“Hmm, maybe you’re right,” the old man said. “Also, Ms. Squirrel, I don’t like the way you’ve been eyeing me. I’m not a beast you can cut down.” Before I could respond, he pointed at me and said, “Topsy-turvy.”

Urk. I feel sick. Like I was flipped over onto my head but not really.

“You’re still standing?” the old man’s voice sounded surprised. “Then what about this? Upsy-daisy.”

Gah! What the heck!? When I want to move my hand, my foot moves instead! How am I supposed to beat him up like this!

“Amazing. As expected of a warrior who managed to escape my cage somehow. Then… twisty-turny.”

I’m going to throw up. What did he do now? Oh great, now moving my right arm moves my left leg. Just what I needed. Then I’ll use my qi to activate the unrelenting—

“And for good measure, wishy-washy.”

I can’t control my qi!? So this is the power of an eighth circle magician. No wonder why Bouncykins said the era of warriors was over. What can a warrior do without control of his qi?

“Teacher, I’m glad that you did something, but I’m the one who has to clean up her puke if she vomits, you know?” Ilya was concerned for all the wrong reasons! I’m dying here! Besides, I haven’t eaten in a very long time. There’s nothing for me to vomit out.

“That’s fine, silly girl. What did I teach you the clean spell for?” Rogath asked and snorted. His drunken demeanor was completely gone, replaced by the dignity one would expect from a high-ranking magician. He pointed at me again and said, “Wishy-washy.”

Stop doing that!

“You should still be able to speak just fine. Why don’t you say something?” Rogath asked.

“What am I supposed to say? You’re a bastard. There.”

Rogath burst out into laughter. “Excellent. The inheritor of the Godking’s legacy should have this much spunk at least. You don’t have to make a face like that; I’m not going to hurt you, I swear.” He scratched his chin. “Well, any more than I have already. Now, the reason I’m keeping you alive even though you wandered into my laboratory is simple. Did you know that the Godking’s legacy is split into two parts? The first part is the martial path with Durandal. The second part is the magical path with Vera. Since you’ve found the martial path, I suspect finding the magical path will be easier for you. Call it a hunch.”

“You mean, you want me to inherit Vera?” Ilya asked, her eyes widening. “You were serious about that!?”

Why does she look so startled? …And devastated?

“Of course, I was serious,” Rogath said with a nod. “Speaking of the Godking’s legacy, why hasn’t Durandal shown himself? I want to give that weapon spirit a good smack for ignoring me when I begged for his help as a child.”

Never reveal your weaknesses! “He doesn’t want to come out because he recognizes you.”

“Oh, really?” Rogath’s eyes narrowed. “Then what if I tortured you until you summoned him?”

“You said you wouldn’t hurt me! I’ll definitely bully your pupil if you do!”

“Bully her all you want. She’s a very meek girl. A little roughhousing will shape her right up.”

“Teacher! Are you really looking out for what’s best for me!?”

Wow. They sure have a nice relationship with each other. It’s like the relationship between Durandal and me. I’m a bit jealous. Why can’t Durandal wake up already? “Durandal’s a lot like you. He’ll let you torture me to build character.” I think he really would if he was awake.

“Huh. I see.” Rogath leaned over and took the bottle out of Ilya’s hand. He pointed at me again and said, “Wishy-washy.”

Apparently, it was only a temporary spell. And it’s not like I can’t control my qi; it just doesn’t move in the manner I’d like it to.

‘So what do you say?” Rogath asked. “Take my pupil with you on your journey. If anything happens to her, I’ll know and teleport over there to deliver punishment. She can also be very useful; it’s not like I’m throwing a completely useless burden on you.”

“Does that mean I’m partially useless then!? Teacher, why are you so mean!?”

“Can I refuse?”

“Ilya, take Durandal away from her.”

“So I’m not useless enough to do that?” Ilya grumbled and came over to me. I tried to get away, but ended up falling over instead. Stupid arm-leg nonsense spell. Don’t touch Durandal, you whore! “Eh? I can’t pick it up?”

“What do you mean?” Rogath asked and stood up. “Durandal should be bound to her, but anyone should be able to use him like a normal sword if they get their hands on him.”

“I’m serious; I can’t pick her sword up.”

“Let me try,” Rogath said and nudged his pupil aside. His hand was enveloped in a layer of green as he bent down to grab Durandal. He couldn’t lift Durandal’s weapon body enough to fully wrap his hand around the hilt. “What is this?” He shrugged and grabbed me instead. “Well, if we can’t move the horse away from the water, we’ll move the water away from the horse.”

And thus, I was dragged away and thrown into another cage. It took all of three minutes before I was begging them to let me out. Pride? Dignity? Forget that! Durandal is way more important! I get panic attacks when Durandal’s not somewhere on my body!

“That was a lot quicker than I thought.” Rogath had a strange expression on his face. Don’t judge me! “But you agree to bring my pupil along with you?”

“If she does anything suspicious, I’m going to kill her.” I’m not letting another Snow incident happen ever again!

“Did you hear that, Ilya? Don’t do anything suspicious.”

“Teacher!” Tears threatened to fall down Ilya’s face. “Please don’t do this to me! You’re entrusting my life to a complete stranger! I came here to learn magic from you, so why—”

“Magic stems from experience. Not just experience with the spell you are casting, but life experiences. Without traveling the world, you’ll never break through to the seventh circle. Haven’t you been stuck in the sixth circle for thirty years now?”

Thirty years!? What the heck! She looks like she’s thirteen! How old is she?

“Teacher…, you’re thinking about Elaine again. I’m Ilya, the third circle magician.”

“Ilya, Elaine, what’s the difference? They both have two syllables. Now get out of my sight.”

And that’s how I met my traveling companion, Ilya Pentorn, who’d later be celebrated as the first 13th circle magician.