Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• The Thorn Ring tournament’s first round is mandatory for most wizards; the voluntary second round is where the strongest contenders can test one another.
• After defeating Jarliden, Dago realizes that opponents will now take him seriously and investigate his abilities, making future matches more difficult.
• Carl Paul, a powerful Second-Ring Wizard ranked eleventh, approaches Dago and claims he was Bernal’s close friend. He says Bernal asked him to protect Dago and that he will now stand against anyone who threatens him.
• Dago rejects Carl’s offer. He says Bernal never mentioned asking for help and had claimed to have no friends in the Ring of Law, then leaves.
• Carl’s warmth vanishes after Dago departs. He later flies to the Spiral Tower, where he gazes longingly at the ten Sky Floating Islands beneath the powerful green Rune Magic Array.

Character developments

• Dago shows growing caution and independence. Though Carl’s words seem to move him, he refuses to trust a stranger based on claims about Bernal.
• Carl Paul presents himself as generous and protective, but his reaction to Dago’s rejection reveals a darker, more concealed side. His envy and longing for the floating islands also suggest strong ambition.

Significant themes

• Trust and guardedness: Carl offers support, but Dago’s knowledge of Bernal leads him to question the story rather than accept it.
• Hidden motives and appearances: Carl’s radiant friendliness contrasts with the darkness he reveals after being rebuffed.
• Reputation and adaptation: Dago’s surprise victory has exposed his abilities, forcing him to contend with better-informed opponents.
• Ambition and status: Carl’s fixation on the Sky Floating Islands hints at the power and privilege he desires.

Character interactions

• Carl invokes his past bond with Bernal to establish credibility and expresses gratitude to Dago for supposedly rekindling Bernal’s spirit.
• He offers Dago protection and repeatedly extends a hand, but Dago declines both the gesture and the relationship.
• Their exchange ends in polite but decisive rejection, leaving Carl alone with his disappointment and concealed feelings.

Summary

Key plot points and events

• After failing to deceive Dago, Carl Paul meets a scarred young wizard who lives on Spiral Tower’s sixth Sky Floating Island. The man pressures Carl to target Dago in the upcoming second round, warning that Dago may eventually become a threat and invoking Carl’s past betrayal of Bernal.
• Carl resists, admitting Dago is exceptionally strong: he can stack two domains and has mastered a powerful city-level fire spell capable of breaking through a domain force field.
• The scarred wizard offers Carl a crimson-gold orb from a talented Molten Brotherhood wizard. He tells Carl to “accidentally” cripple Dago—and hints that Carl may keep the orb even if Dago dies.
• Tempted, Carl takes the orb and leaves without answering. The scarred wizard watches him go, privately vowing that Bernal must never return in any form.
• In Kletam City, Dago watches the first-round duels. Although the tournament has been underway for a day and a half and many powerful wizards find the early matches uninteresting, Dago studies them all, absorbing their tactics and techniques.

Character developments and interactions

• Carl Paul is shown as cautious and conflicted. He recognizes Dago’s strength and doubts he could defeat him, but the orb and the threat of exposure over his betrayal of Bernal make him reconsider.
• The scarred young wizard is revealed as a manipulator with a personal hatred of Bernal. He uses both blackmail and a valuable reward to try to turn Carl against Dago.
• Dago continues to grow through observation rather than relying on a mentor. His enhanced mental capacity lets him follow many fights at once and turn even minor bouts into useful lessons.
• Dago considers asking Bernal to verify Carl’s suspicious behavior, but decides the matter is too trivial—and would rather watch events unfold.

Significant themes

• Knowledge through observation: Dago gains insight from opponents of every level, showing that even weaker fighters can offer valuable lessons.
• Self-reliance and growth: Dago sees himself as forging his own path, while recognizing that progress requires patience and accumulation.
• Manipulation, loyalty, and revenge: Carl is caught between personal caution and coercion, while the scarred wizard’s hatred of Bernal drives his schemes.
• Courage on the wizard’s path: The chapter closes on the idea that advancement requires facing a long, difficult road without fear.

Chapter Summary: “Who Did He Challenge?”

• Dago reflects on the Ring of Law’s combat trials, realizing they may be intended to encourage wizards to learn from one another, though many participants fail to understand this purpose. He observes that close-combat wizards—especially members of Blackroot Thorn—often possess enhanced physical strength or bodily modifications.
• He recognizes the importance of Elemental Resonance Arts for battle-oriented wizards and understands why the partial manifestation of his Iceflame Blue Demon Body during his fight with Jarliden caused such a stir. Its extraordinary physical power is one of his greatest advantages.
• While watching the constantly changing rankings and ongoing matches, Dago studies the combatants and mentally analyzes their techniques. He also observes the enormous eight-eyed spider Abochild, who acts as the trials’ referee and punishes competitors who violate the rules.
• Dago notices the old, white-bearded Third-Ring Wizard overseeing the event. The wizard, a representative of one of Thorn Ring’s towers, appears motionless and uninterested until the first round ends.
• When the first round concludes, the Third-Ring Wizard demonstrates overwhelming power by lifting a huge section of the ground into the air and transforming it into a massive floating arena. Dago is deeply impressed—and somewhat unsettled—by the scale of Third-Ring power.
• Abochild announces the rules for the second round, which is based on challenges. Wizards may submit the names of opponents they wish to fight, while Abochild filters out unreasonable requests. Challenged wizards can refuse, though repeated refusals damage their rankings.
• Dago submits two challenge requests, using his mental power to write the names and send them to Abochild. Other wizards try to spy on his choices, but he prevents them from learning whom he selected.
• Abochild reacts unusually when consuming Dago’s submissions. He remarks that it has been a long time since he last encountered one of the names and recalls the person as someone who has become a taboo figure whom no one dares mention.
• The chapter ends with the assembled wizards turning toward Dago in confusion and curiosity, eager to know which two opponents he challenged. Their identities are deliberately withheld, creating a cliffhanger.

Character Developments and Interactions

• Dago continues to grow more analytical and confident. He studies opponents rather than relying solely on brute strength and demonstrates the initiative to challenge powerful or significant figures.
• Abochild is revealed as more than a mechanical referee. His comments suggest he possesses memories, judgment, and knowledge of a mysterious figure connected to one of Dago’s challenges.
• The Third-Ring Wizard showcases the immense gap between high-level wizards and ordinary participants, increasing Dago’s awareness of the power structure within the Ring of Law.
• The wizards around Dago become intrigued and suspicious after Abochild’s unusual reaction, highlighting Dago’s growing reputation and the attention surrounding him.

Significant Themes

• Wisdom versus certainty: Intelligent people hesitate and question themselves, while fools act with absolute confidence.
• Strength and specialization: Physical enhancement and close-combat techniques can make a wizard extraordinarily dangerous, especially when supported by Elemental Resonance Arts.
• Competition and hierarchy: The Ring of Law promotes advancement through rivalry, tower allegiance, and challenges, while powerful factions offer protection and influence.
• Mystery and forbidden history: Abochild’s reference to a forgotten or taboo individual suggests hidden history within the Ring of Law.
• Rising reputation: Dago’s rapid ascent forces others to watch and speculate about his decisions, particularly the identities of the opponents he has chosen.

