To the Heavenly Moon Tower (2)
What the hell is this? A shopping list? Did he want me to go buy groceries before I left?
“It’s an application for the scribe position. Take it to the baron’s castle and hand it to the butler. You’ll be able to work as a scribe.”
“An application?”
I scanned the neatly written lines on the paper.
[Name: Juno]
[Age: 15]
[To the respected lord. I have lived under your benevolent protection, sustaining myself on the produce of a small plot of land alongside an elderly man in a mountain valley. Though he is not blood kin, the old man is a scholar of both virtue and refinement. He took pity on me, a boy with nowhere to go, and taught me letters, arithmetic, and the basic knowledge needed to survive. I can read and write, and through steady reading and study I have cultivated my composition and comprehension skills. I am also quite capable with numbers, possess an excellent memory, and adapt quickly…]
Was this a eulogy for the old man or an introduction for me? Either way, it wasn’t a shopping list. The content was eerily similar to the self-introductions I used to write until I was sick of them back when I was job-hunting. It was written from my perspective, yet I had never written this document. There was only one person who could have.
“You were scribbling something at the table earlier. This was it?”
“That’s right, you brat! If I left it to you, nothing but garbage would’ve come out. I decided to show off my elegant prose for once.”
“But something feels off. The applicant’s name is mine, not yours.”
Especially the part praising the old man was ridiculously exaggerated. I’d have to cut out the whole “virtue and refinement” bit. The more I read, the more sections I found that needed fixing.
“You’re always running around the market. Haven’t you heard the latest news?”
“What news?”
“A low-ranking scribe who used to work at the baron’s castle quit recently! How can a mage be so clueless about worldly affairs? Tsk, tsk, tsk.”
“So you want me to apply for the scribe position?”
“Can’t you tell just by looking? I already took care of everything.”
The moment I heard that, my face twisted. Altrong had never shown the slightest interest in my future. The same old man who used to agonize over whether to eat his chocolate cake in slices or all at once had gone out of his way to write a resume for me. Miracles really did happen. Had he finally matured in his old age?
“Did you eat something weird this morning? This isn’t like you at all. You never cared about my future before, so why the sudden change of heart?”
“You little punk, even when I do something nice you still complain?”
“The baron’s castle doesn’t hire just anyone. Scribes handle administrative work and record-keeping—actual office duties inside the castle. Why would they accept someone like me, a nobody from the slums?”
Obviously they’d pick someone with a stellar background.
“Just do as you’re told. If you submit the application, you’ll pass immediately. I’ve already bribed the butler, that sly old fox. Of course you’ll be accepted.”
He even used a bribe? I stared at Altrong with wide eyes, unable to believe what I was hearing. Who was Altrong? The very embodiment of a money-grubbing miser who would leap out of bed at the mention of coin. He never opened his purse unless it was for absolute necessities or chocolate cake, and the entire village knew him as a notorious tightwad. It was no wonder people called him things like “Money Serpent,” “Greed Incarnate,” and “Stingy Grandpa.” He was so obsessed with money that he would hoard the payment from crop deliveries all by himself and refuse to let anyone else touch it.
And yet this same old man had opened his coffers to pay a bribe? The Altrong I knew would never do such a thing. Had he really eaten something strange?
“I’ve already spoken with the butler. Everything’s arranged, so just do as I say. Learning the work might be difficult at first, but once you get used to it, being a scribe isn’t a bad job. You won’t have to do any heavy labor, the pay is stable, and it’s respected in society. You can even get promoted if you work your way up from the bottom.”
“……”
“For someone from the very bottom, there’s no better path to success. You’re quick with numbers and good at your tasks. You’ll earn the lord’s recognition in no time.”
Before I knew it, Altrong’s tone had grown solemn.
“If you had this kind of plan, you should have told me earlier.”
So that was why he had been running around during the day lately. He must have been busy scheming behind the scenes at the baron’s castle.
“……I appreciate that you’re looking out for me, but I’ve already made up my mind. You know how stubborn I am.”
“It’s not too late. You can still think it over—no, there’s nothing to think about. Give up on that nonsense about becoming a mage. I’ll explain everything to Lady Natasha. Sometimes a man has to say one thing and mean another.”
A gentle breeze swept through. The old man’s gaze followed the wind before sinking deep, as if recalling the past. Silence. After a moment, he slowly spoke again.
“Many people dream of becoming mages just like you. But a mage’s life is nothing like the romantic tales in storybooks. That splendid, beautiful appearance is nothing but a facade.”
“……”
“Strip away that false skin and what remains is something hideous, reeking of blood, nauseating, and hollow. Nothing but a grotesque, naked body made of filthy deeds.”
A heavy shadow seemed to drape over the old man’s voice. It carried a kind of sorrow and regret I couldn’t comprehend—a feeling born from storms I had never weathered. It was a gloomy tone I had never heard from him before.
“Becoming a mage is both a blessing and a curse. In the end, that path leads only to regret. Even so, do you still insist on walking it?”
Everyone’s dreams are different. But the reason people dream is usually the same. Because they want to.
