"No, it's impossible!" Casillas struggled with everything he had, his expression on the verge of collapse.
His use of black magic being exposed was expected. Even now, he didn't fully understand why he had cast that spell he'd just learned from an ancient tome.
But he had cast it.
What truly broke him was this-
Even after using it, he still couldn't defeat Morin.
It wasn't even a matter of losing.
He hadn't touched him at all.
He was effortlessly suppressed.
That was unacceptable.
Absolutely unacceptable.
Just then, a voice reached his ears.
It sounded like something crawling out of hell.
Casillas even felt as if the stench of sulfur and rotten eggs filled his nose.
"I surrender," he said suddenly, his voice calm. "I am willing to accept punishment."
"I am not yet the Sorcerer Supreme."
Morin's gaze shifted slightly as he looked toward the Ancient One.
"Given that this is his first offense, he will be placed in solitary confinement until he repents."
The Ancient One clearly didn't want to deal with this any further.
Her only thought right now was clocking out.
Any messes could be left for the next Sorcerer Supreme.
Casillas's future was not fixed.
It depended on himself.
And on those who might influence him.
Besides-
She was about to clock out.
It really didn't matter.
Soon, magical restraints wrapped around Casillas, automatically binding and suppressing him like something straight out of a movie.
Several sorcerers escorted him away to a confinement chamber.
Throughout the entire process, Casillas seemed like a different person.
No frenzy.
No agitation.
He was calm, silent, and completely compliant.
Even being restrained publicly drew no reaction from him.
"If anyone else objects," Morin said with a smile as he scanned the crowd, "you're welcome to come challenge me."
Silence.
The sorcerers didn't even exchange glances.
Any lingering restlessness vanished completely.
They didn't even understand how Morin had acted.
How were they supposed to fight him?
Stepping up wouldn't even make them stepping stones.
A stepping stone at least lets someone climb higher.
This would just be public humiliation.
And unnecessary trouble for a big shot.
Seeing no further objections, the Ancient One was about to speak-
Morin spoke first.
He cut directly into her casting animation.
One sentence was enough to finalize everything.
He had no intention of turning the circular stone platform into a second "social death stage."
"Since that's the case, I assume no one objects to me becoming the Sorcerer Supreme. The Ancient One has already said a few things, so I'll add a bit more."
What followed was a series of post-appointment reform speeches.
Prosperity.
Democracy.
Civility.
Harmony.
Safety.
In short-
That kind of talk.
As a successor of socialism, promoting a bit of socialism was perfectly reasonable.
Morin spoke for a long time.
Long enough that even the Ancient One began to look impatient.
Estimating that she was so eager to clock out she probably wouldn't interfere anymore, Morin finally stopped.
He had truly exhausted every possible method to avoid social death.
"Then, congratulations to Master Morin on becoming the new Sorcerer Supreme!"
Seizing the pause, the Ancient One hastily announced it.
She transferred the Eye of Agamotto-still set within its necklace-into Morin's hands.
The handover was complete.
She hadn't expected him to be such a windbag.
He'd started with "I'll just say a few words."
She thought that meant two sentences.
He'd talked for two hours.
Ridiculous.
It seemed she still didn't quite understand Chinese culture.
With that, the ceremony ended.
The transfer of the Sorcerer Supreme position was officially complete.
What the observers from other dimensions would say later was a problem for another day.
What left Morin slightly dazed-
Was the Ancient One herself.
The moment the ceremony ended and the sorcerers dispersed, she vanished.
Gone in a blink.
She just... slipped away?
"She hasn't taught me how to use the Eye of Agamotto yet!"
Morin panicked.
"Sorcerer Supreme-"
Old Man Wang from next door-
No.
The stout sorcerer known as Wong knocked on the hall door.
"Just call me Morin. No need to be formal."
Morin waved his hand.
"You're in charge of the library collection, right?"
"Yes-Sorcerer Supreme... Morin."
Wong instinctively answered, then corrected himself under Morin's gaze.
"I came because of something the Ancient One told me before she left."
"To be honest," Morin said, frowning, "I have a bad feeling about this."
Moments later, the facts proved him right.
"So you're saying," Morin rephrased carefully, "the Ancient One left and said she probably won't be back unless something unexpected happens."
"And she also said that this entire library is what I need to study in order to use the Eye of Agamotto?"
"That's correct."
Wong discreetly wiped cold sweat from his forehead.
The pressure was immense.
When he first heard the Ancient One intended to pass the title to this unfamiliar young man, Wong had instinctively wondered if she'd gone blind.
He dismissed the thought out of trust.
Then he saw Morin suppress Casillas.
That erased all doubt.
Pretty face aside-
The man had real strength.
Just as Wong thought the Ancient One had chosen Morin for his power and character-
This development made him question everything again.
As the librarian, Wong knew exactly what kind of monster this library was.
Even with his authority, he wouldn't dare claim mastery over two shelves.
The space here was enchanted.
From the outside, it looked modest.
Inside-
Tens of thousands of shelves.
All filled with magical tomes.
Wong already believed he wouldn't finish reading them in his lifetime.
