As night deepened, dust swirled around dilapidated barns on the outskirts of Thebes. This place, once a gathering place for secret Wizard, had now become the target of a raid by Temple Knight and priests.
The flames were forcibly extinguished, and a tense atmosphere filled the air.
A dozen or so Temple Knight, clad in silver armor and wielding spears, surrounded the Wizard inside the house. Behind them, a high priest, draped in a golden robe and wearing the emblem of Athena, slowly entered the barn, his gaze cold and arrogant.
"Blasphemers!" he proclaimed, "You are engaging in unauthorized witchcraft, violating sacred law!"
"We are just learning!" an older Wizard tried to explain.
"Shut up!" the priest snapped, pointing a finger. "Take everyone away and burn everything here."
The temple knights immediately sprang into action, brandishing their weapons and pinning the Wizard to the ground one by one.
Don't touch my book!
The young witch screamed and struggled, but was kicked to the ground by a knight.
The scene immediately descended into chaos.
Inside the barn, time seemed to stand still.
The Temple Knight ' swords were only half an inch from the nearest Wizard, and the golden runes on the priests' scepters shimmered, suppressing everyone's Magic Power. Despair permeated the air—these Wild Wizard knew all too well that once captured and brought to the temple, they would face either being burned at the stake or an even more horrific "purification ritual."
"Directly stripping away the right to cast magic—just as everyone was in despair, a deep and calm voice rang out."
"Cough cough."
The sound wasn't loud, but it was like a sharp blade, cutting through the heavy silence.
All eyes turned to him. The black-robed man who had been standing in the corner was now slowly and methodically adjusting his cuffs, as if the impeccable appearance was less important than the impeccable state of his clothes. His silver-gray right eye gleamed coldly in the dim light, and a half-smile played on his lips.
"If the Goddess of Wisdom dislikes Wizard, then let your gods face me." These words were spoken by Ian, who was particularly disgusted by this anti -Witch Hunts.
They are the same in nature.
They all persecuted Wizard who sought the truth of magic.
It's obvious.
This reminded him of a forgotten fact: the gods may have feared uncontrollable Wizard as much as the Titan had feared them—the gods themselves were once rebels.
They overthrew the Titan and seized control of the universe. At that time, what the Titan feared was not the power of the Olympus gods, but their uncontrollability—they broke the established order and created new rules.
Now, this fear seems to be repeating itself.
" Wizard possess knowledge," Ian murmured to himself, "And once knowledge is awakened, it can no longer be easily suppressed."
As he observed the caution and repression of the Wild Wizard at their gathering, he suddenly understood something: the gods did not simply despise witchcraft, but rather feared that these powers were beyond their control.
Just as the Titan dreaded the Olympus gods.
Wizard do not rely on gods; they gain power by understanding the world and deciphering its rules. If this trend continues, one day mortals will no longer need the gods' protection and may even challenge the divine throne itself. This is not unfounded worry, but a historical cycle.
Therefore, the gods could not tolerate Wild Wizard who were not under their control. As a Wizard himself, Ian naturally disapproved of this, so he stepped forward and spoke to the knights and priests of the temple.
Everyone's eyes immediately focused on the source of the sound.
Ian.
The traveler who had just been sitting quietly in the corner listening to the discussion slowly stood up, straightened his sleeves, and swept his gaze across the Temple Knight and priests with a sharp, piercing look.
There was no anger in his eyes.
Only contempt.
"Who are you?"
The priest frowned, a hint of hostility in his voice.
"How dare you obstruct the Temple's enforcement of the law?"
The priest's tone was brimming with arrogance. The night was deep, the candlelight flickered in the barn, and a tense, oppressive atmosphere filled the air. The Wizard, who had just been pinned to the ground, had only recently gained their freedom, but the Temple Knight had already regrouped, their silver armor gleaming coldly in the dim firelight.
It's obvious.
These Temple Knight planned to make an example of Ian, the mysterious Wizard, and launched a cautious attack.
Ian stood before the crowd, his expression calm, his gaze sweeping over the knights like a knife.
"You've already lost," he said. "Don't you understand?"
"Insolence!" a burly knight roared, drawing his longsword and pointing it at Ian. "Let us teach you what true respect is!"
Having said that, he suddenly rushed forward, followed closely by several knights whose swords gleamed with a cold light and exuded a murderous aura.
They wanted to make an example of this person—to directly defeat this daredevil who challenged divine authority, to intimidate all the Wild Wizard, and to let them know the price of resistance!
