Chapter 195: Are Your Ears Not Working?
Kaif spoke in one breath, then furtively glanced at Joey, his eyes betraying a hint of guilt. After all, he was openly opposing Joey now—a Star Sage who had stepped into the rank of Titled Magus centuries ago. In the entire Kingdom of Andalusia, Joey was a figure standing at the very pinnacle...
However, when Kaif’s gaze shifted to Heron, that trace of guilt instantly vanished, replaced by pure greed and eagerness...
"What the Order of the Arcane Hand seeks is always the sharing and exchange of magical knowledge. No one cares about your talent, nor about the major contributions you've made in researching Vanrison's Formulas. We only care about whether you possess the magical knowledge we need."
At first, Kaif’s voice trembled a little, but as he spoke, it grew steadier. After all, this time Joey and Oswald had jointly recommended Lin Yun to join the Order of the Arcane Hand, and Kaif himself was opposed from the start.
Still, Kaif’s opposition wasn’t that firm at the time. With Joey threatening and Oswald enticing, Kaif quickly gave in, half-heartedly accepting...
But now, things are completely different...
Of all the people in the banquet hall, only Kaif understood what Heron's gesture meant. It signified that the Black Tower’s exclusive magus rune, Dark Sun, would be fully open to the Ashen Tower. That rune was one of the Black Tower’s core magical secrets—a key reason why the Black Tower could stand alongside the Cloudspire Tower as one of the kingdom’s two great mage factions. The Black Tower’s magus rune, Dark Sun, was truly formidable.
For Kaif, this was simply irresistible...
"If I remember correctly, when Lord Elgin joined the Order of the Arcane Hand, he brought us the long-lost Winter’s Chill meditation technique. When Lord Mog joined, he even revealed the secret of the magus rune, Heart of the Storm. As for myself... I believe you all still remember that report on magical flames. So I must ask, Mafa Merlin, you wish to join the Order of the Arcane Hand—what, exactly, have you brought for us?"
To be honest, Kev's words echoed the thoughts of many in the hall, and for a moment, the banquet was filled with voices of agreement.
Yet Heron remained silent.
From beginning to end, Heron simply gazed at Joey with a half-smile.
For Heron, whether a Grand Mage joined the Order of the Arcane Hand was utterly unimportant.
What Heron truly cared about was Joey.
Normally, with Oswald's promised benefits, Heron would have turned a blind eye to such trivial matters. But not this time—because in Oswald's eyes, this was the perfect opportunity to undermine Joey's prestige!
The Order of the Arcane Hand gathers nearly all the Titled Magi in the kingdom—an immense force, so powerful that a single word from them could make the entire realm tremble.
Yet in recent years, Joey's status within the Order had risen ever higher. Heron saw this and grew increasingly anxious.
If things continued, the Order could become Joey's tool against the Black Tower. When that day came, Heron would be left powerless.
Fortunately, today finally brought an opportunity.
A chance to undermine Joey's prestige...
Joey wants to recommend a Grand Mage for the Order, but Heron intends to ruin it first. He doesn't even need to show his hand—just offer Kev a little incentive, and Kev will gladly play the vanguard. Once Kev has sabotaged the whole affair, let's see how Joey maintains his prestige...
As for what becomes of that Grand Mage after this setback—whether he never recovers, whether he gives up on himself—Heron never even considered it. He was just cannon fodder, after all. To get involved in a struggle between two peak Titled Magi as a mere Grand Mage was pure folly; whatever happened next, he had only himself to blame.
Thinking this, Heron shot Kev another meaningful look.
"Honestly, Leon Merlin, you're really not very clever..." Kev caught on immediately, and as he looked at Leon, his smile slowly turned sharp. "The greatest tragedy for a mage is not seeing oneself clearly. You want to join the Order of the Arcane Hand? Fine, let me ask you: aside from your work on Vanrison's Formulas, what achievements have you made in magic? Have you ever proposed a widely recognized theory? Have you ever had the right to name a formula?"
