Everyone who saw the scene stood up, eyes wide with surprise at the blood-red flame dancing on Vlad's fingertip.
"It's magic..."
But Vlad casually extinguished the flame and flicked his finger toward the sizzling wild boar roasting over the campfire.
In an instant, a faint blue, almost transparent gas shot through the air. It moved swiftly—silent and precise. The moment it sliced through the roasted pork leg, an invisible force appeared out of thin air.
Before everyone's astonished eyes, the fragrant pork leg floated gently in front of Vlad. Calmly, he picked up a knife, carved the meat into neat pieces, and distributed them to the group.
As the meat floated into their bowls, everyone finally snapped out of their daze.
"Wind magic, witchcraft: Object Manipulation," Adrianna murmured, seemingly understanding the spell.
Vlad glanced at Adrianna and Mina, who appeared deep in thought, then slowly turned to address the group.
"Magic isn't exclusive to women. The reason witches have always represented the magical arts is because many spells require female casters as a prerequisite."
"There are even certain mysterious spells that demand the witch remain a virgin in order to cast them, right?"
As he said this, Vlad raised an eyebrow and smiled meaningfully at Adrianna.
"That's correct," Adrianna nodded.
"Then, aside from those spells that must be cast by women—why can't men become wizards?" Vlad continued.
Before anyone could answer, Vlad calmly provided the explanation:
"Because of societal values."
"The same amount of resources are spent, yet male wizards trained with great effort end up as weaker, 'castrated' versions of female witches. With such an imbalance in benefit, it's no wonder witch culture became dominant."
"But for a country—or a wizarding academy—to exclude male wizards is equivalent to eliminating half of their potential talent. That's hardly wise."
Only then did everyone begin to grasp Vlad's true intention.
"So... this is how rulers think…"
Adrianna, who had never considered such ideas before, looked at Vlad again. Unknowingly, a sense of reverence flickered in her eyes.
She couldn't help but admire Vlad's insight.
The others were also staring at Vlad with newfound admiration.
In just a few short sentences, he had completely overturned their long-held assumptions and biases.
At that moment, both Marishka and Mina looked at Vlad with bright, passionate eyes.
Even Hansel and Gretel were deeply moved. The admiration in their eyes now burned with fervor.
Without question, two new devoted followers of Vlad were born that night.
"That means I can become a wizard too!" Hansel exclaimed, springing to his feet in excitement.
"Of course. I believe you'll become a great wizard," Vlad said, encouraging him with a smile.
After that, the conversation continued, and everyone's hearts swelled with hope for the future.
Watching them discuss the upcoming wizard academy with such excitement, Vlad allowed himself a slight smile.
By stirring their emotions, he had filled them with ambition and drive. They would now work tirelessly—not just for themselves—but for him.
They would develop a deep sense of identity, of duty, of patriotism.
And in that process, Vlad would no longer have to worry about Adrianna and the others turning away from the wizard academy.
As they became more involved, more invested, their loyalty would grow naturally. Through them, he could influence and inspire even more spellcasters.
None of them realized that while they believed they were only talking about building an academy, Vlad had already laid down careful plans and subtle manipulations.
This wasn't because Vlad was too cunning—but because everyone else was too simple.
It was late, but no one seemed ready to rest.
Later, back inside the carriage, Vlad didn't sleep. Instead, he summoned Marishka and headed toward Broken Tooth Mountain just after midnight.
He wanted to confirm whether the demon he had once made a deal with had truly disappeared—or whether some clues might remain.
That night, there was no wind, and the sky shone bright and clear.
At the base of Broken Tooth Mountain, deep within the ancient jungle, two ghostly figures glided silently toward the cave's entrance as an eerie whistling sound echoed around them.
"Master, why are we here?" Marishka asked curiously, glancing at the dark cave ahead.
Vlad didn't answer. Instead, he fixed his eyes on the cave, then stepped forward.
Marishka, puzzled, followed close behind.
Before long, a gruesome scene came into view—piles of corpses littered the path.
Both human and animal remains were scattered across the ground.
Some were already broken into fragments, their origin impossible to identify. Who knew how many years they'd been lying here?
Marishka stared in stunned silence. At last, Vlad spoke:
"This was once the place where a demon was sealed."
"A demon?!"
Marishka turned to him, her eyes wide with disbelief.
But Vlad ignored her reaction. Instead, he began inspecting the surroundings closely, eventually stopping at a secluded stone wall deep within the cave.
"Master, who's carved on this wall? It looks so strange," Marishka asked, staring at the eerie relief.
She didn't notice the flicker of shock in Vlad's eyes.
Only after a long pause did she sense something unusual and glance at him again.
"Hah... Let's go," Vlad said at last. He didn't linger. Turning on his heel, he strode quickly out of the cave.
But Marishka could tell—just from his pace—that something had disturbed him deeply.
Perplexed, she turned back toward the strange relief.
It was a statue—part spider, part human—its face twisted in a disturbing, oppressive expression. It radiated nothing but madness and darkness.
Dawn.
Gretel woke up earlier than usual that morning, hopping out of the carriage full of energy. Her excitement over becoming a witch had clearly not faded overnight.
She had woken up just as the first light touched the sky.
Stretching her arms, she took a deep breath of the fresh morning air and glanced toward the carriage across from hers with curiosity.
"Hey~ Uncle Vlad and his people used to get up really early. Why haven't they come out today?"
Muttering to herself, Gretel walked over toward Vlad's carriage.
But as she got closer, something odd caught her attention.
The carriage—which should've been still and silent—was shaking gently up and down. Strangely, there wasn't a single sound.
Confronted with such an odd sight, Gretel's curiosity flared.
Instinctively, she didn't call out like usual. Instead, she tiptoed closer and peeked inside through a narrow gap.