Chapter 33: Black and White (I)

The Empire, officially known as the [Divine Rose Empire], naturally has nothing to do with deities—its name originally referred to a type of flower.
The Divine Rose resembled a white rose, but its petals featured incredible golden threads. Under sunlight, those golden stripes seemed to pulse with life, exuding an elegant and noble aura that immediately caught the attention of the Sassanian King. He regarded it as a symbol of royalty and incorporated it into the first national emblem.
Throughout history, only emperors were allowed to wear garments adorned with the pattern of the Divine Rose. However, by the time of King Sassan VII, it gradually became a privilege enjoyed by all members of the royal family. The only difference was that the Divine Roses worn by emperors featured golden threads symbolizing nobility.
Although both the [Divine Rose Empire—Sassan] and the [Holy Church—Salonia] bore divine names, their meanings were vastly different. Moreover, from the very beginning of their existence, the two nations had been in a state of cold war.
During those hundreds of years of conflict, successive Sassanian kings sent troops to attack the Church in fulfillment of their ancestors’ wishes. Naturally, the Church was unwilling to be annexed by the Empire and chose to fight back.
Along their border, stretching for tens of thousands of miles, countless lives were lost. Both nations built castles and fortresses to defend against each other, drenched in the blood of many…
The most devastating conflict was the [One-Year War] that took place over a decade ago!
The One-Year War acted like a meat grinder, devouring hundreds of thousands of lives. Among the imperial troops sent on campaign, three-fifths of the warriors perished there. Similarly, the Church also suffered heavy losses, forcing the Pope to struggle to sleep peacefully for a long time.
As the saying goes, war brings not only conquest but also hatred!
It must be admitted that even after the One-Year War, when the two nations hesitantly tried to rebuild relations, their people still had not forgotten this hatred.
In the early years, imperial merchants traveling to Salonia were often intercepted and killed along the way. Likewise, few missionaries sent by the Church to the Empire survived the wrath of the imperial people.
Hatred—deeply ingrained hatred—is not something that can be easily erased…

“Hod!” The old dean glanced apologetically at Father Andrew, who seemed slightly embarrassed, tapped his pipe, and said in a low voice, “This is Father Andrew, one of the twelve archcardinals of Salonia. Don’t be too rude…”
At the same time, Father Andrew did the same as the old dean—he awkwardly nodded in apology to the old dean, then said in a stern voice, laced with anger, “Brother Chesho, as a believer in God, you shouldn’t behave in such an impolite manner!”
Under the joint persuasion of the two great magicians, Professor Hod and Brother Chesho paused and eventually chose to calm their magical energies. Just a few minutes earlier, their magical auras had been colliding violently, and each resulting small vortex seemed deadly. The entire room resembled a storm, with documents and papers scattered everywhere.
Taking a deep breath, Professor Hod finally calmed his agitated emotions and lowered his head in apology, saying, “I’m sorry, Dean!”
“Hmm!” The old dean merely nodded, seemingly understanding the reason, but he still sighed and advised, “I didn’t expect that after over a decade, the hatred in your heart still hasn’t faded… Ah! Hatred cannot be used as motivation for learning magic—it’s also the reason you’ve failed on the path of magic. With your heart completely consumed by hatred, where is there room for magic?” Saying this, he shook his head and happened to see Father Andrew’s puzzled look, so he explained, “He was once the apprentice of a good friend of mine, Nigo Barrett…”
“Nigo Barrett?” Father Andrew looked at the old dean doubtfully, then at Professor Hod. His expression changed as if he remembered something, and he said uncertainly, “Could it be that magician with the title [Dancer of Flames]?”
If he remembered correctly, that guy had caused tremendous casualties to the Church!
In terms of mastery of fire-based blue magic, he had never seen anyone stronger than him. The fire-based blue magic he used didn’t even require chanting spells…
Father Andrew took a slight breath, recalling the scene from over a decade ago. He still couldn’t forget that terrifying magic. In his memory, that magician named Nigo Barrett was like a spirit of fire—just by raising his hand, he knocked down a Church white magician. Even [Wall of Holy Light] would find it hard to defend against that magic, completely overturning his previous understanding of fire magic. And in the end… Ah!

