< 90. Shoot for the dawn (3) >
#90
In Ronan’s hand the La Mancha that had already been pulled out was shining. The mana leaking from the 7th Circle mage’s body was so concentrated that it made her dizzy. Aun Phila who was looking down at the two people opened her mouth.
“I want to talk to you guys. Are you okay for a moment?”
“With us?”
Erzsebet’s eyes widened. Aun Pilar nodded her head.
“exactly. They both appear to be freshmen but their skills are amazing. “I couldn’t suppress my curiosity about promising juniors.”
“Junior?”
“I’m also from Phileon. “I am a student of the 767th class.”
Ronan’s eyes widened. It was more surprising that he was only in his early 30s with a face like that than that he was a senior at the academy. Aun Pilar who was smoothing his mustache looked at Ronan and said:
“Your abilities in particular were very interesting. How on earth did you destroy the fireball with a sword strike?”
“It’s just that… when I cut it into small pieces it disappeared.”
“That’s amazing. “I understand everyone has secrets.”
“It’s true.”
It seemed like he didn’t really believe it. For Ronan that was really all there was to explain. Aun Pillar continued.
“I think the conversation will take a bit longer. “I’d like to take you to my office. Is everyone okay?”
“Of course!”
Ergé Bet quickly nodded his head. It was a natural reaction. The Dawn Magic Tower has a high status among the Five Supreme Magic Towers. It was not common to receive an invitation from the tower mage and tower owner.
“I like it too.”
Ronan also readily agreed. I already had a few questions I wanted to ask. A faint smile spread across Aun Pilar’s face.
“I’m glad you agreed. Then follow me.”
Aun Pillar took the lead and guided them. Contrary to expectations that they would ride on a pillar of fire the three people walked normally. The reason was that if you did not reach the point where you could elementalize your body you would just end up with burns.
“Space attribute magic is the only thing that can move others without any restrictions. “Is Kratir still serving as the principal of Phileon?”
“Of course.”
“You are indeed Lorhon’s best disciple. “If there is someone who reaches the 9th circle next it will definitely be him.”
Aun Pilar explained that Kratir was also the principal when his father attended Phileon. He was a great old man anyway. So much so that it is incomprehensible that he did not appear during the final battle.
Before long they entered the main gate of the Dawn Magic Tower. Like the exterior the interior made of ivory stone gave off an antique feel in proportion to its long history.
The first floor like other high-rise buildings served as a lobby. A huge statue depicting a blazing sun was shining in the center.
Wizards wearing red robes were walking around. Every time they encountered Aun Pillar they bowed with their hands joined together and greeted him. Ronan looked around and shrugged his eyebrows.
“It’s more ordinary than I thought.”
The atmosphere was very different from the strange Phileon magic department’s main building. There were no upside-down stairs or portraits that suddenly started arguing.
As expected Phileon’s spellcasters were strange. Just as I was thinking about that I noticed a six-legged lizard sleeping on its stomach in a corner of the lobby. Ronan’s face hardened.
‘Fuck. It’s a Salamander.’
I almost pulled out my knife. If someone gave me paper and a pen to write down ten monsters that I had a hard time dealing with in my past life these were the monsters I would proudly rank at the top.
A fiery lizard that can burn humans with a single breath. The slim body which appeared to be about 3 meters long was engulfed in not-so-hot fire. Phileon’s students who came with Erzebet were listening to the guidance of a wizard who appeared to be their leader.
“What you are looking at now is Salamander Nancy who has been raised at the Dawn Magic Tower for 120 years. “Isn’t it cute?”
“Wow this is my first time seeing Salamander. “Can I touch it?”
‘Crazy guys.’
Ronan who saw her listening and giggling again shook his head. Anyway the wizard family was not sane. They took a magically operated elevator and headed straight to the top of the tower.
****
Aun Pillar’s office was located on the top floor of the Dawn Magic Tower. Through the arch-shaped window which was wide enough to fill the entire wall I could see the sun still stretching and the dawning sea glimmering at a glance.
Aun Pillar explained that on a good day you can see the Screaming Fortress Rhodolan far away near the horizon. The three people sat on the living room sofa and talked. Gratitude for the situation that had just occurred and Phileon’s current situation were the main topics.
“Oh I thought it was unusual but she was the daughter of the Acalusia family. “It deals with three properties?”
“yes. It’s fire wind and telekinesis. “The attribute I am most confident in is fire.”
