Chapter 1 Part 3: People Are The Enemy

“For crying out loud, people who came late should get off!”

“You get off!

I’m having a hard time too!”

The elevator, developed by a mage who was tired of constantly going up and down the stairs, was packed full again today.

Didn’t they make several more of those elevators?

Even with multiple ones, it was still this chaotic.

Just how many more did they need to make?

I watched the mages trying desperately to board the elevator with pitying eyes.

The elevator, powered by the rider’s mana, boasted the best cost-performance ratio in the Magic Tower, but it was always so crowded it was hard to get on.

To ride it, you’d have to squeeze through that chaos or wait a long time, but I wasn’t too worried.

I mentioned earlier that many people found Ms. Hilipa difficult to approach.

Ms. Hilipa stood before the elevator and politely asked for permission.

“Would it be alright if we also boarded?”

The mages, who had been constantly pushing each other’s faces, froze simultaneously.

Anyone would think it was magic.

Stopping all at once like they’d made a promise.

On the other hand, I could understand why.

After being stiff for a while, the mages spoke rigidly.

“Ah, come to think of it, I forgot some important documents.

I need to go back.”

“Right.

I promised my daughter I’d start exercising today.

I should take the stairs.”

“Haha, now that I think about it, my business isn’t that urgent.

It’s fine to go later.”

The mages each made excuses and rushed out.

A truly wise choice.

Having to be in a confined space with the assistant favored by the Archmage himself, of all people.

Just imagining it was awkward enough to die…

“What are you doing?

Get on already.”

Right.

I had no choice but to get on…!

I was mentally kicking myself.

I moved my heavy feet and stepped onto the elevator.

Ms. Hilipa placed her hand on the crystal ball floating in the corner.

The elevator shuddered and began to move.

The Archmage was on the very top floor.

I was just blankly watching the floor numbers go up endlessly when,

“How unexpected.”

My body flinched.

Ms. Hilipa kept her gaze fixed on the crystal ball as she continued.

“I really didn’t think you would come back.”

“…”

“You must have had a hard time these past few years.”

I couldn’t refute that.

I bowed my head and fidgeted with my clothes.

Fortunately, Ms. Hilipa didn’t say anything more.

“Get off.”

The elevator stopped.

Finally, I could breathe a little easier—no, I couldn’t.

Now I had to meet the Archmage.

I crossed the hallway covered in blue carpet.

At the end of the hall was a pure white door.

The door, adorned with brightly shining crescent moons and stars, was impossibly artistic.

“You may enter alone.”

“Yes.”

The room was dark.

As I took another step forward, someone let out a small laugh.

At the same time, the lamp next to the bed lit up brightly.

Slender fingers swept down the sheets.

“Hello, Alice.”

“Hello, Archmage.”

The person lying on the bed laughed again.

Their long silver hair sparkled as if touched by starlight.

As the hand that had been sweeping down the sheets lightly brushed through the hair, two brightly shining yellow eyes were revealed between the strands.

The Archmage’s eyes were famous for shining several times more mysteriously than the stars in the night sky.

And now those eyes were fixed on me.

It was so overwhelming that my body trembled involuntarily.

The Archmage whispered languidly.

“I told you not to call me so formally.”

I squeezed my eyes shut and moved my lips.

“I’m sorry.

Lady Enencia.”

“Yes, you’re good as always.”

Lady Enencia, the person born with the most vast magical power in history and the current administrator of the Magic Tower, propped her chin on her hand and looked me up and down.

“Come here.”

I obediently stood before Lady Enencia.

She reached out her hand to me.

“Can you help me up?”

Her arm was very white and slender, but firmer than it looked.

I grabbed her arm and gently pulled.

The purple ribbon tied around her wrist fluttered.

Lady Enencia’s face and mine suddenly became close.

She stared at me intently, then smiled brightly.

“I felt it last time too, but your face has brightened up a lot.”

Her palm cupped my cheek.

It was cold, very cold.

I furrowed my brow involuntarily.

Lady Enencia’s hand was getting colder and colder.

She traced my features for a while, then asked,

“Have you been well?”

I nodded.

“Yes.”

“What about the studying you wanted to do?

Did you do a lot?”

“…Not much.”

“Why not much?”

Whoosh.

My face immediately flushed hot.

Lady Enencia’s cold hand made my face feel even hotter.

I answered in a voice that was barely a whisper.

“Because I didn’t have enough money.”

“Ah.”

Lady Enencia let out an incomprehensible exclamation.

Why was she asking such questions?

She knew my situation better than anyone.

After a moment of silence, Lady Enencia patted my cheek.

“It’s okay, you can save money here and start over then.”

