Magic Academy Bans Harem

Chapter 396 The Road to Legend
For a moment, the Sloth Research Institute, which was on the verge of exploding, fell into a state of stillness.

It wasn't that Ritas and the others in the research institute lacked knowledge or were frightened by the talking snow owl. Rather, the "Tower of Origin" mentioned by the snow owl was known to everyone in the mage community.

As the highest institution governing the magical world, ordinary mages may never even set foot in this place in their entire lives.

At this moment, Ritas was fine. However, Mint Elson and the mages of the research institute were in an awkward situation.

Mint was caught in a dilemma: should he keep the miniature magic cannon raised, or lower it? The mages, meanwhile, were even more unsure whether to maintain their magic circle. They also didn't know how long Ritas would need to read the letter; if it took a long time, maintaining the magic circle would be enough to exhaust their energy without Ritas even needing to lift a finger.

In this scene, the snowy owl descended from the sky, flapping its wings and hovering in front of Ritas. After Ritas took the letter, the snowy owl seemed to want to land on his shoulder. However, upon meeting Ritas's glaring eyes, the snowy owl felt inexplicably afraid. So, it turned its head, looked around for a moment, and then landed on Miriam's shoulder.

"A letter from the 'Tower of Origin'."

Ritas detected traces of magic in the letter. After repeatedly verifying the unique sealing wax, seals, and emblems of the Tower of Origin, and confirming that these were not forgeries intended to harm him, he slowly opened the letter.

The moment the letter was opened, it emitted a dazzling light. A gentle breeze also wafted out, carrying the letter into the air.

As the letter, which had been blown about, slowly fell back down, the figures formed by the light below steadily caught it in their hands.

"Oh, my dear student, how have you been lately? Since I'm just a video, let's skip the small talk."

The figure holding the letter was none other than "Tree Witch" Livis. On this day, Livis was dressed in a black graduation gown, wearing a tall graduation cap, and a pair of black-rimmed square glasses.

Previously, Ritas might not have understood how Livis managed to do all these things.

However, after meeting Sophia, Ritas could easily discern that Livis was now using a form of "recording magic".

The appearance of the Tree Witch, even if it was just a fleeting image, made some of the surrounding mages swallow nervously.

"Following discussions within the 'Sage Council,' we have unanimously decided, based on the proposals of the 'Tree Witch,' the 'Pioneer,' and Sora Sumer, along with other senior scholars and mages, to officially begin the 'Path of Legend' for Lord Ritas Berengrom Elson, who already holds the titles of 'Professor of Magical Arts' and 'Archmage'—"

As Livis's voice echoed through the courtyard, many of the mages who clearly heard the contents of the urgent letter from the "Tower of Origin" couldn't help but gasp.

This may be the only chance in their lives for them to witness a mage embark on a "legendary journey" under their watch.

"I won't go into the names of those old fogies. After that, according to those rules that should have been abolished long ago, you'll need to complete a period of 'Great Achievements Tour' before you can officially obtain your exclusive legendary title. However, even if you do nothing, it shouldn't make much of a difference. After all, you already have considerable 'great achievements' to your name. So, perhaps your next legendary title will be 'Sage Slayer' or 'Ideal Ace Slayer'? Hehehe~ I look forward to the day your name resounds throughout the continent. Well then, see you in the new semester, my beloved disciple—"

As Livis finished speaking, her illusory figure vanished and transformed back into a gentle breeze, blowing the letter back into Ritas's hands.

Gripping the letter tightly, Ritas remained silent for a long time with a dark expression.

It took Ritas a while to calm himself down, and he decided to focus on the present for now.

So, facing Mint Elson and the others from the Sloth Research Institute, he raised a ball of flame in his right hand as if holding it up.

"I'm sorry, my personal matters are concluded. So, would you all like to continue?"

The flames in Ritas's hand were merely a basic elemental spell. Even without using a wand or chanting, the formation was smooth and fast, but overall it wasn't particularly difficult.

However, after what happened before, the more ordinary magic Ritas displays now, the more indescribable a sense of oppression he exudes in the eyes of everyone at the research institute.

