Re: Tales of the Rune-Tech Sage

Chapter 2 - Mage Tower

CH2 Mage Tower

***

Alex and his escort of knights travelled westward.

Their journey took over ten days, leading them through shadowy forests and rugged mountain ranges, across the mighty Aegean River that spanned much of the continent, and past the territories of various nobles—including one belonging to a Grand Duchy.

During this time, Alex realized that Jarred wasnʼt necessarily looking down on him—or at least, not only that. Rather, the man was simply a man of few words. He spoke only when he had to.

Still, Jarred fulfilled Earl Drakeʼs orders. Occasionally, he would speak about the Fury family or explain parts of the world to Alex.

Through these short lessons, Alex slowly pieced together a clearer image of his new lineage, and of the world he now inhabited.

The Fury Family, as it turned out, was far from united. Drake Fury had earned his title of Earl through personal merit.

If all the lands controlled by various Fury family members were combined, they could rival even a Duchy—perhaps even a Grand Duchy.

Unfortunately, the family was riddled with pride and ambition. Its members found it difficult to submit to any singular leader. Independence was more desirable than consolidated strength.

Aside from Earl Drake, the strongest among them, there were four Counts, and over a dozen Viscounts and Barons with the Fury family name.

The world, like many feudal societies, revolved around land and title. Across the Arun Continent, nobles waged endless wars to increase their domains and rise in noble rank.

Thanks to the existence of planar travel, scarcity of resources no longer limited ambition. Nobles frequently invaded lesser planes, plundering them to fuel their wars back home.

In fact, securing spatial coordinates of lesser planes and exploiting them had become an unspoken requirement for nobility itself.

Independent powerhouses and private organizations also used planar travel to gather resources. You could say planar travel had become the cornerstone of the world of Pangea.

Yes, this plane/ realm was called Pangea.

The name wasnʼt lost on Alex. He had not forgotten the one who brought him here; Heart_of_Pangea.

He had theories about that personʼs true identity, but for now, it was the least of his concerns.

As Jarred explained, not everyone in this world could cultivate. Only those born with talent could become Professionals.

Professionals were ranked as: Novice, Beginner, Intermediate, Elite, Veteran, Saint, and Legendary.

There were ranks beyond Legendary, but Jarred hadnʼt bothered to elaborate.

According to him, the Legendary rank represented the top 1% of the world. As for the ranks above that—well, Alex would learn of them if he reached that level.

Along the way, Alex also learned from the other knights that Jarred was one of Earl Drakeʼs most powerful and trusted men—a mid-stage Saint-ranked Dark Knight.

Earl Drake himself was a newly risen Legendary Berserker.

After the long, exhausting journey, their destination finally came into view.

Alexʼs jaw nearly dropped.

When they set off, he had assumed he was being exiled to some remote, decaying mage tower. But what stood before him defied expectations.

The Mage Tower— no, DragonHold Enclave, wasnʼt a mere tower, but a massive mountain-spanning complex. The central tower stood over half a kilometre tall, surrounded by buildings that extended across an entire range and spilled into the tributaries of a nearby bay.

This wasnʼt just a tower. It was the domain of a legend: Merlin Pendragon.

To Alexʼs utter shock, the teacher chosen for him was not only a senior Legendary Mage, but also one of the Virellian Empireʼs powerhouse guardians.

They were granted entrance without delay.

Inside the Mage Tower, Alex stood in awe within a massive hall of impossible design. The chamber shimmered with a dreamlike glow, carved entirely from a single piece of translucent blue crystal—including the throne where Merlin Pendragon sat.

The man looked surprisingly plain: a middle-aged gentleman with kind eyes and a sagely expression. Dressed like an old aristocrat rather than a Legendary mage. His presence, though, still exuded timeless wisdom and knowledge.

And beside him stood a woman—strikingly beautiful, with a voluptuous figure, cascading black hair, and piercing icy-blue eyes that gazed at Alex with gentle warmth. Dressed in a mageʼs robe, she radiated a mature allure.

If it were his past life, Alex mightʼve tried flirting.

He nodded at her in greeting, then quickly looked away.

Jarred stepped forward and relayed Earl Drakeʼs intentions.

”My master hopes that you will take Young Master Alex as your student—for old timeʼs sake.”

Alex was surprised by the respectful tone with which Jarred used to address him. He quickly realized it was all part of keeping up appearances—for the familyʼs dignity.

Merlin shook his head. ”If I accepted every nobleʼs child on the basis of ʼold timeʼs sake,ʼ my tower would be filled with them.”

”He possesses the purest Furor Bloodline seen in generations,” Jarred responded without hesitation. ”Though he lacks talent in the warrior path, his intellect is promising. His path surely lies in magic.”

Merlin turned his gaze on Alex. The boy felt as though the mage were peering into his very soul.

