The Tall Mentor in a Defense Game

“No… I just want to sit here for a bit.”

Jane leaned back against the bench and put a pipe in her mouth.

This was a pipe tobacco, not a water pipe, the kind that burns leaves.

It was something Enoch used to smoke.

‘So that’s where my pipe went. Looks like she’s been using it all along.’

Enoch considered whether to take the pipe back but soon decided against it.

After all, he could always buy another one.

Since he’d already spent money, might as well let her have it as a bonus.

“So, when are you going to get to the point?”

“What do you mean?”

“This has been taking way too long for killing time. You’ve spent a good deal of money. There must be some purpose behind this, right?”

Jane asked while smoking.

Initially, Enoch had suggested wandering around to let off some steam.

Jane had believed him at first.

But as time went on, her thoughts changed.

The amount of money Enoch had been spending had become way too large.

It was quite a hefty sum even for Jane, the owner of the fish pub.

“The reason people spend money ultimately boils down to one thing. Whether it’s goodwill or affection, it means they want something from the other person.”

“……”

“Aren’t you going to spill the beans soon? I think you’ve shown enough sincerity.”

Jane exhaled smoke and chuckled quietly.

Enoch hesitated a moment before rummaging through his pockets.

He was trying to smoke, but right now, Jane was holding his pipe.

“Can I borrow that for a sec?”

“This? Here.”

Jane offered him the pipe as if to say ‘take it’.

Enoch put the tobacco Jane was smoking in his mouth and inhaled.

-Huff

Citrusy scent.

He caught a whiff of the perfume Jane had sprayed on from the pipe.

Smoke and words escaped his open mouth.

“I see you figured it out. I didn’t think I gave it away too much.”

“Of course. You need to be quite perceptive to get to this spot.”

Jane said, taking back the pipe and quickly putting it back in her mouth.

Enoch looked at the pipe with regret.

Then, he rummaged through his pockets again and pulled out a gem.

“Do you know what this is?”

“…Isn’t it just an ordinary gem? An aquamarine? It looks like one.”

Enoch nodded at Jane’s assessment.

“For now, yes. Do you remember the dragon I summoned earlier? This is that very dragon. After the work was done, I transformed it back into an object.”

Jane’s eyes widened slightly at the explanation.

The three-headed mechanical beast that had appeared suddenly during the battle at Pankratoss.

The fact that such a creature had shrunk to the size of a fist was pretty astonishing.

And then, Jane finally realized what Enoch was asking for.

“I get it. So, you want to take that mana the monster absorbed earlier, right?”

“Correct. Sneaking it away from you doesn’t suit my personality. I thought it made sense to ask for permission first.”

During the commotion earlier, Enoch had absorbed a portion of Jane’s mana to complete the End Dragon Cluster.

And the End Dragon had now transformed into the blue aquamarine.

In other words, it meant Jane’s mana remained within the gem.

Enoch was asking for the rights to use that mana.

“It’s hard to explain in detail, but I think I’ll need to use this often moving forward. I wanted to ask for permission in advance. Is that possible?”

“Hmm… Mana, huh…”

Jane thought for a moment, then exhaled the smoke and said breezily,

“It’s fine. I don’t mind.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. After all, what you’re taking is just a minuscule amount. Maybe just a cup’s worth from the ocean… It’s not the crucial essence, so I’m not too bothered by it.”

Jane shrugged her shoulders, pipe in mouth.

She truly seemed indifferent about it.

Yet, Enoch felt the need to express his gratitude.

To a magician, mana was more crucial than blood flowing through one’s veins.

He couldn’t just brush off the fact that she had willingly handed over something that vital.

“Thank you for saying that. I’ll absolutely remember this.”

“It’s nothing. Don’t go getting all stiff like Bergo. Just keep it as it is now. It seems just right to me.”

Jane said, and then stood up from the bench.

Then, she shoved the pipe into Enoch’s mouth.

“…?”

“I could see you’re dying to smoke since earlier.”

Jane chuckled slyly as if she was privy to everything.

A faint scent of alcohol wafted from a short distance away.

A moment later, she took her finger away from Enoch’s mouth and promptly turned her back.

