Chapter 97: Dream Magician (5k8)
The assessment was temporarily halted.
The scene was chaotic; the junior students were trembling with fear because of the Black Magic circle, worried they might have been cursed.
Mil felt his heart rate had shot up to two hundred.
The school began an investigation, and soon the Tribunal also sent a request to intervene.
Mil was very angry about this matter; everyone could have coexisted peacefully, but someone insisted on courting death by jumping out.
However, Mil also felt something was off. Since he knew his identity as a Black Magician, why didn't he directly report him to the Tribunal?
Afterward, using his identity from the Tribunal, he greeted Lilith and slipped away early, as he had no classes in the afternoon anyway.
However, he didn't leave the school directly but plunged into the library.
The afternoon sun illuminated the giant astrological map on the walls of the Great Library, and the sunlight filtered through stained glass cut the long tables into colorful blocks.
"Meridiana, help me find the relationship between Tian Geng Beyond, dreams, and the original site. See how it can be destroyed. Also, inform Ibon that this operation is very important to me."
"Yes, My Lord."
Tian Geng Beyond is usually only accessible to high-ranking school officials. This assessment was the only chance to infiltrate it.
Mil held the succubus book in one hand and searched for related books on the shelves with the other:
"Oh, right, have you found the forbidden art to strengthen the dragon heart?"
"Well, I've found some, but—it requires the use of dark attribute magic, which he might not accept. The remaining ones probably can't be called forbidden arts. However, the efficiency is still considerable."
"Organize the relevant information for me."
Just as he finished speaking, the crystal chandelier suddenly brightened, and footsteps came from a distance. Mil quickly put away the succubus book and looked back.
It was Lilith.
Her dark blue satin wizard robe rippled with her steps, and the subtle patterns at her waist outlined her graceful curves as she moved. Her brownish-red braid hung down to her collar:
"I was really worried about you."
"It should be Aserville who did it."
Saying this, Mil hugged the last chosen book and walked to a long table nearby, saying:
"Actually, I originally thought that since Tian Geng Beyond is a dream, we would enter it by entering a dream. But after checking, I found out we have to enter it physically?"
"It is indeed a dream. Previous students have always entered it by dreaming, but that's too dangerous..."
Lilith also sat down beside him and continued:
"Thirty years ago, two genius magicians projected the dream into reality, creating the current Tian Geng Beyond."
"Which two?"
"One is the current school astrologer, the manager of the Star Orbit Tower, Professor Ayla. The other is the Dream Magician—Theron."
Hearing this name, Mil's expression froze, and he frowned, asking:
"Is he the culprit behind the girls' coma?"
"Yes—Dream Alchemy is Theron's most skilled alchemy, capable of projecting things from dreams into reality."
"Then if I dream of 100,000 catties of gold, wouldn't I get rich by projecting it out?"
Mil's expression was strange; such powerful magic seemed a bit too heaven-defying.
Lilith, however, shook her head and said:
"What's projected out is 'dream matter,' which cannot leave the scope of the dream. So, the enlightenment fruit also cannot be brought from Tian Geng Beyond into reality."
Hearing this, Mil pouted slightly in disappointment, while Lilith continued:
"In the Fourth black magic crown War, Theron was everyone's nightmare. Anyone who entered a dream would become his lamb to be slaughtered."
And the reason the Fourth black magic crown War was so brutal was because of Theron's existence.
Mil smiled calmly; Theron's strength had always been acknowledged:
"And... their souls would become his power, right?"
The original plan for the girls' coma was to use the souls of those girls to break through the seal of the chaos holy stone.
Lilith raised her eyes and glanced at him, admiring that he could still smile. "Yes, Theron hid very deeply. He was always a senior professor at Sibyl Magic Academy, the director of Dream Magic, and the manager of Tian Geng Beyond. He held a high position, no less than Professor Ayla, until he—"
At this point, Lilith paused, but Mil could guess:
"Participated in the black magic crown War?"
"No, until he participated in the lecture."
Lilith's lips curled into a pretty smile, and the tenderness in her eyes now held a hint of playfulness.
Mil awkwardly pursed his lips:
"Let's still study how to clear Tian Geng Beyond. Is the current administrator Teacher Viktor? What does he usually like to eat?"
Just as he finished speaking, footsteps from a group of people came from a distance, and a silver-bell-like voice shouted:
"Mil!"
He looked up to see Fafner, who had changed back into men's clothes, full of vigor, head held high, chest out, walking briskly, and quickly came to sit beside Mil.
And behind him, there was still a group of girls who "coincidentally" also wanted to come to the library.
