Chapter 76
Chapter 76: Help? That's a different price!
"The City of Mages will face a great calamity?"
Viktor filed the Phantom Mage's words away in his mind.
He pondered for a moment—more precisely, he was thinking through the game's Storyline.
In the future, the City of Mages had once suffered a severe attack.
It was an exclusive special mission available only to Mage-class players—players of other classes could not participate.
The reason was that a powerful magical creature that had been sealed away was on the verge of breaking free of its seal in the City of Mages and returning to the world.
—The 'Dark Archmage,' Exodia.
He had originally been a Mage, but in his obsessive pursuit of power, seeking to push his physical body beyond human limits, he had simultaneously channeled overwhelming magic into every last meridian of his body.
Exodia did indeed grow stronger—but the consequences were equally obvious.
Due to the Magic Power Backlash, he ultimately lost his sanity.
His body transformed into a giant with 3 heads.
With 3 heads, he had 3 separate consciousnesses.
His thoughts clashed endlessly, and his mind was in absolute chaos.
The Magic Power that continuously surged and erupted from his body naturally brought about boundless catastrophe.
And so he was sealed away in the City of Mages.
The Dark Archmage's seal was gradually loosening. According to observations made within the City of Mages, his target was the City of Mages' primary Magic Power source.
Hagar.
It was Endymion's primary source of Magic Power—the very foundation of Endymion—housing a vast ocean of Magic Power capable of submerging the entire world.
It was said to be the first great tree planted by the Gods.
Its immense Magic Power was the driving force that kept the Sky City suspended in the air, and it was also what gave Endymion its eternal warmth of spring and pleasant climate throughout all 4 seasons.
If Hagar were to be attacked and destroyed, the magical supply to the entire island would be completely severed. The floating island would plummet, crashing down upon the land below.
For any nation, this would be a devastating blow.
Should it fall into the ocean and raise waves thousands of meters high, half the nations of the world would be swallowed—and at that point, it would be a true extinction-level disaster.
Viktor considered this briefly and leaned back in his chair.
His demeanor was perfectly calm—in fact, supremely confident.
"You're referring to Hagar?"
The Mage within the phantom image was immediately taken aback. He remained stiff for quite some time before recovering, letting out a wry smile as he said:
"Lord Viktor, just how much do you actually know?"
Viktor's tone carried the ease of someone who had already seen all the moves on the board:
"Not much—but enough."
"So then, you must have heard about the Demon battle and thought to come find me because of it, Mr. Heim."
Viktor was equally clear on the identity of the man appearing from the envelope before him.
Heim Horn—by reputation, a Phantom Mage on the continent.
A member of the Mage Council, he belonged to no nation and held no political allegiance, overseeing the City of Mages as a 4th-Tier powerhouse.
A Phantom Mage, as the name implied, excelled in illusions and teleportation—but what was most enviable of all was the ability unique to him: the Phantom Mage's art—'Phantom Doppelganger.'
The phantoms could replicate Heim's movements, and naturally, replicate his magic as well.
But with each phantom that appeared, the power of his own spells would weaken by a fraction.
Yet when every bullet became a dense forest, even a building could be pierced through in an instant.
Heim's expression turned serious at once. He addressed Viktor slowly:
"That you can identify me from magic alone, Lord Viktor—you continue to surprise me."
His identity was hardly something that needed hiding. He was even fairly well-known as a Council member within the City of Mages.
What surprised him was that Viktor had recognized him from his magic alone—something even many well-traveled Mages would struggle to detect.
Before he could say another word, Viktor clasped his hands together.
"Then—why should I agree to help you? I have absolutely no sense of belonging to Endymion."
Heim Horn grew somewhat anxious at once. No longer concerned about exposing more of Endymion's secrets, he immediately explained to Viktor:
"Hagar is Endymion's last line of defense. Once Endymion falls……"
"Nations will be destroyed. The continent will collapse."
Viktor finished the sentence for him.
At that, Heim Horn swallowed.
He could only watch as Viktor smiled with a hint of mockery:
"And what does that have to do with me?"
Heim fell completely silent.
He recalled, with perfect clarity, just what kind of existence stood before him.
This man was not the sort to be morally coerced by any grand cause.
"Lord Viktor, our Mage Council has agreed to your demands……"
"That was the compensation for inviting me to join the Council."
Viktor stated coldly.
That was what he was owed.
And for wanting my help on top of that?
"What you're describing—will cost a separate price."
The old Mage felt a surge of thorough fury at Viktor's act of extortion in a time of crisis.
"Viktor, what makes you so greedy?"
He placed both hands on the table and tapped it lightly.
"I have a younger sister. She's a merchant."
"I don't care how dire your situation is—but if you want my help? Bring me something worth my while."
The old Mage was silent for a long time before he finally gave up, letting out a heavy sigh.
"Viktor—what is it you want?"
"A seat on the Council."
The old Mage's voice rose in fury. "That is impossible!"
"The Council may only hold a maximum of 12 members at any one time—your credentials are nowhere near sufficient to become a member of the Mage Council!"