Plot points and events

• Abochild announces that Dago must prove himself before attempting to challenge someone who dislikes being disturbed. Dago accepts the match.
• The challenger is revealed as Carl Paul, the wizard ranked eleventh. His decision to face Dago, ranked seventeenth, shocks the crowd and makes this the second round’s opening match.
• Dago begins with Dance of Fine Snow and Icewind Cross Slash. Carl counters with a blazing wall that consumes the attack.
• Carl then surrounds Dago with countless powerful sparks of fire. Dago survives by unleashing hundreds of miniature Air Bullets, which form a torrent that crushes the flames and protects him.

Character developments

• Dago remains calm despite the spectacle and demonstrates extraordinary skill, combining his ice magic with a powerful defensive Air Bullet technique. The crowd recognizes that his mastery of multiple Apex Arts is remarkable for a Late First-Ring wizard.
• Carl Paul appears confident and poised. His challenge suggests he has a particular interest in testing Dago and what Bernal taught him.
• Abochild orchestrates the confrontation with evident amusement, using the challenge to create a public test of Dago’s strength.

Significant themes

• Talent and mastery: Dago’s advanced spellwork raises questions about the limits of magical ability and how he learned so much at such a young age.
• Reputation and expectations: Carl’s high ranking makes his choice of opponent surprising, while Dago’s performance challenges assumptions about rank.
• Power under pressure: The opening exchange shows both wizards adapting quickly, with Dago’s defense matching Carl’s intense attack.

Character interactions

• Abochild openly provokes Dago into proving himself, and Dago accepts without hesitation.
• Carl addresses Dago directly, framing the duel as a test of Bernal’s teaching.
• The watching wizards react with disbelief to the matchup, then growing unease and awe as Dago reveals his abilities.

Chapter Summary

• Battle escalation: Dago and Carl Paul continue their duel with increasingly powerful spells. Dago attacks with Thumb Air Bullets and his ice sword, while Carl manipulates the displaced sand and sparks into three enormous fire pillars using Scorching Breath. Dago counters by wrapping the pillars in his airflow spell and launching an Ice-Core Cruise Missile into the clash.
• Major magical collision: The collision of fire, frost, and compressed air creates a massive explosion resembling a small mushroom cloud. The shockwave even causes the reinforced arena’s rune formation to tremble, alarming the watching wizards.
• Carl’s transformation: Emerging from the explosion, Carl activates a crimson-gold magical sphere and a sun-like sigil on his forehead. A solar ring forms behind him as flames and magma-like energy cover his body. The artifact dramatically amplifies his mental power and fire control, giving him strength comparable to a Mid-Second Circle wizard and convincing observers that he has the ability to reach the tournament’s top ten.
• Carl’s provocation: Drunk on his newfound power, Carl presents himself as a sun god and mocks Dago for not using the techniques that defeated Jarliden. He urges Dago to surrender and threatens to burn him alive if he refuses. Dago remains calm and expressionless, refusing to be intimidated.
• Carl’s ultimate attack: Carl gathers fire from throughout the arena and beyond, transforming into a gigantic blazing sphere. Declaring himself “the incarnation of the sun,” he prepares an attack powerful enough to incinerate everything in his path, forcing even some Ring of Law wizards to retreat from the heat.
• Dago reveals his second Soul Imprint: Rather than yielding, Dago calmly declares that an arrogant sun deserves to be shot down. Two azure planetary forms appear behind him, representing the two Soul Imprints in his Mental Space: Winter Star, which he created during the Early First Circle, and Prism, his newly formed second imprint.
• Origin of Prism: Dago discovered that the Constant-Change Incantation within the Dream-Reflecting Phantomglass Orb does not merely store memories or spells—it perfectly replicates them. After consuming several bottles of Solomon’s Caress, he extracted the incantation’s replication principles and fused them with his own understanding to create Prism. Unlike the original artifact, Prism replicates spells cast by Dago himself, setting up his counterattack against Carl.

Character Developments and Interactions

• Dago Heka remains composed and confident despite Carl’s overwhelming display of power. His calmness contrasts sharply with Carl’s emotional excitement and arrogance. He demonstrates that he has concealed a major ability and is now prepared to challenge Carl’s supposedly invincible form.
• Carl Paul evolves from a powerful fire wizard into a temporarily enhanced, near-divine figure through his magical tool. However, his confidence becomes arrogance, leading him to taunt Dago and underestimate him. His threats also reveal a growing willingness to seriously injure or kill his opponent.
• Their interaction centers on Carl’s mockery and intimidation versus Dago’s quiet defiance. Carl expects fear or surrender, but Dago’s dismissive response—comparing him to an overconfident sun—undermines Carl’s self-image.

Significant Themes

• Power versus self-control: Carl’s immense power is weakened by his arrogance and emotional excess, while Dago’s restraint suggests deeper preparation and mastery.
• Hidden strength and reversal: The chapter builds the impression that Carl has won before revealing that Dago possesses an undisclosed Soul Imprint capable of changing the battle’s balance.
• Replication and innovation: Prism represents Dago’s ability to understand and reinvent existing magic rather than merely imitate it. It transforms a discovered principle into a unique personal power.
• Pride and hubris: Carl’s “sun god” transformation embodies both greatness and excessive self-regard, while Dago’s refusal to be impressed foreshadows Carl’s potential downfall.

Key plot points

• Dago Heka uses the Soul Imprints [Winter Star] and [Prism] to duplicate the Winter Star and amplify its power, completing his Despair Frost Domain.
• As Carl Paul’s Flaming Sun Domain reaches its peak, Dago invokes “Ice Age”. An overwhelming wave of cold extinguishes the eruption and encases Carl’s molten fireball in a vast sphere of ice.
• Dago stands atop the frozen sphere, declares that Carl was never a worthy opponent, and asks for the next challenger. Abochild announces Dago as the victor.
• Dago’s Absolute Ice-Cold Domain keeps spreading through the arena, driving out other elemental energies and frightening even the Second-Ring Wizards in the crowd. The spectators fear the cold could eventually engulf Kletam City.
• Abochild sends a challenge to the sixth floating island of the Spiral Tower. Once the island accepts, the accumulated cold rushes back toward Dago, and a tall, long-haired figure flies into the arena as his next opponent.

Character developments and interactions

• Dago reveals the full scale of his new power: he remains composed while unleashing a technique capable of overwhelming Carl’s strongest attack, then calmly demands a stronger challenger. His confidence borders on contempt for Carl.
• Carl Paul is defeated and trapped inside the frozen core of his own fireball; his fate is not yet shown.
• Abochild formally declares Dago the winner and arranges the next challenge, responding to Dago’s demand.
• The spectators and nearby wizards shift from stunned silence to alarm as Dago’s domain continues expanding, recognizing that his power far exceeds what they expect from a First-Ring Wizard.
• The incoming challenger arrives from the sixth floating island, prompting Dago to focus as the arena’s cold converges on him.

