Isekai Online Game Developer

[Illusion (S)]

“S, S-rank! E-e-ess, o-oh… oohh…”

“What’s happening? What attribute is it… de…”

The shrine attendants were buzzing with curiosity over the emergence of an S-rank, following A-rank.

But as soon as they laid eyes on its true nature, their excited gazes quickly turned cold.

“Wow, wow. Congratulations, Rai. I’ve never seen an S-rank in my time here.”

“…Thanks.”

I had hoped against hope that the light of S-rank wouldn’t be of the type I feared.

And sure enough, it was the Illusion attribute.

Should I be grateful that it was, at least, the core aspect of Illusion itself?

Receiving my friends’ ambiguous congratulations, I stepped down from the altar.

“Wow, wow! Haha, that’s amazing, Rai!”

“I-I’m so jealous! Haha!”

“Congrats! Hey, guys, why aren’t you all congratulating Rai for his S-rank? It’s even the core attribute!”

“Looks like they’re coming to pick Rai up from the Illusion Tower! Ha ha ha!”

“Chahaha!”

This congratulatory laughter felt more like mockery than anything.

I was confused about whether to laugh or cry at such a ridiculous situation.

Even the kids knew the harsh reality of Illusion mages.

If it had been a lower attribute, I could have thought, “I’m just a normal person,” but now that the top talent of the Illusion attribute was revealed, I was left wondering whether I should laugh or cry.

It was undoubtedly the highest rank in the highest attribute, yet I felt a sense of deprivation—why was that?

If only I were a C-rank and had an Electricity attribute instead.

“Pfft.”

Leah, seeing my dazed expression, covered her mouth and giggled.

She was definitely laughing at me—an S-rank with just the Illusion attribute.

…Well, I couldn’t even muster the strength to be angry. What would I gain from fighting with a kid?

Plus, Leah was quite prideful; I didn’t want to get caught up in anything with her.

“Rai? What happened?”

Mom asked cautiously as we returned home.

I carelessly tossed my coat onto a chair and spoke.

“I’m an Illusion S-rank.”

“O-oh my? Really? Honey! Come here!”

“What?! My son is an Illusion S-rank?!”

Mom and Dad struggled to elevate their excitement artificially to celebrate.

But I just slumped awkwardly in my chair, staring blankly at the floor.

“Chahaha! My son, my son is an S-rank! And it’s even the core attribute! Chahaha!”

My dad’s roaring laughter gradually dimmed.

“…I’m sorry, son.”

“Sorry, Rai. But being an Illusion S-rank means you have the best talent around here…”

“It’s fine. Mom and Dad didn’t wish for me to be born with the Illusion attribute either.”

“Rai…!”

“Son!!”

Mom and Dad wiped their tears and embraced me tightly.

But in truth, I was far from okay.

Shouldn’t they have thought about having kids with someone from a different attribute, considering they’re both Illusion types?

How could they both be Illusion mages and end up giving me no choice but to inherit that attribute? It’s maddening!

“Well, you can still become a Wizard. If you work hard, your chances of becoming a Tower Master are pretty high, right?”

“A Tower Master?”

“Yeah. Usually, people with core attributes like this become Tower Masters. The Fire Tower Master has a Fire attribute, you know?”

“Right! And they say everyone with a core attribute, especially the top-ranking ones, becomes a Tower Master. There have been few with a core S-rank attribute historically, so you should be proud, son!”

Here, “core attributes” refer to the unique attributes that can encompass all types in their respective fields, like Fire, Water, Illusion, and Wind.

People with core attributes are mostly taken by the Towers.

And among them, if they possess a high rank and talent, they ascend to the position of Tower Master.

It makes sense; they need to wield all types of magic within that field.

Having an Illusion S-rank like mine is considered a rare talent, so all of them have supposedly become Tower Masters.

Currently, some Towers even have A-rank as Tower Masters, making S-rank rare.

“So don’t be too down! There’s an saying: it’s better to be the head of a snake than the tail of a dragon!”

Isn’t that usually the opposite? And is that even comforting?

Anyway, my mood brightened a little after all that.

If I did become a Tower Master, I’d surely enjoy some luxury.

After all, I’d be the master of a Tower!

Up until this moment, that’s how I thought things would go.

“Okay, I’m off now!”

A few days later.

Magicians clad in magnificent robes visited our village.

Of course, they didn’t come for me.

Their robes were beautifully decorated with lightning motifs.

They were the magicians from the Electricity Tower.

They took Leah, an Electricity A-rank, away to the Tower.

From now on, Leah would likely have a splendid career as an Electricity mage.

But I was also destined to go to a Tower! Just a bit longer, Leah!

I’ll grow faster as an S-rank and show them I’ll become a Tower Master!

Of course, this Illusion attribute might not amount to much!

Imagining whether my future would be golden or stinky, I waited for a few days.

Actually, weeks went by without any Tower folk coming to get me.

Could it be that the Illusion Tower doesn’t even exist?

Or was my attribute of Illusion itself a mere illusion? Where does the illusion end and the truth begin?

Such worries of mine were unfounded; fortunately, after a month, the magicians from the Illusion Tower arrived.

As the saying goes, even enemies are welcome when seen after a long time.

After this long wait, I was so filled with excitement that I dashed out of the house.

Yet that excitement promptly faded when I saw them.

“Are you Rai? Nice to meet you, I’m Rain Ger, from the Illusion Tower.”

There were two magicians who had come to collect me.

Unlike the dazzling magicians from the Electricity Tower, their appearance resembled that of beggars.

The only nice thing about them was that their robes shimmered in colors like an aurora.