Yes.

That was exactly why I was here.

But I couldn’t help but worry.

“I’m afraid I’ll lose my touch while working here.

I finally got the hang of it…”

“Your touch?

Why would you lose that?”

“I’m not Lady Enencia.”

I was called a genius since childhood too, but Lady Enencia was on a whole different level.

She was a genius who, upon learning one thing, grasped not ten but a hundred.

Moreover, she never forgot anything she saw or felt once.

Lady Enencia would probably never understand my position in her entire life.

I said nothing more and just smiled.

Tilting her head, Lady Enencia placed her hand on my shoulder.

“Anyway, I’m really happy.

That you’re back.”

Using my shoulder as support, Lady Enencia fully rose and moved towards a chair.

A robe was draped over the chair.

This robe, white with a blue border, also had a hood to cover the face.

On the back, a crescent moon pattern was embroidered with gold thread.

The moment we became affiliated with the Magic Tower, we were each given one of these robes.

When going on missions or outside, we had to wear this robe.

Lady Enencia draped the robe over me.

The robe was long enough to cover my hips.

Of course, the length could be adjusted according to preference.

After fastening the robe with a star-shaped brooch, Lady Enencia stood me in front of the full-length mirror.

“How is it?”

I fiddled with the brooch and nodded.

“…It’s good.”

“I knew you’d say that.”

Lady Enencia had always been especially fond of me.

Because I had the same hair color as her.

But to my eyes, we didn’t look very similar at all.

I stared intently at the mirror.

Lady Enencia’s silver hair shone brilliantly, but my hair was just plain white.

It wasn’t brilliant at all.

I fidgeted with the hair that reached the nape of my neck.

“Welcome back to the Magic Tower.”

I hastily added,

“For now, though.”

“Yes, for now.”

Nodding, Lady Enencia wrapped her arms around my waist.

Just like when I met Clam, goosebumps rose on my arms.

***

“Did your conversation end well?”

I closed the door and came out weakly.

At Ms. Hilipa’s question, who had been waiting, I nodded.

Lady Enencia was generally generous towards the mages in the Tower.

And towards me, she was especially generous.

But I found her unbearably unsettling.

Others were desperate to get close to her.

Anyone would say I didn’t know how good I had it.

“Seeing that robe makes it feel real that you’ve returned to the Magic Tower, Alice.”

“Ah, I feel the same way, actually.”

“What happened to the robe you originally had?”

When a mage left the Magic Tower of their own accord or was expelled, the pattern on their robe would disappear, turning it into a plain white robe.

I thought about keeping it because it would be perfect to throw on when the weather got chilly, but I wanted a clean, fresh start…

Ah, I paused.

“Excuse me?

Alice?”

I absolutely couldn’t say I burned it.

Wiping the cold sweat from my forehead, I answered.

“I lost it while moving.”

“Oh dear.

That must have been upsetting.”

No, actually, it was a relief.

I stared blankly into the air, recalling that moment.

Watching the white robe burn and disappear in the campfire, I laughed so loud the whole neighborhood must have heard.

Later, I even danced around the campfire, doing a silly dance.

The neighbors probably thought I was summoning a demon…

I scratched my head.

“She said I could just go home today, right?”

“Yes.

She told me to start working tomorrow.

I’m planning to go straight home.

I’m starting to get hungry.”

Ms. Hilipa stroked her chin, then suggested.

“Then how about having a meal together?”

Reflexively, I partially repeated Ms. Hilipa’s words.

“Ah, a meal.”

“Is that alright?”

“Yes, that’s alright.”

It would be rude to suddenly say I wasn’t hungry, wouldn’t it?

Having to sit across from someone I barely knew, who had joined the Tower longer ago and held a higher position than me, and eat.

I’d probably get indigestion.

But if I refused here, Ms. Hilipa would be embarrassed, the atmosphere would become awkward, and the other mages would gossip about me being arrogant…

It would probably be better to just suffer through one case of indigestion.

I opened the restaurant door.

A girl in a blue dress with a white apron, who had been wiping a table, scurried over to us.

“Welcome.

Will you be taking it to go?”

When I shook my head, the girl immediately guided us to a table by the window.

“Please come this way.”

The Magic Tower’s restaurant had facilities that put the high-end restaurants favored by nobles to shame.

Mages could receive high-quality, delicious food here for free, but almost no one sat here to eat.

They’d take easy-to-eat food like sandwiches or fried rice to go and eat in their labs.

When did they have time to eat properly when they had no time for research?

I, for one, didn’t even have time to grab a sandwich and just survived on coffee.

Ms. Hilipa scanned the menu.