Chapter 330: The Hidden Hand

Given Garon's size at the moment, his presence naturally caused significant commotion wherever he appeared, drawing the gaze of nearly every creature, struck by the awe-inspiring figure of the giant dragon.

Upon reaching the City of Beginnings, Garon desired a more low-key approach. Thus, he shrank his size, transforming into the appearance of a silver hatchling dragon. A hatchling with six horns appeared cute yet carried an unusual dignity, clearly no ordinary young dragon.

For a hatchling dragon, arcane mages might take an extra glance before shifting their attention to Iolium, who was walking alongside Garon, paying their respects to him.

At that moment, Iolium was strolling down the streets of the City of Beginnings with Garon flapping his short wings beside him, looking around and sizing up Iolium's floating city.

He noticed an incredible abundance of magical items everywhere.

Almost ninety percent of the visible objects were magical artifacts.

Even the small taverns run by arcane mages on the street side, where cups brimmed with fine wine, were magical artifacts. Garon, from outside the door, saw an arcane mage drain his drink, and then the semi-transparent cup magically refilled itself.

Even the ground tiles were engraved with magical runes, emitting a faint elemental glow, endowed with magic for durability, dust resistance, and corrosion protection.

Walking these streets, Garon sensed the prosperity of Naseriel.

He could see the prideful smiles on the faces of the arcane mages, as the nation's prosperity seemed to keep them mostly cheerful, rarely displaying any signs of worry.

"Shall we have a few drinks?" Iolium noticed Garon's gaze and, as the great arcane mage paused beside a tavern, suggested they enter.

The small silver dragon flapped his wings a few times, peering at the rich variety of foods inside, and responded, "That would be great. I haven't tried human food in a long time."

For Garon, eating was always of interest.

Although he no longer needed to eat and had been busy with the war against the elves in the main timeline, he had almost forgotten the taste of food prepared with care.

Soon, Garon and Iolium entered the tavern at a leisurely pace.

As they stepped through the magically operating door, they immediately caught the fervent attention of many inside.

Primarily, they were focused on Iolium; Garon received only cursory glances.

"The Lord of the City, it's an honor to meet you," said the normally graceful arcane mages, excited as if they were meeting an idol.

As the ruler of the City of Beginnings, Iolium seldom left his mage tower, spending most of his time on magical research. Given the vast size of the city, those arcane mages who happened to meet him during his rare appearances outside his tower were few.

Facing a group of excited arcane mages, Iolium smiled and nodded gently.

"Children, you are the future of Naseriel."

"Don't focus too much on an old man like me; go about your own affairs."

With a few words, Iolium seemed to calm the excited mages around him, who respectfully cleared the way for him and Garon.

Then, Iolium and Garon took a seat in an inconspicuous corner.

Meanwhile, Iolium cast a spell that lowered their presence, making other people in the tavern seemingly forget their existence.

This demi-god arcane mage's spell went unnoticed by everyone except Garon.

Garon's small dragon claws rested on the table, unable to reach the ground, swinging from side to side along with his tail.

At Garon's observant glance, Iolium tapped the tabletop.

Magical patterns appeared, weaving into images of various dishes.

"Take a look and touch the images of what you'd like to eat," Iolium instructed. "Everything here is free."

Thanks to magic, the floating city, powered by a magic net, produced resources unreasonably efficiently, even eliminating the need for manual labor. Whatever was needed, arcane mages would develop corresponding spells and magical artifacts to provide a continual supply.

For example, the city's water resources were directly drawn from the plane of water elements—endless and abundant.

Other resources were similar.

Garon, surprised, noted how deeply magic was integrated into daily life here. Magical items were highly valued, and making them widespread was no easy task.

He reached out his dragon claw, touching each image without missing a single one.

Despite his modest hatchling size, if he began to eat, he could gradually consume a mountain.

Meanwhile, Garon glanced around the environment.

Brooms swept back and forth on their own, cleaning the floor.

