Chapter 246: Lord of the Tower (3)

Central Plaza.

The video broadcast from the Tower of Wishes began, and the moment Louis appeared on screen, murmurs rippled through the crowd.

“Who’s that young man?”

“How did he get in there?”

While everyone wondered about Louis’s identity, someone recognized him.

“Louis?!”

Sierra, who had stayed in the dormitory even after the semester break began, had come to Central Plaza after hearing rumors that the Tower Lord’s chambers would be revealed. She jumped in surprise when Louis suddenly appeared in the video.

Her jaw dropped when Louis declared himself the Lord of the Tower.

Of course, Sierra wasn’t the only one reacting this way. Everyone watching the broadcast reacted identically. Some even cursed Louis, calling him a madman.

As time passed, Louis meticulously exposed the Masters’ corruption, one shocking revelation after another. People forgot their initial skepticism and became completely engrossed in the broadcast.

“Oh my God!”

“Good heavens… what is this…”

Ordinary citizens, who had always revered the Masters as noble figures, were appalled by the depravity and immorality Louis revealed.

Their shock reached its peak when Louis unveiled Aileo’s attempt to murder his own gurus and the subsequent appearance of Grand Masters who had supposedly been buried.

When Aileo finally confessed to conspiring to assassinate the Grand Masters, the public’s outrage shifted from Louis to Aileo himself.

“That despicable wretch!”

“What a vile piece of trash!”

“He’s worse than an animal! How dare he call himself a Master!”

In Syron, the Tower of Wishes and its Grand Masters held a unique and profound significance.

It was the Tower of Wishes, led by the Grand Masters, that had transformed Syron from a mere backwater village into the wealthiest domain on the Autumn Continent.

For generations, the people of Syron had passed down stories of the Grand Masters’ tireless efforts by word of mouth, from parent to child. Having grown up hearing tales of the Grand Masters’ legendary renown, they couldn’t help but seethe with anger at Aileo’s atrocities.

Meanwhile, Sierra was equally astonished.

“H-he’s really the Lord of the Tower?!”

The “self-proclaimed Grand Masters” she had met at the Research Society were, in fact, genuine Grand Masters, and they were now acknowledging Louis as their Lord of the Tower.

This revelation confirmed that Louis was indeed the Lord of the Tower of Wishes, and everything began to fall into place.

His transcendent skill in maintaining Transcendent artifacts far surpassed that of any student—or even common sense itself.

And his breathtaking mastery in piloting Transcendent artifacts had left everyone in awe.

All of it…

It was because Louis was the Lord of the Tower of Wishes… that’s why he was capable of all that!

While Sierra pieced together the truth on her own, the Louis in the video was exposing the crimes committed by William and the Syron Family.

Soon after, Louis issued a declaration of war.

The video ended there, but no one readily left the central plaza.

Their minds were in turmoil.

The Syron Family and the Tower of Wishes.

One was the lordly family that had long reigned over Syron, while the other was the architect of its current prosperity.

Yet now, these two were on the brink of war.

Understandably, the territory’s inhabitants were thrown into utter confusion.

An eerie silence fell over the plaza.

But the stillness didn’t last long.

“This… this can’t be happening!”

“Honey! Honey, something terrible has happened!”

As the gravity of the situation sank in, people began fleeing the plaza en masse, eager to share what they had witnessed with those who hadn’t seen the broadcast.

They swiftly dispersed throughout Syron, spreading news of the Tower of Wishes’ declaration of war.

The speed at which the news spread was astonishing. Within a mere thirty minutes, the entire territory had learned of the impending conflict.

By the time news of the war had reached every corner of the Syron Territory,

Thud… Thud…

Heavy footsteps echoed from the Tower of Wishes as 200 Transcendent Machines began their deployment.

Thud… Thud…

These fully armed Transcendent Machines looked ready for immediate combat.

Moreover, they were equipped with the Starlight Cannon, the latest weapon meticulously crafted within the Tower of Wishes specifically for Transcendent Machines.

Their destination was the eastern region of the Syron Territory—unmistakably the location of Lord Syron’s castle.

Thud.

The sight of hundreds of fully armed Transcendent Machines marching through the city streets was unprecedented, even for the people of Syron, who were accustomed to seeing such units.

Drawn by the spectacle, small groups of onlookers gathered, but their excitement was tinged with concern.

