[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-problematic-child-of-the-magic-tower":3,"chapter-the-problematic-child-of-the-magic-tower-the-problematic-child-of-the-magic-tower-chapter-245":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","The Problematic Child of the Magic Tower",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1334691,1778,"Chapter 245","the-problematic-child-of-the-magic-tower-chapter-245",245,"\u003Cp>[Translator - Night]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Proofreader - Gun]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chapter 245: Lloyd Schultz (3)\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Haa, haa.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A man staggered as he entered an alleyway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leaning against the wall, he closed his eyes for a moment to steady his blurred vision.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>–Did you think I wouldn’t notice?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sneering face and voice of the Red Tower Master flashed through his mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Opening his eyes again, he checked his condition.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Too much blood lost.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His mouth was filled with a sickly sweet taste.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the scorching air stole the moisture from his mouth with every breath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chiiiik!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ghhk!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He seared the wound on his left side with fire, and with the burning pain, his mind cleared slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man raised his weary face and looked up at the thin strip of sky, barely two meters wide, visible between the alley walls.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘…Water.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His throat was parched. It felt like his esophagus was burning away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As though someone had stuffed his mouth full of flour, even saliva would not gather.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Where did it all go wrong?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Red Tower Master, Kudel Redmane.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had he underestimated him?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He swore, not once in the sixteen years under his command had he ever let go of tension.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man—Lloyd Schultz—bit down hard on his lips.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Pathetic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a kind of natural disaster.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And here he was, like a fool, trying to find a reason after being swept away by it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“There he is! Target spotted!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Requesting support at Sector A-24! Support at A-24!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Voices cut through his thoughts, followed by—Swoooosh!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A blazing sphere of fire roared down the narrow alleyway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Not even a moment’s rest, huh.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lloyd bowed his head deeply and drew on his mana.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even that simple act made his badly damaged mana circuits, wrecked from the fight with Kudel, scream in agony.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Just a little longer. Hold out for me a little longer.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As if granting his plea, the circuits sputtered out a trickle of mana.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lloyd’s eyes flashed as he gathered it together and completed a spell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kwaaaang!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fireball struck his body, raising a thick cloud of sand and smoke unique to the desert city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The mages at the alley entrance swallowed hard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“D-Did he die?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t let your guard down. Even if his mana circuits are broken, he’s still Level 8.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The spell used was none other than the Red Tower’s intermediate magic, Fireball.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Against most opponents, a direct hit would mean certain death.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the target was Lloyd Schultz.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Red Tower Master’s only disciple, and the criminal who had broken through the barrier of Level 8.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sector A-24 support arrived.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Where’s the target?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As reinforcements arrived, the two mages brightened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Kehehe, where is the rat hiding?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their relief grew as Blue Flame—the Level 7 mage, Dane Rebanov—joined them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two quickly bowed their heads in respect.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We spotted the target in the alley, then responded with Fireball.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hm, Fireball, eh…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The white-haired old man half-lidded his eyes and muttered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Foolish.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Pardon?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The mage blinked dumbly—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And just then, a single flower bloomed beyond the drifting smoke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...A flower?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wait, a flower? Could it be—?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their eyes widened at the same moment—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Flower Dance of Flames.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From within the acrid smoke, a chain of explosions erupted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kwaaang! Kwaaang!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With earth-shattering force, buildings crumbled and the ground trembled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sand and dust rose so thick it was impossible to see a hand in front of one’s face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Cough! Kkhh! Cough!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Shields! Put up shields!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Get away from the buildings! The rubble will crush us!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The panicked mages shielded themselves and scrambled back to safety.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only one remained steady—Dane Rebanov, who grinned with shining eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Kehehe, little rat…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With speed unthinkable for an old man, he leapt from falling rubble to rubble, climbing high.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though nothing was visible ahead, he moved as if certain of his direction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You may deceive other eyes…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Behind him, blue flames flared like wings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He flung them outward without hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…but never the eyes of an old man.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fwoooosh!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Buildings touched by his azure fire melted like chocolate, sealing off a path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Trying to escape amidst the chaos, Lloyd suddenly found his retreat blocked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Slowly, he turned back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Give it up.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dane landed lightly before him, hands clasped behind his back, and issued his warning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Or do you think, in that condition, you can break through the Red Tower’s encirclement?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As his scoff echoed, the Red Tower mages converged, forming a complete blockade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The street and even the rooftops were lined with them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their Red robes fluttered in the sandy air, sealing off every escape route.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Aside from the Level 7 Dane, over a hundred Level 6 mages surrounded him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All of them stared down at him, exuding crushing pressure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lloyd gazed at their familiar faces and asked:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What is this, some kind of Pureblood gathering nearby?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Heh, it’s a grand festival about to begin.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dane bared his teeth in a grin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lloyd asked again:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And you think you can handle the festivities?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Keheh, boasting even with broken mana circuits.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you were so confident, you should have come alone.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“For a festival in honor of the Ashen Magus himself? Surely this many must gather.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked genuinely delighted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, everyone here but Lloyd seemed delighted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And perhaps it was only natural.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To them, this was a cleansing ritual—to erase filth and stains.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Truth be told, I’d love to start the festivities on my own… but you have a choice.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a scornful gaze, Dane spoke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“One: fight to the bitter end and die. Personally, I recommend this one.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Lloyd’s face showed no change, Dane sighed and reached into his robes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Boring. Then the second choice is this.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From his hand emerged a small glass vial, inside which a single insect crawled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Translator - Night]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Proofreader - Gun]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Eat it. Then you’ll be able to return to your daily life as if nothing happened.