Chapter 402
“Just take it easy for now. You’ll be here for a while, so look around. If you have any questions, feel free to ask anytime.”
With those words, the magicians scattered.
Following her suggestion, Taesan began to look around the tower.
The magic tower was extremely vast and tall. Its end couldn’t be seen, and there were more rooms than he could count.
Each room had its own distinct characteristics. Some looked like laboratories filled with every kind of experimental tool, while others were lined with hundreds of magical circles.
There were quite a few magicians in the tower.
A rough estimate put them at over a hundred. Most of them ignored Taesan, focusing on honing their own magic.
Taesan wandered the corridors. A red-haired man walking from the opposite side frowned when he saw Taesan.
He was the one who had grumbled at Taesan earlier. With a look of annoyance, the man brushed past.
“Even if Zervand accepted you, we haven’t acknowledged you. Don’t act carelessly.”
He whispered the warning. Taesan watched his back for a moment, then continued his tour of the tower, unconcerned.
“They can’t see you, can they?”
[Because I’m not a being of the labyrinth, they can’t see me. The old man at the center seemed to be an exception.]
Taesan could feel several gazes directed at him.
The magicians didn’t approach Taesan, instead observing him with magic. Most of them were curious, or simply indifferent.
Of course, there were some who showed hostility.
Taesan pretended not to notice and spent a relaxed day.
“What is this place?”
He arrived at a library packed with countless magical books. Compared to the Library of All Things, it was clearly smaller, but there were still enough books to last a lifetime.
“Oh, hello?”
A woman smiled brightly from atop a bookshelf ladder. She was the only magician who had shown any friendliness to Taesan.
“Up we go.”
She jumped from the ladder, and the many dolls below gently caught her.
After getting down from the dolls, she straightened her clothes and asked,
“Did you look around enough? How’s the atmosphere here?”
“Some of them showed hostility toward me, but most were indifferent.”
“Right?”
She let out a sigh.
“A new magician finally joins, but they could at least be a bit more welcoming. We’ll be together for a long time anyway, right? They’re just being stubborn for nothing.”
She grumbled for a moment and then smiled brightly.
“So, what brings you here?”
“I was just wandering around and found this place. What is it?”
“As you can see, this is the library. It’s full of magical books. Some are cursed or even have a will of their own, so you’ll need to be careful.”
“I see.”
Taesan looked around the library. As she said, there were books containing special powers, but nothing too dangerous.
“Perfect timing. Hey, everyone. Give us a hand.”
The woman clapped her hands.
Immediately, a wave of mana spread from her in the form of threads.
Dolls, infused with mana, began moving and searched the shelves. In no time, dozens of books piled up in front of Taesan.
“These are well-organized books that are great for building up knowledge. Try reading them.”
“……Thank you.”
There were so many.
It would take quite a while to read through them all. Taesan had no intention of staying here that long.
After glancing at the books, Taesan asked,
“You’re a puppeteer, aren’t you?”
“Correct.”
She grinned and snapped her fingers. The dolls paired up and began to waltz gently.
“I control specially crafted dolls. I can control over a hundred at once. Isn’t it fun?”
“That’s unique.”
A magician who used dolls—he had never seen one before. She shrugged.
“In this place, you can learn Zervand’s magic. Most magicians are studying that. But a few of us, including myself, are different. Instead of relying on Zervand’s power, we’re creating our own magic. All eight magicians who said they’d test you are like that.”
“Is there really a need to make your own magic?”
Zervand was the God of Magic. His magic was flawless and perfect. Elia scratched her cheek with a vague expression.
“I hesitate to say this, but we’ve hit a wall.”
Elia waved her hand, and a blue spear manifested with a tremendous surge of power.
“Intermediate magic, I see.”
Taesan didn’t know the spell, but could tell from the energy alone. It was the same class as [Frozen World] or [Starlight Arrow].
“Oh, you noticed? I was wondering if you would. Not bad.”
Elia admired him, swinging the spear.
“This is as far as we’re allowed to go, but… anything beyond this, we’re not permitted…”
Elia gave a bitter smile.
Taesan could guess what she meant by “beyond this.”
“Advanced magic?”
“Yeah. We think we qualify, but Zervand doesn’t seem to agree.”
That was why they were creating their own magic, not Zervand’s.
“So… among the magicians who said they’d test you, quite a few are jealous of you.”
They had spent so long here, learning magic, but never received approval for advanced magic, while an outsider like Taesan was granted it right away.