The moment his words fell, a roaring blaze erupted from behind Viktor. The heat was so intense that even the air began to tremble.
The flames were like an enraged lion, surging up and enveloping Viktor's body in an instant, and the warning that came from his voice was low and grave.
Weija stood on his shoulder. No one noticed that its gaze had taken on a shade of azure-blue.
Though separated by the envelope's image, Heim Horn felt a wave of Magic Power as vast as an ocean—as though it would completely submerge him.
The scorching flames even gave him the sensation of being burned.
A level of magical intensity like this sent a violent jolt through Heim's heart.
He had not misjudged this person.
At this moment, Viktor's voice slowly rose.
"Mr. Heim, remember—in this negotiation, you are the one who needs something from me."
"Can't free up a seat on the Council? I don't mind killing a 4th-Tier Mage to make room."
Viktor smiled—and the smile was somewhat unsettling.
Heim Horn fell silent once more for a long stretch of time. He began to consider whether inviting Viktor into the Mage Council had truly been the right decision.
But ever since he had dangled the bait to draw the tiger out, trying to persuade the tiger to retreat was already far too late.
He had no choice but to press on.
"A seat on the Council—I alone cannot make that decision."
"Viktor, your aggressiveness gives me reason to suspect you are declaring war on the Mage Council."
The minimum standard for a Mage Council member was to be among the finest of 4th-Tier Mages—and to be a figure of distinguished standing and moral repute in their respective region.
If it truly came to a fight, he did not believe Viktor alone could challenge the Mage Council.
"My apologies, Mr. Heim. I may have frightened you."
"Then—tomorrow, I will pay the Council a visit in person. We can speak at length then."
Viktor pulled the invitation from the envelope. On it were the coordinates of Endymion.
He tapped the table with his finger. The flames ignited once more, reducing the letter to ash—the dust drifted out through the window on a faint breeze—and in the same motion, consumed Heim's phantom image.
Weija also took this moment to sever its Magic Link with Viktor, and asked in genuine puzzlement:
"I'm a bit confused. Wasn't the conversation going quite smoothly earlier? I was almost convinced the whole thing would be settled through peaceful negotiation."
"Why the sudden shift—making it look like you're going to war with them?"
Weija couldn't understand it. However confident Viktor was, he had never been this reckless before.
And this time……it was as though he had deliberately set out to provoke them.
He had even specifically called on it midway to establish a Magic Power link.
Viktor turned the invitation over in his hand.
The coordinates on it clearly recorded Endymion's current position.
As a city floating in the sky, Endymion was always moving through the air, its position changing constantly.
He began to explain:
"People who can become Council members tend to have a high sense of moral principle—like Rashel Azure-Blue."
The old Principal was one such Council member. As someone from the Empire, without any noble title, he had built the Magic Academy by his own efforts and served the nation without asking for anything in return.
He had devoted the work of his entire life to his Academy.
Though this moral character was not without certain ambiguities—Rashel Azure-Blue could not guarantee that no parasitic elements had found their way among his Academy's teachers and students—at the very least, he could answer to his own conscience with a clear heart.
"So no matter how aggressively I posture, the Mage Council will not go to war with me—because the power I've displayed will make them need me very badly."
The Mage Council was an organization with a strong sense of justice. If it could be said to belong to any alignment, it would certainly be Lawful Good.
A chaotic character like Viktor was naturally unworthy of joining the Council.
So Viktor had, across 2 rounds of negotiation, demonstrated his value consecutively.
Besides—what he had said earlier was all just words anyway.
As long as Viktor hadn't made the first move, these Mages had no grounds to attack him.
Was a man not even allowed to talk tough?
"You still haven't answered my question—why deliberately provoke them?"
Weija was still puzzled. Viktor answered plainly:
"To make them believe that I desperately want that Council seat."
They would come to think Viktor was willing to do whatever it took to become a Council member—and with that belief, the Mage Council would feel they could keep Viktor under their thumb.
Because in their eyes, Viktor had a need.
And once there was a need, all negotiations became manageable.
These Mages could readily sacrifice 1 Council seat and hand it to Viktor. In their eyes, a Viktor who had become a Council member would then need to maintain that position and fall in line with the Mage Council.
"Those old Mages might even be quietly celebrating right now—that all it cost was 1 Council seat to bring in a Calamity Mage who can defeat both a Calamity and a Demon. Am I right?"
Viktor smiled, and the smile was full of calculation.
"I still don't understand—what do you actually gain from becoming a Council member?"
"Although the Council seat itself is already a respectable gain, as you've surmised—I genuinely don't care about that position."
Viktor spread his hands and said evenly:
"【Hagar】—the heart of the City of Mages. That is what I need."
Only a Council member had the standing to come into contact with that tree at the core of the City of Mages. And only Viktor knew what that thing truly was.
Strictly speaking, it was indeed a great tree planted by the Gods.
Only—it had been stolen away by Mages of a bygone era.
The Calamity of Wood, Druga's—Core of Origin.