Trait Hoarder-Chapter 205: An Old Bet (2)

An Old Bet — Part 2

The Tower Master looked at me.

His gaze was devoid of emotion, cold and crystalline.

The eyes shared by all Level 8 superhumans.

A gaze that seemed to pierce straight through the soul.

I met his stare calmly.

I was Level 7 now.

I wasn’t at Level 8 yet, but I was past the stage of being overwhelmed by mere presence.

As we exchanged this silent conversation, the head researcher awkwardly cleared his throat beside us.

“Ahem! Perhaps it wouldn’t be a bad idea to accept some guidance?”

As expected.

A mage who had always been favorable toward me.

“Is that necessary?”

“We can handle this on our own just fine!”

“Head Researcher Yu, don’t tell me you’re lacking confidence? We’re counting on you!”

“That’s right! You’re the one who successfully developed Solar Flame. Surely Ultimate Flame will be no problem!”

“Well, about that… Haha…”

One day, the head researcher would succeed in completing Ultimate Flame.

And then, his granddaughter—an SSR character from the Sun Tower—would debut with Ultimate Flame as her ultimate ability.

The problem was that this was still ten years away.

The world was moving too fast.

By dedicating themselves entirely to Ultimate Flame’s development, the Sun Tower was inevitably sidelined during the early stages of the major conflict.

That couldn’t happen.

It must not happen.

The Sun Tower needed to step out into the world.

And more importantly, they needed to take part in crushing the Old Father’s Cult.

“Ultimate Flame…”

The Tower Master pondered deeply before turning to the head researcher.

“Sage, how long do you estimate until Ultimate Flame is fully realized?”

“Well… That is…”

“Be honest.”

“At least three years.”

“Three years?”

“Three years?!”

The elders were up in arms.

The head researcher glanced at me once before raising his voice.

“Originally, this was a spell meant to be developed over the course of twenty years! My goal was simply to complete it before I died, while the Tower Master was still in his position. At the very least, it should have taken another ten years. The only reason it’s been reduced to three is thanks to the Sword Star’s cooperation. Without the Black Flame data, we wouldn’t have even grasped the concept yet.”

“But still, three years?”

“A single day feels like a year in times like these…”

“And you’re using up 10% of the Tower’s entire budget, yet it’s still taking this long?”

“Well then, why don’t our esteemed Level 7 elders take a crack at it themselves?”

A calm yet scathing remark.

The elders averted their gazes.

There was a world of difference between using combat magic and researching new spells.

Even though he was only Level 6, the head researcher was undoubtedly the best spell developer in the Sun Tower.

The Tower Master let out a faint chuckle.

“Three years… Well, fine. That much was expected. It’s what the monthly reports have always stated.”

“My apologies, Tower Master.”

“There’s nothing to apologize for. I recall how ecstatic you were last year when you made a breakthrough in Ultimate Flame’s research. And it truly was significant progress. This is our Tower’s ultimate spell, after all. The fact that we can complete it in mere years rather than decades is already remarkable.”

His gaze shifted back to me.

“So… Sword Star, you claim you can assist in the completion of Ultimate Flame?”

“Yes.”

“If you can truly help us realize Ultimate Flame, then granting your wish wouldn’t be difficult. After all, considering your work with Phoenix Pyromancy, the power you demonstrated in this bet, and the sheer potential you’ve shown—if you also contribute to Ultimate Flame’s completion, even if our Tower sheds some blood, it won’t be a loss for us. Wouldn’t you all agree?”

The Tower Master swept his gaze over the elders.

His eyes burned like torches.

A silent pressure that left no room for dissent.

The elders quickly bowed their heads.

“Well, that’s true.”

“It may be excessive, but if we consider it an investment in long-term relations, it’s not a bad move.”

“I also approve. But only if he provides significant contributions to the development of Ultimate Flame.”

“I agree. Simply accelerating the process by a few months won’t be enough.”

Their gazes returned to me.

“Let’s do this. Six months. How about that?”

“Six months?”

“Complete Ultimate Flame within six months. With a total score of at least 750 points. If you succeed, I will personally and fully support you. Not just in my individual capacity, but on behalf of the entire Mage Tower—we’ll forge a magical pact.”

I smiled.

Success.

