Chapter 33
"Great, can I help you write a reply to scold her? I'm confident I can imitate your handwriting, can I add a little prank in it?"
"Virgil," Xerath stopped the overly excited Virgil, and Hyectra floated up and said, "Madam, do you need my help in replying?"
Xerath nodded with her eyes closed. Hyectra brought Xerath's set of writing tools from the library downstairs. Ink crawled out of the ink bottle like a snake and wrote "Dear Madam" on the old yellowed paper.
"Thank you very much for your letter. Your concern makes me very anxious. I have been carefully considering this issue recently, and I will not make a disappointing choice. Please don't worry too much about me. You can just sign it as you like."
The strange ink crawled slowly on the paper, leaving behind a clear trail.
"The second letter... it seems to be scolding you. Kivis Sauran, is that the 'annoying Kivis'?"
"Yes, did he say anything creative in his scolding?"
Virgil used a small knife to open the envelope, unfolded the two pages of paper, and said, "There isn't much important information, but it confirms that he is not very smart. I guess the zombie would be disappointed if it opened his head."
Xerath laughed, the paper floated away from Virgil's hand, Xerath glanced at it briefly, shrugged, and said, "He used almost every insulting word that can be used to insult women."
"Oh, this is a big project." Considering that Xerath has never been in a romantic relationship or even had a partner, about ninety percent of the things on this paper are completely made up, and ten percent are baseless accusations. Virgil shrugged, while Hyectra asked, "Miss, how should we respond to this letter?"
Your Excellency, it seems that you have spent your whole life collecting offensive words, but your achievements are worrying. I am deeply concerned about the higher education in your country and sympathize with the teachers.
As it is well known, there is no "spreading rumors and insults" method of refutation. I sincerely hope that after you pass your Logic Rhetoric make-up exam, you will write to me again. Looking forward to your reply."
Virgil pulled out the next letter, but found that the content was more or less the same. He read two words and then tossed it aside. Hyectra replied to each one according to a template.
Suddenly, Sylas grabbed Xerath's hand and looked up at her. Xerath was a little surprised and, when she lowered her head, received a warm hug from the little girl.
"What's wrong?"
Sylas smiled and said, "I think you will like it."
Xerath felt many different emotions and gently patted Sylas. It's nice to be trusted by others, but Virgil only trusted her based on past experiences, and Sylas only trusted her because she admired her.
This is not... this is not the kind of thing she wanted the most.
"Oh, hey, archmage, finally a friendly letter, it's from Diego."
The archmage suddenly stood up straight, "What did Diego say?"
Diego is Xerath's teacher, Master Emerson's first student. He is Xerath's senior, but this letter wasn't filled with anger, sorrow, advice, or criticism like the previous ones. It was just a short message saying that he joined the Mage Guild Supervisory Committee last month.
"When was this letter sent?"
"About two months ago."
"Hmm, congratulations to him. I wish him a bright future." She sat back down.
Hyectra had to add these few words to the letter. As she was about to fold it and put it in the envelope, Xerath suddenly said, "Wait, add a few more sentences, 'Please provide a list of children's books for beginners and any other important details to note. Looking forward to your reply.'"
There has always been a tradition for mages not to get married. Among Xerath's six senior apprentices, only Diego got married and has three children. It seems that consulting Diego is the only option for raising a child in a mage family.
When Virgil came this time, besides bringing the only communication tool to this isolated mage tower, his purpose was to discuss with Xerath how to sell the "demon beast bought for experimental purposes for Xerath." But now there is no need to sell it. He didn't have a reason to stay and left Aimekotes the next day, preparing to go south.
Leaving Aimekotes, Virgil rode on Pegasus and rubbed its ears, saying, "I had a feeling early on that Xerath would keep her. They really get along well."
Pegasus seemed skeptical, snorting and raising its tail. Virgil said, "Oh, don't doubt it, old partner. Xerath also needs someone to accompany her."
Sylas's wandering life came to an end in Aimekotes, in the deep reaches of the Elemental Gate's mage tower.
The tower's owner is the youngest archmage in history, Xerath, who is also famous for her sternness and beauty. Countless talented young men have desired to pursue this "highland flower in the ivory tower," but unfortunately, it seems that the highland flower intends to dedicate her life to her academic career.