Somewhere in the tavern, a melodious song played, its beautiful melody echoing through the air.

Arcane mages of varied power levels gathered in small groups, enjoying fine wine and food while engaging in delightful discussions about magic.

Shortly, an array of dishes began arriving just a few minutes after being ordered.

There were no waiters here.

Food flew out on plates autonomously, neatly arranged on the table where Garon and Iolium sat, quickly piling up.

Meats, fruits, vegetables, drinks, desserts—all kinds of food were available, mostly using magical creatures as ingredients.

For instance, honey made by phase wasps, owl bear paws, moonflower dew, and so on.

Such foods would be quite expensive in most places, yet here they were freely available.

Garon didn't need utensils like chopsticks or forks.

The little dragon's left claw dipped into some honey and stuffed it into his mouth, licking it up vigorously before grabbing a steak-like piece of meat and crunching it down—his gusto made it all the more appetizing.

Across from him, Iolium was much more elegant.

The great arcane mage leisurely separated his food with knife and fork, quietly and slowly chewing each bite.

"Hmm, I see there are many magical artifacts here. You can mass-produce magical items now?" asked Garon, his mouth full of food.

"One of the wonders of the magic net core is that the spell for creating magical artifacts, the Constant Magic Spell, can be cast more simply here in the floating city," Iolium explained.

Pausing, he looked at the contentedly eating hatchling and asked, "My friend, what do you think of Naseriel now?"

As Iolium watched, Garon swallowed a whole spiky yellow fruit and then looked back at him, saying, "It is flourishing beyond even the old Imascar Empire."

He shook his head and asked, "Iolium, when the first floating city ascended a thousand years ago, could you have imagined a future where floating cities filled the skies of Ferun?"

Iolium's face turned nostalgic as he shook his head, "The future is like a constantly changing mysterious ocean; no one can know whether there are undercurrents or miracles beneath the surface."

"At that time, I was merely excited about the success of the floating city concept, never imagining it would mark the rise of Naseriel."

Meanwhile, Garon lifted his head and gulped down a plate of grilled meat.

After smacking his lips a few times, he patted his belly and said seriously, "Then, have you developed any fallback measures to prevent the collapse of the magic net, since these floating cities rely

 on it?"

The entire Naseriel Empire was built on the magic net.

Garon could foresee the disaster that would befall this empire should the magic net encounter problems.

Iolium shook his head with a hint of helplessness, "I've thought about using the spell knowledge you provided to create a floating city that doesn't rely on the magic net, but I've yet to succeed."

Creating a floating city in the main material world without a source of power like the magic net was exceedingly difficult.

"However, the magic net is maintained by the Goddess of Magic, as long as this powerful deity remains unproblematic, the magic net will be safe."

"A powerful deity doesn't easily falter," Iolium added.

Garon remained silent, subtly shaking his head.

Fate was so unpredictable—who could have imagined that the Goddess of Magic would fall due to a spell cast by a sorcerer in the future? Magic was her domain, and such a manner of downfall would be hard to believe if it hadn't actually happened in the main timeline.

"It's rare that we reunite; I can show you around Naseriel at this time," Iolium suggested. "We can travel and discuss temporal magic along the way."

Pausing, he smiled, "I have fond memories of the days we studied magic together."

Shortly after, the table full of food was cleared by Garon, who immediately ordered another round of dishes, turning to Iolium to say, "Regarding temporal magic."

"You were able to foresee my arrival; does that mean you have mastered a spell similar to foresight?"

Iolium nodded, "I can see a few decades into the future, but the further away it is, the less certain I can be."

Garon nodded slightly, "I see."

"So, it seems you haven't seen the future where Naseriel falls."

Naseriel's prosperity could still be maintained for a while.

At least, at this moment, no clear crisis seemed to loom over this magical empire.

Hearing Garon's casual remark, Iolium was momentarily stunned, then frowned, "What did you say?"

Currently, Naseriel was quite prosperous.

Of course, the nation was not without its problems.

