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“Hey, look here. Are you a being that can live without eating?”

The man continued to ignore the girl, who was Illyna de Pallan.

It was but a coincidence when Illyna had found the fatally wounded man inside the dense and thick forest. She had been very surprised to see another being inside this forest toward the end of her closed-door training. After all, this forest was only open to the members of the Imperial Family.

For someone like her, who had not met anyone in a long time and had only been wielding her sword all alone, she found the man to be a slightly welcome guest.

Closed-door training was usually done in caves, and Illyna did begin her own training in that way. However, after undergoing a series of several processes, she began to use the entire forest as her training grounds. That was how she had found the man who had been on the verge of dying.

After that, she had taken the man to the small hut that she was living in, treated his injuries, and had even provided him with food.

The man hadn’t been able to properly get up at first, but after a few days he had recovered to the point of being able to open his eyes and speak.

“I can’t believe that you’re skipping your meals when you were just in a very dangerous situation and needed urgent treatment. Are you trying to die again? After I’ve saved you and everything?” Illyna said, approaching the man slowly with a frown on her face.

She was annoyed by the man’s silent treatment.

Shiiiiing!!!

The moment Illyna came closer, the man raised some kind of black energy and aimed it at her neck. He was warning her to stay away from him.

“…”

“You’re not surprised?” The man asked calmly, “I thought you would have become wary of me the moment you saw me using dark mana.”

“I know a guy who uses dark mana very casually. Besides, I don’t have any reason to be hostile to you just because you have dark mana, right? Can you clean up a bit for me? No matter what I think, this attitude is a bit too much for your benefactor.”

Not doing anything, the man simply asked, “Why did you save me?”

“Why did I save you? That’s not a funny question. Isn’t it natural to save a dying person? Well, as long as you’re not a vampire.”

“You know about vampires?”

“Much more than you think.”

Illyna had a very strong resentment against vampires. However, that was not the case for any other species and races.

“So, you’re just a very unusual human being.”

“I didn’t save you so I can hear that. Listen… Ah, what should I call you?”

“…”

“Ah! You’re really frustrating!” Illyna shouted angrily, reaching out to snatch the man’s black energy that was pointing at her neck.

Shocked by her sudden actions, the man quickly wiped out the sharp black energy in his hands. Just one wrong move and the situation could have become dangerous. She could have been seriously injured.

“See. You don’t even want to hurt me,” Illyna said calmly.

Sitting on the bed that the man was lying on, she held out a spoon to him from the soup bowl that she had prepared. She said, “You know, I don’t know what’s going on with you, but your death will only make me very restless. I think I might even dream about it for the rest of my life. Listen, I helped you out of my own selfish reasons. Don’t be mistaken.”

“…”

“What are you going to do? Are you not going to eat and live? Are you just going to die stupidly like that without even struggling?”

“…You should have just left me alone.”

“What a funny thing to say,” Illyna said with a frown. Then, with a gentle smile, she said, “If I’ve left you alone, then you’re probably already dead by now, you know?”

“…”

“So, stop annoying me. Just shut up and eat some of this.”

The man stared at Illyna for a long time. In the end, he opened his mouth and let her force a spoonful of soup into his mouth.

“There we go,” Illyna said.

Her face brightened as if she was no longer irritated. She gave the man spoonfuls of soup one after another.

“You know, my friend. He’s a doctor, but he can also use swords, magic, and he even practices medicinal arts.”

The man just hummed quietly.

“According to that guy, even if the person is an enemy that should be beaten to death, you have to treat them first as long as they are sick. Then, you can beat them to death right after,” Illyna continued calmly as if she was recalling her friend fondly.

“Well, I don’t practice medicinal arts, so all I can do for you is some simple emergency treatment and inject some holy mana in you.”

“…”

Rumbleee…

“You must be very hungry. Here, have another spoonful of food. I have so many things in stock, so we will never be able to finish my supplies even if we feast until our stomachs explode.”

The man clicked his tongue. “You’ll regret this decision one day.”

“Who knows? I’m pretty sure you don’t hold any animosity toward me, right? I know because I’m pretty quick-witted.”

“…”

“I’m Illyna. Illyna de Pallan. What’s your name?”

