LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 17
“The Tower Master Jane wasn’t feeling so great.”
Things had just not been going her way all day.
The day began with the guild leader, Logita Mantera.
– “Today, a mage named Enok will be visiting. An illegal mage without a license. We’re planning to hold a Pancratos about him.”
– “Pancratos? So you plan to entice this illegal mage?”
– “Exactly. There was a strong recommendation from the Ice Tower Master. Apparently, this Enok guy could be a boundary-level mage like us.”
– “You’ve got to be kidding… Old man Nordilla wouldn’t say anything nonsensical. If it’s true, he must have been hiding his skills pretty well.”
Logita had come to talk to Jane about this Enok fellow.
Jane found his words intriguing. If he was on the same level as them, just chatting would be fun enough.
But then came the real problem.
– “Jane, I have a favor to ask of you in that context.”
– “A favor? What is it?”
– “I hate to ask, but when the Pancratos starts, could you test him out?”
– “Test him out? Me?”
Logita requested Jane to gauge Enok.
Considering the circumstances, Enok was presumed to be a talented mage. There were even rumors about him clashing with imperial separatists.
In other words, he was a strong guy who had been hiding for a long time.
Whether Nordilla’s words were true or not, someone with that much skill wouldn’t just be swayed by a conversation.
So, someone needed to take the lead, and others would have to clean up afterward. Misunderstandings could be resolved later.
That was the guild leader Logita’s philosophy.
Jane didn’t really argue against it.
It was sort of a carrot-and-stick approach.
The problem was that Jane was the stick.
– “Are you crazy? You want me to pick on a junior who just showed up? I thought you were the guild leader, but it seems you’ve fried your brain!”
– “What else can we do? You’re the only one among us who looks mean enough.”
– “You really want to die, don’t you…”
Jane threw a tantrum, threatening Logita.
Unfortunately, nothing changed.
After some careful thought, Jane had to admit that Logita had a point.
– “Nordilla already has connections, so it’s impossible for him. Racelin looks too timid, and Bergo seems off compared to his usual self. Sebek… he’s better off crawling on the ground.”
– “And what about you?”
– “I’m the guild leader, remember? I’ll pretend to keep a neutral stance at least.”
– “You’ve got to be kidding me…”
Jane grimaced, puffing on her hookah.
The frustrating part was there really wasn’t a suitable candidate.
After ruminating for a while, the conclusion didn’t change.
Jane reluctantly accepted Logita’s request.
– “Thanks. I’ll leave it to you then.”
– “Shut it. I’ll only say the fixed points, so keep that in mind.”
Luckily, there wasn’t much to do.
At most, she had to represent them during the Pancratos and pressure Enok.
Shift the atmosphere to mock him.
That was all. Jane thought it wouldn’t be that hard.
However, reality was far from what she imagined.
No sooner had the meeting begun than Enok started acting cocky.
– “You idiots.”
– “??? “
– “Take your eyes off me like I’m some kind of criminal, before I come to pick you out myself.”
Suddenly using foul language at the Pancratos was shocking enough.
That alone was astonishing.
But Enok even dared to provoke Jane.
He kept cutting her off and had the audacity to give unsolicited advice.
As if he already knew how things were going.
‘This brat is getting too cocky. He really thinks he can dismiss me?’
Jane’s patience snapped at that.
Ignoring the attempts to hold her back, she approached Enok.
She had complied with Logita’s request, and now it was her turn to cash in.
Meeting or not, Jane planned to show that arrogant junior just what she could do.
Enok stared back at the glaring Jane as she stepped right up to him.
She was so close that she could practically bump noses with him.
With a small space between them, Enok spoke first.
“Tower Master, please calm down. The more you get involved with someone like me, the more it’ll be a loss for you.”
“Thanks for your concern. But I’m good. I’m not the type to care about that kind of stuff.”
Jane said that while twirling her finger.
“By the way, I’m curious. Old man Nordilla thinks you’re a boundary mage. Is that true?”
Boundary mage. At Jane’s words, the wizards in the background started murmuring.
– “A boundary mage…? That guy?”
– “So that’s why the Tower Masters are here at the Pancratos.”
This was no one other than the Water Tower Master’s statement.
The impact was remarkable.
The way they looked at him completely changed.
Unlike before, they no longer underestimated Enok.
But that didn’t matter for Jane. She pressed on with her point.
“Well? Why not spill the beans? Is it true or not?”
“Does that question even matter?”
“Are you being sarcastic? Of course it does. It’s a big deal if you’re not a boundary mage, you know?”
In that moment, water shot up from thin air.
The liquid dispersed like a net.
– “Pah-Pah!”
The liquid surrounded him and shot off like bullets.
There were about thirty of them.
Each one had enough power to knock out even an upper-level mage in one hit.
But! Enok didn’t panic.
His monocle was already infused with chain harmonization.
This level of attack had been noticed by him the moment Jane started twirling her finger.
If you know what’s coming, it’s easy to handle.
With a nonchalant expression, Enok straightened his coat.
‘Golden fusion.’
– “Kah-Ahng!”
The water jets were instantly bounced back.
The coat that Enok was wearing had defended the attack.
