"How dare you disrespect the Chief Steward!"
A middle-aged magus, dressed in a grey magus robe with five rings embroidered on its cuffs, seemed eager to win Rueel's favor.
Stepping forward, he cast a spell at Bairon, yelling, "Water Spear!"
Due to its proximity to the sea, the magi of Sailport are particularly adept at Elemental spells, specifically hydro, aero, and terramancy spells.
A smirk crossed Bairon's lips.
With a swift tap of his toe, he used an aero spell, "Lightness," shifting his position instantly to dodge the water spear effortlessly.
Then, bending his knees slightly, he lunged powerfully towards the casting magus.
The middle-aged magus, alarmed, swiftly raised his hand and summoned, "Earth Wall!"
A barrier made of dirt, measuring half a meter in length, a meter in height, and ten centimeters in thickness, suddenly stood between him and Bairon.
The magus gloated, "Though I'm just a lowly 5th ring magus, terramancy is my forte. My earth wall rivals the stone barriers created by a 7th ring magus!"
But Bairon didn't falter.
He lifted his right hand, formed a fist, channeled the "Flesh" spell, and landed a heavy blow.
The wall crumbled instantly.
Frozen in shock, the middle-aged magus could only watch as Bairon approached, grabbed his throat, and hoisted him into the air.
Disdain dripping from his voice, Bairon sneered, "You flaunt your puny wall as if it's some great feat. People like you wouldn't survive a day in the Shadeveil Mountains."
"Release him!"
Rueel fumed.
While this magus might be a buffoon, he was a loyal one.
With the eyes of Magus Tower's other residents on them, Rueel couldn't risk letting Bairon demean him further.
Otherwise, no magus would wish to remain in the Sailport Magus Tower.
Bairon snorted coldly, flinging the middle-aged magus towards Rueel while throwing in an additional punch for good measure.
Unlike Snooty or old Bront, the magi of Magus Tower were all registered members of the magus guild.
To fight to the death, magi must formally challenge each other.
Hence, Bairon could only spare him.
However, that supplemental punch, imbued with the brute strength of the "Flesh" spell, ensured that even if the middle-aged magus didn't die, he'd be incapacitated for life.
Bairon examined his right fist, evidently pleased.
In the past, smashing through an earth wall might not have been an issue, but his knuckles would inevitably bleed, even risking a fracture.
Now, things had changed.
Amplified by the perfect Magic Circuit, the potency of the "Flesh" spell had increased tenfold.
That punch left Bairon entirely unscathed.
"Cough... Cough..."
The middle-aged magus began to cough up blood incessantly.
"Take him away for treatment," Rueel ordered with a look of disdain, gesturing for two servants to drag the injured magus away.
He then turned sharply towards Bairon, his eyes flashing maliciously.
With a fierce swing of his right hand, adorned with the magus ring, he invoked, "Intermediate Elemental Spell - Wind Blade!"
A blade, forged from pure wind elements, hurtled towards Bairon.
Even for similar spells, the might of an Intermediate Magus's casting was roughly ten times greater than that of a Novice Magus.
Rueel was determined; this strike was meant to make Bairon pay dearly!
Yet, Rueel had underestimated Bairon.
For someone who had defeated twelve Dark Magi of equal rank, Bairon's combat intuition was on par with an Advanced Magus.
A split second before Rueel unleashed the Wind Blade, Bairon's heightened senses had already detected the impending danger.
In the past, Bairon would've utilized "Lightness" to dodge as much as possible, then summon an 'Ice Blast' wall to diminish the force of the Wind Blade.
But now, a slight grin stretched across his lips, revealing a hint of pearly whites.
"Ice Blast!" "Flesh!"
Bairon crossed his arms in front of him, erecting an ice barrier.
With a crisp "clang," the Wind Blade shattered the ice, then struck Bairon's crossed forearms.
He felt a few faint scratches on his arms, accompanied by a mild sting, before the Wind Blade dissipated into thin air.
The onlookers were instantly awestruck.
Even Rueel was dumbfounded.
The novice 5th ring magus, Bairon, had astonishingly taken a direct hit from an Intermediate Magus's Wind Blade.
How could that be possible?!
While Bairon's arms were not entirely unscathed, the minor injuries he sustained made not him, but Rueel, the laughingstock.
The magi exchanged glances, hesitant to even look directly at Rueel, who undoubtedly wished he could disappear into a crack in the floor.
"The Chief Steward is indeed worthy of his title, attacking without so much as a heads up," Bairon said sarcastically.
According to the rules of the magus guild, Rueel would face consequences.
However, Bairon had no time to squabble, and doubted the lower-ranking magi present would step forward as witnesses anyway.
"It was you who repeatedly caused disruptions in the Magus Tower first!" Rueel retorted, his face flushed with anger.
"Everything I've done has been within the boundaries set by the magus guild," Bairon shot back.
