◈ Episode 39. Performance Testing (2)
Twenty senior mages of the Magic Tower.
They were mages representing different schools.
Naturally, their relationship with each other was not very good.
Weren’t they all proud mages?
That alone is reason enough.
The senior mages competed for the position of chief mage.
The chief mage of the tower.
Only in one generation.
It was a position that could only be filled by a mage who had reached the pinnacle.
In that sense, the current generation of Senior Mages got along pretty well.
It was all thanks to public enemy number one, Marcelo.
“Tsk tsk. I knew you were going to have an accident someday.”
“You’re just numb from being locked in the lab all the time.”
“Wasn’t this ridiculous in the first place?”
Crystal Hall.
Twenty senior wizards gathered in the room where regular meetings were held.
The reason for their hushed conversation was simple.
“Collaborating with an adventurer, what a joke.”
Marcelo decided.
To address that misjudgment.
To remove Marcelo from his position of leadership and make it vacant.
The possibilities were endless.
An adventurer, above all.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Did you really have nowhere else to turn?”
Back when Arcana was just a game.
Before the worldview interference.
Adventurers were unknowns.
They had the power of immortality, the ability to rise from the dead.
But here, in the Adventurer’s World, they no longer had that power.
Even that one possibility was gone.
“Even if such an event had occurred at the regular meeting. We still don’t know the truth, do we?”
“That’s right, we don’t even know if the flying researcher stumbled upon an adventurer who was flailing his arms!”
“That’s the most unbelievable thing of all. An adventurer with an understanding of magic.”
Bellier Yucia, a senior mage of the Healing School.
She remained silent.
The Crystal Hall.
Not a single breeze blew in that particular space.
Parrr.
For some reason.
Her loose, light green curls were shaking.
Belié was barely holding back the laughter that threatened to burst forth.
‘Oh, that’s funny. Do you really think she’d want to?
It wasn’t an appreciation for the adventurer.
Belie, she didn’t trust him yet.
But for Marcelo, it was a different story.
Marcelo, the founder of theoretical magic.
No spell, no discipline, no school of thought.
Magic from the Tower, and even magic from outside the Tower.
Marcelo founded Theoretical Magic to organize the vastness of magic into theories.
For his great work, Marcelo became a senior wizard, and not only that, he was quickly elevated to the position of chief.
“Do you think a hundred days of talking will make a dent in that achievement?
No matter how coveted the position of Chief is.
In fact, they probably know that themselves.
No matter how hard they tried, they couldn’t unseat Marcelo through normal means.
That’s why they’re risking their lives for this one.
With a sneer, Velier looked around.
” ……Of course, more than anyone else.
Mathis Din Karl, of the Black Mage School.
He must be gnashing his teeth the most.
He’s the one who’s gnashing his teeth the most.
Even if Marcelo hadn’t burst onto the scene, the consensus was that he would still be the chief mage of the Tower.
“Well, yes, but that’s just an if.
Velier shrugged lightly.
It was almost time.
There was loud chatter.
“I don’t think we’ll be able to get in on time for this one.”
Yes, as they say, the credentialing has already begun.
Collaborative research with the Chief Wizard.
As long as you get the same treatment as the head wizard.
Rigorous credentials are bound to follow.
Honestly, on the subject of adventurers.
I didn’t expect to be able to pass the credentials.
“They’re gnashing their teeth.
I could tell right away by the tightly closed door.
Triple manifestations of different types of sealing magic.
It was enough to make even Belie tongue-in-cheek.
“Marcelo would know.
It would take most senior mages, including myself, quite a bit of time to break those seals.
In that sense, the credentials were a fail, and I could already see the consequences.
Why, the appointment is almost over…….
Bam!
“……?”
It was then.
The first seal was broken.
No, the sound didn’t stop there.
Crackle!
Clack, clack, clack!
One after another.
In an instant, the triple seal magic had been broken.
The three senior mages, the manifesters of the magic, were stunned.
“Ma, this is ridiculous!”
“……You broke that thing so quickly?”
“……No way, Marcelo. Is that Marcelo?”
The door opened.
But there was no Marcelo there.
Just a shadow in the backlight, standing alone.
At that moment, a memory flashed through Bellier’s mind.
“……What?
It was an adept mage of the Healing School.
Klee had told him.
-Hey, Senior Mage Velier. What if. I mean, really, if there was someone who came to talk to me without an invitation……. That would mean he’d been privy to the Tower Master’s illusionary magic, right?
