Awakening The Only SSS-Rank Class! Now Even Dragons Obey Me Chapter 854: The Debate I

The massive doors of the debate hall closed behind Daniel with a deep, quiet sound, and a profound silence spread throughout the circular chamber.

A silence born not of respect, but of anticipation. Anticipation to see the one who, in just a few days, had thrown the entire tower into shock.

Not an ordinary, fleeting shock, but one that had set a record no one had even come close to for centuries.

A talent for understanding that could rival the founders of the magic tower.

Hundreds of tiered seats stretched to the highest part of the hall, each seat belonging to one of the tower’s professors, researchers, or high-ranking mages.

On the highest platform, the Supreme Council members sat in silence.

Beside them sat the tower’s leader, with the same calm face and simple staff.

A few seats away, Lioran sat motionless, watching Daniel’s entrance with that same calm gaze.

No hostility could be seen on his face, only curiosity. As if it didn’t matter to him at all that this man could threaten his position as heir.

At the center of the hall stood a white platform.

An elderly professor with silver hair and a dark robe rose from his seat. His voice echoed throughout the hall without the need for any magic.

"I am Varnis."

"Today, I will be presiding over the tower’s scholarly debate."

He gave a brief look at all those present.

"According to the twelve hundred and forty-sixth tradition of the Central Tower..."

"In this hall, the use of any magic, skill, mana pressure, or auxiliary tools is forbidden."

"The only thing that matters is..."

"Reasoning."

"Formulas."

"And logic."

Then he gestured toward the hall’s walls. Countless runes lit up on them.

"All of today’s discussions will be recorded in the tower’s Eternal Archive."

"Every sentence."

"Every theory."

"And every conclusion."

Then his voice became slightly more serious.

"If any professor present deems the opponent’s argument more complete than their own theory..."

"According to tower tradition, they are obligated to officially declare their scientific defeat."

A brief murmur spread among the professors. This was an old law, but it was precisely this law that made the credibility of these debates unmatched across the continent.

The Central Magic Tower’s debates were the most prestigious among all mages. Normally held every five years, drawing tens of thousands of mages to participate.

Though today was different. Today, at the Supreme Council’s request, a debate was being held to challenge a single person.

Varnis fixed his gaze on Daniel.

"Today’s participant... is only one person."

"Daniel Noir."

For a few moments, the hall became so silent that even the sound of people breathing could be heard.

No one spoke, no one even moved. What was happening today was unprecedented in the tower’s history.

Varnis sat down quietly.

A few seconds later, a middle-aged man with gray hair rose from his seat.

Professor Ryndor, the author of dozens of reference books on mana theory. He looked at Daniel calmly.

"Allow me to start with the simplest possible question."

Daniel just nodded.

"What is magic?" Ryndor said.

A few of the students present smiled. Everyone knew the classic answer: magic is the art of controlling mana. Even Serys assumed Daniel would give the same answer.

It was a classic answer known and recognized by everyone. A simple question that professors always used to warm up the atmosphere.

But Daniel fell silent. A few seconds passed.

"Before I answer... specify whether you’re asking from a human perspective... or from the perspective of the world’s laws?" Then he asked very quietly.

For the first time, Ryndor blinked. A quiet murmur spread through the hall. Even some professors exchanged glances.

No one... truly no one... in the past thousand years had ever asked such a question in response to what magic is.

"From the perspective of the world’s laws." Ryndor said after a few seconds of thought.

Daniel nodded quietly.

"Then the common definition is wrong."

Several people unconsciously frowned. Ryndor asked without changing his expression.

"The reason?"

Daniel began to pace slowly on the central platform.

"If magic is the art of controlling mana... then every being that controls mana should be a mage. But that’s not true."

"Dragons, phoenixes, even some corrupted beings, all control mana, but no one calls them mages."

Ryndor fell silent.

Daniel continued.

"Because mana is not the goal. It’s a tool." He drew an imaginary line on the ground with his finger.

"The world’s laws define reality. Magic is interaction with these laws. And mana is just the language of that interaction."

