The Strongest in Our Neighborhood - Chapter 122

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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 Strongest in Our Neighborhood (122)
Watching his disciple Laila Frang hovering in the air and radiating a powerful Mana Force Field, Aleingde Mir let out a long sigh inside his heart.
He ought to celebrate and congratulate her on her growth, but if he was being honest, that was just for show—in truth, he was envious to the point of irritation.
‘I’ve been stuck at 6-star Rank for over fifteen years now… and my disciple advances from 4-star to 7-star in just days. And now her Mana is so pure that at the same 7-star level, she’d have no rivals!’
Had he known it would come to this, he would have come himself instead of sending his disciple.
After roughly ten minutes had passed, the disciple who had been radiating the powerful Mana Force Field descended to the ground again, and shortly after, she opened her eyes.
The moment Aleingde Mir’s gaze met hers, he felt his own magical power being crushed beneath the dignity of a 7-star mage, and he ground his teeth inwardly.
“C-Congratulations, my disciple.”
“Thank you, Master. I am grateful.”
“But you advanced from 4-star to 7-star in just days—are you alright? Do you feel anything wrong?”
“My body feels light as though I might float away, and the Mana flows without any obstruction.”
“Ah, yes. Ahem! Even if there don’t seem to be any immediate problems, such rapid growth can bring side effects, so for now you should take time to acclimate to your heightened magical power.”
“Understood, Master. Thank you always for looking after such a shortcoming-filled disciple.”
“Shortcoming-filled? You’re now a higher-rank mage than I am.”
“Master, you will soon become a mage superior to me as well.”
“I wish that were true, but that’s merely my hope.”
After finishing her conversation with her master, Laila Frang bowed deeply toward Noxscasarsis in gratitude.
“Thank you for helping me at every critical moment. Without you, Noxscasarsis, I would have lost all my Mana to the Mandragora’s roots and perished.”
“When someone struggles so desperately just to survive, of course I had to help. And even if I did, turning the tide and surviving that situation was your own will that did it.”
Aleingde Mir, listening to the two of them speak, tilted his head in confusion.
‘Noxscasarsis helped? When did he help? I was right there and felt nothing at all.’
While Aleingde Mir was tilting his head, his disciple bowed again, this time toward Jang Gain.
“Thank you as well. Without your guidance, Baron Gain, I could not have overcome the Mandragora’s roots.”
“What’s impressive is that even in such dire circumstances, you kept your senses, heard my words, and executed them exactly as instructed. Congratulations on becoming a high-ranking 7-star Archmage.”
“Thank you.”
Aleingde Mir, listening to their exchange, tilted his head again in confusion.
‘The Baron also gave advice? When? Weren’t they both just watching? They didn’t do anything, and I didn’t sense any special movement of Mana or Aura. What are they talking about?’
Aleingde Mir considered asking about the doubts that arose from their conversation, but he closed his mouth.
It seemed there had been some subtle assistance he—at the level of a 6-star—had failed to perceive, and asking about it would make him appear an incompetent master to his disciple.
Shortly afterward, Jang Gain spoke to Laila Frang.
“Oh, that’s right—I’ve appointed you, Laila Frang, as the Tower Master of this Gray Tower.”
“Yes? You’ve appointed me as the Tower Master of this tower? During the time I was teetering between life and death, did you seize control of this tower?”
“Seize? Hmm, well, somehow or other, I did end up taking control of the tower, as you say.”
“…….”
“In any case, yesterday I appointed two 6-star mages as Sub-Tower Masters, then gathered all the mages of the tower and told them that those who would follow me should remain, and those who couldn’t should leave.”
“If you could make such a declaration with all the mages assembled, you certainly did seize control. How many of the mages said they would stay?”
“I expected at least half would leave, but surprisingly, not a single mage departed. They all stayed.”
“Really? That doesn’t make sense. Did you perhaps threaten them by saying you wouldn’t let anyone leave the tower?”
“How could I have done such a thing? I genuinely told them that those who wished to leave could go and those who wished to stay could remain, and they all chose to stay.”
“That’s… hard to understand. What could their reasoning be?”
