Chapter 8: I’m leaving the Mage Tower  

Left alone, Rita scoured every corner of Aide Hill.  

Ominously, she discovered four more beasts in the bushes, similar to the one she had seen earlier.  

Fortunately, they were all Arche third-class, with clearly visible weak points. 

Thanks to this, Rita dispatched them without much difficulty.  

Wondering if there might be more, she widened her search radius, but no further signs were detected.  

“Where is the Iskis that created these things?”  

Rita paced around the red tree with a troubled expression.  

As dawn approached and the sun began to rise, a high-pitched bird call reached her ears. 

Looking up, she saw a fiery phoenix soaring under the morning light—Talos’s summoned creature.  

Calculating the distance with a summon to teleport instantly? 

His skill is impressive, I’ll give him that.  

Rita genuinely admired it.  

Moments later, a golden portal opened at one end of Aide Hill.  

One by one, the elders emerged, raising their staffs and scanning the surroundings.  

Finally, Talos appeared, rushing toward her with wide eyes.  

“Rita! What on earth happened?”  

***

Though he had heard a rough explanation, Talos couldn’t comprehend it. 

Just yesterday, there wasn’t a single trace, yet at dawn, they suddenly sensed something.  

The fact that the three of them had come all the way here in the middle of the night, and encountered an unidentified creature, was utterly absurd.  

“See for yourself.”  

Rita pointed to the bushes.  

Beneath the scorched grass lay the shriveled remains of the grotesque creatures, all gathered in one place by Rita.  

The sight of these bizarre beings unnerved even the seasoned elders.  

“Horrible. How can such creatures exist…”  

“A chimera? But it doesn’t quite seem like one…”  

As the atmosphere grew noisy with murmurs, Rita quietly called out to Talos and pointed directly at the seed embedded in the ground.  

“These creatures charge at people. As you can see from their remains, they’re undoubtedly carnivorous. They might even be the creatures rumored to be lurking around the villa.”  

***

To be precise, the juvenile beasts hadn’t attacked first, but they surely would have if left alone.  

Rita added a touch of exaggeration to convey the gravity of the situation.  

Then she pointed to the seed.  

“There’s a strange tree growing right behind that seed. It didn’t even flinch under magical attack. It’s suspicious and needs thorough investigation.”  

“So… Rita, are you saying those things came from that tree?”  

“I’m not certain, but… they’re definitely related. And there might be more of them out there somewhere.”  

The elders gasped and whispered among themselves.  

Some, easily swayed, muttered ominously as they stared at the seed.  

Talos, growing serious, scanned the area and nodded.  

“Indeed, I can feel the same black mana we sensed yesterday. We’ll search the area further and report to the kingdom. Rita, return to the Mage Tower first. Blena and Seth have already gone back, so don’t worry.”  

With his business concluded, Talos turned away promptly.  

His dismissive attitude made Rita’s face twitch, but things were progressing as she wanted.  

If it continued like this, they might succeed in suppressing it early.  

But if it goes this way, I might miss out on stealing Talos’s opportunity.  

Rita didn’t dwell on it too much.  

As long as I eradicate Iskis, that’s enough. 

That’s how I can live a complete life. 

I no longer need to live in Talos’s shadow. 

I just have to keep my promise.  

She vividly remembered the “god’s” warning that her life would be taken if she failed to fulfill her promise.  

For now, saving the world was no different from preserving her own life and securing her reward.  

That’s what Rita believed.  

***

Back at the Mage Tower, the first person Rita encountered was Blena.  

Blena, who had been pacing and biting her nails, rushed toward the golden magic circle.  

“I was worried because we didn’t hear from you for so long!”  

Her claim of worry caught Rita off guard.  

To be clear, Rita wasn’t close to Blena.  

Not just Blena—throughout her time at the academy and the Mage Tower, Rita had always been alone, never sparing a glance for those she deemed beneath her.  

Her arrogance, combined with her blind devotion to Talos, had earned her no favor among her peers.  

Used to being disliked, Rita found Blena’s kindness and concern unfamiliar and awkward.  

Yet, she couldn’t help but feel a fleeting sense of comfort in this strange situation.  

“What happened?”  

As Rita hesitated over what expression to make, Seth abruptly stepped forward.  

His tilted head, brash tone, and condescending gaze—how could someone so rude become so refined?  

Amused by the thought, Rita answered Seth’s curiosity.  

“Our master and the elders are searching the area. I found four more creatures and dealt with them, but I don’t know if there’s anything else.”  

“What? If our master and the elders are looking into it, it must be serious!”  

“Well, if the master is handling it personally, it’ll be resolved quickly.”  

Seth nodded as if the matter was already settled.  

His unwavering confidence left Rita with a heavy heart.  

Seth, like her, was someone abandoned by Talos—a pawn easily discarded when Talos saw fit.  

Knowing this, Rita wanted to shatter Seth’s faith.  

But I don’t have evidence to convince him right now. 

And above all, Seth dislikes me. 

He won’t believe anything I say.  

Who even liked me back then?  

Swallowing a bitter smile, Rita turned away.  

***

Talos and the elders returned from their search of Aide Hill the next morning.  

A meeting was promptly held at the Mage Tower, and by afternoon, a report was sent to the royal palace.  

But that was it.  

No further updates came, and for an entire week, Rita lingered in front of the stairs leading to the fifth floor.  

The fifth floor, reserved for elders and above, was off-limits to ordinary mages.  