“To be born with both fire and wind is truly a talent sent from heaven. Do you plan on coming to the Dawn Magic Tower after graduation? “Grancia’s three daughters are doing well so there will be nothing lacking in their lives.”
“I’ll think about it later.”
Erzhebet covered her mouth and laughed. Anyway she was a girl who really liked compliments. Didn’t she just say Grancia by the way? She tilted her head as if she had heard wrong. Pilar who was in her car followed her.
“Ronan you too. “You will definitely become a great swordsman.”
“thank you.”
“These are not empty words. Your skills will never be inferior to the Empire’s Morning Star. “I hope you will continue to work hard and become a swordsman who cuts out the darkness of the world.”
Aun Pillar said. It didn’t take long to realize that he was a decent person. He belonged to the type of person who lives on the fuel of goodwill something that can only be found rarely.
‘For now.’
However there were a few things that made it difficult to completely relax. Now that the atmosphere had calmed down a lot I felt like I could get to the point. Ronan opened his mouth.
“But I have a question Pilar.”
“Hmm? “What is it?”
“Why didn’t you help me sooner? When he almost got shot down.”
The smile disappeared from Aun Pilar’s face. Ronan stared into his eyes without changing his expression.
Erzsebet began to hiccup at the sudden interrogation.
“that….”
“Honestly we had enough time to stop the fireball.”
The more I thought about it the less I understood it. I’m not sure exactly how many wizards there are in the Magic Tower but there must be at least a few hundred.
Even if Aun Pillar himself didn’t see the fireball one of them should have spotted it and taken action. Aunpila did not answer right away but just quietly smoothed his mustache. He finally sighed and opened his mouth.
“…We found the fireball right after you jumped off the ship.”
“yes?”
“Literally. No one in the magic tower saw the fireball being launched and fly away. To be exact the moment you swung your sword in the air a fire ball appeared. At that time it had already reached a point where nothing could be done. ”
In other words seven fireballs suddenly appeared in the empty air. Ronan frowned.
“Are you asking me to believe that?”
“I can swear on my honor as a Top Mage. The Dawn Magic Tower was closely watching the airship you were on.”
The explanation continued. Aun Pillar said that the Mage Tower’s alertness has been significantly strengthened following the Nebula Clazie’s self-destruction incident. In fact they said that they had been sending summons to determine the ship’s location in real time long before the airship arrived at the Magic Tower. Nevertheless something like that happened.
“I intended to reveal the truth as soon as the investigation was completed. At first I thought about telling them but I felt like it would only increase the anxiety of the guests. “Everyone at the Magic Tower including me experienced the same phenomenon.”
It was nonsense. It was the moment when Ronan was about to ask if they had done something together as a group. Erzsebet who had been listening quietly opened her mouth.
“Could it be a perception-impairing spell?”
“That’s my guess at the moment. Because there is no explanation other than that.”
Aun Pillar nodded his head gravely. Erzsebet’s face hardened.
“It doesn’t make sense. Casting a perception-impairing spell over such a wide area… If that’s true it means that the top mage was also affected right?
“exactly.”
“Who on earth could use such powerful magic…?”
Erzsebet muttered in disbelief. Perception inhibition which makes it difficult to recognize the existence of a target was basically a magic that only worked on those with lower magic resistance than the caster.
In the Dawn Tower where there were many excellent wizards it was virtually impossible to simultaneously inflict cognitive impairment on Aun Pillar who had reached the level of the 7th Circle.
“Is Lorhon playing a practical joke…?”
“That won’t be it. Because you were concentrating on research you did not attend the last Top Owner meeting. Anyway if someone used perception-impairing magic on us they must be an incredibly powerful wizard…”
Aun Pillar trailed off his horse. It certainly didn’t seem like a simple accidental accident. This time I was trying to ask questions about a missing person. Aun Pilar suddenly stood up adjusted his collar and opened his mouth.
“…Then will you please stand up? I have a meeting in the afternoon. Before that I will take you on a tour of the Cradle of Dawn.”
“Oh my god really?!”
At that moment the suspicious air current flew away from nowhere. Erzsebet was so happy that she almost jumped out of her seat.
The Cradle of Dawn was a kind of laboratory where wizards gathered to develop new magic. Originally even after becoming a member of the Magic Tower one had to gain about five years of experience to be allowed to enter. Ronan shook his head left and right.
“I’m done.”
“Hmm? Is something wrong?”
“I don’t think there should be any more delay. “I have to go to the library.”
Of course it wasn’t a bad offer. One day I might learn magic and there was a high possibility that this valuable experience would be helpful in the future.
