NOVPUBWhen Ludger flat-out shut down the idea of ever going to the Mage Tower, Altego could do nothing but flap his mouth uselessly, speechless.
The same went for the five mages who had come with him.
Altego’s five personal disciples, along with the council chairman himself.
When had they ever—any of them—been insulted like this, right to their faces?
Sure, their precious Mage Tower might be called “old” these days, and sure, it wasn’t exactly the unstoppable powerhouse it used to be back in its prime.
But still, the Mage Tower was a place countless mages dreamed of entering, driven by ambition and desire.
And Altego? He held a seat on the Council of Twelve Elders—a position granted only to the chosen few within the Tower.
Any mage with half a brain wouldn’t even dream of squaring their shoulders in front of a man like him.
‘What... did he just say?’
This cocky brat in front of him—what the hell did he just say?
Even if he was offered a spot among the Elders themselves, he wouldn’t set foot in the Tower?
Altego realized for the first time that day just how true it was—you can get so angry that words just stop coming.
“You bastard! Who the hell do you think you’re running your mouth off in front of?!”
One of the five disciples snapped first, jumping in as he grasped the situation.
“You think you can puff yourself up just because the Chairman was being polite to some lowly Seorn instructor? Screw that! Master, people like him aren’t worth our time.”
Seething with rage, the man looked like he couldn’t wait to get the hell out of there.
But just as he opened his mouth to suggest leaving, what hit him wasn’t Ludger’s response—it was Elisa’s sudden, ringing laughter.
“Ahahahahahahaha!”
And this wasn’t her usual fake, forced smile. This was a real, 100%, straight-from-the-gut laugh.
Even Altego, who thought he knew her well enough, was thrown off. The five disciples looked just as stunned.
Elisa laughed until tears welled up in her eyes, which she wiped away with her fingertips.
“Ahhh. Damn. That was hilarious. I can’t even remember the last time I laughed like this.”
With that, she shifted back into the unreadable smile she usually wore as the Headmaster.
“Well, there you have it, Chairman. Ludger doesn’t want to go, so what can you do? Guess you made the trip for nothing~.”
When else would she get the chance to slap shit on this old bastard’s face in public?
He’d just been rejected flat-out by a guy way younger than him, and that kind of humiliation had to sting.
Elisa, still all smiles, kept poking at Altego.
“Told you, didn’t I? I said you’d just get turned down, so why bother dragging yourself all the way out here? Do you really think the Mage Tower is still what it used to be?”
“You watch your mouth, woman!”
One of Altego’s disciples snapped.
Elisa’s face went dead cold in an instant.
“And if I don’t?”
“...What?”
“I said, what if I don’t? What are you gonna do?”
The moment the disciple hesitated, a chilling surge of mana erupted from Elisa, wrapping around him like a vice.
“Guhhh!”
He couldn’t breathe. Not properly.
Eyes wide, he stared at Elisa in disbelief.
Elisa Willow.
The prodigy who hit 6th Circle magic at a ridiculously young age.
He’d heard about her. How she’d once worked with the New Mage Tower, only to suddenly leave and take up the position of Headmaster at Seorn.
When everyone else worshipped her as a genius, he’d felt nothing but resentment.
If she were a true genius, she’d have stayed and made her name in the Tower. What the hell was she doing, hiding out as a Headmaster ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) at some academy?
Obviously, she ran. Ran because she was scared of getting exposed for what she really was, so she went to play house with kids in some school.
He figured all the stories about her were just overblown gossip for idiots to lap up.
He thought that if they ever met, he’d show her just how superior he was.
But now—
‘She’s on a different level.’
He couldn’t even move a damn finger. Forget about using mana, he could barely breathe.
It felt like he was sinking, deeper and deeper, into some pitch-black abyss.
And the worst part?
The only reason he could breathe at all was because Elisa was letting him.
‘This isn’t even a fight.’
The youngest 6th Circle mage.
Power ranked as [Lexurer], third-highest among the known 8th Circle tier.
“Enough.”
Altego’s voice sliced through the tension like a blade.
Elisa clicked her tongue inwardly and withdrew her mana.
Annoying as he was, Altego wasn’t to be underestimated either.
He was also a 6th Circle mage. Pushing him too far would just be a pain in the ass.
In a calmer voice, Altego addressed his disciples.
“That’s enough.”
“But, Master—”
Altego turned and looked at them without a word.
The moment his disciples saw that blank expression, any thoughts of arguing died on their lips. They turned pale and shut up.
“We’re leaving.”
Before he left, Altego gave Elisa one last glare. Then he turned his eyes to Ludger, standing behind her with that same blank expression.
“You’ll pay for this. One day, you’ll regret this.”
As arrogant as Altego was, he wasn’t the type to lose his shit in public like this.
So he let it go. For now.
But he promised himself, deep down, he wouldn’t forget this humiliation.
Normally, someone in Ludger’s position might show a hint of nervousness or maybe a flicker of surprise.
But Ludger?
He didn’t even blink.
He just gave a slight nod.
As if to say, “Come at me, if you think you can.”
Crack.
Altego ground his teeth and shoved his disciples aside as he stormed out of the banquet hall.
The five, scrambling, chased after him.
“Phew.”
Once Altego was fully gone, Elisa let the tension drain from her shoulders.
She looked over at Ludger, giving him a tired smile that didn’t quite match her usual confidence.
“Sorry about that, Ludger. I should’ve handled it more thoroughly.”
“Not at all. If anything, I should thank you for stepping in.”
“No need for that. That snaky old man showed up because of our old grudges anyway.”
She suddenly asked,
“Do you hate the Mage Tower too?”
Hate the Mage Tower?
If he had to answer, yeah, he leaned toward hate.
Elisa felt the same.
