Academic gathering with a lich-Chapter 63 - 60: 3 Choices

"Gurgle."

Lyle opened the window, and the tentacle climbed up his palm, transforming back into a ball in his hand.

"Are you a bit heavier?" Lyle weighed it in the palm of his hand, looking at its size that remained exactly the same, it seemed to be an illusion.

He placed the ball on his shoulder, picked up the magic wand, and Medusa watched the opened window with a thoughtful gaze, her words turning into a sly smile.

"Medusa! Don’t come in here, damn it, get out, stop moving!"

......

"Greetings, Alianna."

"Greetings, Plague Doctor."

Alianna cradled the teacup in her hands, sat down facing the night sky outside the window, and a breeze lightly lifted her veil. She looked like an exquisitely carved statue.

Today, Alianna was dressed in azurite blue, with a rose pinned to her headband. The elegantly subdued hues matched her ethereal presence, taking one’s breath away and lowering their voice unconsciously.

"Are you admiring the moon?"

"Just daydreaming. There’s nothing special about the moon, it’s no different from what I saw when I was little."

"Things remain the same, but people change, that’s all there is to it." 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

"My sister has been acting a bit strange lately," Alianna introduced a new subject.

"Is it Lady Helena that carved your magic wand for me?"

"Yes. Lately, I’ve been hearing her laughter a lot."

"Is that strange? Maybe she thought of something amusing."

"Would you laugh out loud alone in your room?"

"Occasionally... just a little bit, perhaps." The notion of someone laughing heartily alone in an empty room struck him as slightly eerie.

"My magic wand is finished. The dragon on it became alive, it even speaks, and its name is Medusa."

Lyle patted Medusa coiled around his neck to signal her to come out, but there was no response; her body didn’t move, as if it were truly made of wood.

Even under Lyle’s prompting, she tightened her grip around his neck, "Cough... cough... "

"She seems a bit uncomfortable," Lyle didn’t realize how laughable his poor excuse sounded.

"That’s nice; I wish my Helena could talk too."

Helena was a magic wand as long as a forearm, made entirely of ivory. It was straight and slender, with a rose-red gem at the very tip- simple yet luxurious, in Alianna’s hand it looked like a fairy’s wand.

A particularly rich fairy’s wand.

Perhaps sensing her disappointment,

Water tentacles wrapped around Alianna’s magic wand, and a water ball enveloped the gem.

"Gurgle."

"Gurgle?" Alianna mimicked the adorable onomatopoeic sound. The ball coalesced in her palm, and she patted lightly, drawing ripples with a ’*plop plop*.’

"Plague Doctor, your gift seems to like me."

Lyle smiled, "Nobody doesn’t like you."

"Mm, thank you."

She just accepted it calmly, did she? Considering Alianna’s enchanting voice, it seemed fairly normal.

"Speaking of which, the name Medusa truly brings back memories."

"The one from Greek mythology? The snake-haired Gorgon with the power to petrify."

"Yes, but the real Medusa doesn’t exist. Snake-bodied women do, but the idea that simply seeing their eyes causes petrification is pure fiction. Many mythological creatures are just a mix of reality and legend."

"Just knowing about the existence of snake-bodied women is quite fascinating to me."

"They all live in the shallows of the southwestern sea; you might encounter them someday."

Lyle almost lost his sense of time during his casual talk with Alianna.

"I still need to find Mr. Scholar, so I’ll take my leave now, Alianna."

"Okay." Handing back the water orb to Lyle, Alianna gave a slight wave as he departed.

Following the memories from last time, he arrived at a familiar spot.

It was a wall with no adornments, where he tapped the twenty-third brick from the bottom. There was no mechanism; it was just to maintain a courteous habit of knocking. Whether you could enter or not depended entirely on Mr. Scholar’s mood.

While you were not paying attention, the brick turned into a wooden door, which opened from the inside. A black-pointed hat, a light blue long robe, and a bird-feathered masquerade mask covered the face.

"Welcome, Plague Doctor," a gentle and full voice emerged from behind the mask, flowing like the graceful streams of autumn."

"Thank you, my lady," Lyle peeked inside; Mr. Scholar was sitting in his place, nodding towards Lyle.

"This is Miss Wenli, a witch."

"And also Mr. Scholar’s assistant," Miss Wenli added her own suffix with a smile, using her eloquence and composure as weapons. In just a few words, she took control—a lady with a powerful and assertive personality.

Lyle wasn’t very good at dealing with this type.

Neither was Mr. Scholar. He seemed almost bound to his chair. Whether it was books or pens, Miss Wenli would hand them over in a timely manner, and it seemed she did not miss any beat, firmly grasping Mr. Scholar’s every word and action.

"What’s the matter, Plague Doctor?"

"It’s about my talent; it has undergone a transformation," Lyle said, placing the orb on the table as a demonstration. Tentacles emerged from the orb and performed a jump rope routine in mid-air.

"It has even learned to cast spells."

"Oh~ It’s moving towards individuality; that’s serious~ I need to perform a comprehensive test as soon as possible. Oh, yes, Wenli, I need to ensure the Plague Doctor’s privacy, so..."

Without saying much or dawdling, Miss Wenli replied, "I understand, Mr. Scholar. I’ll wait outside the room. Don’t worry." She walked to the door and, before leaving, gave one last glance to Mr. Scholar, "No matter how long, I will wait. But, Mr. Scholar, if you forget me, I’ll be upset."

"...I understand."

The door closed tightly, and Mr. Scholar collapsed onto the desk.

Lyle, hunching slightly, glanced towards the door and whispered, "Has the Witch Council sent their top force?"

"In every sense of the word. Miss Wenli is already a powerful witch, and they say she’s only a step away from becoming a Witch Mother. The worst part is, she happens to be one of the beneficiaries from a witch hunt I once disrupted."

"Take care, Mr. Scholar. So, is my talent situation really that serious?"

"It has already acquired some spirituality and can cast spells—have you infused it like a magic wand material? You really are something. You’ve been exposed to magic for less than a week, haven’t you? You’re the most spirited magic novice I’ve seen, boldly messing with your talents."

"I didn’t do it on purpose."

"All excuses. You’re already halfway there; start preparing advanced materials and individualize your talent."

"Okay."

"I have three options for you. The Hereditary Method, the main ingredient is your bone powder; it ensures the talent’s personal logic, like another you. The advantage is its robustness; the disadvantage, it’s quite ordinary. The Planting Method, the main ingredient is a spiritual token; depending on the different materials you use, the results vary, creating an incarnation of a deity. The advantage is that its spellcasting abilities might be far stronger than yours; the disadvantage is that it could be far stronger than you in every way. The Endowment Method, the main ingredient is a Sword Dance Mandala; it will enhance your inspiration, elevate it to the point where you can concoct a personality out of thin air. Your talent will become whatever you wish for. The advantage is obvious; the disadvantage is its instability. Our thoughts are unfettered; you can never guess what you’ll think next. Rather than self-crafting, it’s more like letting fate decide."

"What’s your choice, Plague Doctor?" Mr. Scholar patted the water orb, its tentacles undulating in the air like an anemone. "What do you want it to become?"