Chapter 75

At first, Lytol was dumbfounded.

‘Why am I standing here?’

He was confused about what time it was and even where he was.

‘Am I dead?’

A chill ran down his spine. That flash, that explosion, the vibrations and screams… people being torn apart, cities burning.

Did I die there?

‘No. No… pull yourself together.’

Barely suppressing the cry that was creeping out amidst the confusion, Lytol calmly organized his memories.

‘First, this is the principal’s office at Solas Magic School.’

He recalled recently coming down to the 3rd floor of the Tower of Covenant with his master. Recognizing this fact, a sigh of relief escaped without him realizing it.

Ah, I’m alive.

With some composure, he looked around. He saw Principal Ruttle, and next to him, a young man who appeared to be three or four years older than himself.

‘Who was that… ah!’

He remembered.

Fel Jack. The heir to Lanciel City on the 7th Continent. He had joined the meeting out of curiosity after hearing that Fel had arrived with dozens of subordinates.

Apparently, they had been chased by a mage from the Society and escaped into the Tower of Covenant through an undiscovered relic site? Both the Society’s attack and the undiscovered relic site were interesting. The treatment of the dozens of lower-ranking mages and Mana Users was also a matter of concern.

‘I joined to hear the report… and there was an annoying white-haired brat.’

Tracing his hazy memories, Lytol barely recalled that much.

He furrowed his brow. His memory cut off there. He couldn’t remember anything from the moment he started giving a few words of advice to that arrogant child.

Lytol was familiar with this phenomenon.

‘Why did you suddenly intervene?’

He shifted his gaze forward. He glared at the hemispherical barrier completely surrounding the sofa.

Since the barrier scattered the light and sound from inside, he couldn’t tell who was having what conversation.

But judging from the circumstances, it was clear that the white-haired brat and his master were talking.

What conversation could they possibly be having…

That even my memories had to be erased…

The conversation went on much longer than expected. The three suns that raced across the sky passed to the west, and the world was tinged red. Just as his legs were growing numb from standing and waiting,

The barrier hiding Baek Jun-woo and Pan-Dalus finally disappeared.

The white-haired boy with sparkling excited eyes contrasted with his master, who seemed to have aged a decade in mere moments.

“Master.”

Lytol carefully called out to his master, who waved his hand. It meant don’t disturb me, I’m thinking.

The master lost in thought and the arrogant white-haired brat.

What kind of conversation could such a child possibly have had so seriously with the master?

Lytol bit his lip hard.

+ – + – +

After the conversation ended, Pan-Dalus remained silent for a long time.

He nodded to himself or wrinkled his brow and shook his head.

After long deliberation, he finally questioned me.

“Divine Mage. I have heard your story well.”

He addressed me with the title of a mage.

“Divine Mage? How audacious.”

Principal Ruttle murmured in surprise.

“Divine Mage? Insane… Taking on a title you cannot handle? How foolish.”

Lytol sneered.

Pan-Dalus scolded them both.

“You fools! What insolence toward our guest!”

His ashy eyes, which had seemed dim, now sharpened like spears. Intimidated by his presence, Lytol complained.

“B-but Master!”

“Silence! If you intend to run your mouth again, get out of here immediately!”

Only then did Lytol close his mouth and hang his head low. Principal Ruttle also just watched carefully from the side.

Having established the atmosphere, Pan-Dalus sighed deeply.

“Sigh… I apologize. No matter how many times I say that a mage’s value is not determined by mere attainment… there are still many who fail to understand.”

“No, it’s fine. I’m actually quite pleased to have met Pan-Dalus, who was willing to listen to my words.”

I truly meant it. I never knew sharing thoughts with others could be this enjoyable.

‘With someone like this, I could converse for days on end.’

Seeing my response, Pan-Dalus gave an enigmatic smile, then leaned forward and asked:

“I’m grateful for your understanding. Now, what kind of support would the Divine Mage like to receive from the Academy?”

I straightened my posture. It was finally time to bring up the main reason I had come here.