The man drank the soup for a very long time before slowly opening his mouth to answer Illyna’s persistent questions. He said, “Bel.”

“Bel?”

“Belial. You can call me Bel,” the man said with a calm expression on his face. “Human, why are you in this forest? I don’t believe this forest is a place that humans can live in.”

“It’s for my training. You might not know this, but this forest is owned by the Pallan Empire. So, I’m training here so I can go beyond the wall.”

“You’re trying to overcome the walls to become a Sword Master?”

“Yes. From what it looks like, you’re already a Sword Master. Perhaps even higher. I’m so jealous.”

Belial glanced at Caldeiras, who was hanging on one side of the wall, and slowly closed his eyes. He muttered, “You’re a nasty one.”

“Nasty?” Illyna asked, unable to understand what the man meant.

“I will not forget the grace that you have shown me.”

A bright smile appeared on Illyna’s face as she thought, ‘So, this is the sense of happiness that a doctor feels when treating people.’

The smile on Illyna’s face was a beautiful, bright, and naive smile.

***

“Huh?”

Unexpectedly, a solemn funeral procession was currently being held by the mage tower in Lindhall. An elder, Class 6 Bram, had been killed. He had been one of the Blue Tower’s great elders, a great man who had the potential to be among the 7th Circle mages. He could have been just like Great Sage Hellison Valestia.

He had also been the elder who had said that humans, who had obvious limitations, would never reach the 8th Circle in their lives.

Davey heard that Class 6 Bram had been killed while studying something in his personal laboratory in the Red Tower.

—They’re suddenly all in mourning. Even the atmosphere in the tower is depressing.

‘We have to tread carefully.’

“Please come in,” Great Sage Hellison Valestia calmly welcomed Davey with an expression of regret and pity on his face.

“My condolences.”

“Even though… Even though Class 6 Bram had different affiliations and thoughts, I was very happy to see the changes in him… However, the Goddess is very indifferent to us.”

“Can a mage really believe in god?”

“Holy magic exists, so it is evidence of God’s existence. How can I not believe her?” Hellison said calmly.

The old man stood up from his seat and slowly poured two glasses of wine. He handed a glass to Davey and said, “This is an important drink. It’s something that we drink when the tower loses an important star. Here, have a drink.”

“Well, I won’t refuse.”

Possibly due to the drink being for a very special situation, the wine tasted a bit fresh and sweet in Davey’s mouth.

Hellison remained silent despite Davey’s reply. He just swirled the wine in his glass, then murmured, “Bram and I didn\'t really get along well. We often got into arguments whenever we discussed our opinions.”

Davey just silently listened to the old man’s complaints.

“However, more than anybody else, I recognized his pure desire to explore and learn about magic. Even though I entered the 7th Circle first… I thought that in ten years time he would be able to follow me and reach the 7th Circle too.”

Listening to the old man’s bitter mumbling, Davey calmly asked a question, “Did you find out who the culprit was?”

“Class 4 Collin… No, I think it would be more apt to just call him Collin. It was already decided that he’s to be kicked out of the Central Tower,” Hellison Valestia said quietly as he took out a small crystal ball. “This is the surveillance video magic tool that was installed inside the tower. Collin was caught in one of the videos.”

The crystal ball showed the scene of the two mages fighting until Collin killed Bram. Surprisingly, in the video, Collin was not showing magic that was at the 4th Circle.

“That’s the 5th Circle Windless Cutter. And from the way he used it, it’s clear that he didn’t simply become a 5th Circle mage,” Davey guessed. Looking at Hellison’s unsurprised face, he asked, “Where did he go?”

“We’re tracking him down but…we haven’t heard any news yet.”

“I’m very sorry for your loss.”

Davey knew that Collin had already left his post to join the vampires’ radical faction. How could they find a guy who had already hidden himself deeply?

Davey had previously encountered the Collin who had been hostile toward him, but he had seen no signs of the man being instigated by the vampires.

Just because Davey could see fate did not mean that he could predict the future. The only way for him to know about the changes that would happen in the future was to use Perserque’s power. There was no other choice but to hope that the power that they borrowed from the Abyss, the Abyss’ Authority, would provide a huge service. It was not a power for no reason.

“I’m saying this, just in case, but I have seen several cases here and there.”