“I used to be a Mage Tower witch myself.”
“I know.”
“Not that it’s rare. Good luck finding a mage who didn’t come from there. Still, even there, they called me a genius... Oh god, listen to me brag.”
“I don’t mind.”
“I worked hard, you know? But the Tower—ugh, it’s just so damn archaic. The world’s moving forward with science and magitech, and those old fossils in the back rooms are too busy having fits over it. I fought them on it, a lot.”
That’s when the Old Tower and the New Tower split.
The Old Tower? Full of stuck-up mages clinging to their old-school authority.
Magic had to be this grand, untouchable thing. Not just anyone should use it. Only the chosen few could wield it. That kind of backwards crap.
‘The New Tower, on the other hand, dropped that whole elitist mask. They wanted to merge magic with modern science.’
Maybe centuries ago, that kind of thinking made sense. But the last 200 years had seen ridiculous progress.
Cars replaced carriages. Guns took over from swords.
Sure, mages and knights still played a major role in the world, but even they couldn’t completely ignore the changes.
Mages especially.
Magic and science.
Different, but not.
The Old Tower wanted to reject science entirely. The New Tower? They embraced it.
And they didn’t just talk—they acted.
By merging science and magic, they created magitech.
The birth of magitech.
It drove the world forward at breakneck speed.
Steamships, magitech trains, steam-powered golems, flying airships.
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
All kinds of new inventions were being born—and even now, more kept emerging.
In a world shifting this fast, the Mage Tower had split into two factions, torn apart beyond repair.
‘Altego and Headmaster Elisa’s conflict is basically a reflection of old-world mages versus the new era’s mages.’
And Ludger? If he had to choose sides, he’d be closer to the new era.
No—more precisely...
‘My mindset fits the new era, but my actual magic is closer to the old.’
The magic he rarely revealed—his “real” magic—was far more aligned with old-school traditions than anything the new wave preached.
But it wasn’t something he felt like bragging about, so Ludger simply nodded and went along with Elisa’s words.
“I’m rambling, aren’t I? Anyway, you must be tired. It’s your celebration after all.”
“Not at all.”
“Well, I’ll leave you be then. I’ve got a ton of people to deal with myself. Enjoy the night, Ludger. Just—easy on the drinks, alright?”
“Of course.”
Just like when she arrived, Elisa disappeared from view, the hem of her black dress trailing behind her.
Finally, it was over.
First, the whole mess with Ivan Luk, and then those damn Mage Tower mages showing up to pester him.
Mentally draining, for sure—but Ludger quickly shook off the thought.
He had come here tonight with a purpose.
“Ah! Ludger!”
As he approached, Selina, who had been chatting with some people, greeted him warmly.
“Selina. Are you alright?”
“Huh? Oh, yes, I’m fine. The Chairman of Luk Corp. himself came over and apologized, so it’s all settled now. Really, I’m okay.”
“Is that so? I’m glad.”
Even with a son like that, the Chairman personally came to apologize.
There were surely ulterior motives, but at least compared to his son, the man seemed to have some decency.
Ludger glanced at the people Selina was talking to.
“You were in the middle of a conversation with others.”
Selina didn’t exactly have a large circle in this place.
Aside from Merilda, who often looked after her, there were only a few she was close with.
“Oh! It’s nice to meet you.”
“So you’re that Ludger...”
Three women and one man looked at him, eyes wide in surprise.
Some were unfamiliar, others he vaguely recognized.
They were Seorn’s Spirit Studies instructors.
There were four of them in total, each handling a different year from second through fifth.
Ludger gave a formal bow.
“I’m Ludger Cherish, in charge of second-year Specialization.”
“I’ve heard. The new teacher taking over the second-years. I’m Sesluna, the second-year Spirit Studies instructor.”
Sesluna was a short-haired redhead.
For a brief moment, Ludger wondered if she could be Esmeralda, the First Order.
‘No... too early to jump to conclusions.’
He exchanged introductions with the others.
“I’m Partonia, I handle the third-years.”
Partonia, teaching the third-years, was a large, motherly woman with a warm presence.
“I’m Vierno Dentis, in charge of the fourth-years.”
The fourth-year instructor was the only man among them. Small-framed, he seemed rather timid.
And surprisingly, he had pointed ears—an elf.
‘An elf, huh.’
It wasn’t strange to see other races at Seorn. Especially for elves, whose affinity with nature made them ideal for Spirit Studies.
“I’m Angela Anderson.”
The fifth-year instructor was a sharp-eyed woman with glasses. Beautiful, but intimidating.
‘If I narrow it down, it’s likely one of the three—excluding the elf Vierno.’
The question was—which one?
Esmeralda knew Ludger’s true identity.
If she were here, the moment they shook hands or exchanged pleasantries, she should’ve reacted somehow.
But none of the three showed even a flicker of recognition or anything out of the ordinary.
‘So none of them?’
Ludger ran through the possibilities.
Maybe Esmeralda was just that good—able to completely mask her emotions even now.
But from what he’d felt during their encounter, she was fiery, impatient.
She didn’t hide her annoyance when things didn’t go her way.
‘If I had to guess, I’d lean toward Sesluna.’
Only seasoned teachers handled third-year and above.
But second-year classes? Those were often given to newer staff.
If Black Dawn planted someone, that’s where they’d do it.
‘I should have Hans look into this Sesluna woman.’
His thoughts deepened, and he felt a bit parched.
He raised a hand to signal for a drink, intending to call one of the servers.
But then, he froze.
A familiar face.
“...Rine?”
A student in his class. The one with non-attributed mana.
Someone he’d been keeping a close eye on—Rine was here.
Wearing a black-and-white waitress uniform, a silver tray in one hand.
And Rine?
She froze too, eyes wide, caught in the act.