Klee is not a child who talks nonsense.
So Velier asked back.
Why, was there such a one?
-In that silver-haired head……. Oh, no! It was a gibberish.
He didn’t finish his sentence.
The child, Klee, had certainly said so.
Another-
Suddenly, a figure emerged from the backlight.
Bellier’s pupils widened.
“!”
His hair was silver, to be sure.
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. https://pindangscans.com
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Crystal Hall.
The place where the regular meetings were held.
I didn’t expect to find it again so soon.
To prove my worth.
I looked around at the assembled faces.
Twenty people, just as the quest said.
Indeed, senior mages.
Every single one of them has a sinister aura about them.
I can only compare the sense of power I feel to…….
‘Everyone is definitely above Harkon.
Harkon’s level is a whopping 600.
So what are the levels of these mages?
I suddenly realize the level of the magic tower.
But.
But.
For better or worse.
I walked to the center of the crystal hall, enjoying the stares.
Then I opened my mouth.
“Someone must have played a prank on the door.”
As if I were deeply offended.
The source of this unpleasantness is clear.
I want to leave work like crazy now……!
The conference, the Yusra Islands, the Crystal Hall, where the conference was held again.
I did manage to catch a few minutes of sleep in the lab.
It wasn’t enough to relieve my overworked body.
In the meantime, a quest came to mind.
No matter how used I am to proofs.
Isn’t this a bit too formal a schedule?
They don’t even have labor laws in the tower, for crying out loud.
“I am not idle enough for your pranks.”
I’m sick of working overtime……!
Was my complaint heard?
I could see a few frowns on their faces.
I looked at them and said
“If I’ve wasted my time with this joke.”
I wanted to go home.
“I will hold you accountable.”
I want hot water on them.
“!!!”
I said.
I saw three people reacting unusually loudly.
I thought for a moment, “What’s wrong with them?
The quest window flashed.
Prove your abilities. (In progress)
Convince a majority of the senior wizards. (3/20)
And then came the reply.
“……We are withdrawing our objection to Chief Wizard Marcelo’s decision, which means that we will also recognize Adventurer Lee Ho-yeol’s qualifications for collaboration.”
I thought, of course.
Yeah, they should’ve said that a long time ago.
*]
[Someone has uncovered the secret of the Yusra Islands].
[An ancient kingdom, the Kingdom of Yusra, is revealed].
Who is this “someone” who has made a mark in Arcana history?
The media had nothing to gossip about.
On the contrary, since nothing is known, there is no need to take responsibility.
It was a free-for-all.
For ratings.
To be as provocative as possible.
“After all, I’m Skal.”
“You mean Skal, the number one ranked player?”
“Yes, the one who would settle for a single treasure on some island? The one who would kill a great evil and pretend he didn’t, so as not to break the mysticism concept.”
It’s only Skar, after all.
There were many who thought so.
But there was a huge blind spot in that argument.
“Yassi, if Skar defeated it, it would have leveled up.”
Indeed.
Skar is currently level 406.
The increase was too small to be considered a defeat of the nearly level 650 Seven Sins of Greed.
Another possibility came to mind.
“I guess it’s only the Lionheart Knights, right?”
That was the most likely option.
Plus, in Lionhart’s case, there were eyewitnesses.
“It was like a flash, wasn’t it? He just smashed the skeleton and charged forward!”
Level 650.
A monster that no player could ever hope to face.
However, the Lionheart Knights, who were said to be the strongest in the empire, were not to be trifled with.
Moreover, they had helpers.
“Gaon and Berserker. And finally, Lee Ho-Yeol. With that kind of power, wouldn’t they still be a match for us? Why, assuming Harkon had given it his all.”
Speculation and debate over.
Public opinion was narrowing.
The Knights of the Lionheart and the players had worked together to defeat the great evil, the Seven Deadly Sins of Greed, but it was frustrating for those who knew the truth.
“Ugh. I can’t even show this. Really!”
I burst out. I did.
Pfft!
Nam Tae-min beats his chest while watching TV.
The only one who sympathizes with him is his brother.
“It’s a strange way to use your imagination. In the end, Mr. Ho-yeol was the only one who defeated the great evil.”
For Nam, the truth of the day was captured on video.
He watched the battle through his eyes.
It was something that never ceased to amaze him, no matter how many times he watched it.
