Chapter 10: The War Mage’s Philosophy

What did I just hear?

Did I hear that correctly?

Levan’s pupils narrowed.

But unlike Levan’s narrowed eyes, Rubix spoke proudly, his nose practically bleeding from excitement.

“Exactly. You must now follow in my footsteps and carry out the Blood Vengeance that all mages in the world have long wished for.”

“Why on earth?”

“Why? Because I have a grudge against those bastards.”

No, I’m asking why you have a grudge.

But Rubix didn’t seem to care about Levan’s stunned expression and continued his story.

“Heh heh, then let me formally introduce myself. My name is Rubix. I was an unparalleled Archmage in Pantinel’s history and also the unfortunate genius despised by all other mages. Thanks to that, I fought with those guys until my dying breath, and some even called me a war god.”

Archmage, unfortunate genius, war god.

Every one of those keywords sounds incredible.

How on earth did Rubix end up with such titles?

With a tone like a self-written autobiography, Rubix began his story.

“Archmage, genius, war god... On the surface, they might sound like arrogance. But those aren’t arrogance at all. I truly was the greatest genius of my time, but for some reason, I was hated. And somehow, that hatred grew to the point where I became an enemy to every mage.”

“May I ask why?”

“Nothing special. It was just a mixture of mutual hatred that grew stronger and stronger until it turned into pure hatred. But honestly, I still don’t understand why they hate me. Of course, I understand it intellectually, but emotionally, I can’t forgive it yet.”

Rubix tapped his head once, then placed his hand on his chest.

In other words, he understood it logically but couldn’t forgive it emotionally.

So why did the mages hate Rubix, who was called the genius of the era?

Levan calmly approached the question.

“Could it have been jealousy?”

“Jealousy… Hmm, that’s a reasonable guess. The truth is, I constantly pushed a certain idea to the other mages, but instead of accepting it or even trying to understand it, they rejected it outright.”

“What idea was that?”

“Nothing fancy. I claimed that the stagnant mages had to break their current limits to become stronger than they are now.”

“Limits?”

“Yes. This limit here.”

Rubix suddenly flexed his chest muscles with all his might.

Then, striking a pose like a bodybuilder, he showed his bulging veins and powerful muscles to Levan.

What is this?

Why the sudden muscle show?

Is this the right moment for praise?

Levan’s mind was in chaos.

Unable to figure out the meaning behind the sudden muscle display, Levan calmly asked again.

“...Sorry, Rubix-nim, I’m a little dense and don’t understand your deeper meaning. Could you please explain a bit more kindly?”

“Hmm, I suppose I can. How about this?”

At Levan’s prompting, Rubix nodded and suddenly pulled out a fist-sized stone somewhere, smashing it with his bare fist.

Crack!

With a heavy sound, the stone shattered cleanly as if sliced by a blade.

Muscle show and now this strength demonstration — what exactly is Rubix trying to say?

Wait, is this guy really a mage?

Levan was confused.

Then, suddenly, a phrase popped into Levan’s head.

“Could it be...?”

Seeing the chance, Levan immediately asked Rubix.

“Rubix-nim, did you really recommend physical training, like exercise, to other mages to listen to you?”

“You are truly my successor. I knew you’d understand after just two words.”

Oh, I see.

So the muscle show and strength display meant exactly that.

Levan recalled the saying about most geniuses being crazy or weird.

“In my era, knights used to say, ‘Strength is power.’ Of course, at the time, I didn’t quite get it. Because to win wars, a single powerful magic was far more efficient than hundreds of sword strikes.”

“That’s true. It makes sense.”

“Raising mages is hard, but once they become top-tier monsters, their individual firepower rivals entire armies.”

“One day, the enemy sent Mage Killers to block our mages’ flow of mana and kill them.”

“Mage Killers?”

“Exactly. They were specialized assassins trained to kill mages. Anyway, we lost many mages to the Mage Killers that day. A mage who can’t use magic is basically useless compared to ordinary people.”

That’s true.

