chapter 43

“Ugh…”

Nikita grunted in pain.

His face was red and his eyes were bloodshot.

This proved that his focus was concentrated to the limit. And yet, the energy ball before him was no smaller than a fist.

He turned to look desperately at the Floor Master.

“P-, please wait a little longer!”

“You’ve reached your limit. If you try to make it smaller, you will overexert your concentration. Retrieve your mana.”

“Uh…”

It wasn’t just him.

Most of the wizards who were taking the test also had the same limit as he did.

Those wizards, who were unable to compress their energy balls to the desired size, could only go back upstairs with drooping shoulders.

“Hmm…pass.”

“I, I did it!”

Of course, there were also those who were successful.

Several of these sweaty people cried out in delight while the Floor Masters simply nodded their heads and calmly announced that they passed.

It was understandable that they would be happy.

One of the Floor Masters of the 3rd Magic Tower, Mikel, looked around the room while thinking.

‘This time the level of the test was below average.’

Then Mikel’s gaze landed upon the two Dark Elves.

When he saw the sizes of the energy balls in front of them, a feeling of admiration could not help but appear in his heart.

The energy ball in front of the male elf was excellent, but the energy ball in front of the female elf was the size of a fingernail.

Mikel could not conceal his surprise at her precise control.

“How long have you been learning magic?”

“20 years.”

“Hmm…magnificent. You pass.”

Then he added.

“I don’t think she needs to take any more tests. She should be allowed to read a Grimoire. Do you agree?”

“I agree.”

“Excellent.”

The other Floor Masters nodded in succession.

Camille and Liamson only shrugged and accepted the decision.

After waving at Frey, they headed back upstairs.

“I’m jealous.”

“Damn. Those without talent can only live in sorrow.”

As the other wizards watched the elves leave with eyes filled with envy, Mikel turned to gaze at the next in line.

It was Frey.

At first glance, there didn’t seem to be an energy ball in front of him.

Mikel stopped in front of him without saying anything.

The wizards began whispering among themselves as they saw this.

“What? Did he give up?”

“I think so.”

“Then why is he standing there so confidently.”

“Looks like he really is a typical magic warrior.”

“There is no way a guy who was strong enough to fight toe to toe with a Dark Elf is a wizard.”

It was then.

Mikel approached Frey while saying.

“…I can’t believe it.”

Mikel wasn’t looking at Frey.

What he was looking at, was the empty space in front of him.

No, it wasn’t empty.

The curious wizards began narrowing their eyes one by one.

Gradually, looks of shock began to spread across their faces.

“Th-, that…”

“Im-, impossible…”

Only then did the wizards realise.

Floating in front of Frey was an energy ball the size of a speck of dust.

Even Mikel was not confident that he could reduce it that much.

Not only that, regardless of which Floor Master you asked, the answer would be the same.

This was not possible without extremely precise mana control.

“What is your name?”

“Frey.”

“…Frey. I see.”

Mikel pondered for a moment before speaking with clear eyes.

“You don’t need to take any more tests.”

“What do you mean?”

“You passed. And…”

He glanced around for a moment before continuing.

“If it’s okay with you, why don’t we talk for a bit.”

* * *

Frey followed Mikel to the 9th Floor of the dungeon.

He had been staying in the tower for a month, but this was the first time that he had come to this place.

That was because only important officials of the tower were able to enter past the 7th floor.

Mikel stared at Frey for a moment before he finally opened his mouth.

“Where are you from?”

He asked a very ambiguous question.

At the same time, he deliberately looked at the Typhoon earrings dangling from Frey’s ears.

If he didn’t want to continue such a line of questioning, Frey could simply answer that he was from the Blake Family.

However, he didn’t do so.

“Duke Shepard was the one who introduced me to the 3rd Magic Tower.”

“Hmm.”

Mikel frowned when he heard the name Shepard since he knew that he was a member of the circle.

Then he let out a heavy sigh.

“I see. This time Honor Shepard has managed to find an excellent talent.’

It seemed that he had misunderstood something.

“I currently have no intention of joining the Strow Necklaces.”

“Hoh. That means you’re a wanderer. Then…would you like to join us?”

Frey was speechless for a moment as he had not expected him to suddenly throw out such an offer.

“…us?”

“The Phisfounder Armlets.”

Frey shook his head.

“I have no intention of joining any groups right now.”

“That’s unfortunate.”

“I don’t think that’s why you called me here.”

Mikel hesitated for a moment before opening his mouth.

“You seem like a wizard who’s reached at least 5 stars. Am I right?”

“I won’t deny it.”

Even though he could be considered as halfway to 7 stars, it was not wrong to say that he was at least 5 stars.

Frey nodded.

Mikel’s gaze became more intense.

“How much do you know about the Demigods?” (TL: omg…isn’t this supposed to be a secret?)

“A little bit.”

“Then the conversation won’t be too long. Not long ago, traces of the Demigods were found in Uthiano.”

“…!”

Frey’s eyes became cold.

“What trace?”

