Chapter 82

“Тhеn lеt’s tаke the tеst right nоw.”

А tоnе that seemеd аrrogant tо anyоnе whо hеаrd it.

With thаt single remаrk falling from Кhаn’s lips, Аldrik unсоnsсiоusly fеlt his bodу shrink back fоr а mоmеnt.

‘Could it bе… that this guу is a highly skilled mаgе?’

Even though this pеrsоn named Khan was а mаge, he was an insolеnt fеllow who sрokе infоrmаllу to Aldrik, a noblе.

‘Seeing hоw hе listеned to mу wоrds rоughly and immеdiatelу acceрtеd the prорosаl, it must mean hе is confident in his аbilities…’

In truth, Аldrik hаdn’t expectеd Khаn’s grоuр to аgree tо tаkе the test hе had рrераrеd so rеаdilу.

Thе rеason he had mentioned taking the test in advance was incredibly simple, and he hadn’t explained in detail the gift or proposal that would follow upon passing the test.

Perhaps because of that, he couldn’t help but feel a bit suspicious.

If these people truly passed his test and even accepted his proposal, they would become companions who would share hardships and joys together for two years.

‘Skill is one thing, but first and foremost, their identities must be clear.’

They could be people working under another noble, or they could be shady characters.

Thinking he might get betrayed, Aldrik subtly glanced at Kairos beside him.

Then, Aldrik could clearly tell that this mage named Khan was hiding something.

‘Seeing Kairos making such an absurd expression… it’s certain.’

Kairos was not an ordinary mage but a mage affiliated with a Magic Tower.

Although he belonged to the Green Magic Tower, said to be the weakest among the Magic Towers, from what Aldrik knew, Kairos was a highly skilled mage even within the Green Magic Tower.

Finishing his thoughts, Aldrik opened his mouth with a friendly expression.

“You seem confident in your abilities! First, please sit down, and I’ll explain in a bit more detail.”

“Haha! Understood! Sir Khan, please sit here first!”

But what was this?

The person Aldrik was most closely watching, the top-tier expert, Byutek, a Knight of Kilpheon.

Seeing him bowing obsequiously to Khan and personally guiding him to the middle seat of the sofa, Aldrik’s gaze sharpened.

‘A Knight of Kilpheon bowing to a guy like that?’

Was he truly a highly skilled mage? Doubt arose once again.

Aldrik’s gaze turned back to Kairos.

Looking at his expression, he was now forcing a hollow laugh.

‘Seeing Kairos react like that, it seems strange no matter how I look at it…’

Just as Aldrik was having such thoughts.

“Ha, I can’t listen to this anymore. What is all this nonsense? Viscount Aldrik, that man named Khan lying about being a mage is false.”

“Suddenly, what do you mean by that, Sir Kairos?”

“Viscount Aldrik. It’s laughable for me to say this myself, but I am a mage among the upper ranks of mages. Therefore, when I meet another mage, I can gauge their level to some extent through their Mana.”

“Does that mean… in Sir Kairos’s view, these people are not mages?”

“Yes, to be precise, that man is not a mage but at the level of an ordinary person. If anything, the woman named Sharin seems like a mage… but even her level doesn’t seem that high.”

Unable to stand it any longer, Kairos finally stepped forward.

He was a mage with a strong standing even within the Green Magic Tower, and while outside the Magic Tower, he had seen dozens of guys like that Khan fellow pretending to be mages.

‘What a bold fellow. Daring to brazenly pretend to be a mage in front of a noble like that.’

It seemed that the so-called Knight of Kilpheon and the mage named Sharin were also being deceived by that Khan fellow.

“You, the Knight over there, are said to be a member of the Kilpheon Knight Order, so how are you being fooled by such a fraud?”

“How dare you! What is that supposed to mean…!”

Kairos kindly told the truth to Byutek, who seemed like an easy mark, but suddenly Byutek shouted angrily.

But then.

Thud. Thud.

Tap.

Passing in front of Byutek, Khan, who had sat opposite Kairos, looked at him.

Then, with a faint smile, he opened his mouth.

“You say I’m a fraud?”

Seeing Khan’s relaxed expression, Kairos truly wanted to kill him.

Pretending to be a mage and making such an insolent expression, it was only natural for him to feel that way in this situation.

“That’s right. You’d better stop running that insolent mouth of yours. If you say a few more words, I feel like I’ll burn your entire body to ashes right here.”

Hum…!

A faint Mana emanated from Kairos’s body.

However, the only person in the reception room feeling intimidated by this level of Mana was Aldrik.

As Aldrik’s complexion worsened, Khan slowly opened his mouth again.

“Then, how about making a bet with me?”

“A bet? Me with you?”

“Yes, let’s both take the test that Viscount Aldrik is conducting. How about betting on who achieves better results in that test?”

“How dare…!!!”

Hum…!!!

An immense amount of Mana, incomparable to before, instantly burst forth from Kairos’s body.

‘Certainly… his Mana Capacity is overwhelming.’

Khan looked at Kairos before him, roughly gauging his Mana Capacity.

[LV.55 Upper Mage of the Green Magic Tower Kairos]

The Level visible above Kairos’s head was 55.

