<485 - The Truth Behind the Fire Show>
Tourists climbing Mount Vesuvius were honestly just a bunch of day-light robbers looking for a free tour.
“Whatever it is, if you complain enough, the Magic Tower will cover all your expenses. If you don’t go, you’re a fool.”
“I hear the hot spring eggs and banana milk from the hot spring are delicious. Let’s inflate our expenses and enjoy those for free.”
“Tsk tsk. You thought you could just come alone without a plan? You need to bluff and say that you brought staff hired at the volcanic branch and came together from the other city down there to score big.”
Evil tourists planning a hot spring trip funded by the Red Magic Tower!
Their feelings upon discovering a huge tent and barrier on the way to the volcano were more or less, “Ah, there’s a den of fools waiting to hand over their money!”
Expressions as fierce as possible.
Voices as loud as possible.
Actions as rough as possible.
The tourists, all bundled up to cause trouble, joined the long waiting line.
“The spectacular fire show can only accommodate more than 100 tourists at once. Please wait until all previous guests forfeit.”
“What? I have to stand in line while I’m roasting here? I was willing to let it slide, but now I’ll have to threaten them to cough up my kids’ expenses too!”
“But why is there a forfeit in a fire show?”
“No idea. Guess we’ll find out when we get there.”
“Hmm… There’s a soundproof barrier and no chance for magical espionage. Now I’m really curious.”
Noble tourists with a knack for magic quickly deciphered that the limit of 100 was a rule due to the barrier’s boundary.
A fire show that demands strict confidentiality! Perhaps, just maybe, they actually have something worth showing.
“Next 100 guests, please enter.”
Even though no one had exited the tent yet, a commoner tourist grew anxious at the announcement.
“Why is nobody coming out? This isn’t some evil human experiment plan by the Magic Tower to throw tourists into an erupting lava pit, is it?!”
Anxiety and fear spread quickly among the tourists!
“Don’t worry; we’ve sent them back to the entrance using short-range teleportation magic to avoid any hassle going down the mountain.”
“Oh.”
The young wizards of the Magic Tower swiftly quelled the rising panic.
Awkwardly, people stepped into the tent.
“Isaac, can I go in first? If I go in this way, one of our group members will be separated.”
“Go ahead. I borrowed a carriage on the way, so I’ll gladly let you take this spot.”
Noble Mage Isaac gladly gave up his spot to his friend, who had become rich through the development of magical tools.
He felt a bit worried if his friend’s ambitious plan to milk thirty tourist expenses would leave him with enough pocket money.
‘Still, he should save enough for the nobles. A commoner can just boss them around in the name of the Tower, but he wouldn’t want to hurt the nobles’ pride, right?’
The Red Magic Tower’s fire show is a savvy strategy to draw the nobles’ interest and lure the commoners into spending.
Providing funds to nobles while collecting money from commoners is a strategic reward policy to gain favor and rumors from the powerful, while simultaneously raking in cash from the common folk.
The Tower also boasts a large organization with talented people skilled in business, and after thirty minutes of waiting…
ZAP!
Isaac’s communication magic tool activated.
– Isaac…
“Rero? Did you come down already? So, how much did you manage to squeeze out? I’m already looking forward to your heroic tale.”
– Not a single penny…
“What? Those Tower folks dared ignore the nobles’ wrath and broke their promise? I have to report them for false advertising!”
– There’s a prize more remarkable than the expenses…! Do you have any mana stones? If not, grab some right away. We must not let the flames go out…!
Has this guy gone nuts? What nonsense is he spouting?
Rero’s communication only confused Isaac further.
“Next 100 guests, please enter!”
I might not fully understand, but I’ll figure it out once I see it.
Isaac stepped beyond the barn’s curtain and into the barrier.
Inside the tent awaited a sign for the “Spectacular Fire Show.”
━━━━
The first guest to maintain their flame for 100 minutes and endure will instantly receive a prize of 10,000 gold coins. This is a banknote guaranteed by Her Highness, the Second Princess Masugaki of the Holy Central Empire.
━━━━
“What the… That’s the Imperial Bank’s seal!”
“Are we really getting 10,000 gold coins?!”
“That’s insane! We have to pull this off!”
Everyone received their assigned lanterns and headed to their respective spots.
Isaac was just as excited as the rest of them.
Each seat was equipped with various magic circles.
Magic to lower temperatures.
Magic to summon strong winds.
