Episode 54
Some time later, at the Imperial Academy.
In the lecture hall of the prestigious Third Circle, the students were not greeted by their usual Fourth Circle professor.
“Ah, it’s truly an honor to meet you all.”
A strikingly handsome man with red hair, whose beauty could leave even men speechless, stood before them. He was the continent’s foremost red mage, having reached the pinnacle of the Eighth Circle, and the master of the Red Tower.
”…!”
The Marquis of Blood, Yurith, was there.
“For today, I will be taking over your usual professor’s class.”
The students were stunned and immediately bowed their heads in unison. The master of the Red Tower himself was going to teach them! What greater honor could there be?
“Not long ago…”
Yurith continued, his voice calm.
“An unfortunate incident occurred right here.”
He addressed the students of the Third Circle, who knew the truth about what had happened to Leonard Walter.
”…”
Dale’s expression turned cold.
‘Is he finally revealing his true intentions?’
Why had this man summoned Dale here? Why had he sent twelve Purifiers to attack him?
“Leonard Walter was a student everyone admired. All of you here were busy bowing your heads in fear before him.”
Yurith exaggeratedly spread his arms as he spoke.
“To a mere insect without even a speck of talent.”
His inscrutable smile chilled the air around them.
“Well, enough about those insignificant bugs. What I intend to teach you today is…”
Yurith continued without pause.
“History.”
He smiled with the flair of a theatrical actor.
“Does anyone here know about the Black-Red Legion?”
An unofficial unit established during the Unification War for “academic exploration and cooperation” between the Black and Red Towers.
“During the Empire’s Unification War, the two towers of black and red united for a ‘single purpose,’ a symbol of their bond.”
The unvarnished truth of the Black-Red Legion’s horrific deeds spilled from Yurith’s lips.
──Under the guise of pursuing power and truth, they abandoned all human decency, revealing their cruel reality.
The unspeakable secrets of the Black-Red Legion were laid bare, and the students’ faces turned to shock at the atrocities that even demons would weep over.
“Why do you all look so displeased?”
Yurith tilted his head, feigning ignorance.
“Are those aspiring to be mages of the Red Tower feeling guilty over such trivial morals?”
As if he couldn’t comprehend it.
“The Black Mage was just like you.”
”…!”
Yurith continued.
“Bound by petty morals, he abandoned the pursuit of truth.”
Dale knew this story well.
After the war, even after the armistice, the Empire secretly tried to maintain the organization. Despite being a demonic unit, the ‘academic achievements’ they gained from their misdeeds were deemed worth the risk.
However, Dale’s father dismantled the Black-Red Legion by his own will.
The ‘bond between black and red’ came to an end, and the records of the Black-Red Legion faded into history.
“But you, Lord Dale, are different.”
Yurith turned his gaze to Dale.
“In your talent and achievements, I see the true ‘Black Tower Master.’”
”…”
“Isn’t that right? The trash here doesn’t even have a speck of talent.”
Ignoring the students’ shock, Yurith continued.
“Compared to the insects here, your demonic talent is unparalleled…!”
Yurith went on.
“I was deeply impressed by the infamy and ruthlessness of the ‘Black Prince’ that people speak of.”
He spread his arms dramatically.
“You will one day stand at the pinnacle of the Black Tower. And you will lead its system according to your will.”
Yurith asked.
“Would you join me in forging a new bond between black and red?”
Yurith continued.
“Will you not join me in obtaining the ‘ultimate power and truth’?”
It was then that Dale understood.
What Yurith desired was Dale’s talent and a new bond between black and red.
”…”
Dale remained silent. What decision would Yurith make if Dale refused here?
“Regrettably.”
After some thought, Dale couldn’t help but chuckle inwardly.
“My father is still very much alive and well for us to discuss the future.”
“Oh, there’s no need to worry about that.”
Emotion vanished from Yurith’s face. At the same time, he snapped his fingers.
The world around them twisted.
Centered around Yurith’s feet, a ‘world of Yurith’s making’ unfolded, much like what Leonard had experienced. But this was no uncontrolled disaster. It was a high mage’s mental barrier, entirely under his will and control.
The world of the mage at the pinnacle of the Red Tower revealed itself.
The students were nowhere to be seen. Yurith’s world allowed only Dale to remain.
It was then.
Snowflakes began to fall.
In the mind of the continent’s greatest red mage, snowflakes of winter drifted down? Dale watched the snowflakes land on his palm, puzzled, until he realized.
They weren’t symbols of winter’s chill.
They were ash.
Ominous ash filled the sky, swirling down.
The sky was a shade of gray. Dale turned his head, and his breath caught at the familiar sight. How could he forget?
Ruins and ash lay before him.
The remnants of shattered skyscrapers. Crumpled cars. A scene reminiscent of a nuclear winter──.
A city reduced to ashes stretched out before him.
”…!”
“Isn’t it a truly magnificent world?”
With the ruins of another world behind him, Yurith spoke. Dale, not understanding his intent, feigned ignorance and remained silent.
“In this world, they erected towers of steel that no stone guild on the continent could replicate, and dragons of steel breathed fire magic beyond my reach.”
Yurith turned his head, and several bombers streaked across the sky. Soon, light erupted beyond the horizon.
A nuclear strike.
The flames of annihilation engulfed the area, and a mushroom cloud rose.