“I had a great time today. The pipe was fun too.”

As Jane turned away, she stretched and waved her hand.

“The sun’s about to rise, so I’ll be going now.”

“Huh, going already…”

Enoch chuckled in disbelief and took a puff from the pipe.

He followed up with a heavy exhale.

Through the smoke, he called out to Jane’s departing figure.

“Take care, sister. If something comes up, reach out to me.”

“Something? Are we really the type to have such a thing?”

“Then just send me greetings. Later, your cute little brother will visit, so don’t be sad and welcome me at the door beforehand.”

“You crazy fool.”

Jane burst into a fit of laughter.

At that moment, the dawn broke across the sea.

The vermillion sunlight split through the air, and in an instant, Jane’s entire figure melted away.

“…As much as I don’t understand other things, I envy that part.”

Enoch said, brushing off the ashes from his pipe.

There were only a few leaves left inside.

Given how long a single leaf could last, it was surprising how quickly his sister had smoked through them.

‘Should I head home?’

Enoch put the pipe in his pocket.

Then, he finally began to walk away.

On the other side of the sea, the sun slowly peeked up.

The streets of the capital were gradually becoming bustling.

*

The way back was just like before.

After boarding the airship from the imperial capital of Valderich to Acrotheon, he would head south to Magnus’s arrival.

‘It probably took about two days in total. I’m glad it didn’t take any longer.’

The airship landed on the ground a few hours later.

Once Enoch got off the airship, he called for a vehicle.

His own car had been left in the parking lot near the fish pub.

There was no way he could walk that distance.

Reluctantly, Enoch caught a cab to return to the pub.

‘Two days. I wonder how Lacrina is faring in my absence.’

Enoch thought of his lone student who must be waiting at the inn.

She seemed quite upright, but she was still young.

It wouldn’t be unusual if she slacked off in her teacher’s absence.

‘Nothing major should happen. She’s probably been busy since her days in the orphanage. Two days is nothing.’

The taxi stopped in front of the pub shortly after.

After paying the fare, Enoch got out of the vehicle.

“No need for change.”

-Thank you! Thank you!

The driver kept thanking him.

Enoch himself didn’t even keep track of how much he gave.

He just handed over whatever felt right at the moment.

Leaving the commotion behind, Enoch pulled open the pub’s door.

And that’s when he noticed something was off.

-Shiver, shiver, shiver

“…Master?”

“…E-Enoch?”

“What in the world are you doing over there?”

Enoch asked his master, bewildered.

He was huddled up on the counter bar, wrapped in a blanket, shaking.

“E-Enoch! Quickly! Go upstairs! Your student has lost her mind!”

“Student? You mean Lacrina?”

“Yes! Whatever it is, hurry up! You might figure something out!”

His master shouted urgently while pointing upstairs.

Enoch dashed up the stairs immediately.

‘Is it… cold?’

What he found was a chilly atmosphere and an icebound space.

From the outside, it appeared to be perfectly fine.

However, the reality was very different.

All that could be seen were patches of cold ice.

As it stood, the entire second floor of the crooked fish pub was nearly frozen solid.

-Creeeak

Just then, he heard the door creaking open.

“Teacher.”

Lacrina’s voice accompanied it.

But the tone in her voice was drastically different from before.

The warm, emotion-filled tone was nowhere to be found; only a cold, colorless voice filled his ears.

“Lacrina.”

Enoch slowly turned his head.

Through the crack in the opened door stood Lacrina, her silver hair glimmering, looking like a ghost in silence.

“What the heck is going on here? What did you do in two days?”

“Teacher.”

Lacrina didn’t respond but instead opened her palm.

Blue crystals rapidly gathered in her white hand.

It was a flawless ice magic spell.

“Teacher, I completed the spell on my own.”

“…”

“What are you doing? You should hurry up and praise me.”

Lacrina smiled slyly.

Enoch fell silent.

He had a hunch as to how she had ended up like this.

On the contrary, Lacrina sensed the puzzling demeanor from Enoch.

She had worked hard and shown results.

So why was the teacher acting different when she should be praising her?

She tilted her head in confusion.

“…Strange? Why aren’t you saying anything…”

“…”

“I worked hard.”