It wasn’t surprising that some showed hostility.
“Are you one of them?”
“Nope! I just joined because it sounded fun, and I wanted to help you out a bit. See that guy pretending to sleep over there? He’s a magician who works with plants. He’s one of the seven. He’s a sneaky one, so be careful.”
She whispered, looking at a man lying on a sofa. An annoyed voice came from the man.
“Giving away someone’s info? What are you up to, Elia?”
“What’s the problem? He’d find out anyway.”
“Even so, we’re examiners. He’s supposed to learn what powers we have and how we use them by passing the trial.”
“Isn’t that a bit harsh? This much information should be fine to share in advance.”
The woman called Elia grumbled. The man let out a sigh and got up.
“Regardless, from now on, don’t talk about the other magicians. Figuring that out is his responsibility too.”
“Mm, okay.”
Elia nodded reluctantly.
‘That’s not it.’
But Taesan already knew what kind of magicians the two were from the moment he entered this place.
He could see the flow of their mana and how they controlled it—all of it was visible to him. Although they had their own protections in place, likely to hide themselves from others, to Taesan it was as if they weren’t there at all.
He might not know exactly which spells they used, but he had already grasped the general direction and properties.
“Come to think of it, I haven’t introduced myself.”
The woman cleared her throat and proudly placed a hand on her chest.
“I am Elia Magatri, head of the Marionette School, and one of the eight magicians recognized by the God of Magic.”
“I am Constria Beriel, head of the Roquest School, and one of the eight magicians recognized by the God of Magic.”
Constria looked at Taesan and asked,
“What is your name?”
“Kang Taesan.”
“Kang Taesan. Leave this place immediately.”
“Constria?”
“This is not a warning, it’s advice. I can’t feel anything from you.”
Constria spoke bluntly.
“If you’ve been acknowledged by the God of Magic, you must have far greater talent than we do. I have nothing to say about that. But you’re far too weak.”
Taesan quietly looked at him.
Thinking that Taesan’s silence meant he struck a nerve, Constria continued.
“Elia beside you is a special case, but most here don’t accept outsiders like you. Especially if you’re weak. Everyone here has reached a certain realm. No matter how talented you are, if you’re as weak as you, you won’t learn anything here.”
With that, Constria turned and headed out of the library.
“Go back now. And live your own life. That’s the best advice I can give you.”
The door closed. Left alone, Elia scratched her head awkwardly.
“Um… His words were a bit harsh, but he’s not wrong. But it’s okay! I’ll help you!”
Elia clenched her fist confidently.
“If you were allowed to learn advanced magic, it means Zervand acknowledged your talent. If you struggle for a few years, the others will recognize you too!”
“Is that so.”
Only then did Taesan realize why the conversation felt off.
They didn’t really know anything about Taesan.
They thought he was someone with no power at the moment, but had been brought here because he was acknowledged as talented enough to learn advanced magic from Zervand.
Taesan was currently using Authority Seal, hiding all of his power. Unless they were equals, he would appear as an ordinary human. That’s why Elia said she’d help and would stay with him for a long time.
‘What a bother.’
There was no reason to stay that long.
But releasing Authority Seal probably wasn’t what Zervand wanted, either.
After thinking, Taesan asked Elia,
“Can I take the trial whenever I request it?”
“Mm, that’s right. Since it’s Zervand’s command, we have no right to refuse. But you can’t pass now, so just train for a while…”
“No.”
Taesan shook his head.
“I’ll take the trial right now.”
“Huh?”
Elia’s eyes widened.
—
“He wants to take the trial already? Why so fast?”
One of the magicians grumbled. Inside the tower was a room for duels. In the spacious room, the eight magicians and Taesan gathered.
“Elia, you said you’d take care of him. What did you say?”
“I did try to stop him…”
Elia scratched her cheek awkwardly.
When Taesan said he would take the trial, she objected, saying it was pointless right now.
But Taesan didn’t back down.
Since he had been brought here by Zervand, Elia had no choice but to give in.
“So, who’s going first?”
“Such a hassle…”
“I’ll go.”
A man stood up.
The red-haired man who showed the most hostility toward Taesan. He grinned and walked toward Taesan.
“Why is he so eager?”
“He’s always whining about wanting to learn advanced magic. No wonder he doesn’t like it.”
No one expected anything. After all, from their first encounter, they had all sensed that Taesan had no power.
“Why would Zervand bring someone so weak? Maybe he’s talented, but he’s just too weak.”