Seeming to notice the guilt and embarrassment in Father Andrew’s eyes, the old dean cleared his throat and said, “Well, the issue before us now is not the conflict between our two countries, but that man named Agus. Hod, please explain in detail what happened when you encountered that man…” As he spoke, he gave Professor Hod a subtle nod.

After all, as relations between the two countries were gradually improving, the old dean did not want these relations to be damaged just because of some old grudges—it would be a shame.

Upon seeing the old dean’s gaze, Hod hesitated for a moment before nodding and saying, “Yes, Dean…” As soon as he finished speaking, Father Andrew said with a smile, “Well, since it is we who are seeking your help, it only seems right for me to explain the whole situation first…”

“Well…” The old dean paused briefly before understanding Father Andrew’s intention. He tapped his pipe, stuffing tobacco into it as he said, “That’s good. Then I’ll leave it to you!” While speaking, he didn’t show much respect—after all, the two had known each other for over a decade, even though they had been on opposing sides at the time.

“Here’s what happened…” Father Andrew took the teacup handed to him by one of the professors, nodded politely in thanks, then frowned as he held the cup. “Gret, I suppose you know that one of the twelve cardinals of the Holy See is absent…”

“Heh, of course I know him—Saint Charles George!” the old dean said with a smile, biting his pipe. “That old fellow Wiston was overjoyed at the time!”

“That Wiston!” Father Andrew said with a wry smile, shaking his head helplessly. Then, his smile gradually faded as he said in a serious tone, “Originally, Charles was the most qualified person to become the next pope, but… alas! Back then, when he proposed leaving Salonia, we old men already knew he wouldn’t be returning… But to fill the vacancy left by Charles’s departure, we spent over a decade training someone who could succeed him. That successor is named Lonsi—a fine young man…”

“Did he meet that man named Agus?” the old dean asked, puzzled, biting his pipe.

“Hmm!” Father Andrew nodded with regret, his eyes showing a hint of remorse and guilt as he shook his head and said, “Lonsi was personally trained by His Holiness the Pope. In terms of both character and ability, he far surpassed everyone else, and he was also very kind…”
“Isn’t that good?”
“Yes, kindness is indeed good. After all, he would inherit the papacy in the future. But it was precisely that kindness that led to his death…”
“Hmm?”
As if remembering something, Father Andrew placed his teacup on the side table and shook his head sighingly. “That day, Lonsi had just received orders to go to Gokin, a city in the south. The Pope sent him there to preach. If everything went well, he would stay in Gokin for a while, learning from the local priests, before returning to Salonia to prepare for his role as cardinal. After all, ten years was far too short—a large portion of that time was already spent on understanding and following the Holy Light…”
“Hmm,” the old dean nodded in agreement, surprised. “So was it in that city called Gokin that he met Argus?”
“No, before that!” Father Andrew shook his head, speaking with inexplicable sorrow. “I am also responsible for this unfortunate event… You know, as the heir to the cardinalship, we needed to keep track of his emotions every day to prevent him from going astray due to certain circumstances. So, among his entourage, there was a monk—well, Brother Moline—who was in charge of this task. He would record everything that happened each day on magic letters and send them to Salonia… That time, the magic letter mentioned that on his way to Gokin, Lonsi encountered several exiled villagers who told him that a man in a long black coat had attacked the village and killed everyone there…”
“Was that Argus?”
“Hmm! At that time, Lonsi volunteered to go find that man and bring him to justice. Brother Moline also wrote about this in a magic letter and sent it to Salonia. But I didn’t pay much attention at the time, because Lonsi was accompanied by several powerful priests, and the boy himself was quite skilled. So we thought, let him go and see how he would handle this situation. But after that, the boy never returned, and from that day on, we also stopped receiving any magic letters from Brother Moline…”
“Could it be…”
“Seventeen people in total—none of them returned alive!”

