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chapter 55




Frey looked around.
Standing beside Dugenjar was a bald man who appeared to be in his thirties who had a sword at his waist and a young man with a gentle expression.
It didn’t seem like these three were in the same part as there was a subtle distance between all of them.
“Unfortunately, Honor Heinz isn’t here today.” (TL: good…kill him)
Thinking that Frey was looking around for Heinz, Dugenjar gave a snide remark.
However, Frey ignored him and instead turned to the men beside him.
“You are?”
“I am Jerome Berner from the Lucid Swords.”
“I am Steve Jacks from the Strow Necklaces.”
“Do you have any business with me?”
“Yes. Well…I think we’re a step too late.”
Steve smiled bitterly and looked over at Beniang.
Frey realised that these people were scouts from the big circles. He became speechless for a moment when he realised that all of the big circles were interested in him.
As this was happening.
“…”
Dugenjar who had been completely ignored slowly became redder at the face.
He was the worst possible person to send as a scout.
No. He didn’t have any intention to recruit him in the first place.
Dugenjar looked at Frey and said.
“Are you going to join the Traumen Rings?”
“So what if I am?”
“Hmph. Likes attract…”
It was just a murmur, but everyone present was still able to hear it.
Beniang bit her lip.
Frey was sure he saw something flash in her eyes for a moment and couldn’t help but feel a bit of relief.
If she had become submissive here then he would have been very disappointed.
Beniang was timid, but that didn’t mean that she was without pride.
For those who walked the path of magic, a certain amount of pride was important.
Maybe even more so than their lives.
“Frey Blake, do you intend to join the Traumen Rings?”
Strow Necklaces’ member Steve asked straightforwardly.
He was nervous inside.
Even though he had hurried as much as he could, he still didn’t arrive first.
‘The internal meeting took longer than I expected.’
Besides the Traumen Rings’ hideout was much closer to the 3rd Magic Tower.
Anyway, the circle had come to a conclusion.
And that was to attract Frey Blake even if it meant that they had to bleed a little.
The fact that Frey Blake, who was only 20 years old, had defeated an Apostle was already becoming widespread.
As long as it was a 7 star wizard, every circle, including the Big Three would covet them. Besides, look at his age.
In all honesty, Steve still couldn’t completely believe it.
A wizard who became an Archmage at the age of 20?
Wasn’t that something that even the legendary heroes hadn’t been able to achieve?”
“I’m going to take a look around first.”
When Frey said that, both Steve and Jerome’s eyes seemed to shine brightly.
“So you haven’t decided yet.”
“Yes.”
“Then why don’t you also take a look at our circle after?”
“You mean the Strow Necklaces?”
“Yes.”
Steve nodded vigorously.
Frey nodded without thinking about it for too long.
“If I haven’t joined a circle by then.”
“Haha. That’s good enough.”
As he said this, Steve gave Frey a scroll from his bag.
“This is?”
“It’s a scroll engraved with warp magic. The coordinates lead to the entrance of our hideout. If you tell them my name, they will treat you politely. Mana is required to activate it, but at your level it shouldn’t be a problem.”
“I see.”
“Then I’ll take my leave.”
This seemed to be his only objective for going there.
Before he left, Steve shot a look at Dugenjar.
‘I hope this fool doesn’t do anything stupid.’
He felt like something would happen.
Not only because of Frey, but also Beniang, the Circle Master of the Traumen Rings.
Everyone in the Circle knew that the Phisfounder Armlets were especially hostile to the Traumen Rings. (TL: probably because of her unrequited love…)
Their pressure had not reduced, even now that the Traumen rings were slowly spiralling downward.
No, instead it could be said that their contempt had increased.
Steve shook his head.
He hoped that Dugenjar was able to at least judge the situation properly.
Jerome came forward next.
“…I apologize but I didn’t bring anything like a scroll. If you ever come to Geotanbul or Silkeed in the Luanoble Kingdom, please be sure to visit our circle. If you talk to the nobles or lords in the cities, they will contact us.”
It seemed that this was the area where the Lucid Swords was most active.
Again Frey nodded and Jerome left not long after.
Naturally, Frey’s gaze turned to Dugenjar last.
“What did you come here for? I don’t think you came to do the same thing as the other two.”
“Hmph…there are too many eyes here. Follow me. Master Beniang you don’t have to come with us.”
After saying that, Dugenjar turned around and started walking away.
As Frey watched him walk away, Beniang approached him.
“…I’m sorry. I think that I am the reason you are getting into a conflict with Honor Dugenjar.”
It seemed that she had misunderstood something.
Frey gave her a smile.
“That man was already upset because he couldn’t deal with me before. What’s the difference?”
“Yes?”
“Are you going to follow that man?”
“…he said that I shouldn’t come, so I’ll wait here.”
As she said this, Beniang bit her lip.
It felt pitiful for a Circle Master to listen to the words of a circle executive of another circle.
