Astell Village, located in the southeastern part of the Empire.
For some reason, the villagers were gathered in one place, looking up at the sky and glancing around.
The sunset hung in the evening sky as twilight settled.
After waiting for a while, a single white dot began to appear in that sky.
“Is that it…?”
Everyone’s gaze turned toward that dot.
As the light grew larger and its shape came into view, the residents began to cheer.
“Oh, he’s here!”
“He really came!”
This was because they had confirmed the faint light emitted by the white, winged horse and the person riding upon it.
That identity was, without a doubt, Hio.
“The Saint has arrived!”
“Waaaaah!”
“Saint! Saint! Saint!”
“Please grant a blessing to our village as well!”
Two months ago, a Gate collapse occurred.
The Imperial Army and the Holy Kingdom’s forces, which were always stationed near the Gates, managed to hold it off, but strangely, the number of people suffering from fevers increased after that.
Even when the physician from the Yongjuseong investigated the symptoms directly, it was a disease of unknown cause.
It wasn’t extremely serious, but people were anxious because it simply wouldn’t heal.
In the midst of that, rumors began to circulate about an individual called the Apostle of the Goddess and the Saint.
It was said that the Saint traveled on a horse that emitted light and bestowed blessings upon the affected areas.
The rumor claimed that after that blessing, all pain would vanish.
That was why they were cheering so enthusiastically.
“…It’s a bit overwhelming.”
Of course, the more they did that, the more Hio felt burdened.
So, he intentionally did not descend to the ground but stopped in the air above the center of the village and cast a skill.
[Skill: Celestial is activated.]
Above his head, the sky opened, and the golden touch of the Goddess poured down.
“Ah, truly…”
“It’s a miracle. A miracle!”
“O Saint of Black Wings…!”
People knelt and closed their eyes to offer prayers to the holy image of the Goddess and the warm Holy Power, even though no one had told them to do so.
They had only heard the rumors, but witnessing it with their own eyes was more majestic than they had imagined and made them feel a holiness beyond thought.
How much time had passed?
The warmth that had spread far and wide gradually faded, and the coziness grew dim.
Feeling this, when they cautiously opened their eyes, he had already disappeared.
Both the golden touch of the Goddess and the presence of the pure white Saint who had been at its center.
As if it were a dream, like a momentary mirage, he was gone before they knew it.
But it was certainly not a dream or a mirage.
When they returned home, the children who had been suffering from fevers were playing perfectly fine, as if the illness had never existed.
“Thank you. Thank you, Saint…”
In their hearts, the image of the Saint floating purely in the sky was engraved once more.
[Stories about the ‘Apostle of the Goddess’ are spreading.]
[You obtain 1 Point due to an increase in reputation.]
[You have influenced the residents of Astell Village.]
[You obtain 5 Points due to an increase in reputation.]
It had already been about a month since Hio started flying around and purifying the villages near where Gates had occurred using the Phantom Steed.
With the flashy effects that were impossible to miss combined with nonsense rumors calling him a Saint or an Apostle, his Reputation Points grew at a tremendous speed.
That meant he was able to fill his lacking stats satisfactorily.
“Status window.”
[Name: Gijong☆Cheonma★]
[Strength: 100]
[Agility: 100]
[Stamina: 100]
[Magic Power: 550 (+45)]
[Spiritual Power: 50]
[Holy Power: 390]
[Main Trait: Genius of Mana Resonance]
[Sub Trait: Cannot Live Without Style!]
[Auxiliary Trait: Everything is Doubled!]
[Hidden Trait: Violence is Forbidden! (Patience: 701/1000)]
[Trait: Ghost Eyes]
[Trait: Glory]
[Skill: Thunder Emperor]
[Skill: Blue Flame]
[Skill: Death God Summon]
[Skill: Celestial]
[Stories about ‘The Destroyer of the Sky Island’ are spreading.]
[Stories about the ‘Messenger of God’ are spreading.]
[Stories about the ‘Great Magician’ are spreading.]
[Stories about the ‘Great Korean’ are spreading.]
[Stories about ‘The One Who Stood Against the Dragon’ are spreading.]
[Stories about the ‘Apostle of the Goddess’ are spreading.]
[Stories about the ‘Saint of Black Wings’ are spreading.]
Reputation, once the foundation is properly laid, continues to grow in size like a rolling snowball.
That was the case with the stories about the Saint now, and it was the same with the rumors about the Guardian Knight before.
Points kept rolling in as rumors related to major events spread widely.
Hio had expected this much, but what he didn’t expect was the outside world.
He heard that rumors in the outside world, namely Earth, grow rapidly in a short time, but die down just as quickly.
Since he had experienced his reputation rising at an incredible speed, he thought the rumors would subside just as fast… but for some reason, stories about him were still steadily spreading in the outside world.
The rumors hadn’t settled down yet and continued to spread, bringing in points.
