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“Are you crazy?”
The woman held Theta by the shoulders as they descended the stairs.
Theta recognized the young woman at a glance. She came to the Magic Tower a few days ago stating that she intended to compete for the vacant seat of the Seven Mages. The woman—who looked to be somewhere in her twenties—had a very plain face, but her soulful eyes and baby blue hair stood out.
‘I think her name is Celine?’
Theta felt his mana roil again and frowned.
“He warned you,” the woman scolded. “How can you not still know this?”
Theta’s eyes widened.
“Do you know Joshua Sanders?”
“Why else would I come for you?”
Theta sighed in relief. He’d been worried that she was a rat planted by Evergrant—after all, the best way to gain someone’s trust was to save them from the brink of death. He was right to think that something was up.
‘That’s… all the more reason why I need to be sure.’
Theta donned his poker face.
“Your evidence?”
“I beg your pardon?”
“Prove your connection to Joshua Sanders.”
Iceline took the ring off her finger, producing a change in the ambient mana that Theta’s finely tuned senses instantly felt. Of course, he had nothing to worry about.
“Shapeshifting?”
The woman revealed from the shifting lights was a rare beauty with flawless skin. Theta was now quite confused.
“My name is Iceline.”
“Iceline. You mean… from the fallen Rebrecca family?”
Iceline nodded.
“Are we done?”
“Yes, I’ve confirmed your identity.”
Theta already knew that the relationship between her and Joshua was strange. He saw Iceline with Joshua back in Reinhardt, and he’d heard the rumors surrounding her.
“Please answer me now. You already knew about it, so why did you not make any preparations?”
“I was getting ready for it,” he revealed.
“Huh?”
“But there were three variables I didn’t foresee.”
“What do you mean, three?”
Iceline’s eyes widened as she hastened her steps. She was surprised that someone had managed to fool a man as smart as Theta.
“I never thought that there would be two other traitors within the Seven Mages. I have no idea when the Void will betray the Tower, but… the Flame—”
“He’s from Terra Kingdom. You should’ve known this could happen, they’ve always had a strained relationship with the Tower.”
“Even so, the Tower Master was sponsoring him.”
“And the second variable?”
After walking for a while, Theta fell. Iceline helped him up right away.
“Are you alright?”
“...I’m fine. I know you felt it too, those artifacts that corrupt the nearby mana like it was nothing—” Theta grit his teeth in pain. “With no mana there, forcing our Circles to work would put great stress on our bodies.”
“Wait. When you say ‘there,’ you mean the top floor of the Tower, right?”
“Uh-huh…”
“I still can’t understand this… I entered at the end, and that’s why I could use my magic. But how was he able to use his powers?”
“That's the third factor. Even though you’re in a place where there is no mana around, the mana inside your own body will let you use some magic. That’s why he could use his magic.”
Iceline’s eyes nearly popped out of her head.
“It’s frightening how meticulous he can be. As a Class 8 Mage, he was already a match for the Tower Master, and yet he still has greater ambitions—”
“Wha-What? Class 8?”
Iceline’s hair stood up.
“We have to leave. I only learned Ice Storm two days ago…”
Theta knew what she meant. Hearing the rest would just be a nuisance.
“Dispel…” Theta sighed.
“You must have a plan for us to escape, right?”
“My room… There’s a small warp gate in my room that we can use! It’s mean for one-time use, but two people can fit in. My room is down on the 38th floor.”
“Since we’re now on the 40th—”
“One more floor to go.”
“That’s not great news. What about your colleagues?”
Theta hesitated. The Earth seat, Marcus, and the Frost seat, Elisha; those two people had stood by him and fought against Evergrant’s menace.
Theta looked around uncertainly.
“Please don’t worry,” Iceline reassured him. “If he intended to take the Magic Tower for himself, he wouldn't hurt the Seven Mages; that would destroy the organization. As long as they stay alive, he will save them. That’s for certain.”
“You mean—”
“I’m talking about Joshua Sanders. He’s the most famous person on the continent, and for good reasons! So you can trust him.”
A smile unconsciously crept onto Iceline’s lips.
“He…” Theta searched for words for a while but eventually gave up and laughed.. “We have another ‘ShuaShua’ here.”
“ShuaShua?”
Iceline cocked her head.
“It’s a term coined by the mages in the Magic Tower. Since he’s famous, he’s bound to have more than a few fans out there.”
Iceline’s eyes sparkled like she was the one being complimented.
“But that aside…”
Theta patted her shoulder, signaling that she could let go of him.
“We have to make sure we stay alive, right?”
“Ah!”
In front of them were a large number of mages Evergrant had deployed just in case.
‘This is bad.’
“You’re right, we should do something about this right away.”