“Is this even allowed? Moving military forces within the domain…”

“Why not? Didn’t the Syron Family meddle with the Tower of Wishes in the first place?”

“Still, mobilizing troops against the Lord’s family…”

“Come on… it’s probably just a show of force. They wouldn’t actually start a war, would they?”

The onlookers debated the situation among themselves.

While the Tower of Wishes was a significant matter, Count Syron’s family ranked among the most influential within the Meldey Kingdom.

The Tower of Wishes had brought immense prosperity to the Syron Territory, and the Syron Family had used its newfound wealth to build a formidable military force.

As a result, most people dismissed the current situation lightly.

They reasoned that even the Tower of Wishes, a mere tower, wouldn’t dare wage war against a Lord. They assumed it would simply stage a show of force to demand an apology and then retreat. Skepticism prevailed.

Meanwhile, the Tower of Wishes’ Transcendent forces had completed their deployment and surrounded the Castle of Lord Syron.

A ditch encircled the castle walls. The bridge leading to the Lord’s Castle had already been raised, likely in response to the news of the impending siege.

Though the external entrances were sealed, the Castle of Lord Syron showed no other signs of activity.

Meanwhile, Louis had arrived before the Transcendent forces and taken his position. Beside him stood three Grand Masters and seven Masters.

The Masters, still reeling from the Tower Lord’s storm-like purge in his chambers, had been dragged to the Castle of Lord Syron. Their faces were stiff with shock and apprehension.

Only one stood apart.

Agus, fully armed for battle for the first time in ages, radiated vitality. He dismounted from his Transcendent and knelt before Louis.

“Agus, commander of the Agus Battalion, with 199 men under my command, has completed preparations as ordered by the Tower Lord!”

“What is the status of the Starlight Cannon you built?”

“Fully charged and awaiting orders.”

“Good.”

Louis tossed a communication stone to Agus. “Agus.”

“Yes!”

“You have one task,” Louis said.

“What is it?” Agus asked.

“To obey my orders without a moment’s hesitation.”

“I will, without fail,” Agus replied.

“Go and wait.”

“Yes!” Agus bowed deeply, accepted the communication stone, and withdrew.

Watching him leave, Paula whispered anxiously to Erica, her eyes filled with unease. “I-is this really okay?”

“What’s wrong?” Erica asked.

“Even so… a war with the Syron Territory?”

Having been born and raised in Syron, Paula found the very idea of war with the Syron Territory unbelievable.

Erica chuckled at her disciple’s anxious question. “Don’t worry.”

“R-right? You wouldn’t actually start a war, would you?”

“Hmm? I don’t think so.”

“Huh?”

“Our Tower Lord, you see…”

Just as Erica was about to answer,

A voice boomed from the Castle of Lord Syron.

The amplified voice reverberated across the battlefield, brimming with arrogance.

The voice emanating from the castle dripped with haughtiness, as if their words alone should compel immediate obedience.

But before the warning could finish echoing, Louis, communication stone in hand, spoke.

“Agus.”

“Fire.”

The command was terse and simple, but its consequences would be anything but.

Light coalesced at the front of the Starlight Cannon held by Agus, the commander.

A colossal beam of light erupted, slamming into the side of the Lord’s Castle.

With a deafening explosion, one side of the castle wall crumbled into rubble.

The panicked voice burst through the loudspeaker, a stark contrast to the arrogant, confident tone from moments before. It trembled with disbelief, as if they truly hadn’t believed he would actually fire.

But the misfortune of Castle Syron had only just begun. Louis hadn’t mobilized his entire Transcendent Armed Forces just to fire a single shot.

Louis’s command rang out again:

“Keep firing relentlessly. If anyone still has attribute power left in their Starlight Cannon after ten minutes, they’ll forfeit their Transcendent status and be sent home in disgrace.”

At Louis’s command, Agus grinned widely and relayed the order:

Tss-t! Tss-t!

No sooner had Agus finished speaking than the Starlight Cannons mounted on the Transcendent gear flashed in unison.

Boom! Boom!

What would it be like if meteors rained down like a torrential downpour?

Amid the deafening explosions, the Lord’s Castle of Syron, which had stood firm for centuries, began to crumble into ruin.

“Th-th-that!”

“H-huh?!”

The Masters hadn’t truly believed they would launch an attack.

Paula’s jaw dropped in disbelief.

