Six Great Powers

The languid afternoon sunlight passed through the crystal dome, refracting into hazy halos inside the silver-white tower before slanting down. Amid drifting motes of light, Dago and Undine seemed frozen in a yellowed oil painting, a faint golden glow washing over them.

Surrounded by books, Undine was breathtakingly beautiful. She raised a hand casually, and an invisible Mental Force Field rippled outward like water, shutting out the world. Only a gentle hush remained, enfolding the two of them in privacy.

Undine gazed warmly at Dago and began to explain.

"It concerns the exploration of Mirror Forest."

"What we gained from exploring its core far exceeded everyone's expectations.

But that made dividing the resources a problem."

"No proposed distribution or compensation could satisfy every faction."

Undine paused, then said quietly, "After discussing it, the factions decided to settle ownership of all the resources through a tournament.

The six great wizard factions—the Dusk Crystal Church, Thunder Tower, Black Marsh, Water Palace, Lava Brotherhood, and our Thorn Ring—will each send ten members under a hundred years of age in soul years. They'll fight one-on-one, and the resources will be divided according to each faction's combined rankings."

"Ten people? Another tournament decided by rankings?!"

Dago frowned, though he was not particularly surprised.

The Wizarding World revered strength above all. The powerful were entitled to everything, while the weak could only be plundered and crushed.

It was like Ainak Wizard Academy, destroyed under the Darkblood Council's authority. They wiped you out, and you had no say in it.

Under the rules of the Wizarding World, this was also the fairest arrangement available.

The strongest figures of the six factions were, barring any surprises, Miracle Wizards of the Fourth Circle or higher.

Unless their lives were at stake, people at that level were unlikely to enter