Well, he didn’t know the reason for sure, but it was a good thing for Hio anyway.
“With this, can I consider that I’ve looked around the Empire for the most part?”
-It seems so. Honestly, this isn’t something one should do for long.
With Astell Village as the last stop, he had visited all the Gate occurrence sites reported within the Empire.
Since most of the Gates were concentrated in the Empire, it took quite a while, but eventually, he succeeded in purifying all regions.
As for Hibernia and other kingdoms, the number of Gates was small, and high priests of Liphyue, including Saint Irina, were personally stepping forward to purify them, so it would be fine.
Arilleia had also had its Abyssal Curse extinguished by Hio, who moved there using the Tower of Mages portal.
“It’s a relief I raised my stats. If I hadn’t, it would have taken much longer.”
It was something made possible because he had significantly raised his Holy Power and evenly increased his other basic stats over the past month.
Otherwise, he would have struggled with insufficient Holy Power and stamina.
-Let’s return to the Tower of Mages quickly. There’s still a lot of work to do.
However, he had only barely solved one major problem.
There was still much to do.
He had learned a few more 5th Circle spells, but he hadn’t been able to fully concentrate because he was doing purification work at the same time.
He hadn’t even been able to touch Necromancy or magic from other special schools, and had only barely mastered a few elemental spells among the magic books Furnel had selected.
So, it was time to return to the Tower of Mages and focus on magic.
Until the Gates appeared again and the 53rd floor opened.
To move forward diligently, the Phantom Steed carrying Hio cut through the darkening sky and headed south.
The Magician’s House closest to here was the Berden Southern Independent Outpost. A quiet mountain valley where Hio’s first master lay in peaceful sleep.
It was the Last Mage’s Tomb.
***
The sound of tall weeds brushing against his trouser legs and the chirping of grass insects were the only noises here at the Last Mage’s Tomb.
Since even the Kobold’s Domain, which had been situated nearby like a master of the land, had been erased, it was a silent mountain valley where not a single person passed by.
The nameless white flowers blooming in front of the grave had dropped their pretty petals and were preparing for hibernation.
Perhaps when winter passed and spring arrived, they would bloom again and flutter with the spring breeze.
Just like that spring day this year when they saw him off, telling him to have a safe trip.
Hio sat down on the dirt floor and looked at the grave.
“It’s been a while. Master.”
There was no answer.
Instead, the grass insects only chirped even louder.
“When I left here, there were so many things I didn’t know, but now a lot has changed.”
The First Circle, which he had completed by blindly engraving it into his heart because he didn’t know the full meaning of the Circle Inscription or how to engrave it.
That version of himself had somehow returned as a 5th Circle Magician.
“If you were by my side, you would have really liked it. It’s a real shame.”
He had moved forward without rest for a year, but there was certainly some leisure time.
Yet, why hadn’t he visited the grave even once?
It wasn’t that he had forgotten.
It wasn’t that it was difficult to visit. He could have just taken a portal.
Despite that, the reason he didn’t visit was, well.
He would have to think about it.
“Outside, every day is a war, but here is the same. Quiet and comfortable.”
The bumpy tombstone placed next to the grave and the crooked handwriting engraved on it.
– The Great Archmage. Berga Pavlenko.
Even that was exactly the same.
A tombstone made with the best Hio could do back when he had nothing and knew nothing.
Now, he could make it much larger, straighter, and flashier, but he didn’t.
Even if he made it much larger and flashier, it could not surpass the indignation he swallowed while engraving that, nor the determination to complete magic at all costs.
“I’m glad I came after all.”
It feels like starting from the beginning again.
He thought he had become quite strong, but doesn’t it feel like he still has a long way to go?
Because he was still far from fulfilling his promise to Berga.
The determination of that day.
The promise he made while showing off the fake Blue Flame.
Berga’s tears that flowed along with his bold ambition to surely complete the ultimate magic.
All of that was engraved in his heart once more, as if it had happened just yesterday.
“Still, you’re probably curious about how much your only disciple has grown…”
Hio picked up the staff he had set down, placed his hat back on his head, and stood up.
It was to show not a fake skill like before, but true magic and its power.
He felt sorry in his own way.
It weighed on his mind.
Because it felt like he had decorated Berga’s final moments with a lie.
The fact that Berga had left like that without giving him a chance to make an excuse remained as a lingering regret in his heart.
He wanted to show the greatness of real magic, not a falsehood created by a skill.
So, he turned his back, looked up at the sky the grave was facing, and moved his mana.
One by one, lights were lit in the Circle Inscriptions that were quietly rotating around his heart, and that power, like a miracle, gathered together.
When he held his staff straight up and pointed toward the high sky, a deep red light gathered at its tip.
That was the second 5th Circle spell he had mastered.
“Fire Pillar.”
The red light shot from the tip of the staff drew two massive Magic Circles in the air.
And a giant pillar of fire soared between them.