Four years ago, back when I went hungry almost every day, my only wish had been to use magic to create endless bread. That innocent, modest dream had twisted into stubbornness somewhere along the way. It was the stubbornness born from the desire to challenge something I couldn’t obtain, mixed with grit and greed. Over time, that stubbornness became longing. Longing ignited into burning ambition.
I had come to love magic. I simply loved it. Even though I didn’t know how to use it. Even though my life had nothing to do with magic, my heart had been swept away by it. In a way, it was contradictory. Yet even knowing that contradiction, I found myself immersed in the unknown realm of magic, whether consciously or not. Whenever I read legends and stories about mages in books, the words would linger in my mind long after I returned to my chores. On days I dreamed of using magic, I would walk around grinning like an idiot the entire day.
Once, the vegetable shop uncle had shared a story about marriage. He said his wife was his first love, and that when he first met her, he had heard the sound of bells. The moment those bells rang in his ears, he had known—this was the person he would marry. Maybe falling for magic was something similar. It was fair to say magic had seeped into my heart like fate.
Altrong would probably dismiss it as the foolish courage of a reckless boy, but my feelings for magic were genuine.
This is the path I chose.
No matter what awaited me at the end, I wasn’t afraid. I was prepared to face it. What did it matter? Stories you couldn’t predict the ending of were always more fun. My only job was to step onto that stage and dance with magic, enjoying every moment.
“……”
I remained silent. Instead, I handed the application back to him. Altrong, who had read my wordless resolve, stared at the paper for a long time before snatching it away.
“……Foolish brat. One day you’ll remember my words.”
The bribe he had supposedly given the butler was a waste, but there was nothing I could do about it. He would handle it himself.
“Make sure you eat properly even without someone cooking for you. Try to tone down that temper of yours, and share a drink with the neighbors once in a while. Don’t forget to feed the dog, either. Anyway, stay healthy.”
“Tsk. You’re leaving, yet you still have to nag until the very end? Hurry up and get lost. I don’t even want to see your face!”
I bowed deeply to Altrong and descended the hill. When I reached the middle of the slope, I glanced back. Altrong sat alone, staring blankly into space, lost in thought. His hunched back looked especially frail—like that of any ordinary old man, not a mage.
A gentle breeze blew. Though the wind carried a hint of warmth, the old man’s bent back trembled as if chilled to the bone.
* * *
When I returned to the forest, I gathered my belongings from the house and the hut. All I had were a few sets of clothes and the emergency funds I had secretly stashed away.
“Are you ready?”
“Yes!”
Let’s do this! Natasha and I stood side by side in the yard of the hut, ready to depart for the magic tower. Natasha extended her arm and activated the teleportation circle. A bright light surged along the lines of the magic circle filled with symbols and patterns.
Patience is a virtue! After enduring under Altrong with nothing but sheer willpower, my day in the sun had finally come!
My heart pounded. A strange sensation of floating washed over me. At the same time, the dazzling light that had filled my vision scattered, and a new landscape greeted me.
“There. We have arrived.”
“……!”
I looked around and felt a shiver run down my spine. The forest that had surrounded me moments ago was gone. Beneath the blazing sunlight stood an endless, magnificent and imposing castle, radiating an aloof grandeur as it looked down upon me.
Natasha let out a small laugh as she watched my awestruck expression.
“You’ll catch flies with your mouth open like that.”
“I’ve never seen a castle this big in my life.”
The surrounding scenery was so breathtaking that I couldn’t help but react like a country bumpkin who had just arrived in the capital. I snapped my jaw shut and pressed my lips together to keep it from falling open again. My eyes darted around, taking in the architecture spread out before me. The styles were so varied and unique that it was hard to look away.
Incredible. It’s even bigger than I imagined.
According to the book The Magic Towers of the Continent, magic towers of all sizes existed throughout the world. A place this enormous had to be one of the most prominent towers.
“What magic tower is this?”
“The Heavenly Moon Tower.”
“……!”
“My young disciple. Welcome to the Heavenly Moon Tower.”
The Heavenly Moon Tower! The moment I heard the name, I couldn’t help but be shocked. After all—
The kingdom’s greatest magic tower!
It was the largest and most prestigious magic tower in the entire kingdom. I had never imagined that the tower Natasha worked at would be the Heavenly Moon Tower, so my earlier resolve not to look like a country bumpkin crumbled instantly. My mouth fell open again like an idiot.
No wonder everything looked so flashy.
But that was only the beginning.
“Tower Master, you have returned.”
“You’ve finally come back from your travels.”
“We greet the Tower Master.”
The moment the people of the tower spotted Natasha, they all bowed and greeted her. Natasha, clearly accustomed to such reactions, stood with her hands behind her back and nodded in acknowledgment. I felt a strange tingling at the back of my head.
“Lady Natasha, you’re the Tower Master?”
“Hm? Did I not mention it? I thought I did.”
……She absolutely had not. Natasha tilted her head, blinking her doe-like eyes. That expression on her face looked as though she genuinely believed she had already told me. It was possible to get confused after exchanging so much information in a short time, but there were limits to what one could misremember.
……Maybe that airheaded vibe I had sensed from the very beginning hadn’t been wrong after all.