Chapter 48

Chapter 48: Shape of the Shadow

Ferda returned to the dim room once more.
Not to sleep, but to continue his cultivation method.
The mana cultivation method, Shape of the Shadow.
If ordinary mages had to classify it, it was a cultivation method difficult enough to be placed at the ‘superior’ tier.
Yet Ferda was a man who had already walked paths far more arduous and demanding than that.
He could accomplish something like this as if it were no trouble at all.
The only necessary element was the movement of the circle.
And finally, that circle began to move.
“The amount is absurdly insufficient.”
Ferda also knew the method of forcefully squeezing it out.
Had he done so, he would have advanced to the 5th Circle at this very moment.
Yet he did not.
Because he knew how dangerous it was to be consumed by emotion.
Ferda guarded himself against this emotion and strived to find the answer.
And finally, he found it.
Ferda closed his eyes.
He extended the flow of mana and concentrated it throughout his entire body.
And, tilting it slowly, he poured it all out.
Ferda’s complete mental image adhered to the floor.
His mind projected into the world of shadows.
A flickering shadow within a candle flame swaying gently with every breath.
That shadow moved on its own, then slid up Ferda’s body.
The ascended shadow confronted the red circle inside Ferda’s danjeon.
“Valdrova.”
Ferda’s mind began to envision Valdrova’s appearance on its own.
Inside his head lived a mad painter.
He repeatedly painted the same appearance upon the canvas, yet unsatisfied, he also destroyed it over and over.
He painted thousands of sheets and destroyed thousands of sheets.
The unsatisfied heart was not a mere thirst.
“It was also something I wanted to discover when I reached the 3rd Circle.”
The question that had vanished while halting Valdrova’s rampage.
Yet Ferda finally figured it out.
That the Valdrova he was painting had an unfilled, empty space.
In that empty space were two syllables.
“Tomorrow.”
At that moment, the mad painter in his heart began to move.
Unlike when he was dominated by rage, this time he harbored passion.
This time, he painted Valdrova’s likeness across a broader canvas without hesitation.
“Her tomorrow.”
Not merely her simple tomorrow.
“A tomorrow… with me in it.”
He filled himself into the space that had not yet been occupied.
That image became a single sentence.
“I want to spend tomorrow with her.”
The moment the sentence was completed, something astonishing occurred.
The images created from a fragile imagination began to move with life.
Ferda knew.
“Childlike innocence (dongsim).”
Long ago, the dream a fragile boy had dreamed.
The vaguely drawn figure of a partner was overwritten by a beautiful woman with red hair and four horns.
It was a dream and, simultaneously, ecstasy.
Ecstasy is the pinnacle of emotion.
It moves.
The heart growing uncontrollably stirred the circle.
If left alone, Ferda was destined to shatter.
So Ferda concentrated.
Because the future of them together had to become reality, not an illusion.
Ferda brought the form of the spirit upon which he had concentrated into the circle.
At that moment, dozens of beams of hands began gathering the raging mana and shaping it.
“Easy.”
It was in an entirely different dimension from merely gathering it with a single hand to create it.
It had felt even harder when he had struggled to form the 1st and 2nd Circles.
“Too easy.”
Surrounding and pressing in from all directions, there was no gap through which to escape.
The rotation moved as rotation, and the shape molded as shape.
Thus it was superimposed as the form of a new layer.
That was how Ferda reached the 4th Circle.
Ferda opened his eyes.
The shadow twisted and moved, then finally transformed into the shape of a hand.
That was the 3rd-tier spell, Shadow Hand.
No, it was in an entirely different dimension from that Shadow Hand.
This was not an artificial construct created by magic.
It was another body part concealed within Ferda’s body.
Ferda adapted to it immediately.
“The shadow is me.”
The hand differentiated and created another hand.
Those hands formed yet another hand.
In that manner, it branched out endlessly.
The narrow room filled with black hands.
“I am the shadow itself.”
The candle could not withstand the deep darkness and went out with a snap.

Guild.
A guild is a group that verifies the status of its members and provides benefits.
In return, it holds them accountable for their actions, controls them through rules, and demands solidarity for profit.
Protecting their interests through unity was its very essence.
Yet the Serdes Human Magic Academy was fundamentally different from such a guild.
Surveillance instead of verification.
Control instead of benefits.
That was the world mages lived in on the Serdes Continent.
Its founder was Erdes Roton.
A war hero of the 12-Member Expedition gathered to defeat the Demon King in the Dragon-Demon War, and the founder of the Human Magic Academy.
Even after 150 years, she remained alive and active.
A mage who could not pass on the title of Strongest Human Mage even to the current generation.
Incarnation of Intellect.
Living Witness.
She possessed an undeniable depth of years, yet she looked younger than women in their prime.
— You must fulfill your official duties!
— No!!
She threw a tantrum like a child, young beyond young.
— I don’t want to work! Leave me alone!
— Official duties have piled up for days. Look at this. They’ve piled so high I can’t even see the Academy President’s face!
