Parun Magic Kingdom (2)
The Parun Magic Kingdom was geographically an inhospitable place for humans. To the west lay a vast desert, and to the east stretched an endless ocean. It produced scarcely any resources—not even scraps. Food production was equally dismal. Sure, there was the sea, but the coastline bordering Parun consisted entirely of sheer cliffs, making fishing or habitation impractical.
Despite such harsh conditions, the Parun Kingdom was counted among the three great powers. The reason? It had been built atop a land teeming with flowing mana—a dragon vein. That was how a nation smaller than the Holy Kingdom or the Empire by more than a factor of ten could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with them.
"Nice air."
"Yeah, it is."
As we emerged from the warp gate, a scent tickled our noses. The fresh aroma of mana. The Magic Tower was constructed in the spot most influenced by the dragon vein, after all.
We stepped out of the building, and towering spires came into view. Even in broad daylight, they gleamed brilliantly—one and all, they were the Magic Towers.
About a hundred floors, if memory serves.
In this world, only the Magic Tower built structures so tall. It was the kingdom's pride and joy. Nearby, shops and restaurants lined the streets, and students clad in robes emblazoned with the Magic Tower's emblem bustled about.
The Magic Tower was a research institution dedicated to magical exploration, but it also functioned as an educational academy, much like Tianis Academy.
"Heading straight to the Magic Tower?"
"Yeah. Follow me."
She nodded and strode forward purposefully. Despite her narrow stride, her pace rivaled that of an average knight. That was thanks to the enchantment magic woven into her shoes.
We arrived at the Magic Tower in no time. As we approached the entrance, the firmly shut doors parted automatically.
The interior was opulent. From the floors to the ceiling, every decoration basked in the dragon vein's blessing, with magic infused into the very foundational design. No ordinary academy could hope to replicate such splendor. The daily mana consumption alone would rival hundreds of magic stones.
Tianis was no slouch in that regard, of course.
We wove through crowds of students to the lobby desk. Before the staffer could speak, she cut in.
"Here to buy a magic stone mine permit."
"What's the purpose of use?"
"Making mana essence."
"We have mana essence produced by the Magic Tower. Would that suffice?"
"No."
"Understood."
Mana essence was a stone containing only pure mana, with all impurities from magic stones refined away. As the staffer said, the Tower produced its own, but in terms of quality, hers was far superior.
"Before issuing the mine permit, we'll need to verify your identities. Could you present proof?"
"Here."
She handed over the Lindel family crest. Then she glanced at me.
"You too."
"Ah, right."
I removed my Tianis Academy student ID—also a wristwatch—and handed it over. Like Ruina Lindel's family crest, it bore her house's emblem, but the watch alone sufficed.
The staffer returned the crest and watch.
"Lady Ruina Lindel of the Lindel family. Lord Kyle Arden of Tianis Academy. Right this way."
I couldn't help but chuckle at the staffer's subtle discrimination.
They announced the family name already. No need to emphasize it like that.
I knew why. The Magic Tower poured everything into magic. Their curriculum focused solely on it, with facilities specialized accordingly. They took immense pride in their mages and students.
But of all things...
A student from Tianis Academy—larger by several times, teaching every subject, with facilities rivaling their own—had come visiting. Tensions between the two had been neck-and-neck for the past century. The Tower folks must be hopping mad.
That inferiority complex toward us was well-known. It didn't extend to the Holy Academy's divine power users, though.
Keep it up. I don't care.
The chuckle was more amused than anything. The staffer led us to the elevators. Not like the ones at Orange Forge—these merely mimicked the form with spatial transfer magic etched in.
"Get off at the sixth floor and head to room 34."
"Got it."
The staffer pressed the button and bowed deeply.
A floating sensation like the warp gate hit us, and we arrived at the sixth floor.
"Room 34... here it is."
We skipped past row after row of doors to our destination. I opened the door for her.
A modest ten-pyeong room. At the far end, by the window, a man sat at a desk reviewing documents. His Magic Tower uniform marked him as a student. He didn't even look up until we were fully inside.
Spotting her behind me, he exclaimed,
"Well, if it isn't Ruina Lindel!"
His voice lacked even a shred of courtesy. From his words, they clearly knew each other.
"Senior, you know him?"
"Yeah. Magic Tower classmate."
Makes sense—she was said to have attended in the past, so she'd have peers. The Tower grouped entrants by cohort, splitting them into factions later.
"What brings a fellow classmate here? Come, sit."
He gestured to a chair. It grated, but I sat anyway.
"Man, how many years has it been? Three?"
As he settled into his seat, he continued chattily. But her expression soured behind her usual blank mask.
"Busy. You got the message. Guide us."
"No need for harsh words. Plenty miss you since you fled to Tianis Academy."
"......"
"How's it treating you? Skills improved much?"
Ruina Lindel's already impassive face grew even stonier. Ignoring it, he pressed on.
"You did break past 5 Circle, right? Look at me—I'm already 6 Circle with my own office."
"None of your business."
"Haha, same old personality. Who's this? Attendant? Not a knight trainee, judging by the uniform and sword."
His attention shifted to me. But Ruina Lindel interjected.
