Chapter 91: The Price of Power

A deep sense of satisfaction welled up from within.

A natural smile formed on my lips.

It was finally complete.

‘How much time had I invested in this?’ I gazed at the mirror bug before me.

Overcome with emotion, I carefully stroked it.

‘What an incredible magic this was.’

With this, my shadow tree would undoubtedly grow stronger and more beautiful.

The mirror bug looked no different from before.

It was merely a simple doll, no bigger than the palm of my hand, with a mirror embedded in its belly.

What had changed was not its appearance, but what was contained within.

I sent my will to it.

Sensing my command, the bug floated into the air and naturally projected a screen.

Small letters appeared within it.

[Grading Chart 2.0]

“Mira, what do you think? This new grading chart.”

I turned to Mira with a smile.

Sitting at the table, sipping her tea, she let out a sigh.

Clicking her tongue, she gave me a sideways glance.

“Are you really going to keep calling it that?”

I nodded lightly.

Mira and I had created this Grading Chart 2.0 together.

She had suggested naming it a self-diagnosis system.

‘But how could I so easily change the name when it had a clear predecessor?’

‘Previously, she had called Grading Chart 1.0 a combat analysis system.’

‘If I had listened to her then, this magic would have been confined to that name, bound by its limitations.’

The same applied to “self-diagnosis system.”

But the name “Grading Chart” was free.

It had evolved beyond its previous form.

It had become more beautiful and more perfect.

Well… “perfect” was a bit unsettling.

Attaching that word always seemed to invite some kind of trouble.

Still, I shook my head slightly.

‘If this wasn’t perfection, then what was?’

The mirror bug drifted through the air and soon spotted Cassian.

She was sitting beside a teddy bear, staring blankly into space.

The mirror bug approached her and captured her image on its screen.

Then, the scores began to appear.

The mirror bug floated before Cassian, displaying both her score and a brief analysis.

[Physical Score: 100 points. Perfect condition. Keep it up!]

[Mental Score: 61 points. Oh dear, that’s 1 point lower than yesterday. It seems something is troubling you.]

[Soul Score: 54 points. No anomalies detected. Your soul remains stable.]

[Overall Assessment: A stable score, but to have an even better day, you should work on improving your mental score. How about a walk? That should help recover your score.]

Cassian read the message, blinked blankly, and then slowly nodded.

She got up, gathering herself.

The mirror bug led her out of the room, with the teddy bear quickly following behind.

I nodded in satisfaction.

This was an observation system.

While the previous grading chart had merely displayed scores, this one had gone a step further.

It not only identified where points were lost but also provided real-time feedback on how to recover them.

The scores were determined based on the subject’s initial recorded data and their daily behaviors.

Mira’s suggested name, “self-diagnosis system,” described a small portion of this grading chart’s capabilities.

With the mirror bugs, users could monitor their growth and progress firsthand.

Since returning from the canyon city, I had been conceptualizing this.

‘If I had only focused on evaluating the physical body, the process would have been simple.’

I already had enough data to work with.

But I didn’t want to stop there.

I wanted to encapsulate the essence of life itself.

Only then could I truly understand my subjects.

Judging mental scores was the most challenging aspect.

Unlike the body, which displayed clear physical changes, the mind was far more elusive.

So I based it on external behaviors—speech, facial expressions, fluctuations in magical energy.

From those, I calculated a base score, and the mirror bug’s embedded magic further assessed mental stability.

This required the subject’s consent.

Since the mirror bug had to monitor their mental state regularly, they needed to agree to it.

There were also clear limitations.

Unlike physical scores, mental scores fluctuated significantly, heavily influenced by temporary emotions and moods.

Furthermore, unlike the body, which had clear criteria, the standards for mental evaluation were ambiguous.

Still, it was undoubtedly useful.

And as more data accumulated, the scores would stabilize—just like with Cassian earlier.

With a broader range of samples, the average values would become more accurate.

Of course, the soul was also invisible, much like the mind.

But unlike the mind, it remained relatively stable.

Because of its inherent stability, a single, precise examination was enough for recognition.

After that, only a simple anomaly check was necessary, as seen earlier.

This magic was not only for the students but also for me—and for the mirror bugs themselves.

Lately, most of my shadow puppets had taken the form of mirror bugs.

I needed to create more for my treasures, as well as to distribute them throughout the city.

But the mirror bugs had a problem.

To improve communication efficiency, they had sacrificed most of their capacity for self-growth.

Because of that, they had clear limitations.

This was a response system designed for them.

By using this, the mirror bugs would form deeper connections with their owners.

They would store more information and, in doing so, evolve faster than before.