“To be precise. They were the traces of fanatics who worship them. They are people whose lives and consciousness are controlled by the Demigods. Of course, most of them are small fry so we don’t pay attention to them. But there is a high chance that there was an Apostle among them.”

“…?”

“Ah, you don’t know. They are people who were chosen directly by the Demigods. They call them Apostles. They are able to use the power of Divinity which was originally exclusive to Demigods.”

It was the first time that Frey had heard about them.

At least, they were not around 4,000 years ago.

“Uthiano is the area under the control of Honor Lukes and I.”

“What is an Honor?”

“Hmm. You really know nothing about the circle.”

Mikel shrugged and explained.

“Force Honor. To put it simply, they are executives in the circles. The only positions higher than that are the Circle Master, who could be considered the head and the Circle Rounder, who is second in command.”

He had just heard that Shepard was also a Force Honor.

He was at the 7 stars level, which meant that one had to be at least at the same level to be an executive.

‘Then the Circle Master and Circle Rounder are likely to be stronger than that.’

Frey decided to ask the thing that he had been most curious about after his return.

“What levels are the Circle Masters at?”

“…”

Mikel observed Frey for a moment with a speechless expression on his face.

“…I have nothing to say about that. The level of the Circle Master is not something that I would know.”

In Frey’s eyes, Mikel was not a wizard who would kneel to just anyone.

It was clear that he had reached at least the 6 stars level.

He was curious.

‘…half a year, no. The test is in five months.’

If he went there, then he would have a high chance of meeting the Circle Masters. Those who carried the names of him and his closest friends.

They were the people who probably knew the most about the Demigods in the current era and there was a high probability that they also had the power to confront them.

Therefore they were the people that he had to meet.

Frey did not believe that they used those names purely out of admiration for the heroes of the past.

The heroes from 4,000 years ago were mythical figures to humans. Frey had read about it in many books already.

Schweiser Strow, praised for being wiser than anyone else in the world.

Iris Phisfounder, who completely changed the world’s perception of witches.

Kasajin, who was said to have paved the road of magic martial arts.

Lucid, who ascended to the throne of King of Swords.

And Lucas Traumen, the only man in history to be given the title ‘Great Mage’.

There was no bait better than those names to attract attention and people.

Of course, he didn’t blame them.

To fight the Demigods, they had to use every method that they could think of.

Frey was also in favor of that method. But it should not exceed a certain extent.

This was why Frey intended to see them with his own eyes.

If he met them in person, he would be able to learn the extent of their power as well as their true intentions.

“Why did you tell the news of the Apostle to me who hasn’t even joined the Circle yet?”

“…There is no other Circle member in the magic tower currently. Honor Lukes was called to the hideout for an emergency meeting. Meanwhile, traces of an Apostle have been found.”

After he had said so much, Frey understood his intentions.

“So you are asking for my help?”

“To be honest, yes.”

Mikel continued speaking while clasping his hands in front of him.

“Honor Lukes has given me orders to not leave until he returns but this situation is worse than anticipated. If we leave it alone as it is, a few villages could evaporate without a trace.”

“The reason that you’re asking for help from an outsider like me…is because there are no other circle members in the tower?”

“That’s right.”

Swish.

Mikel lifted his sleeves, revealing a black bracelet that was tightly fastened to his wrist.

Frey realised that it was a relic of Iris.

“The Circle has to move more secretly nowadays. Since the death of the Circle Master of the Traumen Rings by the hands of the Demigods, they have been more active. Originally we wouldn’t have had to talk in secret like this.”

“…”

“It’s true. You may have noticed already, but there is a spell on the walls.”

“It can’t completely stop someone from eavesdropping, but you designed it in such a way that you can tell immediately if someone tries to break it.”

“…! That, that’s right.”

Mikel spoke after a moment of shock.

He hadn’t even looked at the wall properly but he was still able to easily grasp the true nature of the spell that he had used.

‘Um. He doesn’t seem like a twenty year old at all.’

It was like talking to an old wizard.

In addition to the size of the energy ball which had been smaller than a speck of dust and the sheer volume of mana that he had sensed within it…

Mikel had never been jealous of another person’s talent, but the young man in front of him became an exception.

But now was not the time for that.

Mikel, who had coughed for a moment, finally revealed his intentions.

“Of course, I don’t intend for you to play a major role. I’m taking you as insurance.”

“Insurance?”

Mikel’s expression became serious.

“…actually, I asked for reinforcement from our allies in the Circle. That was a month ago.”

“If it was a month ago…ah.”

Mikel nodded when he saw the realisation in Frey’s eyes.

“The Dark Elves, they are also a part of the Circle. At the same time, they are the reinforcements from [Blacktooth] that I requested.”

Indeed.

He could now understand why he allowed them to read the Grimoire in the tower so easily.

Perhaps that was the price of their support. Attending the test was simply a formal process.

“They say that they are here as reinforcements, but I don’t completely trust them. I’ve heard a lot of bad rumors about the Dark Elves. That’s why I saw you wearing the Typhoon Earrings.”

Frey fiddled with one of his earrings.