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[Translator - Prøks]
[Proofreader - Prøks]
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Chapter 147: Magic Tower Alliance (2)
This is difficult, so difficult.
I tried to suppress the corners of my mouth from rising and repeated the word "difficult" in my mind as much as possible. Expression management is crucial in times like this.
Clutching my front pocket, I said,
"I can't give you the Vancle."
Vaph frowned and asked,
"Don't you want to get an entry pass?"
"Well, yes, but..."
"But what? Don't tell me you thought you could get a recommendation from the Blue Magic Tower for free? You have no shame."
"It's a family heirloom. I can't give this away."
"Huh."
Vaph scoffed and said,
"Heirlooms are important. But what meaning does an heirloom have for a declining clan? It seems like you're trying to enter the Demon Realm for your family, aren't you?"
I replied in a deliberately dejected voice,
"...That's true."
"Think carefully about what's important. If you accumulate enough achievements in the Demon Realm, you can raise your family's name and acquire things far better than that Vancle."
When I hesitated and couldn't make up my mind, Vaph raised his voice.
"Now I see you're just a petty man! I misjudged you. I thought you were a man of strong character and tried to be nice."
"...."
"Forget it. Do you think it's easy to give out a recommendation? People would give their liver and gallbladder for a recommendation here. Let's pretend this never happened."
The moment Vaph turned around and took a few steps, I shouted urgently,
"W-wait!"
As if he had been waiting, Vaph turned around with an expressionless face.
"What? Do you have more to say?"
"C-can you really give me a recommendation from the Blue Magic Tower?"
Vaph, approaching again, smiled and began to condescend to me.
"Of course. Moreover, our Magic Tower's recommendation is classified as high-grade. It's different from a low-grade entry pass, even in appearance. You'll be treated well wherever you go."
I marveled at my own acting skills.
Vaph was looking at me as if I were prey.
Judging that this was the right moment, I responded like a typical petty man making a resolution.
"Alright. But give me the recommendation first."
"Give it to you first?"
"That's right."
Vaph replied with a smile,
"That's not a problem. Follow me. Let's go to my office."
As I followed Vaph, I looked down at the lower floor.
Zion was stopping passersby and talking to them.
***
From the fourth floor onwards, access for outsiders was strictly controlled.
The mages guarding the entrance were of a different caliber, giving the impression that this was the Alliance's true headquarters.
Carefree guys like Vaph were rare to find.
'Does he have some backing?'
Vaph's office was at the end of the fourth-floor corridor.
While Vaph went to get the recommendation, I sat in his office and briefly looked around.
Even for a deputy commander of the patrol unit, the office was too spacious. I suddenly recalled Vaph's disrespectful attitude towards his superior at the Alliance entrance.
A moment later, Vaph opened the door and entered.
"You're here already?"
"Heh."
Vaph smiled and took out a pink card from his pocket.
"Is this the recommendation?"
I received the entry pass and examined it closely. The back was clearly stamped with the Blue Magic Tower's insignia.
"Are you satisfied?"
"The recommendation came out awfully quickly."
"I prepared it in advance, just in case I met someone worthy."
"What grade is this? I don't think there's a pink grade."
White and light blue were low-grade.
Blue was mid-grade.
Red was high-grade.
Black was special grade.
Vaph said with a smile,
"All recommendation passes are pink. Our Blue Magic Tower's recommendation is equivalent to a high-grade."
As I nodded, Vaph said with a smile,
"Now then, give me the Vancle."
"Hmm."
I paced around as if in thought, moving closer to the door.
As I continued to hesitate, Vaph offered another carrot.
"Now, now, even a Vancle depends on the user. It's useless in the hands of an apprentice mage. Come back to me when you become a full-fledged mage. I'll give you a nice gift then."
I suddenly asked Vaph,
"A full-fledged mage?"
"Of course."
"You said you were a senior member of the Blue Magic Tower."
"Naturally."
"Can a mere senior member issue a recommendation from the Blue Magic Tower?"
Vaph shook his head and said,
"That's none of your concern."
I immediately asked something else.
"Then have you by any chance heard of Samael?"
"You're spouting nonsense again."
"Think carefully. You really haven't?"
"I won't take any more questions. Hand over the Vancle quickly. I don't have time."
"Hmm..."
Vaph yelled,
"Hey!"
I held out my hand as if I had made up my mind.