“What?” The old dean took a sharp drag on his pipe and frowned. “Sixteen priests, plus that young man named Longsi?”
“Yes! Not a single one survived!”
“In that case…”
“That man, the man from Agus, possesses power on par with that of a high-level mage!” Father Andrew sighed slightly, frowning as he spoke in a grave tone. “That’s what I realized after fighting him… But his power is very strange; it seems not to be his own. Inside him, there’s some terrifying existence. The mental magic I used not only had no effect but also harmed me instead…”
“What?” The old dean narrowed his eyes, his expression growing increasingly serious.
After all, Father Andrew was a high-level mage, a Church priest specializing in mental magic. If even he couldn’t use mental magic to harm that terrifying existence inside the man, how unbelievable was that?
“Hmm… It seems some restless creatures have crossed through the barriers between dimensions to reach this world…” The worried old dean puffed on his pipe, frowning as he asked, “Are they great demons?”
“Hmm,” Father Andrew nodded in agreement. “From what I can tell, they might be high-ranking great demons. I don’t know much about the specifics, but I’m sure the existence inside that man isn’t something you or I can handle alone. I’ve already suffered because of this. If that man hadn’t yet fully mastered the power he just acquired, I might not be standing here now… That man must not be underestimated!”
“And as for that young man, Longsi…”
“That’s exactly what I want to talk about,” Father Andrew said in a low voice, his eyes showing a hint of reluctance to speak angrily. “After this tragedy, I also went to that village. Do you know what I saw?”
“What?”
“Everyone in that village was killed, but that’s not what I meant… When we arrived at the village, we found a huge magic circle drawn in blood on the ground. In the center of the village, hundreds of villagers’ corpses were piled up…”
“What?!” The old dean’s eyes widened dramatically, and his hand trembled so much that he almost knocked over the teacup on the table.
“[Blood Sacrifice!] That man used hundreds of innocent villagers as sacrifices to bargain with some unknown demon! It’s very likely that his powerful and strange dark power comes from such blood sacrifices!”

“A blood sacrifice…” The old dean frowned and sighed, biting his pipe, while Professor Hodde beside him looked shocked, as if muttering something to himself.
A blood sacrifice is usually a method used by dark magicians to bargain with demons from another dimension. By invoking the name of such a demon with blood, they can obtain certain powers at the cost of sacrificing their souls and lives. If enough sacrifices are made, they can even form a contract with the demon to seek its help.
This method of forming a contract is similar to summoning magic, and what helps the dark magician is not the demon’s true form, but merely a projection from the subspace.
Since it’s a projection, its power naturally isn’t very great. According to the laws of the world, such projections generally possess only 30% of the demon’s true power.
Of course, there are also demons that are unwilling to live in the Flaming River or the Abyss, and they take advantage of certain loopholes to come to this world from the subspace—this is the most dangerous situation of all.
Because the true form differs from the projection, demons that reach this world gradually regain their original power over time. You can imagine what would happen if a ferocious wolf invaded a world full of sheep.
Given the old dean’s silence, Father Andrew continued, “I think that man’s blood sacrifice is different from the [Mirror Script] we’ve known before. I’ve studied the symbols and runes on that magic circle repeatedly, but unfortunately, they’re unlike any script I’ve ever seen. I’m sure it’s not a demon script; if it is, then it must be an extremely advanced one…” With that, the old dean said to his assistant, Brother Yif Yifus James, “Yifus, bring out the magic circle we’ve engraved!”
“Yes, Archbishop!” Brother James nodded, took out a piece of parchment from his bosom, and handed it to the old dean.
The old dean picked up his monocle from the table, put it on, and frowned as he unfolded the parchment. He carefully examined the magic circle drawn on it, especially those strange symbols and runes. It took several minutes before he nodded and said, “Hmm, it indeed differs from the [Mirror Script] we know…” Then, the old dean raised his head and asked hesitantly, “How much do you know about that Argus?”