I uploaded the newly completed Grading Chart 2.0 magic to the shadow tree.

Sensing my will, the mirror bugs absorbed it.

Throughout the tower, countless mirror bugs projected the grading chart on their screens, along with an announcement I had prepared.

***

[Evron: Grading Chart 2.0 is here! Try out this new feature and gain a perfect understanding of yourself. Create a new and flawless day with your mirror bug!]

(Free for the first three months, then 50 points per month.)

Two weeks had passed since the first lecture.

The mirror bugs spread rapidly throughout the tower.

It took about a week.

I had put considerable effort into promoting them.

After all, they were the most convenient and valuable way for me to extract points from the students.

I needed points.

It was just as important as growth.

The more proficient one became in puppetry, the better materials one needed.

And points flowed away like water in the process.

At the center of all this was Mira.

I glanced at her.

She was sipping tea while reviewing a catalog.

It was from Arcana General Trading Company.

Expensive materials were listed inside, and I watched as she checked off a few of them.

Among my puppets, she was the most useful.

Naturally, she also consumed the most points.

Cassian’s body could be used, but only briefly—I wasn’t always with her.

Ultimately, her vessel had to be enhanced.

It was inevitable, and it was something I wanted.

The stronger her body, the more power she could wield.

So I needed points.

The first step toward that goal was the mirror bugs.

That was also why I had added this new grading chart feature.

‘If I could satisfy them with more functions, they would gladly spend their points.’

The mirror bugs had three main features.

The first was the bulletin board.

It had four categories: trade, information, general discussion, and communication.

Students freely exchanged information and bought and sold various items.

Thanks to this feature, the mirror bugs spread rapidly.

The first students who attended my lecture took them without hesitation.

That was the reason I had accepted them.

They were already familiar with the structure of my tower.

Their presence would help others quickly adapt to the system I had created.

My prediction was correct.

The mirror bugs spread through the tower in an instant.

It was inevitable.

I was confident in the convenience they provided.

I knew they would be satisfied.

The second feature was tribute.

This was something I had implemented after discussions with the treasures.

The treasures had their own bulletin board, separate from the students’.

Combining them could lead to unpredictable consequences, so control was necessary.

The treasures agreed to this to some extent.

Through negotiations, the tribute system was created.

The treasures could communicate with students through it.

Although, for now, only the Fang Necklace was actively using it.

At that moment, someone was offering tribute.

A mirror bug projected the scene before me, and I smirked.

It wouldn’t be long before the signal arrived.

Anyway, that meant I could change things however I pleased.

That was also why I had entrusted the first floor to Zero.

On the third floor, I used the countless bookshelves to create multiple rooms.

The bookshelves themselves contained vast amounts of magic and mana.

The rooms built from them became places where mana naturally gathered.

The flow of energy within was immensely powerful.

The students called them training rooms.

There were a hundred of them, each containing increasingly purer mana the higher they were located.

Because of that, students fought for better spots.

The third floor became a domain for the strong.

And yet, they were not satisfied.

They longed to reach even higher.

This was exactly what I had intended.

This way, the students’ rankings would become clear.

Later, when selecting those who passed, I could use these rankings as a reference.

Thus, unlike the previous lecture, this session was structured strictly as an individual competition.

Their rankings mattered the most.

They fought for their spots, claimed victory, and solidified their status.

Those ranked outside the top hundred were scattered across the first and second floors.

Hao was among them.

But then, two days ago, Hao had entered the third floor.

The tower had buzzed with chatter over the news.

The others would feel the pressure now.

They would struggle desperately to keep their positions.

And in that struggle, they would inevitably reach for the grading chart—the third feature I had just introduced.

Thinking about that future, I let out a small chuckle.

Through these mirror bugs, information would circulate.

Mana would flow.

Magic would spread.

And within that system, I would naturally grow stronger.

I closed my eyes and focused on the shadow tree.

Mirror bugs constantly hovered near the students, followed by shadow puppets.

The tower’s information was continuously being absorbed into me.

It was time to move again.

I glanced at Mira.

Noticing my gaze, she rose from her seat.

It didn’t take long to find Cassian.

Gathering her, we made our way to the stairs.

It was time to return to the storage room.

Twenty treasures—just that wasn’t enough.

The shadow puppets that lingered near the treasures absorbed their mana and knowledge, growing rapidly.

I needed more treasures.

The more treasures I collected, the faster I would grow.

That day, we broke into another room and added two more treasures to the bulletin board.

A significant gain.

The existing treasures on the board welcomed the newcomers.

Yes, it was a truly satisfying day.

But the day did not end there.

***

It was nighttime.

