Chapter 689: The Witch and the Magic Tower (3)

As soon as Lennok spoke, Jenny immediately led the group to a room upstairs in the bar.

“I… I didn’t mishear that, did I?”

Jenny asked, barely settled on the sofa in the spacious room.

“You received something from the Central Council of the city government? No, could that even be given and received like a gift in the first place?”

“Literally. I handled the task entrusted by the Senate, and received the authority necessary to establish a Magic Tower.”

Lennok pulled out another cigarette.

“I didn’t mention it because I wasn’t sure how much authority related to Magic Towers the city could approve, but I wonder if it will be useful.”

“Useful isn’t even the word for it, Van.”

Jenny replied quickly, looking bewildered.

“All the conditions and foundational requirements we were just agonizing over can almost all be handled with that single authority you just mentioned.”

“…”

“As expected, you had no idea.”

At Jenny’s words, as if she’d expected it, Lennok nodded, looking puzzled.

“I thought matters related to Magic Towers were managed by the academic world. I heard that it could form an extraterritorial zone, but I didn’t think that alone would be enough to establish a Magic Tower.”

“Of course, the conditions required for establishing a Magic Tower are set by the academic world, not the city government… but that’s different if we’re talking about a super-large city-state like Vulcan.”

Tatiana shook her head, as if disbelieving, and replied.

“There hasn’t been a single Magic Tower formally approved for establishment in Vulcan to date. Do you not know what it means to be the only one permitted to establish a Magic Tower in this giant city?”

Before Lennok could answer, Jenny immediately continued.

“Regardless of permission from other Magic Towers or the academic world, to trade magical artifacts within Vulcan, you must follow the mediation of an approved Magic Tower.”

“…”

“Until now, no Magic Tower had received approval from the Central Council, so management was lacking. But if a Magic Tower approved by the Council is newly established in this city–”

Only then did Lennok fully understand why Jenny and Tatiana reacted so strongly to that authority.

Academic recognition, conditions, environmental circumstances, and legitimacy were merely secondary issues.

If only a Magic Tower approved by the Central Council could manage the magical artifact market within Vulcan, regardless of whether other Magic Towers recognized it or not…

Then the academic world and other Magic Towers would inevitably have to conduct their transactions and continue their research through that ‘approved Magic Tower’.

And abandoning a city and market as enormous and full of growth potential as Vulcan was simply impossible.

For the Central Council’s Senate to transfer Magic Tower establishment authority to Lennok meant precisely that.

“I see. So…”

He had thought that academic approval and city approval were separate and institutionally designated. But perhaps Magic Tower establishment and approval itself could be overturned by the logic of power.

And ironically, because the Vulcan city government was the main entity that sided with Lennok, that authority carried even more weight.

‘Was that why they entrusted me with the research on the Annihilation’s Tree fragments and tried to make me the head of research?’

He had wondered why the Central Council had suddenly offered him the position of research head, but it seemed to have been a result of considering the Magic Tower establishment authority as well.

Perhaps the city government wanted to have a directly approved Magic Tower and actively assign necessary research to it.

Considering that, it was understandable that they chose Lennok as the right person and offered him the Magic Tower establishment authority in exchange for his work on the Annihilation’s Tree.

“I heard it could form an extraterritorial zone… but it seems it had more meaning than just an administrative privilege.”

“Oh, right. That’s incredibly important too.”

Jenny nodded vigorously.

“When you establish a Magic Tower, businesses conducted there get exemptions from city regulations and restrictions.”

“…”

“It’s not just a matter of honor or status; it’s something that could greatly shake the city’s internal business system and balance. For the Senate to grant approval despite knowing that, it must be unprecedented…”

“I heard there were a few people who received similar proposals in the past, though.”

Lennok replied, righting an overturned whisky glass.

As his finger tapped the table, the spilled whisky flowed back into the glass as if time were rewinding. Jordan approached, naturally cleared the glass, and placed a new one down.

Jenny, who had been subtly watching Lennok, spoke.

“…Of course, this is just from a businesswoman’s perspective, but Magic Tower establishment approval also holds special significance for a wizard. It means one has been verified as qualified to complete and pass down a magical lineage.”

“Hmm.”

“Tatiana would probably know more about that than I would. Why don’t you ask her directly?”

Tatiana, who had been silent, slowly drank her glass.

“…Since you’ve already received approval, I’ll just briefly explain the common conditions required by other Magic Towers and the academic world. A Transcendent wizard is free from proving their skill or the existence of their magic system.”

“…”

“However, you need to meet the required number of high-level wizards for official recognition from other Magic Towers, and prove your assets, establishment site, and land ownership. You also need approval to coexist with the city where the Magic Tower will be built.”

Assets, establishment site, land ownership.

While somewhat tricky, it wasn’t entirely impossible to acquire with Jenny’s help.

Jenny, upon hearing Tatiana’s words, immediately pointed out a concerning detail.

“The number of high-level wizards… Yes, that makes sense. We wouldn’t usually call it a Magic Tower if it was just Van alone.”

“It doesn’t demand an enormous number. It’s not about finding unaffiliated high-level wizards, but confirming whether a magic system worthy of being passed down exists.”

