Arlen had finally had enough.
After hours of Lily endlessly testing spells—altering, combining, and pushing magic in ways that made even him uneasy—he let out a long sigh and abruptly stood up.
"That's enough."
Before Lily could protest, he grabbed her by the shoulder and practically shoved her out the door.
"Go. Read this instead."
A thick book was pushed into her hands, and before she could say anything else—
Click.
The door shut.
Lily stood there in silence for a moment, staring at the wooden door in disbelief.
"…That's it?"
She looked down at the book in her hands, a little disappointed. There were still so many ideas she hadn't tried yet—so many combinations she wanted to experiment with. And to make things worse, Arlen had even taken back the magic communication card he had given her.
"…So stingy."
Letting out a small sigh, she turned and began walking back toward the guild.
As she walked, her attention shifted to the book.
"Understanding Magic — by Tod Wells."
The cover was old, wrapped in worn, dark leather. The edges of the pages were slightly yellowed, and faint creases suggested it had been read countless times.
Flipping it over, she noticed something written on the back.
A name.
Arlen.
Her eyes widened slightly.
"…His textbook?"
That thought alone made her curiosity spike.
When she returned to her room, Lily didn't waste any time.
She sat down on her bed, opened the book, and began reading.
At first, she expected it to be boring—like the dry theory books she had skimmed in the village library.
But it wasn't.
The explanations were clear. Structured. Precise.
More importantly…
They explained why magic worked the way it did.
Concepts that Arlen had only briefly mentioned—or dismissed entirely—were broken down in detail. It talked about visualization, mana flow, structural stability, and even the limitations of human perception when shaping spells.
Lily's eyes lit up.
"…So that's how it works."
Her mind began racing.
New ideas formed almost instantly, branching into even more possibilities.
She spent the next few days completely immersed—reading, testing, failing, adjusting, and trying again.
Over and over.
Until before she knew it—
It was time.
The academy term was about to begin.
Lily packed her things quickly.
Her cloak rested over her shoulders, her staff in hand, and her bag filled with essentials—along with the book Arlen had given her.
She stood at the door for a moment.
Then turned the handle and left.
She didn't tell anyone.
Partly because she didn't want to deal with long goodbyes.
But mostly—
Because she was too excited.
This time, she didn't need to fly.
So she chose something simpler.
A carriage.
Standing outside the guild, Lily waited patiently until one finally passed by.
"Hey—wait!"
She ran after it, waving her arms.
The driver, clearly startled, quickly pulled the reins to a stop.
"…You could've just called out," he muttered.
Lily scratched her cheek awkwardly before climbing in.
Inside the carriage, she took out her emblem.
It looked slightly different now.
There were new engravings beside her name.
Room 205 — Second Floor
And beneath that—
"Report to the Headmaster upon arrival."
"…Headmaster?"
She tilted her head.
Flipping the emblem over, she checked for anything else—but there was nothing.
"…Weird."
Still, she didn't think too much about it and tucked it away.
After some time, the sky began to brighten.
The first light of dawn stretched across the horizon.
And soon—
They arrived.
Lily stepped off the carriage and stretched her arms.
In front of her stood the academy.
Massive.
Elegant.
Intimidating.
At its center was a giant emblem—a gladiolus flower, crafted in gold but dyed a deep shade of purple, shining faintly under the morning light.
"…Woah."
She walked inside, taking in her surroundings.
The halls were wide, the ceilings high, and everything carried a sense of quiet authority.
But something quickly became a problem.
"…Where's the headmaster's office?"
There weren't many people around yet—it was still a few days before the official start of school.
After wandering for a while, she finally spotted a teacher exiting a restroom.
Lily hurried over.
"Excuse me… um, where can I find the headmaster's office?"
The teacher paused, giving her a suspicious look.
"…Why are you going there? What did you do?"
"Huh? I didn't do anything," Lily replied quickly, pulling out her emblem. "It just told me to go there."
The teacher took a closer look.
Then suddenly—
Her expression changed.
"Oh! You're that student…"
She raised a hand to cover her mouth slightly.
"The one he called… interesting."
Lily blinked.
"…What?"
But the teacher didn't explain.
"Don't worry about it," she said quickly. "The headmaster's office is on the fifth floor, end of the right hallway."
"Okay, thank you."
Lily gave a small bow before heading toward the stairs.
By the time she reached the fifth floor, the atmosphere had changed.
It was quieter.
Heavier.
Almost… pressuring.
At the very end of the hallway stood a single door.
The moment Lily saw it—
She felt it.
A strange sense of mystery… and something deeper she couldn't quite describe.
She stepped forward and knocked twice.
Knock. Knock.
"…Who is it?"
The voice that came from inside sounded ancient—calm, yet heavy with authority.
"It's me, Lily. I came as instructed."
There was a brief pause.
Then—
"Oh. Come in."
Lily opened the door and stepped inside, closing it behind her.
The room was… small.
Much smaller than she expected.
But something felt off.
It didn't feel like they were inside the academy anymore.
It was as if the space itself had been separated—existing somewhere else entirely.
A different plane.
"Lily."
The headmaster's voice turned serious.
Without realizing it, Lily straightened her posture, her body reacting instinctively.
"…Yes?"
"Be honest with me."
He leaned forward slightly.
"Can you use advanced magic?"
Lily relaxed a little.
That was easy.
"Well… it's a bit difficult and tiring," she admitted, "but yes, I can."
The headmaster stared at her.
Then—
He smiled.
But it wasn't a simple smile.
There was something layered beneath it.
Something calculating.
"Lily… what you were doing wasn't advanced magic."
He paused.
"In fact—"
"I've never seen anything like it before."
A brief silence filled the room.
"I have many questions."
His eyes locked onto hers.
"So I hope you'll entertain this old man."