Significant themes

• Power and escalation: Dago’s victory is not merely decisive; his domain grows beyond the immediate duel, making even higher-ranked wizards wary.
• Elemental supremacy: Ice completely suppresses fire, while Dago’s domain drives other elemental energies from the arena.
• Pride and respect: Dago’s dismissal of Carl contrasts with the crowd’s awe, raising the question of what he considers a worthy opponent.

Chapter Summary: “Absolute Freeze Ball”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Dago recognizes the approaching Chaplin and unleashes his most powerful ice technique, Absolute Freeze. He lifts the ice sphere containing Carl Paul and expands it into a gigantic, rotating ball of ice.
• Despite Abochild warning that the attack violates the arena’s rules, Dago defiantly declares, “My rules are the rules!”
• Dago casts Absolute Freeze Ball, combining his accumulated battle intent, the Winter Star Soul Imprint, his Absolute Ice-Cold Domain, and the ice sword Dance of Fine Snow. He breaks through the arena’s rune formation and pursues Chaplin outside the designated battlefield.
• The selection process collapses into chaos as spectators and Ring of Law wizards rush after the two combatants. Abochild follows anxiously, while the old Third-Ring Wizard remains strangely calm and detached.
• Jarliden, left behind in the empty dueling grounds, realizes that Dago is challenging one of the top ten in an unconventional way.
• Chaplin responds by summoning a massive Earth Dragon Shield, formed from an immense surge of earth-element energy. It collides with Dago’s ice ball, producing a devastating explosion of ice, earth, and flame.
• Dago attacks through the aftermath with his ice sword, briefly striking what appears to be Chaplin’s Mental Force incarnation. Chaplin uses the opening to retreat.
• Once the dust clears, Chaplin is fully revealed: a tall, muscular wizard with a scarred face, silver robes, and a thorned armlet. The two face each other over a ruined, frost-covered plaza, preparing for the next stage of their battle.

Character Developments

• Dago abandons restraint and formal procedure, revealing an overwhelming desire to fight and kill Chaplin. His confidence, aggression, and mastery of ice magic reach a new peak.
• Chaplin demonstrates powerful defensive and earth-manipulation abilities. His ability to survive and evade Dago’s opening assault establishes him as a formidable opponent.
• Abochild is shown as anxious and overwhelmed by Dago’s disregard for the rules, contrasting with the composed indifference of the old Third-Ring Wizard.
• Jarliden gains a new perspective on how one might challenge the top ten, viewing Dago’s reckless attack as a distinct and possibly unprecedented method.

Significant Themes

• Defiance of authority and rules: Dago rejects the structure of the official selection and insists that his personal will determines the rules.
• Battle instinct and obsession: His long anticipation and accumulated killing intent erupt into an uncontrollable pursuit of combat.
• Contrasting elemental strengths: Ice offers overwhelming destructive force and control, while earth provides durability, persistence, and the ability to remain on the battlefield for repeated use.
• Order collapsing into chaos: The formal tournament setting disintegrates as Dago’s attack transforms the selection into a massive, uncontrolled confrontation.
• Power versus technique: Dago’s huge offensive spell is met by Chaplin’s defensive skill, evasion, and strategic use of Mental Force.

Character Interactions

• Dago openly challenges Abochild, dismissing its warning about the rules.
• Abochild looks to the old Third-Ring Wizard for guidance, but his continued calm forces it to handle the crisis alone.
• Dago and Chaplin exchange no direct dialogue, but their spells and movements communicate their hostility: Dago launches a relentless assault, while Chaplin counters with earth defenses and tactical retreat.
• Jarliden observes the aftermath from a distance and interprets Dago’s actions as a new form of top-ten challenge.

Chapter Summary: “Ten-Thousand-Jin Sand”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chaplin, a Mid-Second Circle wizard, confronts Dago and dismisses him as weak despite acknowledging that he had underestimated him.
• The difference in their power becomes immediately apparent: Chaplin possesses roughly twenty times Dago’s Mental Force and uses it to suppress Dago’s ice-based domain.
• Dago’s Absolute Ice-Cold Domain, created through his Soul Imprints and the replicated [Winter Star], struggles against Chaplin’s overwhelming Mental Force Field.
• Chaplin activates his domain, [Ten-Thousand-Jin Sand], transforming the plaza’s rocks into sand. Each grain carries immense weight, pinning Dago down and severely restricting his movements.
• While Dago is gradually buried and immobilized, Chaplin approaches with a silver crystal greatsword, intending to slash Dago’s face as revenge for the humiliation Bernal once inflicted on him.
• The watching Ring of Law wizards assume Dago is about to lose. Even Abochild, the giant spider observing nearby, considers whether it should intervene.
• Just before Chaplin’s sword strikes, blue ice flames erupt from within the sand cocoon. Dago breaks free in a dramatically altered state, covered in glowing blue patterns and surrounded by intense ghostly flames.
• Dago catches Chaplin’s descending greatsword with his bare hands, overturning the spectators’ expectations and signaling that the battle is far from over.

Character Developments

• Dago: Initially relies on his ice domain but recognizes that his disadvantage lies in Mental Force and raw magical strength. His transformation reveals a powerful hidden ability or combat state, allowing him to withstand Chaplin’s domain and physically stop the greatsword.
• Chaplin: Displays extreme confidence and cruelty, emphasizing that Mental Force is the foundation of wizardly power. His personal motivation is revealed: he wants to mark Dago with the same kind of facial humiliation Bernal once gave him. His confidence is shaken when Dago emerges from the sand.
• Carl Paul: His terrified, pale appearance establishes Chaplin’s overwhelming reputation and power.
• Bernal: Though absent, he remains central to Chaplin’s bitterness. His past defeat of Chaplin and the scar he left continue to drive Chaplin’s desire for revenge.
• Abochild: Acts as a powerful observer and potential safety measure, briefly considering whether Dago’s situation requires intervention.

Significant Themes

• Raw power versus technical talent: Dago’s sophisticated ice domain may be exceptionally intense, but it cannot compensate for his much weaker Mental Force.
• The foundations of strength: Chaplin argues that a domain is only as effective as the power supporting it; Mental Force is presented as the true basis of a wizard’s abilities.
• Underestimation and reversal: The spectators believe Dago has been defeated, but his sudden transformation reverses the apparent outcome.
• Humiliation and revenge: Chaplin’s attack is motivated not merely by victory but by his desire to recreate the humiliation he suffered at Bernal’s hands.
• Hidden potential: Dago’s emergence from the sand suggests that his true strength has not yet been revealed.

Character Interactions

• Chaplin and Dago exchange mocking remarks, with Dago provoking Chaplin by reminding him of Bernal’s past victory.
• Chaplin responds by invoking Bernal and launching his domain, turning their verbal conflict into a direct personal battle.
• Chaplin explains the nature of his domain while deliberately crushing Dago’s mobility and confidence.
• Their confrontation culminates in Chaplin attempting to deliver a humiliating facial slash, only for Dago to catch the greatsword barehanded in his transformed state.

Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Dago launches a surprise assault on Chaplin, striking him twice with immense physical force and severely damaging his face and bones.
• Chaplin responds with defensive and offensive earth magic, using his Rock Armor Ring, Mountain of Ten Thousand Forces, and Gravity Crush to trap and crush Dago.
• Dago breaks free effortlessly, revealing the results of two months of brutal training. By repeatedly exposing his body to ice-element spells and restoring it with healing potions, he has developed greatly enhanced physical defenses through the Iceflame Blue Demon Body.
• Chaplin escalates the battle by combining two domain force fields into the powerful Dual-Domain Stacking: Millstone of Ten Thousand Forces. His strength as a Mid-Second-Ring Wizard is finally fully revealed, terrifying the watching wizards.
• Rather than meeting the attack directly, Dago summons Winter Star and uses the Soul Imprint Prism to send a replicated Winter Star into the Sea of Despair. This allows him to borrow its power without harming his soul.
• Dago unleashes a terrifying technique called First-Level Despair Domain Resonance: Despair Death River. A silent black river filled with skeletons, shattered souls, and ghostly hands emerges from the transformed Winter Star, draining nearby energy and overwhelming the battlefield with despair.
• The attack shocks everyone present, including an old Third-Ring Wizard and powerful figures across the Sky Islands. A mysterious high-ranking figure recognizes that Silver Tower has produced someone capable of First-Level Domain Resonance.

Character Developments

• Dago demonstrates a dramatic increase in strength, speed, durability, and confidence. His training has transformed him from a relatively weaker wizard into someone capable of physically overwhelming Chaplin.
• Dago also shows greater mastery of his soul-related abilities. Through the Soul Imprint Prism, he safely borrows the Sea of Despair’s power and produces a technique far stronger than his previous Despair Frost Domain.
• Chaplin shifts from arrogance and composure to shock, rage, and desperation after Dago dominates him. His obsession with the scar left by Bernal is revealed as a deep emotional weakness.
• Chaplin exposes his true power as a Mid-Second-Ring Wizard with stacked domains, but his confidence collapses when even this ultimate technique appears insufficient.
• The observing wizards and high-ranking figures begin to recognize Dago as an extraordinary and potentially important talent.

Significant Themes

• Revenge and wounded pride: Dago deliberately references the scar Bernal gave Chaplin, provoking the older wizard and turning Chaplin’s humiliation into rage.
• Transformation through suffering: Dago’s extreme training and repeated physical pain have produced both literal armor-like defenses and greater spiritual power.
• Despair as power: The Despair Death River embodies death, annihilation, and hopelessness, showing Dago’s ability to turn a terrifying emotional force into a controlled weapon.
• Hidden strength and revelation: Both fighters conceal their true abilities until pushed to their limits. The battle becomes a public revelation of Dago’s extraordinary potential.
• The limits of authority: Chaplin’s status as master of the sixth Sky Island and his overwhelming dual-domain power are challenged by Dago, suggesting a shift in the existing hierarchy.

Character Interactions

• Dago taunts Chaplin by implying that he may replace Bernal as the person who leaves a scar on Chaplin’s face.
• Chaplin responds with increasingly violent attacks and boasts that even Bernal would have been forced to kneel before him.
• Their confrontation is both physical and psychological: Dago remains calm and controlled, while Chaplin becomes increasingly emotional and hysterical.
• The spectators initially fear Chaplin’s stacked domains but are stunned when Dago counters with Despair Death River.
• Powerful observers, including the old Third-Ring Wizard and a mysterious figure near the Spiral Tower, react to Dago’s technique as evidence that he has reached an exceptionally rare level of mastery.

Chapter Summary: The Highest of the Ten

Key Plot Points and Events

• After two months of intensive cultivation, Dago fully comprehends the [Prism] Soul Imprint, realizing it is especially suited to his current abilities. His mastery is strengthened by the five bottles of “Solomon’s Caress” and the Dream-Reflecting Phantomglass Orb.
• His understanding of both [Prism] and his hidden trump card, [Winter Star], advances dramatically. Although Dago has not formally mastered First-Level Domain Resonance, he can access its power indirectly through another method.
• During his battle with Chaplin, Dago unleashes the [Despair Death River], formed through the Despair Domain and powered by the Sea of Despair in his Mental Space.
• The river completely overwhelms Chaplin’s Dual-Domain Stacking, destroys his earthen defenses, and nullifies the spells and magical tools he throws at it. Chaplin is dragged toward a horrifying illusion of despair, where his most painful memories repeatedly erode his will.
• Just before Chaplin is consumed, Abochild, the enormous metallic spider, intervenes and creates a silver barrier. Dago withdraws the attack, allowing Chaplin to survive, though Abochild suffers severe damage.
• The spectators realize that Dago, despite being a First-Ring Wizard, has displayed the power of First-Level Domain Resonance and decisively defeated Chaplin, a mid-stage Second-Circle Wizard.
• The battle attracts the attention of numerous powerful observers, including several figures comparable to Chaplin, an old Third-Ring Wizard, and concealed Third-Ring Wizards in the distant Silver Tower.
• The chapter ends as Dago senses an approaching presence and sees a figure emerging from beyond the barrier of the highest of the ten floating sky islands.

Character Developments

• Dago demonstrates a major leap in power and spell comprehension. His mastery of [Prism], [Winter Star], and Despair-related abilities establishes him as an extraordinary, potentially “monster-like” genius.
• His use of the [Despair Death River] reveals that his power comes at a cost: the technique completely drains the Mental Power stored in his Grey Sun. However, the Grey Sun Meditation Method appears to refine and strengthen his Mental Power afterward, making the expenditure potentially beneficial in the long term.
• Chaplin is thoroughly humbled. His confidence collapses into genuine fear and despair as none of his domains, defensive spells, or magical tools can resist Dago’s attack. Even after surviving, he looks at Dago with shock and awe.
• Abochild protects Chaplin at great personal cost, sustaining extensive damage to its metallic body. It immediately demands that Chaplin pay for the repairs, revealing its irritable and practical personality.
• The surrounding high-level wizards shift from casual observation to caution and active interest, recognizing Dago as someone whose abilities may significantly alter the balance of power.

Significant Themes

• Power beyond formal rank: Dago’s actual combat strength greatly exceeds what his First-Ring status suggests, emphasizing the gap between conventional realms and exceptional talent.
• The cost of strength: The Despair Death River is overwhelmingly powerful but consumes all of Dago’s Mental Power, showing that even his greatest abilities carry serious risks.
• Despair and psychological warfare: The river does not merely destroy physically; it traps victims in their worst memories and erodes their will, making inner suffering as important as battlefield strength.
• Recognition and scrutiny: Dago’s victory transforms him from an impressive participant into a figure watched by powerful forces. His display of First-Level Domain Resonance draws admiration, fear, and possible political danger.
• Protection and obligation: Abochild’s intervention saves Chaplin but leaves it damaged, reinforcing the practical costs and responsibilities that accompany alliances.