“Right. But the problem is…”

Jenny glanced at Lennok, then quietly mumbled.

“That condition itself might be a little difficult to meet…”

“What do you mean by that?”

Lennok immediately retorted.

“I have at least some acquaintances I can ask for a favor.”

“No. It’s not that you don’t have acquaintances.”

Jenny waved her hand.

“A wizard you know. Isn’t Tatiana pretty much the first? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you acquainted with such a high-level wizard before.”

“I don’t know what you take me for.”

Lennok chuckled lightly.

“I know dozens of wizards. If I consider the wizards among them who have completed their Hierarchy, there are plenty of people I can ask…”

His confident words slowly faded.

“…”

Come to think of it, almost all the high-level wizards Lennok knew were people he had fought as enemies.

Or they were all people already affiliated with a Magic Tower or a specific organization.

Olivera of the Cartel, Myeong or The Clown of Pandemonium, Aris of the Sinclair Magic Tower.

Besides them, there were only acquaintances who were already affiliated somewhere and couldn’t join a Magic Tower, or who couldn’t even be mentioned under Van’s current identity.

Only then did Lennok realize that Jenny’s words weren’t entirely wrong, and he fell silent.

Jenny subtly changed the subject.

“Come to think of it, that doesn’t seem like a very important issue. Should we think about that later?”

“Th-that’s right.”

Tatiana quickly agreed with Jenny.

“Well, there’s no law that says the wizards you know have to be alive or allies. Dead wizards or wizards you’ve killed are, if you count them, all wizard acquaintances too.”

“That’s…”

Indeed, Tatiana must have witnessed Lennok killing several wizards, including the traitor Jionis, at the Blaiver Magic Tower’s West Continent branch, so it wasn’t strange for her to think that way.

No, come to think of it, it might not be strange for most people who know Lennok to mistakenly believe that his ‘wizard acquaintances’ are wizards he’s killed.

Leaving Lennok deep in thought, Jenny and Tatiana quickly returned to the main topic.

“For now, let’s quickly conclude Tatiana’s issue.”

“Right. The important thing is that Van obtained the most difficult and tricky authority… but this is truly unexpected.”

Tatiana tilted her head slightly.

“As far as I know, more than ten Magic Towers attempted to enter Vulcan. However, none even passed the Lower House’s screening, let alone the Senate’s. But for a wizard with no connections to receive approval… this is virtually pushing him forward.”

“…The Central Council wants Van to establish a Magic Tower?”

Tatiana nodded at Jenny’s question.

“Magic Towers have active academic exchanges and information sharing, and joint research, auctions, and transactions happen frequently. It’s precisely why it’s so difficult to establish a Magic Tower within a city without granting extraterritorial authority. The items they handle are simply too dangerous.”

Instead, Magic Towers cultivate talents sent by the city, nurturing them into accomplished wizards and consistently supplying them to the city.

In essence, Magic Towers act as internal wizard training institutions for the city.

This is how Magic Towers, once established in a city and granted extraterritorial authority, generally coexist with the city.

“That’s why the magic a particular Magic Tower handles is often closely related to the city’s environment or living areas. Our side is no different, is it?”

The Blaiver Magic Tower’s West Continent branch, which dealt with pyromantic magic, was located in the middle of a volcanic zone.

That itself benefited both the Magic Tower and the cities and residents near the volcanic zone.

But conversely, the Central Council granting Lennok Magic Tower approval itself must have been due to their certainty that Lennok’s magic would be beneficial to the city.

“Well, I’ve said this and that, but there’s only one most important fact.”

Tatiana looked at Lennok, then set down her drink and asked.

“Van, do you intend to establish a Magic Tower and become its Magic Tower Lord?”

“…What do you mean?”

“Becoming a Transcendent wizard and establishing a Magic Tower to pass down magic are separate matters. There are many who aren’t interested in teaching someone or leaving behind a legacy.”

“…”

“Regardless of my circumstances, if you don’t wish for it, there’s no need to even have this discussion.”

Tatiana’s red eyes settled calmly.

“Establishing a Magic Tower isn’t something you can do with vague thoughts or feelings.”

“…I don’t have a particular sense of responsibility or mission.”

Lennok, who had been silent, chuckled.

“I’m doing it because I can. Just doing it because I want to. If you think that’s not right, then it would be better to escape further away from the pursuers right now.”

“…”

Tatiana looked thoughtful after hearing Lennok’s reply.

Jenny watched the two of them, then suddenly asked, as if something occurred to her.

“So, if you do establish a Magic Tower, what will you name it?”

“…Well. I’ve never thought about it, so I don’t know…”

All the unique magic and common magic Lennok used were already named techniques. He was merely taking them, changing them as he pleased, and using them for his own research.

If he were to construct a magic system for the purpose of inheritance and establish an encompassing order for it…

What name should he give that ivory tower?

As he pondered, the Cybernetic Spirit in his arms reacted to his words.

[Wiggle.]

“…”

While Lennok firmly suppressed the spirit’s wish with one hand, Tatiana seemed to have made a decision.