There was also the maid Serena, trailing three meters behind him like a shadow, the dragon crest on her dark gray uniform flickering with her steps.
Mil examined Fafner's face. His hairstyle was slightly neutral, and his pair of bright, watery eyes blinked with long eyelashes.
He just felt like it was impossible to go back. "You brat—"
"Sorry... I didn't expect your magic control to have reached level eight!"
"Is level eight very high? It's only zero-tier. Look at the one next to me, who is fourth-tier, fifth-level?"
However, this matter still made Mil break out in a cold sweat. Fafner's talent, if it really was recently awakened magic, then directly reaching level eight certainly didn't make sense.
Fortunately, the teachers' attention wasn't on him.
Fafner secretly glanced at the maid Serena in the distance and carefully whispered:
"Uh—when's our next—training?"
Mil knew what he wanted to say and sneered disdainfully:
"My shoulder still hurts."
"Let me massage it for you!"
Fafner stood up and wanted to lean over, but the maid's reminder came from a distance:
"Ahem! Prince Fafner?"
Her cold tone was polite and elegant, yet it carried a hint of threat.
Fafner trembled all over and obediently sat back down, but his eyes still sparkled with anticipation.
And all Mil could think about was his dragon heart.
The quality of a dragon heart is mostly innate, but it is also greatly related to physical condition, soul strength, bloodline, and gender.
Bloodline goes without saying, the direct bloodline of the Holy Dragon. Gender—he should be male, right?
As for soul strength, it is linked to magic nerves. Using the enlightenment fruit to raise him to first-tier was already the maximum extent.
All that was left was physical fitness.
In a trance, Mil thought of Fafner's slender waist and white legs again, gulped, and readjusted his sitting posture.
Thinking of his thin figure, he felt a sense of disappointment. "Hmph—never mind, take this."
Saying this, Mil took out a red gem from his magic pouch and handed it over.
"This is—"
"Dark Elf Blood Jade."
Mil curled his lips. He had acquired this from the Adventurers' Association.
Items of this caliber are basically priceless in the market. Many adventurers returning from ruins don't recognize their value, making it easy to find bargains. However, upon hearing this name, the people around them gasped.
Anyone who had taken an alchemy class would have heard of this item. It is a high-level alchemical material used in the refining of magic stones, rare and hard to come by.
For mages, the higher their rank, the higher the level of magic stones they can use.
magic stones from first to fifth tier can be bought and used directly, but starting from sixth tier, one needs to bind a life-bound magic stone and refine it oneself.
Many mages have already reached seventh tier, but still haven't been able to refine a seventh-tier magic stone, only able to use sixth-tier magic.
However, with materials like the Dark Elf Blood Jade, the success rate of refining will greatly increase.
magic stones and magic cores are essentially similar and are important tools for improving the quality of the dragon heart.
Lilith, who was beside him, put down her book, crossed her arms, and asked:
"You borrowed money from me for this?"
Mil awkwardly cleared his throat. This was supposed to be deducted from the five million Thalers.
Even though those adventurers didn't recognize its value, the price they asked was still terrifying.
Amidst everyone's shocked gazes, Fafner slowly raised his hand and tremblingly accepted it:
"W-why are you giving it to me?"
The gem in Fafner's palm glowed with a lava-like radiance, staining the boy's neatly trimmed nails crimson.
He stared with wide eyes, his heart inexplicably beating faster. The people around them gasped in admiration. Mil calmly said:
"If I give it to you, just take it. Didn't you say you wanted to become a man? I'll increase your training intensity from now on. Looking at your frail body, I'm worried you won't be able to handle it."
The maid beside him also stepped forward, bowed, and said:
"Mil, you are truly generous. On behalf of the Saint Dragon Kingdom Royal Family, I express my gratitude to you."
Mil glanced at the maid beside him, scoffed, and said to Fafner:
"Kid, it's going to get cold tomorrow night, be careful not to catch a cold."
Fafner was stunned for a moment, then his face broke into an excited smile:
"Okay! I'll be careful!"
After saying that, he even stood up and bowed.
From the perspective of his own strength, compared to his invulnerable brother, Fafner didn't have much advantage in the competition for the Saint Dragon Kingdom throne. But looking at the Dark Elf Bloodstone in his hand, he suddenly felt a warm current permeate his heart.
Then, he left with a group of chattering girls.
Seeing the group leave, Lilith raised an eyebrow, smiled, and asked:
"How much did you buy it for?"
"Eight hundred thousand."
"You could resell it for at least 8 million, or even tens of millions."