But the Mana felt from him was beyond that.

‘He’s stronger than I thought… but I still don’t think I’ll lose.’

Khan had a separate reason for rashly proposing a bet to Kairos.

Kairos, an upper-rank mage even within the Green Magic Tower.

He would likely have mage-related items that Khan currently needed.

‘Talent Blooming Potion.’

The item Khan currently needed was precisely the Talent Blooming Potion.

The Talent Blooming Potion was, as the name suggests, a potion that blooms one’s talent.

In the game, when using this Talent Blooming Potion, Stamina or Mana Stats would increase very slightly, or sometimes there would be no change at all.

‘If I take the Talent Blooming Potion now, it seems it would be quite efficient.’

Khan recalled the Mana Pill he had received and consumed from Belbek and Serina, mages of the Blue Magic Tower, just a few days ago.

The Mana he gained from consuming the Mana Pill was a mere 500.

However, Khan remembered the unfamiliar message that appeared before his eyes after consuming the Mana Pill.

[All Mana from the Mana Pill is fully absorbed.]

[An innate magical talent lies dormant within the consumer’s heart.]

[Each time the magical talent blooms, the Mana from the Mana Pill is perfectly absorbed.]

Upon first seeing that message, Khan couldn’t help but think of the ‘Talent Blooming Potion.’

‘In the game, it wasn’t that hard to obtain, nor was it an item traded at high prices, so it should be easy to get now too.’

Especially since the Green Magic Tower, unlike other Magic Towers, conducts a lot of research on items and Artifacts, so Kairos, a mage of the Green Magic Tower, would likely have at least one Talent Blooming Potion.

‘If he doesn’t have it, I can ask for a decent item or another potion instead when the time comes.’

Whatever the case, the bet Khan proposed was an unconditional benefit for him.

Because Khan was absolutely confident he would win this bet.

Hum…!!!!

Meanwhile, Kairos, who had drawn out a lot of Mana, was feeling a bit flustered inside.

‘This guy, is he withstanding my Mana? I can barely feel any Mana from him, so how on earth…?!’

From Kairos’s perspective, the Mana felt from Khan didn’t even amount to a handful.

“Th-that’s enough!! What is this behavior right now!”

“Ah, my apologies, Viscount Aldrik. I got too excited for a moment…”

“Ahem…!”

At Aldrik’s shout, Kairos withdrew his Mana and bowed his head to him.

Meanwhile, Khan inwardly resented Aldrik for pouring cold water on his plan.

‘He was almost convinced, but suddenly interfering. Tsk…’

Now that things had come to this, it seemed he needed to provoke a bit more.

“So, are you not thinking of making the bet? Surely a mage affiliated with the Green Magic Tower isn’t planning to get scared and back out?”

“Hoo… Fine, alright. If I win the bet, let’s make it so I take your head.”

True to being a mage, Kairos no longer showed anger and calmly accepted the bet with a composed tone.

“Then, conversely, if I win, can I take your head?”

“Do as you please. Even if you die and come back to life, you won’t be able to beat me in the bet.”

Hearing Kairos’s words, Khan smiled.

Since they made such an open promise in front of the Viscount, going back on it later would be impossible.

“Sir Kairos… Even if it’s you, Sir Kairos, is this really alright? To suddenly bet your life like this…”

“Viscount, do you really think I would lose to such a foolish fellow?”

“That’s not it, but…”

Still, Aldrik felt somewhat uneasy for some reason.

The more he looked at this mage named Khan, the more he felt an overwhelming sense for some unknown reason.

‘It must be my imagination.’

In truth, Aldrik didn’t care what happened to Khan.

His goal was solely Byutek, the Knight of Kilpheon.

‘If I can bring Byutek under me, it’s only a matter of time before I become a Count…!’

As Aldrik was having such thoughts.

Suddenly, Khan, who had been sitting, stood up and approached him.

“So, how exactly is this test conducted?”

“Ah, the test for verifying ability is very simple. There’s a Mana Measurement Machine in the castle’s basement, but first… seeing it directly will be faster to understand than explaining with words. Let’s go right away.”

Aldrik immediately guided Khan’s group and Kairos to the castle’s basement.

Thud. Thud.

Since Aldrik’s castle was large, it took a little time to reach the basement.

Upon arriving at the basement, a vast space unfolded.

‘It’s like looking at a large auditorium.’

In the center of the vast basement stood what appeared to be a machine.

“That is a Power Measurement Device. If you attack the plate of the Power Measurement Device you see there, a numerical Mana value will be displayed on the screen visible above the machine.”

Listening to Aldrik’s explanation, Khan observed the Power Measurement Device.

‘It’s bigger than I thought.’

Seeing in reality what he had seen in the game made it feel much larger.

Its height was roughly over 2 meters.

“Then the person with the higher value on this Power Measurement Device wins the bet.”

“That’s correct. Then, both of you, right away…”

Hum…!!!!

Before Aldrik’s words could even finish, suddenly, in an instant, Mana began to swirl throughout the entire basement.

“I’ll go first.”

Kairos, who had already drawn out all his Mana, shouted in a voice suppressing his anger and approached the Power Measurement Device.