The next day.
Marlin of the Leviath family was silently swinging her sword.
She wasn't usually this earnest about morning training, but strangely enough, she wanted to be like that while at the Mage Tower.
"…"
To be honest, she couldn't say she didn't have a bit of an ulterior motive.
In any case, Marlin Leviath kept swinging her sword while pretending to be unaware of anything.
"You're working hard from the morning."
But the voice that greeted her was not the one she had been waiting to hear since morning.
"…Brother."
A faint hint of disappointment in her voice.
Most people wouldn't have noticed it, but Reian Leviath picked up on it quite precisely.
"Were you expecting Baron Logan?"
Reian smirked.
Marlin's eyes twitched for a moment as she tried to come up with an excuse.
But she knew all too well that, though he didn't always show it, her brother understood her better than most.
"…Yes."
Worried someone might overhear, Marlin replied in a low and cautious voice.
Reian found her reaction quite interesting—it was the first time he had seen his younger sister like this—and he continued speaking.
"So you're starting to see Baron Logan as a man?"
"I don't know. But my eyes keep following him."
"Huh. You must've noticed he's surrounded by quite a few impressive women?"
To Reian's question, asking if she was okay with that, Marlin tightly shut her lips.
The silence stretched on longer than expected, but Reian waited patiently.
He thought it was necessary.
After a long while, Marlin finally responded.
"Right now… I don't have the space to worry about anyone else."
"…That's a rather underwhelming answer for someone who's waiting."
Reian clicked his tongue in mild disappointment.
He had hoped to hear something bolder from his sister, like 'I'll crush all the other women and make him mine.'
"But I'm aware of it too."
Marlin was like a lake.
Still waters that neither ripple nor stir—just quietly existing in place.
"I know I can't enter that person's heart."
"…"
"There's already someone there. Maybe one, maybe two. I'm not sure. But I do know… there's no place for me."
"…And what are you trying to achieve by saying that out loud?"
Reian clicked his tongue again.
He, too, already knew.
That Marlin's first love was destined to fail.
But he didn't want to let her give up here.
Sometimes, even knowing you'll fail, you still need to challenge yourself.
Especially someone like his sister—who was never honest with her emotions and always wore a blank expression.
"Trying is important. Look at your brother—I always challenge the impossible."
"…That's just a nuisance."
"Ahem!"
Reian instantly collapsed at the blunt jab from his usually reserved sister.
'Lately she's been saying what's on her mind more often.'
Reian didn't know, but it was because of Isaac's advice.
When Marlin had dueled Isaac several times in the North to show him the Leviath family's swordsmanship—
Isaac had seen Liana in her and told Marlin: 'If you don't express yourself honestly, no one will ever understand.'
Since then, Marlin had slowly begun to learn how to be more honest with her emotions.
"…"
Even now.
Her gaze unconsciously shifted toward the dormitory.
'Is he not coming out today?'
He never skipped morning training.
Feeling disappointed, Marlin kept staring while Reian walked over with a sigh.
"It seems the time has come for your brother to help you out. I'll create some alone time for you and Baron Logan."
"…."
"Isn't it a funny coincidence that we both ended up with broken halves of a pair? Ha! The timing's perfect, huh? Maybe it's because we're siblings!"
As Reian laughed heartily, Marlin looked at him and let out a deep sigh.
Just as Reian knew her well, Marlin also understood her brother in her own way.
"You've already given up on Lady Liana, haven't you, Brother?"
At her piercing words, Reian stiffened for a moment. Wearing an awkward smile, he asked what she meant. Marlin answered without hesitation.
"In the North—when Sir Isaac and Lady Liana left together for the Abyss Realm—I saw your expression."
"…."
"You thought you could never win, didn't you? So you gave up cleanly."
Indeed, ever since that day, Reian's interest in Helmut had completely disappeared.
"And yet… yesterday, the reason you flirted with Lady Liana was…"
Just one.
"It was because of me, wasn't it? Because I like Baron Logan."
"Jeez, you never say much, but you really do know everything."
Reian scratched his cheek.
He felt sheepish, but he didn't deny it.
Because she wasn't wrong.
"In any case, I'll help you. So give it a real try with Baron Log—"
"No need."
Marlin cut him off sharply.
"I'll just bury it."
She spoke flatly and resumed swinging her sword once more.
Still holding onto a faint hope that maybe, just maybe, he had overslept and would come rushing out to join the morning training.
***
In the guest dormitories, breakfast had been prepared.
There was a dining hall on the first floor—not because the guests were being treated with special care, but rather because they disliked going outside. That's how the structure had been designed.
While everyone else was eating, Isaac entered at a slow pace.
The Grandmaster had just been asking where Isaac was, so the moment she saw him, she greeted him quickly.
"Did you oversleep?"
