Rorschach still had his Communication Scroll for contacting Kano, which was essentially a direct line to him. He used it to get a letter of introduction as quickly as possible.

This trip changed from a personal leave to return home into an academic visit to the Tower of Secret Techniques.

A staff member from the Guild arranged for two horses, and they rode out of Munich for half a day.

"Is there no other way in?" They rode up the mountain. Having spent so much time in carriages recently, Rorschach was finding it hard to get used to the jolting of being on horseback.

"My apologies, Mage Rorschach. Since this is your first time visiting the Tower of Secret Techniques, the Teleportation Gate there would reject you. We can only travel there like this."

"Thank you for taking the trouble."

"It’s no trouble at all. Look, you’ll see it as soon as we’re out of this forest."

To Rorschach’s surprise, the Tower of Secret Techniques sat openly atop a sprawling mountain range. The building’s style was classical, its color scheme dark and somber from spire to base, a stark contrast to the lush green vegetation surrounding it. It stood on the peak of a hill, with a village built along a mountain stream at its foot.

’That doesn’t fit the name,’ Rorschach thought, and couldn’t help but say, "I thought the ’Tower of Secret Techniques’ wouldn’t show itself so easily."

"There’s a large Barrier, but it only hides the tower and the village below under special circumstances. It’s been like this since I was a child."

"You’re familiar with this place?"

The staff member wore a complex expression. "I was born in the village at the foot of the mountain. I was fortunate enough to awaken a Casting Ability and enter the Tower of Secret Techniques to study."

But as Rorschach glanced over, he noticed the man wore no Mage Robe or badge. Sensing Rorschach’s questioning gaze, the man explained, "But I left after my apprenticeship and chose to make a living at the Guild. Many other apprentices do the same. Coming here with you today is a good chance for me to visit home."

"That sounds nice, too."

The Tower of Secret Techniques was known for being difficult to enter and even more difficult to graduate from. Any Mage from the Tower of Secret Techniques, when recalling their time as an Apprentice, would tearfully tell you that their seven years of study there were the most unforgettable fifteen years of a decade of their life.

If asked whether studying for so long made them more powerful than other Mages, they would just cry harder: "We didn’t learn Magic; we learned the philosophy and skills to understand and reshape the world! Do you get it? Because I sure don’t."

"Yeah, it’s nice." The apprentice who had given up in his ninth year of a seven-year program rode alongside the young Middle Level Mage, a complex mix of emotions swirling within him.

The road ended, but a ravine still separated them from the Magic Tower. They set foot on a stone bridge.

"This is Immanuel Bridge. Once you cross it, you will officially be in the Domain of the Tower of Secret Techniques. Mage Rorschach, I’ll be on my way. On your return trip, you can use the Teleportation Array to go straight back to the Guild." The staff member turned his horse and galloped down a side path toward his birthplace.

"Thank you..." Rorschach trailed off. ’He seemed to leave in a real hurry,’ he thought. ’Almost like he was fleeing.’

Someone was already waiting when Rorschach reached the entrance. The lady who greeted him wore a wide, pointed hat and a fur cloak, and she held a tall Magic Staff. ’What a classic mage!’ he thought. Set against the temperate mountains and the classical tower, the scene looked like it could be the startup screen for a cRPG, and Rorschach felt a genuine sense of awe.

Rorschach pulled the reins and swung himself off the horse. At that moment, a large dog darted out from behind the woman’s cloak. It nudged Rorschach’s leg with its wet nose, its tail wagging furiously.

"He was a former student of mine. I watched him grow up..." The woman’s gaze was still on the path leading down to the village. ’Maybe the apprentice who dropped out didn’t want to face his old teacher,’ Rorschach mused.

"Hello. I’m Rorschach, from the Tower of Stars." He introduced himself this way as he was representing the Tower of Stars for this visit.

"Elizabeth Ouyeni, of the Tower of Secret Techniques." Only then did Rorschach get a clear look at the face under the wide brim of her hat. She was glamorous and beautiful, with a dignified, noble smile, but the eyes sizing him up were exceptionally sharp and lively.

