Magic Tower City (6)

As I arrived at the top floor of the Crystal Tower, a cold air brushed against my face. Magic circles danced like shimmering lights in the air, and ether crystals sparkled like stars, floating in the air.

“Yongsa-nim. Please explain the Serena matter.”

Lucy Crystal, the Ether Magic Tower Master and Academy Headmaster, stared at me. The office, surrounded by pure white marble, suddenly felt even colder.

“As I said, I sublimated her energy with swordsmanship, so to speak.”

Lucy’s eyebrows rose slightly at my words.

As her finger pointed into the air, a magic circle appeared. Inside, a blood-soaked video played.

“Is this what you call sublimation?”

It was a scene of Serena slaughtering thugs.

“She needed to relieve some stress.”

The sky-blue eyes that had been watching her sharpened.

As expected, a sharp question flew at me. But it was an answer I had already prepared.

“Stress relief, you say?”

Lucy smiled coldly. At her gesture, the surrounding magic circles rotated rapidly.

“Twelve missing persons. And five seriously injured. You’re saying this was just stress?”

I bit my lip. Did this woman know everything?

“Why would she, once called the prodigy of the Alterion family, make such an extreme choice?”

“Serena was a genius, but also a monster with homicidal urges. She’s lived her whole life wearing a mask. But in the end, her true nature couldn’t help but be revealed.”

The video in the magic circle switched. This time, it was Serena as usual. A perfect smile on her face as she taught other students.

“Both appearances are Serena. One is an uncontrollable murderous intent, the other is a forced mask.”

Lucy stroked her chin as if telling me to continue. She analyzed my words with a scholar’s sharp gaze.

“So, I gathered her murderous intent in one place. Instead of indiscriminate killing, towards a single goal…”

“Towards you?”

“Yes. Now I’m her only target. There will be no more victims.”

Lucy was silent for a moment.

“A dangerous gamble. Are you confident you can control her madness?”

“I just… realized what she truly wanted. Not ordinary killing, but an eternal challenge towards an unattainable goal.”

“Interesting. Sublimating a killer’s madness into art… But if you fail, it will be an irreversible disaster, won’t it?”

“That’s why I’m saying I’ll take responsibility.”

Lucy rose from her seat. Her sky-blue hair fluttered with magical power.

“Alright. Let’s see. A decision worthy of a Yongsa-nim.”

“Anyway, Headmaster-nim, you knew from the start, didn’t you? Isn’t that why you entrusted it to me?”

“Hoo… Was I found out? At first, it was just a simple eccentricity. Dealing with thugs late at night… It was at a level that the academy could sufficiently cover up.”

“You covered up the incident for the sake of the academy’s reputation?”

“…If Serena had been an ordinary student, I would have taken care of her long ago. But she’s an Alterion. The Minister of Magic, the Imperial Chancellor… all are from the Alterion family. If it were revealed that their prodigy is a serial killer…”

“The political fallout would have been uncontrollable.”

The video in the magic circle continued to play. The murder scenes became increasingly brutal.

“Her desires grew uncontrollably. I thought that if things continued like this, there would be a catastrophe.”

“So, you…”

“Yes, I thought that if it was Yongsa-nim… you would somehow solve it.”

A bitter smile formed on Lucy’s lips.

“To be honest, I intended to make Yongsa-nim take responsibility. To have Yongsa-nim arrest her and report her.”

My eyes widened. This woman, she tried to use me as bait?

“But Yongsa-nim… you exceeded all of our expectations.”

Lucy elegantly gestured in the air.

“To sublimate it with swordsmanship… to turn a killer into an artist. It’s a really interesting solution.”

The magic circle shone, and a piece of parchment appeared.

“Now everything is resolved.”

Lucy stamped the parchment and continued.

“Thank you for your hard work. Thank you for resolving the incident. I can report to the Alterion family like this. That their beloved and hated prodigy… has now embarked on the path of a magic swordsman.”

There was cynicism in her voice. Knowing that it was a cover-up, not a resolution.

“As promised, I will grant you access to the Arcane Archives.”

Lucy handed over the parchment stamped with a red seal.

Finally. It was finally in my hands.

A clue to dimensional travel magic. The key to returning. How long have I been running for this?

“Now you can access all the records you want.”

“Then, I will end my service as a combat instructor at the academy here.”

“Oh, are you thinking of quitting?”

Her voice resonated strangely.

“Yes, I’ve received permission to use the archives, and the Serena matter has been resolved.”

“Alright. I’m looking forward to what’s to come even more. Yongsa-nim.”

*

As the door to the Arcane Archives opened, a mysterious blue light poured out. Luminous magical bookshelves stretched to the ceiling, and books automatically floated in the air, finding their places.

“Finally…”

The clue I had been searching for all this time. The key to returning would be here.

As I touched the first bookshelf, a magical list floated into the air. Thousands of titles shone and passed by.

[Understanding Dimensional Gates]

[Records of Interdimensional Travelers]

[Advanced Spatial Magic]

Documents I hadn’t seen in the game poured out. In-depth content that I couldn’t understand with the knowledge from the original work.