Soon, the professor would be asleep.

The students had begun to leave the tower.

By now, they should all be gone.

Just as I was thinking that, a signal arrived from one of the puppets I had stationed to lock the doors.

Someone was still inside.

Following the signal, I headed to the first floor.

A faint scent lingered in the air—one I found vaguely familiar.

I already had an idea of who it belonged to.

The scent grew stronger.

As I reached its source, I saw a man crouched down, staring up at the ceiling.

Hao.

Above him, the ceiling was adorned with statues.

Hundreds of statues with countless arms hung from above, their hands stretching toward the ground.

Surrounding them were statues with hundreds of eyes, gazing in all directions.

Hao smiled faintly as he carefully stroked one of the hands reaching down from the ceiling.

I approached him.

“What are you doing?”

I asked quietly.

Hao flinched and turned to look at me.

His deep blue eyes reflected my image.

Once he recognized me, he let out a small smile.

In that smile, a single sharp tooth glimmered faintly.

“I’m sorry. For some reason, these statues looked too beautiful. I couldn’t take my eyes off them.”

I studied his face.

A dazed expression clouded his features.

His usual demeanor was gone, replaced by something subtly eerie.

“May I examine your body for a moment?”

As I spoke, I signaled the mirror bug.

It swiftly flew over and captured Hao’s image within its screen.

Hao, still entranced by the statues, did not resist the examination.

Multiple layers of magic flowed through his body.

I had already recorded all of Hao’s information before.

Using that data as a baseline, the mirror bug began calculating his scores.

[Physical Score: 40 points. Considerable progress! The magic within your mouth has given you a bonus.]

[Mental Score: 62 points. Slight psychological damage detected. 28 points lower than the standard level. Please report any abnormalities to the administrator immediately.]

[Soul Score: 30 points. Your soul’s stability has weakened slightly. 3 points lower than before. Soul damage is a serious issue. It must be restored quickly.]

[Overall Assessment: You seem to be under some kind of influence. Your body needs purification.]

I read through the results slowly.

This was exactly what I had been wary of—the risk of being consumed by a treasure’s power.

Given how frequently Hao had been using that power lately, it was not surprising.

That was also why I had deliberately left him alone for a while.

I wanted to observe the effects of prolonged exposure to a treasure’s influence.

And now, he had provided me with the perfect response I was expecting.

I looked around.

Statues filled the surroundings.

I was glad I had instructed Zero to set them up for situations like this.

Now, I could confirm their effectiveness.

‘Maybe I should install some on the second floor as well.’

The treasures liked these statues.

Mira did, too.

So, naturally, those ensnared by their power would be drawn to them as well.

That was my conclusion.

I would know—I had once been the same.

I smirked bitterly as I looked at the statues that now seemed only amusing to me.

I dragged Hao to the infirmary.

Then, I adjusted the infirmary’s magic.

I set it to maximum intensity.

The magic circle glowed brightly.

The infirmary’s magic was a form of time-reversal magic.

That was why I wasn’t too worried about Hao.

At full intensity, any form of corruption could be undone.

Of course, along with the contamination, most of the power he had accumulated from the treasure would also be lost.

I looked at Hao.

Well, it couldn’t be helped.

He had been too greedy.

He needed to learn from this experience.

There was a reason others treated a treasure’s power with caution.

After this, he would surely be more careful.

The magic activated.

The professor called this process purification—returning the body to its purest state.

Hao screamed briefly before losing consciousness.

Even the glow from his fang dimmed slightly.

I summoned the mirror bug again to check his updated scores.

[Physical Score: 35 points. The magic in your mouth has weakened slightly, but you can rebuild it.]

[Mental Score: 90 points. Your mental resilience is impressive. But how did you end up under an influence? Stay more aware next time.]

[Soul Score: 33 points. Completely stable. All damage has been erased.]

[Overall Assessment: Purification was successfully completed. Please be more careful next time.]

I nodded in satisfaction.

The purification had been flawless.

A refreshing scent still lingered around his body.

I commanded the mirror bug to open the bulletin board.

Then, I composed a notice for the students.

***

[Evron: A Guide to Safe Use of the Tower for Students]

[Hello, everyone. I hope you are all making good use of Professor Irien’s tower.

I am posting this notice in case any unfortunate incidents arise from using the power of treasures.

We will continue establishing guidelines regarding this matter, so please read and understand this guide carefully.

Any consequences arising from your own negligence will be your responsibility, so always exercise caution.

There are many statues on the first floor of this tower.

If you ever find them cute, beautiful, or particularly captivating, please come see me immediately.

A simple consultation and purification will be conducted at the infirmary.]