However.
They underestimated Ian.
Just as the first sword was about to strike, Ian gently raised his right hand.
"You..." he began softly, his voice gentle and refined, yet carrying an undeniable authority, "How dare you attack me in the face of a Legend?"
"Noisy."
The next second, the air suddenly froze.
The knights' movements seemed to be frozen in mid-air by an invisible force; their swords stopped just inches from Ian, unable to advance even an inch further.
The entire barn fell into a deathly silence.
Ian slowly stood up, his steps unhurried, and walked to the leading knight, giving him a gentle push.
Bang!
The knight was sent flying like a puppet with its strings cut, crashing heavily into the wall, spitting out blood, and immediately losing consciousness.
The other knights also knelt down, as if they were under some kind of irresistible pressure.
"Is this what you call divine power?" Ian said calmly. "In my eyes, they are nothing but a pack of lackeys kept by divine will."
He surveyed his surroundings, his deep yet clear voice reaching everyone's ears. "You are facing a true Legendary Wizard. What, is this all you've got? You dare to attack me?"
Ian also intended to make an example of someone to scare the others; this was an attitude meant to be shown to the gods. Therefore, he had to be swift, precise, and ruthless, without the slightest mercy, in order to truly intimidate the gods.
He believed the gods were watching.
"Hateful!"
The Temple Knight rose from the ground, covered in blood, their bodies radiating the power bestowed upon them by the gods—a transformation resulting from consuming rare and precious herbs.
Their faith in the gods was undoubtedly unwavering.
Seeing that Ian's blasphemous words were undisguised, the heavily wounded Temple Knight were enraged and once again swung their weapons, launching an attack on Ian with the help of the priests' magic.
"Stubborn and incorrigible."
Before the words had even finished,
An invisible storm of Magic Power suddenly erupted!
The air inside the barn seemed to be gripped tightly by an invisible hand, and the silver armor of the Temple Knight instantly twisted Transfiguration, emitting a piercing metallic wail! Their bodies were struck as if by an invisible giant hammer, flying backward and crashing heavily into the walls, some even embedding themselves directly into the wooden planks!
"Ah--!"
Screams rose and fell, the knights coughed up blood, unable to even hold their swords, collapsing to the ground in terror as they stared at the black-robed man who remained standing there, not even lifting a finger.
He didn't chant any incantation at all!
He didn't even move!
With just one sentence, the temple's elite knights were wiped out!
The Wild Wizard stared wide-eyed, some even instinctively taking a step back, as if standing before them was not a human, but an ancient beast draped in human skin.
The Wizard watching were all utterly shocked. They had never seen anyone dare to confront the Temple Knight head-on like this, let alone fight an entire clergy force single-handedly!
"This... this is impossible..." the young witch murmured to herself, "Who is he?"
"Is he insane?" another Wizard exclaimed incredulously. "He actually dares to directly provoke the temple and even calls himself a ' Legendary Wizard '?!"
"But... but he really did it, that Magic Power was truly awe-inspiring."
The older Wizard looked at the knights trembling with fear, a complex emotion flickering in his eyes. "He's not bluffing; he truly possesses that power."
"Is it really Legendary Wizard...? Why would Legendary Wizard come to a small gathering like ours?" someone whispered, trembling. The priests' faces turned extremely ugly. He stared intently at Ian, the divine runes on his scepter flashing wildly, trying to resist the invisible Magic Power suppression.
Ian didn't seem to care much about it.
He clenched his fist.
Countless tiny golden runes appeared in the air, swirling and leaping like stars. They danced around the Wizard, and with a gentle touch, the chains binding them snapped.
"Now."
Ian said calmly.
"You have two choices—either leave, or... disappear." After rescuing the Wizard, he turned to the people from the temple, who had by then lost much of their arrogance.
The knights exchanged bewildered glances, some of them already instinctively backing away.
But the priest gritted his teeth and roared in anger.
"Arrogance!" he roared, his voice carrying the majesty of divine magic. " Legendary Wizard is nothing before the gods! You think you can defy the will of Athena?!"
"Yeah?"
Ian chuckled softly.
He finally raised his hand—and just snapped his fingers casually.
Snap!
The priest's scepter shattered instantly, the golden runes crumbling like fragile glass!
"Ah--!"
The priest screamed in agony as his hand was blown to pieces, and he staggered back a few steps, almost collapsing to his knees.
