Leslie was the second First Order mber to die after Esralda.
However, the problem was that Rudger was in the Kasar Basin where Leslie died.
Moreover, a certain rumor began to circulate.
The rumor was that Rudger Chelici contributed to the stabilization of the Kasar Basin and killed Leslie.
From the Black Dawn Society’s perspective, this could only be seen as betrayal.
“What’s the internal reaction like?”
“It’s exactly split in half.”
Sedina spilled the information she had brought.
“It’s divided between those who suspect the teacher and those who defend him.”
“What are the main points of each argunt?”
“Those who are suspicious say that the teacher betrayed the Black Dawn Society by working with soone. They argue that otherwise, there’s no way Rudger Chelici’s na would have gained such prestige at the ti of First Order Leslie’s death.”
“Interesting. And the opposite?”
“This side has grasped more of the context. They say that you were unaware of the events unfolding in the Kasar Basin.”
It was quite an interesting story.
Rudger gestured for her to continue speaking.
“As soone acting as an infiltrated agent, an incident occurred at the place you visited. And it was a situation where you would have died if you hadn’t dealt with it. Their main argunt is that fighting for survival deserves consideration.”
Above all, the fact that the Black Dawn Society was an organization with intense internal competition must have played a part.
Though mbers serving under the sa First Order are said to have camaraderie towards each other, even that isn’t perfect.
Just look at the wish-granting stone incident.
Hadn’t the Second Order acted recklessly, coveting the First Order position?
The Black Dawn Society had a strong hierarchy but was also a place where even greater ambitions stirred beyond that.
It wasn’t strange for First Orders to kill each other.
The biggest evidence was that the Zero Order turned a blind eye to such aspects.
“I also think we should obviously look at it from the latter perspective, but there are surprisingly many who doubt your loyalty.”
“Soone is deliberately stoking these suspicions behind the scenes.”
“Yes. And that would probably be…”
“Nikolai.”
Rudger imdiately arrived at the answer.
From the start, only Zero Order and First Orders could exert such influence over all mbers of the Black Dawn Society.
Zero Order wouldn’t do such a thing. He’s a thorough non-interventionist and doesn’t care how many of his subordinates die.
Then it must be a First Order.
Among them, it was clearly Nikolai, who had always viewed Rudger unfavorably.
Nikolai was particularly skilled at information warfare.
Spreading rumors within the organization would be an easy task for him.
“What will you do? It seems this atmosphere might settle down a bit if you prove your innocence…”
“Ignore it.”
“What? B-but…”
Sedina stumbled over her words at the instruction to ignore it.
Of course she would, as those ignorant fools were daring to doubt Teacher Rudger.
In fact, if you looked into it, Rudger was indeed responsible for causing First Order Leslie’s death.
However, officially, Leslie’s death was attributed to the appearance of the Earth Elent Lord.
At least, that’s what Sedina knew.
But Nikolai cunningly spoke as if Rudger had orchestrated Leslie’s death.
Sedina found it hard to endure this act of spreading false rumors by distorting the truth.
That’s why she reported this news to Rudger, but Rudger responded indifferently as if it didn’t matter at all.
“No matter what I say, those who don’t believe will continue to doubt. Perhaps they’re expecting to co forward and deny it.”
“Shouldn’t we speak the truth all the more because of that?”
“I can’t exactly say I had no influence on Leslie’s death. Though it was for survival, the fact remains that I fought him. Nikolai will persistently cling to that point.”
What would follow would be a drawn-out mud-slinging fight, that’s what the other side wants and is trying to induce.
In that case, the opposite approach would be to cleanly ignore it.
Even if the other side beckons from the mud, simply stand above it elegantly with hands behind your back and don’t even pretend to listen.
“Let them say whatever they want. Anyway, he can only spread rumors like this; he can’t expel from the organization. That authority belongs solely to Zero Order.”
“B-but still…”
“Sedina, I understand your frustration but you need to look at the bigger picture. If Zero Order says nothing, Nikolai’s claims will eventually lose strength and disappear. Ti will naturally resolve this matter.”
And as far as Rudger knew, Zero Order would not hold him accountable for this.
“What if Zero Order does hold you responsible?”
