Chapter 41: A Master’s Conditions

“A master? Are you truly going to make a contract with that wizard?”

“He’s rude, but he’s the best of the bunch.”

More importantly, the lesson fees are cheap.

It’s a difference of a hundred gold. A hundred gold!

The others even demanded 200 gold, plus the cost of textbooks and materials.

Besides, if Duke Yefisnon is coming to learn from him, wouldn’t that make him the real deal?

“By the way, Renki, who is Lorelai?”

“Lady Lorelai is likely his younger sister. The one I mentioned earlier.”

“Ah, the one you said you talked to in the kitchen? The woman in the wheelchair?”

“Wheelchair… Ah, yes. That’s right. The woman in the wheeled chair.”

“What did the two of you talk about?”

“We didn’t talk about much.”

“How peculiar.”

The moment Hay arrived in their second-floor room, he began casually shedding his restrictive outer garments. Renki, seemingly accustomed to this, gathered them up and hung them on a hanger.

“Perhaps that woman, Lorelai, took a liking to you.”

“Lady Lorelai liked me?”

“Yes. You were together, weren’t you?”

Hay took off his shoes and sat cross-legged on the bed.

“I don’t know what she found appealing, but she might have persuaded her brother.”

“Ah, now that you mention it, she did tell me she hoped to see me again.”

“My words were true then. She must have liked you.”

Renki tilted his head, unsure, then also removed his clothes and placed them on a hanger.

Stan had left the window open, making the room cold. Too lazy to move, Hay pulled a blanket over himself and flopped back.

“But did you truly say you wanted to become a wizard because you genuinely want to learn magic?”

“Yes. After hearing what you said, Master, it seems like the best way. And magic looks interesting, doesn’t it?”

“It certainly looks interesting. And wondrous.”

He himself had felt the same when he first started learning spirit magic. However, wizardry was different from spirit magic.

If aura required physical and mental enlightenment, then spirit magic was an art based on imagination. Wizardry, on the other hand, could be likened to a scientific discipline.

It was a field that demanded continuous study, understanding, and research.

“Once you start learning, you truly have to work hard. Even with good mana sensitivity, you won’t grow if you neglect your studies and training. To live comfortably, you’d need to reach at least Fourth-Class.”

“But I told you, didn’t I? I’m going to become a Grand Wizard! Reaching Fourth-Class will be quick! Sir Chen is twenty years old and already Fourth-Class, isn’t he? I’ll be a Fourth-Class wizard in just seven or eight years. And Lady Lexa is twenty-six and Seventh-Class, so I’ll be Seventh-Class by thirty at the latest!”

These were the words of a child who didn’t know any better.

“Your enthusiasm is good. Work hard.”

“Yes! I’ll work hard and earn you lots of money, Master. So you’ll never be called ‘penniless’ again!”

“Oh, look at this dutiful child. Such a dutiful child.”

Hay let out a chuckle, then rolled himself up in the blanket like a kimbap.

Renki was almost thirteen, which wasn’t too late to begin learning magic. The problem, however, was that his situation differed from Chen’s, Adel’s, or Lexa’s.

When Chen spoke of his memories with Adel, he mentioned they had grown up for over a decade under a wizard master in Arcavilla. They had dedicated themselves solely to studying magic, aside from eating, sleeping, and running the master’s errands or doing household chores.

Having lived as orphans and vagrants, their desperation must have been immense.

“Are you cold?”

Renki asked, closing the window.

Hay nodded without a word.

“I’ll ask them to change the brazier. Please wait a moment.”

With that, Renki scurried out of the room.

Hay didn’t know how desperate Renki was for magic, but he certainly couldn’t provide an environment where Renki could solely focus on his studies, as Chen and Adel’s master had done for them.

He had no home, nor enough money to allow Renki to immerse himself completely in magic studies.

Moreover, Lexa hailed from Arcavilla, the city of wizards. This meant her parents and friends were all wizards.

Her environment itself was on a different plane from others. She was born into an environment where learning magic was possible from birth.

Even so, reaching the Seventh-Class at the young age of twenty-six signified Lexa’s immense talent and academic fervor. This was all the more remarkable considering her unique constitution.

Perhaps Lexa was a renowned genius wizard in Arcavilla.

‘When I meet a wizard from Arcavilla later, I should ask if they know Lexa.’

Stan, who was to become Renki’s master, was a Sixth-Class wizard, one rank lower than Lexa. Stan’s age was unknown, but he appeared only two or three years older than Hay at most.

Even if he were thirty-two or thirty-three, being Sixth-Class was as remarkable as Lexa’s achievement. Yet, there was one thing that bothered him.

It was what Venter had said. ‘As far as I know, he’s someone who has reached the ranks of a Grand Wizard.’

Considering he could effortlessly open a teleportation portal with a mere wave of his hand, Venter’s words might very well be true. Above all, that arrogant and insolent attitude. He must have something to back him up.

Thinking about it again, it was annoying. He was the kind of unlucky scoundrel who’d break his nose even falling backward.

‘But if he truly is a Grand Wizard, what is he doing holed up in the capital of such a small country? If I had that skill, I’d move to a prosperous nation, acquire a noble title, manage a territory, and live comfortably, receiving all due respect.’

And to live on a hill with a physically challenged younger sister? Perhaps Stan wasn’t someone who coveted honor or power.

Others charged 200 gold for three months of magic lessons, yet he, with a higher class than them, only charged 100 gold. In that case, hiding his power wasn’t entirely incomprehensible.

