The Ascendant Wizard

She was a bit impatient, but she waited for the bell before she made her way to the room where Verra stayed.

Arriving at the door, she knocked on it, waiting for a reply.

"Enter."

Morena pushed the door open and stepped in, taking a quick glance around the room, which was the same as before. Verra sat behind her desk, looking through a thin stack of parchment.

"Close the door."

She spoke without looking up from her paper, and Morena did as she requested. The moment the door shut, Verra placed the papers down and finally looked at her.

"So, you decided to accept the offer. What made you change your mind?"

"I did, I realized you were right. Spells are expensive and rare. I couldn’t find any that suited me."

"Good. Then listen carefully, because I will not repeat myself more than necessary."

Morena remained standing, hands folded calmly in front of her. Verra reached into her drawer and took out a small token; she threw it over to her.

"This will give you access to the lower third floor. Not the entire floor, only the south storage passage and the room at the end of it."

Morena looked at the token she had caught, placing it in her pocket.

"How long will the permission last?"

"Until tonight. You have until then to return it to me."

"You want me to do it tonight? Isn’t it dangerous to be out at night in the tower?"

"It is, but I want it done before anyone notices. Too many people have their eyes on me, which is why I need you."

Morena couldn’t help but shift her gaze. Saying something like that, with such a look, would make it hard for some people to tell her no, but Morena was not that easy.

"Do not look so surprised. The Tower records everything, but not everyone can read everything. A short permission window is less likely to invite questions."

"So this is not officially assigned."

"It is officially permitted."

"Fine, what does the thing look like?"

"The box you need is in Storage Room S-13. It is black wood, about the length of your forearm, sealed with three silver rings. There should be a faded mark on the lid."

"Should be?"

She noticed Verra’s eyes wander slightly before focusing on her again.

"The lower storage rooms are old. Some records are incomplete."

Morena didn’t bother questioning the age of the tower; instead, she was curious about the box.

"What’s inside?"

"Some old material."

"Is that all you’re going to give me?"

"You don’t need to know any more beyond that."

Fine, she wasn’t going to try to pry into the Wizard’s business; that could end badly. Instead, she just wanted to confirm one final thing before setting off.

"Is it dangerous?"

Verra did not answer immediately, and that alone told Morena that it could be.

"It should not be dangerous if left sealed. Just don’t open it and don’t let anything happen to it."

That didn’t sound very reassuring, but she had already agreed to do it, and she needed what was offered. With a sigh, she went along with it.

"You are cautious. That’s good, keep it up, only the cautious can survive in this world."

Morena felt the faint urge to refuse rise again, but pushed it down.

"One last thing, anything in particular that I need to look out for down there? Not just the box, but this place is weird."

Verra ran her fingers along the desk as she thought.

"Do not follow voices."

Morena’s brows twitched.

"Voices?"

"Sometimes people hear things in the lower rooms. It’s a mess of things, really, but for the most part, just don’t follow it and you’ll be fine."

Creepy voices that made perfect sense in this place.

"Is that it?"

"Ah, the classroom. If you see a classroom, then you need to leave."

"A classroom?"

"Yes."

"In a storage room?"

"Yes."

Verra spoke as if that was perfectly normal.

"The Tower has existed for a long time. Parts of it are older than you could understand. Some rooms are not as stable as they should be; the lower third floor is not forbidden because it is deadly. It is restricted because it is irritating, unreliable, and occasionally difficult to explain."

"Okay, if that’s all, I’m going now."

"Alright, be careful not to die, as cleaning up your mess will be troublesome. And again, don’t let anyone know of this."

"What if I can’t find the box?"

"Then come back without the box."

"That’s all?"

Turning around, she made her way towards the door, pausing at it for a moment.

"I’ll return with the box."

"Good."

The corridor outside was empty as apprentices didn’t come around this part of the tower very often, espically not at this hour.

She walked without haste.