Iceline left Theta swaying unsteadily and formed a pair of Ice Blades in her hands.
“I might fall for you if you saved me the second time.”
“How can you joke around in this kind of situation?”
“What can I do? This is how I am.”
“Stop joking and stay behind me.”
Iceline brandished her Ice Blades.
***
— This is the first time I’ve seen this! Look, the Primordial Stone already chose its master, but now… now it’s lending its power to somebody else!
Electricity crackled as if the stone was responding to Lugia’s voice and the light was sucked into Kasselon’s body. The undead prince sucked up the sparks coming from Joshua’s body like a cotton ball soaking up water.
— There has never been a Thunderbolt Knight before. If this is the case, it would be possible to command subordinates with attribute powers, right? Aka, the Primordial Knights.
Not much could amaze an immortal like Lugia, but Joshua’s attention was drawn elsewhere.
— What’re you thinking that’s so important?
“If Berber really is the lich reborn through Jerath dek Orbis, there would be another life vessel somewhere. But I don’t see it anywhere.”
— Is that why you used the Annihilation Dark Sphere? As long as he’s trapped in there, it’s as good as being trapped in your space. The other pieces of his soul can be tracked down.
Joshua maintained an uncertain silence. He had a feeling that he was still missing something important. After pondering for a moment, he shook his head and turned back to the Dark Sphere. At that point it just looked like a portal that could fit a single person.
— I’m surprised.
Joshua felt a chill run down his spine. That wasn’t Lugia’s voice.
— I can't believe it. I can’t help it… it’s been a thousand years since he disappeared, but he’s stuck here. You’re the brightest being in the Heavenly Demon Realm, so why are you meddling with the petty humans? Oh right, you are a demon sealed in a weapon and can’t get out.
“Asmodeus!”
Joshua determined the source of the voice quickly, but the amount of pressure made him swallow a lump in his throat.
The Dark Sphere was slowly dwindling.
— Now it’s starting to get fun. HAHAHAHAHA!
Asmodeus’s voice rapidly faded.
— This body is the fruit of my hard work, but to celebrate the great day we met, I would be glad to surrender this body to you.
Joshua was oddly calm as he watched the Dark Sphere shatter. From the black powder fell a body that was broken beyond recognition. Only those who had witnessed the entire scene would be able to recognize it.
It was Berber, the corpse of Berber that didn’t even look like a human anymore.
— Let us meet again, demon artifact.
“Wa-Wait!”
Asmodeus’s last words were obviously mockery, but Lugia was silent despite its typical straightforwardness.
Joshua grabbed for Asmodeus, desperate for answers, but he heard voices approaching.
“They’re over here!”
Joshua halted. A large crowd of people appeared, led by two men.
Joshua’s eyes widened.
“Count Arie… and Duke Tremblin?”
“Joshua Sanders.”
The two of them hurriedly up to him. Joshua was in a daze as he had not expect the two prominent figures. Duke Tremblin looked back and forth between the unconscious Knight Commander and Joshua.
“Do you know what this is?” Duke Tremblin asked.
It can be hard to make great work when its stolen from bit.ly/3iBfjkV.
“That’s—” Joshua replied with a pause.
What he held made Joshua shiver. It looked like a normal, round, thin-bottomed drinking glass, but the outside was incredibly clean and spotless. Pure white.
It was the Holy Grail of the Hubalt Empire that Joshua had been looking for a long time.
“The Hubalt Empire contacted us. They said that their God’s artifact slept within the Imperial Secret Treasury.”
Duke Tremblin pressed on before anyone could speak.
“As the Holy Empire’s name suggests, Hubalt's holy objects can interact directly with demonic power. So His Majesty gave me a direct order.”
Joshua felt something ominous coming even though Duke Tremblin hadn’t broken his usual flat tone nor had Count Arie stopped licking his lips.
“Can you see this? The Holy Grail, white and pure, is now dyed black.”
‘What is this?’ Joshua furrowed his brow. ‘I can’t believe this.’
The winds of fortune had turned again.
“I can enjoy you again, Joshua.” Arie licked his lips again as he eagerly raised his rapier, totally expecting this scene.
Duke Tremblin, like the Dark God, was a powerful figure in Avalon.
“Kaiser.”
Joshua's eyes darkened.
If Knight Commander Rod would just wake up, this would be easy to solve. But Joshua’s pride wouldn’t allow that. He couldn’t let Kaiser defeat him again, even if it meant making an enemy out of the whole Imperial family.
He couldn’t even guarantee that Knight Commander Rod would help him.
“In that case…”
Duke Tremblin’s brows trembled and Count Arie’s visage looked ecstatic as Joshua slowly raised his spear toward the two of them.
‘Let me show you.’
The loser would be the one putting on a pretentious image.