— I piled them up because I didn’t want to see your face. Blue, you do it.
— How am I supposed to do it for you? And my name is Lu.
— You won’t die just because it’s delayed a bit. If you’re so unhappy, say it to my face.
— But won’t you open the door?
— If you challenge me to a duel, I’ll kindly open it, won’t I?
— What crazy bastard in the world would fight the Academy President?
She was a war hero of the Dragon-Demon War, and the Strongest Human Mage.
With the gap in circles, the win rate was infinitely low from the bottom up; theoretically, there was no one who could defeat her.
— So that’s the problem. They claim they’ll wager their lives with words, but when I ask ‘Do you want to die?’, they run away shouting ‘I want to live!’ See? No guts, no guts.
— But you crippled the person who bet his life, didn’t you?
— Sometimes I fail at power control as I live. We reached an amicable agreement with the party involved, didn’t we?
She dismissed it as if it were nothing.
All the secretary could do was sigh and hand over the documents she had received.
— This is the list of attendees for this Grand Council. Please review it.
“It doesn’t matter if you don’t.”
Lu muttered to herself.
With a single flick of Erdes’s finger, the list flew into her hand.
— Many old people I know. If they’ve eaten that much age, they should pass it on to their children; how long do they plan to keep going like this?
— Right?
The secretary’s eyes gazed deeply at Erdes.
— Take that back before I tear out your eyeballs. If not, what?
Erdes’s eyes, scanning rapidly, came to a halt on a single point.
— Is there a problem?
— Thinking that maybe I misread.
She repeated that word several times.
— But it wasn’t a mistake. Blue, you bastard, aren’t you doing your job properly?
— Eh?
She was bewildered by the sudden abusive language.
She pointed to a name written on the list.
— Is this man’s surname written as Valdrova here?
— Ah, that is actually the real name of the Red Dragon Valdrova. It means I didn’t record it wrong, nor was it an organizer’s error.
— Do you swear it’s not a lie?
— Yes. Are there records?
Erdes shrugged, concealing her embarrassment.
— That terrifying dragon is doing something unusual. So is he Valdrova’s scion?
— Um… you didn’t know that?
Erdes smiled faintly.
Yet her face held a cold undertone.
— What is it that I don’t know? The fact that I’m a clueless lady who knows nothing of worldly affairs? Or the fact that your head might fly off today?
— Gasp, it’s not that, I never intended to belittle or mock the Academy President, this is purely…
— Get to the point.
— So this time, he is the fiancé of the Red Dragon Valdrova.
— Fiancé?
As childish as Erdes was, she knew what being Valdrova’s fiancé meant.
— Seriously?
— Eh?
— I’m asking if it’s serious.
— Uh, yes. It’s serious.
— Interesting. There’s no bastard scheduled to be executed… Ferda, bring me the records on this human.
— Ah, one moment!
The secretary placed both hands against her temples and chanted a spell.
— Search, Ferda Valdrova.
In that instant, a bundle of papers slipped through the door slit from outside the office and stacked neatly before the secretary.
The secretary, having finished the chant, handed the papers to Erdes.
— H-here they are!
Her eyes quickly scanned the received documents.
— Let’s see, third son of the Rosnova family… mmm…
Erdes’s gaze grew rather calm.
As her eyes traveled downward, her expression turned serious.
— Lu.
— Yes.
— When does the Grand Council open?
Lu’s eyes opened wide.
— It opens in 5 days, but surely you aren’t thinking of going?
— I was going to pass because it seemed like they’d only spout boring stories, but I thought going might not be so bad after all.
Erdes’s lips stared fixedly at Ferda’s portrait.
— Besides, I should be able to see this stupidly handsome face, right?
— Isn’t attending important? It might be late, but even now, quickly prepare the carriage…
— No, there is no need for that.
Erdes’s finger circled in the air.
Then, a circular portal, matching the trajectory she traced, appeared midair.
— There is a simple method, so why do such troublesome things?
5th-tier Teleportation Gate.
She deployed high-level magic effortlessly, without incantations or magic circles.
For a mage, it would be a wondrous sight rarely witnessed in a lifetime.
Yet for Lu, anxiety outweighed awe.
— So, Lu. I’m going to fulfill my official duties.
— Eh?
— Take good care of things while I’m away. Don’t forget to feed the cats!
— No, Academy President! Wait a moment!
— I’m off~!
The Academy President waved her hand shamelessly and threw herself into the Teleportation Gate.
— If you were going to use a portal, you could have finished the piled-up official work before leaving, aaaaah!!
Lu’s scream was in vain as the portal snapped shut.

10 days before the Grand Council,
Ferda finished preparations to depart for the Central Continent.
To reach the domain of Blancaros in the Central Continent, he had to leave now.
“Formality is pointless.”
The higher one’s status, the more one must possess.
Among those things was time, and having leisure was a nobleman’s virtue.
To Ferda, who had experienced the future, it was comical.
