Chapter 101: 18th Floor. Magic World (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 101: 18th Floor. Magic World (2)
[Title: Has anyone actually managed to learn magic on the 18th Floor?]
[I was told I had zero talent and ended up doing nothing but chores until the timer ran out. Is it always like this?]
[Maruima Atsuya (19th Floor): That’s standard. From what I know, there are barely ten people in the entire world who meet the qualifications. Olivia is one of them.]
[Gasan Uan (18th Floor): Ah… I see. Since it’s a progression quest, it’s not like it just ends here, either. How hollow.]
* * *
At the very front of the crowd, a transparent orb sat atop a pedestal at the entrance of the Magic Tower.
It was a Talent Assessment Orb. When someone with an affinity for magic placed their hand on it, a blue spark would flicker within. The greater the talent, the more intense the spark.
“I’m first!”
The man at the front of the line stepped up, his expression brimming with confidence. He clearly didn't doubt his own magical potential for a second.
However, the orb remained dead silent. Not a single flicker appeared.
The mage sitting beside the orb spoke with total indifference.
“Fail. Move along.”
“Wh-what? That’s impossible! Something must be wrong with the device…”
“Sigh.”
The mage snapped his fingers. With a dull hum, the man’s body vanished as if he had been erased. He had been forcibly ejected from the grounds.
“Next.”
The mage's voice rang out, laced with profound boredom.
The heated excitement of the crowd cooled instantly. The woman next in line placed her hand on the orb with trembling fingers. Once again, no light appeared.
“Fail. Next.”
“…”
The cycle repeated. One by one, people touched the orb, and one by one, nothing happened. A heavy, cold silence settled over the plaza.
Kang Jun-hyeok watched the scene, having expected as much.
Talent for magic wasn't a gift granted to just anyone. Even in this magic-friendly world, it was rare to find one person in ten thousand with the gift. For a human from Earth, those odds plummeted to one in ten million.
Since this floor required such innate talent, most Players failed to learn even a single spell. The standard outcome was to spend their entire stay performing menial chores for the Magic Tower, picking up only the most basic scraps of theory.
Unfortunately, Kang Jun-hyeok didn't have any natural talent for magic either. In his past life, he had gained nothing from the 18th Floor; it wasn't until much later in his journey that he finally managed to learn magic through other means.
But this time was different.
The line slowly dwindled. Occasionally, someone would produce a spark, but they were barely the size of a candle flame. Even so, those few were overjoyed, weeping as they were led inside.
Finally, it was Kang Jun-hyeok’s turn. He stepped up to the orb.
The mage looked up, his eyes glazed over, clearly expecting another failure.
“Place your hand on it.”
Jun-hyeok lightly rested his palm on the cold surface of the orb.
In that instant, the mage’s expression shifted.
A spark flickered within the glass. But something was wrong.
“…Gray?”
It was an ash-gray spark.
This was impossible. This was a Talent Assessment Orb—magical talent always manifested as a blue light. He had never heard of a gray spark in all his years of testing.
It’s my Internal Energy, Jun-hyeok thought. That gray light was likely a manifestation of the martial power he possessed.
But it didn't stop there.
“…!”
The mage suddenly bolted upright, his chair screeching against the stone floor. His eyes were wide with shock.
A deep, vivid crimson began to swallow the gray spark. It was a dark, predatory red, like fresh blood.
It devoured the gray, then consumed the entire orb. The glass began to vibrate violently, humming with a frequency that set teeth on edge, unable to withstand the sheer pressure of the power flowing into it.
And finally—
CRACK!
The orb shattered into a cloud of crystalline shards. Jun-hyeok watched the fragments fall with mild interest.
“So, this is how it feels.”
“Y-you…?”
The mage stared at Jun-hyeok, his face a mask of pure incomprehension. The people behind them began to murmur in confusion and fear. The mage, who had been staring blankly, suddenly snapped into action.
“P-please wait right here! Do not move!”
The mage rushed inside the tower. Shocked gazes fixed on Jun-hyeok, pinning him to the spot. A few minutes later, the Magic Tower Master, Wihanian, appeared at the gates.
“So, you’re saying the orb shattered?”
“Y-yes! I couldn't make sense of it, so I had no choice but to call for you, Tower Master.”
“Hmm.”
Wihanian looked at Jun-hyeok and held out his hand.
“What is your name?”
“Kang Jun-hyeok.”
“Kang Jun-hyeok. Would you care to shake hands?”
“By all means.”
Jun-hyeok took the offered hand. A ripple of mana surged through his body at high speed, scanning his veins, his heart, and his very soul.
“…!”
In that moment, the Tower Master’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. He reflexively yanked his hand back and retreated three steps.
“T-Tower Master?”
The subordinate mage was bewildered. It looked as though Wihanian—one of the most powerful men on the floor—had recoiled in genuine fear from the man before him.
After staring at Jun-hyeok in a daze for a long moment, Wihanian finally found his voice.
“…I will attend to him personally. You, bring a new orb and continue the testing for the others.”
“Ah, yes, sir!”
“Follow me.”
Wihanian turned and hurried inside. Amidst gazes filled with shock and burning curiosity, Jun-hyeok calmly stepped into the Magic Tower.
