering lectures, always wore a smile and humd a tune with a bounce in his step. Sotis, it seed like he had sold the authority of a Magic Tower Master so casually that even his hips swayed.
The exact reason for his behavior was unclear, but a guess was possible. Celai Mikardo might seem difficult to approach at first glance, but he was an easy person to understand.
There was only one factor that determined his mood: magic. He was always happy when he solved a magical problem, and unhappy when magic didn’t go as planned. Other events? Celai didn’t express much emotion about anything other than magic. Whether the Magic Tower was destroyed overnight or if the deputy of the Blue Magic Tower was so frustrated that she ca running to kill him, Celai rarely showed any emotional response—unless it was about magic.
Anyway. Celai’s recent activities in seeking clues to ascend from the 8th to the 9th tier were well known to Parkline, so guessing why he was excited was easy.
‘He must have found a clue to move from the 8th to the 9th tier.’
And the clue likely involved Marquis Palatio. There were several reasons for this assumption. First, Celai, fundantally indifferent and devoid of political or power hunger, focused solely on magic; he wouldn’t be thrilled rely by Penia’s relationship with the count. Second, it was due to Celai’s recent behavior towards Marquis Palatio.
‘He’s been treating him like royalty.’
Lastly, combining the content of the letter he had interpreted and the use of primitive magic by Marquis Palatio made it easy to deduce. The guess that Marquis Palatio held the key for Celai Mikardo to ascend to the 9th tier was easy to reach. From there, it was even possible to speculate whether Marquis Palatio was a magician as noted on the parchnt.
Since the mont Celai began trying to cover up any discussion of the count, Parkline had been more than guessing; he was certain. There was definitely sothing about Marquis Palatio. This was precisely why Parkline had been listening to the rumors recently.
Naturally, he was also very interested in reaching the 9th tier. Not just interested, but profoundly so. Not only him but all the Magic Tower masters harbored a desire to reach the 9th tier. After all, the masters of each tower had ascended to their positions through a blend of curiosity, desire, and genius.
Therefore, “…Master of the Red Magic Tower.”
“It’s been a while.”
To secure his gains, Parkline was quicker than anyone to et Alon, regardless of what might be hidden. If he openly asked, there was surely sothing to be gained.
“That coat looks warm.”
“…This coat?”
“Yes. But, it’s quite chilly now.”
“When it’s hot, it’s hot, and when it’s cold, it’s cold. Anyway— I’d like to give you a gift. Would you accept it?”
“…A gift?”
Parkline naturally pulled a dark blue coat from within his robes. It was similar to what Alon usually wore but had black fur trimmings at the edges.
“It’s an artifact coat I made myself. It’s enchanted with subspace magic, and the coat itself adjusts the surrounding array to facilitate magic use.”
“…It’s a very fine coat.”
“Yes. Moreover, it has a built-in artifact that, although mild, maintains a constant temperature inside. What do you think?”
“It’s a very nice coat, but… why are you suddenly giving this to ?”
Parkline laughed heartily in response to the Marquis’s emotionless inquiry.
“Well, my daughter has often received help from you, so it’s a token of gratitude.”
“…Then I will gratefully accept it.”
“Good, let know if you need anything else.”
“Thank you for your consideration.”
“Yes. Liyan also sends her regards.”
Although the coat was expensive, for a Magic Tower Master like him, making several was not an issue. His labor could easily produce as many as needed. Essentially, Parkline had given Alon a cost-effective gift. At that mont.
“Wait, what are you doing?”
“?”
“?”
Celai Mikardo, who had disappeared right after the lecture, suddenly reappeared with a clearly anxious expression. And then.
“Marquis, did he perhaps ntion anything about introducing you to his daughter?”
“What?”
“If so, it’s definitely Penia.”
He blurted out imdiately, without taking the ti to think properly. At this, Parkline burst into incredulous laughter, unintentionally gaining a bit more firm conviction.
‘…So the Marquis really does have sothing…!?’
Clearly, he didn’t think the Marquis had said that out of concern for Penia. While Parkline felt a strange pleasure from his newfound certainty, “Be careful with your words, Celai. There’s a limit to my patience.”
He warned. The clue to the 9th tier was insanely precious to him, but that didn’t an he intended to send his precious daughter to so grim fellow, even if it ant plunging into the depths of a fiery magma pit. However, separately from that, “Marquis, I will offer you sothing even better. This is the potion I’ve obtained to give you this ti—”
“Count, I just realized there’s sothing I haven’t given you yet.”