"But 8 million can't buy anything that can improve the quality of a dragon heart more than this."
Mil’s gaze was firm, as if revealing some kind of enlightenment, but Lilith felt that it seemed to be overly loyal to the Demon God's Child.
That evening, Mil returned home and continued his diligent training.
Dusk bathed Lyata Mansion in an amber glow, and the night roses in the courtyard entwined around white stone pillars. Sweat dripped down Mil’s jawline as he pushed open the carved iron gate.
After completing his physical training, he was still preparing to grab a Holy Knight on duty to spar with him in swordsmanship.
Just then, the butler, Matthew, suddenly said, “Young Master Mil, Princess Diana is looking for you. She’s in the reception room.”
“Her? So late, what does she want?”
Mil frowned in confusion but still walked towards the reception room.
Diana sat upright on a peacock velvet high-backed chair, her silver-gray hair falling like a waterfall. Her ice-blue eyes reflected the flickering flames of the candelabra, and her expression was somewhat lost.
Her attire was the same as in the morning, but the dim light cast a honeyed hue on her silver-gray hair.
Mil quickly entered the reception room, bowed elegantly, and said, “Princess Diana, good evening. Is something the matter?”
“Well, you left in such a hurry this morning that I forgot to tell you something…
Diana still felt a bit distant due to Mil’s way of speaking, even wondering if she had been too impolite.
“Last night, someone wrote an anonymous report and secretly sent it to the Tribunal.”
“Oh? I haven’t received any news. What was reported?”
As he spoke, Mil nonchalantly stepped forward, raised his hand to invite Diana to sit, and leisurely picked up the teacup from the table, taking a light sip.
Diana sighed and frowned, saying, “It reported you—as a Black Magician.”
“Pfft—*cough cough*!”
“It’s alright, I stopped it for you.”
As the declared subject of Sibyl’s Golden Prophecy this year, Diana’s ecclesiastical status was already implicitly recognized as a “Saint” from the moment she was chosen by the Holy Sword.
Furthermore, as an imperial princess, her actual standing within the church was even higher than Alice’s.
Hearing Diana’s words, Mil breathed a sigh of relief: “Ah—thank you.”
He forced a smile, yet a cold sweat broke out on his back. He knew in his heart that Diana’s ability to protect him so much was thanks to that beautiful misunderstanding.
Of course, it wasn’t very beautiful. If he hadn’t missed, this humanoid Gundam would have already become his Imperial Guard.
And now, Diana’s eyes even showed concern:
“It was most likely Aserville who did it. It’s best to find him as soon as possible, otherwise—”
She trailed off mid-sentence, lowering her head in silence.
After listening, Mil also sighed, feeling weary and anxious. Catching him wouldn't be so easy.
“By the way, Princess Diana, would you mind practicing with me for a while?”
“Practice what?”
“This!”
Saying that, Mil pulled out a training longsword.
Diana also smiled for the first time in a while and nodded, “Come on.”
On the other side.
Moonlight streamed over the alabaster colonnades of the Holy Dragon Kingdom Embassy. A guest in a black robe sat in the reception room. The maid, Serena, brought him tea.
“Didn’t you write a report letter? Why are you still resorting to such methods?”
The person in black took a sip of tea, then angrily slammed the teacup down, the porcelain bottom clinking crisply.
“No news at all. The Tribunal is too dark—they’re in cahoots!”
He then sighed in frustration, “I didn’t expect Mil’s foundation in the Tribunal to be so solid already.”
The maid, Serena, shook her head indifferently. “There’s no need to provoke him. You should focus seriously on the current plan.”
“No! He won’t be fooled. He must already be watching me! You don’t understand how cunning Mil is! With him around, our plan will be very difficult to succeed!”
The person in black slapped the table, his voice seemingly trembling with nervousness. Suddenly, he remembered something and reminded, “Oh, by the way, in that team that day, there was a young man who resembled Fafner a bit?”
“Heh, what are you trying to say? Fafner secretly snuck out of the mansion in the middle of the night, messed around in that smelly Goblin cave, and then came back to sleep?”
The maid chuckled and shook her head, appearing unconcerned on the surface, but feeling a bit wary deep down.
She didn't know where that kid got his information; he seemed to know the situation of the Saint Dragon Kingdom like the back of his hand.
The next day.
“Mil, morning prayer is about to begin! Cheer up! You are the hero of the Holy City!”
“I’m not asleep!”
The morning light, like molten gold, flowed over the ribbed vaults of Saint Bahari Cathedral. Stained glass refracted iridescent halos under the azure sky.