"Not yet."
"Very well, not yet..." Kev nodded, his smile now openly mocking. "If that's the case, I don't need to ask further. No recognized theory, no named formula, not even any independent research. Ha, Leon Merlin, I'm truly curious—where do you find the courage? Open your eyes and take a good look at the people in this hall. Aside from their disciples, who here doesn't hold a formal title? Do you really think you deserve to stand among them?"
"Joey, did you see all that?" Only after Kev finished speaking did Heron slowly step forward, his eyes never leaving Joey. As for Leon, the protagonist of the whole affair, Heron had not spared him a single glance from beginning to end.
To Heron, Leon was nothing but a disposable pawn—not worth his attention at all.
"Heron, are you really set on opposing me?" Joey's expression was grim—not because of Kev and Heron's opposition, but because he knew the two were working in tandem to humiliate the young Grand Mage, and that humiliation was only meant to strike at Joey's own prestige.
Joey could tolerate a blow to his own prestige, but he could not accept Heron and Kev dragging the young Grand Mage into their schemes just to undermine him.
"Joey, that's not quite fair, is it? Am I the only one opposing this? Take a look—how many in the Order of the Arcane Hand actually support Leon Merlin joining? This isn't just my opinion; it's the will of the majority. Joey, surely you're not stubborn enough to go against most of us?"
"I..." Joey opened his mouth, but found himself unable to respond. He couldn't deny it—right now, there were indeed voices of opposition in the banquet hall. Even if he had eight mouths, he couldn't persuade everyone one by one.
"Heh, enough, Joey. The gathering is about to begin. Why don't you take your young friend outside first..." Heron could see he had already won. As soon as the young Grand Mage left the hall, Joey's prestige would inevitably suffer.
Joey's reputation wasn't built solely on his formidable power as a peak Titled Magus, but on the fact that his decisions within the Order of the Arcane Hand had never once been wrong.
But this time, Joey had made a mistake.
Just once was enough...
Now, no matter what Joey said in the future, there would always be doubt—what if he was wrong again?
Once, twice, three times...
After enough mistakes, Joey's position in the Order would be completely replaced.
"Heron, it's not your place to decide when the gathering starts!" Joey's face was grim, but under Kev and Heron's accusations, his words felt powerless.
Indeed, Joey was starting to regret...
He regretted overestimating his influence in the Order. He'd thought that with his and Oswald's joint recommendation, Merlin's entry would be a sure thing. He hadn't expected Heron to use this move against him—not only damaging Joey's prestige, but humiliating Merlin as well.
If only he'd waited—waited until Merlin became a Magus, when his astonishing calculations surely would have led to magical achievements. Then, bringing him into the Order would have been no problem.
At that point, even ten Herons opposing wouldn't have made a difference.
But now...
Joey glanced apologetically at Merlin, his eyes full of concern...
Yet when Joey looked over, he saw that the young Grand Mage's expression hadn't changed in the slightest. From start to finish, he wore a faint smile, as if Kev and Heron's words were meant for someone else entirely.
That smile even reminded Joey of that miraculous night, when the young Grand Mage had calculated more than a dozen core spell models for Vanrison's Formulas in the alchemy lab.
Joey was suddenly struck by a thought—could it be...
"Kev, is there something wrong with your hearing?" Sure enough, just as Joey glanced over, Leon Merlin asked with a gentle smile.
"What did you say!" Kev jumped to his feet in anger.
A mere Fifth-Tier Mage, daring to question the hearing of a Ninth-Tier Titled Archmage!
Utter arrogance!
Kev, already seething from Darren's earlier humiliation, was now completely enraged by Merlin's question. Joey doesn't respect him, Heron doesn't respect him—fine, they're both peak Titled Magi, nearly touching the Transcendent realm. But Leon Merlin? What gives him the right to treat Kev with such disdain? Does he really think he's on the same level as Kev and Heron, qualified to look down on him?