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Chapter 164: The World In His Eyes

If there was anything that Timothy would have to credit to his frie—to Han, the guy who had forced him. Well, to the idiot that invited him to Kraelonia Academy. He had to give credit to the way that his mind worked. From throwing beer bottles at Gargoyles, running off in the city when there was trouble in the air and actually searching for him at the library. The man had his share of ideas, thoughts and things that could have driven him mad.

And right now though was the complete opposite. His mind wasn't working overtime and trying to think of a way to get himself out of this mess, his thoughts slowed down for a moment. And his eyes met an intensity and hue that was incomparable to anything he had seen before.

Timothy Cook had seen a lot of things.

One didn't need to judge him that he came from one of the furthest villages when one started from the City of Gloria. That only meant that the sights he'd seen were things that the others hadn't seen before. People like the Nobleman couldn't have even possibly seen if they were all cooped up in their mansions and attended balls, or whatever the Nobles actually did.

His experience was more visceral.

He had seen the rolling deep waves in the Rocky Cliffs, and it was unending dark blue that called him to enter its depths. He had visited the Enchanted Forest when he was younger, its lush green hue that beckoned one to venture deeper into the woods. He had read and imagined the voyages and adventures that the Heroes he'd read in his books, people who've undergone dungeons and trials and claimed treasure from a majestic Dragon's hoard or capturing the feather of Immortality from a fiery Phoenix.

But that wasn't all of it for him.

The latest thing he had seen that rendered him speechless was the library beneath Kraelonia Academy. He thought he had walked into the Hidden Sanctuary of Knowledge. From the large expanse of books, tomes, scrolls, and grimoires of varying shapes and sizes. Mana and magic had coursed through the air at that time. And it had cast the place in a mystical light that reached his soul—

But the thing in front of him right now? It was originally silver, but he couldn't pinpoint what the colors were now. The intersecting lights crossed, bounced, and reflected off each other and never stayed still. One moment he had seen a reddish hue that shifted to blue, and yet there were many more lights than he could focus on.josei

If the stories about the Mermaids and the Sirens of the depths were true—then this was enchantment in visual form. He was aware of Illusions, and yet he knew that the light in front of him didn't do anything to captivate him, but it still did. It drew him forward, and his mind couldn't help but recall the etchings in the library. The ones underground were possibly a millennium old, and the thing right in front of him was no doubt new but—

The lights flickered off.

And the world around him darkened. The colors that he had seen were vibrant, glowing and gleaming—and so the muted stone walls of Kraelonia Academy were gray and boring even. Timothy couldn't believe that he was using the word boring for the learning institution, but he had already said it.

He rubbed his face and sat down for a moment.

His head spun, and he heard the same sound of Han plopping down to the floor. He could only imagine the strain of mana that it cost him to do that, Timothy glanced back at Han and only to see them covering their face with his hands. Was he bleeding from all of the orifices? "Han, are you dying right now?" He wasn't so sure, the words he said were grave, and he was worried... but he wasn't actually that worried.

The way their body was slightly hunched over meant they were stressed.

But it could have possibly from the strain of using too much mana. And it was supposed to be a Tier 0 Spell, but was the magnitude of Han's Spell actually deserving the term Tier 0? If Timothy were to give his biased interpretation—its scale and the sheer amount of stress to make it, all those flickering lights and how Han made them glow.

If that wasn't a Tier 4 Light Spell then he didn't know what was what.

The book of Hundred Evocation Spells lay down on the floor, and he could imagine that Han dropped it, but he wordlessly picked up and leafed through the books. He skipped through the Tier 0, 1, and 2 in search of any Spell similar to what he had done.

[ Illumination ] was a stronger form of [ Light ] that was a Tier 3 Spell, and though, the text described it as difficult and tedious, it was because the range of the lights could actually illuminate hundreds of feet depending on the talent of the Mage. It made him scratch his head, the lights weren't as powerful in that way so maybe it was actually just Tier 2?

He flipped back a few pages and saw [ Firefly Lights ], and though it described flickering lights, the colors weren't what Han did either. Timothy didn't even know why he was poring through the Spell Book, he could just ask Han. "Oi, Han."

"W...What is it? I'm tired."

Timothy clicked his tongue. He knew it, and he probably should have stopped the guy when he made the odd glowing green light first. But he couldn't regret it anymore, and he scratched the back of his head, "What kind of lights were those? Was it... the lights of justice you were talking about?"

"What? No. No. I mean, the light? It was green but not like that, and you could—actually, let me just shut up." Han buried his face back into his hands.

Timothy's face scrunched up at their reaction. They were acting pretty pathetically right now for some reason—hadn't they done what they wanted to do? If Han could actually just show those strange combinations of colors to Professor Carnus... well, the man wasn't going to pass them for no reason, but it was still enough to impress them, no doubt.

But the word 'light of justice' struck him for a moment.

He had actually read about a Hero of Light before. "You don't happen to be someone who adored the long-gone Hero known as Lucem, do you? I mean, he has pretty cool Light affinity Skills, but the Spell you made doesn't seem something like he'd make." Timothy skimmed through the Hundred Evocation Spell Book, "He's actually more known for using his Light skills for utility and protection. Wards of Light and like that."

Han didn't say a thing.

It mildly annoyed Timothy. When the guy blabbered whenever he wanted, Timothy would at least pay half an ear to whatever he was saying. But when it was his turn to actually say something? Did they really have to ignore him, and not even utter a single word? "Really, Han? I'm so surprised you thought differently." He rolled his eyes.