Legend of the arch magus

[Wizzert City] Chryselle, her red hair covered by her cloak, sighed as she stared at the monument at the Central Plaza. A stone tablet left behind by the magicians who established Wizzert City – the stone tablet containing the puzzle left unsolved for centuries. Her father, grandfather, and the previous house heads of the Malvar Family – none of them were able to decipher this puzzle. None were able to figure out the meaning behind the symbols of the incomplete magic formation. She read words written at the bottom of the stone tablet.

The true flow of mana will be revealed to the one who uncovers this truth. A simple yet mysterious line. According to the scholars who analyzed these texts, the creator of the tablet was pertaining to the origin of all spells. The magic formation without flaws. The most fundamental hexagram formation. According to theories, the magic formations used in this age was crude, with several flaws yet to be revealed by magicians. They said that if people were able to solve this puzzle, it would lead to a new age of magic. An age where people would be able to cast spells with the least amount of mana possible. An age where common people would be able to cast even the most complex of spells. "So, this is where you are."

Chryselle did not need to turn around to know the owner of the voice. "Staring at the puzzle again, huh?" The voice was warm, as though it wanted nothing but the best for this young woman. "Brother, I'm leaving for the Capital soon." Chryselle's crimson eyes shook for a moment. "I want to see it before I leave. For one last time."

Chryselle, despite her young age, was among the Elders of Wizzert City – the City of Magic. Several days ago, she received a letter from His Majesty:

an invitation for the sixty-fifth birthday of King Alvis. Her brother, the current Master of the City, ruffled Chryselle's hair. "Look at this kid! Didn't I tell you that there's no need for you to go? You can just ignore that old man! It's not as if the Royal Family can touch us, right?"

Chryselle did not like this arrogance. "Brother, there will be repercussions if you ignore the summons of the Crown."

His brother, who was also wearing a hood to cover his face, chuckled, "Repercussions? Like what?"

He wrapped his arm around Chryselle's shoulder. "Listen, my cute little sister. We have more than enough power to annihilate all the Royal Knights of the Capital. Those so-called Royal Court Magicians? They're nothing but sprouts, students originating from this land. They can't touch us."

It was true. Chryselle knew this more than anyone. "That's why my genius little sister does not really need to answer the summons if she doesn't want to." Chryselle held back a scowl after hearing the word 'genius.' To her, just the title alone felt disgusting. After all, it was a title granted to her by the Elders after her discovery of the towers. The towers capable of using mana from the surroundings and convert it into offensive magic. Contrary to what people knew, Chryselle was not the one who invented those things. She was simply lucky enough to find an ancient blueprint from a lost era. She was not a genius. For her, she was nothing but a liar, a fraud. "I will come to the Capital," she said resolutely. "It's not like you, the Master of the City, can go, right?"

Her brother smiled wryly. There was no way for him to leave for the Capital and answer the summons of the Crown right now. That was why Chryselle was insistent of going in his stead.

He sighed. "Fine. Take several guards and servants with you. I'm pretty sure that old coot will again try to persuade you. He's pretty damn insistent on having the towers installed around the Capital. Be sure to reject him, understood?"

His brother was probably the only person in this Kingdom who would dare call the King an old coot. Attaining the position of Master made him this arrogant. "Of course," she said. "His Majesty wishes to use the towers to defend against the Empire. We can't do that. Magic is not a tool for slaughter and war."

The Master of Wizzert City simply smiled at that naïve statement.

Somehow, Chryselle was his source of sanity in this godforsaken world. His piece of tranquility in this politically-driven world. "That's right," he grinned. "Magic is not a tool for war."

*** Lark looked at the direction of the forest for a moment. He only noticed it now, but someone had been tailing their group from a safe distance.

Who was he? Why was he following their group? It seemed that even Anandra failed to notice him, as he just silently stood there like a guard. The guy following us… he's skilled.

It would take a considerable amount of skill to tail their group from afar.

Lark motioned for Anandra to come closer. He whispered, "Someone's following us. Be on your guard."

The man with golden hair flinched. His eyes quickly swiveled left and right as he tried to find the person following them. "He's currently watching us from the forest, probably on top of the trees."

Lark opened the door to the carriage and began to step inside. "We'll pass through a plain before reaching Wizzert City. It'll be easy to see him by then."

Anandra nodded his head. That guy would have no choice but to reveal himself in such an open field. "I understand. Once I see him—" "—Do nothing," said Lark. "Excuse me?"

"I said do nothing," said Lark. "For now." Lark had an odd feeling about this guy following them from afar. Was he an assassin? That did not seem to be the case, although the chance of it being true was not nil. For now, he chose to trust his instinct: to wait things out and see. Lark entered the first carriage. "What are you two doing? Get. On. The.

