* * *

“Do I seem invisible to you?”

The cool, detached voice reverberated across the vast conference hall, each word breaking crisply.

At once, the gathered nobles began shaking their heads vigorously, as though they were marionettes pulled by unseen strings.

“W-What do you mean, Your Highness? Absolutely not!”

Though none seemed to fully understand what had provoked their sovereign’s ire, they were doing their utmost to prevent it from worsening.

“Then perhaps your eyesight is failing. Why else would you all keep glancing behind me? Is there something sweet lingering back there?”

The sarcasm in his words unfurled slowly, each syllable cutting through the air. It wasn’t until then that the nobles realized what had upset their prince, and their chatter died instantaneously.

Yet even as they stood chastised, many harbored grievances of their own.

In Pendium, wizards were rare.

Among them, Cheong Dowoon’s renown was unparalleled.

Restoring an entire scorched forest was just the tip of the iceberg.

Whispers abounded that the notoriously austere Second Prince, known for his exacting standards, seemed powerless before Dowoon.

There were even reports of the aloof Third Prince—who famously refused all but the most essential interactions—walking hand in hand with the mage.

To add fuel to the fire, the Third Prince’s Shadows, who usually went to great lengths to prevent him from making any contact with others, made no such objections when it came to Cheong Dowoon.

More recently, the mage had apparently spoken a single word to reinstate the head of the Magic Department—a man personally ousted by the Crown Prince.

To make the Crown Prince revoke his own decree?

It was an unprecedented, earth-shattering feat.

Of course, neither the Crown Prince nor his mage seemed remotely aware of how extraordinary the situation was.

Nor did they seem to understand the rumors swirling around them.

Had the Crown Prince been aware, he might have gleaned why all eyes were drawn to Dowoon.

This ignorance was likely the work of the prince’s diligent aide, Philip Asnel, who deemed anything unrelated to governance unworthy of reporting.

Tracing the chain of events to its root, the nobles reluctantly pinned their grievances on Philip and stifled their exasperated sighs.

As silence blanketed the hall, Baek Yigang’s indifferent gaze swept over the assembly before settling on one man.

“Count Etuldam. Your recent financial report on the Noteld Mountains mining project is a mess. Redo it and resubmit it to the Ministry of Finance for approval. If you fail to comply, the enterprise will be transferred to another.”

The icy order stood in stark contrast to Yigang’s serene expression, turning the count’s face ashen.

“What? Transfer? Do you have any idea how much I’ve poured into this mine? Half my fortune is tied up in it!”

The count’s silent, anguished scream was writ large on his contorted features, his pallor betraying his utter despair at the prince’s words.

“Yes, Your Highness. I will resubmit it soon,” he managed to choke out.

The nobles barely had time to pity the count’s plight when Yigang’s piercing gaze landed on another target.

“Baron Heseothen. I’ve heard troubling rumors of your frequent visits to private casinos. It seems you’ve been skimming money and scamming the common folk. Must I be burdened with even this knowledge?”

Philip Asnel’s talent for uncovering even the most clandestine scandals—his knack for wringing secrets from the murkiest corners of the realm—was no exaggeration.

As Yigang’s words, spoken so casually yet loaded with damning truths, reached the baron’s ears, his face flushed crimson with shame.

“Y-Your Highness, there must be some misunderstanding…,” the baron stammered.

Before he could spin further denials, a thick dossier landed before him with a resounding thud.

Its contents detailed irrefutable evidence of his misdeeds, leaving no room for rebuttal.

Teeth clenched, the baron bit down on his lip until it bled, unable to summon a defense.

“Tsk, how disgraceful,” came the mutters.

“Didn’t he just inherit the barony? Unbelievable.”

“I always thought he lived extravagantly. So, that’s why.”

As murmurs of disdain rippled through the room, Yigang’s eyes narrowed.

“You all seem remarkably self-assured, judging by how freely you’re speaking up.”