“I would like access to all information related to relic sites, entry permissions, and all resources necessary for exploration. Additionally, I would appreciate the qualifications to view and research all magical knowledge accumulated by the Academy.”

I heard the principal groan. Lytol couldn’t say anything but shot me a burning glare.

Regardless of their reactions, Pan-Dalus nodded.

“Indeed… a very attractive proposal.”

He met my eyes.

“Each of your discoveries, each reinterpretation of theory, will surely advance magic by decades.”

However, the emotion reflected in his eyes wasn’t expectation or excitement. Rather, it was a sadness that seemed ready to pour out.

Why?

“I only regret that I’ve met you just now.”

Pan-Dalus sighed deeply.

He took his eyes off me and looked at Lytol.

“Liya.”

“Yes, Master.”

Pan-Dalus used a nickname while Lytol hurriedly bowed his head.

“Hand that over.”

Lytol’s face, which had been red with discontent toward me, suddenly turned pale at those words. He even began to stammer.

“Th-that would be…”

“Isn’t it obvious? The record of the 91st floor.”

Lytol now began to tremble down to his chin.

“B-but that’s something the Mage Council has designated as forbidden to share…”

“Liya. Don’t you know why I came down to the 3rd floor? This is neither something to hide nor something to just observe.”

Pan-Dalus extended his hand firmly.

Finally, Lytol, with trembling hands, placed a rectangular box the size of a thick book in Pan-Dalus’s hand.

Pan-Dalus stared at the box with a fearsome expression before handing it to me.

“Before answering about sponsorship, just as you have shared the secrets of the world with me, I would like to share one secret with you.”

I stared blankly at the black box placed on my hand.

“This box is…?”

“Recently, a united force centered around the Academy set out to explore the 91st floor, only to suffer a devastating blow and retreat. Rather, they even lost the 90th floor base they had secured and were pushed back to the 89th floor. I also accompanied that expedition and witnessed that defeat with my own eyes, and left this record.”

Pan-Dalus’s face was filled with regret and sorrow.

“There were differing opinions among mages on how to interpret the devastation seen there, but I… was labeled an excessive pessimist. However, I believe in my judgment. That’s why I came down to the 3rd floor of the Tower of Covenant to prepare for the coming catastrophe.”

“What catastrophe?”

“…The end of the world.”

…I hadn’t expected to hear about the world’s end while discussing Academy sponsorship. Noticing my expression, Pan-Dalus waved his hand and said.

“Just look first. After seeing it, tell me your judgment.”

Was this the 6th Circle mage’s magic? The moment he said “tell me,” the black box in my hand vibrated.

Like fainting, my consciousness was drawn into a deep darkness.

.

.

‘Where am I?’

I opened my eyes upon an endlessly undulating sea.

“Record. This is the 91st floor of the Tower of Covenant. The Solaris Great Sea region.”

A voice suddenly heard. Turning my head, I saw Pan-Dalus’s profile as he flew quickly over the sea. Slightly behind him, I could see Lytol following while trembling, and beyond him, other mages fleeing in haste.

Calamities with glowing eyes pursued them, swarming like storm clouds from beyond the horizon.

I was being pulled along, flying while maintaining a certain distance from Pan-Dalus.

“We are now retreating.”

Deep despair was embedded in Pan-Dalus’s voice as he spoke.

“Pan-Dalus? What do you mean? Where is this?”

Though I asked, Pan-Dalus merely continued flying with a hardened face, checking behind him.

It seemed my voice couldn’t be heard. He didn’t look back even when I waved my hand.

This clearly wasn’t reality.

‘Is this a record of the defeat at the 91st floor?’

A record recreating reality. But it was excessively vivid. Not just images and sounds were recorded, but “everything” around was recreated.

First, the enormous magical power density of the 91st floor was perfectly reproduced. Even the mana that no one was said to have seen was recreated.

‘What is this…?’

At first, I didn’t recognize it. I just thought they were pillars of mana. But it was a massive mana pattern. Gray letters, one written in the sky and one in the sea.