After a few seconds of eye contact with Ritas, Mint Elson shrugged, bent his arm, raised his hand, and released it, letting the miniature magic cannon fall to the ground.

"Let's forget about it. We're not foolish enough to think we have the ability or the qualifications to judge a living 'legend'."

Upon hearing Mint's words, the other members of the research institute also breathed a sigh of relief and withdrew the magic they were about to unleash.

"How should I put it? Welcome to your territory, young master."

Mint, whose fierce expression gradually faded, smiled and brought the farce that hadn't yet erupted to a close.

at dusk.

Having already discussed the basic details of the joint venture, Ritas, the butler Dino, and Dean Mint left the meeting room.

The process went exceptionally smoothly.

The reason for this situation is less due to Ritas's personal charisma and more due to Roland's personal charisma.

As the head of the Elson family for decades, Roland naturally had many supporters. However, these supporters were either in a neutral position, like Dino and Mint, and while they had men under their command, they weren't true soldiers. Or they were hampered by the rules Roland himself had set for the family.

Even though Roland wasn't the former head of the family's biological son, many of his siblings probably knew this. But if it were just one of them, most of them would likely still be willing to lend him a helping hand.

Unfortunately, within the Elson family, no branch or faction can truly be considered "one person" in the strictest sense.

And that is precisely why Ritas's existence seems so special. Dino and Mint are also willing to place their hopes on this "young master," who is also acting for Roland.

As for Ritas's personal reputation and the "Legendary Mage" status he's about to acquire, they can only be described as icing on the cake for the current situation in the Western Regions, far from being a lifeline. Those who care about these things and make choices based on this information are almost entirely gathered at the "Sloth Research Institute."

Since the matters at the Sloth Research Institute went very smoothly, Ritas and his group now had more options.

Elson's entourage and the Sloth Research Institute together have quite a few people, with several hundred on record alone. If you include friends and family who can be invited, the number could easily exceed a thousand.

However, it's worth considering how many of these thousand men can be considered combat units. Even if all thousand are considered combat units, what effect would directly attacking the rebels' headquarters have?

Sending the enraged Ritas in as a strategic bomb would certainly be powerful, but the uncertainties and consequences of doing so make it unsuitable as a viable option.

Furthermore, Ritas currently doesn't know if Floyd's side also possesses individual combat power that defies conventional understanding. Floyd and John are clearly working together. And John's force feels truly too strange to be underestimated.

Therefore, directly gathering the "pro-Roland" forces under the name of "Young Master Elson" to fight the rebels is absolutely the most inefficient method. It would be better to win over, or leverage, forces qualified to participate in the public duel, infiltrate their ranks, and then act according to circumstances on the day of the duel.

Including Elson's entourage and the Sloth Research Institute within their sphere of influence first was also to gain more leverage in negotiations with those "Elsons" who controlled armies.

After all, unlike some neutral forces that cannot participate in the battlefield, Ritas's solo attempt to negotiate with those powerful members of the main lineage was nothing short of humiliation. "Sorry to keep you waiting, Miriam student."

Upon arriving at the main hall of the research institute, Ritas saw Miriam in the rest area, surrounded by a group of researchers dressed as scientists, each holding something that looked like a white cardboard sign.

"Ah! Professor!"

Upon Miriam's response, the researchers quickly dispersed.

"Did I disturb you?"

Ritas asked, somewhat puzzled, while Miriam waved his hands repeatedly.

"Those researchers, when they heard I was the professor's student, were planning to ask me for autographs and such. If the professor doesn't come, I'm starting to run out of things to deal with."

Miriam breathed a sigh of relief.

"."

Ritas, who was already quite used to such things, could only sigh that strange people could be found everywhere, especially among mages, and this was particularly true in a "martial" environment like the Western Regions.

"Also, this white bird keeps pecking at me."

Miriam, seemingly unaware of the Snowy Owl, said with a helpless expression.

Ever since Ritas went to negotiate, the snowy owl that had delivered the message has been pecking at his head. He did try to stop it, but to his surprise, the snowy owl was incredibly skilled; even with half his effort, he couldn't catch it.

"Actually, you can just feed it some food. It's asking for payment for delivering the message."

