Chapter 47.1

Chapter 47 – I’m Giving You Orders

“Everyone, get out.”

“Yes.”

As Demiact raised his hand and snapped it, the wizards filling in the living room rushed out and the door was closed tightly.

“You came back to the tower after a long time.”

Tch

Demiact looked at Ashia with a disgusted gaze. Silence filled in the living room for a moment.

“We sent you with our grace of not taking away your magic, and now you’re repaying that favor like this? What an ingrate,” he said petulantly.

Ashia’s smile hardened in an instant.

“We took in the lowly girl who had nowhere to go, dressed her, fed her, and even taught her beyond our means, and beyond our own abilities. But still, you don’t know your place.”

She regained her composure at his very obvious provocation. She brought the teacup to her lips, soft smile returning. “Other empires most probably have heard of the fact that the barriers are melting down. A country that was hostile towards the Magic Tower would be looking forward to this.”

“…”

“What would you do if all the barriers melted down? You aren’t thinking that a Magic Tower without an army would be able to confront hundreds and thousands of armored and armed armies of robed wizards, right? There’s no such thing as a wizard with infinite magic.” Ashia put down the teacup and placed her hands on her knees. “You have to think carefully. If you provoke me here furthermore… you’ll see that cheeky and ungrateful girl smashing the Elemental Cube and tearing down the Magical Tower.”

“Who do you think you are?!”

“Therefore!”

“…”

“I’m telling you it’s enough, Elder.”

How could Lisa, the Magic Tower’s Master, and Demiact, an Elder, be so stubborn? It was Ashia who should be angry and vent her anger.

Even though Demiact knew that Ashia could do what Lisa should do, they were both anxious to kick her out. Neither of them, even Redanes, were that bright. Even so, their pride wasn’t willing to acknowledge Ashia’s existence.

Demiact glanced at the barrier outside the window.

‘Not yet.’

By now, they should have been attempting to stabilize the Elemental Cube. It was risky as the Magic Tower’s Master wasn’t there, but they had no choice but to hope that it would hold on.

Demiact ground his molars and glared at Ashia. Ashia also did not avoid his gaze.

“Elder!!” At that moment, the door to the living room hurriedly opened and a wizard ran in.

“Who told you to come in?!”

“Th-that! The barrier suddenly melted quickly!”

At his words, Ashia and Demiact’s heads turned to look out the window. It was true. The golden waves of the barrier that had been slowly melting just now, were shaking and collapsing three to four times its initial speed. The faces of the three people looking at the barrier were all different—especially Ashia, who had a soft smile on her lips.

“You seem to have no choice.”

“…” Demiact’s expression wrinkled grimly at the frightening speed at which the barrier was collapsing.

‘What the hell are they doing!’

There seemed to be a problem with the wizards who took the Fairy’s Heart and sent it to the Elemental Cube Room.

Glaring at Ashia as if he would tear her limbs away at any moment, Demiact opened his mouth. “…Let’s sign a contract.”

“Good thinking.”

The contract with Demiact went smoothly. With the consent of the Elders, Demiact signed the contract as the Magic Tower’s Master representative. This gave Ashia everything she wanted, including the gold she requested and the same authority as the Magic Tower’s Master.

Now, there was really no time to delay. Ashia quickly moved to the top floor with Demiact and the wizards.

She turned and looked at the wizards who had followed her and said, just before entering the room, “Are you all going to watch?”

“…I have an obligation to make sure the contract is being fulfilled.”

“You would be able to see it done as soon as the barrier outside the window is restored.”

“…”

“If you want to wait here, I won’t stop you. But I am the only one going inside.”

“What nonsense!”

“Do you think I was asking for a favor?” Ashia cut Demiact’s words sharply. “With my authority stated in the contract, I am giving you orders, Elder Demiact.”

“…”

That shut him up quickly. That was because the contract made with a wizard’s magic was tied to their life. The sound of his teeth grinding became audible.

“I can’t wait to see how quickly that confident face goes away.”

“Well, you can keep looking.”

“…”

Ashia entered the Elemental Cube’s room, closing the door and locking it so that no one could follow her.

A bad smell hit the tip of her nose as soon as she entered the room.

‘What the hell have they done here?’

She frowned as she covered her nose with the back of her hand.

Taking a long breath, Ashia calmed down her heart and walked towards the Elemental Cube. She heard that the Elemental Cube was a huge mana stone that vibrated with power, with brilliant colors. But the Elemental Cube in front of her now was no different from the large rocks scattered around the mountains she’d seen. It had no dazzling light, no colors, no mysterious vibrations.

As she pulled out something inside her robe, Ashia said, “Luke, this is a hundred times bigger than you.”

「…」

“Why do you think he’s doing this?”

「I think it’s been a long time since it communicated.」

“Communication… They can’t communicate and yet they manage to maintain the barrier?”

「They took a Fairy’s Heart and used it.」

’Ah, the Fairy’s Heart.’

The awful burnt smell was explained.

“Did it really exist?”

「Humans are cruel and cunning. The fairies just hid themselves, but they didn’t completely disappear. 」

“So it was like that. Though I don’t know what kind of fairy this is…”

「They took away its heart. 」

“…”

Goosebumps peppered her arms.

Humans invaded the Fairy Forest in the past to satisfy their greed. Even after many years had passed since the fairies had disappeared, the evil deeds of the past only changed the people involved but the actions were still repeated.

‘The forest wasn’t enough for them, so now it was their hearts?’

「Humans are really something. It wasn’t enough that they used it as if it was their own, they even killed it and took it.」

“…”