Episode 281
A giant of fire, its body wrapped in flaming whips, charged at Zeke with a roar.
Boom!
The fiery giant collided with Zeke, enveloped in a storm of flames.
Whoosh!
Zeke’s body was swallowed by the fiery tempest.
The watching mages were taken aback.
“Wait, is that okay?”
“Isn’t this an accident? What if Draker gets burned to death?”
Hearing the murmurs of the mages, Hixon was about to halt the match in panic.
But then—
“Hold on.”
Antonio appeared beside him, stopping Hixon’s hand mid-air.
Hixon’s face turned pale at the sudden appearance of his mentor.
“Master…”
Hixon, trying to come up with an excuse, realized that not only Antonio but also the masters of Nirvana were observing the duel between Zeke and Xerath.
Hixon’s eyebrows twitched nervously.
‘I’m done for.’
Antonio clicked his tongue as he watched Xerath, who had summoned the fire giant.
“Tsk, tsk, Xerath. I always told him to be careful when dealing with knights.”
A short, red-cheeked elderly mage beside Antonio chuckled softly.
“Tony, don’t be too harsh. It’s only because his opponent is Draker. Any regular knight would have been reduced to ashes by now.”
But Antonio’s expression remained displeased.
“If you’re going to do it, do it right.”
Hixon, overhearing the masters, was puzzled.
‘Xerath seems to be winning, so why are they saying that?’
Looking back at the arena, Hixon saw Xerath still straining to maintain his magic.
Then—
Slash!
Zeke swung his sword, cutting through the flames that surrounded him.
Boom!
Xerath gestured, trying to reattach the flames to Zeke, but it was futile.
Zeke moved too swiftly.
Whoosh!
With Bahamut raised high, Zeke descended rapidly from the air, charging at Xerath.
Rumble!
Xerath extended his hand, conjuring a magical shield in front of him.
Crack!
But Zeke’s sword pierced right through the magical barrier.
Panicked, Xerath unleashed every spell he could, but Zeke’s sword deflected them all.
Slash!
Zeke landed, slicing through all the magic, and placed his sword at Xerath’s neck.
Xerath, his face pale, raised his hands in surrender.
“I… I concede.”
With those words, he collapsed to the ground, exhausted.
Zeke extended a hand to Xerath.
“Well fought, Xerath. I’ve learned a lot.”
Zeke had intentionally left openings and minimized his attacks to observe a variety of magical combinations from Xerath.
Xerath’s intricate chain magic was challenging even for Zeke, who had extensive battlefield experience.
As Zeke reflected on the duel, Xerath took his hand and stood up.
“Sir Zeke, I’d like your honest opinion on my magic.”
Zeke hesitated before speaking.
“While it’s precise, I felt it lacked real-world application.”
Xerath’s face turned ashen at Zeke’s words.
“Lack real-world application?”
“Yes. Your magic’s connections and strategically placed attacks are effective. However…”
Zeke met Xerath’s eyes.
“The more precise it is, the more likely it is to falter with unexpected events. On the battlefield, a mana bomb might explode behind you, or a comrade might fall, causing mental shock. I wondered if such precise magic could be maintained in those situations.”
Xerath nodded seriously, absorbing Zeke’s critique.
“Indeed… that could be the case.”
“If you could train for such scenarios, it would be ideal. If not, creating similar environments might help…”
Zeke paused, noticing the masters, including Antonio, listening intently.
When Zeke stopped speaking, Antonio cleared his throat awkwardly and scolded Xerath.
“Ahem, Xerath! Didn’t I tell you to break the habit of summoning creatures in a pinch? It’s different with knights; you need to strike first and fast. A surprise attack is even better.”
Xerath was flustered by Antonio’s words.
“But, Master, a surprise attack seems a bit much…”
Zeke shook his head beside him.
“No, Antonio is right. The best way for magic to work against knights is through unexpected surprise attacks.”
Antonio beamed at Zeke’s agreement.
“See? Even Draker’s knight agrees. Sir Zeke knows his stuff.”
Antonio’s fondness for Zeke had grown since the incident with the fairy stone.
A short, red-cheeked mage nearby chuckled softly.
“This is a good opportunity. It would be great if Sir Zeke could share some insights on real combat with our members. They’re too cooped up in their labs, losing touch with practical skills.”
Antonio nodded in agreement.
“That’s a great idea. It’s rare for you to have a good one, Gutan.”
Zeke was surprised to hear the mage’s name.
‘Gutan Nirvana? He’s an 8th-circle master, a top mage known for combat magic.’
Gutan Nirvana was a war hero from the Eastern Empire invasion 25 years ago, unlike the false hero Howard Draker, who stole his comrades’ glory.
Gutan floated over to Zeke and Xerath, smiling.
“Sir Zeke, if you’re willing, I’d like to invite you to the Combat Magic Society where I serve as an advisor.”
It was an opportunity to build connections with Nirvana’s masters, so there was no reason to refuse.
“I’d be honored to accept your invitation.”
Gutan nodded with a smile.
“Great. Let’s meet with the members tomorrow.”
As he finished speaking, Gutan’s form blurred and vanished.