The three-month experiment actually collected almost all the data within a month. The owner of Aimekotes, Elemental Archmage Xerath, plans to spend the remaining two months writing her thesis. Occasionally, she asks Sylas to help her with some experimental data. With the help of Shamodial, the tireless messenger who neither eats nor drinks, her communication with the outside world has become much faster. Sylas doesn't know who is writing to her, but judging from Xerath's expression, they are probably uplifting messages.
But Sylas's time playing with the water lord was canceled, replaced by endless spelling and reading training. For children, learning is definitely more painful than playing, but the only comforting thing is that Xerath will always be with her.
Sylas has a strong desire to learn, maybe because her teacher's face is so attractive. She has a momentum of learning nearly effortlessly when it comes to reading and writing. Xerath suspects that maybe Sylas's mother had taught her before, but it has been a long time, and she needs to inspire her again for her to remember.
"Sylas, have you learned spelling?"
"Spelling means putting each letter together. If you don't know how to read each word, you can learn."
"Great, you're learning quickly! Can you read stories by yourself now?"
Sylas shook her head honestly and said, "Not really, there are some words that I don't know the meaning of."
Xerath thought it was time to go out and buy things. She had some big dictionaries, but they weren't suitable for children to play with. And she didn't bring her childhood dictionary with her. Also, dictionaries like that get updated every two to three years.
It was a lovely day at the Elemental Gate, with a bright blue-purple sky over the vast desert. There were no big storms or elemental disturbances, only the sun and peaceful gravel. Instead of going to the laboratory or staying at the library, Xerath took Titus downstairs right after getting up in the morning. When they came back, Titus had turned into a huge magic wolf. It was wearing a saddle on its back and a silly muzzle on its mouth. Sylas curiously stared at them, and Titus hid behind Xerath, making whimpering sounds. Xerath waved at Sylas and said, "Today, I'm going to take you to... Withered Leaf City, a city north of the Elemental Gate. Do you remember the promise you made? This time, I need you to... try not to play with the elements, try not to go far away from me, and try not to be scared. No matter what, I will protect you, okay?"
Sylas nodded, not fully understanding.
Xerath nodded and put a light blue long-sleeved coat on Sylas. She held Sylas's hand and led Titus with the other hand, walking into the library together.
Sylas had hardly been inside before. It seemed to be Xerath's private area, a place Sylas wasn't allowed to enter. She felt a bit afraid and stood at the entrance, hesitating. Xerath immediately sensed her hesitation and turned to ask, "What's wrong?"
Sylas didn't speak, but Xerath could see her hesitation. She kindly comforted her, saying, "Are you afraid of the library? When we come back, I will show you the library properly. You are my student, and you should learn how to use it well. Come now."
Xerath led her into the depths of the library. It was bigger than any room she had ever seen, but she didn't dare speak. It was so quiet, and their footsteps echoed from all sides, just like the vast but inaccessible hallway underground.
They walked for a long time until they reached the end of a window. There was a magical device there, a white and exquisite stone ring, about the height of a person, hanging on a small ritual circle. It looked similar to the one outside the tower. Beside the circle, there was a finely carved runestone monument. Xerath released Titus's leash, recited a long spell, and the runes on the stone ring lit up with golden magic. Xerath pulled her inside, while Titus curled up, almost wrapping them both.
A white light flashed, and the feeling of the spinning world was unsettling. Sylas stumbled and suddenly felt overwhelmed by the noisy surroundings. She softly exclaimed, "Ah." The elements around her began to stir, but Xerath raised her hand and drew several symbols in the air, suppressing the elemental disturbance.
This was a very tall hall, with several identical ritual circles around. Xerath led her down from the stone platform. There was not a single person around, but the sound of bustle came from the large doors at the other end of the hall.
"This is the Mage Guild of Withered Leaf City. Mage towers are usually built in hard-to-reach places, so for easier travel, there is a ritual circle that connects to the main hall of a Mage Guild. Aimekotes' ritual circle connects to Withered Leaf City."
"Wow..." the little girl exclaimed, stunned, as she looked up. The Mage Guild was quite wealthy, and the hall was supported by many exquisite pointed arches. Delicate gray marble lifted the soaring ceiling, appearing weightless. Stars and candles hung down from the ceiling, and in the center, there was a huge celestial globe, as if it recreated the entire sky.
Xerath herself also enjoyed such decorations, and Sylas's taste seemed surprisingly similar to hers.
It was not surprising. Sylas was born with an appreciation for the rational beauty of magic, so she surely had no resistance to such decor. Xerath wondered if she should buy her a mini celestial globe to hang in her room.
