Kingdom Bloodline

Chapter 294 What is Magic?
The air was quiet, and the sunlight, obscured by dark clouds, cast a gray glow, as if adding to the mysterious atmosphere.

A pleasant male voice rang out: "When you think of gods, what is the first thought that comes to mind?"

A few seconds later.

Lost in thought, Thales unconsciously opened his eyes, revealing an empty gaze, and softly replied in the eerie atmosphere, "Gods are completely different from us."

“They don’t fit in with us.”

“From afar, we are facing each other.”

The male voice was silent for a moment, seemingly savoring the answer.

"So," the other person continued after a moment, "when you think of this world, what is the first thing that comes to mind?"

The prince frowned slightly.

"world?"

Thales gently raised his head, gazing at the other person as if looking at a statue in a temple, his expression enigmatic, his tone serene: "We are in it."

“We are embedded in it.”

"We exist within it."

The male voice paused again for a moment, then let out a low murmur.

“Very good, very much in the style of the ‘Subjectivist School’,” the pleasant male voice chuckled softly. “Now, discard the previous answers, empty your mind, close your eyes, and try again. Listen, when you think of the divine…”

Thales nodded unconsciously, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath.

"Gods..."

next second...

boom!
The prince suddenly opened his eyes and slammed his hand on the chessboard in front of him!
Thales exhaled deeply, and an emotion of annoyance instantly appeared in his empty, unfocused eyes.

“Oh God, I’ve had enough,” the boy said, leaning back in his seat and clutching his forehead in anguish as he interrupted the conversation. “How long have we been rambling on about this?”

Before the prince, the handsome man on the other side of the chessboard gently turned his gaze.

“Less than an hour,” the latter said softly.

Thales sighed in frustration and spread his hands: "An hour? How many different answers have I given you for the same two questions?"

"god?"

The prince raised his left hand, counting on his fingers one by one, his tone full of perfunctory dissatisfaction: "From 'Creator,' 'Holy Being,' 'Omniscient and Omnipotent,' 'Manipulator of Puppetry,' 'Observer in the Dark,' to 'Visitor from Another World,' 'Responding to Prayers,' 'Heartless Keeper,' 'Conspiracy Outside the Box'..."

The man on the other side of the chessboard listened quietly to Thales's words, without moving an inch.

"world?"

Thales finished counting the fingers on his left hand and raised his right: "From 'all people,' 'vibrant life,' 'animal planet,' 'material world,' 'a bright future and hope,' 'terrible world,' 'unfair society' to 'the world is wrong,' 'heaven and earth are indifferent,' 'on the verge of destruction'..."

With a splitting headache, Thales let out a breath and continued to complain, "Are there fifteen? If you combine them in pairs, there could be hundreds..."

Just then, the man opposite him gently raised a finger.

In an instant, Thales felt the air he inhaled become refreshing and moist, and the cool sensation deep in his lungs cooled his restless mind.

The prince stopped talking, blinked, and calmed himself down with a deep breath.

Your mind isn't on this.

In the open-air booth of the card room, Ashida Sachs, sitting opposite Thales, gently lowered her fingers and said calmly, "At least not here with me."

Thales snapped out of his reverie, looked up at the air mage opposite him on the chessboard, and then glanced at the Hall of Heroes in the distance outside the terrace.

He let out a sigh, got off the back of the chair, and rubbed his face in frustration.

“Sorry,” the boy shook his head awkwardly, pushing a chess piece forward one step: “I’ve been a bit busy lately—I’m not quite in the zone.”

Almost a month has passed since the day of the council hearing and the visit of Viscount Cambida.

From that day on, Thales was troubled by the troubles brought about by the envoy from Black Sand Territory: the relationship between the Free Alliance and Exter, the struggle between King Charman and his opponents, the undercurrents of power in Dragonhill City, the Walton family's stance and choices—and of course, the Grand Duchess's marriage—but surprisingly, despite Thales' growing anxiety after listening to Puttier's analysis, Dragonhill City remained unexpectedly calm for the past ten days or so.

The vassals did not continue to offer advice or pressure for the marriage, and the Earl of Risbane remained as composed as ever—no matter how many times Thales tried to communicate with him about Selma's marriage.

Kanbida never left Dragonstreet. This envoy from the Black Sand Territory lived in the noble's inn in the Axe District, keeping a low profile under the protection of his own people. He neither associated with any vassals nor met with the Grand Duke.

