Mage Adam-Chapter 402

They had never expected Adam to go so far.

Until now, the Holy Tower and the Council never directly interfered in the cultivation of apprentices. Although each War Trial brought countless geniuses into the Holy Tower, the Tower Academies had also produced innumerable ordinary mages to bolster their ranks.

Even the interval between each War Trial was always the result of gamesmanship and compromise.

But now, with the rise of the Academy Continent, the academies under the Tower’s name had been dissolved. And Adam’s decree—that all instruction would be carried out by machines—meant their people could no longer infiltrate the academies to sway apprentices toward the Free Faction.

This was a fundamental blow to the growth of their influence.

What was the “Basic Academy”? The name itself implied there were higher academies to follow. If those, too, were taught entirely by machines, then for them it would be nothing short of catastrophic.

So they could no longer sit still. Knowing they could never persuade Adam, they instead launched the first wave of counterattack.

The City of Academies roared with human voices. Representatives from among the forty billion mortals had gathered here. Though vast, the city now had hardly a place to stand. Each mortal’s voice was small, but together, they swelled into deafening noise.

“How ignorant. We’re doing this for their own good, and yet they’re ungrateful.” Garfield looked down on the crowd of protestors—most drawn from Council-controlled cities—and sneered.

Adam was not surprised. “It’s normal. Nobles think education among commoners is a threat to their rule. As for the peasants, they think study is a waste of time they should spend farming, or fear that sending children away means losing vital labor at home. To them, study is useless. To become a mage just by learning? They think it’s impossible.

And most importantly—”

His gaze swept over the agitators in the crowd. “A blatant manipulation of public opinion. Bold, but clumsy.”

Guardian Avril said, “Clumsy? I’d say it’s effective.

In the past, even if a mage slaughtered an island, so long as he didn’t kill them all, a few centuries was enough for mortals to repopulate. But now it’s different. Because of big data, the flow of information is countless times faster. Because of the Academy Continent, every mortal’s life and death is visible to any mage who watches. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Now these protestors stand before you. What will you do?

Kill them all? But if you do, a second wave will rise. A third. You can’t possibly kill all the mortals, can you?

That’s exactly why they dare to do this. They’re certain you won’t—and can’t—take that step.”

Adam didn’t answer her. Instead, he turned to Aisha. “Illusion?”

Aisha replied, “Not illusion. There’s a guiding spell at work. But guidance only works if the thoughts already exist in their hearts. Adam, you’ve moved too fast.”

It was like being shown the answer without ever seeing the process. Of course people would be confused and resistant. Adam understood this—but he had no patience to waste time on anyone. On basic education, he would not yield even an inch. He could not yield. If he retreated now, he would never move forward again.

He rose from the Tower, into the skies above the city. Troublesome, yes—but solvable.

He wanted education to spread, but he was no saint, and had no dream of creating a utopia. Social classes existed for a reason. If some refused to be “human,” then others—those who could not otherwise be human—would take their place.

Adam’s voice thundered in every ear:

“This is the Mage World. The Academy Continent. I am the highest authority appointed by the Council.”

In the Mage World, there was no such thing as human rights. Mages were rulers above all. Only mages could speak as equals with mages. This was an unshakable truth.

“You are here to oppose the will of a mage?”

His Super Dimensional pressure blanketed the city indiscriminately. The noisy chatter stopped at once. The blood in their veins turned cold. Faces paled with fear as the mortals remembered: they were facing a mage—exalted, untouchable.

The agitators, sensing the shift, panicked and hastily cast again. They acted brazenly, as though they feared nothing from Adam’s scrutiny.

Aisha asked softly, “Should we deal with those rats?”

Adam shook his head, and instead addressed a mortal who had stepped forward. “What do you want?”

The man trembled all over, yet forced his voice out sharply:

“We dare not disrespect the mage, but the mortal world should be ruled by mortals. Mages do not understand our lives. We are grateful for the chance to learn, but we cannot all leave to study. That would collapse our society!”

“When,” Adam said evenly, “have I ever said such a thing? From the start, I have only required that children of age attend the academies.”

The crowd, re-guided, ignored his words. Another mortal stepped forth:

“In that case, we demand that the Basic Academies employ human teachers! We will not accept machines as our instructors!”

“Machine teachers are absolutely fair and impartial—something humans cannot be. Equal, unbiased basic education is what you truly need.” Adam explained calmly, without anger.

“Then what of these communicators? Mage, do you mean to enslave us entirely? With these on, our every move will be controlled!”

The crowd roared. Indeed, most mortals hated the communicators.

“We are part of the Mage World, not slaves to mages!”

“We will not live under surveillance! We want freedom!”

“We don’t need communicators, nor basic education!”

“Give me liberty, or give me death!”

One by one, communicators were thrown down. Though the material kept them unharmed, their stance was unmistakable.

Aisha murmured, “Voices of the consortiums, mixed with those of certain mages. Ordinary mortals could never speak like this.”

Adam saw it just as clearly. Once the extremists revealed themselves, other mortals, swept along by the crowd before, now backed away, retreating from the agitators. Their original aim had never been to challenge mages. They had only wanted a few rights—never to make such threats.

Suddenly, a magic circle lit across the city floor. The most rabid protestors—and the free mages hidden among them—were sealed off from the rest.

Adam descended gently, his tone soft as he asked:

“Prefer death? Are you certain?”