"Don't touch my junior. He's not for you."
Her voice rose slightly, laced with anger.
"Just guide us, you idiot Petus."
Bam!
Petus slammed his fist on the desk. His face twisted viciously.
"Don't look down on me, Ruina! I'm not that mage overshadowed by you anymore!"
The enraged mage glared at her with killing intent.
"Guest or not, you're just a mere assistant mage! You can't order me around! I ought to kill you..."
Bam!
Another resounding impact.
"Guh... ugh..."
The 6 Circle mage groaned, face smashed into the desk.
I addressed the writhing fool without rising.
"Magic Tower standards have really tanked. Hey, you think customers dropping coin are a joke? No hospitality, just threats?"
"A puny knight dares insult a Magic Tower mage...!"
Petus unleashed his mana. Impressively voluminous for 6 Circle. But I shattered his focus by pinning his hand with Karsa.
"Gaaah!"
"Now you're really trying to kill us? No wonder Tianis laps you. And crying over a pierced hand?"
That hurts like hell. Amputate it, and he'd pass out.
"Assaulting a mage in the Magic Tower is a grave crime! Unless you want prison...!"
"Only for nobodies."
The Arden family was a VIP client. We dropped millions—sometimes tens of millions—of gold monthly. This guy? A mere 6 Circle mage. The Tower knew who to side with. Especially with the Lindel family—famed for magic tools—in the mix.
"Th-that..."
His fury evaporated; his face paled.
"Got it? Then guide us. Don't waste our time."
"Y-yeah..."
His fighting spirit shattered. I yanked Karsa out as painfully as possible and released him.
"Grrgh...!"
Pain wasn't my problem.
He left briefly to heal. "Such a hassle. I'm swamped as it is."
I turned to the gaze boring into me. Ruina Lindel stared blankly, then stood and tiptoed, reaching out.
"Good job. Good boy."
She patted my head in praise. Being short, even on tiptoes, her fingertips barely reached.
"You'd have handled it if I hadn't."
"Yeah. Petus is dumb. Thinks circles decide everything."
Someone who'd invented her own alchemy wouldn't lose to a 6 Circler. He'd have gotten wrecked.
Dumb as a rock, like she said.
I sat, waiting. His office perks included a tea set, so I brewed some. High-end stuff—decent.
Ruina Lindel skipped it. She hated bitter things most.
Petus returned soon after, and we headed to the magic stone mine.
The magic stone mine owed its existence to the dragon vein's abundant mana. As such, its stones boasted high purity—seventy percent of the continent's output came from here, far outpacing other regions.
But the sheer volume invited trouble: foreign agents sneaking in to pilfer stones. Parun's solution? Mine permits. Pay up, and dig away. Master-rank and above excluded, of course—the losses would be catastrophic.
Clang! Clang!
Thus, I was mining magic stones. No great ordeal—wrap mana around my body, swing the pickaxe lightly, and out popped stones.
I handed each to Ruina Lindel, who was crafting mana essence. They turned into essence instantly, so she just watched me work.
"Senior."
"Yeah."
"If it's this easy, couldn't we have brought Rana and Elraim?"
The environment posed no issues. Or we could've let them sightsee the kingdom or Tower.
"......"
Silence.
"Senior?"
I prodded, and she finally replied.
"She's nice. But rude. Talks too much. Annoys me constantly."
Fair enough. Their first meeting was disastrous, though it smoothed over later. Issues lingered, though. Rana clung too much—hugging on sight, chattering nonstop. Ruina Lindel hated it.
She'd warned her repeatedly, to little avail. Old habits die hard after a day or two.
It made sense: Rana adored animals, and Ruina Lindel had strong animal-like traits. Proximity brought out Rana's instincts. A long-ingrained reflex, hard to suppress consciously.
I got Rana's side.
"What about Elraim?"
"...No."
I blinked. "No?"
"Yeah. No."
"Why?"
"...Just."
"Huh?"
"...Mine stones."
She turned away, focusing on essence. No more talk.
Reading her is tricky.
Her moods swung wildly, and short sentences hid emotions well. All I gleaned was dissatisfaction.
An hour later, the essence was nearly done. Head-sized, as planned—finishing soon.
"Senior, what's the prize that needs something this huge?"
Even basic spells through it would rival 8 Circle power. She was gunning for first with overkill.
"...Mythical-era artifact."
"Mythical era? As a prize?"
"Yeah. But no imbued power. Just the shell."
"Still top-tier material, right?"
"Exactly. That's why."
The Mythical era was ten thousand years ago. Gods roamed freely, humans scarce. Minor lore in Akacheonma.
Mythical items were special, though—divine essences possible. Even shells outclassed modern stuff.
"Senior, are you...?"
"Interested?"
"Yes."
"No. I need it. But... help as assistant, and I'll share a bit."
"Nngh..."
Tempting. No other shot at Mythical gear post-this—academy vaults had some, but unobtainable. No episodes offered them, shells or not.
"I'll assist diligently."
"Good."
Her voice lilted faintly.
"Contest's Wednesday."
But then—
Kaboom!!
The mine shook.
"Looks like..."
Trouble.