For the past month, no messenger ravens have flown into the west—such as Qiyuan City—and therefore no intelligence has been received regarding the Free Alliance or the war.

The situation in Dragon City was like a calm lake, undisturbed, but it was precisely because of this that Thales felt even more uneasy: the surface of the water before it boils is probably just like this.

Until he received the next sky-blue invitation.

"What's going on lately?"

"You mean the little girl I found in your bed six years ago?" Ashida scoffed, saying casually, "The one you put on the throne of Grand Duke just because she slept with you for one night?"

Thales' expression froze.

"Oh my god," the prince said angrily a second later, his face contorted in exasperation, "Didn't the Tower of Souls teach you how to use the common language of the modern Western Continent correctly so as not to cause misunderstandings?"

“Indeed, the modern common language gradually took shape after the final war,” Ashida said with a relaxed expression, but Thales felt that there was a faint sneer hidden beneath his calm face. “When I was your age, my tutor taught me Imperial language—perhaps mixed with some common language vocabulary, while the Tower of Souls uses the orthodox written language of the ancient Empire.”

What I really want to complain about isn't your level of Mandarin proficiency at all...

But the exhausted prince had given up arguing with him.

Thales sighed helplessly and changed the subject: "I really didn't expect that the famous Air Mage would care about the affairs of us lowly mortals?"

Aishida gently raised her eyes.

"My not wanting to care about these trivial things doesn't mean I'm deaf or blind."

“As I said, being too bogged down in mundane affairs will hinder your progress,” the air mage said calmly, seemingly unperturbed by his student’s distraction. “Perhaps you don’t understand yet, but as a prospective mage, without a solid foundation…”

“A solid foundation comes from the teachers’ unreserved and meticulous instruction, not from hypnotherapy without any basis or explanation,” Thales glanced at him and retorted without hesitation, “It seems that I need a teacher like that.”

Perhaps Ashida was genuinely good-tempered, or perhaps he simply didn't care about the student's sarcasm. The mage calmly said, "Very well, it seems you've recovered your spirits. Then let's try again..."

Having had enough, Thales let out a sigh and looked helplessly at the ceiling.

"Are you sure you don't want to continue the topic from the last lesson?"

The prince listlessly tapped the chess pieces, drawing curious glances from Lord Justin and Wyatt in the distance. "Remember, the Twin Emperors? And how they betrayed you?"

A flash of blue light appeared in Ashida's eyes.

"They are the enemy, that's all you need to know."

The mage said coldly, "The Twin Emperors are beyond your level, unlike Giza and me. They have an immeasurable influence on this world. The more you know, the more likely you are to expose yourself under their watchful eyes, whether intentionally or unintentionally." Thales' eyes flickered.

Its influence is immeasurable.

Intentional or unintentional eavesdropping.

"You mean," the prince, who had just caught something, asked tentatively, "that after the final war, these sorcerers still maintained contact with countries around the world?"

Aishida stared at him intently, her voice laced with sarcasm: "Use your thumb to think about it, Your Highness. Even I, Giza, and... beings like them have managed to secretly build a gray gang that is entangled with noble forces and mutually beneficial over a hundred years, serving as our eyes and ears and hounds."

"Do you think that, as the victors of the final war, those two bitches simply found a comfortable little nest, piled up their treasures, and went to sleep for over six hundred years?"

Thales frowned: "So..."

Ashida shook her head: "You'll find out someday, without me even having to tell you."

The prince let out a painful sigh: "You've only made me more curious."

“‘Curiosity killed the mage,’” Ashida replied mechanically. “Remember that—those were the words of your teacher and guide.”

Thales scoffed dismissively.

It's as if magic users are going to die...

Just then, a thought struck Thales.

"By the way, speaking of teachers..."

"Mr. Sakorn, you once told me about a few rules that are best followed in class?"

“You know,” the prince pondered, “to consider every word, to ask questions whenever possible, to express oneself clearly, to question, to engage in mutual interrogation, and so on…”

Ashida nodded slightly, his palm moving up a little. Thales, who was gradually getting to know him, knew that this was a sign that the air mage allowed him to finish speaking.

Thales took a deep breath and looked into the mage's almost emotionless eyes:

"So, if there's someone in the world who tells me almost exactly the same rules..."

What could be the situation?

