Chapter 760: The Path To Become A Supreme Mage

Cassius’s gaze sharpened slightly, while Aqua continued,

"You see...every magical rank before Supreme Mage already has established pathways."

"If you’re a fire mage, there are systems made by previous masters."

"If you’re a water mage, there are existing frameworks."

"As long as you study hard enough, train enough, and possess sufficient talent, you can gradually climb those systems."

"But Supreme Mage..."

Her voice became reverent.

"...is different."

"You cannot inherit the path. You must create it."

Cassius smiled faintly.

Aqua noticed immediately.

"You understand, don’t you?" She asked softly.

He didn’t answer directly.

So she continued eagerly.

"To become a Supreme Mage, you must create an entirely original magical system."

"Not just spells."

"Not just techniques."

"A complete magical philosophy."

"An ecosystem of laws and interactions unique to yourself."

Her eyes shone brighter and brighter the more she explained it.

"If a fire mage becomes Supreme...then they don’t merely control fire anymore."

"They redefine what fire itself means."

"They create a new branch of magical reality."

"And eventually..."

Her voice lowered slightly.

"That system becomes a Domain."

"A world where their laws overwrite reality itself."

Cassius’s smile widened slightly at her enthusiasm.

Meanwhile Aqua suddenly realized she had become excited and coughed awkwardly.

"S-Sorry. I got carried away."

"No." Cassius replied honestly. "Keep going."

That made her strangely happy.

Still—

Her expression eventually darkened again.

"The problem is...creating such a system takes decades."

"Sometimes centuries of accumulated research."

"You need inspiration. Understanding. Experimentation."

"I’d need to create my own frameworks, study my own affinities, and then transmute everything into something real. I’d be creating something that doesn’t already exist in this world."

She looked down at her hands.

"It’s an incredibly difficult process. It takes countless years, endless effort, endless research, multiple epiphanies. Most people only reach that level late in their lives."

She pointed to herself with a self-deprecating gesture.

"And I myself...I don’t have much confidence in it, to be honest. It’s a realm that even I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to reach."

"It depends so much on luck, on fate, on inspiration striking at the right moment."

Her voice dropped to almost a whisper.

"And that’s why this situation is so impossibly hard for me right now. Because I don’t have much time left at all."

She looked up at him with desperate eyes.

"The wedding is only a few months away, Cassius. If I don’t become a Supreme Mage before then, if I can’t meet both requirements, then everything falls apart. I’ll really have to marry my master’s son, and that’s not the path I want for my life."

Determination flared in her expression.

"That’s why I need to become a Supreme Mage. As long as I accomplish that, the engagement breaks apart and I gain my freedom—the freedom I’ve always deserved, the freedom to choose my own future."

But then the determination faded back into anxiety.

"But unfortunately, as I’ve explained, becoming a Supreme Mage is anything but easy. I need to accomplish both of those monumental tasks."

She waved one hand dismissively.

"The first requirement, increasing my mana capacity...you can set that aside for now."

"That’s my problem to deal with on my own. I’ll figure something out eventually. But the second one?"

Her expression became truly desperate.

"I was feeling completely hopeless about it before. Honestly, I didn’t think I could do it at all. No matter how much research I did, nothing clicked. Nothing went into my head. I felt lost. I felt like giving up."

Cassius’s heart ached for her. But then hope filled her eyes again as she looked up at her brother.

"But then you stepped into the picture, Cassius."

She pointed at the papers scattered across the table.

"You showed me all your knowledge about magic. Right here." She patted the papers excitedly. "This clearly shows that you specialize in theoretical magic. You’re already working on concepts that only Supreme Mages should be capable of understanding!"

"You’re creating your own laws and regulations regarding mana manipulation, developing your own systematic approach to magic!"

She grabbed his hands.

"I don’t even know if you realize what you’re doing, but you’re already on the path to becoming a Supreme Mage yourself—at least theoretically! If anyone else in the magical community were to see this research, they would be absolutely baffled!"

Then she let out a deep sigh, and her voice filled with genuine pity.

"The only thing holding you back is that your body has no affinity for mana at all. You can’t actually cast spells or manipulate magical energy, despite clearly understanding the theory behind it at the highest possible level."

She shook her head sadly.

"It really is such a terrible waste. Such a profound pity. If your body had even average magical affinity, you would undoubtedly become someone standing at the absolute pinnacle of the world."

"You’d be one of those legendary Supreme Mages everyone speaks of in reverent whispers."

She looked at him with such regret, as if mourning what could have been.

But then hope and excitement flooded back into her expression.

"But still! Even though you can’t use magic yourself, the knowledge you possess—this incredible theoretical understanding, it can help me tremendously!"

She stepped closer to him, her eyes bright and earnest.

"Right now, what I desperately need is someone to guide me, to mentor me when it comes to theoretical magic and creating my own system."

"Someone who understands these advanced concepts and can point me in the right direction."

Her grip on his hands tightened.

"Normally, no amount of guidance or mentorship would help at this advanced level."

