Chapter 180: Reaching the Top Floor (Vote for me!)
At such close range, the impact of the flames was overwhelming—far beyond what Harrison could withstand. There was only a single, miserable scream from the young Archmage before he was sent flying, engulfed in a ball of fire, all the way past the gates of the Ashen Tower, landing with a resounding "thud" outside...
Several mages from the Ashen Tower rushed over at once, but as they passed by Leon, each couldn't help but show a hint of fear on their faces...
While they were rescuing Harrison, the magus in the gray-white robe on the second floor slowly made his way down to the hall. Leon and Salomon, however, didn't budge an inch.
Especially Salomon...
There was nothing anyone could do—today, Salomon was here with the highest-level clearance, after all. Who told the Ashen Tower to host the Order of the Arcane Hand gathering?
Now, with Joey and Oswald present, even if the Ashen Tower had a hundred times the courage, they wouldn’t dare lay a finger on Salomon. So when Salomon saw the magus in the gray-white robe descending from the second floor, he didn’t even blink. Instead, he looked at Leon with curiosity and asked, "Merlin, this isn’t like you at all..."
"Heh..." Leon chuckled, but didn’t say much more.
But Leon knew in his heart that Salomon wasn’t wrong—this truly wasn’t like his usual self. Normally, if Harrison dared to attack him, he’d counter with a single mana reversal, then follow up with a Fireblast, smashing Harrison’s skull like a watermelon.
Yet, at the very moment he acted, memories of Matthew Merlin flashed before Leon’s eyes...
It was utter humiliation—Matthew Merlin sobbing, screaming, struggling, begging for mercy. But Harrison showed no intention of letting him go, toying with him like a cat with a mouse, endlessly mocking and tormenting him with one petty spell after another...
All Harrison knew was that, after that incident, he was banished from Thousand Sails City. What he didn’t know was that, after that same night, Matthew Merlin lay in bed for three whole months, waking every night from nightmares, living each day like a walking corpse...
It was these memories that made Leon change his mind.
In that final moment, it didn’t matter if a magus tried to stop him—or even a Title Archmage. Leon’s fiery blast would have gone out without hesitation.
"Guess it’s my turn..." Salomon shook his head, knowing that after all the drama, it was time to step forward himself...
By now, the magus in the gray-white robe had come down from the second floor, and the Ashen Tower mages automatically parted to make way for him.
"Salomon, step aside..."
"Don’t kid yourself, Darren. If I just step aside because you say so, I’d be laughed at till the end of my days."
"Whether people laugh at you or not is none of my concern. The only reason you’re allowed into the Ashen Tower this time is out of respect for your mentor, Star Sage Joey. If you still don’t know your place, don’t blame me for being rude..." Darren stood less than ten meters away from them, his voice cold as ice.
"Darren, do you really think those words mean anything?" Salomon wasn’t having it at all: "We’ve been at this for decades—when have you ever been polite to me?"
"Salomon, this young man you brought is truly impressive. So young, yet already strong enough to defeat Harrison—talent like that is rare indeed. But don’t forget, this is the Ashen Tower. Since he injured Harrison so badly in front of everyone, he should be prepared to pay the price."
To be honest, even Salomon had to admit that Darren’s words made a lot of sense...
As the master of Sage’s Spire, Salomon was well aware of the logic here. No matter what Harrison said or did, as long as he stood in the hall of the Ashen Tower, the Ashen Tower was obligated to stand up for him. Otherwise, who would ever be willing to serve the Ashen Tower again?
When it comes down to it, the Ashen Tower has plenty of Archmages with Harrison’s level of power—so many that Darren might not even remember his name. But Darren has to show everyone where the Ashen Tower stands.
Unfortunately, Salomon had his own troubles...
And they were serious troubles...
Darren had no idea who it was that injured Harrison so badly...
That was a member of the Order of the Arcane Hand, personally recommended by his own mentor, Star Sage Joey. Not to mention Oswald—now, this Worldshaper practically worships Merlin. If they found out Salomon failed to protect Merlin, the consequences would be unimaginable...
So Salomon didn’t even hesitate—he shook his head firmly.
"Impossible..."
"You..." Darren’s expression froze. Salomon’s resolve was completely unexpected—he’d already made his position clear, yet Salomon was still determined to protect this young man, even if it meant a fight.
"Darren, I’ll be blunt with you—I’m not handing Merlin over. If you insist on making a move, then let’s see how much you’ve improved in the last twenty years."
As Salomon spoke, the magical pressure of a top-tier Archmage erupted without hesitation. Instantly, the entire hall was filled with a heavy, suffocating tension—several weaker mages couldn’t help but show fear on their faces.