To call that the fire magic of a steel dragon was a delusion that defied laughter.
As the nuclear explosion raged, a scream that seemed to tear the world apart echoed. A colossal figure, visible even from beyond the horizon, rose. Tentacles, each spanning several kilometers, thrashed wildly before falling silent.
“Behold the empire of fire and steel that even those giants succumbed to.”
Yurith’s words made Dale suppress a laugh that threatened to escape.
“That is the ultimate power and truth we mages seek.”
“Did you summon the hero from another world for this?”
“That being was a complete failure.”
Dale cautiously asked, and Yurith replied coldly.
“Useful as a soldier, perhaps, but he was nothing more than a grunt who couldn’t grasp any truth of the great empire of fire and steel. There was no truth to be gained from him.”
Laughter almost escaped again. It wasn’t the hero from another world who understood nothing, but the empire’s foremost red mage standing before him.
‘Well, this works out.’
Amidst indescribable hatred, Dale felt a certainty and joy fill his heart.
This man truly knew nothing.
He had no idea that Dale, standing before him, was the one who inherited the truth of the empire of fire and steel.
Yurith believed there was no truth to be gained from the hero of another world. In a sense, he was right. There was no answer to give to those who dragged him to an unknown world and demanded he chant the ‘fire magic shown by the steel dragon.’
But when Dale realized that magic existed in this world, and that it was a power that gave form to one’s thoughts…
For Dale, who had gained enlightenment as a mage, projecting the concept of nuclear weapons was not an impossible task.
Thus, suppressing the laughter that threatened to escape, Dale replied coldly.
“Did you summon me here for this proposal? To seek ultimate power and truth through a renewed bond of black and red?”
“Indeed.”
Yurith nodded and smiled at Dale’s words.
“So please, take your time and think it over. Ah, even if it is after the Black Mage’s passing, I don’t mind.”
”…”
“To me, time is a rather fleeting thing.”
With those words, Yurith snapped his fingers. Or rather, he tried to.
“Oh, by the way.”
Yurith turned his head as if he had just remembered something.
“It seems Lord Walter of the Crimson Blood is quite eager to see you fall.”
”…!”
“He was once one of the vice-captains of the Black Red Order.”
The words were delivered with an air of indifference, as if it hardly mattered.
“Moreover, His Majesty wishes for the number of those who know the ‘real truth’ of the Black Red Order to dwindle.”
At the mention of His Majesty, Dale’s expression froze momentarily, though the flicker of emotion was fleeting.
The real truth of the Black Red Order.
The stories the Crimson Lord shared with the students were just the tip of the iceberg. The Empire wouldn’t be so concerned with mere ‘cruel biological experiments.’
“However, it wouldn’t look good for a tower elder to deal with this directly.”
An elder of the Red Tower attacking the heir of the Black, who was in the capital for diplomatic exchange. The implications were not lost on anyone.
“This is merely a transaction.”
”…”
“You are free to leave the capital without accepting the deal. But should you choose to accept…”
The Crimson Lord continued with a quiet smile.
“I promise to provide a fitting reward.”
With that, the Crimson Lord snapped his fingers, and the vision of the city reduced to ashes vanished.
The world of the Crimson Lord disappeared, and they found themselves back in the academy auditorium with the students.
“Until we meet again.”
The Crimson Lord turned away, leaving Dale alone in the auditorium, quietly swallowing his breath.
”…”
Silence descended, long and profound.
That night, at the Black Heir’s mansion on the outskirts of the capital.
Dale had dismissed the guards early, preparing to fulfill the deal with the Crimson Lord.
He recalled the world the Crimson Lord had shown him.
A city reduced to ruins, as if after a nuclear winter—a world post-destruction.
”…”
Dale bit his lip until it bled. Just then—
Boom!
A sudden explosion echoed. Yet even that couldn’t shake Dale from his thoughts. He simply rose quietly from the bed, as if he had been waiting for this moment all along.
“Dale!”
At the same time, the voice of Sephia, a 6th-circle elf mage, rang out.
“Lady Sephia…”
Dale quietly called her name.
And there stood a man blocking their path. Turning his head, Dale saw the man who had been grinding his teeth, just as Marquis Eurys had warned.
“The brat from the Saxon family who dared ruin my son…”
Amidst the chaos of the mansion’s ruins, the elder of the Red Tower and a 6th-circle red mage spoke.
Walter of the Crimson Blood.
Unable to contain his rage, he let his crimson magic flare. Dale chuckled at the sight.
The man was oblivious to the fact that he was a butterfly caught in a spider’s web.
As the spider prepared to devour its prey, Sephia stepped forward.
“Stand back.”
With her crystalline hair flowing, Sephia, a 6th-circle elf mage and elder of the Blue Tower, stood in front of Dale.
“You promised.”
She spoke, her back to Dale.
“To protect you.”
Sephia answered, accelerating her six circles, ready to unleash her full power to protect Dale.
“So it’s true that the Blue Tower’s elder has sided with the Saxon family,” Walter sneered coldly.
“It doesn’t matter. As long as the Crimson Lord permits, no one will stand in my way.”
Hearing this, Dale couldn’t help but laugh. The man’s ignorance of his own expendability was simply too amusing.
“Don’t worry, Dale.”
”…Thank you.”
Sephia spoke, and Dale simply smiled.
The two high mages of red and blue finally began to unveil their worlds.