His deceptively mild smile was as captivating as it was chilling.

The nobles, despite their unease, couldn’t resist stealing glances at his unparalleled beauty.

‘This is absurd.’

Cheong Dowoon, standing just behind Yigang, found his shoulders growing stiffer with every passing moment.

‘Is this what meetings are supposed to be like? This feels less like a room and more like a freezer.’

Compared to the structured debates he’d witnessed elsewhere, the Crown Prince’s council resembled a battlefield.

Swords were absent, but tongues were wielded like blades.

Even Dowoon’s experience with an infamously tyrannical boss in Korea paled in comparison.

At least that boss had listened before retaliating.

Yigang, however, seemed to consider most of their words unworthy of his time, granting them permission to speak only to agree with him or to provide “useful input.”

Yet, calling him a despot didn’t quite fit, either.

Yigang was simply too competent.

His decisions were swift, logical, and often impeccable, leaving the nobles little room to argue.

Even so, the stark contrast between their subservience here and their loquaciousness before the Emperor struck Dowoon as baffling.

‘This isn’t a meeting—it’s a massacre!’

As the meeting pressed on, the oppressive atmosphere showed no signs of easing.

Yigang, unfazed, carried on.

---

“Gasp!”

Startled by the sensation of my head tilting downward, I snapped my eyes open and quickly lifted my head.

Ah, that was close.

I nearly slammed my head against Baek Yigang’s chair.

I glanced around cautiously and was relieved to find that no one seemed to have witnessed my embarrassing moment.

Baek Yigang’s earlier scolding of the nosy nobles had worked wonders, keeping their attention elsewhere.

Still, this meeting is dragging on longer than I expected. I ended up dozing off without realizing it.

As I let my gaze wander aimlessly around the dreary conference room, something caught my eye: the barrier enveloping the vast space, giving it an oddly cozy feel.

After learning barrier magic from Cedric, I’d occasionally been able to see the barriers set up around the imperial palace without using mana.

The barrier in this conference room seemed intricate but wasn’t particularly sturdy.

‘Is this the ‘Wizard Tower’ barrier Cedric mentioned…?’

According to him, their barriers lacked the finesse of those crafted by barrier wizards, often riddled with flaws.

They compensated for these weaknesses by pouring in raw magical energy.

It was like seeing my past self in action—back when I thought I could just brute-force my way through without setting up proper barriers.

‘If you put it bluntly, it’s all about solving problems with brute strength.’

The Wizard Tower…

It appeared occasionally in the original work, but it didn’t leave much of an impression.

The protagonist, Ian, relied on holy power rather than mana, so it was never central to the story.

The Tower wasn’t hostile toward Ian, either.

Since their powers were fundamentally different, they had no reason to clash.

Suddenly, I remembered something Baek Yigang had said to me back during the emperor statue incident.

‘The Tower doesn’t like imperial court wizards. They’re not under the Tower’s control.’

‘You haven’t met them yet, but Tower wizards? They have no sense of reason.’

The Tower disliked imperial court wizards precisely because they couldn’t control them.

The original story didn’t delve into why the Tower harbored such animosity.

Of course, it wouldn’t—Ian’s story wasn’t tied to mana.

In any case, if Baek Yigang’s words were true, it meant the Tower would dislike me, too.

I’d better tread carefully.

There’s nothing to gain by making unnecessary enemies…

“Cheong Dowoon, let’s go.”

“Oh, uh, okay.”

Just then, Baek Yigang called for me, signaling the end of the meeting.

Following him toward the exit, I could feel the intense stares of nobles burning into my back.

“They seem really interested in me. They won’t stop staring,” I muttered jokingly.

At that, Baek Yigang suddenly turned around, and the nobles’ gazes scattered immediately.

“…Hmm. Looks like they’ve lost interest now.”

“That’s for the best.”

With a frosty smirk that looked anything but “best,” Baek Yigang turned back toward the door.

Sheesh, what a temper…

* * *