Chapter 157 – Dealing With Magicians (5)
Felix thought back to his past. Even though he was never directly taught how to manifest Burning, he had heard some fragments about it from his teacher.
“Burning is not the kind of skill that can be mastered in a day or two. First of all, the affinity with fire has to be extremely high. It cannot be taught just because someone wants to learn it. Disciple, if you really want to follow in my footsteps, then become closer to fire with each passing day and fully embrace it. If you no longer feel pain even with fire wrapped around your body, then you can be reborn as the Flame God.”
The Phoenix Magic Tower. They were weak despite having such a secret technique because there was no clear method for passing on the knowledge they possessed.
The former Magic Tower masters. They all embraced the flames in their own manner, and Felix’s teacher also acquired an overwhelming affinity with fire as a result of being an arson victim when he was a child. But the experience he went through wasn’t what everyone should go through.
There were even disciples who deliberately tried to burn their bodies, hoping to attain some realization, but they either lost their lives or some of their body parts. After all, Burning was something only the talented could learn, and he had no choice but to pray that the flame would accept him.
But Roman Dmitry was engulfed in flames in the forge. If this was true, it was safe to say that he had an overwhelming affinity with fire, which was the basic condition for Burning.
‘Even when he sparred with me, Roman’s reaction was definitely not a normal one. Aside from having no fear of the flames, it was like the heat didn’t even matter to him. Didn’t Roman Dmitry just recently learn how to accept the flames and analyze magic? The Dmitry family, who have been familiar with the flames of a forge for generations might have some secrets.’
That might not be true. Even so, he couldn’t hold back his inflated hope.
Burning—it was the source of the Phoenix Magic Tower’s power. People acknowledged the value of Phoenix when Burning existed with the Magic Tower, and now that they have lost access to their main skill, their Magic Tower is considered useless.
This was why Burning was needed. Magicians who mastered Burning were called disasters on the battlefield, so the fact that the only person who knew it went missing really shook up the Phoenix Magic Tower.
In the future, in order for the Magic Tower to survive, and as the person who inherited the tower, he had to manifest Burning.
After talking with the blacksmith, he went straight to Roman Dmitry.
He met up with Roman. He saw his face every day, but the thought of getting a clue about Burning made his heart beat hard today. And Felix said,
“… according to the blacksmith, when Mr. Roman Dmitry worked in the forge, you were known to be surrounded by flames on your bare body. Are you protecting your body with mana, or do you have a special way to accept the fire?”
He couldn’t ask about his doubts right away, but he guessed that the answer would be either of the two. If it was the former, then he didn’t have to talk further, and if it was the latter, the future of the tower depended on Roman Dmitry.
Roman looked at Felix. Even though he didn’t reveal his intention for asking, he understood why.
“The rumors that you have been looking for a way to embrace the fire must be true. If you are asking if what I displayed within the forge is some innate thing, then no. I am no different from any other person. I feel the same heat from the fire, but I managed to solve it in my own manner.”
Hearing those words, his heart sank. When Roman gave a clear answer, his mouth dried up and his hands turned sweaty.
‘Roman Dmitry. He knows what I want.’
Actually, there was no need to hide it. It was a known fact that the Phoenix Magic Tower was looking for a way to embrace fire, but no one could provide it.
It was a natural result. Forcibly raising the affinity for fire wasn’t something humans could solve. It was a realm of the Gods, so he hoped that a miracle would happen when he approached the fire.
If Roman could give him an answer, Felix was ready to do anything for Roman.
‘The reason why our Magic Tower is undervalued is that there is no clear system for passing down our secret techniques. I have no choice but to wait for the fire to come and embrace me, and if the transfer of knowledge about Burning disappears like what is happening now, then the Magic Tower is done for. However, if we can find a way to meet the basic conditions, then the Magic Tower’s situation would be completely different.’
Creating a system would help change their situation. Starting with Felix, it was only a matter of time before the entire tower gained stability if they could pass on Burning.
“Phew.”
He let out a deep sigh, his hands and feet shaking. Felix didn’t bother hiding his nervous expression as he cautiously said,
“I will speak honestly to you. The Phoenix Magic Tower needs the skill that Roman Dmitry has. Please give us the conditions. We will make sure to get them done.”
He had hope. The past three years have been a nightmare. After passing through a time of pain, he finally saw a string of hope. But…
“It isn’t that difficult for me to teach you. But I have no reason to do such a favor for you.”
They met every day for two months, so he might have mistaken Roman Dmitry for a kind person. Felix and Roman Dmitry were like two opposite sides of a coin.
He thought that their relationship would strengthen with time, but they never had a conversation that was different from their initial purpose for meeting.
And that was all. Roman openly said he learned so he could fight better, and he had no intention of spreading his own knowledge indiscriminately. This meant Roman wanted a solid relationship.
Now that Felix has revealed his desire, this was a weakness he could hold on to.
‘This.’
Felix’s expression hardened. The ability to embrace fire—a technique that the Magic Tower desperately needed. The moment Roman Dmitry drew the line, the Phoenix Magic Tower lost everything.
