Chapter 161: I Like Your Eyes

Although Mentor Rum didn’t seem very pleased, he still allowed Saul to leave.

However, not long after Saul left, someone knocked on Rum’s door again.

“Mentor.” It was Nick’s voice.

After being granted permission, Nick entered.

He had a constant smile on his face, which was a stark contrast to his usual expressionless demeanor.

Rum studied Nick for a few moments, quickly understanding his current state. “The potion has been absorbed well?”

Nick’s smile became brighter. “Yes, Mentor, I can feel my emotions becoming more stable now. I don’t have to suppress myself as much as before.”

Unexpectedly, Rum sighed. “You’ve stayed at Second Rank for a long time, and it always makes me wonder if this path is truly right for you.”

“This is the path I chose myself, Mentor, you don’t need to worry,” Nick said, but his expression suddenly changed, and he couldn’t help but start crying.

Rum was unbothered, knowing that this was a necessary trial for Nick’s advancement.

For everyone, except for a few exceptionally gifted individuals, advancement was never easy.

In the world of wizards, every stage of advancement was dangerous, yet necessary.

Once you chose to walk the wizard’s path, you had to keep progressing; stagnation was a danger that could be fatal.

Rum lightly tapped his stomach, causing ripples to form.

“I heard the Tower Master rescued you along the way and even took Saul with him?”

Nick calmed down a bit, wiping his tears. “Yes.”

He thought for a moment before adding, “Byron once said in the Hanging Hand Valley that Saul is the Tower Master’s student. Although he later explained that it was a lie to deceive the enemy, I now think maybe Byron was telling the truth.”

Rum slowly nodded.

He nodded slightly, as any bigger movement would cause his chin to touch the fat on his neck.

“Perhaps Saul’s duties in the Tower were also arranged by the Tower Master. It’s a pity… he was really suited for specializing in Light Magic.”

In this wizard tower, no one could defy the orders of the Tower Master, Gorsa, not even the high-ranking mentors.

Suddenly, Rum shifted the topic. “Have you been to Grind Sail Town?”

Nick had already submitted this task at the registration office but hadn’t mentioned that Saul had completed it for him.

He had some personal motives for this task and wanted to conceal his own involvement as much as possible.

But now that Rum had asked him directly, Nick, still in an unstable emotional state due to his advancement, didn’t dare to hide anything. He could only dodge the question slightly and said, “Before reaching Grind Sail Town, I received the news of my father’s death and asked someone else to complete the task for me. Now, most of the Grinding Sound Fruits fields there have been destroyed by the barbarian invasion, and it seems they will no longer be able to contribute Grinding Sound Fruits. I’ve already suggested to the registration office to withdraw protection for Grind Sail Town.”

“No need for all that trouble,” Rum smiled softly. “Grind Sail Town is completely gone.”

Nick raised his head in shock, his surprised expression unmistakable, even with a hint of fear.

Rum, however, didn’t seem concerned at all. “It’s good that you’ve started advancing, so you don’t need Grinding Sound Fruits to suppress your emotions anymore.”

Nick seemed a bit strange. He clenched his lips, the muscles at the corners of his mouth twitching, his pupils narrowing to pinpricks.

It was as if he had heard something terrifying.

Rum suddenly reached out and placed a hand on Nick’s head.

“Don’t be so scared, Nick. You’re one of my most favored students. Even if you occasionally make small mistakes, I won’t just eat you up right away.”

Nick suddenly collapsed to the ground, trying to beg for mercy, but his throat trembled and he couldn’t speak.

Watching Nick’s emotional outburst, Rum’s head slowly slid from the top of his body down to near his stomach, gazing at Nick’s forehead, which was now sweating.

“Forget about Grind Sail Town. Don’t worry about Saul either,” Rum’s hand gently stroked Nick’s head. As he did, strands of brown hair fell to the ground, then dissolved as if being corroded.

“Yes, Mentor,” Nick said, his eyes fixed on the hair on the floor, tears uncontrollably falling down.

“Although this is Gorsa’s Wizard Tower, I am still your mentor. If you truly don’t want to get involved, just focus on your research.”

“As a student I value, your stance is already decided. Stop trying to please both sides.”

“Yes, yes, Mentor…” Nick’s teeth started to chatter, his voice hoarse and unclear.

