Make Dark Fantasy Great Again

Chapter 114 The former Tower Master of the Blue Magic Tower. Frozen Breath Palag. An Archmage who had reached the 8th Rank, he held tremendous interest in the talent of a young mage named Moria. It was the kind of interest an elder held for a bold youth, the kind of interest a teacher held for a promising disciple. And it was also the kind of interest a scholar held for a fascinating subject of observation. In truth, among all the emotions Palag held toward Moria, the scholar's curiosity occupied the largest portion. That voracious curiosity, manifesting sometimes as meticulousness and sometimes as suspicion, was the driving force that had brought Palag to his current position. That curiosity was now directed toward Moria. A type of talent he had never encountered before. What was its source? And where would it end? That curiosity had remained in Palag's mind ever since he first encountered Moria, continuously stimulating him. And then. When Moria skillfully displayed Multiple Elements in her duel against the 6th Rank mage. The stimulation generated by that curiosity became too strong to ignore. He hadn't expected it to be this intense. The existence called Moria grew even larger within Palag. The curiosity arising from her also grew larger, and the euphoria he expected would follow upon satisfying that curiosity grew larger as well. Moria didn't stop there. The suddenly surging Magical Power. The fragments of Idealization she wielded through it. Palag's interest and curiosity reached the realm of madness. In that moment, the former Tower Master who had stepped down from the front lines hardened his resolve. He would return. He would take that mysterious existence as his disciple. And thus he would completely understand that existence. It was a fanatical desire and passion. The old, withered mage's heart began to beat violently once again. If it were up to his heart alone, he would have stopped the duel and everything else immediately. Everything other than understanding Moria's existence felt meaningless. It was then, as Palag endured with superhuman patience, refraining from stopping the duel. "Oh my." There was a figure who captured the attention of Palag, whose mind was filled with Moria. Risir. He had displayed fragments of Idealization following Moria's example. Originally, this would have been enough to stimulate Palag's curiosity. Handling fragments of Idealization at the 6th Rank was absolutely not a common occurrence. However, the situation was not favorable. Just before this, Moria, who was at the 5th Rank, had displayed those very fragments of Idealization. Talent was a relative concept. Compared to Moria, Risir's talent was at an ordinary level. Palag could easily fathom its source, its end, and its essence. He had seen enough mediocre geniuses to be sick of them by now. As such, the existence called Risir was far too weak to stimulate the former Tower Master's curiosity. ...That was certainly the case until he suddenly began imitating a swordsman out of nowhere. It was different from Moria's swordsman imitation. No, it wasn't an imitation to begin with. 'His constitution changed...?' The Blue Breath that flowed naturally revealed another aspect beyond placing burden on the body. The strike unleashed through it approached even Palag, who had witnessed the swords of countless masters, at a terrifying level. Talent was a relative concept. Before he knew it, Moria had vanished without a trace from Palag's mind. Risir. His existence newly stimulated Palag's curiosity. "What is that..." Palag didn't dare even glance at that curiosity. How was he supposed to understand something like that? The voracious curiosity of the Archmage, who had never once shown restraint, bowed its head. *** ▷Fate 89: Infatuation - has been deactivated. Corresponding perks will be granted. *** The banquet hall heated up with the fervor of the duel. The attendees who watched the duel between Moria and Risir couldn't hide their excitement. Most of them lacked sufficient knowledge to fully understand the content of the duel, but that wasn't much of a problem. "He won... against a mage who received the favor of Mastien and Frozen Breath...!" They didn't know how outstanding a mage Moria was, but they certainly knew the fact that she received the favor of a Great Noble and an Archmage. That was enough. For them, the upper class of the city, if there was something more important than actual ability, it was titles and positions. Now, in their minds, Risir had become 'a genius superior to the talent recognized by a Great Noble and an Archmage.' Though the process was strange, they had somehow reached a proper conclusion, and their attention was fixed on Risir. The fence of crowds that had surrounded the entire duel space began to gradually narrow toward Risir. The protagonist of the splendid