She felt ashamed to show something like that to Frey, who was an outsider.
Frey, who was following Dugenjar, noticed the contempt that was on Beniang’s face.
They didn’t stop walking until they left the city.
Not far away from the city was a large forest. Only after arriving there did Dugenjar turn around.
His face was filled with ridicule.
“Show me your skills, I will judge you.”
It was completely unexpected.
Frey took a while before answering.
“Judge?”
“That’s right. To see if you really have the ability to take down an Apostle!”
“So you don’t believe what I said?”
If so, it was beyond absurd.
He was probably among the group that had gone to the sight of the fight between Frey and Lukes to clean up.
If he had any doubts then wouldn’t they all be cleared up if he examined the traces that were left behind?
“That’s why I’m telling you to prove your strength. Don’t make me repeat myself.” (TL:…Lava Blast…)
“What about the Blacktooth’s testimony?”
When Frey recalled Camille and asked, Dugenjar simply snorted.
“How could I believe the words of other races? I have to see it with my own eyes. It’s not that difficult. You just have to prove it.”
Thud.
Dugenjar took out a long staff from his bag which knocked against the floor.
Roar.
At that moment, mana was released from his body explosively.
The visible mana fluttered like a haze before gathering to put pressure on Frey.
“…”
This wasn’t the pressure that one would use to scare a rookie.
Such a large amount of mana could be practically suffocating. If the person was weak willed, it would be enough to stop their heart.
“I’m going to enlighten you on how big the world really is. You need to be educated, so I’ll help you.”
As he said this, Dugenjar slowly began increasing the pressure on Frey.
“Don’t get proud just because you beat Lukes. Even within the 7 stars level, there are different classes.”
That was the truth.
Although both Lukes and Dugenjar were considered 7 stars, Dugenjar was actually stronger than Lukes.
Unlike Lukes, who could be considered to be in the middle stage of 7 stars, Dugenjar could be considered to be close to the peak.
Although the difference between them might not seem that large on paper, in reality, it was actually enormous.
It was almost impossible for Dugenjar to lose a fight against Lukes.
And maybe Frey had entered the 7 star stage by luck.
With his amount of skill he should not have much control over his mana.
‘I can’t kill you because the Circle already has eyes on you. But I’ll make you crawl on the floor here.”
At that moment, when Dugenjar had just started smiling.
Crack Crack.
White, cold air seemed to billow out from Frey’s body.
Dugenjar shivered unconsciously.
‘What is this?’
The mana felt cold.
…cold? The mana was cold?
‘He could imbue attributes? Into his mana?’ (TL: yes these were two separated sentences)
His expression stiffened. This couldn’t be true.
It was impossible.
It was impossible for even him to imbue attributes into his mana so naturally.
Frey spoke softly.
“You’re right.”
“Wh-, what…”
Dugenjar didn’t even realise that Frey was speaking to him informally.
“Even if it’s the same level, there are still different classes.”
Frey’s face was as cold as ice.
He was angry.
It wasn’t at Dugenjar who was picking a fight with him.
To him, all he felt was mild displeasure and contempt.
No, the reason that Frey was angry was because garbage like this could still confidently call themselves 7 stars.
Crack crack.
The cold air easily pushed Dugenjar’s mana aside.
However, it didn’t stop there. Instead, it began to slowly apply pressure to Dugenjar.
Dugenjar hurriedly cast a barrier while exclaiming.
“Bu-, bullshit!”
Frey looked down on Dugenjar.
At that moment he realised that all this while he had been overestimating these modern 7 star wizards.
Being able to maintain a calm mind without being frustrated regardless of the situation.
That was the Archmage that Frey knew.
An Archmage should never lose their composure.
This didn’t only refer to pain, but anything that could cloud one’s judgement.
Including emotions like anger, sadness and joy.
This didn’t mean that they had to suppress those emotions. Because humans were not dolls.
It meant being able to feel every emotion clearly, but still being able to maintain one’s composure and think of a way to get out of any adverse situations.
But this man before him.
When the opponent who he was trying to trample suddenly began to pressure him instead, he could not accept the reality and his mana began fluctuating.
This was evidence that he was so agitated that he couldn’t even get his own mana under control.
Frey couldn’t understand how he’d reached his current level.
He couldn’t know.
Maybe he had taken many elixirs like Frozen River or he began deteriorating after reaching 7 stars.
Frey’s eyes were frozen on Dugenjar.
Dugenjar felt his heart quiver.
He suddenly felt that those eyes were incredibly scary.
More than the Circle Rounder or even the Circle Master.
“I…I am an Archmage! A, a great wizard!”
Dugenjar’s face was filled with rage.
Frey simply responded in a cold voice.
“If you subtract your level of mana, you are below the standard in every way. A wizard who just happens to have 7 star mana. There’s no better expression to define you than that.”
“Uh, uh…”
Dugenjar struggled and tried to cast a spell. Frey shook his hand.