Magic to pour cold water.
And magic to amplify sound.
Having already figured out the spell mechanisms, Isaac prepared himself for defense, but he couldn’t guess what the amplifying sound magic was up to.
‘Are they planning to yell loudly to extinguish the flames?’
As speculation ran wild, the lights went out and a red-haired woman dressed in a magician’s robe stepped onto the central platform.
“Welcome to Rosgini’s Fire Show.”
Shall I provoke her?
Shall I sneer?
Shall I showcase my skills to break her spirit?
All those mischievous thoughts came crashing down the moment Isaac met the blazing gaze of the magician.
This wasn’t a place for pranks.
The weight of what she carried was different.
Her commanding presence made Isaac nod in acknowledgment.
If there’s a prize of 10,000 gold coins on the line, she has to bring it.
The joker’s mindset to just milk tourists transformed into a noble mage’s pride ready for a challenge.
“The lanterns in front of you contain a tiny ember. This is the embers of desire, which can lead to the prize guaranteed by the Second Princess worth 10,000 gold coins.”
“What’s about to happen is simple. You will nurture the embers of desire until the end, and we will do our utmost to extinguish them.”
“That’s right. This is a 1 vs. 100 battle. The current champion of the Red Flame School, known only through individual victories in the Red Magic Tower, Rosgini, will face you in an authentic duel.”
A strong tension rose in the air.
Not just the tourists felt tense.
Before Isaac could cast his defensive magic, spells began to unfold from behind the prop curtains.
BOOM! SPLASH!
“Oh my gosh!”
“Ah, my lantern!”
The first strike was a basic magic spell Sound Generation.
With the sudden intrusion of sound, two participants who got eliminated stared blankly at their extinguished lanterns and were swiftly escorted away by the officials.
‘As soon as they recover from the teleportation sickness, they’ll rush back up the mountain.’
The first attack was just a light probing, but the subsequent assaults rapidly increased the number of dropouts.
“I want to be rich. How far are you willing to risk for that desire? Let me set a benchmark for you. At the very least, you have to endure the pouring cold water with your entire body.”
With a casual flick of her hand, the assisting staff unleashed a basic magic spell Water Generation, making a torrent of water rush down.
“This is just the beginning of your struggle. When faced with the harsh winds of life, your soaked body will start suffering from the cold.”
The basic magic spell Wind Generation sharply lowered the perceived temperature of their drenched bodies and imposed an unbelievable chill, making it hard to believe they were in a volcanic area.
This wasn’t even high-level magic.
Just basic spells at work.
Still, the tourists’ determination quickly became marred by regret and fatigue due to the chilling reality.
“For someone with the greatest ember of desire within them, this kind of cold should be nothing. Even in the increasingly harsh winds for the next five minutes.”
As they activated the magic circles, assisting staff increased the wind’s intensity while general tourists surrendered one after another.
“Damn it. I came in short sleeves thinking it was hot in the volcanic area; this brutal cold is too much.”
“Oof. It’s frustrating but oddly refreshing!”
“Enjoying such a cool show in this heat will make me feel guilty about asking for a refund.”
Even if they couldn’t obstruct the water with magic or withstand it with their strong bodies, the intention of enjoying the show as tourists was thoroughly fulfilled in this fire of desire!
As the lanterns extinguished and desires waned, tourists vanished into the teleportation magic like spirits undergoing apotheosis.
Rosgini applauded as she pointed at the number of remaining participants displayed on the mana panel.
“Wonderful. Now there are 50 remaining. Your desires have reached the upper 50%. But do you think this current endurance is enough for 10,000 gold coins? I think not.”
A spell of basic magic Light Generation illuminated one side of the stage.
What appeared there was a blood-red violin floating in the air.
Unlike the tourists, who were lost in the serene melodies of the flute, Isaac realized a terrifying truth.
‘What is this performance? It’s casting Taming on the embers in real-time!’
Transforming the spell into a wave form made it invisible even to high-ranking magicians!
But the lantern was merely a flame.
There was no interference or fire manipulation; so why cast Taming?
As Isaac stared at the fiery mass, he felt as if it were looking back at him.
‘Wait, could it be…?’
Isaac infused mana into the lantern.
The flame, filled with mana, grew large and POOF opened its eyes.
Indeed.
It locked eyes with him.
“Are you insane?”
The embers of desire that the tourists desperately guarded were, in fact, monsters.