Character Interactions

• Dago and Chaplin: Their confrontation shifts from a contest of domains to a complete demonstration of Dago’s superiority. Chaplin is forced to retreat and ultimately submits after Dago’s attack overwhelms him.
• Dago and Abochild: Abochild directly blocks Dago’s killing blow, forcing him to withdraw the Despair Death River. Their interaction establishes Abochild as a powerful protector capable of resisting Dago’s attack, though only at great cost.
• Abochild and Chaplin: Abochild angrily orders Chaplin to pay for its repairs. Chaplin, shaken and obedient, quietly agrees.
• Dago and the observers: Although they do not directly confront him, the powerful wizards’ reactions mark a major change in Dago’s status. Their attention suggests that his next encounter—particularly with the approaching figure from the highest sky island—may be more significant than the battle with Chaplin.

Key plot points and events

• Abochild identifies Violet as one of the Silver Tower’s greatest wizards and warns Dago that he is far more formidable than the opponents he has faced so far.
• Violet arrives in response to Dago’s challenge. Though he looks like an unassuming scholar, his presence commands the crowd’s attention. The watching wizards reveal that Violet once held the top position and defeated even Bernal.
• After politely greeting Robbins and Abochild, Violet asks whether Dago needs time to prepare. Dago accepts and restores his strength with numerous Silver Mental Potions.
• While Dago rests, the crowd grows and the mood shifts from hostility to anticipation of a fair contest between two exceptional talents.
• Dago admits to himself that he has already achieved his original tournament goals, but welcomes this extra challenge as a chance to measure himself against the Thorn Ring’s leading genius—and to test an unfinished trump card.
• Once ready, Dago launches the duel. He activates [Winter Star] and [Prism], begins forming his Absolute Ice-Cold Domain, and attacks with a rapid sequence of ice magic.

Character developments and interactions

• Dago is calm and deliberate, but his competitive spirit returns as he prepares to face Violet. He treats the duel as an opportunity to learn and push beyond his previous limits, rather than merely as another tournament victory.
• Violet is courteous, humble, and composed. He shows no obvious hostility or eagerness to fight, treating Dago’s challenge more like an invitation to exchange ideas. He also makes a point of letting Dago attack first.
• Abochild acts as Dago’s guide, explaining Violet’s reputation and cautioning him about the challenge ahead.
• The crowd shifts from watching Dago’s earlier, more personal clashes to eagerly anticipating a contest of skill. Violet’s arrival temporarily draws attention away from Dago, but the audience still expects the duel to establish Dago’s growing reputation.

Significant themes

• Ambition and self-testing: Dago chooses to take on a challenge beyond the goals he originally set, seeking growth as much as victory.
• Reputation versus appearance: Violet looks ordinary and gives off little apparent magical power, yet his history and the reaction to his arrival mark him as exceptional.
• Respectful rivalry: The encounter is framed as a measured contest rather than a feud, with both wizards displaying restraint and courtesy.
• The limits of achievement: Having reached his planned “finish line,” Dago decides that safety and accomplishment are not enough; he wants to discover what lies beyond them.

Key plot points and events

• Dago attacks Violet with [Absolute Ice-Sealing Sphere], but Violet stops the huge spell with a casually raised azure energy barrier. His superior domain power gradually crushes the sphere and overwhelms Dago’s ice domain.
• The observers recognize that Dago’s spellcasting has grown more fluid and powerful with each battle, reinforcing his reputation as a rapidly improving talent.
• Dago activates [Iceflame Blue Demon Body] and charges Violet at high speed, breaking through the outer barrier and piercing into his domain.
• Violet counters with repeated Wind Blades and controlled tornadoes, trapping and battering Dago. He dismisses Dago’s close-combat approach as ineffective against a true powerhouse.
• Dago bursts free with an eruption of blue Iceflame. Though he acknowledges Violet’s point, he concludes that his physical strength must become so overwhelming that he can maintain an advantage rather than relying on brief close-range assaults.

Character development

• Dago remains determined despite the vast gap in power. He assesses the limits of his fighting style and turns the setback into a concrete goal: strengthen his body enough to overwhelm opponents consistently.
• Violet displays immense confidence and control. He is interested less in defeating Dago than in witnessing Dago’s First-Level Domain Resonance Technique, and he calmly explains why Dago’s current tactics fall short.

Character interactions

• Violet repeatedly urges Dago to stop resisting, emphasizing the difference in their power and revealing his specific interest in Dago’s technique.
• Dago answers Violet’s condescension by launching a direct attack. Their exchange becomes both a physical contest and a lesson: Violet exposes the limitations of Dago’s approach, while Dago uses the encounter to reassess and resolve to improve.

Significant themes

• Growth through combat: Dago’s abilities improve from battle to battle, and even defeat offers insight.
• Power gaps and tactical limits: Strength alone is not enough when an opponent’s magic, mental force, and control vastly exceed one’s own.
• Determination and adaptation: Rather than abandon his close-combat style, Dago seeks to develop it until its weaknesses no longer decide the outcome.

Chapter Summary: Hand of Ainelm

Key Plot Points and Events

• Dago continues fighting Violet, the Thorn Ring’s foremost genius and a Late Second-Circle Wizard, despite being only a Late First-Circle Wizard.
• Observers believe Violet has complete control of the battle and may be prolonging it out of curiosity, since Dago has mastered First-Level Domain Resonance.
• Violet reveals that he himself mastered First-Level Domain Resonance long ago. He ends the preliminary exchange and decides to force Dago to reveal his own Domain Resonance.
• Violet unleashes [Hand of Ainelm], a massive wind-based domain technique shaped like the hand of the legendary Spirit World monster Ainelm. Its power overwhelms the arena and terrifies the watching Ring of Law Wizards.
• Dago realizes that resisting normally is impossible, but he sees the crushing pressure as the perfect opportunity to complete a dangerous technique he has been developing.
• He projects [Despair Winter Star] into his body and combines its power with [Iceflame Blue Demon Body], using the former as fuel and the latter as an engine to dramatically enhance his physical strength.
• The technique consumes enormous vitality and mental power, making it extremely dangerous to use.
• Just before Violet’s giant hand strikes, Dago transforms. Black lines cover his body, his frame expands, Despair Force erupts from him as black lightning, and his hair grows into long, floating strands.
• The chapter ends as [Hand of Ainelm] crashes down amid an explosion, with witnesses glimpsing Dago’s terrifying demonic transformation through the energy and light.

Character Developments

• Dago: Demonstrates exceptional courage, composure, and combat instinct. Rather than immediately using First-Level Domain Resonance, he deliberately accepts overwhelming pressure to refine and activate his new body-enhancement technique. His transformation suggests a major increase in power, though it comes at a severe physical and mental cost.
• Violet: Reveals himself to be far more powerful than the observers expected. His mastery of First-Level Domain Resonance is not recent or incomplete; he has possessed it for some time. His patience ends when Dago refuses to reveal his own domain, exposing Violet’s pride, confidence, and desire to punish anyone who treats him lightly.
• The observing Wizards: Their initial certainty that Violet will win changes into shock and awe when he reveals his true strength. They recognize the enormous gap between ordinary First-Level Domain Resonance and Violet’s version, empowered by his higher cultivation realm.