“Since you’re about to advance, I’ll let you off this time. Go to the room across the hall, and wait until your emotions stabilize before you leave.”

“Yes.”

Nick backed out of the separated room, crawling out.

When he left, his hair had completely fallen out, leaving behind an uneven bald head.

Rum’s head returned to the top of his body.

“Well, it doesn’t matter,” he seemed to answer an unasked question. “No movement at all would make people suspicious. At least Bill is dead, right? It saves you from needing to act.”

“Hahaha…”

Laughter echoed in the room, muffled by the thick curtains, not a sound escaping.

…

After leaving Rum’s room, Saul had no idea what kind of cost Nick had paid for his little scheme.

His attention was completely taken by the conversation of some passing apprentices.

“I heard that the Second Rank apprentice who took the Corpse Flower task last time voluntarily gave up.”

Two Second Rank female apprentices were whispering on the slope between the twelfth and thirteenth floors.

Saul, pushing a cart, slowed his steps.

“Is the task really that difficult?”

“I don’t think solving the problem is hard; the real challenge is finding the person who created the problem. After Sari took the task and waited for a few days, there was no sign of anything abnormal. Then, just yesterday morning, another servant died.”

The other female apprentice, with her braids swaying like cobras, laughed dismissively.

“Lucy, how about we take the task? Since someone already gave up, the reward credits will probably increase.”

The apprentice named Lucy was tempted, “Alright, let’s go now, we can’t let anyone beat us to it!”

The two quickly agreed and disappeared around the bend.

After taking small steps for a while, Saul finally started walking.

“As expected, my second dream is coming true.”

When he passed the twelfth floor, Saul glanced inside.

The Corpse Flower that used to stand in the hallway had long been cleaned up.

“I hope they can solve the mastermind. I could really use a good night’s sleep.”

Second Rank apprentices didn’t have regular classes. Of course, if they really wanted to attend, they could sit in on First Rank classes.

Once they reached Second Rank, the knowledge gaps between apprentices became more evident. Forcing them into the same class would only hold everyone back.

So, after advancing to Second Rank, most of their learning was self-directed, with occasional guidance from mentors.

Otherwise, apprentices might end up walking down the wrong path, unintentionally blowing themselves up.

First Rank apprentices had to undergo progress tests every month, while Second Rank apprentices only had to test every six months.

But since Saul had just advanced to Second Rank, he had a full year of preparation before his first test.

For a long time, he didn’t need to worry about testing.

So, after getting used to the work in the second warehouse, Saul began his new round of research.

The materials in the second warehouse were abundant, with a small portion lacking any labeling. According to the rules, Saul was allowed to use them, as long as he didn’t waste them carelessly.

The materials in the warehouse could only be used by him, and not given to other apprentices.

Although this work was tedious and didn’t allow much time for study, it still attracted many people.

Though there were no big men guarding the warehouse like in the corpse warehouse, those three metal doors were no mere decoration.

They were connected to something related to the communication pens, automatically identifying which materials were within the task requirements and which were not.

Once materials outside the scope were carried, the metal doors couldn’t be opened.

At least Saul couldn’t open them.

After two days of organizing the materials in the warehouse, Saul received another task from Mentor Kaz.

This time, the task involved dozens of materials. Fortunately, Saul had already prepared a search list, or it would have been hard to finish on time.

While pushing his cart out of the warehouse, Saul encountered someone on the way.

The person, like the Tower Master, wore a heavy cloak and a mask, coming from the left corridor.

“He must be the one in charge of the first warehouse,” Saul stopped in his tracks, wondering whether to greet him.

But the person walked straight past Saul without stopping.

No greetings, no acknowledgment.

Saul couldn’t help but smile bitterly.

After having a few friends in the outside world, he almost forgot that the Wizard Tower was actually a cold place.

However, Saul’s smile hadn’t faded when the person suddenly stopped.

Immediately on alert, Saul also halted, maintaining a distance of two meters between them.

The person didn’t turn around, instead bowing deeply.

As the head lowered, a crack appeared at the back of the person’s hood.

From within the crack, an ugly woman’s face emerged.

It looked like something out of a sinister animated witch.

“I like your eyes. Can you give them to me?” The woman asked in a hoarse voice.

“Sorry,” Saul’s expression darkened. “I still need them.”

(End of Chapter)

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