Chapter 209
Chapter 209
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 209
Chapter Title: A Place to Rest One's Body (1)
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Yareli Iceeye.
She was the one who had shown Oliver around when he first arrived at the Magic Tower, and later came asking about Kevin's class schedule.
Oliver had guessed she wasn't an ordinary person from the high-quality mana she possessed, but Kevin's explanation revealed it was more than that.
She wasn't just skilled; she had a solid background as well.
'Direct lineage of the prestigious Iceeye magic family, granddaughter of the current One Master of the Scadi School. No further explanation needed. And her magic skills are on par with a professor's.'
Professor-level meant she could serve as a combat mage in the military without issue. Impressive for someone so young.
Kevin had said that if Yareli wanted, she could graduate early, skipping grades entirely, thanks to her exceptional talent.
Yet she chose not to, out of her principled nature.
Of course, she wasn't content with mere student-level education either. She leveraged her family's connections and assisted other professors with research, amassing knowledge beyond her peers while diligently self-improving.
The point was, someone like her had signed up for Kevin's class.
Word spread quickly, of course, leading other students to sign up as well and keeping Kevin busy.
The interesting part was Kevin's reaction.
He seemed genuinely displeased by the situation and harbored some resentment, but he had no intention of running away or cutting corners.
Regardless of his personal feelings, a sense of duty and ambition greater than his complaints drove him to fulfill his responsibilities.
Not bad at all.
Oliver couldn't read his mind—his thoughts were too complex—but even if things weren't going according to plan, Kevin's attitude of doing his best in the current circumstances was admirable.
Inspired, Oliver followed Kevin's instructions and quickly sorted the documents.
By grade, affiliation, sub-school, grades, and so on, making them easy to review.
Among them were students from schools other than the Elemental School.
Oliver marked their files separately as per his notes, ensuring nothing was overlooked.
Space School, Moirae School, Life School, Pure Mana School, and more.
By the time he finished, it was around 12:30.
Oliver had a light lunch with the bread, jam, apple, and milk he'd brought, then headed straight to Kevin as soon as the lunch break ended, handing over the organized documents.
Kevin looked busy with his sudden schedule, but upon examining Oliver's work, he raised one eyebrow.
Surprise, admiration, satisfaction—all flickered in his expression.
Looked like the document sorting he'd learned from Forrest wasn't wasted effort.
Oliver was thrilled.
"Useful work."
"Thank you. Is there anything else you need?"
"...I need materials to prepare the lesson content. Can you borrow these books from the library—the ones listed here?"
Impressed by Oliver's skills, Kevin pondered briefly before assigning another task. Oliver accepted gladly.
He hadn't felt entirely comfortable enjoying free perks like the Magic Tower job and vacation, so being helpful like this was a relief.
More than that, assisting with the work benefited Oliver greatly.
Hard to explain, but helping Kevin gave him a glimpse into the Magic Tower's structure and operations.
He'd originally taken the job to access the library and attend classes, but this wasn't bad either.
It let him learn beyond the narrow field of magic, broadening his horizons.
Anyway, he was enjoying it thoroughly.
With genuine gratitude for the opportunity—however brief—Oliver headed to the library without delay.
"Oh..."
The door slid open naturally as he held up his staff ID.
Oliver stared in admiration.
He was so captivated that instead of stepping right in, he stood there observing and analyzing the automatic door's mechanism.
He suspected it was thanks to the World Tree connected to the Tower.
He couldn't grasp the exact principle, but it seemed like a system had been enchanted onto that World Tree branch.
One that opened the door upon detecting a specific mana pattern.
Fundamentally the same as handing over money at a shop and receiving goods.
To verify, Oliver held his ID to the World Tree branch by the door again.
The mana from the ID meshed with the Tree's like puzzle pieces, and the door opened once more.
"Hm, hmm...!"
As Oliver fiddled around by the entrance, a woman who appeared to be a librarian glared at him, frowning.
Irritation, displeasure, annoyance, contempt, disdain, scorn—a parade of negative emotions crossed her face.
Only then did Oliver realize his mistake.
Kevin had warned him not to do anything that would get him in trouble at the Tower, and he'd already forgotten.
Oliver passed through the automatic door into the library and gave a slight bow of apology to the librarian.
She ignored the gesture and returned to her seat.
Students sitting nearby snickered at the sight.
Well, it wasn't incomprehensible. Automatic doors were everyday here.
But for Oliver, who'd never seen such a thing, it was fascinating.
Beyond the principle, the very idea of using a World Tree that way was brilliant.
Automatic vs. manual door— the effort difference was negligible, but the technology signified a vast gap.
In terms of time? Maybe a hundred or two hundred years.
No wonder the City kept the Magic Tower and its mages in check.
The City might win in scale, but the Tower's tech was threatening enough to worry even them. At least, that's how Oliver saw it.
"Really interesting..."
Oliver muttered softly as he surveyed the library.
The vast space, comparable to Merlin's mansion library, maintained a comfortable temperature via magic, with soundproofing spells in each section for user convenience.
Quite luxurious.
'Ah, there it is.'
Oliver approached a massive machine in one corner.