Darren frowned deeply, his eyes flickering as he fixed his gaze on Salomon, as if trying to see whether his words were genuine.
For a moment, the whole hall was thick with the tension of a drawn bowstring.
"Salomon, come upstairs!" Yet, at that very moment, another voice called down from the second floor.
From the same spot where Darren had stood before...
But this time, it was Star Sage Joey who spoke...
Joey didn’t even spare Darren a glance. He simply beckoned to Salomon from the second floor, signaling him to bring Leon up immediately. Yet, with just that simple gesture, the tense, hostile atmosphere in the hall vanished without a trace.
"Salomon, you’d better not leave that young man’s side for a second..." At the sound of Joey’s voice, Darren knew he’d missed his best chance.
Though he possessed top-tier Archmage strength—maybe even a little more than Salomon—in front of someone like Joey, a Title Archmage at the very pinnacle, he didn’t even have the right to speak. Not just him—even if all the kingdom’s top mages gathered in Rockridge, there wouldn’t be more than three who could truly match Joey. As for the rest, even his own mentor, Ashen Shadow Keith, probably fell just a bit short.
So, after gritting his teeth and saying those words, Darren simply left the hall, taking the gravely injured Harrison with him...
"Thank goodness, at least that bastard’s been scared off..." Only when Darren’s figure had fully disappeared did Salomon finally let out a long sigh of relief.
To be honest, if the two of them really fought fair, Salomon’s chances would be no more than twenty percent. After being gravely injured at the Undead Volcano years ago, Salomon hadn’t improved in twenty years. He’d watched as Darren, then just a fifth-tier Archmage, slowly caught up and was now on the verge of surpassing him. To say Salomon wasn’t worried would be a lie...
It’s possible that one day, Darren will reach the rank of Title Archmage. When that happens, if Salomon dies, his mentor and Sage’s Spire will have nothing to do with each other anymore. The rivalry between the two great mage factions would tip completely out of balance...
Luckily, Rockridge produced a Merlin.
Thinking of this, Salomon finally felt a bit more at ease. As long as Merlin and the Gilded Rose were still around, Sage’s Spire wouldn’t be wiped out by the Ashen Tower.
The two of them made their way up the stairs to the second floor, where Joey had already been waiting for a while.
"Merlin, your entry into the Order of the Arcane Hand is settled. We really have Oswald to thank for this—I never expected so much opposition at first..." Joey said as he led them toward the top floor of the Ashen Tower. "By the way, Merlin, I was originally thinking you could just bring out a few Vanrison Formula spell models tomorrow, trade with a few people, and get acquainted. But now, it looks like you can’t be so casual. Quite a few people are concerned about your age. Even though Oswald and I managed to suppress those doubts, at tomorrow’s gathering, you’ll need to present some truly profound magical knowledge to silence them once and for all..."
"Mm, I’ll think of something," Leon nodded, showing no objection to Joey’s instructions.
Originally, Leon came to attend the Order of the Arcane Hand gathering with the intention of trading magical knowledge for resources. There was no other way—right now, he had a Wraithwalker and the most powerful Soulbound Staff in his possession, and both were bottomless pits when it came to appetite for resources…
The Wraithwalker was manageable—just feed it enough mana crystals and it would be satisfied…
But the Soulbound Staff, on the other hand, was a bottomless pit that could never be filled. Twenty-eight alchemy arrays, seventeen component slots—it was enough to bankrupt a Sky-tier mage outright…
If he wanted to restore their true power, Leon had no choice but to scrape together resources by any means necessary.
Even if Joey hadn’t said anything, Leon was already prepared. At tomorrow’s Order of the Arcane Hand gathering, he would definitely bring out some magical knowledge far ahead of its time…
The three of them soon reached the top floor. This entire area had already been temporarily claimed by the Order of the Arcane Hand—even the Ashen Tower’s own mages weren’t allowed to set foot here.
The Order of the Arcane Hand gathering wouldn’t officially begin until tomorrow. After Joey gave a few more reminders, the three of them each returned to their rooms to rest…
Meanwhile, Darren’s study was interrupted by a knock from a young mage.
“C-Chairman, that Matthew Merlin… he’s gone up to the top floor…”
“Hm?” Darren’s brows instantly furrowed.
The top floor of the Ashen Tower had already been claimed by the Order of the Arcane Hand. The only ones allowed in—besides the mages attending the gathering—were their own disciples…
Could it be that Matthew Merlin wasn’t Salomon’s man, but Joey’s other disciple?
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This chapter was tough to write—I'd appreciate a vote for encouragement.