It burned fiercely as if it would incinerate everything, large and intimidating, but…
This alone was not enough.
“Fire Pillar.”
Flash— Several streaks of red light were shot out.
Eight Magic Circles were drawn.
Four giant fire pillars burned between them.
Still, it was insufficient.
“Fire Pillar.”
Dozens of red lights were shot out.
Twenty Magic Circles were drawn.
Ten fire pillars burned.
The fifteen massive pillars of fire soon dominated the sky, revealing their magnificent violence without filtering.
Yet, it was not the end.
He pushed his magic even more fiercely. Mana moving in a different direction.
The lights on several inscriptions went out, and lights entered other inscriptions in sequence.
And immediately,
“Explosion.”
A baptism of explosions embroidered the air.
Kwah-boom—!
Massive explosions erupted between the pillars of fire that were still burning.
Kwah-boom!
Kwah-boooom—!
Massive explosions embroidered the air as if the apocalypse had arrived, but as if even this were not enough, he twisted the direction of his mana once more.
As if he were going to unfold every spell he had learned to its limit, he prepared the third spell without rest.
This time, nearly half of the inscriptions lost their light, and the inscriptions on the exact opposite side lit up.
Since he had shown two high-temperature fire attribute spells, this time it was the opposite, the ultimate cold.
A pale sky-blue light gathered at the tip of the staff, and the staff vibrated slightly.
As that light gradually deepened, the light gathered as if it would burst. Only when it had gathered to the limit was it finally emitted.
“Ray of Frost.”
It was a beam of ultra-low temperature frost.
Kwahhhhhhh—
Over the dying pillars of fire and beside them, an arctic beam of light surged exactly where Hio’s staff pointed.
A light of frost that would freeze everything it touched.
As the light that had been freely emitted into the air withered, the next spell was completed without a moment’s rest.
“Wind Blade.”
An invisible blade made of wind.
An invisible sword that was difficult to even sense unless one was sensitive to Qi.
The swords of wind began to slash through the helpless air.
This was a feast of magic with no order or rules.
But because the power contained in each one was immense, it was an art of beautiful disorder.
The pillar of fire, Fire Pillar.
The powerful area explosion, Explosion.
The ultra-low temperature frost beam, Ray of Frost.
The sword of wind, Wind Blade.
These four were the 5th Circle spells he had mastered during the month.
He had displayed all elemental spells except for Blink in front of Berga Pavlenko’s grave. He had unleashed them with all his might as far as his mana could reach, using the inherent power of magic rather than skills.
As if Berga were watching, he put in his best effort, pouring out mana to the limit.
Perhaps… he might be watching.
The soul of Berga, who was the very yearning for magic itself, might still remain.
It is said that the stronger the lingering regret, the more the soul does not leave and wanders the place where its flesh resided.
Then how great must be the regret of Berga, who could not perform proper magic until the very end?
The reason he hadn’t visited the grave until now might have been for that reason.
Because he had boasted that he would complete the ultimate magic, yet he had been relying only on skills instead of magic.
Because of such a side of himself, he might have unintentionally avoided it, fearing that Berga, who might remain, would be disappointed.
But it was different now.
Because he had become a magician that anyone could be proud of as a full-fledged mage.
“Phew…”
Hio, who had poured out all his magic into the air, slowly turned his head.
A single grave that was keeping its place as always, unchanging.
If Berga’s soul hadn’t left, what would he say upon seeing him like this?
That he was proud.
That he had really worked hard.
Wouldn’t he pat him on the shoulder with a boisterous laugh, just like the smiling face in his memory?
Then what should he say?
With a bit of pleasant tension, Hio activated Ghost Eyes.
It also contained anticipation.
Hadn’t he seen countless souls that couldn’t leave because of lingering regrets during this time?
Berga’s life was magic itself.
But he hadn’t even made a proper start, let alone reached the end of magic, so his soul would surely remain, and they would soon be able to reunite.
Hio thought so.
[Trait: Ghost Eyes is activated.]
But.
“…Of course.”
Even though he changed his eyes to ash gray, nothing had changed.
A single, silent grave.
A clean mountain valley grave where not even a trace of a soul could be found.
Despite yearning for magic so much, Berga had left without a single shred of regret.
If he were to think about how that could be possible.
Well.
“Stubborn old man.”
Wasn’t it because he firmly believed in the last determination of his only disciple?
Wasn’t it because he was certain that his stubborn disciple would surely complete magic and become a great magician even if he weren’t there?
“You won’t even let me rest.”
It meant there was no time to care about hollow words like the Apostle of the Goddess or the Saint.
He didn’t know if he could reach the end of magic even if he tried harder than now.
Since he didn’t know if he could complete the ultimate magic.
He had to… strive and move forward even more.
Standing still and looking at the grave, the promise of that day was engraved once more in Hio’s heart.
Not even the sound of a single grass insect could be heard in the surroundings.
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