"Alright. Give it to me."
Vaph asked back,
"Give you what?"
"I'll give you the Vancle, so give me money."
"What?"
"I can't be a pushover."
Vaph's eyes widened, and he let out a dumbfounded gasp.
"Ha."
"I said I'd give you the Vancle, but I didn't say I'd give it for free. 1,000 gold bars."
Vaph glared at me, his eyes burning with fury.
"Do you think this is a joke?"
"I'm not joking either."
"I've never seen such a crazy bastard."
I clung to the door like a frightened man and said,
"Why are you glaring at me like that? I'm so scared I'm sweating."
I cautiously took out the recommendation and showed it to Vaph.
"But even if I'm scared, I have to say what needs to be said. This looks fake no matter how I look at it."
"This bastard dares to try to trick me..."
Vaph trailed off and pointed a finger at me.
"I'm going to confiscate both the entry pass and the Vancle. You will be punished for daring to deceive the patrol."
"You're saying such scary things, I can't stand it."
I pointed to the back of Vaph with a helpless expression.
"Actually, I already put the Vancle over there."
The moment Vaph instinctively turned his head, his flat back of the head was temptingly exposed.
Like lightning, I shot my forehead slingshot at the back of his head.
"Ha—ah."
Thwack—!
With a cheerful sound, Vaph collapsed onto the desk, his head slamming against it with a bang.
Somehow, the back of his head seemed hard, so I hit him again with the recommendation.
Crack—!
"Ugh!"
At the same time, I turned the doorknob and dashed out like lightning, shouting towards the back,
"I lied!"
Whoosh—
Only after a few seconds did I hear footsteps accompanied by shouts from behind.
But I didn't look back.
In times like this, you have to run forward without looking back.
"You goddamn bastard!"
I heard an incredulous yell from behind, but I continued to run forward. Even Vaph wouldn't dare to use magic here.
The fourth-floor corridor was complicated.
But I had already memorized the way in anticipation of this situation, so I ran towards the center without hesitation.
A thief won't get caught if they don't act like a thief.
The Alliance mages I encountered along the way gave me strange looks, but no one suspected I was a thief.
Whoosh—
The distance between Vaph and me was gradually widening.
At this rate, I could pass through the fourth floor...
'Huh?'
I had to stop abruptly due to an unexpected situation.
Halt—
At the entrance of the fourth floor, right in front.
Middle-aged men, each wearing the robes of different Magic Towers, were standing there, emanating an unusual aura.
However, what really caught my eye were the two men beyond them.
A young man in yellow robes.
An old man with white hair in white robes.
The Alliance mages guarding the entrance were lined up in a rigid formation.
The old man went up to the next floor first, and just when the young man in yellow robes was about to follow him...
"You goddamn bastard!"
Vaph, who had been chasing me from afar while yelling curses, also stopped abruptly beside me.
Hearing the commotion, the middle-aged men from the Magic Towers looked over first, and then the young man in yellow robes, who was about to go upstairs after the old man, glanced back.
"...Vaph?"
The middle-aged man from the Blue Magic Tower frowned and approached.
Surprisingly, Vaph, who had been acting so arrogant, turned pale and immediately lowered his head.
Until then, I couldn't take my eyes off the young man in yellow robes.
The young man in yellow robes, who briefly made eye contact with me, immediately went upstairs, but I didn't miss the skull tattoo engraved on his forehead.
To see that troublesome tattoo here...
A Noble Clan.
The tattoo of the Bellusia clan.
At that moment, the middle-aged man from the Blue Magic Tower, who had approached, asked Vaph,
"What's all the commotion, Vaph?"
"...Second Elder."
After confirming that everyone had gone upstairs, the middle-aged man yelled at Vaph,
"Are you saying you're causing trouble even after being dispatched to the Alliance!"
"That's not it. This guy here dared to..."
Vaph, who was about to protest, could only open and close his mouth a few times without speaking.
He knew that if he explained the situation, he would ultimately be reprimanded.
However, unable to suppress my curiosity, I deliberately spoke to the middle-aged man.
"Is this fake?"
Only then did the middle-aged man look at me.
I met his gaze without concealing my energy.
The Second Elder of the Blue Magic Tower...
Was he also related to Elder Parin?
The middle-aged man briefly examined the card in my hand, then looked at Vaph with a dumbfounded expression.