[Success Case: The Return of the Yongsa]

Most of the success cases were those of the Yongsa. But the reason the Yongsa could return was thanks to their connection with the Saintess. The Saintess, blessed by the Goddess, had to perform the Order’s ritual.

This method won’t work. Having escaped the Saintess’s obsession. I can’t ask Seraphina for help now.

“This is…”

A book flew towards me. The cover had a title written in ancient characters.

[The End of the Dimensional Traveler].

My fingertips trembled. As I opened the document, a chilling record began.

As I turned the pages, gruesome records came into view. Cases where only the soul returned, cases where the body was shattered, and tragedies where the time axis was misaligned.

“If it were that easy, I would have returned long ago.”

A bitter smile appeared. In the game, it simply showed that you would automatically return if you defeated the Demon King.

Suddenly, another record caught my eye.

[Success Case: Dimensional Rift]

‘I finally found it.’

As I unfolded the old parchment, a faint magical power tickled my fingertips. The secret of dimensional travel researched by ancient mages was written there.

A method other than the Goddess’s miracle. Magic that directly creates a dimensional rift.

“I wonder… if this is possible.”

I bit my lip. It was a perilous challenge.

But there was no other way.

‘At least I’ve caught a clue.’

I carefully closed the parchment. More preparation was still needed. Special magical ingredients, perfect timing, and above all… overwhelming magical power to tear through dimensions.

It was a much more dangerous and complicated problem than expected.

But at least one thing became clear. That I could return without the Order’s help. For today, that alone was enough.

As I happily left the Arcane Archives, a cold energy ran down my spine.

Lucy was waiting.

“Are you already finished?”

I could feel a dangerous aura in her voice. The surrounding magic circles began to shine all at once.

“I’ve seen everything I needed.”

“Is that so?”

Lucy took a step closer. Her sky-blue hair fluttered with magical power.

“Come to think of it, I heard that Yongsa-nim doesn’t even know magical engineering…”

A scholarly smile appeared on Lucy’s lips.

“And yet, you seem to have penetrated even the fundamental principles of ether. Your intuition about the essence of magic is so special.”

“No, I don’t know anything like that…”

“There’s no need to be modest. At least not in front of me.”

Her face became increasingly tinged with madness.

“If it’s Yongsa-nim… I think you can help me complete my research. The revival of ancient magic, the establishment of a new magic system… Together… we’ll research, right?”

Her breathing became rough. Her voice was full of academic excitement.

“Haa… haa… You can’t leave already.”

A chill ran down my spine for a moment.

“Think about it. If your knowledge and my research abilities combine… we can cause a revolution in the magical world!”

This woman, she’s gone crazy.

“You recite ancient rune characters fluently, you know the secrets of magic from hundreds of years ago… That special knowledge of yours… I wonder how much more you know… I’m so curious.”

Academic madness bloomed from Lucy.

Damn it, I showed off too much back then. I bragged too much about the original work’s knowledge.

“I just happened to…”

“Happened to?”

Lucy smiled coldly. At her gesture, the surrounding magic circles activated all at once.

“You happened to solve my magical puzzles… you happened to gather rare magical ingredients… you happened to know the lost rune characters… Is that what you’re saying?”

In an instant, all the exits were blocked by magic circles. There was no way to escape.

“That won’t do… that won’t do. Pretending you don’t know anything… trying to keep that special knowledge to yourself… Knowledge should be shared with everyone, right?”

Reason disappeared from her, and only pure curiosity remained.

“Yongsa-nim’s special knowledge… is so tempting. Every day will be a series of new discoveries. Everything you know… I’ll research and analyze it one by one! If you don’t like the position of teaching assistant….”

A sinister smile appeared on Lucy’s lips.

“There’s also the position of test subject, you know?”

It was a pure academic obsession, different from Serena’s madness.

“Then shall we go to the lab now?”

“I’m sorry, but I have a busy schedule…”

Lucy waved her hand. Dozens of magic circles appeared and aimed at me.

The magical circuits engraved throughout the Headmaster’s office-ceiling, walls, floor-emitted a blue light.

I examined the walls in detail. Spells engraved at regular intervals. Each of the spells was perfectly harmonized and connected.

“Beautiful, isn’t it? The successive Ether Magic Tower Masters… have engraved it one by one over 300 years. A masterpiece containing the essence of magic.”

The circuits shone even more clearly. Blue light pulsating towards me.

“I prepared it especially for a fleeing test subject… no, research partner.”

A chill ran down my spine. This woman, did she have this situation in mind from the start?

“I’m just a Yongsa who only knows how to fight.”

“Hehe… Is that so.”

Blue magical power blazed from Lucy’s fingertips.

“But you have no choice. Let’s research everything about Yongsa-nim slowly, one by one. The budget is unlimited…!”

Magical power increased explosively. But what was more dangerous than that was her gaze.

‘Ah, this is going to be really annoying…’