But even that looked quite worn out.

“Did you wait long? I’m sorry; it took a while to walk here! But don’t worry! On the way back, we’ll ride in a carriage to treat our Rai to the best! We saved as much money as we could coming here!”

Rain beamed brightly, despite looking like a shabby beggar. Was that smile an illusion too?

Anyway, it didn’t take a minute to let my illusions about Illusion mages shatter.

There was never an illusion to begin with.

Suddenly, I didn’t want to go to the Tower anymore.

“Y-yeah… It’s fine. And it’s not Rai, it’s just Rai Oot.”

“Right, so Rai. Oot. Is it?”

“…Please just call me Rai.”

I looked down with a pleasantly deflated gaze.

Still, their cheerful demeanor seemed to suggest a solid mental state.

“Now, before we head to the Illusion Tower… Sorry, can I use the bathroom first?”

“Ah, sure. Go ahead.”

Thus, the two of them briefly stopped by our home, not only using the bathroom but also enjoying a shower and a meal.

I wanted to say something, but their desperate state left me without options.

“Well, I’m really off now, Mom. Dad.”

“Uh, okay. Travel safely, Rai. Call if anything happens.”

“Yep. Don’t worry.”

Seeing the state of the magicians, Mom and Dad hesitated to send me off.

But now that it had come to this, I had to go. It couldn’t be worse than country living.

And so, I embarked on my journey with the two Illusion mages.

I heard it would take several days to reach the city of mages.

I sat in the cart, gazing slowly at the village growing distant.

Leah was riding a wonderfully luxurious carriage.

Could I somehow feel like I’m in a luxurious carriage with this cart made of junk?

But I quickly swallowed those thoughts.

If I did, I might just feel even more miserable.

“…By the way, who’s the other person next to you?”

I asked about the other magician.

Unlike the tall, beautiful Rain, the other had a cute look that matched my height.

She seemed quite shy, keeping her head down and hadn’t spoken a word yet.

“Oh, this is our Tower Master! Isn’t she adorable?”

“A Tower Master…?”

“Yep! Please, greet our Tower Master!”

“Um, h-hi. Hi… Hina…”

The Tower Master greeted in a barely audible voice.

“Haha. Our Tower Master is a bit shy. She’ll warm up to you eventually, so don’t worry! This is Hina Sirishius, our Tower Master.”

What the hell… A Tower Master?

Unable to hold back, Rain introduced her on her behalf.

Could she be around my age? No, that wasn’t it.

Surprisingly, she was quite a bit older. But why was she acting like this?

As I traveled for a few days, I was able to get a little closer to the Tower Master.

She still stuttered and blushed, but according to Rain, she was opening up quite quickly.

It wasn’t like I was raising a cat.

“We’ve arrived!”

After weeks of traveling, we finally reached the grand city of mages, Trinity.

It was a magnificent city that made all the hard work worthwhile.

“Whoa…”

Towers reaching towards the sky were dotted everywhere.

There were so many Towers that I couldn’t count them, yet the extensive space made the city feel anything but cramped.

And compared to my hometown, the magical civilization here was incomparably more advanced, giving it a more dazzling and mystical feel than the cities from my past life.

The beauty of it swept away any regrets I had about following them.

“It’s truly amazing, isn’t it? Everyone feels that way the first time. Hehe.”

“Really… It’s incredible. Wow…”

Trinity is a city established by magicians, almost like an independent nation.

In the past, magicians scattered around came together to form the city of Trinity.

They built Towers for each attribute, honoring their achievements by stacking them high into the sky.

Normally, ultra-high-ranking magicians, who wield enormous power alone, are abundant in Trinity.

Even the Empire wouldn’t dare wage war against Trinity, which currently holds significant power.

Because of this, long ago, various nations made treaties with Trinity, seeking safety from their terrifying powers.

The surrounding nations still provide research funds to Trinity, recognizing it as a city-state.

In return, the magicians of Trinity agreed to devote themselves entirely to magic research.

Originally, magicians didn’t want anything to do with war and preferred to focus solely on magic, so it ended up being a beneficial agreement for both.

Of course, even if Trinity had agreed not to attack other forces, they wouldn’t hesitate to retaliate if magicians from other places were attacked.

This rule applies equally to Illusion mages.

Even though my magic may not be much, I am still a magician of Trinity.

“Trinity is a city in the truest sense, so besides magicians, many citizens live here. Everything is well-equipped for our daily lives!”

“I see…”

And then we made our way to the Illusion Tower.

As we passed by, towering structures lined the roads, naturally raising my anticipation for the Illusion Tower.

At this rate, wouldn’t I reach the top and touch the sky? I couldn’t wait to climb the Tower myself!

“There it is! Our Illusion Tower.”

“Whoa…!”

Finally, the Illusion Tower revealed itself.

While it was quite distant, its beauty and majesty were undeniable.

Unlike the others, its exterior glimmered in a precious aurora-like shine.

It looked as if an enchanting veil wrapped around the entire Tower.

And it truly stretched high, reaching beyond the sky.

Unlike the other Towers, which seemed visible from a distance, the Illusion Tower rose high enough to reach the cosmos, its peak completely out of sight.

“Amazing! It’s so much better than the other Towers!”

“Okay, glad you think so!”

“It’s… home!”

As we got closer to the Tower, Hina, who had seemed tired, began to hop happily.

This outing must have been taxing for a homebody like her.

“Now, shall we enter? Welcome to the Illusion Tower, Rai!”

With a whoosh—

As we opened the Tower’s entrance, a dazzling array of colorful light poured in.

With my inflated expectations for a life as a magician, I finally took my first step into a new world.