Chapter 354
‘As expected, this barrier isn’t something you can break through easily.’
True to being the greatest treasure of the Mage Tower, it was protected by layers upon layers of formidable wards.
The Mage Tower hadn’t stationed special guards despite Mahwi’s intrusion because they trusted the barrier itself.
‘Mahwi—or rather, even I—would have a hard time breaking through this.’
It wasn’t impossible.
It would probably take about an hour.
Even Mahwi wouldn’t have the luxury of time in enemy territory, so the Mage Tower’s decision wasn’t exactly wrong.
‘But I’m in a more relaxed position.’
With Nordian and Evan drawing all attention, Chris could afford to dismantle the barrier at his own pace.
In fact, during his stay at the Mage Tower over the past few days, Chris had visited the sanctuary several times to analyze the barrier’s structure.
‘The goal is to extract only the Sage’s Tome without breaking the barrier.’
If the barrier was damaged, the Mage Tower would immediately notice.
It was a far more difficult task, but Chris was capable.
About half an hour later, a faint crack appeared in the barrier, and the Sage’s Tome slipped out!
Success.
‘Now, to finish this.’
Chris pulled an object from his pocket.
A plain-covered book with no content inside.
‘The Forged Zodiac.’
An artifact.
Among artifacts, many were mere trinkets, and the Forged Zodiac was one of them.
It replicated a book, perfectly mimicking its form.
‘Of course, no matter how powerful the artifact, it can’t replicate the true essence contained within the Sage’s Tome.’
But that didn’t matter.
Normally, the real Sage’s Tome would be safely kept here until the upcoming contest.
Having pulled off the perfect crime, Chris grinned.
“Use it well.”
Five days remained until the Sage’s Tome contest.
Within that time, he planned to extract all the true knowledge hidden inside the Tome and capture the Saint Hefferman.
The commotion Mahwi caused passed without major incident.
All thanks to the hero, Chris.
“Wow!! Long live the hero!!”
After Mahwi’s retreat, the mages of the Mage Tower cheered, calling out Chris’s name.
However, there was a problem.
“Did the hero get injured?”
“I heard the internal injuries are severe. He plans to use the Cradle of Time.”
The Cradle of Time was another sanctuary on the floating island where time flowed relatively slower.
It was similar to the ‘Land of Warriors’ in the old Holy Empire but with some differences.
The Land of Warriors was filled with trials just by enduring, but the Cradle of Time had none of that.
Instead, it allowed for more comfortable mana management and was even used to heal internal injuries.
Chris planned to use the Cradle of Time to study the Sage’s Tome.
‘Unlike the Land of Warriors, there’s a time limit to stay here, but I don’t need to stay long anyway.’
Time passed quickly.
The heads of the Round Table, wary that Mahwi might try something again, didn’t return immediately but stayed at the Mage Tower until the contest.
A few days before the Sage’s Tome contest, Lanya was summoned by the Mage Tower’s master.
“Have you come?”
“Yes, Master.”
Lanya took a deep breath.
Hefferman looked different from before.
‘His presence is much stronger than when I last saw him.’
Hefferman had recently secluded himself to achieve an important breakthrough.
That was why he hadn’t appeared even when Mahwi caused trouble.
“Congratulations on your achievement.”
“No, it seems you’ve made great progress. Have you stepped into the eighth rank?”
“…I have a vague sense of it.”
An unbelievable claim.
Considering how rare it was for anyone to ascend from the seventh to the eighth rank in a lifetime, even for Lanya, this was incredibly fast.
‘…This is strange. How is this even possible?’
She had only studied Hefferman’s grimoire, yet she had gained a sense of the eighth rank’s domain.
But after hearing Chris’s words, she couldn’t fully rejoice.
Something felt off.
“Yes, it’s time to tell you the truth, as promised.”
Lanya snapped to attention.
It was about the enemy of her parents.
“Who on earth is responsible?”
Her heart pounded.
But Hefferman didn’t answer immediately.
“On the day of the Sage’s Tome contest, come to the underground altar. I will reveal the truth there.”
“The underground altar?”
Lanya looked puzzled.
It was the altar used when the floating island was not owned by the Sky Mage Tower but was the stronghold of a heretical cult.
Since then, it had been preserved only for research purposes.
Still, Lanya didn’t voice her doubts and bowed.
“Understood. I will come tomorrow.”
Left alone, Hefferman’s eyes darkened coldly.
“The time to achieve the great work has finally come.”
The Cradle of Time.
Within the slowly passing time, mana flowed like a calm river.
It was the perfect environment for mages to contemplate themselves and explore the metaphysical realm of mana and saintly energy.
Chris closed his eyes and entered meditation.
‘How long has it been?’
Due to the time distortion, it was unclear.
Probably a few days. Not long, but the radiant light in Chris’s eyes shone far deeper than before.
He had made great progress studying the Sage’s Tome.
Chris raised his hand and cast a white magic spell.
A flash.
Mana moved, rearranging the metaphysical elements of saintly energy, producing a physical phenomenon.
