After reaching the maximum level, my "soft rice system" finally arrived.

Even the art style has changed!

"You're overthinking it. Our Dark Tower is a legitimate wizarding mutual aid organization. Those people are just a huge number of isolated cases."

Tevis used his magic to help the cardinal gather the broken teacup shards together and throw them into the trash can, feeling rather helpless.

Were you serious about taking that half-step back?

In fact, it was precisely because of the astonishing remarks frequently made by Boss Sharl, coupled with the bizarre actions of the Illusion School's Interspecies Customs Appraisal Committee, that the outside world began to misunderstand the entire Black Tower.

Nowadays, when people mention Black Tower, many people think of it as a gathering place for madmen, research fanatics, bomb enthusiasts, artsy youths, and Fury fans.

Please, there are quite a few decent people like me here!

However, a hint of fervor flashed in Tevez's eyes as he looked at the scene on the light screen.

Tevez is not considered young among the Black Tower's top brass.

The unwavering pursuit of arcane arts and truth that I had in my youth has gradually faded with the passage of time.

Therefore, he chose to voluntarily give up his projects at headquarters and come to the capital to become the tower master of the Imperial Branch Tower, thus distancing himself from the forefront of arcane research and spell development.

He has always felt that his current life is pretty good.

Every day he would chat with the nobles of the capital and occasionally have a chat with the cardinals of the Dawn Church.

When the mood strikes, one can grow some flowers and plants, or find a pond to go fishing. If one comes home empty-handed, one can buy a fish from the Golden Deer Chamber of Commerce to take home and pretend that one did not. It is quite a leisurely retirement life.

After all, he was already close to becoming a legend, but he had been trying to take that step for decades without success, and now he had become indifferent to it.

Even if I become a legend, so what? There's no road ahead anyway.

But now, listening to the words of his own deputy tower master on the light screen, and looking at the vast sea of ​​stars that appeared on the light screen—

Tevez felt something long buried deep within him being stirred once again.

To conquer the power of the sun, moon, and stars and make it one's own.

Then use this as a stepping stone to transcend the boundaries of legend.

To attempt, with a non-divine body, to touch upon the powers that were originally reserved for the gods…

It seems I've been away from the Arcane Capital for so long that I'm really out of touch with the times.

"To ascend to legendary status...?"

"It seems necessary to find time to return to the Arcane Capital..."

The cardinal, watching the Archmage Tevis's eyes grow increasingly fanatical and his muttering to himself, unconsciously took another half step back.

Sure enough, no one in the Black Tower is a normal person.

Even Tevez, who usually pretends to be very good and seems to be a complete slacker, is actually a madman who would think of blowing up stars at the drop of a hat!

……

The light screen rippled for a moment, then returned to nothingness.

Xia Er's spiritual ocean stirred slightly, calming the entire illusion array and allowing a few students who were previously still in the illusion trial to exit the illusion.

Charles himself emerged from the illusion, still feeling somewhat unsatisfied.

The design of the final level of this illusion was quite interesting, which piqued his interest as well.

It's just a contest of imagination. Who wasn't a chuunibyou (a person with delusions of grandeur) back in the day?

Therefore, he chose to showcase some of the results he had derived from his daily mental exercises.

Unfortunately, this illusion array was created by only a few high-ranking mages of the sixth or seventh ring, and its structural stability was still too poor.

Even with Xia Er's own mental strength to stabilize and protect it, it couldn't last long.

Being able to display the previous scene within the light screen is already its limit.

Otherwise, Charles wouldn't mind continuing to show the audience in the arena what a two-dimensional foil, a planet-destroying cannon, and a battle between two emperors to the edge of the universe are all about.

Or perhaps it could be a subsequent cosmic structure level, a single-universe level, a multiverse level, an infinite box, an exponential tower...

Before transmigrating, I was a heavy surfer of the internet. When I casually browsed forums, I could easily use terms like "General-level," "Deputy-Emperor-level," "Dragon Peak," and "God-level 108."

If we lose to these natives of the Western Continent in the realm of imaginative thinking and stacking boxes, it would be too embarrassing for a transmigrator.