But Roman hoped to use this as a compromise and offer it when his opponent was desperate for growth.
Roman said,
“Dmitry has everything. We are financially rich enough to bet on 10,000 gold as a reward for sparring, but we don’t need anything from the Magic Tower. So think about it and tell me. As for the Phoenix Magic Tower, how far will you go for that one thing?”
A blunt question. The development of this conversation was different from what he had expected, and Felix could no longer control his expression.
The answer was delayed. He needed time to think, so he called for the other magicians. After explaining what happened with Roman, Knox stepped forward to represent the magicians.
“I will tell you my honest opinion. A month in the Dmitry estate—this was something I failed to understand when you called us over, but staying in this place showed me that the estate differs greatly from the rumors. It has an unbelievably perfect system for an estate on the outskirts, and people here show blind trust toward Roman Dmitry. To be honest, I feel jealous. After the tower master went missing, the magicians of Phoenix couldn’t find peace even for a moment, but here, the people of Dmitry seem so happy.”
Felix felt it, and so did the other magicians. As they got along with the people of Dmitry, they could feel how ideal this land was. Was that why? No one said anything at the start, but now they leaned towards Dmitry.
“We have had several sparring matches with Roman Dmitry over the past month or so, and we haven’t won a single one. At first, I thought we were being careless, but no matter how tactical our approach was, we couldn’t come up with a method to defeat Roman Dmitry. He is a nemesis to us magicians. Just the thought of encountering someone like him in a real battle makes me want to run away.”
Being defeated by Roman. It wasn’t just Felix. But all the magicians had no choice but to face repeated defeat against Roman. It was accurate to call him a heavenly being. At least for magicians, the man was an existence they hated to fight against.
“Why don’t we say this? If we cannot win, we join them instead. Now that the Frank Kingdom has treated us differently since our fall, I think it wouldn’t be a bad idea to dedicate our tower to Roman Dmitry to keep Burning alive. And honestly, didn’t Mr. Felix come here only to get our consent?”
“… was I that obvious?”
“I have good eyes. And if you didn’t think it would work, you wouldn’t have asked us in the first place.”
Knox’s words made the other magicians nod. Felix gulped when everyone shared their thoughts.
‘The Dmitry family.’
The thirteen Magic Towers. They all had their own nations and families that they were siding with. Since magicians were still limited, there has never been a case where a tower would form a relationship with a noble family and not the nation.
And now Phoenix was trying to escape from the old tradition. He felt attracted to the Dmitry family and not to the Cairo Kingdom.
So he closed his eyes. The existence of Burning was the most important thing for them. And if they swore allegiance to someone in return for it, like Roman Dmitry, it didn’t seem like a bad option.
Finally…
“I understand. From now on, we will entrust the future of the Phoenix Magic Tower to Roman Dmitry.”
As the acting master of the tower, Felix made the decision.
On that day, Felix brought the magicians and swore allegiance. There were dozens of magicians. Even when they swore allegiance in unison, Roman had a calm face. Being a magician wasn’t a great thing for Roman. This was like accepting Chris or Kevin.
But…
‘This is the ideal situation I can think of.’
Roman deliberately chose this Magic Tower for three reasons.
First. When he was in need of a sparring opponent, Felix was the best option, according to the information he found through the intelligence guild. Felix would choose to come to Dmitry for money, but he had the zeal to find a way to win the same battles.
Second. Felix specialized in offensive magic. This meant that he wasn’t just a cost-efficient choice. Through constant sparring with Felix, he was determined to gain something.
Third. He was uncertain about this part, but according to the rumors, the Magic Tower needed the ability to accept fire in order to manifest Burning, and Roman’s flame arts were perfect for it. He wasn’t sure what this would do. But if Phoenix needed that, it was really the only last piece of the puzzle that could solve the problem, and Roman knew that he would benefit from it.
With just one choice, there were three benefits. And the fact that the Phoenix magicians had come to Roman would cause great havoc in the Cairo Kingdom.
‘There isn’t much time left. Here in Dmitry, far from the capital, I will build a fort step by step and wipe out the power system of Cairo at once.’
As he was lost in thought for the future, Roman began to lay out another step-by-step plan.
A few days later, the migration of the Magic Tower went smoothly. First, they kept the fact that they were following Dmitry a secret and moved their luggage one by one.
‘I hope my choice isn’t wrong.’
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After sparring, he decided to learn the Infernal Divine Arts. He wasn’t sure if that could be the clue to Burning, but he still had to learn it.
Roman Dmitry placed no other conditions on Phoenix. He even assisted them in moving to Dmitry for the sole purpose of their sworn alliance.
And it was then…
“Magic Tower master!”
“What is it?”
A magician of the Phoenix Magic Tower.
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He didn’t have a high-ranking position, but he was in charge of doing chores.
He handed over some documents with a red face.
“Look at this! This is the budget that Dmitry has given us.”
“… budget?”
Felix still didn’t know what kind of person Roman was. To follow Roman Dmitry and what it meant….
