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For many people, today was no ordinary day. That's because the Empire's legendary mage, Augustus Adams, might finally break into a realm spoken of only in legends—Archmagehood, the domain of magic gods.
Divine might like a prison, divine grace like the sea. A single step made all the difference, like the sky and the mud. And for the Empire, if Augustus truly became a Magic God, the power balance of the entire continent would shift.
So although this was about one man's breakthrough, it had the whole heart of the Empire on edge.
The palace was massive, with walls built from white jade and granite. Outside the walls, crowds had gathered shoulder to shoulder, anxiously waiting.
Most of them were Augustus' students—he was a legendary mage, after all, and while maybe not everyone in the world had studied under him, his followers were still countless.
Many of the Empire's top officials were here too. For them, Augustus' strength was the Empire's strength—and the Empire's strength was their own power and position.
The sky was completely clear today, bright and cloudless. The blazing sunlight poured over the packed crowds and stretched toward the depths of the palace.
In the innermost chamber, a figure sat in the sunlight, half-hidden in the glow. Even just his shadow on the ground seemed to radiate a kind of deep, magical presence.
That figure, of course, was none other than Augustus Adams himself. Right now, he was in a very strange state—like a mix of ice and water.
One foot had already stepped into the realm of gods, but the other was still rooted in the mortal world. He needed one final, elusive trigger—a sign granted by the heavens. And for that, he had to wait, patiently.
Time ticked by.
Unlike the restless crowds outside, Augustus was perfectly calm, leaning back in his chair like he was just passing a quiet afternoon.
Then it began.
Many high-level mages in the crowd—those who had almost reached the legendary realm themselves—suddenly felt something and turned their eyes toward the sky.
At the same time, Augustus' relaxed expression disappeared. He sat up straight, alert.
The sky above the palace darkened without warning. The air felt both frozen and aflame, like even time itself had paused.
Above Augustus, in the sky behind the palace, two beams of light—one red, one white—appeared and began to swirl rapidly around each other.
Everyone knew what that meant: red and white—the symbols of Augustus' mastery over fire and ice, his two legendary domains.
The sky was now half-burning and half-freezing. Augustus' face turned serious. He knew this was it. The real show was about to start.
Just as expected, the two beams spun faster and faster, until they formed a red-and-white ring centered right above Augustus.
The speed was so extreme that the beams looked frozen in motion. Then—bam—a pillar of light shot straight down from the center, slamming into the palace with godlike force.
The roof of Augustus' chamber shattered like paper, and the light engulfed him completely.
Augustus didn't move. He closed his eyes, calmly taking in the overwhelming surge of power and information pouring into him from the light.
Outside, the crowd saw the giant pillar of light and collectively let out a breath of relief. Smiles spread across their faces. It looked like their hopes were finally coming true.
But then, something strange started happening.
No one noticed it at first, but around the red-and-white light, tiny black dots started to appear. They weren't just static—they moved, slithered, danced around the light.
Slowly, more and more of them showed up, growing denser. Some dots merged together into blotches, forming larger and larger dark shapes in the sky.
Only when the bigger patches became obvious did the crowd finally realize something was off. But no one knew what those black things were. All they could do was stare at the sky in confusion.
Augustus had already noticed. He'd sensed the black specks the moment they appeared and opened his eyes to observe them.
But even with all his knowledge and experience, he couldn't figure out what they were. His instincts, however, were clear: they were dangerous.
Sure enough, before Augustus could send his divine sense to investigate, the black specks swarmed around the light column, then began seeping into it—sliding downward.
Even then, Augustus stayed calm. He didn't resist the black energy entering his body through the light. But before he could analyze it, he noticed something strange.
While the energy was flowing down into him, his soul—his consciousness—felt like it was being pulled upward. And the more energy entered, the stronger that pull became.
When Augustus finally realized something was wrong and tried to move, it was already too late. He couldn't control his body at all.
Panic flickered across the face of this legendary mage. He tried several methods to break free, but nothing worked. Eventually, he had no choice but to stop struggling.
Then, the last drop of black energy entered him.
A terrifying force erupted from the sky, and Augustus' soul was ripped from his body, shooting upward. A black, invisible portal opened in midair—and in the blink of an eye, Augustus' soul vanished into it.
The portal closed.
The light above the palace began to fade. The red and white beams slowly dimmed, and the giant column disappeared. Soon, the sky returned to its original peace and quiet, as if nothing had ever happened.
Earth. England. London.
In the sky above a lavish estate on the outskirts of London, a black portal suddenly appeared out of nowhere. It opened—and then shut—within moments, vanishing into the clear blue sky.
Inside the estate, a baby's cry rang out.
In one of the rooms, a group of people stood chatting with a tall, lean man with golden hair, a handsome face, and a gentle smile.
Though he was smiling and talking with everyone, his eyes were locked on a door, clearly nervous.
The second he heard the baby's cry, he rushed into the room.
Inside, a woman was cradling a newborn and smiling at him. The man let out a long breath of relief.
As he came closer, the woman looked up at him. She had long golden hair draped over her shoulders, blue eyes under elegant brows, and fair skin with a delicate nose. She looked radiant.
"Look how beautiful he is," she said cheerfully. "I bet he got the best of both of us."
The man's smile softened even more as he looked at her. Then something seemed to occur to him.
"Let's give him a name."
The woman stared down at the baby. "Let's call him Augustus. Augustus Julius."
In the baby's silver eyes, there was a flicker of something... ancient, mysterious—and deeply out of place.
"....."