Julian was ten minutes into his journey south when he realized something critical.
"I have no food. No map. No actual sense of direction."
[And no plan. Don't forget that.]
He sighed and kept walking anyway. The dirt road wound past crop fields and sleepy meadows, the kind of scenery that screamed "low-level RPG zone."
[You are now entering the Tutorial Forest.]
Julian didn't dignify that with a response.
After another hour of walking and muttering to himself, the landscape changed. The path curved uphill into a patch of dense woods, trees twisted like they were trying to keep secrets. A flock of red-bellied birds scattered at his approach.
The tower came into view through the mist—just like the receptionist said. Cracked stone walls. Half-collapsed roof. Vines crawling across windows like nature's version of warning tape.
Julian stopped at the edge of the clearing.
"I feel like this place definitely has ghosts."
[That's optimistic. It probably has worse.]
He stepped closer… just as something exploded near the front gate.
A fireball—actual, roaring, hot orange fire—blasted out of the tower's entrance and slammed into a tree, which promptly caught fire and fell over with a dramatic crash.
Julian dove behind a rock.
"Okay. Fireball. Good. Totally normal."
[Lira Sunflare is inside.]
"What?!"
[Heat signature matches. Reckless spell usage. Zero chill. It's her.]
A moment later, the front door swung open and the red-haired girl herself stomped out, smoke trailing from her gloves. She was muttering angrily to herself and brushing ash off her coat.
Julian stayed crouched.
"Should I say hi?"
[That depends. Do you enjoy being set on fire?]
Before he could decide, Lira turned, eyes narrowing.
"You," she said flatly.
Julian stood slowly. "Hey. Fancy meeting you in a crumbling death tower."
"Are you following me?"
"What? No! I came here for… studying. Magic. Definitely not stalking."
She crossed her arms. "This tower was supposed to be empty."
"It was. Until you lit it up like a birthday cake."
Her eyes flared. "Some cursed tome exploded when I poked it. Not my fault. And you're not qualified to judge anyone's magic—you flung a hyena with a spoon yesterday."
Julian shrugged. "And I survived. Which makes me either talented… or very lucky."
[Statistically: luck.]
Lira sighed. "Whatever. This place is a mess. It's not even a real library anymore. Just traps, spirits, and ancient scrolls no one can read."
"That's exactly what I need."
She blinked. "You want cursed scrolls?"
"I want to learn mind magic. Apparently, nobody teaches it anymore. So I figured I'd learn from the dustiest books in the dustiest tower."
She stared for a long moment, then handed him a half-scorched page.
"Here. Knock yourself out. Literally, if you read it wrong."
Julian looked at the page. It was covered in weird circular runes and a language that made his eyes twitch.
"I think this scroll just insulted me."
[It did. In three dialects.]
Julian lowered the scroll carefully. "I need to learn how to read this stuff."
Lira looked him over. "You're either brave, stupid, or both."
Julian smiled. "Mind Mage."
She groaned. "That explains it."
Julian tucked the scroll into his bag, trying not to look too proud.
"So... want to team up while we're here? I'll handle the brain magic. You handle the explosive yelling."
Lira rolled her eyes. "Fine. But if something jumps out at us, I'm throwing you first."
"Fair deal."
Together, they stepped back into the tower, one with a spoon and curiosity, the other with fireballs and fury.
Neither of them noticed the faint hum beneath the floor.
Or the runes on the walls slowly beginning to glow.