The Legendary mageʼs expression lit up. Even the crystal hall seemed to shimmer in response.

”He certainly has wisdom beyond his years,” Merlin said thoughtfully. ”An essential trait for a mage.

”How far can I go?”

Jarred straightened. ”You may do whatever you deem necessary. The only condition is that Young Master Alex returns a competent man by Pangeaʼs standards.”

Merlin nodded slowly. ”I hope Drake understands that I only use the best and finest of materials. So too would my student. The cost of my personal guidance will be... significant, even if only in material cost alone.”

There was a long pause before he added, ”For old timeʼs sake... Iʼll accept ten yearsʼ worth of profits from one of his primary planes.”

”In-plane time?” Jarred asked.

”Of course not. Pangea time.”

Jarredʼs lips twitched. That was a heavy price.

Time in Pangea flowed slower than in most lesser planes. Ten years here could be decades —or even centuries— elsewhere.

The cost amounted to nearly half of Drakeʼs projected income for the next decade. It would severely impact his military ambitions for the upcoming upheaval.

Still, Jarred nodded. The deal was struck.

Merlin added, ”Iʼll also help the boy with his bloodline issue. I assume thatʼs why he was sent here.”

Jarred exhaled in relief. That was the Earlʼs minimum requirement.

As the knight turned to leave, he paused and looked back at Alex one last time. The cost of the deal was staggering. He could only hope the boy would prove worth it in the years to come.

He and the Fury knights departed immediately, returning to Ashen Castle.

Merlin turned to Alex.

”From today, you are my student. You will obey my instructions completely—without hesitation or question. Understood?”

”Yes,” Alex replied firmly.

Heʼd read enough cultivation novels in his past life to know what was expected of an acolyte.

”This is my daughter, Zora. Her instructions are to be followed as if they were mine.”

Alex nodded again, his expression growing serious. He buried his earlier thoughts about her even deeper behind a mask of focus.

Zora gave him a soft smile. It calmed him more than he expected.

”Bring him to the Examination Hall,” Merlin instructed.

”Yes, Father.”

Zora led him through portals, glowing elevators, and winding hallways until Alex was thoroughly disoriented.

They finally arrived at the Examination Hall— a space filled with alchemical equipment, arcane arrays, and magical instruments whose purposes Alex couldnʼt begin to guess.

Zora handed him over to the supervising mage and departed through a portal, returning to her fatherʼs side.

Curiously, Alex wondered why Merlin hadnʼt just teleported him directly here.

He was asked to remove his clothes, drink a glowing potion, and lie on a cold metal bed where he was bound. Then, an array of needles —some thin as hair, others as thick as pencils— pierced into his flesh.

Ordinarily, a Grade-0 detection spell would suffice to test an acolyteʼs potential. But for the handpicked student of the towerʼs master, the mages pulled out all the stops.

Merlin and Zora observed through a private surveillance spell—accessible only to the highest authority in the tower. Zora calmly prepared tea for her father as the results came in.

Alex shivered in pain as his consciousness alternated between awareness and numbness.

”High elemental affinity. No dominant element— balanced across the board.”

He convulsed as elemental energy surged through him, testing his magical resistance.

”Significant magical resistance detected across all elements. Passive absorption of ejected mana detected.”

Then came the worst.

A spiritual probe pierced his very soul.

”Impeccably strong spiritual force... far beyond the level of a genius.”

The next round of examinations focused on his physical condition—and surprisingly, the results were even more concerning than his magical aptitude.

On paper, his individual parameters suggested he possessed a powerful physique.

Muscle fibre toughness, bone strength, neural conductivity— all obtained data were impressive. And yet, something deep within him seemed to be limiting the actual overall functioning of his body.

It was as if a hidden force at his very core was suppressing his potential.

The tests dragged on for hours, culminating in a thick stack of reports filled with conflicting data and perplexed observations.

---

When Alex finally regained consciousness, the supervising mage informed him of the final verdict: his overall performance was excellent—just short of the threshold that couldʼve marked him as a genius.

Aside from his overwhelming spiritual force, there were no major abnormalities nor special attributes to take note of.

At the very least, they said, he was guaranteed to reach the rank of a Great Mage—an above-average result by all standards.

But Alex hardly paid attention to any of that. The moment he woke up, he realized something had changed.

The world looked different— richer, more vibrant.

He could now see strange, shimmering particles floating in the air. These particles moved subtly, drawn toward the mages in the room.

As they entered each personʼs body, the particles would shift in colour, adapting to the dominant hue of that mageʼs internal mana.

Then it happened.

One of the mages activated a fire spell. In that instant, Alex watched as the surrounding particles surged toward the tip of the mageʼs wand, turned a brilliant crimson, and ignited into flame.

It clicked.

He had awakened an ocular ability—one that allowed him to ʼseeʼ mana.

***