Carriage."

Each emphasized word made Austen and George flinch and jump. The two of them were currently holding a piece of parchment each. On the ground next to them was a half-completed drawing of a magic formation. It resembled the doodles of kids playing on a sandy beach. After Anandra, Austen and George entered the Carriage, their group started to move west, towards the direction of Wizzert City. "How's it?" Lark looked at the brothers holding the parchments. "Have you gotten the hang of drawing the magic formations?"

The brothers looked at each other. They sheepishly smiled. "A little bit?" said Austen. Drawing the most basic magic formation was actually harder than they thought. Several days ago, Lark handed each of them a copy of the most basic magic formation. It was neatly drawn on a white parchment, and he tasked the two to remember each symbol written inside the magic circle. Every time they made camp, the brothers would draw on the ground and attempt to imitate the basic magic formation taught to them by Lark. It would have been an easy feat, but there was an ironclad rule which made everything several times harder than it should be: they should never lift off the drawing stick from the ground until they finished drawing the entire thing. According to Lark, this was a principle they had to adhere to no matter what, since on actual practice, the flow of mana should not be interrupted when casting magic formations. Otherwise, mana would dissipate and even the most basic spells would break. "This is just the start. What you're being taught right now is simply the basics." Lark looked out of the window. He could no longer see the village.

"The basis of all spells, of all magic. The most basic magic formation."

The magic formation Lark handed to the brothers was the magic formation perfected by the mages of the Magic Empire, the most basic magic formation without a single flaw. Although it was more complex than its predecessor, once mastered, it would pave the path towards all the other elements. "We'll only proceed with voice incantations once the two of you have mastered drawing that thing. Hopefully, within three years, the two of you will be capable of using chantless magic."

"Chantless magic," mumbled George. He looked at Lark with a complicated expression. Although he was no magician, he has heard a few times before about how hard it was for a magician to perform spells without a chant.

This noble, however, who was probably almost the same age as him, was capable of performing such feat easily. Austen must have been thinking the same thing too, since George could see the expression of his older brother. "We understand," Austen bowed his head. "We'll do our best to learn, Sir."

Lark smiled, "Good. That's the spirit."

Lark locked eyes with Anandra. The man with a golden hair lightly nodded his head. He was wordlessly saying that he finally also noticed the presence of the one following their group. Is he a spy? An assassin?

Lark wondered. He remembered the time when one of Duke Kelvin's men tried killing him in Lion City. For now, the best course of action was to wait and observe. He planned on getting as much information as possible from this guy once given the chance. There's no need to rush things. After a day, their group finally arrived at Wizzert City, The City of Magic. Unlike the other cities, the gate of Wizzert was flooded with people trying to enter the city. A long queue consisting of merchants, immigrants, and other people have assembled by the gate by the time Lark's group arrived. After waiting in line for a few hours, they were finally granted entry into the city. The first thing that greeted them was a barrier blocking the city gate. It was translucent, giving the appearance of a sturdy glass. "Is that also magic?" George curiously spat out. Lark did not reply. Instead, he pondered of how advanced this city was compared to the other cities of the Kingdom they passed through so far.

Even Lion City – one of the Major Cities of the Kingdom – was incomparable to this one. A magic explosion will easily tear a hole through this barrier, but it's strong enough to temporarily repel invaders in case the gate is destroyed.

This was the assessment Lark made after briefly touching the barrier. After the soldier guarding the entrance notified the ones inside the city about Lark's pass, the barrier temporarily dissipated and Lark and his group passed through. This process was probably the reason why it took so long to enter the City despite the lax requirements. After they found an inn, Lark handed out a few silvers to his disciples Austen, George, and Anandra. "I'll be looking around the city for a while.

Be sure to be back here at the inn by dusk."

"These are?" Austen and George stared at the coins in their hands. Anandra, on the other hand, simply pocketed the coins and listened to Lark. "Pocket money," said Lark. "It'll be a waste to stay cooped up inside this so-called City of Magic. Go and look around. Just be sure to be back for dinner at night."

Austen and George looked at each other. Their eyes glimmered. They had never experienced such luxurious lifestyle before. Although a few silvers were nothing to nobles like Lark, it was a large amount for former paupers like them. "We'll be back for sure!" Like kids given candies, the two enthusiastically responded, their heads bobbing several times. Lark chuckled. "Can I come with you?" The man with golden hair stood ramrod straight.

For a moment, his image overlapped with the chief butler's. Lark looked at Anandra. Unlike the two kids, this one can keep up with his speed. "You don't want to look around?"

"I'm pretty sure that I'll find more interesting things if I'm with you, My Lord."