An ice spear appeared in midair.
A simple third-rank spell, a basic form without any will or true essence, but its shape was anything but ordinary.
It was near the pinnacle of perfection.
Even beautiful.
Any other white mage would have been awestruck, but Chris shook his head indifferently.
‘Not enough.’
He continued his thoughts.
‘This alone won’t be enough to capture Saint Hefferman.’
No, this wasn’t the reason he had caused all this commotion.
He aimed to establish his own worldview by mastering white magic and all other saintly energies.
In other words, to reach the upper eighth rank as a saintly energy user.
‘Even within the eighth rank, the upper eighth is a completely different realm.’
Establishing his own worldview meant glimpsing the ninth rank’s powers: ‘Manipulation of Cause and Effect’ and ‘Genesis Descent.’
‘It’s time for me to become a Demon King.’
A shocking thought.
He had only recently reached the seventh and eighth ranks, and now a Demon King?
But he was serious.
‘Of course, becoming a Demon King won’t be easy, but I have to reach that level as soon as possible.’
Chris thought about what lay ahead.
His actions had already changed much from his previous life.
But an inevitable future awaited.
The apocalypse that the Mystic Maga would bring.
The collapse of the boundaries between the three realms.
‘Normally, there would be more time, but in this life, it will come much sooner. Especially if I destroy the Four Kings’ Castle.’
Chris had come all the way to the Kainfer Academy to urgently teach the alliance’s talents because of this impending future.
‘The most important thing is for me to become stronger.’
Only by becoming at least a Demon King could he prevent the hellish fate of his past life from manifesting.
‘And I have to take down those vermin Saint Lords.’
Chris’s gaze darkened.
Saint Lords.
They were the superhumans supporting the alliance, but Chris knew how disgusting they truly were.
Specifically, the ‘Saint Council’—a group of four among the Saint Lords—was the problem.
‘Because of those council members, the already hellish world has become even more dreadful.’
This time, he would never let that happen.
‘First, I have to eliminate Saint Hefferman.’
Hefferman, the Mage Tower’s master, was also a member of the council.
‘The problem is time.’
Saint Hefferman was on the verge of causing a ‘problem.’
Chris had to reach the upper eighth rank before then to find a way to stop him.
Even for Chris, it was a tight schedule.
‘I can do it.’
Chris half-opened his eyes.
In the slow flow of time, countless images passed through his mind.
His consciousness repeatedly scattered and gathered, embracing countless branches of saintly energy as time passed.
Finally, the day of the Sage’s Tome contest arrived.
Lanya walked toward the underground altar with a determined expression.
‘Today is the day I finally learn the truth.’
But why?
Though it was a moment she had longed for, her heart felt heavy.
As if a great crisis was about to strike, her senses were on edge.
‘No, that’s just overthinking. I’m just on edge because of that Christian bastard.’
Lanya frowned.
No matter who else, the person she was about to meet now was Hefferman.
Her mentor and foster father.
Hefferman had been the only one to stand by her when everyone in the Mage Tower looked down on her lowly origins.
Even if the whole world abandoned her, he was the only one she could trust.
‘No need to think unnecessarily.’
She took a deep breath and arrived at the underground altar.
“I’m coming in.”
Inside, an unexpected sight awaited her.
“The underground altar? Why is it like this?”
The altar glowed with a soft light.
She had never seen this before.
‘This altar lost all its functions after the heretics were driven out of the floating island.’
Then, a low voice spoke.
“It’s the Mingxian phenomenon.”
Hefferman.
Lanya looked puzzled.
“…What is the Mingxian phenomenon?”
“Do you know what tomorrow is?”
“Yes, of course…”
It was the day when the concentration of saintly mana was at its peak during the year.
The Sage’s Tome contest was always held on this day, so she knew well.
“This altar was a place where the heretics worshipped the Constellation. Every Mingxian day, they offered human sacrifices. In other words, the Mingxian phenomenon means the altar is ready to receive offerings.”
Heretics weren’t only among demon worshippers.
Some who worshipped the Constellation were also heretics.
“…I see. But why is it reacting like this now?”
Lanya’s face twisted with unease.
Something was off.
As far as she knew, no matter how powerful Myeongil was, the altar had never reacted like this before.
‘No, that’s not what matters right now.’
She studied Hephelman’s expression.
It wasn’t the warm look he usually gave her.
His voice and eyes were unnervingly cold.
Lanya swallowed hard.
“…Is the truth you’re about to tell me connected to that altar?”
“That’s right. You’re smart, just like your parents.”
A disturbing thought flashed through her mind.
“Your parents died at this altar.”
“!!”
For a moment, it felt as if the world had stopped.
“…Who did it?”
For some reason, before he could answer, a terrible suspicion struck her.
Something she didn’t even want to imagine.
But then—
“I killed your parents.”
Her mind went blank, white with shock.
“W-why…?”
Lanya’s voice trembled uncontrollably.
Hephelman continued in a chillingly cold tone.
“There was no one more suitable as a sacrifice for me than they were.”