banquet had been decided. Most of the attendees' eyes gleamed with the desire to exchange even a word with that protagonist. "Lord Risir! Congratulations on your victory!" A woman who was close to Risir spoke to him. She was the Young Lady from an old family in Bondaless who had previously tried to approach Risir behind the mansion but was stopped by Rona. When she stepped forward, those of lower rank than her in Bondaless noble circles began to cautiously step back one by one. Conversely, those of equal or higher rank than her began to genuinely show interest in Risir. It was the moment when a proper crowd was about to form around Risir. "Wait!" Risir cried out urgently. As he wished, the sounds and movements that had filled the spacious banquet hall stopped all at once. A sudden silence fell over the banquet hall. "What's this, all of a sudden? Is he trying to feel omnipotent or something?" Rona, who could be said to have the highest understanding of Risir in this place, said with a serious face. Heinya and the three big shots next to her looked at Rona wondering what she meant, but immediately nodded saying 'Ah, if it's Risir, that could be possible.' However, contrary to their expectations(?), Risir's sudden action stemmed from a surprisingly serious reason. "..." Right now, Risir's mind was more chaotic than the banquet hall filled with people. The insights he had gained from the duel were swirling like a whirlwind. Risir wanted to focus on those insights. Then an amazing phenomenon occurred. "Uh oh-" "L-Lord Risir!?" Risir left the banquet hall while muttering to himself. The protagonist of the banquet had abandoned the banquet. "This is driving me crazy..." Rona burst into a bitter laugh. The position of banquet protagonist was something countless people desperately desired but couldn't even dare to attempt. 'Now he just needs to shake hands once with each of the people flocking to him, and he'd immediately be reborn as a celebrity in high society. And he's giving that up and leaving like that?' Rona looked around with a frustrated heart. "Huh?" An unexpected situation greeted Rona. They were people Rona knew. Those middle-aged merchants who were acquainted with Gus, the head of Golden Barley trading company, were people who moved enormous capital and were extremely picky about making acquaintances. They were thorough enough to put up walls against even Rona, a popular figure in high society, for the reason that her origins and purpose weren't clear. "He's leaving like this now?" "...That saying suddenly comes to mind. A true swordsman doesn't place meaning on worldly values, and looks only toward the sword and honor-" "A true swordsman? But isn't that person a mage?" "?" "?" "What does it matter if he's a swordsman or a mage? What's certain is that his skill is amazing enough to surprise Frozen Breath and Mastien. Look, can you see those two people's expressions?" "Amazing. If those two are surprised to that extent-" "I hear he's also acquainted with Young Lady Heinya?" "If Young Lady Heinya acknowledges him, we can consider his identity reliable." "I'd like to get acquainted for the future- what a pity." "Couldn't we arrange a separate meeting with him?" "Seeing that he attended this banquet, isn't he an acquaintance of Gus? Let's ask him separately." "What was that man's name again?" Such picky merchants were showing complete interest in a figure whose name they barely knew. And the fierce Young Ladies of high society. "Ahh... that figure from behind... how gallant..." "That elegant appearance, he must surely be a noble?" "How can he be so different from other nobles?" "Exactly! After seeing only men who are all flowery words and desperate to boast about themselves, seeing someone like that-" "Ah… this is bad… I’ve already given my heart to Leon…" Rona recalled memories of breaking out in cold sweat trying to clean up the gossip that had spread after getting on their bad side in the past. Normally, they would never have tolerated behavior that ignored a banquet, yet they were having animated conversations about Risir. As such, Risir's exit was not a problem at all. The banquet resumed as if nothing had happened. Those who had been captivated by Risir came to their senses and returned to their respective places, beginning to enjoy the banquet. "Just now, Lord Risir-" "Oh my, is that so? He belonged to the Gray Magic Tower? Then there might be a chance to see him again in Bondaless-" "Ah! Come to think of it, the name of the person who solved the problem for the merchants whose goods were tied up in the north-" That was how they were now enjoying the banquet. The extraordinary action following extraordinary performance had completely captured the hearts of the picky upper class. Risir. It was the moment when his name, which had only been floating around in some parts of Bondaless, surfaced above