‘Is this even possible?’

I looked at the sea. No small mana could be seen.

‘What’s going on? There should be small mana floating in the water to represent water?’ Like H2O water molecules?’

This sea defied every water I had ever seen. There were no tiny mana visible in it at all. Instead, there was just one enormously large, single massive gray character stretching all the way to the horizon.

It’s as if mana were the bones and water the flesh. When the massive character moved slightly, the sea writhed like a living beast. Tsunamis arose here and there.

‘Is this the 91st floor of the Tower of Covenant?’

It seems to have completely different laws from the lower floors.

I looked around in awe and shock. But such pleasant time did not last long.

Boom!

It was as if the sky were collapsing and the sea surging.

This wasn’t exaggerated in the slightest.

Several mages were sucked into the sea, spewing blood. Even Pan-Dalus, who barely made it through the surging tsunami, turned pale.

“What is this… what is this!!”

Lytol wailed and sobbed loudly.

The shock wave had begun from behind where the calamities were gathering. From there, the enormous mana symbolizing sky and sea began to fracture and twist. Through the gaps, black spatial rifts were revealed.

Crack. Crack-crack.

Like bread dough tearing to form holes, cracks kept appearing in the sky and sea.

“Again…”

Pan-Dalus muttered like a groan.

The night sky spread out through the torn sky. The stars rotating around the Tower of Covenant appeared close enough to touch. And… the calamities that had been pursuing from beyond the horizon charged in with glowing eyes. Some continued to chase the fleeing mages while others rushed out toward countless stars, moving down against the Tower of Covenant. As the rifts in the sky and sea grew larger, more calamities escaped outside the Tower of Covenant.

“Oh God…”

With Pan-Dalus’s desperate murmur, the record ended.

Back in the principal’s office at Solas Magic School.

“Ummm…”

I groaned and blinked my eyes. My heart was pounding as if it would burst through my chest, and my back was soaked with cold sweat. There was a ringing in my ears.

“What, what was that?”

To my question, Pan-Dalus answered with his eyes tightly closed.

“Did you see the rifts?”

“Yes… Through those rifts, I saw the continents located outside the Tower of Covenant. And I also saw countless calamities escaping the tower.”

“…The record only goes that far. In truth, the rifts didn’t end at the 91st floor. They slowly descended to the 90th floor and shattered the base there. That’s how humanity was pushed back to the 89th floor.”

“Then… the rifts haven’t spread to the 89th floor?”

Pan-Dalus smiled bitterly.

“Many mages believe so. That the rifts will spread no further. That they will heal on their own with time… but my thoughts differ. I see this as a precursor.”

“If it’s a precursor…”

“Just as one earthquake triggers another, one rift brings about a larger rift. Having researched this field for a long time, I can be certain. A great cataclysm will occur.”

Overwhelmed by Pan-Dalus’s intensity, I could only swallow hard.

“Like the ancient destruction that tore apart all continents. We will face another extinction. Neither the Tower of Covenant nor the countless continents connected to it… can escape this destruction. It’s not simply a matter of calamities escaping the Tower of Covenant! The Tower of Covenant being torn apart, the distance between stars increasing, and ultimately, our entire world possibly shattering. A change that is literally a great cataclysm.”

After declaring this without even taking a breath, as if venting his frustration, Pan-Dalus suddenly laughed self-deprecatingly, as if all his strength had drained away.

“But this is merely my opinion. To be fair… there are hardly any mages who think like me. Everyone else believes this rift is temporary and that the calamities that escaped the tower will return inside. To prevent unnecessary confusion, they’ve controlled this information and branded me as a pessimist spreading false rumors. So… I actually find it difficult to grant your request. I’m a mad mage preparing for extinction, after all…”

Pan-Dalus’s ashy eyes, which had seemed to dim, suddenly sharpened again, piercing through me.

“But you are a sage who views the world from a completely new perspective. I very much want to hear your thoughts on the bizarre phenomena of the 91st floor.”