13 – Just Throw Down 100 Million

Erphs laughed heartily.

“When they said a genius had cracked the Millennium Problem, I honestly expected someone gloomy, but you’re a remarkably handsome young lad!! Reminds me of myself in my younger days!! I was right to send you that letter!! I should applaud my past self!!”

He was jovial and energetic.

A rare extrovert, even amongst magicians.

“Thank you.”

Ester Tristi, on the other hand, possessed the quintessential magician’s temperament.

Quiet and concise.

Cold and rational.

‘He won’t appreciate unnecessary chatter.’

Erphs smiled and settled into his chair.

“Alright. I truly appreciate you taking the time to come here despite your busy schedule. I’ve been eager to have a conversation with you.”

“The honor is mine to meet the Head of the Flame School, the Necro-Pyromancer.”

Necro-Pyromancer, a moniker attached to Erphs, the creator of the hottest and most agonizing flames in this world.

Erphs was quite fond of the epithet.

It had been a long time since anyone had addressed him by that name, not since he became the Red Magic Tower Lord.

‘Before a magician, he’s an aristocrat.’

From his attire to every single gesture, he exuded nobility and archaic grace.

‘I heard he was a washed-up prince.’

Erphs had already gathered all the relevant information about Ester before he arrived.

After all, some of the Flame School’s magicians, like Aria, were friends working in the Tristi Autonomous Region.

“I have a question for you, if you don’t mind?”

Ester nodded.

“I understand that the Blue Magic Tower Lord also sent you a letter, but I’m curious why you chose to grace the Red Magic Tower with your presence first?”

Ester stated succinctly.

“To receive the reward for solving the Millennium Problem.”

“Hoh.”

“Indeed.”

Ester gestured towards her own chest.

“Of all the correspondence received, you seemed to have the keenest understanding of what I desire.”

The Scarlet Tower and the Azure Tower tend to view each other as rivals.

Not that they were enemies, mind you.

Erphs was rather pleased that Ester had chosen the Scarlet Tower.

“I have something to show you first.”

He presented Ester with a bar composed of shimmering, mint-colored ore.

“Mithril.”

“Yes. Mithril it is.”

Mithril is one of the most valuable metals in this world.

Objects capable of containing mana are exceedingly rare in this realm, and mithril is among them.

This metal possesses the property of absorbing ambient mana, drawing in an amount comparable to what ten mages possess per kilogram.

Once sufficiently saturated with mana, mithril transforms into the hardest metal known.

The resulting mithril is used to craft artifacts, weapons, and armaments.

Its price is treated like gold due to its meager supply compared with its vast demand.

“One hundred grams of mithril. A treasure worth approximately one hundred million credits at the current market price. Perhaps even more. A just reward for one who identifies the Millennium Problem. However.”

Ester did not even blink.

Despite it being an amount of money even a scion of the Tristi family would not easily handle.

“Hahahaha!!”

Her desires were indeed clear.

There was no reason to delay any further.

“Shall we get down to the real matter, then?”

“Yes.”

“You possess an extraordinary understanding of magic. Truly, a wondrous level. At least to the point where you can present the theory behind the recreation of Hellfire….”

Erphs raised his teacup.

“You are a far more remarkable being than this old Tower Master sitting before you.”

“You flatter me.”

“I’ve heard that you were forbidden from using any magic within the Tristi estate.”

Erphs knew the reason with unwavering certainty the moment he laid eyes on Esther.

The old man possessed an exceptional gaze.

A Scanning Eye, capable of discerning the residual mana of another.

Esther held no mana whatsoever.

Not even a glimmer of its budding, signifying a congenital mana deficiency.

“I understand now. And why you answered my correspondence, no doubt. No matter how great your magical comprehension, life as a mage is arduous without mana.”

“……”

“This Erphs will resolve your congenital mana deficiency. A fitting reward for the genius who solved the Millennium Problem. It will take time, of course. Implanting an artificial conduit is delicate. It will strain your physique considerably.”

Esther Tristy offered a curt nod.

“Have you chosen a school?”

“No, sir.”

“Then, might I suggest the Flame School? We are anything but conservative, I assure you. We would support any research you wished to pursue.”

The Flame School primarily studied magic related to war, or destruction.

If the genius before him took root within the Flame School, works of unimaginable power would surely be forged.

Erphs felt the saliva in his mouth turn to dust.

