Chapter 19: Lena's Letter

Chapter 19: Leina’s Letter

Li Wei left Guze’s room with lingering questions.

He was curious—how had the guards vanished?

But only curious.

He wasn’t a detective, and he had no intention of chasing truth for mere curiosity’s sake.

One could wonder—but not court death.

The matter reeked of deep waters, and Li Wei had no desire to wade in.

He returned quietly to his chamber, burying himself once more in cultivation.

In the days that followed, the mages who had ventured out gradually trickled back into the tower.

Some never returned at all.

Casualties were inevitable.

Most of the dead were apprentice mages—eager, ambitious youths who had volunteered with dreams of fame and glory.

Next came the initiates.

All full-fledged mages returned unharmed.

January 31st.

While refining the *Invisible Armor* spell, Li Wei suddenly felt a flash of insight.

His mind lit up.

Swiftly, he shaped the spell model with his mana—this time subtly different from the original.

Thirteen seconds. The incantation succeeded.

An invisible armor shimmered into existence upon his body.

He reached out, touching his arm—his fingers met nothing.

Then, with a thought, hardness pressed against his fingertip.

His heart swelled.

At last—he could activate and dismiss the armor at will!

It still fell far short of the intelligent, responsive armor he dreamed of.

But this freedom alone was a miracle.

No longer must he dispel the spell before every meal, then recast it afterward.

Joy surged through him, unexpected and bright.

He had assumed he’d need to fully master the spell model first, perhaps even modify it himself to add functionality.

Yet half his wish had come true so soon.

He opened his eyes. Words floated upon the wall:

[Basic Meditation (Minor Mastery)] 1645/2000

[Small Fireball (Zeroth-tier Proficiency)] 333/2000

[Invisible Armor (Zeroth-tier Proficiency)] 2/2000

As expected—the Invisible Armor spell had advanced to proficiency.

Li Wei glanced at the meditation progress bar. It was nearing completion.

All those sleepless nights, pushing his spirit to its limit, draining every drop of energy to cultivate—had not been in vain.

Now, his reserves could sustain eighteen consecutive fireballs—or six casts of Invisible Armor.

The armor’s spell model was vastly more complex than the fireball’s, consuming far more mana.

But it was semi-permanent—once cast, it endured for hours.

With the breakthrough, Li Wei rushed to the training hall.

He draped the invisible shield over a wooden dummy, then hurled fireballs at it.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Three fireballs struck—the dummy remained untouched.

He launched a fourth.

Boom!

The armor shattered—but still absorbed most of the blast.

In the end, the dummy bore only faint scorch marks.

A satisfied smile spread across Li Wei’s face.

Before mastery, the armor could withstand only two hits.

Now, four. Defense doubled.

“Who’s practicing magic at this hour?”

A figure approached.

Li Wei turned quickly. “Master Luo, good evening.”

Luo Master eyed him, chuckling wryly. “Why do you always come at night? Must you keep an old man awake?”

Li Wei smiled sheepishly.

Luo waved a hand. “Go on, get out. Don’t force me to lock the hall at night.”

“Goodbye, Master Luo.” Li Wei bowed and left.

Luo walked to the damaged dummy, squinting.

“This… is some kind of magical shield?”

“Heh. The boy’s hiding something after all…”

“But where did he get the spellbook?”

Luo oversaw the second-floor library. He remembered Li Wei learning only *Small Fireball*.

A lost grimoire was a rare treasure indeed.

Back in his room, Li Wei reflected.

Through talks with Guze, he’d learned why so many initiates called him *Luo Tower*.

Luo wasn’t necessarily the eldest initiate.

But he knew more zeroth-tier spells than any other.

It was rumored he had mastered every cantrip within the Mage Tower.

Master Luo offered no explanation himself.

The rumor likely began because people assumed that, as librarian, Luo could freely read all the cantrip spellbooks.

Li Wei, for his part, adopted the attitude: better to believe it than not.

So in daily life, he treated Master Luo with due respect.

"Sigh, what a pity—I won’t be able to practice at the magic training ground in the middle of the night anymore."

After returning to his room, Li Wei practiced cultivation for a while before lying down to sleep.

Before drifting off, he activated his invisible armor.

He’d grown accustomed to sleeping while wearing it—the firm pressure against his back brought an odd sense of security.

The next morning, Li Wei received a letter.

"Come alone to the edge of the maple woods outside the city—Leina."

Staring at the note in his hand, Li Wei frowned.

After a whole month, Leina had finally remembered their agreement.

But why meet outside the city?

He looked up at the boy before him and asked, "Did Leina really send you with this letter?"

The boy nodded quickly. "Yes, Boss told me I must deliver it into your hands personally."

"Boss?" Li Wei’s expression turned puzzled.

The boy’s eyes sparkled with admiration. "Boss Leina is nobility, yet she never looks down on us commoner squire apprentices. She even helped us teach a lesson to those noble squires who bullied us."

"Huh… didn’t expect her to be that kind of person."

Li Wei pondered. It wasn’t hard to believe she’d done such things.

Though probably not out of kindness toward commoners.

More likely, those noble squires simply rubbed her the wrong way, so she used the excuse to beat them senseless.

Though he’d only met Leina twice, Li Wei already understood her character—blunt, unrestrained, straightforward.

He folded the letter and said, "Alright, I understand. You may go now."

The boy bowed politely and turned away.

Leina hadn’t written why she wanted to see him. That meant it was something she couldn’t tell others.

A spellbook? Probably not.

Last time, she’d openly declared in front of several people that she’d steal one for him to read.

He hesitated—should he go?

After a moment’s thought, he decided the matter of the spellbook needed closure.

Better not leave loose ends.

Li Wei found Gu Ze and told him he was stepping out.

If he hadn’t returned by tomorrow, Gu Ze should go search for him in the maple woods.

At the very least, it was a safeguard.

Gu Ze didn’t ask why. He simply nodded and agreed.

Changing into plain clothes, Li Wei walked toward the city gates.

(End of Chapter)