The Return of the EX-Class Wizard - Chapter 60

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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The Return of an EX-Rank Mage Episode 060
My thoughts had grown somewhat tangled.
‘I can’t afford to become too consumed by combat.’
Combat magic fixates solely on ‘ultimate efficiency and destruction’.
It is not the path magic should ultimately pursue.
Combat magic is merely one branch of magic—it must never become magic’s ultimate goal itself.
Whether in the past or now, I had always believed this.
‘For now, I should focus on scroll crafting.’
Judging purely by magical prowess, Christine was a mage of far greater refinement than I.
She would handle things admirably on her own. I had faith in her.
[Entering Tower (Seoul) Floor 4 (Reconstruction).]
After I entered the Tower.
Christine slumped against the wall, her energy draining away.
“Strongtree seems a bit displeased.”
Displeased wasn’t quite accurate.
His mind was simply a touch muddled.
“This is all because of those sub-lord bastards. Then again, even if I were an EX-rank Awakener, I’d be irritated too.”
Saudi Arabia had simply given away the legendary-grade combat boots.
London, by contrast, had set a price.
The comparison was unavoidable.
“When Strongtree comes out, I need to have a proper word with him.”
These days, he was demonstrating the importance of combat magic more directly than anyone.
I should show him that I understand his conviction, respect it, and embrace it myself.
No mage dislikes a mage who recognizes their sincerity.
‘If I show myself as a disciple who genuinely admires him, he’ll surely appreciate it.’
And most crucially.
‘I should praise him as a truly magnificent combat mage.’
Praise makes even whales dance.
I was confident that I was the Englishwoman who understood Strongtree best.
“What would London have done without me, really?”
Meanwhile, before beginning scroll crafting, I reviewed my stat window once more.
───────
[Stat Window]
Strength: 49 (20 +5 +24)
Stamina: 40 (35 + 5)
Agility: 50 (34 + 3 + 4 + 2 + 7)
Intelligence: 30
*Remaining Stats: 0
───────
Base agility: 34.
Sky Pattern Necklace Agility +3.
Frostwind Ring Set Agility +4.
Rushing Valor Agility +2
Thundersteed Combat Boots Agility +7
I had achieved a total of 50 Agility.
‘Even I have to admit, I look like a mage oriented purely toward combat.’
It would be difficult to find another mage with such high Strength, Stamina, and Agility.
In any case, now that Agility had surpassed 50, my abilities related to Agility must have improved dramatically.
Simply jumping in place made my body feel noticeably lighter.
‘Let me head to the End Point.’
I arrived at the End Point.
As a warm-up, I began practicing the technique of separating a single fragment from an Energy Bolt.
‘This has become much easier?’
Now that my Agility, which had been stagnant for some time, was rising, manipulating magic became far simpler.
If Stamina influences recovery and Strength influences the body’s durability, then Agility seemed to have a profound impact on the manifestation of magic itself—the subjective improvement was even greater.
‘It feels as though time itself has slowed around me.’
That’s why I had far more composure when performing magical operations.
‘Fragment separation has become much easier.’
In computer terms, my processing speed had increased several times over.
Scroll crafting requires performing multiple stages simultaneously.
The reason for the delays until now became crystal clear.
‘The answer was Agility all along.’
‘Of course, Intelligence would also play a role….’
Of course, Intelligence is necessary too.
The magical computation itself would involve Intelligence.
But investing in Intelligence right now is problematic because of the explosive power of ‘Dil-Chik-Nu’.
The higher Intelligence becomes, the more powerful the magic grows, and the harder it becomes to control.
‘Now is not the time to invest in Intelligence.’
My true nature was that of a mage.
There would come a time when I invested more intensively in Intelligence.
Certainly.
‘Use an additional domain to confine and stabilize the fragment.’
Continuous repetitive mastery.
‘The closer I am to the magical fragment, the easier the control becomes.’
It was something I naturally knew, yet I realized it anew.
The closer the caster and the magic are to each other, the exponentially lower the difficulty of control becomes.