She looked up at him with absolute trust.

"But you, Cassius...you’re different. You’re a genius the likes of which I’ve never encountered!"

"I genuinely believe that as long as I have you by my side, guiding me, I can accomplish anything. I can overcome any obstacle."

Her voice became almost pleading.

"That’s the help I need right now, Cassius. I need you to help me create my own magic system. Help me develop my own Domain."

She took a shaky breath.

"I know it’s an incredibly difficult request. I know it will be especially complex because I have affinity with all five elements, which means my system and Domain will need to somehow incorporate and harmonize all of them—something that’s exponentially more complicated than working with just a single element."

But despite acknowledging the difficulty, her eyes remained filled with unwavering faith.

"But still, I believe in you, Cassius. I believe in you with everything I have."

She looked at him with all the love and trust in the world shining in her gaze.

"As long as I have you by my side, I believe I can accomplish this impossible task. Together, we can do what I could never do alone."

Finally, she asked the question that everything had been building toward, her voice soft but desperate:

"So please, Cassius...will you help me? Will you help your sister become a Supreme Mage?"

She stood there, vulnerable and hopeful, her entire future hanging on his answer.

She had laid everything bare—her fears, her struggles, her desperate need for his help.

Now all she could do was stand there, fidgeting under his gaze, waiting for his answer.

Would he say yes? Would he refuse? Would he laugh at her for being so weak?

The seconds felt like hours.

And then—

Cassius broke out into the biggest grin she had ever seen.

"Finally!" He threw his hands up in the air, his entire demeanor shifting from calm and collected to almost giddy with relief. "Finally, finally, FINALLY!"

Aqua blinked, utterly bewildered.

"...Cassius?"

Cassius ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head with a mixture of relief and exasperation as he said,

"You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting for this moment, Aqua. No idea!"

He started pacing, his words tumbling out in a rush.

"Every time you saw me, I could see it. You’d look at me with those eyes like you wanted to say something but couldn’t quite get the words out. And I’d think, ’This is it. She’s going to ask.’ But then you’d clam up, or change the subject, or run away."

He stopped pacing and turned to face her.

"And I couldn’t just offer. I mean, I could have. I wanted to. But you’re you. You’re proud. You’re stubborn."

"You’re the genius Archmage who doesn’t need anyone’s help."

Aqua’s mouth opened, but no words came out.

"So I waited." Cassius continued. "And waited. And waited some more. And honestly..." He let out a deep sigh. "...I was starting to lose hope."

"I thought maybe you’d just keep suffering in silence forever. Maybe you’d never ask. Maybe I’d have to stage some elaborate intervention just to get you to admit you needed help."

He stepped closer, his expression softening.

"But here you are. Finally. Asking."

He reached out and placed both hands on her shoulders, looking her directly in the eyes.

"You have no idea how relieved I am."

Aqua’s brain was still trying to catch up.

"You...You knew?" She stammered. "You knew about all of this? About the engagement? About becoming a Supreme Mage?"

Cassius nodded. "Of course I knew."

"But how—"

"Aisha told me."

Aqua’s eyes went wide. "Aisha?"

Cassius shrugged and explained,

"She was worried about you. She came to me a while back and explained everything—the engagement, your master’s condition, the time limit. She wanted to help you, but she knew she didn’t have the knowledge. So she came to me."

Aqua was taken aback by the revelation before she let out a smirk and whispered

"...That sneaky little cat."

But despite saying that, she felt warmth flood her chest.

Aisha had been looking out for her. Had been worrying about her. Had been trying to find a way to help.

She made a mental note to hug Aisha later. Maybe give her a few kisses on the cheek, just to watch her squirm.

Cassius continued.

"Ever since then, I’ve been waiting. I had the knowledge. I had the ability to help. But I couldn’t just walk up to you and say, ’Hey, I heard you need a mentor for your Supreme Mage training.’"

Aqua winced. "That would have been...awkward."

"Exactly." Cassius nodded. "You have your pride, Aqua. If I had just offered out of nowhere, you would have felt like I was pitying you. Or worse, like I thought you couldn’t do it on your own."

Aqua looked down. He wasn’t right since she really had no ego regarding her brother, but she could understand the sentiment.

"So I waited." He said softly. "And honestly thought you might never ask. I thought you’d let your pride get in the way and end up trapped in a marriage you didn’t want, all because you were too stubborn to ask your own brother for help."

He cupped her chin gently, lifting her face to meet his gaze.

"But you proved me wrong. You came to me. You asked. And I couldn’t be happier."

Aqua felt tears prick at the corners of her eyes.

"Cassius..."

He smiled—a genuine, warm, loving smile.

"So yes. I’ll help you. Of course I’ll help you! You’re my sister. You’re family. And I’ll be damned if I let some arranged marriage take you away from me."

He pulled her into a hug, and she buried her face in his chest, letting the tears fall freely.

"Thank you." She whispered. "Thank you, thank you, thank you."

For the first time, she truly believed she could do this.

With Cassius by her side, anything was possible.