Master Eiffel, dragging his weary body, left the core energy chamber.
When he returned to the main control hall, however, he found an uninvited guest.
An elderly Mage, also wearing a gray Mage Robe but with an unnaturally pale complexion and a faint, elusive smile at the corner of his mouth, stood in the center of the hall, studying the flowing bands of light on the walls with great interest.
The moment he saw this person, Master Eiffel's brows furrowed almost imperceptibly.
"Chardonnet?"
He was surprised, and wary.
"Why are you here? I thought you had already gone to Bordeaux with the main body of the Mage Corps."
The newcomer was none other than the most mysterious and feared existence within the 'Eye of the Loire' Mage Corps—the sole Seventh-Circle Necromancy Archmage, Chardonnet.
"Oh? My dear Eiffel."
Chardonnet turned around. Upon seeing Eiffel, the smile on his face widened.
"I had left, but halfway there, I suddenly felt somewhat unwilling."
He spread his hands, speaking in an aria-like tone:
"To simply hand over our greatest masterpiece to those Saxon barbarians would be such a pity, wouldn't it?"
"So, I changed my mind temporarily and came back… I imagine you wouldn't refuse an extra helping hand in defending Paris, would you? Especially the help of a Seventh-Circle Mage."
His words sounded dignified, but in his eyes, Master Eiffel saw a deeply hidden, unsettling fanaticism.
Necromancer.
This was a school strictly controlled and monitored in any country.
They studied death and toyed with souls.
Their magic was always associated with plagues, curses, and those disgusting undead creatures.
although Chardonnet held a transcendent status within the Mage Corps thanks to his strength as a Seventh-Circle Archmage and his academic contributions.
But most Mages—including Eiffel—kept a respectful distance from him.
A Necromancer Archmage who should have evacuated, secretly sneaking back at the last moment before Paris fell… this was clearly not a normal situation.
"I do need help."
Master Eiffel was silent for a moment, then nodded, though he did not relax his vigilance.
"However, I hope your motives are truly as pure as you claim."
"Of course, of course…"
Chardonnet said with a chuckle:
"We are all doing this for the Republic, aren't we? Although our fields of study differ, we both have patriotic hearts."
"Is everything ready?" Chardonnet changed the subject and asked.
Master Eiffel gave him a deep look, didn't answer the question, but turned and walked toward the other side.
"Follow me. Since you chose to stay, there are things you need to know."
He led Chardonnet to one side of the main control hall, where a device composed of a huge magical light screen and a map stood.
On the light screen, a few red arrows were projected onto the location of the Paris suburbs—information captured by the permanent [Eagle Eye] spell atop the Eiffel Tower.
Although it couldn't distinguish specific unit designations and sizes, it at least allowed those inside the giant tower to know from which direction the enemy was launching their attack.
"The main force of the Saxons is estimated to start entering the city tomorrow morning."
Master Eiffel pointed at the moving red arrows on the map and said:
"Their offensive is fierce. I estimate the garrison in the city won't be able to hold them back at all. Our time is running out."
Chardonnet listened to Eiffel, looked at the map, and the smile on his face became even more playful.
"Yes, time is running out… for them."
His gaze fell on an area at the bottom of the map labeled 'Paris Catacombs'.
Something there seemed to be waiting to break through the earth.
"Chardonnet, don't think I don't know what you've been doing these past few days."
Master Eiffel suddenly turned his head, his gaze piercing, staring straight into Chardonnet's eyes.
"You've been frequently entering and exiting the catacombs, bringing large quantities of obsidian… What exactly are you plotting?"
Facing Master Eiffel's interrogation, the smile on Chardonnet's face didn't change in the slightest.
"Oh? It seems nothing escapes the [Eagle Eye] at the top of the tower, my dear Eiffel… Yes, I did make some… small preparations down there."
"Preparations?"
Master Eiffel's voice turned cold:
"Did you treat those resting dead as your experimental materials?!"
"Your mentor, the great Master Pasteur, spent his entire life striving to extend human life, to fight against disease and death! And you, as his most proud student, spend all day manipulating the dead and desecrating souls?!"
Master Eiffel's voice was filled with anger and disappointment.
Chardonnet's mentor, Louis Pasteur, was one of the greatest Mages and biologists renowned throughout Europa.
His invention of pasteurization and various vaccines saved countless lives; he spent his life fighting death.
Yet his student walked a completely opposite path.
This could only be described as a huge irony.