The beast’s agitation as soon as it faced Ho-yeol.
The bombardment of skills he poured into him.
It was the most overwhelming battle he’d ever seen.
Nam Cheol-min nodded.
“I can understand that feeling.”
“Oh, yeah, my brother was possessed by an imp, too.”
“Yeah. I must have looked like that, because I was completely terrified of the imp. Are you saying that in front of Mr. Ho-Yeol, there’s no difference between imps and great demons?”
Finally.
The crowning of the reawakened king.
Ho-yeol reveals the truth about the Yusra Island.
Nam Tae-min laid down his voice and mimicked Ho-yeol’s lines.
“It’s time to make amends. Nameless King. Kya.”
This is a drama, this is a movie!
When the video ended, Nam Tae-min screamed again.
“……Wow, there’s no other epic like this!”
We’re the only ones who can see this.
We can’t help but listen to that brainfeedback.
The reason was simple.
“I have to endure the frustration, so what?”
Above all, the video showed Ho Yeol’s power.
It was impossible to release such a video without Ho-yeol’s permission.
Nam Chul-min spoke up.
“Still, in case you need it in the future, you should keep the recording. In that sense, it’s a good thing there were so few people watching.”
Except for the Knights of Lionheart.
Nam Tae-min and Leonie were the only ones who witnessed the battle between Ho Yeol and the Great Demon.
Both had ordered their guilds to retreat early on.
“That’s right, we shouldn’t have done it in the first place.”
They owed Ho Yue another favor.
For what they had done.
He’d given them a chance to help rebuild the kingdom of Yusra.
Thanks to him, Nam Tae-min and the members of Gaon’s guild received a valuable quest called [Rebuilding the Kingdom of Yusra].
So we had no choice but to repay them.
“Let’s do our best, brother.”
In everything, there is give and take.
So far, I’ve only been receiving.
To be in the position of giving one day.
Suddenly, Nam Tae-min muttered to himself.
“…… By the way, will that kid watch his mouth?”
.
.
.
“Oh, my ears are itchy.”
Bugbug.
Leonie scratched her head furiously.
Of course, scratching her head wasn’t going to solve the problem.
Uh-oh.
Leonie threw the remote away impatiently.
“I’m not watching.”
Nothing funny.
I flipped through the channels, hoping to find something interesting.
No matter where I turned, it was all about the Kingdom of Yusra.
The truth of the day, or whatever.
Who captured the great evil.
Leoni stretched out on the couch.
The corner of her mouth twitched upward.
“You don’t even know …….”
Because I know everything.
What happened back then?
The feeling of superiority.
That feeling of superiority was precious to Leonie.
“Sis, are you sure you’re not going to tell me?”
“What.”
“No. What happened when you told us to stay away?”
“I don’t know. Me neither.”
“Oh, that’s disgusting!”
You don’t even want to share it with your guildmates, who are like siblings to you.
“What the hell happened? You even got a quest?”
Leonie just shrugged her shoulders.
But his mind was still racing.
As the quest progressed, the Berserker Guild’s influence and ranking would naturally increase. Yes, as a Guild Master, I’m sure it’s purely out of love…….
” ……, don’t you owe me again?
Can I get a cup of tea for this……?
Pondering, Leonie muttered to herself.
” ……I wonder what he’s doing.”
“Nothing. Sis, what time is it, he’s probably sleeping.”
“……What, what did she say? Who? Who’s sleeping?!”
“Who’s this, aren’t you talking about Lee Ho-yeol?”
“What, what did I say?! I’m not! What do you know?! Will you shut up?!”
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dripping─
dripping sweat.
……I hadn’t fallen asleep yet.
I tried to jump straight into bed after I washed up.
My body refused.
I realized my weakness.
I may have defeated a great evil alone.
I couldn’t have done it without the help of other players, including the Knights of Lionheart.
If I had gone it alone, I would have been surrounded by skeletons and drained of energy before I could reach the beast.
Knowing that.
The pride in my heart is unacceptable.
─Train your weakened body. (Repeat)
Run 20 kilometers (successful)
1,000 push-ups (successful)
500 pull-ups (successful)
300 burpee tests (successful)
And then I checked the message.
Thud.
I fell to the floor, stunned.
……Believe me, black history.
I’ll die trying to get over it……!
[You have fulfilled the condition].
[Your reward will be given].
I barely managed to open the status window.