The hall fell into silence again. Daniel continued unhurriedly.

"If one day another way to communicate with the laws is found... that will also be magic, even if no mana exists."

Several professors unconsciously straightened in their seats and fell into thought. This answer was far too philosophical and outside the normal norm.

Daniel fixed his gaze on Ryndor.

"So the more accurate definition is: magic is the process of changing the behavior of the world’s laws through a comprehensible medium."

"Today that medium is mana, but it doesn’t have to always be mana."

For the first time, Ryndor fell into a long silence. He was not looking for an answer... nor a flaw. Rather, in his mind, he was reviewing the foundations of a theory he had taught for hundreds of years.

A few minutes later... the old man sighed quietly. Then, before all the professors, he lowered his head.

"...Your argument is more complete than my theory. I accept defeat."

A moment later, the entire hall did not explode... but fell into an even heavier silence.

Professor Ryndor... the tower’s greatest mana theorist... for the first time in hundreds of years, had accepted defeat in an official debate.

Serys was shocked, because Professor Ryndor was a conservative professor and considered a supporter of Lioran... but he had truly been willing to accept defeat.

All eyes unconsciously turned to Lioran, but he only smiled very faintly and whispered to himself.

"Interesting... even I had never looked at magic from this angle." His eyes deepened for a moment.

"So this is one of your cards too, Daniel Noir."

Before the hall’s silence had even faded, Professor Urmon rose from his seat. He was a tall man with white hair and piercing eyes.

For years, all research on mana rings had been conducted under his supervision.

He fixed his gaze on Daniel.

"I will ask the second question. If a mage’s mana rings are incomplete... can they ever reach the rank of Divine Mage? Or even Heavenly Mage?"

Almost everyone present knew the answer.

No.

Impossible.

This was one of the fundamental principles of magic. Everyone knew that rank advancement required mana, and without mana rings, mana could not be gathered.

"It depends." But Daniel said without the slightest pause.

Another murmur spread through the hall. Urmon frowned.

"Depends on what?"

"On what your goal for the mana ring is. You see the mana ring as the goal, while it’s just an engineered tool."

He wrote several formulas on the stone board beside the platform, then erased the lines one by one.

"The mana ring has three functions."

"Storage, circulation, and synchronization. But no law in the world says these three functions must be performed inside a single ring."

Then he drew a completely different structure. A structure that was neither a ring... nor a core, but a complex network of intertwined pathways.

"If these three functions are performed by another structure, the existence of a mana ring is no longer necessary."

Urmon involuntarily stepped forward, his eyes unable to leave the formulas.

Daniel continued.

"For a thousand years, instead of pursuing the goal... you fell in love with the tool."

"Could an easier tool than mana rings be created? Of course it could. But you don’t try to create such a tool."

This sentence fell on the minds of all the theorists in the hall like a heavy hammer. Several professors immediately began writing down formulas, and several others just stared at the board in silence.

No one was in a hurry to object this time.

Serys, watching everything from a distance, felt her heart beat faster for the first time.

This no longer looked like a debate.

She saw professors who always had answers to every question... now before speaking... before objecting... before even breathing... they thought.

Something she had never seen before.

The debate continued.

But no professor questioned with the same confidence as at the start of the session. Each would first remain silent for a few minutes, then carefully choose their question.

And gradually, as time passed, no one dared to challenge Daniel anymore. They had all recognized him.

Finally... Varnis fixed his gaze on the last seat in the Supreme Council row.

"The final question... belongs to Lioran."

All eyes turned back to that direction. Lioran calmly rose from his seat, neither in a hurry nor making any effort to display authority.

He stepped forward a few paces and stood before Daniel. A very calm smile settled on his lips.

"If everything you said today is true..." A few seconds of silence passed, and then he looked directly into Daniel’s eyes.

"In your opinion... what is the greatest mistake the magic tower has made in the past thousand years?"

The entire hall fell into silence.

Everyone understood that this question was simple but clever, and carried a significant trap within it.

Daniel didn’t answer immediately. He just looked at Lioran for a few seconds. And then... a very faint smile settled on his lips.