Chapter 154

Having worked as her disciple for over three years, I can honestly say… sorcerers are all just great at magic, but when it comes to real-life skills, they’re a complete mess. They can’t bake bread properly, can’t brew coffee right, and it’s normal for them to shower, then wander out into the hallway naked and fall asleep there.

Of course, all the trivial tasks, including reviewing documents from other towers or the imperial family, drafting replies, and even grading the exam papers of magic students, eventually became my job. Naturally, many weren’t thrilled that someone like me, not even from the family that traditionally held the Tower Lord position, was handling these tasks. If I hadn’t shown talent in magic and crushed the elders with overwhelming skill, they probably would’ve thrown a fit.

Back then, there was also a lot of talk about me, not being of the Earth Tower Lord’s bloodline, taking the disciple position. So, Skadi just whimsically adopted me. The elders were shocked and confronted her, and I was so surprised I grabbed her by the collar. When asked why she did such a thing, she boldly replied:

[“Because I felt like it?”]

Both the elders and I were speechless. She remained unapologetic, and suddenly, I had a mother nine years older than me.

And that bold woman dumped all sorts of chores on me while she devoted herself to research in her office.

“Master, I’ve finished grading the exams, checking the thesis, and drafting the official letter to the imperial family.”

“Ah, good job, disciple.”

“How can you dump all this on me? Meanwhile, you’re leisurely focusing on your research…”

“Haha, sorry, sorry. Then, I’ll grant you one wish. What do you want? A head pat? A hug?”

“I’ve never received such things, and I don’t want them. Just show me that thing you showed me before.”

“Ha, you boring little brat. Is that really enough?”

I nodded, and Skadi stood up, stepping onto the carpet in the center of the spacious office. She waved her hands as if dancing, and a glowing sphere of magical energy gathered at her fingertips.

“Water.”

The sphere quickly turned into water, scattering like silk around her. Before the droplets could wet the floor, Skadi drew another beautiful line with her hand.

“Wind.”

The droplets transformed into wind, gathering into a small whirlpool in her palm. She clapped her hands and said:

“Flame.”

The swirling wind turned into flames, and she wielded the fire like a ribbon. Before it could touch my nose or the wooden furniture, her hands moved again, playing a beautiful melody.

“Ice.”

The wide arc of fire froze, maintaining its elegant shape, turning into a beautiful ice sculpture. She clapped again, and the ice shattered into tiny ice crystals, about to fall. Before the fragments could pile up in the office, she opened her palm again.

“Earth.”

The ice crystals turned back into soil and gravel, gathering in her hand. She smiled and chanted the final spell:

“Become the bedrock that supports all things.”

The soil and gravel had now turned into a palm-sized stone. I couldn’t bear the beauty of her movements, her magic. To a mere bandit like me, her magic became a new light.

“Huhu, you really like this, don’t you? It’s not even that impressive of a trick.”

Though others might not think so, that magic led me into the true world of magic. The graceful light that created something from nothing was more beautiful than anything in the world. Drawn by that light, I had gone from being a bandit to a sorcerer.

“Sorry about dumping all the official work on you. But that ability of yours is truly ‘sorcerer-like.'”

“If you’re that sorry, hire a servant. Think of my daily toil cleaning and maintaining the mansion.”

“Hmph, I said I’m sorry! Holding onto an apology like that isn’t very ‘manly.’ And a servant? That’s a hard pass—completely against my taste.”

When you think about it, I was handling everything from meal prep to dishes, cleaning, laundry, and garden maintenance, but apparently, that didn’t count as being a servant.

“How can you dump all these chores on someone while you’re engrossed in your research?”

She started to look smug. Honestly, I wasn’t that curious, but her smug expression irked me. Then, she let out an annoying laugh and said:

“A revolution in magic! The wisdom of Skadi, the Tower Lord of Earth, is infused into this…!”

“Skip the intro. What is it?”

“Boring brat. It’s Invisible Spear Magic.”

“Isn’t that something really trivial?”

Even without proper incantations, magic could be cast with practice. Though, for earth-attribute Invisible Spear Magic, it was just throwing a few rocks. It was almost a dead field since adding a few more incantations was far more beneficial.

“But this is different. It’s magic that even ordinary people with a bit of magical energy can use! Its power is incomparable to regular Invisible Spear Magic!”

“Wow, that’s amazing.”

“That’s such a soulless response.”

“Well, I won’t stop you. But how much have you completed? I’d like to be freed from this hell of chores soon.”

“Well, the general framework is done… The foundational theory is somewhat complete, but… the precise manipulation of magical energy, power enhancement, and fine control are still missing.”

“So, roughly how long do you think it’ll take?”

“Hmm… another 20 years?”

It was an incredibly long time. By then, I’d be 35, and the thought felt overwhelming. But she looked excited, even though she said it would take 20 more years. Did she not realize how long that was?

“Do you know how long that is? By then, Master, you’ll be forty…”

“Don’t talk about a woman’s age. And I probably won’t live that long anyway.”

“…”

She had a rare illness. That’s why she had to take someone like me as her disciple in a hurry.

“But so what? If I can’t do it, you will. If you can’t, your disciple will.”

“There’s no guarantee I’ll carry it on… But is it okay if someone else fulfills your dream?”

“Huhu, that’s not very ‘sorcerer-like’ or ‘manly.’ I want my dream to come true, but it doesn’t have to be me who achieves it. Someone standing at the end of the path I dreamed of… that’s the real dream. The rest are just future hopes or desires.”

At the time, I couldn’t understand her words. But the way she looked when she talked about that dream… it shone more beautifully than any magic, and I just wanted to support and help her achieve it.

“Sigh… I’m tired from all the work you’ve dumped on me. I’ll take a nap and listen to more about your dream later.”

“Well, you must be tired. Lie down on the couch and rest.”

I laid my heavy body on the couch, and outside, the rain began to fall again. As my eyelids grew heavy, she started singing along with the sound of the rain.

“That nameless bird in the sky, why does it sing so sadly…”

The lyrics I usually ignored started to feel beautiful and comforting. They say only those who know can understand its value, and I, too, came to understand it. Deciding to carry on her dream, an invisible bond formed between us.

“My lovely child…”

From then on, I started to like the sound of the rain. When it rained, I could hear her beautiful singing.

From that day on, I handled all the chores, and when I had time, I helped with her research. As the days passed, she grew thinner, so we had to hurry. No matter what she said, I wanted her to see her dream come true.

But on rainy days, I did nothing. I just lay with my head on her lap and listened to her lullabies.

“You seem to like rainy days.”

“… I don’t dislike them.”

“But rain is the enemy of the earth. No matter how solid the ground, rain can wash it away and break it apart.”

No matter what she said, I liked the rain. It was because of the rain that I met her.

But the day her words came true, and I started to dislike the rain, came too soon.

While out buying materials for an experiment, we encountered robed strangers. They were all incredibly powerful, and their leader, a man, said:

“The time has come to regret making an enemy of the Carven family, Tower Lord of Earth.”