Vol 2 Chapter 12

After that, Lucrecian and Sio said their goodbyes, saying they needed to log off now.

"Well then, hyung. Don't forget me until we meet again. You too, hyungs over there."

"Ah..."

Rather than a farewell, his tone was one of certainty that they would meet again later. Before they could react, Lucrecian winked and disappeared in an instant.

The three left behind were dumbfounded for a while, stunned by the absurdity of it all.

"...It feels like a storm has passed."

Yu-wan muttered quietly after a long time. Kapros agreed and checked the magic book in his inventory window. His mind was at ease with the evidence that he had completed this quest.

"So, do we have to leave again now?"

Kran spoke in a dejected tone, seemingly having shaken off his anger towards Lucrecian.

"I suppose so."

Kapros answered softly, looking at the magic book in his hand.

Before leaving, they decided to finish up any loose ends here first. Kran went out saying he would look for quest clues, and Yu-wan helped Kapros with sword training for about 30 minutes after logging in, before they each started their own practice.

"Phew..."

Kapros was now training in Dispel, the last magic of the 5th circle spellbook. Judging that mastering the 5th circle quickly would be necessary for their future journey, he had been focusing solely on magic training for the past few days. Of course, the stimulation from meeting various skilled individuals in Tolang had a big influence as well.

But more than anything else, there was something else that ignited his will.

"Open item window."

As soon as he muttered these words while taking a short break, a translucent item window opened before his eyes. Superior's magic book inside it. The first time Kapros had opened it was right after parting with Lucrecian.

"Oh, Kap? Is that what you got from this quest?"

As Kapros took out the magic book from the item window, Kran approached, pretending to know.

"Yeah."

"Wow, that's amazing. What kind of magic is in it?"

"I'm about to see now."

Kapros answered, leisurely looking down at Superior's magic book that fit snugly in his hand. This was the magic book he had been longing for so much. He felt so good that even the memories of struggling through the quest seemed to fly away.

Expecting that whatever magic was in here would be on a different level from what he had learned so far, he caressed the cover and turned a page. Suddenly, a red sphere of light burst forth from inside the book.

"Whoa."

Kran stepped back in surprise, but Kapros didn't move and stared intently at it. Soon, a clear voice was heard from within the light.

[One who will inherit my magic.]

'Lord Superior...!'

It was undoubtedly Superior's voice that he had heard in the quest video.

[One who will inherit my magic, your achievement level is still woefully low. To be frank, I have no desire to pass on my magic to someone who hasn't even become a Tower Master. None whatsoever. How dare you try to learn my magic with that level of skill? So, try your hardest, and open this again when you are sufficiently qualified.]

Swoosh...

Unlike the initial excitement, Kapros became increasingly stiff as he listened to the following words. The red light shrank back and disappeared into the book, leaving him behind. Then it closed by itself and fell to the floor with a thud.

"..."

Yu-wan and Kran had initially watched this strange spectacle with interest, but now they were looking more fearfully at Kapros's face in front of the book. Kapros, dumbfounded, stared blankly at the closed book for a while, then roughly flipped open the cover. Once again, a red light burst forth.

[Ah. I forgot to mention that it's impossible to open this magic book again until you're qualified. Well then.]

Slam!

"..."

Kapros tried to open the cover of the closed book again. But this time, no matter how much force he applied, the book wouldn't open. Damn it!

"...Kap."

As Kapros was gripping the book, exerting all his strength, Yu-wan, who had approached him at some point, grabbed his arm.

"Stop it."

"...Alright."

Yu-wan's hand hesitated, seemingly surprised by the unexpected compliance. Kran, who had been fidgeting, also stiffened his shoulders at the same time.

"This isn't the game's fault, but the fault of the one who made it, right?"

Kapros said with a smile.

"K-Kap!"

Kran, pale-faced, grabbed Kapros's other hand. But Kapros was already seething with anger to the tips of his hair.

"Fireball!"

Whoosh!

"Gasp! You can't burn this, Kap! Calm down!"

"Let go."

"It's just a book!"

After Yu-wan desperately tried to stop him, Kapros finally gave up on burning Superior's magic book. However, the anger was still alive. Even if he could understand the qualification restriction, he couldn't fathom the mindset of the person who thought making something like this was fun.

"Fine, I'll show you."

Kapros declared, lowering his eyes towards the book.

He guessed that the Tower Master, which the book mentioned as the qualification measure, probably referred to someone who had mastered all the magic books up to the 5th circle given by the Wizard Tower. It was a credible guess since Superior's swordsmanship also had a 5th circle restriction.

And thanks to his anger turning into strength, now only Dispel, the last magic of the 5th circle, was waiting for him. Judging that he had rested enough, Kapros stood up and looked again at the incantation in the 5th circle magic book.

[Lower being, you shall not approach - Dispel]

He liked that the incantation was extremely short, probably for practicality.

Since Kapros had seen Dispel in action once when the old mage who gave him the quest at the magic tower in Torelit, where he first received the Superior quest, used it, it was relatively easy to grasp the image. But the problem lay elsewhere.

"Lower being."

Kapros drew circles simultaneously with his right and left hands.

As a magic circle appeared beneath his feet and white light followed the trajectory of his fingertips, green lines quickly began to draw vertically and horizontally over the small room. As soon as the formula world was completed, magical power gathered in both hands inserted into the circles. Slowly swirling and enveloping his hands, it grew larger and faster until it felt like his body might be sucked in.