"Are you saying you gave this guy a recommendation? Who is this guy? Why?"
"That is..."
Vaph couldn't answer.
When I took out the Vancle and shook it, the Second Elder, who roughly grasped the situation, suddenly started shouting at Vaph.
"You haven't come to your senses yet! What do you think your father would say if he knew you were behaving like this? I sent you to the Alliance, and you're still acting like this here?"
I nodded in agreement.
"As expected, he had backing. He was so arrogant. You need to discipline him better."
As soon as Vaph glared at me, I took the stance for my forehead slingshot.
"You son of a... Ack!"
Slap—
Vaph, who was spewing curses as if he wanted to eat me alive, had his head turned to the left with a sharp sound.
The Second Elder, who had slapped Vaph, looked at him with sharp eyes.
Hmm.
I passed the two without saying a word, then briefly turned around and expressed my gratitude to Vaph with my eyes.
I can't believe it wasn't fake...
Vaph glared at me, his head down, only his eyes moving.
His eyes were blazing like lava, but that wasn't my concern. I was more preoccupied with the man I had just encountered.
'The Bellusia clan.'
I had thought I might run into some strong individuals here, but I never expected to see a Bellusia first.
Moreover, the white-haired old man who was with the Bellusia man was definitely not ordinary.
Because I couldn't read his energy.
I paused on the fourth floor and looked up. Beyond the fifth floor's barrier, where magic was swirling, I could sense unusual energy.
I looked at the middle-aged man from the Blue Magic Tower, then at Vaph, and then at the Alliance mages lined up in formation.
Looking down at the open floors below, I saw countless people in various clothes walking around.
Surely, among them, there would be those connected to Parin.
***
"Commander, you're here?"
As I came down to the first floor, Zion approached me first.
"Did you get the entry pass?"
"Of course. What were you doing earlier? You were wandering around like a peddler."
"Just doing this and that. Selling stuff, too. I'm the temporary commander of the Crazy Mage Squad and the business manager of Samael, you know."
Noticing that Zion's expression seemed stiff, I asked,
"Why the long face?"
Zion replied with a serious expression,
"There were some unusual people here earlier."
"Were they an old man in white and a middle-aged man in yellow robes?"
"Did you see them too, Commander? They seemed like big shots. They had escorts and other mages coming to greet them."
Makan said with a serious face,
"They didn't look ordinary."
I nodded and said,
"One of them is from the Bellusia family."
"What? The Noble Clan?"
When the squad members gasped, I said,
"Why? Are you scared?"
Zion replied,
"Scared? No way. Just surprised, that's all."
I looked at the expressions of my subordinates and said,
"You'll be seeing a lot of those guys from now on. Keep your wits about you."
Palge came closer and asked,
"By the way, Commander, what grade is yours?"
As I cautiously took out my entry pass, the squad's eyes were all drawn to it.
"P-pink?!"
I smiled with satisfaction.
"Palge recognizes a high-grade entry pass, I see."
"Oooooh, is that a high-grade entry pass?"
"If you didn't know, why were you so impressed?"
"Pink is my favorite color! As expected of the Commander!"
When I sighed, Arin, who was watching, asked,
"A recommendation from the Blue Magic Tower? Don't tell me that guy gave it to you? How did you even...?"
Zion said with an impressed look,
"Commander, you're really amazing."
Makan asked, as if his body was itching to move,
"Are we going to the Demon Realm now?"
I looked around and said,
"Let's stop by the Administration Office first. There's something I need to check."
As we approached the large magic circle on the east end wall of the first floor, a man lined up there asked,
"Can I help you?"
I held out my entry pass and replied,
"I'd like to check the achievement point rankings."
The man checked the entry pass and nodded.
"I'll guide you to the hall. Please enter."
As soon as I stepped into the magic circle, I felt my body float, and a completely different space unfolded before me.
A single-story space with a ceiling that seemed to be at least tens of meters high.
On one side, Alliance members dressed in white were working, and on the opposite wall, a large number of people were gathered, watching something and chatting.
"Damn it, there's no change in the rankings this time."
"That's because it takes too much time."
"At this rate, when will we ever exceed 10,000 points?"
I also approached the wall.
On the entire translucent wall, where magic swirled, numbers were being written in real-time.
It was the Demon Realm ranking board, with achievement points and rankings listed.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Prøks]
[Proofreader - Prøks]
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