Lark noticed that he was becoming clingy as time went by. He was not sure if this was a good thing. After some thoughts, Lark said, "Rejected. I'll be looking around on my own."

Anandra remained stoic. There was no change in his expression even after that. "I understand. Have a safe trip, Young Master."

He's starting to resemble Gaston as time goes by.

Lark wryly smiled. *** After Lark went out to look around the city, Austen and George mumbled to each other on what they would do with the pocket money given to them.

They were supposed to spend it on food and clothes, but they felt bad after thinking about their siblings in Blackstone Town. These silver coins were enough to buy some bags of wheat and chicken meat for the whole family.

Splurging would surely leave a bad aftertaste in their mouths. "Anandra," Austen turned to the oldest disciple. "The Young Master left.

What do you plan to do?"

Anandra tapped his stomach, creating a soft thud sound. Austen and George realized that he was wearing the weights created by Lark. "Training," said Anandra. "Unlike you guys, I'm not talented in magic.

That's why I need to put in extra effort."

The brothers almost retorted that what he said was utter bullshit. After all, they had seen Anandra train with the humanoids before. This man with golden hair was undoubtedly the strongest person next to the Young Master. Although right now he was incapable of casting magic, he had already come to grasp the basics of body strengthening by using the mana in his body. At this stage, he was already capable of crushing boulders with a single blow of his fist. If he was lacking, then how much more would they be? "I'll look around the city." Anandra was unaware of the thoughts of his fellow disciples. "Remember what the Young Master said. Be sure to be back by dinner."

After Anandra disappeared amidst the crowd, Austen and George looked at each other. "Now I feel guilty slacking off," smirked Austen. "What are you talking about? The Young Master himself told us to look around the city and enjoy ourselves." George tossed a coin into the air and caught it. "Let's go!"

The two looked around the city, gawking at unfamiliar things every now and then. "Hey, look!" whispered George. Austen looked at the direction George was pointing at. It was a street filled with stalls selling magic items. The two excitedly entered and looked at the items for sale. "Fifteen gold coins?" Austen shook his head. "Only nobles can afford those. What's the point of selling these things in the middle of the street?"

The cheapest magic item for sale was worth a staggering amount of fifteen gold coins. The most expensive ones even reached up to a hundred gold coins. Glowing lamps, scroll of fire, defense magic-imbued leather armor, ice dagger, etc. All sorts of magic items imaginable filled this particular street. The brothers saw someone casually buy the ice dagger for sixty gold coins.

Their jaws almost dropped to the ground after seeing that transaction. "I guess… As expected of the City of Magic? Even those living here aren't normal."

Austen nodded at his younger brother's statement. After looking around some more, they left and arrived at the Central Plaza.

There was a large fountain there, with numerous stalls selling food lined up next to each other.

Austen and George's stomach grumbled. They had been walking around for a few hours now, after all. As expected of a major city, even the price of skewered meat was high.

They bought a stick for each of them, grabbed some drinks, then sat on the benches next to the fountain. They noticed that the person sitting next to them – someone wearing a hood – had been staring at a particular stone tablet for quite some time now. "Bro, she's been staring at that thing for—" said George. "—Shh! Quiet!" Austen swallowed the last bit of his skewered meat. "It's none of our bus—" Austen halted. His eyes widened for a moment. Now that he had taken a careful look, the symbols engraved on the stone tablet was really familiar. He took out the parchment out of his sling bag, unfolded it, then compared the magic formation drawn by the Young Master with the symbol engraved on the stone tablet. "George," he whispered. "Look. Isn't it the same?"

George looked at the parchment, at the stone tablet, then back. "Almost."

He pointed at some parts of the magic formation. "These symbols aren't on that stone tablet. And this crescent here is missing."

The two magic formations were oddly similar, but there were subtle differences. George quickly noticed this. While the two were discussing these things, the hooded figure next to them looked at the parchment Austen was holding. "E-Excuse me?" A female voice spoke. The brothers looked at the source. It was from the hooded figure. "C-Can I look at that?"

The way she stuttered bothered the two of them. They could feel desperation within those words. Austen quickly folded the parchment and placed it inside his bag. He remembered that the Young Master strictly told them not to share this magic formation with anyone, no matter what. He grabbed George's hand, and after a quick glance, said to the hooded figure, "Sorry."

"George, let's go." George understood his brother's intentions. He quickly stood up. When the two of them were a good distance away from the bench, they heard a shout. "Wait!"

Amidst the crowd, they saw the hooded figure briskly walking towards them. "We're not supposed to share this magic formation with anyone," said Austen. George nodded, "Let's run."

The brothers tried to get away from the hooded figure, but surprisingly, no matter how hard they tried, they could not shake off their pursuer. "Over here," Austen huffed. They turned to an alleyway. He placed his index finger to his mouth. "That creepy person shouldn't find us here."