"Mage Elizabeth... I feel like I’ve heard your name before." Her demeanor, which combined the poise of a noblewoman with the spirit of a young maiden, reminded Rorschach of his teacher, Caroline, and the name itself was very familiar. It wasn’t because of the famous daughter of a miser from a novel in his past life, but because he was sure he’d heard it from Bart at some point.

"It seems you know a bit about the nobility of Bayern." The two of them started walking toward the Tower of Secret Techniques, while the large dog led Rorschach’s horse off to who-knows-where.

"You’re Princess Sophie’s older sister!" Rorschach suddenly recalled Bart’s introduction to the members of the Royal Family. The woman before him was the Eldest Princess. If Princess Sophie was forty-eight, then Elizabeth Ouyeni had to be over fifty, yet she looked no older than thirty. ’I’ve never met Princess Sophie, so I wonder...’

"Yes, but I am no longer associated with the Wittelsbach Clan. There is no Princess here." Her voice was light and ethereal, and her soft whisper had a captivating quality that made you want to lean in to listen. The big gray dog returned and began circling them happily.

In the center of the foyer stood a tall Golden Throne. A draconic sculpture was seated upon it in a human-like posture, its imperious eyes gazing down on any who entered. Its massive claws had fused with the floor, and its scales transitioned from iron-black at the bottom to a dark, rust-like red at the top.

"That is the Guardian Beast, the last Red Dragon in all of Bayern."

"A real Dragon? Then why can’t I see its tail?" ’It’s already weird for a quadruped to be sitting on the Golden Throne like a person,’ Rorschach thought. ’The throne back isn’t hollow, but I don’t see a tail anywhere.’

"Legend says that long, long ago, a Magic experiment in the Tower of Secret Techniques blasted through the earth, releasing a Demon imprisoned deep below. The Great Mage Casdemor subdued the Demon that broke the seal and ordered his pet Red Dragon to plug the breach with its tail."

"Over time, through continuous magical rituals, the Red Dragon’s will became the Tower Spirit, and its physical body became part of the tower itself. It can draw Magic Power from the earth’s ley lines to supply the entire tower. As long as the Dragon is here, the tower stands; as long as the tower stands, the Dragon is immortal."

’There’s a hole in the seat, which makes it a golden toilet!’ Rorschach thought, looking up with newfound respect. To his surprise, the statue-like Red Dragon spoke, its voice booming. "Rorschach, son of the Tower of Stars! To set foot in the land I guard, you must answer three questions!"

’There’s a test?’

Rorschach tensed slightly as the majestic voice echoed through the foyer: "First, have you got a girlfriend, kid? Second, what’s your annual income? And third, when are you going to get promoted to Great Mage?"

"Pay it no mind. All Dragons are lustful, greedy, and snobbish," Mage Elizabeth said, walking right past it and deeper into the tower.

’That scared the life out of me. For a second, I thought I was back at a family holiday dinner with a dozen nosy aunts,’ Rorschach thought. "Am I allowed to beat that thing up?"

"You may. Then you would have to take its place and become the new Tower Spirit and Tower Guardian Beast. I don’t know if there’s a real Demon under the Golden Throne or not, but you’re welcome to find out. I, for one, am rather curious." ’No, absolutely not,’ Rorschach thought. ’Sitting on the Golden Throne means I’d be responsible for supplying the entire tower with Magic Power. I’d be sucked dry and turned into a husk!’

Once they were past the foyer, the true nature of the Tower of Secret Techniques’ interior was revealed.

Each floor was a rectangular gallery surrounding a vast central atrium. Rorschach tilted his head back but couldn’t see the ceiling, only countless Magic Lamps floating in the open space. The tower clearly didn’t have this many floors when viewed from the outside; it was taller than any skyscraper. Like the Tower of Stars, its interior space had clearly been expanded, only this one stretched vertically.

"AAAAAAAHHHHH—" Someone leaped from a hundred-some floors above, their scream piercing through the entire tower. Just as their head was about to smash into the ground, long before Rorschach could even think to act, they were snatched up by two Gargoyles with flapping, bat-like wings and dragged away like a sack of potatoes.

After confirming the Apprentice’s attempt had failed, Elizabeth apologized to Rorschach. "Pardon me. The apprentices are under a great deal of stress, and this is a rather common occurrence in the tower. Now then, Mage Rorschach, what brings you to the Tower of Secret Techniques?"