However the purpose of his visit to the Dawn Magic Tower today was to find clues about Haeju. Aun Pilar spoke in a voice dripping with regret.
“Then there is nothing we can do. If you need any help please come to me at any time. “I will do my best to help you as a senior at Phileon Academy not as an assistant manager of the Mage Tower.”
“Thank you at least for your words.”
“I really have something to give you.”
Aun Pillar who was rummaging through his inner pocket held out a flat box made of metal. Inside were five scrolls the size of an index finger. Ronan tilted his head.
“What is this?”
“This is a scroll I made. “If you attend Phileon Academy you will definitely do a lot of dangerous training so make sure you use it in emergencies.”
Aun Pillar explained that her favorite spells including the Prominence Bird were imprinted on it. Ronan’s face hardened. Unless he was deaf himself the magic he had given him was by no means suitable for self-defense.
‘…As expected wizards are crazy.’
Prominence Bird was a magic that was also used when fighting Ahayute. Unless it was thrown away it was not something that could be given away like vegetables picked from the garden.
“thank you.”
Of course I didn’t refuse. Ronan laughed and put the metal box in his inner pocket. To be honest I liked him. That too quite a bit. Erzsebet said.
“Thank you for your hard work Ronan. How long are you planning to stay at the Magic Tower?”
“Well that’s fine. Even if I can’t do it three or four days?”
“Hehe it’s similar. “I’ll see you again when I get a chance.”
“okay. I eat together with my friends. “Don’t be alone all the time.”
“This is useless interference!”
All three people took the elevator together and headed downstairs. Since the Cradle of Dawn was located above the library Ronan had to let the two go first. As the elevator was about to go down again Aun Pillar looked back and said:
“Be careful not to read such evil banned books.”
“Forbidden book?”
The conversation did not continue because the elevator went down immediately. Ronan tilted his head.
‘What is that noise all of a sudden?’
The tone of voice seemed to be giving advice out of anger rather than a warning. Soon the elevator stopped. The moment the door opened the view of the library unfolded before my eyes. He laughed when he saw the magnificent figure.
“…Amazing.”
The huge library which had one of the largest collections of books on the continent occupied six floors of the 24-story Magic Tower.
The ceiling of the library which combined six floors into one was at an impossibly high level.
Books were lined up along the round wall. Likewise dozens of bookshelves shaped like cylinders rose up to the ceiling.
The sunlight streaming in through the windows here and there provided the optimal light source for reading a book. People were standing on scaffolding floating in the air and choosing books.
The corners of Ronan’s mouth rose. Here it wouldn’t be surprising if there were a clue or two about his own curse. As he looked at the city of books he stroked his bangs and muttered.
“Let’s give it a try.”
Ronan immediately took action. The first step was to find the librarian that Sarante had mentioned. If he had tried to gather information at random he would not have been able to search for it for a year let alone three days.
The problem was that because the library was so large it was difficult to find a librarian. There were a lot of glasses-wearing people who looked like librarians walking around so it was difficult to make inferences based on appearance alone.
Maybe I should catch them one by one and ask them. He was thinking like that. A woman’s voice was heard from behind.
“Is there a book you’re looking for?”
“Hmm?”
Ronan turned his head. A girl of petite stature was standing there. She was impressive with her short orange hair and her short stature as Asher.
“It looks like you’re from Phileon Academy. If you need anything please let me know.”
“No way…are you the librarian?”
The girl nodded her head. Ronan fell asleep when he saw the young face.
‘··You don’t look old enough to be friends.’
I couldn’t believe that I had any connection with Sarante who lived in seclusion hundreds of years ago. Her voice was also innocent making her seem at most similar to herself or slightly younger. Ronan asked as if he was very suspicious.
“Are there any more librarians besides you?”
“yes? no. “There are many people who help me but I am the only librarian.”
“Hmm…then that’s right. Just wait.”
Ronan who was silently rummaging through his pockets took out a ring. The jewel embedded in the center of the silver ring was sparkling. She was nothing short of a memento from Saranthe who told her to show it to the librarian of the Tower of Dawn. The librarian’s eyes widened when he saw the ring.
“that…!”
“My friend told me to show this to you. “Do you know someone?”
“How…this…this doesn’t make sense….”
She didn’t think she would be that surprised if she encountered a dragon while taking a walk. The librarian who was looking at the ring and Ronan in turn suddenly grabbed his wrist and said.
“I know better than anyone else. “Follow me.”