But he was wrong. The hooded figure suddenly appeared right in front of them, like some sort of a ghost. "Finally caught you." Her voice was soothing to the ears, but her sudden appearance made Austen and George shriek. She took off her hood, revealing a woman with blood red hair and crimson eyes. Austen and George fell into stupor for a moment. They had never seen anyone so beautiful in their entire life. "Please," she said. "Can I look at that?"

Austen and George looked at each other. What should they do? The Young Master strictly told them not to show the magic formation with anyone, no matter what. "It'll be really quick," she said. "Also, I'll pay you. How about it?"

She took out a pouch and opened it, revealing several gold and silver coins inside. "This is all I have. If this isn't enough, I'll be sure to give you more afterwards."

Austen's pupil shook. He remembered the time when he still worked for two silvers a month in Lion City. The amount inside the pouch easily exceeded ten gold coins. He was sure of it. Silence befell them. Even George started hesitating. Moments passed. Austen shouted, "I-I'm sorry! This is something entrusted to us… and we can't allow anybody to have their hands on it, no matter what!"

He sounded desperate. George also bowed his head. The woman sighed upon seeing this. They were just kids, and judging by their reactions, they were not the ones who drew that magic formation. She hesitated for a while. Should she forcefully take the item away? From these naïve-looking kids? Her face turned sour after she came to a conclusion. "I will not hurt you," she threw the pouch filled with gold coins towards George. The kid grabbed it in reflex. "I'll just take a peek. Sorry."

The air turned chilly. Ice formed beneath the woman's feet, quickly spreading towards the brothers. They tried to run, but they soon found their feet encased by ice. "What are you doing?!" "Let us go!"

The brothers were horrified. They tried to yank their feet away, but the ice did not budge even a single bit. Ice shot from the ground and grabbed their hands, shackling it. The woman opened Austen's sling bag and took out the parchment containing the magic circle.

"Damn it! That's not yours! We told you that you're not allowed to look at it!" Austen roared. George's arms formed veins as he struggled to set himself free. "This is…" She forgot to breathe for a moment. She intently stared at the drawn magic circle. Her heart started thumping loudly. The magic formation drawn in the parchment greatly resembled the one drawn on the stone tablet, but there were subtle differences. She imagined using this magic circle and she was stunned by what she found out. It was without any flaws. The perfect basic magic formation. With just this alone, magic would prosper even further. Her pupils shaking, she stared at the parchment, then at the brothers shackled by the ice. "Who, who drew this?" Her hands trembled as she held the parchment. She finally held the answer to the puzzle unsolved for centuries. George and Austen did not answer. Instead, they tried to pull their hands and feet out of the ice. After finally coming to the conclusion that it would be futile, George and Austen looked at each other. "Do it," whispered Austen. George, who was directly in front of the woman, understood his brother's intentions. With his entire might, he threw his head forward and bit the parchment, successfully snatching it away from the woman's hands. Caught off-guard, the woman was too late to react. By the time she realized what happened, George was already chewing the parchment in his mouth. Her eyes widened to the point of popping out. That paper held the answer to the centuries-old puzzle!

"S-Spit it out!" Her composure lost, she grabbed George by the neck as she tried to make him spit the parchment out. But contrary to her expectations, George chewed it more before eventually swallowing it whole. The woman lost strength in her legs upon seeing this. She fell down butt-first on the ground. Although her mind was telling her that it would still be possible to retrieve the magic formation as long as she meets the person who drew it, a part of her wailed at this loss. Tears started forming at the corner of her eyes. Her mana became erratic and the ice shackling the brothers broke into numerous pieces. The brothers were finally freed of the spell. They shook their arms and legs to remove the pieces of ice still clinging to it. Austen bit his lips upon seeing the crestfallen woman sitting on the ground.

He did not feel pity for her, only hatred. She forcefully made them give her the magic formation, after all. "You forgot this." George tossed the pouch filled with gold coins to her. It made loud clanking sounds upon touching the ground. Honestly, they were tempted by those coins, but the mere thought of betraying the Young Master's trust solidified their resolve. "And stop crying," added Austen. "It's not like you lost anything. That paper. It's ours to begin with, damn thief."

The two were about to scurry away and leave behind the crying woman when a deep voice, which almost sounded like a growl, resounded in the alley. "You dare call my cute little sister a damn thief?"

A hooded figure appeared, blocking the path of George and Austen. The hooded figure looked at the woman crying while sitting on the ground.

His entire body trembled. "You damn little shits—" His voice trailed off. He glared at the brothers. "—I'll kill you."

Without warning, an invisible force struck Austen and sent him flying then rolling on the ground.