Antonio shook his head at Gutan’s departure.
“Ha, inviting a knight first… It’s rare for him to be so keen. Alright, everyone, the battle’s over. Get back to your papers!”
As the other mages scurried away, Hixon tried to slip away too, but Antonio caught him by the collar.
“I told you to keep them company, and you caused trouble again.”
“Master, it wasn’t like that. Sir Zeke wanted it.”
“Are you talking back now?”
“No, Master.”
Antonio dragged Hixon over to Zeke.
“Sir Zeke, the old folks are pleased. They said it was very good.”
“Thank you, Antonio. I’ll send the official contract soon.”
“Ha ha, good. I won’t have to chase after that fairy stone for a while.”
Antonio turned to Hixon.
“Make sure you don’t cause more trouble and show Sir Zeke to his room.”
“Yes, Master.”
Antonio, having said his piece, created a door in the wall and disappeared through it.
Hixon, sweating, spoke to Zeke.
“Phew, I barely survived. Sir Zeke, this way, please. I’ll show you to your quarters.”
But Zeke extended a hand to Hixon.
“Before that, Hixon, shall we settle the bet? I wagered ten thousand pesos, and I’m curious about the payout.”
Hixon’s face turned pale again at Zeke’s words.
Staying in Nirvana’s guest quarters, Zeke was surprised by the room’s simplicity.
He had expected something extraordinary from a mage’s room.
‘I was full of preconceptions.’
But it wasn’t entirely unfounded. Everything operated on magic, leaving Zeke unable to even turn on the lights.
Just as the Draker family trained with aura, Nirvana designed their facilities to encourage constant magical practice.
‘I can’t call someone every time I need to turn the lights on or off. This is tricky.’
Zeke, pondering, decided to test if the system could connect with the facilities.
[Attempting to connect to the advanced administrator system.]
[Code verification]
[Title: Blessed by the Ancient Dragon confirmed]
[Access granted to the 3rd Defense Base ‘Tower of Infinity’]
Zeke was astonished by the message.
‘Tower of Infinity? Was this place also created by dragons?’
Places accessible through the system were often dragon-made.
Amazed, Zeke used the system to operate the room’s facilities.
“Turn on the lights.”
At his command, the magical lights illuminated.
The system had synchronized with the Tower of Infinity, allowing Zeke to use its functions.
‘Interesting. Let’s see what other features it has.’
Zeke opened the system window and began to sift through the information stored within the Tower of Infinity.
Most of the data consisted of records detailing who was using the space and how.
“I thought Lord Hoshgar, being a dragonkin, would know how to use the system. Are the current mages unable to access it?”
The Tower of Infinity had the unique ability to infinitely expand its internal space.
This feature seemed to be usable even without system access rights.
Since Hoshgar, the first master, there hadn’t been any dragonkin from Nirvana, so it seemed they only used the tower’s basic functions, unable to utilize the others.
“Let’s take a look at the records from when Lord Hoshgar was around.”
As Zeke delved into the records from a thousand years ago, he discovered that, unlike now, a wealth of information was stored in the system.
“These seem to be records left by mages during the Golden Age after the war.”
Perhaps because it was the early days of the Nirvana family, the contents were quite disorganized.
The mages of the Magic Tower considered their research results as secrets, never to be shared with others.
Even when they did share, it was only in the form of general summaries, with the core theories passed down solely to their immediate disciples.
However, the mages of Nirvana shared their research results, aiming to develop better magic.
Their goal was to prepare for effectively countering any future invasions by enemies like the Demon King’s army.
This spirit of collaboration had been passed down since Hoshgar’s time.
But something seemed amiss in the records from 500 years ago.
“What is this? The records stop here.”
Up until then, information had been recorded in the system, but from that point on, only space expansion data was logged.
It seemed that access to the Tower of Infinity had been severed 500 years ago.
Zeke carefully examined the records from that time.
He discovered that a significant event had occurred within the Nirvana family.
“Necromancers? So there were necromancers in Nirvana who were eventually expelled.”
In the early days of Nirvana, necromancers who practiced dark magic coexisted with regular mages.
However, after the founding of the Holy Empire by the first Lubern dynasty 800 years ago, problems began to arise as the church gained power.
The church started to label all necromancers as evil dark mages and began persecuting them indiscriminately.
The mages of Nirvana opposed the church’s claims and tried to protect the necromancers, but the church sent paladins to capture them without restraint.
Many Nirvana mages who fiercely resisted the church were sacrificed, and as a result, those who had access to the Tower of Infinity either died or disappeared.
Necromancers, facing relentless persecution from the church, gradually went underground, and in the process, the number of those conducting illegal experiments rapidly increased.
“It was a vicious cycle.”
Amidst this, a name caught Zeke’s eye.
“An experimental journal on the artificial creation of bloodstones using mandragora production methods?”
It sounded familiar.
When he tried to access it, a warning popped up, indicating restricted access.
Zeke noted the author of the journal and scanned the list.
An overwhelming amount of data and journals unfolded before him.
Zeke’s jaw dropped as he checked the author’s name.
“Victor Nirvana…”
The ill-fated genius necromancer.
That was the real name of Richmond.