“Not many,” Father Andrew shook his head and frowned. “We don’t know where that man originally came from; it seems to have been deliberately hidden. As far as we know, there’s no such surname asClanfield, nor has anyone with that name appeared in history. So we suspect it’s not his real name…”
“Heh, that’s not surprising,” the old dean said with a laugh, looking at the parchment. “As a dark mage, if he were to tell us his real name, we wouldn’t have to worry like this…”
Indeed, as a dark mage skilled in curse magic, they would never reveal their true name to anyone, not even their closest friends or family. After all, dark mages often deal with demons and walk on the edge of darkness. They know well the horror of curses—though their curses are not the simplified versions Scott is learning now.
To be more precise, a dark mage’s curse is actually a ritual magic that requires blood, magic circles, candles, and other materials, and the process is very complicated. Yet the power of such curses is beyond comparison to those Scott has learned. If a dark mage wants to kill someone, he doesn’t need to fight the opponent like other mages, nor even show up in person. He only needs to know the person’s name and can kill them through some curse ritual. Thus, the more powerful the dark mage, the less willing he is to reveal his true name.
Of course, this isn’t absolute. If the target’s mental resistance is too strong, the dark mage who casts the curse may instead suffer backfire and die.
“Heh, that makes sense!” Father Andrew nodded with a forced smile and reached for the cooled tea on the coffee table.
The old dean naturally understood what Father Andrew meant. He turned to Professor Hode and said, “Hode, now tell us honestly about your encounter with that man…” After saying that, he pointed with his pipe at the teacup in Father Andrew’s hand. Miraculously, as the latter was stunned, steam began to rise from the cooled tea again.
“Not cold, not hot—just right… After over a decade, your control is still so precise…” Father Andrew took a sip of the tea with a smile, then turned to look at Professor Hode expectantly.

Glancing at Father Andrew, Professor Hodd hesitated for a moment before finally speaking, “Actually, I don’t know much about that man either. I just happened to meet him, and due to a misunderstanding, I fought with him…” As he spoke, he detailed his encounter with Agus in the mine shaft.

More than half an hour later, Father Andrew let out a soft sigh and said with some confusion, “I’m sorry about that village… But one thing is hard to understand. He clearly knew we were chasing after him—why did he still go to that mine shaft? What exactly is in that mine shaft?”

“How should I know?” Professor Hodd said with a cold laugh. But after hearing the old dean cough a few times to remind him, he adjusted his tone and continued, “I’m not exactly sure either. Those two brats seem to be hiding something from me…”

“Two brats?” Father Andrew was stunned, as if remembering something. With a half-smile, he said, “Speaking of which, Brother Chesh also seemed to meet two kids in that mine shaft… a little boy and a little girl…” Then he turned to Brother Chesh and asked, “Isn’t that right, Brother Chesh?”

“Yes!” Brother Chesh replied expressionlessly. “While saving those innocent villagers, we encountered those two children—the little boy…” But before he could finish, the old dean interrupted him.

The old dean coughed, tapped his pipe, and said with a smile, “It’s just two children. The issue now is that man named Agus, right? Why bring in the children?”

“Hm,” Father Andrew was stunned. He stared at the old dean with a half-smile. After a moment of eye contact, he suddenly said with a laugh, “Maybe those kids also encountered that evil man. How about this—bring that little boy here so I can ask him. There might be new insights…”

“Hehe, I don’t think that’s necessary,” the old dean said calmly, tapping his pipe as he added more tobacco. With a smile, he continued, “Kids, what do they remember? I remember when I was that age, I was just playful and naive, not even knowing what magic was. My mentor was very angry about it…”

“Even so, if he’s still alive, wouldn’t he be proud?” Father Andrew said with a laugh.