* * *
He was led to a private reception room.
Jun-hyeok sat on a plush, gold-trimmed sofa and picked up an elegant teacup. As he waited, sipping the high-quality tea, Wihanian soon entered, looking much more composed.
“Forgive me for keeping you waiting. I had a few urgent matters to settle.”
“It’s fine.”
“Then, let us get straight to the point.”
Wihanian sat across from him and bowed his head politely—a gesture far too humble for a man of his station.
“What business does a Great True Ancestor have in a place like this?”
His voice was low, barely a whisper. His sunken eyes were fixed intently on Jun-hyeok.
Jun-hyeok leaned back against the sofa without answering immediately. Perhaps taking this silence as a test, Wihanian continued.
“The orb used for the test determines both power and talent. It assesses not just magical aptitude, but an individual’s total strength and status. It is a masterpiece crafted by our Magic Tower.”
As such, it boasted incredible durability. An ordinary person couldn't even produce a spark, and even those born with genius-level talent could only manage a bright flame.
But Jun-hyeok had shattered the orb itself.
There were only a few possibilities for such a phenomenon.
One: he possessed a magical talent that appeared only once every thousand years.
Two: he possessed power capable of shaking heaven and earth.
Or three: he was a being of a magnificent, perfected status.
“A blood-red crimson shattered the orb. You are a True Ancestor, are you not?”
“Even if I were a True Ancestor,” Jun-hyeok said slowly, “you are a Magic Tower Master. Surely you aren't in a position to feel inferior to one.”
Even if a True Ancestor was powerful, Wihanian was a master of the arcane. There was no reason for him to be this subservient.
Wihanian let out a hollow, self-deprecating laugh.
“That would be true if you were a typical True Ancestor. But what I felt from you… it was something far beyond that concept.”
Something higher.
Literally, a being qualified to rule over the entire race. A status that Wihanian himself couldn't even begin to compare to.
Wihanian had recognized the status of the True Blood that Eldiria had bestowed upon Jun-hyeok. Eldiria muttered in his mind.
[I don't recall seeing him during the Great War, but he’s quite perceptive for a mortal.]
“Who are you? Why have you come here?” Wihanian swallowed hard. His body was tense, his mana coiled and ready to react at any moment.
Jun-hyeok spoke calmly.
“First of all, I am not a True Ancestor.”
“What? What do you mean…?”
“Think of me as a human who has the potential to become a True Ancestor. Do you feel that I currently possess that level of power?”
“Well… no, I don't.”
The raw power currently felt from Jun-hyeok was meager compared to his overwhelming status. That was the primary source of Wihanian's confusion.
“I have only received the qualification. I haven't proven it yet. You don't need to be so on guard.”
“Hahaha.”
Wihanian let out a dry, nervous laugh.
He tells me not to worry because he’s only received the qualification? That means there is a being powerful enough to bestow such a thing upon him.
The thought wasn't comforting at all.
“I would appreciate it if you treated me as an ordinary guest.”
“If that is what you wish… then welcome.”
Jun-hyeok smiled inwardly at the extreme hospitality.
Wihanian asked cautiously, “Then, may I ask what brings you here?”
“You can speak more comfortably. I’m just a guest.”
Wihanian forced the words out, trying to drop the formal honorifics.
“…Why did you come here?”
“I came to learn magic.”
“Hmm?”
Wihanian’s eyes widened.
“Magic? You?”
Wihanian’s confusion was natural.
“Are you not a swordsman?”
What he felt from Jun-hyeok was the status of a True Ancestor—and the distinct hum of Internal Energy. Jun-hyeok’s eyes glinted.
“You recognize it? I didn't think Internal Energy was a known concept in this world.”
“I’ve done my research on the various dimensions. But… it should be impossible for you to learn magic.”
Setting aside the True Ancestor status, the Internal Energy was the problem. In this world's logic, one could not wield magic and Internal Energy simultaneously. The two energies would clash and destroy the user's vessels.
However, Jun-hyeok was a Player. For him, such restrictions didn't exist.
“It won't be a problem.”
“…If you say so. But even so, I don't sense any innate magical talent in you.”
“That won't be a problem either. I have something in mind.”
“…A strange guest has arrived indeed.”
Wihanian shook his head, giving up on logic.
“If that is your will, so be it. I welcome you as an honored guest of the Magic Tower.”
Wihanian pulled a Blue Badge from his robe and handed it over. Jun-hyeok let out a small exclamation of admiration.
“A Blue Badge?”
It was an identification pass given to visitors. Among them, the Blue Badge was the highest tier, granting the holder free access to all schools of magic within the tower. Having this would make his objectives much easier to achieve.
This is convenient.
He had no talent for magic. Normally, even entering the Magic Tower would have been an ordeal involving bribes or complex quests.
But thanks to Eldiria’s True Blood, the problem was solved without a hitch. Eldiria spoke softly in his mind.
[I am far more valuable than that useless trinket in your hand. Don't you agree?]
[Just watch quietly, will you?]
The Master of All Weapons grumbled in the background. Jun-hyeok smiled and stood up.
“Then, I’ll be in your care for a while.”
“…Right,” Wihanian nodded, though a look of lingering unease remained in his eyes.