‘Should I get closer?’
I was deliberately maintaining distance from the End Point while performing the fragmentation work.
Though there was a four-layer defensive barrier of friend-or-foe identification, interception, shield, and invulnerability, the magical fragments of Dil-Chik-Nu were far too dangerous.
-You are too close to the End Point
-I must inform you that magical fragments may scatter.
Mayo worried as well, but Choi Kang-mok had his own reasons for confidence.
“I have Blink, after all.”
The Blink from the Sphinkias Robe.
The Thunderhorse Combat Boots increased the number of movement-type magic casts.
Now I could establish a more proactive evasion system in front of the four-layered barrier.
“Since I feel my own magic best, I can also dodge it the fastest.”
My agility was a staggering fifty.
Physical response, magical control, evasion reaction—all systems were operating smoothly.
These elements infused Choi Kang-mok with confidence.
“I’ll work on stabilizing the fragments from closer range.”
In dangerous moments, I could quickly create distance with Blink.
Besides, I needed to master the Blink settings utilizing the Thunderhorse Combat Boots anyway—two birds with one stone.
And the experiment itself was a resounding success.
Mayo, who had been expressing concern, now began to marvel.
-A combat mage. You’re advancing toward a rare, complete form.
-Refined combat style. It’s beautiful.
-At this rate, another
one of us
will emerge, but I’ll try to control it.
Sweat dripped down my forehead.
‘This is fun?’
The difficulty of evading fragments had dropped dramatically.
Combined with the tangible effects of fifty agility and Blink utilization,
I could now control fragments stably even at close range.
‘Is it done?’
It felt like I might succeed in creating the scroll this time.
Zzzt—!
Reality was merciless.
The scroll tore apart, and the fragments contained within scattered outward.
‘Blink.’
I reflexively shifted position. I had become masterful at close-range evasion.
Choi Kang-mok gulped down a mana potion for the first time in a while.
Thanks to Excalion, offensive magic required no mana, but using Blink consumed it.
Taking a brief rest, Choi Kang-mok wore a rather satisfied smile.
“That was remarkable progress.”
Originally, the scroll would have exploded and shattered into pieces.
But now? It merely tore apart left and right.
This was undeniable advancement.
And a few hours later.
“Done.”
Though unstable, the scroll’s creation was complete.
Choi Kang-mok carefully unfolded the additional dimensional space and wrapped the finished scroll in a shield for safekeeping.
“Let’s wait a bit longer.”
One hour later.
The scroll tore apart again.
Twenty-four hours later.
A completely stabilized scroll was finally complete.
“This will do.”
I had finally succeeded.
A tremendous sense of accomplishment as a mage surged through me like a tidal wave.
“Everything is proceeding according to plan.”

* * *
[Is it really true that things have been quiet since Floor 25? It’s already been a week.]
└ Seriously, I’ve never rested this long before
└ He overexerted himself during the Tower occupation war
└ Injury rumors are starting to spread
└ You crazy people, it’s only been a week
└ It normally takes a month just to climb one floor lol
In truth, Choi Kang-mok had been moving far too quickly.
Originally, the first clear of the Tower typically required over a week per floor as standard.
Since it was a challenge registered in the Hall of Fame, the norm was to move slowly after thorough preparation.
[Even EX-rank Awakeners have Floor 25 as their limit lol. Now is the real time to prove whether he has the qualities to become a true ranker.]
└ Here comes the proof-obsessed guy again
“I’ve already set a world record, so what else do they want me to prove, damn it”
└ Spouting proof this and proof that from your corner lol
└ Yeah, he’s already treated as world-class overseas
└ ? I live in France and the consensus here is that EX-rank is manipulating things
As the ascent of Floor 26 stalled, changes began unfolding from an entirely different direction.
[Isn’t something strange about the Floor 25 individual rankings?]
└ ??? Positions 2 through 10 are all from London?