“Jenny, could you get me a small knife?”

“A knife?”

“I need to show you what I brought out of the Magic Tower. Let’s talk again after that.”

“…You stole a treasure from the Magic Tower?”

“It’s not a treasure.”

Tatiana slowly grasped the knife Jenny picked up.

“It’s a valuable relic symbolizing the Magic Tower’s legitimacy, and a seal that proves the lineage of its tradition simply by its existence.”

“A seal? Then surely, the Magic Tower Lord’s…”

The moment Jenny’s face turned pale as she realized the meaning.

Tatiana brought the knife to the back of her hand.

“I’ll show you. The Phoenix Hall of the Blaiver Magic Tower.”

At the unfamiliar term, Jenny tilted her head, and Lennok faintly furrowed his brow.

Tatiana, looking tense, quickly looked around and spoke to Lennok.

“Van, could you suppress our mana signatures so it doesn’t leak out?”

“…Alright.”

Jenny’s bar didn’t have strict barriers or security, as various superhumans and wizards frequented it. There was no need to worry about safety issues, as normally, besides Lennok, superhumans from the Antares Mercenary Group and distribution companies also came and went.

As Lennok created a simple curtain to block off surrounding signatures and reactions, Tatiana drew the knife across the back of her hand.

Red blood dripped down her hand, forming a circular magic circle at her feet.

“Blood magic?”

Tatiana nodded.

“Similar, but different. It’s more accurate to think of it as a Unique Ability granted to a Flame Pillar.”

Whoosh!

Flames erupted from the blood-drawn magic circle, transforming into a massive gate of fire before Tatiana’s eyes.

Even standing close, no significant heat was felt.

This gate of fire itself was a conceptual manifestation, purely created from Tatiana’s will-thought and blood.

Lennok watched the scene with interest from the side.

“It’s not magic or a spell. It seems more like a Unique Ability that relies on mental power.”

“It’s a unique management authority only permitted to the five Flame Pillars of the Magic Tower.”

Tatiana replied, a slightly somber look on her face.

“A Unique Ability to freely access items designated as the Tower’s property. I forcibly twisted that, changing it so only I can touch a specific item.”

“A preservation method that transcends space…”

Can one create such management authority after establishing a Magic Tower?

Lennok showed interest in the method, and the moment Tatiana naturally reached her hand towards the other side of the gate.

[That took longer than I expected.]

A whispering will-thought was heard from beyond the gate.

[I thought you’d definitely try to touch it someday, but you’ve grown much more patient, Tatiana.]

“Melter…!!”

[Let’s talk slowly, face to face.]

Tatiana’s face hardened, and simultaneously, the size of that will-thought explosively swelled, engulfing her.

Lennok’s expression stiffened as a colossal magic circle, instantly filling the bar’s floor, appeared.

‘Such a massive will-thought, from a distance, without any warning…!’

Kiiing!!!

Just as Tatiana herself, seemingly unexpected, stumbled above the gate.

Lennok, instead of idly watching, immediately poured in mana and began to interfere.

But at the point where the magic circle appeared in its completed state, its power had already been delivered as a result.

The crimson light, which swallowed Tatiana’s body with powerful gravitational pull, instantly leaped across space and vanished to the far side of the bar.

The dazzling crimson light, bright enough to blind one’s eyes, instantly engulfed her body.

Slam!

In a flash, the magic circle vanished after engulfing only Tatiana.

Jenny turned to Lennok, her face pale.

“Van, this is…!!”

“I know. They were already prepared and waiting on the other side.”

If the will-thought that appeared from beyond the gate had tried to attack Tatiana, or taken the form of a spell, Lennok would have reacted immediately.

But the will-thought felt from the magic circle Tatiana herself created was far from a threat or an attack.

It was a will closer to transmission or summoning. That’s why Lennok had thought it was Tatiana’s intention to summon the Phoenix Hall, which delayed his reaction.

“They used the method of summoning the Phoenix Hall in reverse, forcibly pinpointing Tatiana’s location and reverse-summoning her.”

Lennok’s eyes gleamed coldly.

“The authority to instantly recognize Tatiana’s location and reverse-summon her without any conditions. If someone can do this, it could only be other Flame Pillars of the same Magic Tower.”

“…The Warmages of the Blaiver Magic Tower have already arrived in Vulcan?”

The moment Jenny, realizing the implication, quickly pulled out her phone,

Lennok grabbed his coat and immediately started moving.

“W-what are you going to do?”

“I barely managed to intervene at the last moment. It won’t be too late.”

If Lennok had forcibly canceled the summoning on the spot, Tatiana, the subject of the reverse-summoning, would have suffered a backlash. Therefore, instead of canceling the summoning itself, Lennok succeeded in forcibly distorting the spatial coordinates by intervening with the Magic Tower’s unique authority.

He had twisted Tatiana’s original summoning location, which would have been next to another Flame Pillar, by forcibly distorting it with his Transcendent will-thought.

He secured the necessary location coordinates the moment Tatiana vanished.

Lennok said that, picked up his staff, and immediately exited the bar.

“It’s not far. I’m going to track them immediately.”