But they were still underestimating me.

“One month.”

“Hm?”

“I’ll complete Ultimate Flame in one month.”

“You… You’re not joking, are you?”

“Do I look like someone who would joke in front of the Tower Master? I’m perfectly sane. Not crazy.”

I had no desire to get roasted by the Tower Master’s Solar Flame.

Even with Supreme Flame, the gap between Level 7 and Level 8 was massive.

Level 7 was the Realm of Perfection.

The highest peak a human could reach.

Level 8 was the Realm of Transcendence.

At that point, one was no longer truly human.

They became something else—part god, if not quite a demigod or an archangel, at the very least an angel in their own right.

“In exchange, I ask that you lift the restrictions placed on me.”

“What restrictions?”

“The magical pact I signed. The prohibitions against using, leaking, or copying Solar Flame. You can keep the clauses on leaking and copying, but I need the usage restriction lifted. Otherwise, I won’t be able to properly contribute to Ultimate Flame’s development.”

“Hm!”

In truth, if he was going to lift one, he’d have to lift them all.

Since the pact was bound as a single entity, selectively removing a restriction wasn’t possible.

The Tower Master deliberated for a brief moment before giving a simple nod.

“Very well. I’ll allow it.”

“Tower Master!”

“However, this is strictly for the purpose of completing Ultimate Flame. If you fail to achieve that within one month, I will reimpose the restrictions—with a few additional ones. Are you still willing to proceed?”

“That’s fine. But in return, I need full cooperation from you and the other mages.”

“Of course! If Ultimate Flame can be completed in just one month, what does it matter? But if you fail, be prepared for the consequences.”

“I understand.”

Failure?

I hadn’t even considered the possibility.

And even if I did fail, the Tower Master wouldn’t be able to treat me like a slave.

I had my own network of allies.

The Eastern Army, the Geumo Group, the Thor Cult, and the Gaia Cult.

With the magical restrictions lifted, I immediately moved to the research lab.

The head researcher was all that was necessary, yet the Tower Master and the elders tagged along, practically trotting after me.

They must have been curious to see how I would approach this.

First, I received a brief explanation of Ultimate Flame’s current development.

“Ultimate Flame was designed by combining only the most powerful fire-based magic.”

The head researcher snapped his fingers.

Hundreds of magic icons popped up in midair.

“The base is Solar Flame. On top of that, we incorporated Flame Bombardment, Fire Dragon Cannon, Meteor Shower, Flame Tornado, and Flame Giant—all of our Tower’s highest-tier fire spells.”

That didn’t seem like a good idea.

The head researcher waved his hand dramatically.

The magic icons vanished in a cascading sequence.

“All of those were the wrong choices. The spell couldn’t even be stabilized. No matter what catalysts we used or how many rituals we added, we couldn’t control it. Everything just exploded. Our research only progressed after the Sword Star demonstrated Black Flame last year.”

An icon for Black Flame appeared.

The head researcher merged the icons for Solar Flame and Black Flame.

The two spells wavered as they repeatedly combined and separated.

Then, he injected a few more spells into the mix.

Finally, the unstable fusion solidified into a single, stable flame.

“At this stage, we realized Solar Flame and Black Flame complemented each other, but something was still missing. To bridge the gap, we introduced another fire-based spell.”

It was Hellfire.

When Hellfire was added to the fusion of Solar Flame and Black Flame, the entire simulation detonated instantly.

The breakthrough only came when a fourth element was introduced.

A small, seven-colored flame danced in the air.

“This is Elemental Infusion. When we incorporated elemental properties, Solar Flame and Hellfire finally stabilized. The mana consumption is still immense, and the casting time is long, but at least it has taken the form of a usable spell.”

“So this is the current stage?”

“Yes, Tower Master. However, balancing Black Flame and Elemental Infusion is proving difficult. If we amplify Black Flame, Elemental Infusion weakens, increasing instability. If we suppress Black Flame, Solar Flame and Hellfire trigger a conflicting reaction, causing the entire spell to go berserk.”

That was to be expected.

Black Flame was inherently derived from an evil deity.

With a feeble element like Elemental Infusion, Black Flame would simply consume it.

Supreme Flame maintained its balance using Celestial Flame and Chaotic Flame.

