Episode 26
‘What is that? Beautiful. I want to get closer.’
Just then, I made eye contact with the person standing in front of the large circle.
“Eek!”
‘Huh? Eek? Those eyes and that hair color… it’s definitely the Tower Master. …Did he not know I was here?’
As I looked at him questioningly, he quickly covered his mouth with his hand and coughed.
“Ahem. I knew someone was here.”
‘I don’t think you did…’
“Hmm. You’re that bird I saw before, aren’t you?”
‘It’s too late to act cool now… but I’m a nice bird… no, a nice person. So I’ll pretend I didn’t notice.’
“That’s right. It must be your first time seeing me as a human, but you recognized me as Cesar’s bird right away.”
“Didn’t I tell you? We would meet again soon.”
I gulped at his words. He was truly an extraordinary person.
Trying to forget the “Eek!” that didn’t fit his image, I spoke to the Tower Master,
“Yes, you were right. You told me to come find you if I needed help, so here I am.”
Having transformed from a bird to a human, I had no identity or residence. But the world of the novel had a social hierarchy. If I wasn’t careful, I might end up being caught by a scary slave trader.
I held out the jewels I had brought.
“These are jewels. You’re the Tower Master, right? Help me adapt to this world.”
I offered him the jewels, feeling awkward about asking for help empty-handed. The Tower Master’s eyes narrowed at the pile of jewels I presented.
I wondered if it wasn’t enough and looked at the jewels. Cesar had said even one of these was enough to buy a mansion.
“Little bird. Are you giving all of these to me?”
“Huh? You want them?”
I readily handed the jewels over. They disappeared from his hand instantly.
Seeing my precious jewels vanish before my eyes, I exclaimed in surprise,
“Eek! What are you doing?!”
But despite my reaction, the Tower Master shuddered and shook his head, muttering,
“My, my, what a scary disciple.”
I felt aggrieved, seeing the rewards of my efforts disappear before my eyes. Heron had also casually thrown away my jewel.
“Why did you get rid of them… I worked so hard to collect them…”
The Tower Master stroked my head and said softly,
“Little bird.”
“I’m not a bird. I have a name… Lily.”
“Yes, Lily. Do you know what kind of magic is engraved on those jewels?”
“Magic? Aren’t they just ordinary, expensive jewels?”
As I blinked in confusion, the Tower Master smiled awkwardly.
“Those jewels are engraved with a tracking spell. My disciple might barge in here soon, and I can only imagine how much he’ll pester this old man…”
My mind went blank at his words. If Cesar came here, he might find me, now a human. It was unlikely, but if he realized I was Lily, my safety would be uncertain.
I didn’t want to die after finally becoming human again. I clung to the Tower Master’s pants and teared up.
“…Then what should I do? Cesar might try to hurt me now that I’m human.”
The Tower Master stared intently at me. His playful, aqua-blue eyes gleamed chillingly, as if seeing right through me.
“Do you think my disciple would hurt you?”
I hesitated and then spoke.
“Yes. What Cesar cherished was the bird Lily who stayed by his side, not me as a human.”
He had only opened his heart because I was Lily, a harmless and insignificant bird he didn’t even know was human. So now that I was human, Cesar might try to hurt me, knowing I knew his weaknesses.
Besides, even when I was a bird, the only important person to Cesar was Sylvia. No one knew what he might do to me after losing her.
“So please help me. I want to live freely as a human. I don’t want to die.”
I didn’t want to be trapped in a fate of death, nor did I want to live as a bird.
But the Tower Master, looking at me, narrowed his eyes and slowly reached out his hand.
“Unfortunately, Lily, your current state is very unstable.”
“What do you mean, unstable?”
“…You seem to have transformed into a human unconsciously, but it’s incomplete. Haven’t you been feeling very sleepy lately?”
I nodded.
“It seems like you transformed into a human as you matured… but your soul is different, and what should have been supplied to you wasn’t.”
“Wasn’t supplied?”
“That’s right. There are traces of mana being supplied instead, but at this rate, you’ll definitely turn back into a bird.”
‘Did you just say I’ll turn back into a bird? Do I have to live as Lily again?’