Significant Themes

• Overwhelming power versus ingenuity: Dago faces an opponent vastly stronger than himself, but relies on innovation and risk-taking rather than straightforward strength.
• Growth through danger: Dago intentionally places himself in a life-threatening situation to force a breakthrough in his technique.
• The cost of power: His new technique promises extraordinary strength but drains his vitality and mental power, emphasizing that advancement comes with serious consequences.
• Pride and recognition: Violet refuses to be treated as a mere test subject or plaything, while Dago seeks the rare chance to measure himself against a superior genius.
• Transformation and hidden potential: Dago’s monstrous change symbolizes the emergence of power that has previously remained concealed or incomplete.

Character Interactions

• Violet directly confronts Dago, criticizing his refusal to use First-Level Domain Resonance and threatening to injure him if he continues withholding it.
• Dago does not respond verbally; instead, he answers Violet’s challenge by activating his experimental technique under the pressure of [Hand of Ainelm].
• The spectators interpret the battle and Violet’s motives, first assuming he is studying Dago, then realizing that Violet had been far stronger all along.
• The final collision leaves the outcome unresolved, with Dago’s demonic transformation offering the first indication that he may be capable of resisting Violet’s overwhelming attack.

Key plot points and events

• Third-Ring Wizards watch Violet’s selection duel while discussing Robbins’s research into the Tri-Polar Mirror’s energy-purifying array and the lost knowledge of Mirror Forest.
• Violet demonstrates his mastery of the Hand of Ainelm, a powerful wind spell enhanced by First-Level Domain Resonance. The observers recognize that he has reached late Second Circle and may qualify for a Six-Knot Rating.
• They assume his opponent, a slender young wizard, has little chance against him. Robbins considers intervening, but before he can act, a huge explosion erupts.
• A massive black shape surges upward and pierces Violet’s energy hand, breaking the spell apart and unleashing a gale across the arena.
• The watching wizards recognize the force behind the attack as the aura of a Pillar of the Old Ones. Violet is left stunned as his seemingly dominant technique collapses.

Character developments and interactions

• Violet is established as an exceptionally accomplished young wizard, but his confidence and apparent control are abruptly shaken when his Domain Resonance spell is destroyed.
• Violet’s opponent overturns everyone’s expectations by revealing power tied to the Pillars of the Old Ones. The chapter withholds his identity and the full nature of his ability, ending at the moment of revelation.
• Robbins is cautious and observant, quietly considering whether to intervene. Like the other senior wizards, he is caught off guard by the young challenger’s power.
• The Third-Ring Wizards first discuss Violet admiringly and speculate about his opponent’s pride and prospects. Their composed, almost detached commentary gives way to collective shock when the battle changes.

Significant themes

• Appearances and assumptions can be overturned: The observers dismiss Violet’s opponent, only to witness him break a spell they regarded as overwhelming.
• Power and prestige are fragile: Violet’s apparent dominance vanishes in an instant, demonstrating that even advanced mastery can be challenged.
• The impact of the unknown: The Pillars of the Old Ones represent a mysterious force that shocks even experienced wizards.
• Legacy and lost knowledge: Robbins’s research into Mirror Forest highlights how the destruction of an ancient tradition leaves later generations dependent on fragments and reconstruction.

Chapter Summary: I Lost, Despair Death Creek

Key Plot Points and Events

• Dago completes the transformation of his Iceflame Blue Demon Body by projecting the copied Despair Winter Star into it and drawing on the Sea of Despair in his Mental Space.
• The concentrated Despair Force repeatedly shatters and reforges his body until it can contain the immense power. He becomes a nearly three-meter-tall, black-veined demon with overwhelming physical strength and a terrifying aura.
• Although the transformation makes Dago far more powerful, the Despair Winter Star phantom is rapidly fading. He realizes he must defeat Violet quickly and risks losing his humanity if he remains demonized too long.
• Dago immediately attacks Violet. Violet retreats while continuously casting defensive spells, but Dago tears through every spell with ease and steadily closes the distance.
• Violet unleashes the full mental force of a Late Second Circle wizard in the form of a miniature sun. Dago catches the attack in one hand, demonstrating the enormous gap between them.
• With Dago’s hand poised at his throat, Violet admits defeat: “I lost.”
• Dago ends the transformation before the despair consumes his body and soul, returning to his normal human form.
• Using the final remnants of the Despair Winter Star, Dago creates a Despair Death Creek, a pure-black river of despair that briefly circles Violet before flowing into the Spirit World.
• Dago explains that this is the First-Level Domain Resonance Technique Violet had wanted to witness, leaving Violet stunned and deeply contemplative.

Character Developments

• Dago: Gains a dramatic increase in strength by embracing the corrupting power of despair. Despite his monstrous appearance and brutal power, he retains his clarity and self-control. His awareness of the danger shows that he understands the transformation is temporary and potentially irreversible.
• Violet: His normally calm and confident demeanor breaks under Dago’s overwhelming assault. Though he remains composed outwardly, his trembling body, sweat, and pale face reveal genuine fear and pressure. His surrender marks a rare and significant defeat.
• Dago and Violet: Their relationship shifts as Dago proves his superiority in both physical power and domain techniques. Violet’s interest in Dago’s technique is satisfied, but witnessing it leaves him shaken and thoughtful rather than merely impressed.

Significant Themes

• Power versus humanity: Dago’s strength increases enormously through despair, but prolonged use threatens to destroy his body, soul, and reason.
• The cost of forbidden power: The demonized form offers near-invincible force while carrying the risk of permanent corruption and enslavement to the Sea of Despair.
• Physical weakness of wizards: Violet’s defeat emphasizes the vulnerability of powerful mental-force users when confronted directly by an overwhelmingly strong physical body.
• Control amid corruption: Dago’s greatest achievement is not merely transforming, but remaining mentally clear while using a power designed to consume him.
• Humility and recognition: Violet openly accepts defeat, while Dago demonstrates his technique without needlessly continuing the battle.

Important Character Interactions

• Dago deliberately locks eyes with Violet and takes amusement in causing the usually aloof wizard to tremble.
• During the attack, Violet repeatedly casts defenses, but Dago destroys them effortlessly, creating an increasingly oppressive atmosphere of despair.
• Dago catches Violet’s strongest attack in his hand and holds it harmlessly, bringing the confrontation to its decisive point.
• Violet acknowledges defeat, and Dago withdraws rather than prolonging the fight.
• Afterward, Dago fulfills Violet’s request by displaying the Despair Death Creek, while Violet silently studies the technique and its implications.

Key plot points and events

• Exhausted after the combat trial, Dago expects to collapse, but Abochild catches him in a web and carries him above the crowd.
• Dago has defeated the opponents he set out to face, including Violet, whose Old One bloodline makes the victory especially remarkable.
• As the Thorn Ring prepares to honor him, a surge of mental power and milky-white lights restore him. His soul reaches a state of completeness, and he advances toward becoming a second-ring wizard without needing a Mental-Power Vaporization Array.
• A public projection broadcasts his coronation across Kletam City and beyond. Golden motes gather around him and form six thorn swastika knots—the Thorn Ring’s sign of exceptional genius.
• Watching from a rented balloon, Linda and Stuo recognize Dago in the projection. By the end, his name has spread throughout the city.