"Mentor? Hehe…"
Hearing the name 'Pasteur', Chardonnet's face finally showed a hint of change.
"I respect my mentor, Eiffel… but respect does not mean agreement."
"Mentor was a great genius, but also a hopeless idealist!"
"He wanted to conquer death? How laughable! Death is the fairest and most eternal law in this world! It is the ultimate truth!"
Chardonnet's voice began to turn high-pitched and fanatical.
"What is the point of him trying every means to extend the lives of those mortals by a few years, a few decades?"
"Won't these mortals eventually turn into a handful of yellow earth?"
"Instead of futilely delaying that result, why not research how to 'utilize' that result?"
"You…"
Master Eiffel was speechless with anger at his twisted logic.
"Alright, alright… my dear Eiffel."
Chardonnet waved his hand, his expression returning to that indifferent smile.
"There's no point in arguing about this now, is there?"
"Your goal is to use this tower to cause as much trouble for the Saxons as possible, right?"
"And my goal is the same."
He pointed to the catacombs on the map.
"I just chose a different 'path' from you… but our 'destination' is the same."
"In that case, why should we quibble over our respective methods?"
Master Eiffel stared at him intently, his chest heaving violently.
He wanted to use a Chain Lightning right now to blast this lunatic into charcoal.
But he knew he couldn't.
As Chardonnet said, now was not the time for infighting.
They had a common enemy.
Moreover, having just finished conducting the fusion ritual, his mental strength was greatly depleted and needed time to recover.
He wasn't confident he could take down a Seventh-Circle Necromancer here.
After a long time, Master Eiffel finally suppressed the anger in his heart.
He didn't look at Chardonnet again, turning to walk toward the Magic Device transport unit leading to the top floor.
When Master Eiffel passed by Chardonnet, he stopped, didn't look back, and simply said in a cold and weary voice:
"For Paris."
The smile on Chardonnet's face froze slightly.
Behind him, Master Eiffel's aged and resolute figure walked into the Magic Device transport unit.
Only when the transport unit door slowly closed, cutting off that figure, did he repeat softly, as if to himself:
"For Paris…"
The mockery and playfulness on the face of this elderly Necromancer disappeared completely for the first time.
He stood in the empty main control hall, lost in thought.
The Magic Device transport unit delivered Master Eiffel to the very top of the giant tower.
This was his private office, and also his lounge.
He poured himself a glass of red wine, sat before the huge floor-to-ceiling window, and quietly looked at the city where he had lived his entire life.
He knew this might be the last time he would appreciate the night view of Paris so peacefully.
He had no fear, nor reluctance.
There was only a calm and composure of imminent mission completion in his heart.
"Marguerite, I stay in this place closest to you every day, yet I cannot truly approach you."
"But rest assured, perhaps I will be able to see you very soon…"
That night, Master Eiffel completed his last long rest.
The next morning, when the first ray of sunlight spilled into the room at the top of the tower, he opened his eyes on time.
Immediately after, two dull, loud noises came from the east and west of the city.
Master Eiffel walked to the window and saw the two huge columns of smoke slowly rising.
He knew those were the Saxons' new weapons, clearing the Anti-air Magic Device arrays in the city.
Then, he saw the two massive Armored Airships flying grandly into the sky above Paris.
The enemy's general offensive was about to begin.
Master Eiffel straightened his Mage Robe and pushed open the door leading to the highest platform at the top of the tower.
The fierce wind howled, blowing his gray hair and beard.
He spread his arms, closed his eyes, and felt the pulse of the entire giant tower.
"Awaken, my child…"
He called out softly.
"Hum—"
The entire Eiffel Tower emitted a low hum.
Inside the tower body, the souls that had already merged with the giant tower responded to his call simultaneously.
Clearly, the souls within the giant tower were far more than just Bastian and his group from last night.
Surging mana, like a bursting dam, flooded frantically into Master Eiffel's body from every corner of the tower.
His body slowly floated up into mid-air.
He opened his eyes; those originally cloudy eyes had now become pure white, emitting a terrifying light.
All emotions, all distracting thoughts, disappeared from him at this moment.
He was no longer Gustave Eiffel.
He was the will of this tower.
He was the final wrath of Paris.
His gaze locked onto the Saxon troops on the Champ de Mars below, approaching the base of the tower, as tiny as ants.
Slowly, he raised his right hand.
And pointed at them.
"Zzzzt—"
Above the spire, endless electric light began to gather frantically.
The time for judgment had arrived.