“Well, they read the tide of things, I suppose. They must have calculated and judged as best they could.”
“I suppose so.”
“Since I took control of the tower and said that only those who would listen to me should remain, now I gather them together and appoint you, Laila Frang, as Tower Master of the Gray Tower, and you become Tower Master.”
Laila Frang, hearing Jang Gain’s words, could not hide her complex expression for a moment.
“Becoming Tower Master is a mage’s dream, but why would you appoint me instead of Master? Why not my teacher?”
“I considered who is more necessary to my territory and who is more suited to be Tower Master, and decided accordingly.”
“Ah, true enough—Master is certainly far superior to me when it comes to assisting a lord.”
“That doesn’t mean you’re a servant I have no use for, Laila. It means that each person has their proper place.”
“I understand my lord’s will. Still, Tower Master… I never thought it would be this easy to become one.”
“Even if it looks easy, it wasn’t. Just look at your case—you nearly became the Mandragora’s fertilizer. You become Tower Master only by crossing the threshold of death.”
“That’s true.”
Glimmer, glimmer…
Just then, the Communication Orb in Jang Gain’s possession began to emit light.
The person who appeared in the Communication Orb was the 6-star mage Kremura.
-Baron Gain, I have gathered all the mages in the lobby on the first floor.
“Ah, very good. Thank you for your work. Now that Laila Frang has awakened, we’ll head down right away.”
-Yes, sir.
“Everyone, shall we head upstairs?”
Shortly afterward, those who had been in the basement ascended the stairs to the first-floor lobby.
* * *
The Five Great Temples’ high priests and holy maidens, who ordinarily conversed through magical Communication Orbs, gathered at the Dionysus Temple with the greatest warriors of each order in preparation for the expedition.
“The Demon Contract Holder Duke Jang Gain’s refusal of His Majesty’s invitation has made matters considerably more troublesome.”
At the words of Bakute, the high priest of the Dionysus Temple, Mormonte, the high priest of the Ares Temple, nodded in agreement.
“But what can we do? Still, is not our duty as servants of the divine to fulfill the Divine Oracle?”
“Of course. The fact that the same Divine Oracle has descended upon the leaders of all five temples is unprecedented in the history of our orders.”
“Therefore, we must fulfill it without fail.”
Bakute nodded, looking at the holy knights, monks, and priests standing behind the other high priests and holy maidens.
“You have brought the greatest warriors of each order, so now let us bring forth the Holy Artifacts they shall wield.”
High Priest Bakute spoke and gestured to a priest, who then brought forward a large silver tray upon which lay a Holy Artifact.
“Oh! Is that not the Holy Chalice Manjwui, which intoxicates even when drinking water poured into it?”
“Indeed. Manjwui has the property that no matter what one pours into it, a single sip will plunge one into sleep for ten days from which they cannot awaken. Of course, the Demon Contract Holder Duke Jang Gain, being a holy man, would never drink wine from the sacred Manjwui.”
“Surely the Holy Power of Manjwui does more than merely put people to sleep?”
“Would it be otherwise? Those who carry Manjwui upon their person gain increased Holy Power and the ability to suppress an opponent’s Mana. Haluci.”
“Yes, High Priest.”
At Bakute’s call, the holy knight Haluci stepped forward.
“In the name of Dionysus, I bestow upon you the Manjwui. Go forth and eliminate the Demon Contract Holder.”
“I accept the will of Dionysus. All glory shall be offered to Dionysus.”
After the holy knight Haluci received the chalice and withdrew, the high priest of the Ares Temple, Mormonte, opened his mouth.
“High Priest Bakute has presented a truly precious Holy Artifact. I intend to bestow this Holy Sword upon Fenalian, the Swordmaster holy knight of our order.”
The sword that Mormonte drew had its blade broken mid-way, leaving only the lower portion and the hilt intact.
“That is the broken Holy Sword Karsem!”
“Ah, how quick you all are to recognize Karsem. It severs the very soul of Demonic Beings so they cannot be resurrected—delivering true death—and for us priests, whenever we suffer wounds, Karsem heals them instantly, leaving no trace of injury.”