"If you disagree, Chief Steward, you can challenge me to a duel now... If you're pressed for time, you can join Lawrence in seven days."
The magi present were taken aback, torn between wondering if Bairon was being arrogantly bold or simply insulting Rueel.
Of course, none of them believed Bairon possessed such capabilities.
But one thing was certain: the decision-making Rueel would not accept the challenge, as it would be too humiliating.
With a face twisted in rage, Rueel roared, "Get out! In seven days, I'll have Lawrence tear you limb from limb!"
Bairon, eager to administer medicine to Evelyn, took the medicine bottle, turned on his heel, and departed the Magus Tower without another word.
"Chief Steward, what happened?"
Not long after Bairon's exit, Lawrence descended from the fourth floor of the Magus Tower.
The magi present turned away, and soon found excuses to leave.
The architectural layout of the Provincial Alliance's Magus Tower was generally the same: the first floor was the main hall for magi to hand off tasks, the second housed the Heritage Hall for significant ceremonies, and the third was where Contribution Points were exchanged.
The floors above the third were reserved for the Chief Steward's discretion.
Typically, these spaces were the Chief Steward's residence and various vaults for precious resources.
Except for trusted aides, no one was allowed on the fourth floor or above.
Lawrence was not only a trusted aide but also Rueel's highly esteemed illegitimate son.
"Lawrence, Bairon seems to have become even more formidable... he actually withstood my Wind Blade," Rueel said gravely. "Have you made a breakthrough?"
"I've reached the eighth ring, Father," Lawrence replied.
Hearing that his illegitimate son had advanced to the eighth ring overnight, Rueel showed a gratified smile. "Keep it up, my fine young man! In seven days, let Bairon's blood be the gift to celebrate your new blue robe!"
"I will. However, I have a feeling that breaking through to the intermediate level will be challenging. Can you grant me more mana cores?" Lawrence inquired.
The mention of mana cores made Rueel wince, but thinking of Bairon's inscrutable strength, he gritted his teeth and nodded in agreement. "Alright, but you must defeat him!"
"I won't let you down, Father." Lawrence's gaze shifted subtly to a two-story building not far from the edge of the Magus Tower, a hint of a smile playing on his lips.
...
Bairon brought the medicine home, poured out a pill, and dissolved it in water.
He then administered it to Evelyn.
Waiting by her bedside for half an hour, Evelyn gradually awakened from her semi-conscious state.
Gently, Bairon reached out, peeling away the ashen-black hardened patches from her cheeks.
After he finished, her cheeks retained their pale hue, but the gray shade symbolic of death seemed even more pronounced.
Just as Bairon was about to speak, his eyes landed on Evelyn's neck, and an overwhelming "hunger" welled up within him.
Bairon quickly knelt, biting the tip of his tongue hard.
The sharp pain snapped him back from the edge of his dark desire.
"Are you okay, brother?" Evelyn asked anxiously.
Bairon stood up, laughing lightly. "I'm fine. I just ran too fast fetching the medicine and agitated an old wound."
"I'm sorry, brother. Evelyn has burdened you again," she said apologetically.
"No more of such silly talk," Bairon responded gently. "Without you, I'd be nothing but a walking corpse."
Evelyn pursed her lips slightly.
"Thirsty?" Bairon asked, picking up a cup of prepared water and holding it to her lips, letting her sip some.
"Brother, I dreamt of a Dragon," Evelyn suddenly shared after drinking.
Bairon paused.
As Evelyn was young, he often told her various mythological tales to lull her to sleep.
Among those stories, her favorite was always about the Dragons, and she deeply wished to see a real Dragon someday.
Bairon hadn't expected Evelyn to dream of such a thing and chuckled, "Was the dragon in your dream good-looking?"
"It was ugly," Evelyn pouted, "I scolded it for being unattractive in the dream, and it spat at me. Then you appeared on its back and kicked it hard several times. It cried out, begging for mercy."
Hearing his sister describe it like that, Bairon found himself at a loss for words for a moment.
Dragons, rumored to be beings on par with legendary magi, had been absent from human sight for two millennia.
Yet, Evelyn believed her brother could subdue and tame such a creature with mere kicks.
Her imagination was certainly wild!
Bairon was both amused and touched.
"Do you still want to hear stories about dragons then?" Bairon teased.
Without hesitation, Evelyn replied, "As long as it's a story told by my brother, I'll always love it!"
"Rest for a bit longer. When you wake up, I'll take you to buy a new storybook," Bairon said, reaching out to tuck her in with the blanket's corner.
The medication for suppressing Greyscale had a side effect of causing drowsiness.
Coupled with the weakened state brought on by Greyscale itself, Evelyn soon drifted off to sleep.
Only after feeling the steady rhythm of Evelyn's breath against his hand did Bairon rise and leave the room.
He had a pressing matter that required him to venture to the realm of the Dark Tower...