A mage who can’t use magic is like a ninja without shuriken or a thief without lockpicks.

“After that day, I barely survived thanks to late-arriving knights, but I realized something: magic is not perfect. It’s just one among countless powers.”

From then on, the Archmage Rubix started training his body to protect himself.

“So, Rubix-nim, when you say ‘physical training,’ you mean exercise?”

“Exercise is basic. What I wanted was martial arts skills that could rival even knights.”

“Hah.”

“Remember that blow you gave me on the waist? You think it was just a simple punch?”

Could it have been a technical strike?

Levan shuddered recalling the terrible pain burning in his waist.

Rubix continued.

“Magic is powerful, but also inefficient.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“Exactly. Magic itself is a strong force, but if you follow a path carved out like a refined gem for a long time, anyone can achieve a certain level. But that’s all. There’s a clear limit.”

The world calls that the difference between ordinary and genius.

And when most people face that wall, they pick one of two options.

They either give up or spend their lives struggling to break through.

“But some walls can never be crossed no matter how much you try. That’s magic.”

So Rubix encouraged many mages to practice martial arts as a way to compensate for that limit and strengthen their physical power.

He believed progress should come from multiple perspectives.

Levan nodded thoughtfully and asked.

“Rubix-nim, so you started physical training not only because of the Mage Killers but also because you felt limits in magical achievement?”

“Hm? That’s not it.”

“Huh?”

“I said I was the greatest genius of my time. I lived not knowing limits until I died. I was just interested in ways to get stronger.”

Ah, thinking back, this guy was a war mage.

A war mage is literally a mage trained for war.

So from a magical standpoint, he must have already achieved all the accomplishments he wanted.

As Levan thought about this, he vaguely understood why Rubix was hated by other mages.

“Spouting nonsense like that, it’s only natural you’d get exposed.”

Think about it.

Someone born a mage, struggling to achieve magical greatness by working their hardest, is told to do physical training instead — something that might never work.

Isn’t that just arrogant?

“I’d want to kill him too.”

Levan sighed.

War mages seemed like a respectable profession, but whoever created this class must have been like Rubix.

But the water is spilled; it can’t be taken back.

Rubix said, “Anyway, from then on, I called myself a war mage and searched for others willing to walk the path with me. But no one understood.”

“Of course.”

From an objective perspective, Rubix’s proposal might have been quite good.

If you can look at yourself objectively.

But most people can’t see themselves so coldly.

No, beyond that, who would want to admit their limits?

Rubix went on.

“It was sad. So I decided to prove how strong a war mage could be.”

“How did you do that?”

“I asked a knight friend. He told me knights measure strength by duels. So I challenged all the strongest mages to duels. Before I knew it, all the kingdom’s mages were under my feet.”

Unlike Rubix’s proud words, Levan was shocked.

A mage going dojo-breaking?

Sure, the knights were right, but still...

Despite the explanation, Rubix showed no hesitation.

Levan asked while listening.

“But… isn’t it a bit suspicious for you, Rubix-nim, to be dueling other mages?”

Levan’s sharp observation was fair.

Rubix had already achieved sufficient magical accomplishments as an Archmage.

“Of course you could see it that way. It’s fair to feel it was unfair. So I handicapped myself in every duel.”

“What kind of handicap?”

“For example, as a war mage, to prove my physical strength, I only used magic two tiers lower than my opponent and limited my mana usage to match theirs. Even with those conditions, I lost every single time.”

That might sound fair on the surface, but it was really just a master’s excuse for bullying beginners.

Levan shook his head and asked.

“Then why did they try to kill you? Even though it was a fair duel?”

“No, the last duel wasn’t fair. It was a trap. They pretended it was a proper duel but killed me with dirty tricks. At that time, I limited my magic and mana to keep the rules.”

“Th-then the revenge...”

“That’s right. Luckily, I met a kind god and became a divine seat. It was a blessing, but had I died so easily, it would have been the most unfair thing.”

Then.

Ding!

[You have listened to all of Rubix’s backstory.]