“No, no, no—he hasn’t praised me a single time!” The old dean said with a slight smile, shaking his head. “Besides, those children just arrived at the academy today and must be tired from the journey. Let them rest properly…”
“I see…” Father Andrew pondered for a moment before suddenly raising his head with a smile and saying, “Then let me go. Is that okay?”
“Hm?” Hod was surprised, not understanding what was going on. Not only him, but everyone in the room—except for the old dean and the six expressionless Holy Inquisitors—along with Father Andrew’s two assistant monks, were equally astonished.
After all, this man was one of the twelve cardinals of the Church. He held significant influence both in the empire and the Church. Yet he said he would go and ask a child personally…?
The room fell silent, with only the sound of the old dean puffing on his pipe…
Not knowing what was happening, Professor Hod glanced at the old dean and then at Father Andrew, feeling utterly confused.
The little boy… wasn’t that his apprentice, Thos?
Could there be something else going on that he didn’t know about?
As Professor Hod grew suspicious, Father Andrew shook his head at the old dean and spoke with a hint of amusement.
“Gret, you know as well that Lonsi is the heir we’ve been training for ten years…”
“Mm-hmm,” the old dean nodded, frowning as he held his pipe, speaking in a regretful tone, “I’m deeply sorry about what happened…”
“…” Father Andrew smiled bitterly, shaking his head as he stared into the old dean’s eyes. “Then you must know the purpose of my visit, right?”
“Well,” the old dean scratched his forehead with his pipe and shrugged. “It’s for that Argus! Don’t worry, if he really is as you say, then the empire won’t tolerate him!”
“And…?”
“What else? Could there be someone as evil as Argus?”
“…” Father Andrew opened his mouth speechlessly, shaking his head weakly. “Although I defeated you with holy light over a decade ago, don’t forget that you once pierced my right leg with a thorn, and it still hasn’t healed… Can’t you let me finish speaking?”
Looking at Father Andrew’s smiling face with a smirk, the old dean continued puffing on his pipe and waved his hand. “Alright, alright, go on!”
“That child…”

“Oh,” as if suddenly remembering something, the old dean interrupted Father Andrew once again, speaking with a hint of surprise, “There’s one thing I forgot. You mentioned in your letter that you wanted to bring some children to compete with the students of our Riox Academy, right?”
“…” Father Andrew stared at the old dean in disbelief for a long time before saying irritably, “It’s just to cover our tracks. We discovered that Argus isn’t alone—he has a powerful dark organization behind him. So, to avoid alerting them…”
“What? That man has a powerful dark organization behind him?” The old dean looked shocked and asked urgently, “What exactly is going on?”
“Don’t you really understand what’s going on?” Father Andrew shook his head and said indifferently, “Who else but those guys hiding in the shadows of history?”
“Hm? Those guys are cooperating with that man?” The old dean’s expression turned serious.
“Yes, that’s why I don’t want to alert them. It’s best to resolve both issues at once…”
“Oh, I see. So the exchange between students you mentioned…”
“It’s just an exchange. Otherwise, how can I explain my arrival at your Riox Academy? Although those guys might not believe it, at least it gives us an excuse and prevents them from pressing too hard, avoiding any problems… So, you don’t need to take this student competition too seriously. I’ll still need to…”
“How can that be?” The old dean interrupted Father Andrew again, speaking earnestly, “This is the first academic exchange between your Salonia and our Riox Academy in hundreds of years. It’s a significant gesture for peaceful relations between the two countries. How can we treat it casually?” With that, he turned to Professor Hode and said, “Hode, go gather the professors of the academy. We’ll discuss this later!”
“Yes, Dean!” Professor Hode nodded and headed out.
Watching Professor Hode leave, Father Andrew said irritably, “Gret… you…”
“Oh, right,” as if remembering something else, the old dean stood up and said cheerfully, “You arrived in a hurry this morning, and we didn’t have time to prepare anything. I’ve already had someone prepare a lunch. It should be ready soon… Let’s go!”
Glancing at the smiling old dean, Father Andrew stood up helplessly and whispered, “What are you trying to hide, Gret?”
“Hide?”

“Stop acting silly! I’m talking about that little boy. Brother Chesho reported to me back then that the child had absorbed holy light…”
“Absorbed holy light? Do you really think such a thing exists in the world? Even a miracle can’t describe this, right?”
“Well…” Indeed, Father Andrew was also skeptical. He glanced doubtfully at the old dean and whispered, “Then why were you being so evasive just now?”
“It’s simple!” The old dean chuckled and said in a low voice, “Do you really think I don’t know what you’re thinking, including that old pope of yours? Hmph! Be honest with me and bring him back. If you encounter some outstanding apprentices along the way, I won’t stop you from taking them with you. But don’t even think about harming any of my students from Riox Academy—they’re the future of that academy!”
“Hey! You…” Father Andrew shook his head speechlessly.