Because that leisurely culture vanished as mana automobiles began to become widespread.
Rather, the nobility came to desire even faster means of travel.
— Regent-nim, may I enter?
It was not Ruri, but Jed.
He wore the Red Uniform as a member of Valdrova Castle.
Because the vassals of the Grand Duchy of Valdrova were required to dress that way.
— Lord Arwen of Count Consillus and his subordinates have just arrived.
— Understood.
— We have also finished preparing the carriage, so you only need to board… eh?
Jed looked over Ferda’s frame with a puzzled expression.
— Is there a problem?
— It’s not a problem, I’m just wondering if you’re going dressed like that…
Ferda’s clothing was extremely plain.
Nobles are beings who strive to shine by any means possible.
Thus, pulling gem-studded threads to make garments glisten was standard practice.
Among them, gold thread, being the easiest, was essential.
Until he entered the Royal Palace, Ferda wore red garments adorned with gold thread.
Yet now it was black with red.
Furthermore, the luster was merely at the level of moderate starching.
Compared to other nobles, it was excessively simple.
— I originally dislike gold.
— Where in the world is there a person who dislikes gold?
Jed reacted as if dumbfounded.
He scanned Ferda’s clothing and offered his assessment.
— Without that, you look similar to me.
— Good. The likelihood of an assassin unfamiliar with styles attacking me decreases.
— As a double, you are far too handsome, so I doubt they would attack me.
Jed smirked with pure narcissism.
Ferda paid no mind to such behavior and picked up an object from the table.
— Take this.
Since the distance was too great to receive the item, Jed tried to step forward, but something surprising occurred.
A hiss—.
A shadow extended from Ferda’s hand, took the item, and brought it over to him.
Jed was quite startled by the shadow hand, but tried not to show it.
— What is this?
— The promised item.
At the words “promised item,” Jed reviewed the contents.
— “Ferda Valdrova, consort of Valdrova, representative and regent, acting on behalf of the Great Twelve Dragons and the Ruler of Power and Fire, Valdrova, appoints Jed Swallow as the Sword of the King and the Shield of the People…”
He did not even need to read through all the tongue-twisting text to realize what it was.
— Knight Appointment Letter?
Jed’s eyes rounded as he raised his head.
— …Is this real?
— Would it be fake? You came promising that from the start, didn’t you?
— No, you said you’d work hard to get me into high society, but I didn’t think you’d knight me right away?
Becoming a knight is the stepping stone to becoming a noble.
Thus, it is impossible unless one hails from a knightly family handed down through generations, or achieves notable military merit.
— Is it fine to receive this just like that right now?
— There is no need to worry. Your capability was sufficiently proven in the Imperial Warehouse.
— No, that’s not it…
Jed waved his hands.
— Normally, a grand banquet is standard for this sort of thing, isn’t it?
— …
— Calling women, singing, drinking—omitting that important part is a bit…
Ferda stared flatly at Jed, who made a gesture of tipping back a glass.
“Should I take it back?”
— Focus solely on your mission, Sir Jed.
— Tch. Understood, Regent-nim.
“My party…”
Muttering thus, he departed.
— I need to get ready quickly as well.
Originally, he would have required Ruri’s assistance, but that was no longer necessary.
A hiss—.
Something akin to black mist spread from Ferda’s cuffs and chest.
That mist wove itself into eight hands and began attending to Ferda.
Buttoning up, adjusting his clothing, creating an almost flawless appearance.
“As expected, 4 stars are well worth it.”
Right now it was unrefined, so he used it for simple assistance, but these hands were Ferda’s own arms.
Once accustomed, he could deploy magic circles and strike at the enemy’s blind spots.
The talent still remained within Ferda, leaving only practice and experience.
— Shall we go?
Ferda’s footsteps echoed down the corridor.
When he arrived alone at the inner castle gate, numerous soldiers had gathered below.
— Attention!
Arwen’s voice resonated powerfully.
The soldiers moved in unison and took a knee.
It was only a single movement, but one could see how rigorously they had been trained.
— Arwen Wolfhart, the 30-man unit under my command has received orders to execute the escort mission!
— Orders received!
The shout of the knights.
Ferda scanned them one by one and nodded.
— Good work.
— Yes! To your positions!
Arwen mounted his horse, and the soldiers deployed into battle formation for the escort.
Jed was on horseback alongside Arwen.
Not even a full day had passed since he became a knight, yet fitting for a playboy who made women weep, his posture was already impeccable.
Ferda directed his gaze toward where the carriage stood.
A red carriage and the maid Ruri were waiting there.
As usual, she held the door with a professional expression.
— Please board.
— All right.
Just as Ferda stepped out of the castle and prepared to board the carriage.
Ferda felt a gaze and turned his head slightly toward the castle.
The balcony from which the castle gate could be seen from the interior.
There was no one there.
It was natural.
“What was I expecting?”
— Ferda-nim?
— Let’s depart.
Ferda took his seat, and the carriage began to move.
The long 10-day journey passed like an arrow.