As Ritas spoke, he took some dried meat from his "emergency kit" in his waist pocket and handed it to the snowy owl. After the snowy owl devoured it, it flew away contentedly.

"If it wants to eat, can't it just say so?"

Seeing how easily the snowy owl was dealt with, Miriam, who had been pecked all over, complained.

Don't argue with a bird.

Ritas shook his head and advised.

Based on his observations, he felt that this snowy owl might be rather proud and disdainful of speaking human language except when necessary.

Watching the snowy owl disappear into the distance, Ritas had a premonition that they might see it frequently in the future. This was because, according to long-standing custom, each messenger sent by the "Tower of Origin" was unique.

"Although it's getting late, we have limited time. So, we need to head to the 'Saintess Ruins' now."

After seeing the messenger off, Ritas said this, and Miriam followed without objection.

On the way to the ruins of the saintess, Miriam couldn't help but ask about the "Legendary Path".

To be honest, although Miriam was a proper magic academy student, the gap between an apprentice mage and a legendary mage was so vast that he had never had the opportunity to learn about legendary mages, nor had he ever been interested in them.

"The Path of Legends, simply put, is the process by which a Grand Mage becomes a Legendary Mage, starting from ancient times. Back then, to forge a legend, a mage had to traverse the entire continent, spreading their fame throughout the world. Then, the great deeds accomplished in the process would serve as their legendary title."

After tidying up his words a bit, Ritascop said.

"Isn't that the ancient era gone now?"

"Well, unlike the chaotic era of the past, mages today don't have as many 'great deeds' to accomplish, nor do they need to spread 'fame'. Moreover, with organizations formed, it's much easier to spread information throughout the world. Therefore, the 'Path of Legends' is now basically just a formality, no longer a trial for mages. Apart from those great mages who died unexpectedly, almost no one fails to obtain the legendary title after embarking on the 'Path of Legends.' And the buffer period after the Path of Legends begins doesn't require mages to actually perform any great deeds. They only need to complete some cutting-edge research, or solve some worldly problems, or at the very least, build a few bridges for their hometown for free."

Ritas went on to explain.

Because today's legendary mages are not actually as legendary as their names suggest, their prestige is much lower than that of legendary mages in ancient times.

Moreover, in ancient times, "legends" were already the pinnacle of the world. But today, above legends, there are figures like the "Four Sages" who stand at the very top.

If we had to pinpoint the exact difficulty, becoming a "legendary mage" in this era primarily hinges on gaining the recognition of the "Tower of Origin" and embarking on the path to legendary status.

Just thinking about it gave Ritas a terrible headache.

Those who nominated him—besides Livis and Susola, isn't Sora Sumer just Susola's alter ego? The "Pioneer" who went mad after splitting into eight, did he give each of his alter egos some academic identity?
As for the fact that the legendary qualification review was approved so quickly.

Besides the fact that the proposer was very influential, it's likely that the two wise men also recounted, to some extent, what happened at the end of the academy exchange meeting.

The way the mage confronted the two sages made him a legendary figure, and one can imagine the various "challenges" that would follow. After all, few people have the courage to challenge sages, but challenging a grand mage on the "path of legend" is a much easier task.

Therefore, Ritas's status as a legendary mage will likely bring him no benefits, only endless troubles. And Livis certainly didn't have any good intentions in pushing this forward.
Although, this timely notification resolved a minor dispute for Ritas.

But this is like giving Ritas a piece of candy, and then having to swallow countless bitter pills afterwards.

"Now that the Path of Legends has begun, it's basically considered complete. So, is the professor about to become the youngest 'Legendary Mage' in history?"

Miriam asked this question to Ritas, who was inexplicably frowning and looking unwilling.

He sighed softly, wondering why people of this era were always fixated on the so-called "youngest" Ritas, and simply shook his head.

"As far as I know, that's not the case. Since the age for magical enlightenment is now over fourteen, those records for the youngest in academia are very difficult to break. However, since the path to becoming a legend is often very long, the title of 'youngest legendary mage' may still be competitive in the future."

Hearing Ritas's answer, Miriam became somewhat curious. Who exactly was this legendary figure from ancient times, always the "youngest" in all the records of the magical world?

(End of this chapter)