With these words from Celai, a strange battle had unwittingly begun.
***
In recent days, Alon had been incredibly busy. More precisely, his evenings were particularly hectic because of a need to et with Heinkel. The reason was an event near the Central Tower that could uniquely enhance one’s magical powers. In the ga, it involved solving simple magical diagrams, where intelligence above a certain level allowed one to click a mouse to gain magic power.
Alon, who went to the Lake’s Labyrinth for this task, was taken aback by the unexpectedly challenging magic difficulties. To be more precise, the magic was basic, and it was more accurate to say he was solving puzzles within the labyrinth itself. As a result, for over four days, Alon neglected searching for Heinkel and instead went to the labyrinth every night to solve puzzles. During the day, he wandered around the magic tower, pondering puzzle solutions in his notebook.
Ideally, he would have preferred to address the rumor that had spread a few days earlier due to Penia’s audacity(?), but regrettably, that too was impossible. Ironically, the reason was Penia herself. Clinging to him as if she had eaten sothing wrong, she recently had not been in Alon’s sight. Moreover, the last ti he saw Penia from a distance, he witnessed her making a bizarre scream, ‘Woogaahh!’, and then jumping out of a window from the 18th floor.
Alon decided to focus on solving the puzzle until the end of the conference. That was, until this situation arose. Alon looked ahead. In front of him, two masters of the magic tower were stacking gifts on top of a book as if performing so sort of feat. Now, he couldn’t even see ahead.
‘It’s not that I dislike gifts……………’
Absent-mindedly lifting his gaze, he saw a mountain of gifts that had grown as tall as him.
All of them were fine things.
Even the coat Parkline first gave was a very attractive artifact for him.
Surely it should be, “Marquis! Look at this, this is exactly-“
“Marquis. This artifact, you see!?”
Alon suddenly craved sweet potatoes.
***
Many nobles gathered at the ball hosted by the Komalon Ducal House. They were mingling in the lavishly decorated hall, among them was Duke Edgar, arguably the most powerful noble within the current Ashtalon Kingdom.
“Duke Komalon, it’s been a while.”
“It has been a while, Duke Edgar.”
He greeted the host of the ball, Duke Komalon.
“I always feel like you really haven’t aged, exactly like the old days.”
“That’s a nice complint.”
“Complint? I really an it.”
As the head of a faction, he often spoke in ambiguous terms, but this ti, he was genuinely sincere. The face of a young man untouched by ti. At least to Duke Edgar, Duke Komalon didn’t seem to have changed much from ten years ago, still maintaining the youth of his mid-twenties unlike Edgar, who had gained more wrinkles.
What trickery could possibly-
Just as Duke Edgar was pondering this question.
“Duke Edgar.”
“Yes?”
“First of all, let say thank you for gathering here.”
Duke Komalon suddenly greeted him.
“Hmm…? Well, is there really sothing to thank?”
“No, I really appreciate it.”
“Why?”
Duke Edgar answered perplexedly. Usually, for nobles, how many people attended their hosted balls was practically a show of their authority, so it wasn’t strange to express gratitude.
In other words, the greeting in itself wasn’t odd. However, it’s only not strange when it’s a one-ti courtesy.
Repeatedly expressing thanks like this was odd. As suspicion arose, Duke Edgar saw it.
Duke Komalon’s hand gesture. Seeing him form a seal with his index and middle fingers, Duke Edgar cocked his head,
“It’s because you all gathered like this that I have less trouble.”
“What?”
His expression darkened unwittingly, and the next mont.
“Vexation.”
As Duke Komolon’s voice uttered,
Pop!
Edgar Duke’s head burst open.
Not only his.
The head of a young lady who had been smiling just a mont ago.
A knight guarding other nobles.
A noble enjoying tea ti at one side of the ball.
The heads of all living beings present at the ball exploded.
Then,
In the middle of the ballroom now adorned with red blood,
Thump!
Duke Komalon, brushing off the blood stuck to his hair, walked towards the door of the ballroom with an unruffled expression.
“Let’s begin.”
He signaled to start to a Dark Elf in the darkness.
“Yes.”
The beginning of a great cause.
A salvation awaited for hundreds of years.
***
Two days later,
After completely solving the puzzle in the labyrinth,
“An Outer God has descended?”
Alon heard such news from Deus.
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