For example, dangerous magical research that could endanger entire floating cities, the ongoing wars with orcs and goblins, the occasional demons appearing on Ferun, and conflicts among grand arcane mages...

But to Iolium, these were minor issues.

If something could destroy the Naseriel Empire, with his vision, he couldn't see such a massive threat.

Garon repeated, "I said, you haven't seen the future where the Naseriel Empire is destroyed."

Looking at the calm-eyed silver-white hatchling, Iolium knew his old friend was not joking—his expression grew solemn.

There were no legends of time dragons in Ferun's land, but Iolium knew that Garon's power was related to time. The temporal magic he now mastered was also initiated through his studies because of Garon, and compared to Garon's mastery of time, it was like a novice meeting an expert.

"You've seen a future where Naseriel falls?"

Iolium's expression was grave as he stared at Garon, "You disappeared for a thousand years, and now you appear to warn me?"

Garon smiled slightly, "I know Naseriel is everything to you, this arcane nation holds all your efforts."

"As a friend, knowing its future, I decided to try and help you change that future."

Previously, seeing the arcane mages hunting their own kind disturbed Garon.

But he thought it over; that was a matter for the arcane mages themselves, irrelevant to him.

With Iolium's connection, he could gain a continuous supply of powerful new spells from the Naseriel Empire. That was the truest benefit, and no matter how high and mighty the arcane mages might be, they could not surpass Garon himself.

Hearing Garon's words, Iolium was visibly moved.

"Your news leaves me somewhat at a loss," he said, exhaling deeply but trusting Garon's words.

"The destruction of an empire isn't caused by just a few factors."

"It's the accumulation of countless events, the result of the waves of time."

"It won't be easy to save your arcane nation from destruction, but I believe it's not impossible."

Iolium nodded firmly, his expression earnest, "I will do everything, even if it means sacrificing my life, to ensure Naseriel's perpetual existence."

Next, Iolium asked Garon, "I want to know, what will cause Naseriel's destruction?"

The silver hatchling uttered a term, "Have you heard of a wise creature named 'Felrin Mokui'? More precisely, the Felrin Mokui."

Through the Dragon Mother, Garon knew what would destroy Naseriel.

Kelsas's ascension technique was just the curtain-closer for Naseriel's destruction.

And his relentless development of the ascension technique, deploying this taboo spell that led to Naseriel's ruin, was ironically to save the already faltering Naseriel Empire.

To save the nation, yet to become the one who personally pushed Naseriel into oblivion.

The irony was somewhat dramatic.

"Felrin Mokui? I've seen records of such a creature in ancient texts."

"Only bits and pieces, mentioning they live deep underground as a kind of anomaly."

"Beyond that, I'm unaware."

"Today's land has never seen a trace of them."

Iolium's face showed confusion, "You mean this race will cause the fall of Naseriel in the future?"

Garon nodded, "They are greatly related."

After hearing Garon's words, Iolium's eyes flashed with a ruthless glint, and he murmured, "If so, I'll find them in advance and eradicate their kind."

The usually gentle great arcane mage showed a brutal side in his determination to protect his nation.

The little hatchling shook his head, "It's not that simple."

The Dragon Mother had told Garon that the Felrin Mokui were just the façade; they were merely the blade wielded by some entity against the Naseriel Empire. As for who was behind the Felrin Mokui causing Naseriel's downfall, even the Dragon Mother was not entirely sure due to their careful concealment.

She speculated that it was very likely a powerful deity.

Gods like Xirik, the God of Lies; Sharr, the Dark Goddess; or Yeg, the Ancient God of Death—powerful deities antagonistic to the Goddess of Magic.

For the Goddess of Magic, who wielded the authority of magic, even if the arcane mages of Naseriel didn't worship her extensively, Naseriel was still her most valued nation.

Because the spells continuously developed by the grand arcane mages served as a source of power for the Goddess of Magic.

The more prosperous the magic, the stronger this goddess became.

Thus, the deities wishing to destroy the Naseriel Empire were not few.

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