“Similar cases?”

“Things might just be a mere coincidence. However, from what I gathered with my meager knowledge and insight, all these cases seem to be related,” said Hellison.

Davey was surprised by how relevant this information was. The old man went on to say that there had been several cases of people suddenly disappearing through a similar route that Collin had taken all throughout the continent.

One could say that it was common for people to go missing in such a wide world. However, strange events like Collin’s disappearance were bound to be noticed.

Davey left the Great Sage’s office after having a brief conversation about the situation. Then, he headed to the room that had been prepared for him and Winley. And just like he had expected…

“Davey, Rinne has evaluated that Rinne is highly dissatisfied.”

…an upset Rinne was waiting for him. She rushed over and grabbed the hem of Davey’s shirt, openly complaining with the same expressionless face she always had.

Noticing that Rinne was very angry, Davey asked, “How have things been?”

“There’s nothing to see. Ah, there’s one thing. There is a report about Miss Winley.”

Then, Davey raised his head just in time to see Winley come out of their accommodations.

Winley’s eyes grew wide when she saw Davey. She shouted, “Brother!”

She was currently wearing the same robe that was worn by the Red Tower’s mages. She hadn’t exactly been a member of the tower, but now that she was having the robe on…

“I see, you’ve joined the Red Tower.”

“Ah… You found out immediately. I wanted to surprise you. Hehe,” Winley said as she stuck out her tongue and arranged her messy clothes. “Sir Yulis invited me to join the small research team that he has formed. He said that he needed the help of a talented young mage that has already reached the 4th Circle.”

Davey nodded quietly at his sister’s words.

Josiah might be in a similar situation, but Winley was at a higher level in terms of magic. Although Winley did not study in the magic academy and had taken a different direction, her talents were still obvious. After all, she had reached this level by actual combat and practice.

“That’s why I’m going to stay here for a while longer.”

“It’s a bit concerning to leave you here now, especially when the tower is now a chaotic mess.”

“Hnngghhh… Can’t I?”

With just one look at Winley’s expression, Davey could tell that she really wanted to stay here. He said, “If you really want to, then you can.”

Then, he looked at Rinne with a bright smile on his face. “Rinne, how’s Annabelle?”

“Rinne reports that she’s been staying in the Heins Territory as a salary thief. Rinne reports that she is very laid back and relaxed.”

“Then, we should bring the rascal here. She can protect and ensure Winley’s safety in the meantime.”

Annabelle was the only member of the new golem fleet, the Avengers Squadron. Although her combat capability was slightly lacking when compared to the Decepticon Fleet, her magical ability and efficiency were leagues beyond theirs.

Taking that into consideration, Davey had deemed Annabelle to be the best prospect to protect Winley. After all, she would be able to stay by Winley’s side without drawing unnecessary attention.

Well, in the first place, Davey had made the Avengers Squadron not for direct and frontal combat but for assistance from the rear position.

Of course, the Heins Territory was quite far from the Red Tower. However, that was something that could be easily solved by using a couple of Warp Magic.

“Thank you, thank you very much! Brother!”

“However, there are conditions. Never overdo it. And if you’re treated unfairly…”

Winley had to, without hesitation, tell Davey. She had to tell Davey everything, especially if someone treated her unfairly. And if that happened, Davey would take down the tower with no hesitation.

Winley smiled as if she was taking Davey’s words as a joke.

“It seems like I need to have a conversation with our dear Yulis.”

Why? Because even though there was a big age difference between them, the bastard kept on reaching out to Winley.

‘It’s useless to raise a daughter!’

—That child, Winley, is not your daughter.

‘I don’t care!’

“Davey, Rinne has something else to report.”

“Hmm?”

Rinne tugged the leg of Davey’s pants and handed him a small piece of paper, which had a code that was used for secret communication.

Usually, a magic crystal ball would be used for communication. However, a magic crystal ball was considered as a magical tool and one had to meet several requirements to use it freely. Fortunately, secret communications and codes still existed in this world.

The code was a small letter carrying the royal seal of the Rowane Kingdom. With a single glance, Davey could tell that it was a letter that Baris had sent to him. His eyes grew wide when he saw the contents of the code, then he frowned.

The content of the code went like this…