└ London’s having a party;;
└ But 1st place is EX-sama lol, locked in
Originally, the gap between the world’s three major Guilds was paper-thin.
This degree of ranking monopoly was a clear anomaly.
[Positions 11 through 20 are mostly from Saudi Arabia and New York?]
└ They’re all Towers connected to Seoul anyway
└ Something smells off
└ This is absolutely no coincidence
In the end, London revealed the strategy.
[They said you just use the scroll made by EX-rank Awakener?]
└ ???
└ They cleared it just by using a scroll?
└ So EX-rank Awakener is definitely a mage;;>
└ Wasn’t that originally an impossible clear?
Possessing an excellent scroll didn’t automatically guarantee a higher ranking.
It was established doctrine that high-level mage scrolls incurred grade penalties.
Powerful though they were, in the lower floors they were considered “cheating” and points were deducted.
Haha, so the reason you didn’t go to the 26th floor was because you were making a scroll?
└ Doesn’t scroll creation usually take several months until the first success?
└ But seriously, what kind of scroll produces SSS+?
└ This is insane
└ Wasn’t EX-rank Awakener originally an explorer?
└ No, they’re a tank now
└ No. There’s a theory they’re a mage
└ EX-rank Awakener is EX-rank Awakener. Genre is meaningless
London, Saudi Arabia, New York.
An unprecedented situation unfolded where three cities monopolized the Floor 25 individual rankings.
For now it’s just Floor 25, but what about next?
In this atmosphere, cracks began to form even within the Real Madrid Guild, which had been checking the EX-rank Awakener.
“We need to establish friendly relations with EX-rank Awakener now.”
“A national-level approach is necessary.”
The so-called “pro-EX faction” began to raise their heads.
But they were still a minority.
[Breaking News: Real Madrid achieves world’s first Floor 52 clear]
While the world was abuzz over the Floor 25 scroll clear.
Real Madrid proved their strength by breaking through the upper floors through direct assault.
Lord Antonio of Real Madrid was resolute.
“We are Real Madrid.”
Lower floor EX clears? Monopolizing rankings?
That’s merely self-gratification from those without true power.
The world’s apex remains, and always will be, Real Madrid.
“We need only advance as Real Madrid, as befits the world’s greatest.”
They resolved to uphold Western Europe’s pride.
For Antonio, this situation became a political advantage instead.
[As expected of Real. The upper floors are different]
└ The king is indeed Real Madrid
└ EX-rank Awakener is just for hunting early Tower bosses anyway
└ Real Madrid is still the final boss of Tower civilization
└ Europe’s pride, Real Madrid!
Beyond Spain, extending across all of Western Europe.
Voices of support for Lord Antonio of Real Madrid grew louder.
And at that very moment, another piece of news arrived.
A sudden strategic alliance between Real Madrid and Barcelona.
[Breaking News: Real Madrid-Barcelona Strategic Alliance Established!]
[Spain’s two great powers join hands!]
The age of Tower civilization is defined by ‘city-states.’
Fierce competition between cities within nations.
But now, things were beginning to change gradually.
[From city competition to the era of national alliances]
[With Real Madrid and Barcelona as the axis, Spain’s 12 Major Lords gathered in one place…]
The ‘Grand Lord System,’ which had been nominal until now, was beginning to materialize.
Beyond the city level, at the national level.
What made this shift possible was none other than the presence of EX-rank Awakeners.
[From a global perspective, all 12 of Spain’s Guilds rank in the top tier]
└They’re joining forces? For real?
└Pretty different from Britain’s situation
└So we’re finally seeing nations unite again?
└The Golden Age returns!
The fractured cities were uniting once more as a ‘nation.’
Tower Civilization 2.0, the prelude to an era of national-level alliances.
But around that time, another piece of news swept across the world.
[Breaking News: Floor 10 World Rankings updating in real-time…]
[Breaking News: Floor 20 World Rankings updating in real-time…]
[Breaking News: Floor 30 World Rankings updating in real-time…]
Major shifts were occurring in the boss floor world rankings.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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