Maybe the oath of loyalty sucks up the life energy of the mages and transfer to him of something?
That's that. But then where does the mages/elders get their "immortality", to other mages perhaps?
Maybe? Who knows maybe they even recycle the corpses of mages that died in the exams. I won't even be surprised if they're using commoners as an ingredient for their 'immortality'.
Using common folks and unlucky mages seems to be the closest answer, I mean it aligns with their character. I just hope that Riley and mc kills them in a oh so painful way
Funny enough it was the manwha with Sigrid that made me think about it. Also, is the Grimoire the MC or Riley when you think about it? It’s Riley’s story with the grimoire, out of every adventure and person he’s been wielded by. Just food for thought.
Since immortality is so difficult to crack, I bet Irantes didn’t crack it, but is instead stealing the life force of others. That’s just a theory though!