Sedina’s face was full of worry, unable to rule out such a possibility.
“I have a thod planned for that too.”
“A thod?”
Instead of answering, Rudger raised his magical power as if to show through action.
The mana in his body gathered and writhed above his right palm, soon taking on an elental form.
In the form of steel – solid and heavy, yet smooth and refined.
Sedina’s eyes widened at the sight of the steel cube floating in the air.
“Th-that’s…”
“This is Leslie’s original tal magic. Steel Cube. Leslie uses these to combine various tal magics.”
Sedina’s mouth fell open.
Though she hadn’t seen it directly, she had heard about it.
First Order Leslie was said to be a master of tal magic.
His tal magic was on a different level from other crude tal magic, it was more standardized and refined, and even quite elegant.
That was the magic that earned him the title of master and this tal cube was his unique magic that belonged only to him.
Yet now Rudger was demonstrating the exact sa thing.
“How did you do that?”
“I watched and analyzed while fighting and clashing.”
“…Pardon?”
What did that an?
Sedina couldn’t imdiately comprehend what she had just heard.
“Is that possible?”
What is magic?
Though it uses mana as a material, isn’t it a discipline that requires highly complex and multifaceted approaches?
You can’t simply replicate sothing just by watching soone create fire.
Within that seemingly simple process lies the flow of magical power, the composition of techniques, the sequence of constructing them, subtle power control, and more.
It’s truly a complex process with all these elents embedded within.
That’s why you can’t copy it just by watching.
Just as no one knows what’s inside a gift box just by looking at it.
And it’s not sothing you can grasp just by clashing directly either.
If that were possible, magicians would all be fighters pointing their staves at each other.
Perhaps sensing Sedina’s bewildered gaze, Rudger spoke in a calm tone.
“I’m not saying I copied it perfectly.”
Rudger said this while rotating the cube above his hand.
Looking closely, the cube, about the size of an adult’s fist, was actually a collection of even smaller cubes.
“It’s impossible to perfectly copy soone else’s magic. What I did is rely imitation.”
“Imitation, you say?”
“Yes. It’s just taking what I saw, heard, and felt, and reinterpreting it in my own way. In fact, this steel cube is quite inferior compared to Leslie’s.”
Rudger recalled Leslie’s – that is, Belkart Benmark’s steel cube.
He used tal and electric current to utilize magnetic magic, and through that, he freely coordinated and utilized vast amounts of tal.
Although it should be considered stronger than usual power since it was used in a way that burned life force.
Even without that, Belkart’s magic itself showed no room for underestimation.
Rudger drew inspiration from such magic, and thus implented it in his own way.
All the magic he used was like that.
They were all just reconstructed in his own way through inspiration, mories, knowledge, and information gathered from sowhere.
“Isn’t that amazing in itself?”
“I’m not so sure about that.”
Rudger knows soone who can use magic exactly the sa way just by looking at it.
Although they’re not actually human, but rather a legendary being existing in this world.
Having grown under such a master, Rudger didn’t particularly think his abilities were that exceptional.
“Whatever the case, if I show this magic appropriately, the suspicious gazes will naturally disappear.”
Rudger using Leslie’s unique magic?
Leslie, who was deeply loyal to Zero Order, wouldn’t have taught his magic to a traitor.
Naturally, most people would think that Rudger had ford so kind of collaboration with Leslie.
“Not everyone will believe it.”
“I’m not hoping for everyone either but we can bring this exactly divided flow to one side. That’s enough. There’s no need to pay any more attention to it.”
Since Rudger put it that way, Sedina didn’t press further.
Rather, she couldn’t help but feel impressed anew by Leslie’s magic that Rudger had shown.
‘Teacher is truly amazing!’
To so casually demonstrate sothing that others would be desperate to show off.
Perhaps that made it seem even more impressive.
“Are there any other news?”
“Ah, yes. It’s related to the Old Magic Tower.”
“Tell .”
“After the incident at the Night of Mystery this ti, the Old Magic Tower’s position has greatly faltered.”
That was quite good news.
Of course, Rudger had already known this would happen.
“And?”
“The Old Magic Tower has expelled Gregorium, the person in charge who participated in the Night of Mystery at the ti.”