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…Gu poison?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Keheh, you have sharp eyes.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gu Poison.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A pair of insects bound by life and death—linked absolutely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To eat one was the same as planting a bomb in one’s head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Be grateful for the Tower Master’s mercy.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dane, certain Lloyd would choose the second option, rolled the vial along the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tok—clink, clatter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It stopped against Lloyd’s knee.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked down at the glass, where a pale larva squirmed sluggishly, as if dizzy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Disgusting.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was his first thought upon seeing it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lloyd picked up the vial and asked:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re telling me to eat this?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What, does it hurt your pride?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dane sneered at him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What else can you do? If you want to live, you’ll have to eat it. It suits you, anyway.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The claim that he could live if he ate the insect was no lie.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was a level 8 mage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Controlling such a being at will would be a tremendous advantage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘But eating this means……’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It meant becoming Kudel’s puppet forever.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Freedom?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liberation?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those would be impossible dreams.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he ordered him to kill, he would have to kill. If he ordered him to bow, he would have to put his head into the dirt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And, of course, the dream he had long yearned for would also be forever out of reach.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Realizing this, Lloyd gave a self-mocking smile without even meaning to.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Pointless.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He felt a twinge of disgust at himself for even seriously considering the choice, even for a moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Crash!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The glass vial he hurled smashed against the yellow-clay building wall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The mages gasped, and an eerie silence lingered through the street.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……You had better explain clearly what that action means.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How many of these do you see?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lloyd raised one finger as he asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dane glanced at it with a displeased expression and replied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Are you trying to joke with me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Answer. How many do you see?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……One.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Good, so your eyes still work.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lloyd nodded, then declared firmly:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then understand that glass vial exactly as you see it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dane fell silent, as though lost in thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a long pause, he slowly spoke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I cannot understand it. No matter how I think about it, I cannot.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He shook his head like a mathematician baffled by an impossible equation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why? No matter how gifted you are, reaching that height couldn’t have been easy. Are you saying the weight of your petty pride is heavier than your very life?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Pride? I sold that off long ago.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then what in the world is it for?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dane was genuinely curious, and genuinely enraged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wondered what could make someone cast aside life itself so easily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And he felt a primal fury at the man who seemed willing to discard what he himself could never grasp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lloyd looked back at him in silence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In those eyes were annoyance, weariness, and also something solid, mixed together like blended paint.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……I dislike things that disappear too easily.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His calm voice resonated low across the street.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Things like flowers, fire, promises.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he himself knew best.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That the things he had just named were precisely the things that made up the man called Lloyd Schultz.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Foolish, really.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hated them endlessly, yet could never bring himself to discard them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even when flowers wilted, flames died out, and promises broke, he had always remained in the same place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And this time was no different.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……I’ve no idea what you’re babbling about.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You don’t need to know. I never had the intention of telling you anyway.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that dry retort, Lloyd slowly drew up his mana.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It felt like all his circuits were tearing apart, but he did not stop.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He felt it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The malfunction of his circuits was his body’s final warning—a safety lock.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he broke that lock, he would never again be able to use mana circuits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everything he had built over a lifetime on the path of magic would be gone in an instant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The surface of fear slowly rose within him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Lloyd did not avoid it, nor deny it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead, closing his eyes, he asked himself honestly:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What is it that you fear?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Am I afraid of death itself?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No, death was not what he feared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If it were, he would have already knelt before the Red Tower Master and bowed his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then what was more terrifying than death?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It didn’t take long to find the answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He only had to be honest with himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘……So that’s it. I’m afraid of being remembered by them as a traitor, forever.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Lloyd forced himself to push that answer aside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For him, right now, it was too luxurious a thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He opened his eyes again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The red army, waiting only for his choice and ready to strike at any moment, filled his vision.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘As companions on the road, they’re not too bad, I suppose.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a bitter smile, Lloyd drew up his mana—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Drip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From his mouth spilled dark, dead blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wiping it with the back of his hand, Lloyd looked stunned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No way……?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Should I call it pure, or should I call it foolish? Did you really think that even with damaged circuits, an 8th-level mage would be granted a fair duel?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was poison.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So subtle that he had no way of noticing when he’d been poisoned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Khh, my mind…….’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His vision spun as consciousness grew faint, and he heard Dane giving orders to his men.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Bind his limbs tightly. Bring the Gu poison.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he felt the mages grabbing hold of his body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lloyd struggled with all his strength, but it was futile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“A pity. They say forcing it reduces its effectiveness……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Receiving the Gu poison from his subordinate, Dane slowly approached Lloyd.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Red Tower mages grabbed his jaw and pried open his mouth by force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Cluck, cluck. After a nap, everything will be over.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just before losing consciousness, the last thing Lloyd saw was Dane’s grotesque smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the insect in his hand, creeping closer—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Slice!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Being cut apart, along with the very space around it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Translator - Night]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Proofreader - Gun]\u003C\u002Fp>",2004,"2026-06-05T20:00:10.789Z",1,"novelbin.me","052b5db0ddf4e2d88f1995046ae162af4ac484b85a3c17e63231c8bf642e2763","the-problematic-child-of-the-magic-tower-chapter-246","the-problematic-child-of-the-magic-tower-chapter-244",375,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-problematic-child-of-the-magic-tower-cover.jpg"]