Of course, as for the subsequent things, Charles himself only had a vague concept and idea, and had never grasped the principles.

While it may be sufficient to show its appearance to the audience, compared to its own products that have undergone real deduction and simulation, and even actual feasibility experiments, it is still somewhat detached from reality and belongs to the kind of hypothetical castles in the air.

As an arcane mage who advocates rational thinking, Sharl doesn't particularly like the feeling of being out of control.

As he pondered this, Ciel walked out of the arena.

……

In the arena at this moment, time seemed to stand still.

Both the audience seats where the students were sitting and the VIP seats where the nobles and mentors were located were now in a deathly silence.

The scene that Charles had shown through the light screen earlier was truly too horrifying.

In most people's minds, legend is already a symbol of mystery and an insurmountable peak.

Above the legends lies the realm of gods, a realm that even fantasies about are too presumptuous for ordinary people.

But at this moment, the scene inside the light screen completely shattered their preconceived notions.

Then a door was opened for them, and beyond that door was a whole new world.

At first, most people were more surprised and astonished, but as time went on, more and more people began to ponder deeply.

Charles walked through the silent crowd and arrived at the door of the VIP room.

He pushed open the door, dispelling both the "disciplined cognitive distortion" and the "double illusion."

Chapter Twenty-One: Publicly Funded Idol Chasing (Part 2)

"Your Majesty Charles."

"Your Majesty Charles."

"Your Majesty Charles."

……

Voices echoed throughout the VIP room.

Charles himself was not the type to show off in public, but the magic academy instructors present were all wizards, and many of them had even studied at the Black Tower. They naturally recognized Charles after he dispelled the spell.

Or rather, after witnessing firsthand the incredibly impactful scene within the light screen, many wizards already had their own guesses.

There was no one else who could present such a subversive and fantastical scene except for the deputy tower master of the Black Tower, who transformed the entire Western Continent in just ten years.

Charles entered the VIP room and stood beside the many wizards.

Unlike other major powers on the continent, the Black Tower has a clear internal hierarchy and a system of rewards and punishments.

The tower was originally built simply to provide a place for wizards to gather and exchange ideas, and to offer apprentices with such aspirations an opportunity to learn arcane magic. As for whether they stayed or left after completing their studies, the Black Tower never interfered.

This is why the mentors present did not show the same level of respect and deference as subordinates to their superiors towards Charles.

More than anything, there was admiration and heartfelt reverence.

On the path of arcane magic, there is no distinction of age, race, or gender.

The saying goes, "Those who achieve success come first," and that's all there is to it.

However, in this way...

The dean...

Many instructors snapped out of their daze and stole glances at Dean Nicot in front of them, their expressions strange.

Dean Nicol was always stubborn and often relied on his seniority and strength to refute other people's different opinions, which made his mentors complain a lot.

However, Nicot always used His Majesty Ciel's name as an excuse, which left others speechless.

If you try to refute it, you'll be bombarded with accusations like "You're disrespectful to His Majesty Charles" or "Your academic integrity is questionable," leaving you with no way to defend yourself.

Now look what's happened. They always call him "Lord Ciel," but today they're directly criticizing him... This is a real slap in the face, and many mentors are now showing expressions of amusement.

"Arcane magic is the process of repeatedly questioning, verifying, modifying, and optimizing existing knowledge and concepts... and moving towards the truth through this constant cycle. This is the principle that Teacher Vemes taught me on the first day she took me under her wing," Charles's voice rang out calmly.

"I make mistakes, and so does Ms. Wimers."

"The significance of the Black Tower is to accumulate the research results of generations of wizards, so that later generations can stand on the shoulders of their predecessors and go further on the path of arcane magic."

"If we blindly believe that the strong are always right, then how can we talk about surpassing our predecessors and going further?"

Dean Nicot's face turned red.

The feeling of being exposed for your blunder is truly quite unpleasant.

However, much later...

His expression returned to normal: "Thank you for your guidance, Your Majesty Charles."

Dean Nicot knew in his heart that after this incident, he would probably lose his position as dean of the magic academy.

Even if His Majesty Charles might not care about such trivial matters, his rivals would certainly seize the opportunity.