Meanwhile, on the second floor of the west tower at Riox Academy, in the new dormitory where Jiang Zhe and the others were staying…
Allen, who had just finished bathing, was shirtless. With one hand, he was wiping his wet hair with a towel, while with the other, he habitually swung his large knight’s sword—something he did every day in his free time as practice.
“Can’t you put on clothes first?” Scott, who had just finished tidying up the bedroom, stepped out and immediately frowned.
“It’s still wet…” Allen said weakly, with a hint of playful resentment.
“Then can’t you dry yourself properly before coming out?” Scott frowned and pointed at Jiang Zhe, who was playing with several fireballs on the sofa. “Do you want Sos to dry you?”
“Hey, hey,” Allen instinctively raised his knight’s sword in front of him, pretending to be scared. “Let him dry me? I’ll end up like bread—burnt!”
“Allen, why does that sound uncomfortable to me?” Jiang Zhe tilted his head and said irritably.
“No, no, I’m just complimenting you!” Allen winked playfully, put down his sword, grabbed his shirt from the sofa, and put it on. Pointing at the bathroom, he asked, “The water’s still warm. Who’s next?”
“Sos, you go first. I’ll organize the books in my suitcase…” Scott said as he carried his suitcase to the long table. When he opened it, it was filled with books on magic.
“Me? Alright.” Jiang Zhe snapped his fingers, making all the fireballs disappear. Then he took off his outer magic robe and gloves…

“Hey, man,” Allen said, leaning back in the chair by the long table and gazing at Jiang Zhe. He then reached out and pointed at the back of Jiang Zhe’s left hand, asking curiously, “I’ve actually wanted to ask this for a long time—what’s this?”
Jiang Zhe instinctively glanced at the magic array on the back of his left hand, his expression seeming somewhat unnatural.
He simply didn’t know how to explain the origin of this magic array, but Scott misinterpreted it, thinking his roommates had some unspeakable secret. Frowning, he muttered, “You really talk too much!” He had noticed it long ago too, but it wasn’t something easy to ask about.
“It’s nothing serious,” Jiang Zhe said, shaking his head with a wry smile. “I don’t know how to describe this magic array… Actually, I don’t even know how it ended up on my hand…”
“Hm?” Hearing this, Scott and Allen became interested and gathered around Jiang Zhe to examine the magic array.
Scott even tried to replicate the symbols and runes on it with his hand, then shook his head and said, “No, I can’t decipher the meaning of these symbols, but I seem to have seen them somewhere before…” He strode around a few steps, muttering to himself. Suddenly, he turned around and pointed at the back of Jiang Zhe’s left hand. “I remember now! It’s a hexagram—that’s the Church’s white magic!”
“White… white magic?” Jiang Zhe looked at his two companions, who were staring at him with confused expressions, and himself was even more puzzled. He murmured, “A Church magic array… how could it be on the back of my hand?”
“You’re asking us something you don’t even know?” Allen said cheerfully, shrugging.
“Well, actually I’m not too sure either…” Unusually, Scott showed a hint of embarrassment. He pushed up his glasses and said, “It would be great if someone who knows white magic could ask…”
“Yes…” Jiang Zhe nodded, then shook his head again with a wry smile. “But where can I find someone who knows white magic? I can’t just go to Salonia over such a trivial matter. Anyway, I don’t feel anything’s wrong. Let it be…”
“You really are…”
“Hmm, it’s not worth going to Salonia for a magic array of unknown origin… Alright, Sos, go take a shower first. I’ll organize the magic books!”
“Okay!”
Who could it be?
On his way to the bathroom, Jiang Zhe raised his left hand and looked at the magic array on it. Every time he saw it, he would ask himself the question that had been lingering in his mind for a long time.

What kind of magic array is this? Is it harmful? Who engraved this magic array on the back of their own hand? Why isn’t there any effect on them at all?
Have they forgotten something? If so, what exactly have they forgotten?
Vaguely, they felt a slight stinging pain in their head…