“You need to remove Black Flame.”

“Remove Black Flame? That would be unfortunate… There are many fire-based spells in the world, but few are as brutal as Black Flame.”

The head researcher was clearly enamored with Black Flame.

But it wasn’t suitable for Ultimate Flame’s development.

Black Flame leaned heavily toward the priest class.

And Ultimate Flame, constrained by its mage-class designation, was fundamentally incompatible with it.

“Replace it with Sacred Flame instead.”

“Sacred Flame? We’ve already tried that…”

“And add Refined Flame, then amplify its repulsion against Sacred Flame. Refined Flame works better than Demonic Flame in this case.”

“W-What?”

“There will be an explosive reaction from the repulsion. The key is to condense the mana as much as possible and trigger the explosion at a controlled moment. You can regulate that using Dragon Sovereign Fire.”

“W-Wait… What?!”

With every word I spoke, the head researcher’s eyes grew wider.

“H-Hold on a moment! I need to run some calculations!”

Shwaaak!

A magical keyboard unfolded in midair.

Dozens of tenkeyless keyboards appeared in every direction, stacking on top of one another.

The head researcher’s hands moved like a blur, conjuring mana bullets that struck the keys with rapid precision.

The research lab’s monitors switched to display his calculations.

Green text scrolled across the screens at an insane speed.

Would artificial intelligence look like this if it were coding magic?

An endless stream of 0s and 1s flashed, bizarre symbols and arcane characters appearing and vanishing in rapid succession.

“This… This is it!”

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The head researcher screamed as if he had been electrocuted.

“This works! It really works!”

“What did you say?”

The elders murmured amongst themselves.

“The solution was that simple?”

“We just needed Refined Flame?”

“Dragon Sovereign Fire? We scrapped that five years ago because it didn’t work!”

“Weren’t we told that we had to choose between Hellfire and Dragon Sovereign Fire? That using both would cause a mana overload?”

“Exactly! But using Sacred Flame, Refined Flame, and Elemental Infusion creates a multi-layered reaction!”

“Look at the graph! The conflicting forces between all six spells are balancing each other perfectly!”

“As long as we sync the casting time and the detonation timing, we’ll have a completed ultimate spell!”

The elders erupted into chaos.

Some were laughing in disbelief, while others danced in pure joy, declaring this the end of all their struggles.

“You…”

Only the Tower Master remained with a complex expression.

“Where did you learn all of this?”

Sharp.

He was quick to catch on.

But I couldn’t tell him the truth.

If I mentioned anything about a game, I’d be labeled a lunatic.

And if he actually believed me, that would be an even bigger headache.

So I went with the next best option.

“I learned it through experience.”

I raised a single finger.

[Black Flame]

A black fire ignited, licking the air like the tongue of an evil god.

In that instant, the Tower Master’s eyes sharpened into a piercing glare.

[Range] 300

[Mana Consumption] 50

[Casting Time] 50

[Difficulty] 50

[Total Score] 750

A total score of 750 might not seem like much at first glance.

But the key numbers were Destructive Power and Range, both at 300.

Meaning that from a safe distance, they could unleash a spell three times stronger than Solar Flame.

A true, unparalleled magic spear.

A single shot of this could incinerate a Flame Dragon or even a Phoenix to their very bones.

“It’s perfect!”

“At last, finally…”

“To think it would be completed in my lifetime…”

“Hahaha! The Glacier Tower bastards are going to lose their minds over this!”

“It’s time to shed the name of the ‘Four Great Mage Towers.’ From now on, we should be called the Ultimate Flame Tower! Among the great four factions—legions, conglomerates, and cults—only the Mage Tower will remain supreme!”

“Hahaha!”

“Wahahaha!”

“Ahahaha!”

The elders roared with laughter, their joy verging on hysteria.

I laughed along with them.

But inwardly, I remained on guard.

Because while the others were laughing, the Tower Master’s face was completely devoid of amusement.

“Sword Star. Have a private conversation with me.”

“Of course.”

We moved to the Tower Master’s office.

Gone was his usual air of relaxed authority.

He didn’t even offer me a cup of coffee, which he typically served personally.

Instead, the moment we sat down, he cut straight to the point.

“Just what are you?”

–TL Notes–

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