Erica placed a hand on Paula’s shoulder, finally completing her earlier answer:

”…Our Tower Lord has always been a man of his word. When he sets his mind to something, he always delivers.”

Douglas nodded at the story.

“Hmph… He’s the type who doesn’t even consider the possibility of retreat, is he?”

He knew all too well the hardships they had endured in the past because of Louis’s stubborn nature.

Erica patted her dazed disciple on the shoulder a few more times.

“Don’t worry. We’ll win this. And we’ll crush them utterly.”

Her words were filled with unwavering faith in Louis. Knowing him, this “war” would end not as a battle, but as a one-sided slaughter. Erica and the other Grand Masters shared this unshakable conviction.

The frantic screams blaring through the loudspeaker were drowned out by the relentless bombardment, and it didn’t take long for even those faint cries to vanish completely.

The ten minutes Louis had mentioned had passed.

The seemingly endless bombardment finally subsided, the Attribute Power Holy Light Cannons having exhausted their stored energy.

Pshhh…

The overheated cannon barrels hissed steam.

“Oh my god…”

“Truly…”

The Masters stared, jaws agape, at the utterly devastated Lord’s Castle.

Meanwhile, Louis stood with his arms crossed, observing his creation. He spoke, “Delfina.”

“Y-yes…?! Yes!”

Delfina answered Louis’s call in a rigid posture. Anyone familiar with her notoriously strict demeanor would have been astonished by her ramrod straightness.

The mere mention of her name had sent Delfina’s heart racing uncontrollably. Cold sweat trickled down her temples as she nervously met Louis’s gaze.

“You were the one who built the Attribute Power Holy Light Cannon?”

“Y-yes, that’s correct.”

“Your ritual efficiency is atrocious,” Louis said. “I’ll give you an improved version to study later.”

“Ah, I understand,” Delfina replied, nodding dazedly.

As she retreated, Louis smiled. “Alright, that’s my ‘friendly’ greeting out of the way.”

The “friendly greeting” had been rather excessive and flashy, but for Louis, it was merely a casual courtesy.

“Hey, kids,” he called out.

At his summons, the Twins and Flame Siblings, who had been lounging nearby, sauntered over.

Louis jerked his chin toward the Lord’s Castle. “Go capture the owner. First one back gets a wish granted.”

Before he could even finish speaking, the previously listless eyes of the Twins and Flame Siblings flashed with excitement.

“Really?”

“Seriously?!”

“Yep.”

No sooner had the word left his mouth than all four of them bolted toward the Lord’s Castle.

They vanished in an instant, leaping over the crumbling castle wall.

His speed was so incredible, it seemed as if he had teleported.

About ten minutes passed.

“I’m first!” Kani reappeared, carrying a middle-aged man. It was none other than the current master of the Syron Territory, the Duke of the era.

But the Duke was in terrible shape. His eyes were rolled back in his head, and foam bubbled from his mouth.

And…

“Hey… what happened to his arm?” Louis asked, squinting.

The Duke’s left arm was missing.

Startled by Louis’s narrowed gaze, Kani glanced behind her. Khan stood there, his face twisted with indignation. No sooner had he arrived than he burst out with a protest:

“Hey, that’s cheating!”

Khan brandished a severed arm. It was obvious whose it was.

Khan hurried over to Louis, whining.

“Louis, listen! I found him first, but he snatched him away!”

That must have been when the Duke’s arm got torn off.

Louis stared incredulously at the arm Khan was holding and then at the unconscious Duke.

“Um… you know?” Khan cautiously extended the arm toward Louis, asking tentatively, “Could you… maybe count this one too?”

Louis didn’t respond.

“If you can’t give me a full wish, how about 0.2 of one…?”

The sight of Khan, his innocent, pleading eyes juxtaposed with the blood dripping from the arm in his hand, sent a chill down the spine of anyone watching.

Whoosh.

A chilling wind swept through the area, causing the already unnerved Masters to shiver uncontrollably.

Barely two hours had passed since Louis first appeared in the Tower Lord’s chamber.

In that short time, one of the fifteen Masters had been killed, seven were imprisoned awaiting execution, and the Lord’s Castle of Syron had been reduced to ruins. The Lord himself, Duke Syron, had his arm torn off and flung at Louis’s feet.

Gulp.

For the first time in over 250 years, the owner of the Tower of Wishes had emerged. The Masters could only swallow hard, one after another, at the sheer audacity of his actions.