Chapter 94: Leaving the Wizard Tower Means Temporarily Becoming Human Again
“I can leave the tower now…” Saul felt like he was being released from prison.
It was as if he were a balloon floating into the sky, yet at the same time, he felt an unsettling emptiness, unable to find solid ground beneath him.
He had thought he would only get the opportunity to leave the tower after advancing to the second level.
If he wanted to increase his mana to 50 joules, he estimated it would take him at least another six months.
But now, with just one invitation from Senior Byron, that timeline had been drastically shortened.
What kind of mission did Byron need his help with?
He recalled that he had previously asked Byron to help him find a relatively intact soul body. Could this invitation be related to that?
“You're leaving the tower?” Keli's voice came from beside him.
“Yeah.” Saul couldn’t help but smile.
“Ah, that’s great. I also need to go out for a bit,” Keli said.
Since Keli was already a second-level apprentice, it wasn’t surprising that she had received a mission outside the tower.
But this was also Keli’s first time leaving, so Saul asked with concern, “Is it a dangerous mission?”
Keli shook her head.
Her gaze lowered, and she spoke with little emotion. “I just need to retrieve some materials cultivated outside the tower… and visit home.”
She didn’t seem to want to elaborate on that. Instead, she raised her head and spoke a little louder.
“Since it's your birthday, and you've received such great news, let’s hurry back and celebrate with cake.”
She grabbed Saul’s shoulders again.
“Celebrating a birthday with cake? But cake can be eaten at any time, can’t it? Or is this cake not what I think it is?” Nick, who had been standing nearby, asked curiously.
Since Nick would be accompanying Saul on this trip, Keli thought for a moment and extended an invitation to him.
“Please join us. I just made it.” She nodded.
“It’s a very special kind of cake!” Saul immediately perked up. This time, without needing Keli to push him, he took the lead in guiding Nick toward the dormitory.
“Senior, don’t be shy. I’ll even share my portion with you…”
The departure date was delayed by a day due to some uncontrollable circumstances.
By the time Nick and Saul left the wizard tower in a carriage, Nick still seemed a bit sluggish.
Having forced most of the birthday cake onto Nick, Saul, on the other hand, was in high spirits. He leaned against the carriage window, taking in the outside world.
They were traveling in a double-decker carriage. The interior was small, allowing passengers to lean back but not lie down, making it less than comfortable. However, the carriage moved at great speed.
The driver was an adult male servant from within the tower. Any servant who managed to live to this age had their own means of survival.
Throughout the journey, the driver spoke only when necessary, keeping himself as quiet and unobtrusive as possible. Neither Saul nor Nick even knew his name, referring to him simply as "the driver."
Saul could sense the fear emanating from him.
It was the same kind of tension Saul felt when facing his mentors and the tower master.
This was the natural pressure caused by a significant gap in power—something that couldn’t be overcome with mere courage.
Nick remained slouched in his seat, resting, leaving Saul with no one to share in his excitement about "escaping prison." Left with no choice, he behaved like a first-time city visitor, sticking half his body out of the window to take in the view.
It was April, the weather was still chilly, but under the gentle spring breeze, greenery had already begun to spread across the land.
The connection between the land below the wizard tower and the distant wastelands had begun to shift from dull yellow to vibrant green.
Due to the carriage’s high speed, stray grass seeds and insects splattered against the wheels and carriage walls, leaving yellow-green stains.
Saul watched as the distant green mountains and dense forests drew closer, occasionally spotting wild mice and rabbits hopping about.
After a while, he turned back to look at the wizard tower.
The gray-black tower stood alone in the plains, its surroundings barren and silent, as if nothing had changed in centuries.
Aside from the wizards’ buildings, there wasn’t a single large shrub in the area.
It was as if even the plants feared the wizard tower, maintaining an absolute distance from its mysterious presence.
The carriage sped through the desolate wilderness for half a day before finally reaching a populated area.
Yet, instead of stopping or even approaching the villages, the carriage simply rushed past them along the main road.
These villages and towns weren’t particularly prosperous, but they contained a fair number of houses.
Saul noticed that whenever the locals saw their carriage approaching, they immediately knelt and remained motionless for a long time.
Their clothing was simple and worn, but he didn’t see anyone dressed in rags.
It seemed that the people outside the tower were living reasonably well.
The darkness of the wizard tower had not extended to ordinary people. In fact, they even benefited from the tower’s presence.
After watching for a while, Saul finally withdrew his head.
Despite seeing the outside world for himself, he felt a sense of detachment, as if he were an outsider rather than someone finally set free.
It wasn’t as relaxing as he had imagined.
It felt as though the chains of the wizard tower were still firmly wrapped around his neck.
Feeling somewhat lost, Saul slumped back into his seat, only to realize that Nick had somehow recovered and was now calmly reading a book.
Saul: “……”
Fine.
He sighed, then reached for his heavy backpack, rummaging through his various tools and potions before selecting a book that wasn’t too sensitive to read.
They traveled for five days, only stopping at night to rest. Even then, they replaced sleep with meditation.
It felt almost monastic.
On the sixth day, Saul lifted his head from the ever-swaying book, closed his eyes, and pinched the bridge of his nose.
“Senior Nick, do you know exactly where we’re going?”
“To the border of the Kema Duchy, to a place called Mo’bian City. We’ll meet Byron there, and then… most likely head to Hand-Hanging Valley. But before that, I need to make a short detour for a quick task to earn some academic credits.”
Nick looked up from his book and winked at Saul. “It’s a rare opportunity to leave the tower, and we have extra time. Might as well make the most of it.”
As they spoke, the carriage suddenly stopped, jolting them slightly.
“Are we there?” Saul immediately looked outside, but all he saw was farmland and a gentle hillside.
There were no towns nearby.
Not far from the foot of the hill, a group of dozens of horsemen stood silently.
One of them held a blue flag with a silver border, depicting a rabbit holding a snake in its mouth.
Nick suddenly closed his book and swiftly stepped out of the carriage.
From the opposing group, a tall middle-aged man rode forward.
He wore the same dark blue and silver armor, with metal plates reinforcing key areas. A longsword hung at his waist. When he was about ten meters from Nick, he dismounted.
Saul watched as the man kneeled on one knee and placed a hand over his chest in a salute.
Nick lifted his hand slightly, allowing the man to rise, his movements as elegant as a prince’s.
The two of them stood with their backs to Saul, speaking in hushed voices.
Saul couldn’t hear their conversation due to the distance.
All he could tell was that the middle-aged man remained respectful, while Nick remained as emotionless as ever.
After a while, Nick returned, but he didn’t get back into the carriage.
“There’s something going on with my family. I need to make a trip back. You’ll have to continue to Mo’bian City on your own.”
Saul was startled. “What about Byron’s mission?”
Nick blinked and tightened his lips. “I’ll finish my business quickly and catch up before it starts. However…”
Saul suddenly had a bad feeling.
Sure enough, Nick continued, “I’m leaving my small task to you. I’ll transfer the credits to you.”
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