Character developments and interactions

• Dago shifts from complete physical and mental exhaustion to astonishment and delight at his advancement. He remains irreverent, snapping at Abochild’s praise and privately finding the grand ceremony embarrassing.
• Abochild catches and praises Dago, while explaining that the coronation and projection will make him known to the Ring.
• Linda and Stuo bicker over Linda’s costly balloon rental; their playful quarrel ends when they spot Dago’s image and stare in wonder.
• The wizards and spectators respond to Dago with a mixture of admiration, envy, amazement, and indifference.

Significant themes

• Recognition and reputation: Dago’s victory becomes a public milestone, and his name reaches far beyond the combat plaza.
• Merit and extraordinary talent: The six-knot symbol publicly marks the scale of his achievement.
• Growth through struggle: His succession of difficult battles appears to help catalyze his spiritual and magical advancement.
• Contrast between grandeur and personality: Dago is presented as a noble, celebrated prodigy, yet his private reaction is embarrassment and his manner remains blunt and humorous.

Plot points and events

• After earning a Six-Knot Rating in the selection matches, Dago is invited to the Silver Tower to meet its master.
• He enters the tower with Steel, a cheerful young man in silver robes. The tower’s immense spiral staircase, floating books, and descending light fill Dago with wonder.
• The staircase’s Rune Magic Array stirs the Silver Mist in Dago’s Mental Space, suggesting that the tower could greatly improve his meditation and cultivation.
• Senior wizards watch Dago closely, intrigued by his rating and Old One bloodline. Steel gives him a Banyan Ring that masks his mental-strength fluctuations, then warns him not to negotiate privately with the older wizards.
• Steel leads Dago to the summit, where they find the tower master at work. Before Dago can approach, Steel transforms into a Rainbow Spiral Parrot and announces him theatrically.

Character developments and interactions

• Dago moves from nervousness about meeting a powerful authority to awe at the tower and excitement about its magical environment. He accepts Steel’s ring and shows caution and good manners.
• Steel acts as Dago’s guide and protector, easing his discomfort and managing the senior wizards’ scrutiny. His playful, talkative manner culminates in his parrot transformation.
• The tower’s senior wizards reveal strong interest in Dago, apparently because of his exceptional promise and bloodline.
• The tower master is introduced indirectly as a graceful, imposing woman, but has not yet spoken to Dago.
• Dago also catches sight of a flaxen-haired female wizard watching him, though her interest remains unexplained.

Significant themes

• Knowledge and discovery: The tower’s books and light embody the attraction of learning and the unknown.
• Potential and scrutiny: Dago’s achievement marks him as a rare talent, bringing both recognition and unwanted attention.
• Protection and negotiation: Steel’s gift offers Dago privacy, while his warning highlights the risks of others seeking advantage from his bloodline.
• Cultivation and opportunity: The Rune Magic Array hints that the environment itself can accelerate Dago’s growth.

Chapter Summary: Master of the Silver Tower

Key Plot Points and Events

• Dago discovers that Steel is not human but a rainbow parrot capable of speaking through magical means. Steel’s antics ease Dago’s nervousness before his meeting with Undine.
• Dago meets Undine, the young and immensely powerful Master of the Silver Tower. She welcomes him warmly, creates a chair through spatial magic, and offers him soul-refreshing tea.
• Undine explains that she personally met Bernal in the past and recognizes similarities between him and Dago: both have ordinary wizard aptitude but follow an unconventional path centered on battle.
• She reveals that Bernal’s rapid advancement came from the Ancient Battle Wizard path, in which constant combat strengthens and fuses the body and spirit, completes the soul, and removes Soul Sorrow.
• However, Bernal’s potential was insufficient to sustain this method. After exhausting his natural potential, he began burning his soul’s origin through repeated battles, causing severe soul injuries.
• Undine explains that Bernal’s condition cannot currently be healed. Soul-repairing potions are monopolized by ancient wizards seeking to extend their own lives, making them extremely dangerous and difficult to obtain.
• Undine tells Dago that his battle-oriented path resembles Bernal’s, but he possesses far greater potential and better control over the rhythm of combat.
• She identifies the source of Dago’s exceptional potential as his bloodline connection to a Pillar of the Old Ones. She asks to study his blood to uncover the dormant Old One power within him.
• Undine agrees to provide Dago with access to potions and Magic Stones, though she will limit the amount of rare resources he receives to prevent him from becoming overly dependent on them.
• She encourages him to move into the Silver Tower, where the environment will support meditation, study, and long-term cultivation.

Character Developments

• Dago: Becomes more comfortable around Undine and gains a clearer understanding of his own cultivation path and hidden bloodline. He also learns more about Bernal’s tragic condition and becomes concerned about finding a cure for him. His humorous attempts to obtain more resources show his practical and greedy side, even while he remains respectful toward Undine.
• Undine: Is established as a powerful yet approachable spatial wizard and leader. Despite her overwhelming strength, she behaves gently and shows genuine interest in Dago’s development. She also demonstrates concern for Bernal and takes an active role in studying Dago’s potential.
• Bernal: Though absent, he receives important background development. His strength came from relentless battle and his determination to avenge his wife, but that same obsession damaged his soul and left him unable to abandon his dangerous path.
• Steel: His true identity as a rainbow parrot is revealed. His comic performance lightens the mood and confirms his unusual nature.

Significant Themes

• Power and sacrifice: Bernal’s strength and rapid progress were achieved by sacrificing his soul, showing the devastating cost of pursuing power beyond one’s natural limits.
• Potential versus determination: Dago and Bernal follow similar paths, but Dago’s greater inherent potential gives him a safer and more promising future.
• The dangers of obsession: Bernal’s desire for revenge drives him forward but ultimately consumes him, likening him to a moth drawn toward a flame.
• Mentorship and controlled growth: Undine supports Dago but deliberately restricts his access to rare resources, believing that struggle and independence are necessary for genuine development.
• Hidden bloodline and destiny: Dago’s connection to a Pillar of the Old Ones suggests that his greatest strength lies dormant within him and may shape his future.
• Humor amid tension: Steel’s antics and Dago’s exaggerated attempts to appear poor balance the serious discussions of soul damage, mortality, and magical advancement.

Character Interactions

• Steel’s playful behavior breaks the tension between Dago and Undine, while Undine rewards him with a Magic Stone.
• Undine treats Dago with warmth rather than formality, asking him to call her by name and offering him tea.
• Dago listens respectfully but remains internally humorous and skeptical, especially when Undine explains why she will not immediately provide him with abundant resources.
• Undine acts as both a mentor and researcher: she analyzes Dago’s connection to Bernal, offers guidance on his cultivation, and requests his blood for further study.
• Their conversation establishes mutual trust and marks the beginning of Dago’s closer association with the Silver Tower.