“Since your soul is different, you’ll be even more unstable. Haven’t you felt something strange about your train of thought?”
At his words, I recalled my actions after becoming a bird.
Come to think of it, at some point, I had started acting like a child. My thoughts flowed simply, and my head hurt when I tried to think about complex things.
As a bird, I used to follow people around. I acted cute, enjoying the affection, as if I were really a small bird.
“I think so. But that’s not the urgent issue.”
Even if my mind was immature, it would be resolved once I fully transformed into a human.
The urgent issue was that Cesar might come here. So I hurriedly asked the Tower Master,
But what came out of my mouth was…
“…Chirp.”
A small, delicate bird’s chirp. The Tower Master made a troubled expression at my chirp.
“Oh dear. You’ve reverted.”
At his words, I noticed my changed eye level. Then, I felt the soft touch of feathers, and my wings, like companions, moved.
I faced the reality I didn’t want to face. A tiny beak and small wings greeted me. I had turned back into a bird. A sad chirp escaped me.
“Beep…”
“Don’t be too sad. I’ll supply you with mana.”
A gentle hand wiped away the tears in my eyes.
“Beep.”
‘Thank you, Tower Master.’
I thanked him and rubbed my head against his hand familiarly.
“First, Lily, may I ask you something?”
“Chirp.”
‘Yes, ask away.’
“Do you intend to return to my disciple’s side?”
I shook my head. I had no intention of living as a bird or trembling in fear of a death flag.
Seeing my firm gaze, the Tower Master spoke as if in understanding,
“You want to live freely as a human.”
“Beep.”
‘That’s right.’
“I suppose I’ll have to abandon my position as Tower Master for a while for the sake of my disciple’s bird. I’ll send you to a place where your wish can be fulfilled. Surely that would bring you happiness, too.”
“Chirp? Beep.”
‘I don’t understand what you mean, but alright.’
As I nodded, the Tower Master stroked my head.
“I owe a favor to someone, so I’ll entrust you to that person.”
He held out his hand to me. A pure energy flowed into my body. I clutched my chest at the dizzying sensation.
“…Gasp. Pant.”
Catching my breath, I looked at my human hands. I adjusted my clothes, which had become disheveled while I was a bird, and looked at the Tower Master.
“Since your origin is the same, you should be able to maintain your human form if you continuously absorb the mana stones I’ll provide. And I’ve changed your hair and eye color, just in case.”
At his words, I checked my hair. Wavy, light brown hair.
“…Thank… Thank you, Tower Master.”
No longer wanting to be a bird, I spoke to him formally. The Tower Master smiled brightly and snapped his fingers.
“Then I’ll send you there right away. My angry disciple will be barging into the Magic Tower soon.”
‘Huh? Send me right away? And wait. Cesar is coming here?’
“Take care, Lily.”
He waved at me. I felt my body lifting and a bright light filling my surroundings.
“Wait a minute. You should tell me where I’m going, Tower Master!”
But the Tower Master just smiled at me.
“No, Magic To… Hey!”
I felt the space around me shift. Soon, a cool breeze ruffled my hair, and I saw my legs dangling in the air.
‘Wait, am I floating in the air?’
Startled, I tried to flap my wings. Then, I realized,
‘Oh, right. I don’t have wings anymore…’
“Eek!”
I squeezed my eyes shut, anticipating the pain. But strangely, it didn’t hurt. I felt a soft sensation, as if I was sitting on someone’s lap.
Then, a chillingly cold voice pierced my ears.
“Who are you? Who sent you?”
I broke out in a cold sweat at the familiar voice.
‘No way, is it? The person the Tower Master owes a favor to… The person I’m thinking of…’
I slowly turned my head. Brilliant blonde hair and cold red eyes came into view. And the Imperial crest shone brightly on his chest.
‘I want to turn my head back. I want to ignore this reality. …I vowed never, ever to go to the Imperial Palace.’
That vow had been shattered.
‘Why, of all people, is the Crown Prince in front of me?!’
“You’re not answering? Trespassing on Imperial property is a serious crime.”
A sharply honed blade was pointed at my throat.
This definitely felt like déjà vu. Why was my life being threatened even after becoming human?
I could hear the sound of my human life going horribly wrong.