Mormonte drew a short blade and cut his own forearm, then brought Karsem to the wound, which sealed immediately with not even a scar remaining.
Gasps of admiration burst forth unbidden from those watching.
“Truly Karsem! With Karsem in hand, the Swordmaster Fenalian could even face a Demon King himself.”
“Indeed. Karsem is the greatest Holy Artifact of the Ares order. Fenalian.”
“Yes, High Priest.”
“In the name of Ares, I bestow upon you the Holy Sword Karsem. Go forth and erase the Demon Contract Holder from this world.”
“I shall do my utmost to bring glory to Ares.”
Following suit, the holy maiden of the Goddess Asera bestowed the Mirror of Fire, which incinerates Demonic Energy, upon the female holy knight Catallia; the holy maiden of the Goddess Selene gave the Holy Bell, which repels all evils, to the holy knight Sophia; and the high priest of Nerthinis granted the Golden Shield, which deflects Demonic Energy, to the monk Munkrian.
With the Holy Artifact presentation ceremony concluded, each temple conducted its own departure prayers, then embarked upon the long expedition to deliver divine punishment upon the Demon Contract Holder Duke Jang Gain.
* * *
The mages of the Gray Tower, combining both certified mages of 4-star Rank and above as well as training mages below that level, numbered one hundred and two.
“I, Duke Jang Gain, who rules the Crerarion Territory of the Smed Kingdom, hereby place the Gray Tower under the dominion of the Crerarion Territory and appoint Laila Frang as its Tower Master.”
Jang Gain presented the Appointment Certificate to Laila Frang, and subsequently appointed Kremura and Hoolliba as Sub-Tower Masters as well.
With the appointments complete, the newly appointed Tower Master Laila Frang took the platform and unveiled her vision and goals to the mages.
“Therefore, as my core objective, just as Duke Jang Gain prevented the minority peoples and foreign races of the Crerarion Mountain Range from being hunted by mercenaries and sold into slavery, I intend that our Gray Tower mages likewise protect the foreign races and minority peoples living around the tower from being hunted.”
When the Tower Master finished speaking, Kremura, the Sub-Tower Master, opened his mouth.
“I and Sub-Tower Master Hoolliba fully agree with the Tower Master’s position and shall take the lead in protecting the minority peoples and foreign races, whom we have hitherto disregarded as unrelated to us.”
“We shall also help the Tower Master and Sub-Tower Masters protect the minority peoples and foreign races.”
Watching as all the mages’ opinions unified as one, Jang Gain wore an expression of satisfaction.
After the appointment ceremony concluded and he was preparing to return to his domain, Noxscasarsis spoke toward Jang Gain.
“Now that I think about it, I came to receive a Mandragora and ended up taking the entire Gray Tower back with me.”
“Ha, true. Somehow things worked out that way. But then, what of Aleingde, who came specifically to obtain the Mandragora—surely he gained nothing?”
“Gained nothing? My disciple has become the Tower Master of the Gray Tower—how could you say he has gained nothing?”
“It’s good that his disciple has prospered, but having prospered so greatly, there’s a part that stings a little, isn’t there? Are you not disappointed that I didn’t appoint Aleingde as Tower Master?”
“The position I require is at my lord’s side—did I not say so? Therefore, my disciple Laila Frang becoming Tower Master is a matter of considerable pride for me.”
As Aleingde Mir smiled awkwardly, Jang Gain said nothing more on that subject.
Then suddenly Noxscasarsis withdrew from his Subspace a root resembling an infant’s body.
“Ah! That—is that not a Mandragora?”
Aleingde Mir recognized it first, his eyes widening in surprise.
“Right, it’s a Mandragora. Take it.”
Noxscasarsis tossed the Mandragora carelessly, and Aleingde Mir caught it with a startled cry.
“Goodness! How could you give something so precious to me?”
“You came all this way to get it, didn’t you?”
“That’s true, but for Noxscasarsis to give me something of your own……”
At that moment, Jang Gain chuckled and cut him off.
“Just accept it. It appears to have come from the former Tower Master Grasilla’s Subspace.”

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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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