"Run!" an elderly Wild Wizard suddenly shouted, his voice filled with terror, "Young Legend, you've committed a grave sin! The temple will not let you off!"
" Athena's wrath will fall upon this city! You will kill everyone!"
The other Wizard also showed expressions of horror. Although they were grateful to Ian for saving them, they knew all too well that offending the temple had consequences far worse than death!
"It's not too late to escape!" another Wizard urged, trembling. "Get out of here before Athena notices! Otherwise—"
"Otherwise?" Ian tilted his head slightly, a hint of mockery flashing in his silver-grey eyes. "Otherwise, what will she do?"
The priest, clutching his bleeding hand, grinned menacingly.
"Otherwise... you will witness true Divine Punishment!"
He roared, his voice filled with fanatical piety. As he spoke, the priest suddenly knelt down, raised his scepter high, and began to pray in a low voice.
"Great Athena, heed the prayers of your servants, grant me the power to punish these blasphemers! Let them know the price of mortals daring to challenge you!"
The priest prayed frantically.
Then the other priests spoke to Ian with a ferocious expression.
"You think you've won? Foolish! I've already prayed to Athena! Her gaze is about to fall upon you! You will regret your arrogance! You will—"
The priest's voice abruptly stopped.
Because the companion's prayer had been completed... nothing happened. The gods, who used to respond quickly, now seemed to have heard the prayer without any response.
His only response was silence.
The wind continued to blow, the candles remained unlit, the gods showed no reaction, and the barn was deathly silent.
"How could this be! It shouldn't be like this!" The priest's expression froze. He looked up in disbelief at the void, as if waiting for some kind of response.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
Athena did not respond.
No miracle occurred.
There wasn't even a trace of divine power.
The priest's expression changed from ferocity to bewilderment, and finally... to fear.
"No... it can't be..." he murmured, his voice trembling, "Lady Athena... why..."
Ian strolled up to him, looking down at him with a wider smile.
"It seems..." he said softly, "Your goddess isn't keen on meddling in other people's business today."
--Thump!
The priest finally collapsed to his knees, his expression completely shattered. The Wild Wizard stared in disbelief at the scene, their worldviews seemingly turned upside down.
A Wizard...
A mortal...
The temple priests' prayers received no response whatsoever?! Not only were the priests incredulous, but even these Wild Wizard found it utterly baffling in this era where the gods so fiercely defended their authority. They had no idea what kind of background this Legend before them had.
Could he be a demigod?
Zeus's child?
Some people were making the most logical connections, but no one said aloud. The rescued Wizard, observing the situation, all urged Ian to leave immediately.
"You'd better leave quickly," a Wizard whispered to Ian. "You've angered the gods; your fate won't be good."
"Yes, run!" another chimed in. "Even if you win now, the gods will still be watching you."
To this, Ian remained completely unfazed, instead smiling slightly, "I am not afraid of the gods. Because I have always firmly believed that Wizard are superior to all, and gods are merely more powerful, unorthodox Wizard."
He slowly turned around, looked at the priest who was still kneeling in the same spot, and said coldly, "You think prayer will work? You think God will answer your cries? You are nothing but a pathetic wretch blinded by faith."
The priest abruptly looked up, glaring at him. "You dare question the existence of God?!"
"I'm not questioning," Ian said calmly, "I'm certain—your god doesn't care about you."
He slowly approached, looking down at the once arrogant priest:
"You can't hear God's answer because she simply doesn't want to respond. She knows the consequences of angering me, because her father witnessed how invincible I am."
Ian is showing off.
But I'm just telling the truth.
"You... you're talking nonsense!"
The priest roared.
I don't like to lie.
Ian sneered.
"The gods fear me as they fear Wizard."
He raised his hand and gently touched it. An invisible force instantly enveloped the entire barn, the air seemed to freeze, and the temperature plummeted. The knights felt a tightness in their chests, as if they were being pressed into the deep sea, unable to breathe. The priests also felt their Magic Power extinguished, and their connection with the gods severed.
"Get out of here."
Ian said calmly, "Otherwise, I'll let you taste real fear."
No one dared to linger any longer.
The knights, supporting the limp priest, fled the barn in a sorry state, quickly disappearing into the night. It was in this unbelievable scene...
All I saw was...
The little Wizard turned around.
"Please continue, everyone, I haven't had enough of your discussion yet."
He spoke enthusiastically to a group of weak, Wild Wizard.
(End of this chapter)