water. *** Returning straight to my room, I recalled the duel from just before. I spoke to my companions who had seen the same things and felt similar things in that duel. "Clana. Are you there?" -Yeah. "Dangaleon, are you there?" -Speak, Master! "Verdande...s! Are you there?" -Snore snore... "Ah, right. Sleep. Sleep endlessly. You're at that age." Excluding Verdandes who was busy, Dangaleon and Clana manifested as spirits and revealed themselves before me. "Did you just watch me duel?" "Of course! I, Dangaleon of the blinding radiance! I am engraving Master's every move into my soul!" "There aren't many spectacles as entertaining as watching other guys get shocked by your crazy antics." "Then you must have seen the change that happened to Moria at the end of the duel." Clana nodded her head. "What did you see?" "I'm not sure exactly, but... it seemed like she gained power at the cost of life force." Snap! I flicked my fingers and looked at Dangaleon. The grayish-white fireball writhed and spat out words. "I too saw that worm abandon its own life force to gain power!" As the two said. I too felt that Moria had sought to increase power by abandoning her own life force. The phenomenon of sudden aging of the body and rising Magical Power could not be interpreted any other way. "Dangaleon. Just to be sure, was that Black Magic?" "I didn't feel the power of Black Magic from that one!" Right. If it were a phenomenon arising from Black Magic, it would have been blocked by my power and normalized long ago. Therefore, it was reasonable to view that power of gaining strength at the cost of life force as Moria's unique ability. The reason I couldn't calm down while thinking about that ability was none other. "Clana. Dangaleon. Would it be possible to imitate that ability with the power of magic or the sword?" A new sensation that had bloomed within the duel. That sensation was telling me. 'If I do it well-' "Making the body run wild to draw up power... I have heard stories of some guys handling such abilities." "Enhancement magic that affects the essence of living beings!!! Extremely rare, but it's definitely a power that exists!" Perhaps having glimpsed my thoughts and emotions directly in the Inner World, the tone of the two speaking was elevated like mine. "You don't tell me-" Clana in spirit state, the young killer, looked at me and said. "You're thinking of stealing that too?" "..." That's right. The new sensation that bloomed within the duel. That sensation was telling me. If I did it well, I might be able to imitate Moria's ability. That power called rampage, or Enhancement. 'That guy's condition at that time... it wasn't ordinary. If I had left it alone, how far would that power have grown?' My heart began to race at the thought that I might be able to make that mysterious and powerful force my own. "Master!!! I, Dangaleon, will mobilize everything I have to assist Master!!!" "...This should be interesting." The two also seemed to feel similar impressions as mages and swordsmen like me. "..." "..." "..." We looked at each other like that for a moment. Soon we put our heads together and began sharing our strength and opinions. Moria. To recreate that power she had shown. ...How much time had passed like that? -Knock knock "...!" "...!" "...!" Our three bodies trembled in unison at the sound of knocking. Looking out the window, the sun was already rising. Sunlight flowing through the window illuminated the three of us. We basked in that sunlight and looked at each other. Smiles rising in unison. We had succeeded. We had succeeded in grasping the clue to Moria's ability, 'Enhancement.' Now all that remained was to complete the form based on that clue. My body itched with the desire to put it into practice immediately. However, we had poured too much concentration and strength throughout the night. Not only me, but Dangaleon and Clana as well. We promised to continue later and concluded our exchange session for now. Clana and Dangaleon returned to the Inner World, and I headed to the door to greet the visitor. A rigid posture. A stiff atmosphere as if she would slice through paper if it were held up to her. A woman wearing glasses stood there. "This is a message from Lord Dray." Befitting her businesslike impression, she immediately got to the point. "After yesterday's duel with Lord Risir, suspicious points were discovered in Moria and an investigation was immediately launched." "Ah, that Enhancement ma-" "As a result, it was revealed that Moria is a High Priest of a cult who had hidden her identity." "?" According to her story that followed- Moria. The phenomenon that happened to her at the end of the duel was not 'Enhancement.' It was merely the power that the High Priest had hidden returning to her. "Huh?" -Hmm? -Eh. The three of us fell into confusion. Then what was that Enhancement we had recreated?