Called the 'WAD-3' or 'Ward-3,' it was a joint creation of the Moirae and Magic Engineering Schools.
A safety device that let you use the World Tree by paying with mana.
Its functions were extremely limited, but it allowed even non-Net Navigators to access the Tree—a remarkable invention.
First time seeing it, let alone using it.
Yet Oliver operated it deftly, searching for the books Kevin requested.
He supplied the mana from his own reserves, and having memorized the usage from the [Facility Rules and Methods] Kevin gave him last time, it was straightforward aside from initial awkwardness.
'But it's odd. Convenient, sure, but why design it to consume the user's mana? They could use magic stones or liquefied fuel... Is it some kind of training?'
Musing on Ward-3's inconveniences, Oliver noted the locations of the needed books and moved quickly.
Sixty books total—twenty per subject.
Fortunately, all available for loan.
Grabbing a cart for the books, Oliver started from the nearest shelf.
"H-b012."
"H-d020."
"H-f121."
"J-a001."
.
.
.
.
Following his notes, Oliver loaded the books onto the cart one by one.
One book, two, three—they piled up gradually.
In between, he skimmed others, checking for anything interesting.
Nothing stood out—until one book caught his eye.
[Druidic Nature Affinity and Its Integration with Magic].
'Druids, huh.'
Curiosity piqued, Oliver reached for it.
Thud! Thud!
The moment his hand touched it, someone else placed theirs on it a beat late.
A tall man with red hair and pale skin—the picture-perfect United Kingdom noble from an ad.
He smiled at Oliver.
"Mind if I take this one? I need it right now."
His words were polite, but his emotions were the opposite.
He didn't really need the book. There was malice in testing Oliver, probing for something.
'Hmm...'
Oliver hesitated briefly, then nodded and withdrew his hand.
It piqued his interest personally, but it wasn't urgent. Besides, he was on the job.
The redhead smiled, thanked him—insincerely, but that didn't matter.
Finishing the task at hand was what counted.
Or so Oliver thought.
After securing 59 of the 60 books, he encountered the redhead again at the last one.
Only one copy left, naturally.
The man placed his hand on it a beat after Oliver, as if on purpose.
"What a coincidence. Meeting here again. Mind letting me have it? I need it now."
Another lie. Oliver replied.
"I'm afraid that's not possible."
"Thanks... What?"
Surprise and displeasure flashed on the redhead's face at Oliver's changed response.
But there was no helping it.
The previous book had no relation to work, but this one was on Kevin's list.
Duty.
Oliver explained politely and asked for understanding, but the redhead seemed uninterested.
For some reason, he looked down on Oliver and disliked him; now, a faint hostility emerged from the refusal.
He paused, then yanked his arm.
Aiming to wrest it by force.
But the book didn't budge.
Since leaving the beggar gang, Oliver had steadily built basic fitness as Kant instructed, and recently undergone Dinkleage's muscle training—his strength had grown noticeably.
In fact, he might even yank it away if he pulled.
'But should I?'
Oliver pondered. His status here was mere staff, while the other was a student.
One with a background, judging by appearance and confidence.
Best not to cause friction.
As he debated how to complete the task without conflict, the redhead drew up mana—mildly, not intensely.
He prepared to cast a spell in that state—
"What are you doing making noise in the library?"
A woman with silver curly hair and thick glasses, arms full of books pressed to her ample chest, spoke up.
Yareli Iceeye.
Surprisingly, the redhead apologized immediately and backed off at Yareli's appearance.
A mix of fondness, wariness, and reluctance to displease her.
His overflowing confidence melted away easily—quite the sight.
Thanks to her, Oliver secured the last book without issue and thanked Yareli for the help.
She hadn't intended to assist, but the result was the same.
Yet she rejected his thanks—not out of humility, but resentment toward him.
"I just came because it was noisy. No need to thank me."
Her words were polite, but the tone icy.
She turned to leave. Oliver asked.
"Did I do something wrong, by chance?"
She paused, something there.
"What?"
"Just... You seem displeased with me."
"No, not at all."
Yareli brushed it off, hiding her true feelings. She didn't want to engage.
Oliver had no clue what he'd done, and no way to press further, so he nodded.
What could he say? Things seemed tangled since his vacation.
"Hmm..."
"Mind if I say something?"
Yareli stopped and turned back. She felt compelled to speak.
"Please do."
"The Magic Tower is the most important facility adorning this city."
"Yes, I've heard."
"Given its importance, plenty dream of even stepping foot here. Using the library is an enormous privilege."
"Yes, I understand. Like the automatic doors."
Oliver spoke sincerely, but her brow furrowed again. As if he'd made a lame joke.
She seemed about to retort, then cut it short. She hated wasting emotions.
"I don't know what young master background you come from, but while enjoying these privileges, do your job properly. No slacking. Those who don't do their work right in youth won't even have a place to lay their body in old age."
"......?"
"That's all."
Yareli turned and left the library.
Oliver pondered her parting words, but they remained puzzling.
He was house-hunting tomorrow, after all.
"Ah, rental? No, purchase."
"Just sign here, and this house is yours for the next three years."
The L District real estate agent slid the papers over to Oliver.
Oliver signed immediately and handed over the bag of cash.