The other monks, and even the bishop, were bustling about, preparing for morning prayer.
Only Mil sat alone in a corner chair, alternately shaking his leg and nodding off.
For Mil, the three hours spent at the church in the morning were a complete waste of life, utterly meaningless.
Lina adjusted the candelabra in the center of the altar, her chestnut curls swaying beneath her snow-white nun’s cap as she moved.
“Mil, do you really not consider becoming a White Magician? I heard you’ve already reached Zero-Rank Eight!”
She tilted her head, revealing an innocent, fawn-like expression. The gilded candelabra in her palm refracted diamond-like specks of light.
“Advising someone to study medicine will bring down divine wrath,” Mil’s voice was a bit muffled.
“You could also be an Exorcist! I heard you crushed a high-level Black Magic formation with one hand yesterday! Your performance in Main Village was also very impressive! You are a person blessed by the Main God!”
Exorcists use their contract with deities and the power of faith to break the structural existence of Black Magic.
But essentially, it also belongs to White Magic.
However, Mil did not answer, merely closing his eyes and starting to nod off again.
Making the Demon King an Exorcist was quite humorous.
Five minutes later, Lina, holding a thick tome, came before Mil and incessantly chattered beside him:
“Today is September 2nd, the year 1020 of the Holy Calendar, the day the great Exorcist Anthony was martyred two years ago.”
“Ugh, how come people are martyred every day? The shrouds in the morgue are more interesting than your stories.”
Mil sighed impatiently, opening his heavy eyes.
“These people are very great. They protected the defenseless common folk, igniting themselves to dispel the darkness…”
“Alright, alright, truly great. So dedicated.”
Mil raised his hand to block the dazzling morning sun, the cuff of his black priestly uniform sliding down to reveal the sharp lines of his wrist bones.
“We will take them as our guideposts, follow in their footsteps, learn from their spirit, and if one day the Holy City faces a crisis, we will step forward.”
“Heh—will you really step forward when it matters?”
Mil sneered and shook his head, having to admit that the girl’s incessant nagging had truly woken him up.
He stretched his limbs lazily, his black long boots resting on the edge of the prayer stand, the mud from his soles leaving gray marks on the carvings.
Lina, holding her book, smiled, her eyes narrowed into slits:
“At least if it were me, I would be happy to save more people. One life can save many lives; it’s very valuable. Becoming a martyr is a very glorious thing.”
“Can the value of life be quantified? Do you think the value of multiple lives is greater than one life?”
“Of course!”
She took the bait!
Mil chuckled inwardly. As the King of Ten Thousand Demons, how does one corrupt human hearts and shatter their worldview?
Using advanced philosophical thinking from his previous life for a dimensionality reduction attack was also a good path:
“Heh heh—suppose five people came now, and their internal organs were severely injured: one lung, one stomach, one heart, one liver, one gallbladder. They need other people’s organs to survive—”
“Is there such a magic?”
“Don’t worry about that for now. There just happens to be a healthy person nearby. If you kill this person and distribute their organs to those five people, you can sacrifice one to save five. What would you do?”
Mil’s lips curled into a mischievous smile, but Lina said with a laugh, “You can give my organs to those five people!”
“—What if there are ten people now?”
Mil flicked a dewdrop from the back of the chair with his finger. The water droplet arced through the air like silver and landed precisely on the corner of the eye of an angel statue three meters away, as if a god was shedding tears.
This question stumped Lina. A 14-year-old girl couldn't possibly figure out this trolley problem.
Lina furrowed her brows, her expression a mix of difficulty and sadness. Her fingertips unconsciously tightened on the tassels of her stole, and the morning breeze lifted the hem of her knee-length linen skirt.
“Hmm—I don’t know, but Lina can save five of them first. As long as this spirit can move one person, then the other five will also have hope!”
The light spots cast by the stained glass danced on her eyelashes, as if touched by a holy mark.
Mil was stunned and fell silent. This seemingly not-an-answer answer, however, seemed to condense an entire history of human heroes.
After the morning prayer, Mil was summoned to the Tribunal.
Regarding the Hero Goblin incident that day, the Tribunal's interrogation results were also released.
Mainly, the Iron Lily Squad interrogated the four who survived and found that all six of them were members of the Arrow of Parasitism Magic Society.
How did the other two die?
Knowing Mil’s identity as a Black Magician, Mil executed them.
And as expected, the Arrow Society quickly cut ties, but they would still be restricted and monitored by the Tribunal, including the Holy Dragon Kingdom Embassy, which would also be implicated.