Paat.
“,,,!!”
Dugenjar wasn’t even able to make a sound.
‘My, my spell…he negated it before I even began casting it…’
It was unbelievable.
Dugenjar once again tried to use a spell.
“F-, Flame Wave!”
Paat.
It was negated once again.
“I, I don’t believe it…t-, to negate m-, my spells with such precision…th-, this…”
It shouldn’t be possible without reading his mind.
He needed to know exactly what spell he was going to use, know how to cast said spell, speed and instantaneous computational ability to negate a spell.
Above all, he needed to have a lot of self confidence.
It was incredibly difficult to negate another person’s spell.
If they failed at even one step, the person who tried to negate the other’s spell would have to bear a very heavy burden!
At that moment, for the first time, Dugenjar came to a realisation.
He had believed that it was just a weak Apostle.
Lukes was originally a wizard so he should not have been too adept at using divine power.
That was why he believed that this rookie had been lucky enough to defeat him.
But that wasn’t the case.
The man in front of him definitely had the ability to subdue an Apostle.
Crack crack.
Frey’s cold mana covered Dugenjar’s body and he slowly began to freeze from his toes upwards.
Dugenjar’s face was tainted with a trace of fear.
“You, are you going to kill me?”
“It might happen.”
“You are out of your mind! I am a Force Honor of the Phisfounder Armlets! Don’t do anything that you’ll regret!”
If he went missing then the doubt would definitely fall to Frey.
There were also witnesses like Beniang, Steve and Jerome.
However, he wasn’t certain of his safety.
Frey was confident that he would be able to completely wipe away any traces, given the need.
However, he had no intention to kill Dugenjar. (TL: although I expected it, it’s still very disappointing)
There was a much better way.
“Stop it! What do you intend to do?!”
“Honor Dugenjar, your life might be in my hands but I have no intentions of killing you. I don’t think you would’ve shown such mercy, but…I’ll give you one chance.”
He could still change. (TL: the author put this twice…but I figured one time was enough)
Dugenjar would have to make a critical choice.
And if he couldn’t change himself in the end then he wouldn’t be able to melt the ice.
“What are you talking about…”
“It’s a trial. If you can’t melt the ice, you will die.”
Dugenjar’s gaze turned to the ice that entombed his body.
He immediately realised that it wasn’t ordinary ice.
“H-, how…”
“Don’t panic. The more you do that, the faster the ice will devour your body. You said it yourself. You’re an Archmage. If you can truly act like a 7 star Archmage, then you will be able to melt it.”
“I…are you testing me? With what qualifications?”
“I am qualified.”
Dugenjar didn’t know why, but he was not able to deny Frey’s words at that moment. (TL: maybe the part with him being frozen in ice…)
Instead, he just looked at Frey with a slightly dull gaze.
“You…”
“You have one day. In order to melt the ice, you have to let it burrow into your heart. This is my sincere advice.”
“…”
“I hope you get through this.”
Great. He’s too Great.
Dugenjar felt that Frey was incredibly amazing.
There was a ripple deep in his mind.
Great shame and regret filled his heart.
“Kuk.”
Dugenjar bit his lip.
Immediately after, he closed his eyes and began activating his mana. At the same time, the rate that the ice covered his body slowed.
He did not pay much attention to the advice.
Right now, it didn’t matter.
The important thing right now was the time.
At that moment, a day did not seem that long. And Dugenjar could not afford to waste any time.
Frey hoped that he would overcome the challenge and change himself.
There was a chance, because regardless of how arrogant he was, he had, in the end, managed to reach 7 stars.
The ice would not kill Dugenjar.
After a day, it would cover Dugenjar’s entire body, and after two days, it would melt away on its own.
Of course, Dugenjar didn’t know that.
Even if he managed to survive this, he would be filled with shame and keep it a secret of his own volition.
He was the type who would risk his life for his pride. Therefore, he would never willingly talk about his shame.
Of course, that didn’t matter.
If he revealed it, Frey would be able to determine what kind of circle the Phisfounder Armlets was depending on their response.
Honor Dugenjar.
If he was able to abandon his useless stubbornness and arrogance then he had the potential to be a good wizard.
If he was able to abandon his conceited self, he would be reborn as an even better being.
Frey knew how precious a 7 star wizard was.
That was why he didn’t want to kill him unless he was truly determined to be an enemy or betrayed humankind like Lukes.
There are two kinds of humans in the world.
Humans who could change and humans who couldn’t.
Frey hoped that Dugenjar belonged to the former.
(Note: Someone pointed out my inconsistency when capitalizing ‘circle’ so from now on when referring to a specific circle it will be ‘circle’ and when it refers to the organization as a whole it will be ‘Circle’ – which is what I intended but probably forgot at times
TL: I’m a bit disappointed by the way he handled Dugenjar…but I understand the reasoning behind it.
Also, this is the end of Book 2.)