Now he was being told-
That the Sorcerer Supreme had to read all of them?
Only then could he use the Eye of Agamotto perfectly?
Nonsense.
Even if it were true-
Morin would be old and dying by the time he finished.
And wasn't the previous Sorcerer Supreme supposed to teach the next one?
At the very least, shouldn't she teach him how to use the Time Stone?
If he messed up, the consequences would be catastrophic.
Could it be-
The Ancient One had a grudge against Master Morin?
The thought crept in.
And the more Wong thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.
But if that were true-
Why entrust the Sorcerer Supreme title to him?
Wong's head hurt.
He couldn't figure it out at all.
While Wong was spiraling, Morin had already reached a conclusion.
The Ancient One had probably evaluated his learning capacity.
Teaching him personally versus letting him self-study-
The time difference was negligible.
So she ran.
Which was, in its own way, a form of affirmation.
Still-
Why was it so infuriating?
Morin suddenly recalled something Russell had said while they were drinking.
Now he understood.
No wonder people still thought about the Ancient One even after reaching that level.
Just how desperate was she to clock out?
Did she really not care about offending people?
Anger stirred.
A wicked thought surfaced.
Morin asked calmly, "Wong, I heard Kamar-Taj has WiFi now. Is that true?"
"Yes!" Wong smiled proudly. "It was installed last year. I found a renovation team from my hometown."
"Only our fellow Chinese would dare install internet cables on Mount Everest."
"I understand."
Morin smiled, momentarily admiring Chinese infrastructure.
Then he returned to the point.
"What's the WiFi password?"
"gyzstxwd."
Morin: "..."
Gu Yi Zui Shuai Tian Xia Wu Di.
Good heavens.
"Let's change it," Morin said. "I'm a bit superstitious. Since I'm the new Sorcerer Supreme, everything should start fresh."
"Of course!"
Wong smiled brightly.
He hadn't expected the new Sorcerer Supreme to be so easygoing.
He'd worried about youthful arrogance.
Instead, Morin seemed refined and polite.
And-
He was one of their own.
That alone made him feel closer.
"I'm glad you understand."
Morin nodded gently.
"Let's change it to 'gymlhhhh.'"
This was revenge.
And a tribute.
A tribute to a predecessor.
And a warning to any future transmigrators.
Never underestimate someone who's worked 24/7 for over two hundred years.
When the desire to clock out reaches that level-
Even a saint will use every means necessary to escape.
Wong: "..."
He fell silent.
As a Chinese person, he understood.
He had mocked the previous password internally.
Which meant-
He understood this one too.
Refined gentleman?
Gentle as jade?
All fake.
This man smiled while hiding a blade.
A vengeful blade.
"Is there a problem?" Morin asked softly.
"No! No problem!"
Wong shuddered.
"I'll change it immediately!"
Without waiting for a response, he fled.
His speed completely contradicted his build.
Watching Wong disappear, Morin turned back to the endless shelves.
His gaze carried a trace of sorrow.
A hint of melancholy.
"Why does everyone misunderstand me so deeply?"
"I'm really a very kind person."
"Things only reached this point because of those unscrupulous people who forced my hand."
After consoling himself, Morin stepped toward a bookshelf.
Without visible movement, all the books flew off the shelf.
Pages flipped automatically.
Uniform.
Orderly.
Pleasant to watch.
Anyone else would scoff at the idea of this being "reading."
But this was reality.
At the same time, Morin didn't forget-
He still had other things to do.
Like making money.
And earning experience points.
So far, Tony had been his main source of professional experience.
But earning experience required intervention.
So Morin had been keeping an eye on him.
If he just flapped his wings and left-
What if the storm went wrong?
Even with protagonist luck, what if Tony couldn't hold on?
What if Tony died?
Would Morin have to negotiate with Death?
Impossible.
Even finding Death would be hard.
Winning would be even harder.
The Hades duplicate card he had was flawed.
He didn't dare gamble on its true strength.
Better to prevent problems before they happened.
...
At this moment, Tony was conducting a critical experiment.
Not settling down with Pepper.
But the test flight of the newly completed Mark II.
"Sir, some parameters have not yet produced simulation results," Jarvis warned. "Even with full data, real-world variables may cause failure. The risk is extremely high."
"My recommendation is to recruit test pilots or implement remote control."
"Jarvis," Tony said as the mechanical arms fitted the armor onto him, "sometimes you need to learn to run before you walk."
"My father used to say-'Do first, think later.'"
"That does not align with standard logic," Jarvis replied.
"I'm not a standard person."
Tony smiled.
"Load environmental data. Upload aviation data."
"And monitor Air Force channels."
"I don't want to crash into anything weird."
"All systems ready, Sir."
"Let's fly."
Three seconds later-
In accordance with the universal law of not being cool for more than three seconds-
A frozen Tony screamed as he plummeted.
Morin followed the entire sequence.
Recording everything.
Expressions.
Sounds.
Every frame.
After all-
A photographer captures everything worth capturing.
Especially embarrassing history.
Which could later be sold.