At that moment, Thales clearly saw Ashida raise her right eyebrow.

"Who?" Ashida asked, seemingly calmly.

“A rather elderly tutor from the Dragon Kiss Academy of the Duchy of Anrenzo,” Thales imagined the intriguing image of the gaunt old man, his eyes narrowing slightly: “Merry Hexer.”

Aishida paused for a second.

"Dragon Kiss Academy?" He seemed to be savoring the word, then gently looked up:

"Hmph, that explains it."

Thales' eyes widened: "What do you mean?"

Aishida picked up a chess piece:
“As early as the era of the Kings and the ancient empire, Dragon Kiss Province was a famous refuge. When war came, many scholars, writers, merchants, and impoverished nobles would choose to go there to seek refuge—and so did the mages.”

"You mean, Dragon Kiss Academy and the Magic Tower have a deep connection?"

“It’s not just about origins,” the mage shook his head and placed the chess piece in the next position: “The founder of Dragon Kiss Academy a thousand years ago was originally a mage from the Soul Tower—some of the teaching rules in the Soul Tower undoubtedly influenced Dragon Kiss Academy.”

Thales was startled when he recalled what Ramon had told him: that magic had been extinct.

"So, Dragon Kiss Academy also teaches magic?" The prince gripped the table in surprise. "But..."

Ashida interrupted him coldly.

“I know what you’re thinking: Dragon Kiss Academy couldn’t avoid the disaster of magic extinction after the final war. Most of the books that were considered to be magic or related to magic were destroyed.”

Thales's face darkened.

But then he looked up, a glimmer of hope in his eyes, and said, "So, there's still a small portion left?"

"Yes, but not in the way you're thinking—it's your turn to go."

Ashida replied nonchalantly:
"The mage who founded Dragonkid Academy was a key figure in the Epic Seat. His expertise in the Soul Tower was history and literature, with a focus on the origins of civilization in poetry. Dragonkid Academy naturally shifted towards his research direction."

Thales frowned, grabbed the king, and moved it out of Ashida's hunting range—their game had unknowingly reached checkmate again.

But he quickly realized what Ashida had said.

"History? Literature?" the prince asked in surprise. "The Magic Tower studies these things?"

Aishida chuckled softly.

"That's not all."

"Among the three great magic towers, the largest one, the Soul Tower, contains as many different branches of magic as there are stars in the Milky Way."

The mage gently raised his gaze, within which blue light flowed.

Under Thales's curious and eager gaze, Ashida fluently and rapidly rattled off a dazzling array of nouns:
"The Golden Throne specializes in studying the impact of economics and currency on humanity; the Epic Throne excels at collaborating with ascetics to uncover new discoveries from archaeological sites; the Speculative Throne questions humanity's language and logic; the Throne of Power believes that only by delving into secular society can one better understand the world and oneself. It is the largest resident mage supply point in the Soul Tower, and the practice of almost every lord hiring a mage as an advisor originated from it, setting a precedent for the later Throne of All Laws; the Throne of Nature is on good terms with the Alchemy Tower, advocating the discovery and flexible application of objective natural laws, and it has countless sub-thrones beneath it..."

Thales pondered the other's words with rapt attention, then paused slightly: "Wait, gold, epic, speculation... these are also considered magic?"

The prince turned his head and cast a surprised look at the other person, seeking an answer.

Ashida returned to his previous indifference, and asked calmly, "What do you think magic is?"

Thales took a deep breath and began to think.

“Although I’ve heard Ramon say that magic seems to have a wide scope,” the prince scratched his head, incredulously adding, “But monetary economics? Its impact on humanity? That’s too much…”

“Currency? Economy?” Ashida interrupted him, repeating it.

A sharp and serious look appeared in the eyes of the Qi Mage.

"Currency—think about it, how mages can profoundly change the lives and destinies of tens of thousands of people and influence the history and future of a country or region with just some small metal discs and useless scrap paper."

"Success and fame, ruin and death, all are included, kings and commoners, nobles and commoners alike—and all of these stem from the many nights spent deep in thought and tireless writing in the magic tower."

Thales raised an eyebrow.

Aishida leaned forward slightly, and the gleam in her eyes made Thales turn away involuntarily: "Tell me, what kind of spell, what kind of magic can do such a thing?"

"If this isn't magic..."

"Then what is magic?"

(End of this chapter)