“You all think he’s weak?”
“Huh?”
The old man, who had been silent until now, spoke. The magicians reacted with surprise.
“Of course! We can’t feel anything from him.”
“Elia, you’ve been watching him up close. What do you think?”
“Yeah… I don’t know either. It feels like he’s hiding something, but it’s nothing special.”
Elia shook her head. Even standing right next to Taesan, she tried to gauge his strength but truly couldn’t sense a thing.
“I see.”
The old man looked at Taesan intently.
“Interesting. What method did he use to hide himself so perfectly?”
“Huh?”
“You’ll see soon enough.”
The red-haired man reached Taesan, his eyes filled with hostility.
“Worm.”
His voice was full of hatred and enmity.
He had devoted his entire life to magic.
Literally, he had thrown away family, friends, lovers, and even his own life—he staked everything on magic.
With such obsession and achievements, the man was acknowledged by the God of Magic and allowed entry into the magic tower.
Upon entering the tower, he was immensely proud of himself. One of the few magicians recognized by the great God of Magic. He had become one of them.
Since he hadn’t been in the tower long, he was still intoxicated with self-importance.
Then Taesan entered the tower.
A person who showed no power at all—yet was acknowledged by the God of Magic and granted the right to learn advanced magic.
The man could not accept Taesan’s presence.
Just by being here, Taesan was diminishing his own authority. He could no longer tolerate Taesan “tainting” the air of this place. The man intended to exclude Taesan from here.
But expulsion was impossible. Taesan’s presence was directly permitted by the God of Magic.
If so, he would have to make Taesan leave of his own will.
The man grinned and shouted,
“I am Butler Raven! Founder and sole magician of the Butler School! I will be your examiner!”
With that, Butler gathered his mana.
Immediately, space twisted around Taesan.
Butler wielded magic that manipulated space. He could fold space to leap great distances, twist space so attacks couldn’t reach, or even launch direct attacks at his opponents—he was a magician of that level.
The first thing Butler did to Taesan was seal movement.
And then, pressure.
Crack.
He blocked off space so Taesan couldn’t move. Then, little by little, he increased the pressure, making it hard to breathe, crushing every muscle in his body to the point of pain.
Taesan showed no reaction at all.
Butler twisted his lips. Right now, Taesan was being bound and tortured, enduring pain all over his body. Elia, watching from behind, frowned.
“That’s excessive.”
As she tried to stand, a staff blocked her path.
“Grandpa?”
“Watch. There won’t be a problem.”
The old man quietly observed Taesan.
Crack.
The pressure in space grew even stronger.
Butler was planning to end it soon. Any more pressure would endanger his life.
‘This should be enough of a threat.’
Once the spell was released, he expected Taesan’s expression to change in an instant and for him to collapse, staring at him in fear. Butler was ready to release the spell in anticipation.
“So this is how it is.”
Taesan muttered.
He moved his hand, touching the pressure of space.
“It’s certainly unique. At the very least, it’s a type of magic I can’t control myself.”
“W-What!”
Butler’s pupils widened.
He was binding Taesan’s whole body. It should have been impossible to move, let alone change his expression.
Yet Taesan was calmly touching the twisted space as if on a stroll.
“What is this!”
Butler drew up his power violently.
A massive sphere of space formed around Taesan. The very space twisted, creating a place where no life could survive, even for a moment. His vision warped, the scenery swirling.
Yet, in all that distortion, Taesan remained unchanged.
It was as if nothing could touch him.
“Is this…”
“It’s a magic trial, so I should use magic, right.”
[You have activated Magic Stacking.]
[You have activated Distortion.]
[You have activated Distortion.]
[You have activated Distortion.]
Mana condensed.
The observers held their breath. In that instant, overwhelming waves of mana surged from Taesan, who until now had shown nothing.
A higher-dimensional magic, beyond even their easy comprehension.
Just the condensation of mana was cracking the sphere of space.
A glint appeared in the old man’s eyes.
[You have activated Magic Liberation.]
[You have activated Partial Magic Calibration.]
The distortion of space shattered the sphere.
—
“Guh!”
Butler coughed up blood and collapsed. He had tried to handle magic beyond his limits, and the backlash from failure hit him.
“This is… what…”
Constria groaned.
Intermediate magic. Distortion. It was a magic they could handle too.
But the power Taesan showed was on another level—something they could never reach.
All the magicians except the old man were left speechless at what they saw.
“Who’s next?”
In the silence, Taesan’s voice rang out.