Chapter Summary: Return to the Garden Secret Realm

Key Plot Points and Events

• After speaking with Undine, the newly appointed master of the Silver Tower, Dago reflects on her unusual mixture of authority and uncertainty. Although she is inexperienced in her role, her knowledge as a powerful wizard has helped clarify important parts of Dago’s path.
• Before leaving the tower, Dago remembers that he has not informed Bernal about the outcome of the duel. Rather than send a simple message, he uses the tower’s crystal window to create a spell projection showing the view from its summit.
• Bernal receives the projection while supervising Selena’s spellcasting. Seeing the tower’s summit and the familiar scenery deeply affects him, suggesting strong memories or emotions connected to the place. He then encourages Selena to work harder so that she can catch up with Dago, who has now reached the tower’s top.
• Dago returns to the Garden Secret Realm and begins walking toward the white table and wicker chairs at its center.
• The garden’s spatial rune arrays repeatedly teleport him whenever he encounters them. At the same time, a transparent, distorted humanoid creature emerges from the flowerbeds and relentlessly pursues him.
• Dago calmly navigates the teleportation traps until he reaches the table. Just as the creature catches him, he transforms into a towering demonic form, clad in armor made from Animated Ice Crystals, and strikes it with overwhelming force.
• Their collision produces a massive explosion that briefly reveals the garden’s dense network of rune arrays and causes the entire secret realm to tremble.
• Afterward, Dago returns to normal, drinks healing potions, and reflects that the creature may have possessed strength approaching that of a Third-Circle wizard.
• During the confrontation, Dago had used Animated Ice Crystals to bypass the spatial arrays and steal two magical objects from the table: a silver bell and a mirror-like dagger. With these, he has taken all the table’s objects except the teapot and teacups.
• Dago speculates that the secret realm may once have belonged to a witch or an unusually vain wizard. He plans to study the two items’ spell seals and hopes to use one as a Soul Imprint compatible with his current magical system.

Character Developments

• Dago demonstrates increased confidence, composure, and tactical ability. He remains calm despite the garden’s unpredictable spatial traps and uses both planning and brute force to overcome the pursuing creature.
• His transformation reveals that he possesses a powerful demonic form, significantly increasing his physical strength and destructive potential, though the battle leaves him injured.
• Dago’s interest in the magical objects shows his growing ambition as a spellcaster. He is particularly eager to study advanced spell seals and expand his arsenal.
• Undine is portrayed as an inexperienced but sincere Tower Master. She struggles to balance authority with kindness, yet her guidance remains valuable to Dago.
• Bernal reveals a deeply emotional reaction to the tower’s summit, implying a personal history with the location. His encouragement of Selena also shows his role as a mentor and his desire for her to keep pace with Dago.
• Selena does not directly participate in the events, but Bernal’s words establish her as someone training to reach Dago’s level.

Significant Themes

• Growth and advancement: Dago’s arrival at the tower’s summit symbolizes progress, while Bernal’s encouragement frames him as a benchmark for Selena.
• Guidance versus independence: Undine provides Dago with direction but leaves key decisions to him, emphasizing that his advancement ultimately depends on his own choices.
• Mastery over danger: The Garden Secret Realm’s traps and guardian creature test Dago’s ability to remain composed and adapt under pressure.
• The unknown nature of power: Dago cannot clearly identify the creature’s strength, reinforcing the unpredictability and danger of spatial magic.
• Memory and emotional attachment: Bernal’s reaction to the projected scenery suggests that the tower carries important personal or historical meaning for him.
• Acquisition and discovery: The magical implements and their spell seals represent new opportunities for Dago to refine his abilities and develop stronger techniques.

Character Interactions

• Dago and Undine: Their exchange resembles that between a student and an inexperienced but well-intentioned teacher. Undine offers guidance while Dago evaluates her abilities and appreciates the assistance she provides.
• Dago and Bernal: Dago sends Bernal a visual update rather than a conventional message. The gesture reminds Bernal of his own past and confirms Dago’s advancement.
• Bernal and Selena: Bernal uses Dago’s achievement to motivate Selena, urging her to train harder and catch up with him.
• Dago and the garden creature: Their interaction is primarily a magical combat and tactical contest. Dago evades the creature and the realm’s spatial defenses before defeating it with his demonic transformation.

Chapter Summary: “A Wizard’s Bad Taste”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Dago returns to Kletam City and secretly teleports to the Silver Tower using a Banyan Ring.
• His fame has grown enormously after winning first place in the recent competition. The Rose Inn became overwhelmed with admirers and reporters, forcing him to move to a Sky Floating Island near the top of the tower.
• Dago settles into his new residence, where he spends his time studying the Silver Tower’s vast collection of books and deepening his magical knowledge.
• His home contains numerous ancient alchemical objects inhabited by sealed souls. The brass door knocker attempts an exaggerated, heroic welcome before Dago silences it.
• Dago examines the dagger and bell acquired from the Garden Secret Realm:
  • The dagger can teleport anything it strikes through space.
  • The bell releases silver spatial attacks that cut openings into the air and expose the Spirit World.
• Dago is amused and bewildered that the dagger and bell possess abilities completely unrelated to their appearances.
• He realizes that the runes within both tools could greatly enhance his own spell-seal system and begins planning future magical research.

Character Developments

• Dago continues transitioning from an obscure commoner wizard into a highly respected and celebrated figure, though he remains determined to avoid publicly flaunting his fame.
• He demonstrates increasing discipline and scholarly ambition, spending his days absorbing magical knowledge and analyzing unfamiliar runes.
• His growing confidence as a researcher is evident in his willingness to experiment with powerful spatial artifacts.
• Dago’s humor and practicality are highlighted by his irritation with the overly flattering door knocker and his disbelief at the artifacts’ unconventional designs.
• His strategic mindset develops as he immediately considers how to incorporate the new runes into the Prism spell seal and other magical projects.

Significant Themes

• Fame versus privacy: Dago’s achievements bring unwanted attention, leading him to retreat to a more secluded and prestigious residence.
• Knowledge and self-improvement: The chapter emphasizes Dago’s relentless pursuit of magical understanding and the importance of study after gaining power.
• Appearance versus function: The dagger and bell look ordinary or suggest one purpose but possess entirely different spatial abilities, creating a humorous contrast.
• Innovation and magical research: Dago views the artifacts not merely as weapons but as sources of techniques that could revolutionize his spell system.
• The eccentricity of powerful wizards: The strange design choices of the magical tools suggest that advanced wizards may possess peculiar or deliberately playful tastes.

Character Interactions

• Dago and the brass door knocker, Nat: Nat delivers an extravagant speech praising Dago as a legendary genius and future Holy Son. Dago threatens to send it to a garbage recycling station if it continues, prompting a more timid welcome.
• Dago and the artifacts: Dago cautiously tests the dagger and bell, discovering their true functions through experimentation. His reactions shift from curiosity to confusion, amusement, and finally excitement over their research potential.
• Dago and the Silver Tower community: Although he does not directly interact with the resident apprentices, their maintenance of his floating island reflects his elevated status and the support he receives as the competition’s champion.