The south stairs were not difficult to find. The Tower’s layout had slowly become more familiar to her, at least in the public areas. But as she descended below the main study floors, the air changed.

The stones looked aged, the lamps became fewer, and the sound of apprentices faded until only her own footsteps remained. The stairwell spiraled downward.

[Ambient mana density increasing.]

[Temperature drop detected.]

The AI prompted a notice on its own as she reached a sealed archway with a massive statue standing in front of it. As she approached, the statue released a light that scanned her badge, then the seal opened to allow her through.

The corridor ahead brightened one lamp at a time until eventually she could see everything. But even then, she did not move immediately.

"AI. Monitor everything and warn me if there’s even a slight disturbance."

[Acknowledged.]

[Monitoring active.]

She took a slow breath, then activated Sensory Pulse.

"Sensory Pulse."

As the faint wave of mana burst out, the feedback returned quickly, forming a mental map that the AI properly used.

From the initial burst, it detected no movement or people in general, just the place. The corridor extended further than she expected, with several side doors marked by faded plates. S-07. S-08. S-09.

Storage Room S-13 was at the end.

As she moved, she noticed the scent: dust, old parchment, and something faintly sweet beneath it. It wasn’t pleasant, but also not rotting; it was like flowers left too long in a closed room.

After the first few doors, she heard a whisper.

"...again..."

Morena stopped.

"AI."

[No external speaker detected.]

’Thought so.’

She quickly figured that this was most likely the voices that Verra had mentioned, so she did the only reasonable thing and ignored them completely.

The further she walked, the more sounds she heard, but she kept her head forward and mind empty. Eventually, she stopped in front of a plain wooden door with a broken plate that read S-13.

Before entering, she cast Sensory Pulse again.

The pulse passed through the door poorly, but enough feedback returned to form an impression.

The AI expanded the map to take note of the shelves, boxes, and the large room; there was still no movement detected in it.

As she pushed open the door, the space behind it suddenly warped. The room behind the door stretched further than it should have been, and the shelves repeated in uneven lines, as if the same space had been copied and placed over itself.

Morena’s eyes narrowed.

"Some sort of spell? Magical interference? AI, any records?"

[Possible causes: mana interference, layered storage formations, inaccurate pulse return, or unstable room structure.]

"That much is clear. Is there any solution or danger?"

[Risk level: Unknown.]

"Not very helpful."

Well, she was already here, and the boxes were in sight. She just had to go in and grab the one she needed, so, ignoring the weird space, she walked into the dark room.

The lamps inside lit only after she stepped over the threshold, one by one, with the same slow waking rhythm as the corridor.

Shelves lined both walls, filled with old boxes and old items of the likes; everything was covered in dust from head to toe. But oddly enough, there weren’t any cobwebs or bugs.

As she moved further in, her stern voice rang out, causing her to freeze in her spot.

"Begin from the first principle. The apprentice who cannot control mana cannot control the world."

She looked around, trying to figure out where the sound was coming from, only to notice chalk marks appearing on one of the walls.

"Residual teaching tool?"

The chalk marks shifted, forming basic mana diagrams she had seen in class before, but warped slightly, as if it was drawn with shaking hands.

’Is it trying to lure me in?’

"S-13. Black wood box."

[Search parameters set.]

She moved along the first shelf, scanning each box with her eyes before touching anything. Most of the labels had faded beyond recognition, but she didn’t need to; with the help of Sensory Pulse and the AI, she was able to scan multiple things at once.

From the back of the room, the man’s voice continued.

"Again. If you fail to maintain the model, you will fail to maintain yourself."

The words pressed uncomfortably close to her recent experience, but she once again chose to ignore it and move on.

As she tried to move deeper in, the room around her suddenly shifted and bent; the shelves extended and then suddenly pulled in. It was like a great shift, rearranging the entire space.

The entrance was gone, and in its place was another shelf, packed with identical lesson slates.

For a moment, she felt irritation more than fear.

"Of course."

[Spatial layout changed.]

"Find the door."

[Mapping...]