‘To be nervous in front of a child at my age…’

Esther’s talent was undeniable.

He had thought Etilla Bedford the closest to Transcendence, but the boy’s solving of the Millennium Problem had changed his mind.

‘Unprecedented talent in the history of the kingdom, no, the entire continent.’

The ultimate goal of all mages: to reach Transcendence.

The core of magic is the creation of miracles.

For a given phenomenon to occur in all of creation, cause and effect are required.

For fire to ignite, fuel and heat are needed. For lightning to strike, charge separation and discharge must occur within clouds.

Such are the absolute rules of the world.

But magic, in its essence, ignores these rules.

Because all the providence and process can be replaced with formulas and mana.

A miracle.

The old man, risen to the seat of Red Magic Tower Lord, felt no word suited magic more.

They dedicate their lives to the study of magic.

If mages are bows, then magic is the arrow.

The reach of an arrow loosed with one’s very life as the price…that depends entirely on the mage’s own prowess.

Every mage, without exception, desires that their arrows attain transcendence.

For magic, there is no such thing as impossible.

Impossibility exists solely within humanity.

The method by which a human may approach closest to omnipotence.

That was magic itself.

Erphos yearned to witness the limitless potential achievable by the fifteen-year-old boy before him.

But.

“Truth be told, I have no intention of living as a mage. I regret to inform you, but I must decline your offer.”

*Thump* – Erphos’s heart plummeted.

“What…?”

“I said, I decline your offer.”

“No, before that, I mean.”

“I said, I have no intention of living as a mage.”

What had he just heard?

A prodigy who could reshape the entire magical landscape, rejecting the path of a mage…?

“Why, why!?”

“My dreams do not lie in becoming a mage.”

“If it’s the position of head of the Tristy family you covet, then within this Red Magic Tower…”

“Truth be told, I do not aspire to be the family head either.”

Erphos had steeled himself to accept any number of rejections.

He believed it was premature for so young a boy to commit to a particular school of magic.

Even if the boy had wished to devote himself to another school, he would have accepted it.

Though it would sting his pride, it would still be an unavoidable fate.

But.

‘To possess such extraordinary talent and yet…not become a mage?’

Ester offered no explanation.

“It seems our conversation has concluded.”

“Wa-wait a moment!!”

Erphs labored to sway Esther.

“A wizard, you see. It’s a truly remarkable vocation, one you can’t simply attain, no matter how you desire it, without the proper knowledge and innate talent. A most singular existence, it is.”

“Indeed, I believe so as well.”

The boisterous ‘Hwahahaha!’ he’d displayed upon their initial meeting had vanished, without a trace.

He continued, his voice laced with urgency, to enumerate the virtues of the wizarding profession.

At present, Erphs resembled less the jovial Crimson Magus Tower Master and more a grandfather, striving by any means to convince his grandchild.

“With your aptitude, you could ignite a revolution in the magical world!! This Crimson Magus Tower Master vouches for it!! You harbor no desire, truly, to tread the path of magic?”

Esther shook their head.

“To me, magic is merely a means to an end. The successor trials I currently endure are no different. All are but instruments to achieve a goal.”

Esther’s words did pique Erphs’ imagination enough but…

A suitable rejoinder eluded him.

For a time, he fell silent, lost in contemplation.

*

I possess Nob AI.

Difficult spells? Just utilize an ‘expert’ and say, ‘Do it.’ Problem solved.

Self-preservation? Activate the ‘automatic protection program’ and say, ‘Do it.’ Sorted.

Of course, with Nob AI, I could tackle the remaining Millennium Problems and embark on groundbreaking magical research, but why should I particularly devote my time to such endeavors?

If I merely succeed in this successor trial, I could live comfortably, reading trashy novels in my room.

I already possess the reputation of having solved a Millennium Problem, and I recently resolved a predicament that left the Steel Lion Knights confounded, did I not?

To enjoy a modicum of power and glory before passing on – is that not the very definition of a blissful life?

Honestly, wouldn’t everyone prefer the life of someone who made 30 billion won from crypto, bought buildings and foreign cars, and lives comfortably, rather than the life of Jae-yong, the chairman of a famous conglomerate group?

Freeloading. What a beautifully resonant word.

‘Ugh, but 100 million is a bit of a waste…’

Perhaps I should have simply requested that they forgo the healing.