Rudger recalled the face of that old man full of desire.
He also rembered the threatening words he had muttered before leaving, saying to just wait and see but in the end, after returning to the Old Magic Tower, he couldn’t keep his word.
The Old Magic Tower pinned the bla on Gregorium and expelled him in an attempt to sohow restore their tarnished image.
“Unexpected. To think they’d cut off the tail.”
“It seems the Old Magic Tower has endured considerable losses.”
“They would normally have defended their own people, have they had a change of heart?”
Rudger crossed his arms, finding it interesting.
The Old Magic Tower made the big decision to expel Gregorium.
Though not an elder, he was equivalent to one.
It was a result that contradicted the Old Magic Tower’s usual brazen behavior unless sothing significant happened.
Were they that desperate, or was it the result of another internal faction fight?
It didn’t seem bad to watch that unfold.
* * *
“Damn it!”
Gregorium vented his anger while trembling his beard.
His personal research room and office was already a ss due to his rage.
Though he had destroyed everything, Gregorium’s anger has not subsided.
“, they so easily expelled who devoted myself so much to the Magic Tower? Do they know how much I’ve done until now!”
After the incident at the Night of Mystery, the Magic Tower elders expelled him on the grounds that he had tarnished the Old Magic Tower’s image.
It wasn’t simply a suspension or position change.
Literally, Gregorium had fallen from the Old Magic Tower like a puppet with cut strings.
It was truly an unprecedented extre asure.
For Gregorium, it was an incomprehensible situation.
He had been there for decades and achieved many rits.
Moreover, he maintained close relationships with many figures in the Old Magic Tower.
To slightly exaggerate, even if he committed serial murder, within the Old Magic Tower they would only warn him not to do it again.
Yet they so blatantly expelled soone like him?
‘If they’re expelling soone of my status, it ans it was decided by the Council of Elders. That ans a majority agreed.’
Though there were people among the elders he didn’t get along with, it was hard to believe that a majority had agreed to expel him.
At this point, it seed like there must be so other conspiracy at work.
In fact, there was sothing suspicious.
When his expulsion was decided, Gregorium contacted an elder he was close with through a private line.
He appealed emotionally, asking how they could so easily throw him away.
However, unlike their usually friendly attitude, the other party seed very reluctant to answer.
‘Just what’s going on?’
Whatever the case, Gregorium was no longer a magician of the Old Magic Tower.
The unfortunate incident at the Night of Mystery was ultimately transferred to Gregorium’s personal responsibility.
“You filthy bastards. Fine, let’s see how well you do.”
Gregorium left his office.
The Old Magic Tower magicians wandering the corridor passed by pretending not to see him.
Usually, they would have frozen and bowed their heads, but now their behavior was completely opposite.
Gregorium quietly ground his teeth at their reaction and walked outside the building.
Looking back, he could see the Old Magic Tower rising high as if to pierce the sky.
When he first saw this sight in his youth, his heart had beaten more passionately than anything else, but now it just looked cold.
Gregorium looked up at the top of the Old Magic Tower with a complicated expression before trudging along the road.
“To the station.”
He boarded the prepared carriage and gave a brief order to the coachman.
The carriage departed. While it was said that in the new city of Leathervelk, carriages were pulled by horse-shaped golems, there were no such things at the Old Magic Tower’s headquarters.
At the Old Magic Tower’s headquarters, where they considered magitech not to be magic, carriages were pulled directly by horses.
It was ironic considering the claims of comntators that the Old Magic Tower led the world’s trends.
As Gregorium was thinking this, he frowned at the scenery outside.
The path the carriage was taking now was clearly not heading to the station.
“Hey. Just where are you…”
Just as he was about to question the coachman, Gregorium discovered that soone was sitting in the seat opposite him.
When did they…?
Gregorium stared at the other person with unbelieving eyes.
They clearly hadn’t existed, but when he ca to his senses, they were there in front of him.
Was he dreaming now? Or was it a hallucination?
“Nice to et you.”
A black-haired young man with beautiful features, who was like a mirage, opened his mouth.
“Wh-who are you?”
“No need to know my na.”
The young man smiled gently.
“Just call Zero Order comfortably.”
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