“Elder Obern! What happened with the Aide Hill search?!”  

Rita grabbed Elder Obern, whom she’d waited all day to see, and questioned him.  

Obern, rarely seen despite overseeing the research department, glanced at Rita’s earnest eyes with mild irritation.  

“Rita? What’s this about? Aide Hill? You mean that incident? You don’t need to worry about it anymore. The kingdom’s investigation is complete.”  

To Obern, the Aide Hill matter was of little importance.  

Rita’s face twitched at his dismissive attitude.  

Finding him impossible to reason with, she waited for another elder and asked again.  

But the responses were the same.  

In the end, Rita had to seek out the one person she least wanted to face—Talos.  

Tracking Talos wasn’t difficult.  

Having done it countless times in the past, Rita calculated his schedule and waited along his route.  

“Master…!”  

Forcing the reluctant word out, Rita called to Talos.

***  

Talos, inspecting the Tower, widened his eyes at her sudden appearance.  

“Oh, Rita. It’s been a while.”  

Hoping she might resume handling his menial tasks, Talos smiled with subtle anticipation.  

“What happened to Aide Hill?”  

Her blunt, almost accusatory tone made Talos blink in surprise.  

Why had his usually polite and obedient disciple become so cold and defiant?  

The question crossed his mind briefly, but her fierce demeanor left no room for pondering.  

Caught up in her intensity, Talos rambled out a response.  

“The kingdom’s forces searched for two days, but found nothing significant.”  

“Were there no other creatures?”  

“They say not. The red tree was also nothing special—just an ordinary tree with an unusual color.”  

“That’s impossible…! Then what about the tree’s abnormal resistance to magic?”  

“The seed that sprouted it was unidentified to begin with. Even renowned scholars haven’t seen anything like it, so the investigation will take time…”  

“And the corrupted mana?”  

“Hmm. They’re currently speculating it might be a byproduct of chimera breeding. There have been cases of corrupted mana from chimeras with reproductive abilities…”  

Despite his polite explanations, Rita’s expression grew increasingly strained.  

Talos flinched, wondering if he’d misspoken.  

***

“That’s not possible. That’s…”  

Rita swallowed her rising anger.  

She had expected better from the kingdom’s greatest mage, the Tower Master, but was he just a fool?  

Needing the Mage Tower’s active involvement, Rita let out a frustrated sigh at Talos’s carefree smile.  

“It’s definitely a suspicious tree. Those creatures likely came from it. We need to search the area more thoroughly…”  

“Look, child. I understand your concern, but there’s no immediate danger, is there? We can’t deploy the kingdom’s forces without concrete evidence.”  

“Then use the Mage Tower’s mages! We confirmed it ourselves…”  

“Oh, Rita. The Mage Tower isn’t as idle as you think.”  

Rita swallowed a hollow laugh at Talos’s arched-brow smile.  

Bullshit.  

Did he think she didn’t know the elders were busy currying favor with nobles?  

Even Elder Obern neglected the research department to loiter in the capital.  

But in her position, she couldn’t say that outright, so she bit her lip.  

She could understand the kingdom’s forces’ stance to some extent.  

As they said, nothing more had emerged from Aide Hill, and the red tree didn’t pose an immediate threat.  

For the kingdom and the Mage Tower, it was something they could overlook.  

Rita, too, had no way to prove the danger. 

But…  

Those beasts’ origin was Iskis. 

That means Iskis is active.  

Having confirmed their existence firsthand, Rita’s eyes trembled.  

What do I do? 

To move the kingdom’s forces and the Mage Tower, I need… justification.  

At that moment, Talos patted her shoulder.  

“Let’s keep monitoring it for now.”  

His gentle smile and the touch on her shoulder made Rita’s expression twist.  

Startled by the fleeting cold contempt in her eyes, Talos quickly withdrew his hand.  

Had he done something wrong? 

Or was the Aide Hill matter that important to his disciple?  

As Talos puzzled over it, Rita thought carefully.  

It’s too slow. 

At this rate, the north will become a haven for beasts, and we’ll be at a disadvantage.  

Muttering about delays, Rita’s eyes slowly widened.  

Wait. 

If it’s just tracking, I can do that myself.  

If the Mage Tower wouldn’t act, she’d move until they did. 

All she needed was to collect their corpses and pile them up as evidence.  

Of course, that required “freedom.”  

Rita quickly made up her mind and nodded.  

“Understood.”  

Talos was flustered by her sudden calmness.  

With a stoic expression, Rita gave a slight nod and turned away.  

Talos, watching his disciple leave without looking back, was left with an uneasy feeling all day.  

***

The next morning, Rita made her declaration.  

“As of today, I’m leaving the Mage Tower.”  

Silence fell over the administrative office, which managed the mages.  

The mages who knew Rita began to whisper among themselves.  

“Is that for real? She’s leaving the Mage Tower?”  

“I know, right? She used to do anything to curry favor. What’s with the sudden change? Did something happen?”  

“Honestly, I’m relieved. She was so arrogant.”  

“Yeah, there’s a limit to playing the adopted daughter. She hogged Talos’s schedule and kept other disciples from doing anything.”  

“What if she’s joining the underground? She and Talos seemed distant lately.”  

“Who cares? I hope we never see her face again.”  

The whispers and sneers stabbed at her from behind, but they didn’t faze Rita.  

“Rita!”  

As the news of her departure spread quickly, it drew in the ever-curious Blena, who burst through the door.  

Rita, rubbing her temple, looked at her.