If he truly were a Grand Wizard, those around him wouldn’t leave him in peace.

“Master.”

Renki returned.

Hay merely rolled his eyes to look at Renki.

“I spoke to the innkeeper, but they said it would take some time to prepare the brazier because they need to rekindle the charcoal. So, I brought a heated stone. Please hold it in your hand.”

He handed Hay a pouch he had been carrying. Inside the pouch was a heavy stone. It felt warm and comforting in his hand.

“What about yours?”

“I’m not that cold, so I’m fine.”

“I envy you for being less sensitive to the cold.”

Hay was quite susceptible to the cold.

“Renki, once you start learning magic, no matter how terribly Stan acts, you must try to learn even one more thing. You understand what I mean, don’t you?”

“Yes, I will study diligently.”

Renki clenched his fists tightly.

He certainly gave a good answer.

‘It would be great if he could reach Third-Class before he truly has to stand on his own.’

Since he couldn’t provide Renki with an ideal learning environment, wishing for more than that would be greedy.

“I’m tired from being out since early morning. I’m going to sleep for a bit, so wake me up at dusk. Let’s go eat.”

“Yes, please get some rest.”

Hay nodded, closing his eyes while clutching the stone tightly in his hand. But perhaps because of the cold, sleep wouldn’t come, and his mind kept wandering with various thoughts.

Hay finally managed to fall asleep only after the innkeeper brought the brazier.

****

The next day, Hay and Renki made their way to the top of Fopenini Hill. When they knocked, the door opened automatically, just as it had yesterday, as if Stan had used magic.

However, unlike yesterday, the corridor was lit. Yesterday, it had been as eerie as a haunted house, but with all the wall sconces lit, it was incredibly cozy.

Walking down the somewhat long corridor, Hay abruptly halted. A painting, which he had missed in the darkness yesterday, hung on the wall.

In the painting, a building resembling a noble’s mansion was engulfed in flames. The inferno seemed to scream, and at the same time, to laugh with malevolence.

He recalled a memory from his childhood when Hellheim had burned down a lord’s mansion, claiming it would enhance Hay’s affinity for fire. Whoever hung that painting certainly had a unique taste.

“What are you doing standing there? Aren’t you coming in?”

Stan’s voice echoed from the potion-making lab. It was darker and sharper than yesterday, suggesting he wasn’t in a good mood.

Hay wondered if he might throw another tantrum and refuse to give lessons. With a wry expression, Hay entered the potion-making lab with Renki.

The potion-making lab was also twice as bright as yesterday. It was chilly because the window was open, seemingly for ventilation.

“Hello.”

Renki, hesitating, was the first to offer a greeting.

Stan didn’t even glance at Renki. Nor did he look at Hay.

“Why are so many lights on? Isn’t it stifling?”

“That’s why I left the window open.”

His hair was a chaotic mess. His eyes were bloodshot, and dark circles sagged beneath them, as if he hadn’t slept.

“Didn’t you sleep?”

“What’s it to you whether I slept or not?”

His irritable voice lacked energy.

“Sit down. Want some tea? Do you have a preference? My house has every type of tea leaf imaginable.”

Perhaps because they were about to sign a contract, he readily offered tea, something he hadn’t done yesterday. Even without a reply, he was already rummaging through bottles labeled with various herb names on the shelf behind him.

“What would you like?”

“Chamomile.”

“Chamomile, good choice…”

This time, he drew out the end of his sentence like a stretched-out tape. While he prepared the tea, Hay took the opportunity to look around the potion-making lab once more.

On the spot where he had made potions yesterday, fifty completed bottles of an unknown potion lay packed in a crate.

“Is potion-making your main occupation, by any chance?”

“Main occupation? Nonsense. I just do it to make a living.”

“Then is giving lessons your main occupation?”

“That brings in money. Just sometimes.”

In one corner of the desk, sheets of paper for making magic scrolls were stacked. It didn’t seem like Stan sold them directly from here.

“Do you supply goods?”

“Yeah.”

“Why don’t you sell them yourself? You could earn more than by supplying them.”

“I used to sell them, but I closed shop because I had no customers.”

“No customers?”

“I chased them all away.”

Hay let out a hollow laugh. To chase away his own customers!

“Don’t just stand there, sit down. Do I have to pull out a chair for you too?”

Stan snapped. Hay ignored him, pulled out a chair, and sat at the round table. Renki, however, didn’t attempt to sit, remaining quietly behind Hay.

“You sit too.”

It wasn’t Hay who said it, but Stan. It was as if he had eyes on the back of his head.

“M-me?”

Renki asked, startled.

“Of course, you. Only one person just pulled out a chair.”

He meant that naturally, Hay, as the master, would sit, not Renki. Hay pulled out a chair and tapped it. Renki hesitated, then sat down.

“First, before we make this contract, there’s something you two need to know.”

“Please speak.”

Hay replied to Stan’s words.

“I don’t teach beyond First-Class. The lesson period is three months. Whether you master First-Class in those three months or not is entirely up to you.

Unless you’re a true dullard, if your mana circuits are sound and you’re reasonably intelligent, you can easily complete First-Class within three months. If you can’t, it means you weren’t desperate enough or didn’t put in the effort.”

Hay wasn’t particularly worried about Renki completing the First-Class lessons within three months. In any case, Hay would have to leave Cheaf after three months to find work again.

“Renki, can you do it?”

Still, just in case, he asked.

“Yes! I can do it!”

Renki nodded vigorously. A fervent determination burned in his eyes.