– “Huh, what the heck is that?”
– “A machine? No, is it magical engineering?”
The wizards murmured in surprise.
Before long, the ends of Enok’s coat had transformed into something resembling a mechanical snake’s tail.
That coat, which had suddenly changed appearance, deflected the water jets in an instant.
“You really know some interesting magic, don’t you?”
“Wouldn’t a Tower Master who controls moisture be expected to?”
“Thanks for the compliment. But is that coat a summon or a medium?”
“For now, it’s closer to the latter.”
“No wonder. There’s still moisture left inside.”
Jane gestured.
The moisture stirred.
– “Kwah-Chik!”
The protruding tail quickly got wrecked.
The cause was none other than the moisture.
The moisture left in the coat completely destroyed the mechanical snake from the inside.
– “Kwah-Chik! Kwah-Chik!”
“Looks like your toys are gone. Anything else?”
“Not on your life.”
Enok undid the watch he was wearing.
– “Kwah-Chik!”
The watch shattered immediately.
“Now it’s all gone, right?”
Jane grinned with amusement.
Her smile conveyed that she wouldn’t even give him a chance to pull anything else out.
Still, Enok remained unfazed.
He gazed back at the smiling Jane, let out a sigh, and spoke.
“The Tower Master really is different. Anything I bring out would just be crushed, so trying to follow along by hand has its limits.”
“Are you laying out bait after making a mistake?”
“Of course not. I’m a man too. I still have some pride left at this stage.”
“What do you mean by that?”
Jane tilted her head in confusion.
Enok placed a finger on his chest.
“Let’s play properly.”
– “Whirl!”
Enok’s finger moved near his chest.
Jane watched this gesture in curiosity.
On the other hand, Nordilla, who was observing the situation, inadvertently widened his eyes and focused.
‘It’s like he’s unlocking a lock. My senses told me that there’s danger in that.’
High-ranking mages typically have senses that go beyond the normal five.
Their magic required not only brilliant design and talent but also excellent sensory perception.
And Nordilla’s sixth sense warned him that this man named Enok contained a dangerous potential.
The brief encounter back at Magnus’s Ice Tower.
When that man performed those strange hand motions, Nordilla felt a fragment of an unknown power Enok possessed.
‘It’s magic even I couldn’t interpret. Just what kind of effect could it have.’
Nordilla watched with interest.
Other Tower Masters, guild leaders, and wizards around him felt the same.
All their gazes were filled with curiosity about the magic.
However, one amusing fact was that if Enok had heard all their thoughts, he would have burst out laughing.
‘They’re way too invested. This isn’t even magic.’
To reiterate, Enok uses skills, not magic. And none of his skills require the actions he just performed.
So, what was that action all about?
It was simply a routine.
Not skill or reality, but a pattern he set for manipulating something.
And the target of this manipulation was none other than his inventory.
– “Swoosh…”
– “Chururur…”
At that moment, items rained down from the ceiling.
Each item was something that had been inside Enok’s inventory.
The values ranged from a minimum of 100,000 crores to a maximum of 40 million crores.
Numerous items of varying worth poured down like rain, as if a hole had been punched in the ceiling.
“…Spatial magic? Were you a spatial mage?”
“Think whatever you want.”
Enok answered casually.
Jane shook her head in disbelief.
“…What a letdown. I waited all that time to see what you could do, and all I get is you pulling out stuff? Is that your only trick?”
In the rain of treasures, Jane twirled her hand.
It seemed she planned to crush whatever fell regardless of how many came down.
“…Hmm?”
But something strange happened.
The moisture that had been moving freely a moment ago.
It suddenly stopped.
“…What’s going on? What did you do?”
Of course, there was only one suspect.
Jane asked directly.
Enok lightly kicked his foot.
– “Thud!”
Invisible energy spread from under Enok’s foot.
Chain harmonization.
Blue lightning infused everything in the room.
Enok’s belongings.
The treasures falling down.
Even the moisture infused with Jane’s magic.
Not a single one was left out; they were all deeply penetrated.
‘Chain harmonization and golden fusion. I never once thought these could only be used on my items.’
Enok had activated chain harmonization and golden fusion the moment the items began to rain.
The targets of the harmonization were everything scattered around.
The targets of the fusion were also everything lying around.
This meant that the magic and moisture Jane had been controlling were now Enok’s, having been governed by him.
“Tower Master, you shouldn’t have given me the time to set this up.”
Enok stated, then activated the skill again.
Immediately, the vast number of treasures on the ground started to stir.
‘Things that break and shatter have their own worth.’
Golden fusion.
Some of the scattered items merged into three enormous mechanical snakes.
Those broken items turned into something like gloves and adhered to the bodies of the mechanical snakes.
‘Chain harmonization is still in effect. And moisture too.’
Blue lightning glinted in the eyes of the three advanced mechanical snakes.
Again, golden fusion.
The mechanical snakes linked together in a golden glow.
What finally emerged was a steel dragon with three heads.
Enok named it, Code name End.
It probably cost him around seven billion crores.
As if proving its worth, the three-headed mechanical beast let out a roar that could shake the ground while spreading its enormous wings.
– “Koooaahhh!!!”