"Yawn… I stayed up all night."
"Oh?"
The Grandmaster looked intrigued, ears perking up, and Mu-myeong sitting nearby asked,
"Did you tire yourself out spending the night with some woman? Was it Helmut? Was your 'night work' with Helmut too?"
From across the table, Sharen smiled and chimed in,
"Of course! His night work must've been with Helmut too!"
Instantly, everyone froze and stared at her. The air turned still.
Receiving their collective gaze, Sharen asked innocently,
"But what does 'night work' mean? Isaac worked at night?"
"Yes, he worked."
"Can you all please watch your mouths around a kid, you idiots."
"…Sorry."
Even Mu-myeong nodded in agreement for the first time at the Grandmaster's scolding.
Next to Sharen, Liana frowned and opened her mouth, likely intending to scold Mu-myeong too.
But due to the Silence spell, her words couldn't be heard.
Isaac took a seat and naturally redirected the flow of conversation.
"I was working on the Royal Guard Swordsmanship. This is perfect timing. Would you spar with me, Grandmaster? I want to get a feel for it."
"That's no problem at all."
"But I'll need a bit of preparation. This sword style is designed to be used while wearing armor, so I asked the Tower to prepare a suit for—"
As they chatted about the Royal Guard Swordsmanship—
"Yawn…"
Regant walked in.
With greasy hair and fatigue-ridden eyes, he looked oddly different compared to Isaac.
Both were clearly tired, yet somehow one looked far grubbier.
It wasn't just a difference in appearance—but also a matter of personal conduct.
Even after staying up all night, Isaac at least maintained basic hygiene.
The Master of the Magic Tower, curious about the commotion in the guest dorm, entered with a confident smile and said to Isaac and the others,
"Everyone, come today. There's something very important happening."
Sharen stared at him and responded plainly,
"You smell."
***
There were many locations within the Magic Tower.
Most were related to magic, and this abandoned mine in the mountains was no exception.
It was said to have once been an iron mine, but it was abandoned when the iron ran out.
And today, at this very place, Regant was preparing a magic circle with several mages.
A fusion of sorcery and magic.
The first experiment of that fusion was about to take place today.
Thanks to that, not only Isaac and his group but even the Leviath siblings were present.
'…Hm?'
Isaac occasionally felt like Marlin's gaze was falling on him.
He tilted his head curiously, but her expression remained as blank as ever.
'She reminds me of how Liana used to be.'
Seeing her like this sometimes brought back memories of the old Liana.
She was very different now, of course.
"…."
With that thought, Isaac glanced sideways at Liana. She seemed to sense his gaze and turned to look at him.
Her mouth moved silently.
Due to the Silence spell, there was no sound, but her lip movements were clear enough.
— Isaac is the coolest of them all.
"…Thanks."
He could finally accept such compliments as simple praise now.
At that moment, Regant raised his staff, guiding mana into it.
'He said he's partially reinterpreting the sorcery cast on Mu-myeong's body.'
Mu-myeong carried a lower-tier version of "Subjugation," a kind of sorcery.
After the Grandmaster—known as Number 10—fled, the Mu-myeong became unable to wield her sword against certain individuals.
'It's still too early to open a dimension or cross into the Abyss Realm, or to undo the subjugation entirely.'
Especially crossing into the Abyss Realm was a critical point.
Humans, who had always been on the receiving end of invasions, would finally be able to cross over themselves.
At that moment—
The price Regant would pay for the sorcery was none other than—
Mana surged around Regant's staff.
Since he was dealing with a simple spell, he assumed there would be no major issues.
Zzzzzzzzzt!
"…Huh?"
Sparks crackled like a scream, and Regant let out a brief sigh.
He had only intended to use a simple spell, but the mana soaked into it and began morphing into something grotesque.
Moments later—
Rrrrummmmbbbbble!
The space in front of Regant began to twist.
It was a scene everyone in the North had seen and experienced before.
Could it be that they had already succeeded in opening a portal to the Abyss Realm?
"Why… why is this happening?"
Even Regant, the caster himself, looked panicked.
But beyond the torn space was clearly the Abyss Realm.
The place where Transcendent Beings lived.
Whatever the case, it seemed like a success.
Or so it seemed.
Whoosh!
A giant head emerged through the portal.
Towering in size, the giant looked down at the group and roared.
"Even after the betrayal of the Silver Clock, you humans still crave sorcery?! Sorcery belongs to us—!!"
It wasn't a successful casting of sorcery.
Regant hadn't twisted space intentionally.
What he had done was more like a summons—a call that brought 'that thing'.
Boom!
The giant began stepping out, resembling a divine guardian.
A guardian sent to seek out humans who reached for the forbidden knowledge of sorcery—and to punish them accordingly.
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[TL Note]
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