#281. The Hat Under the Tree (1)
—
“Magic? Me?”
“Yeah, you.”
Philip, who had turned to look at Ray, wore a dumbfounded expression.
It wasn’t like he had never tried to learn magic before.
Even if he didn’t plan on fighting, being able to use magic could bring all kinds of benefits to daily life.
*“This is how you do it.”*
*“Let me give it a try.”*
With Veronica’s help, he had attempted various methods to sense mana.
But they had all ended in failure, and he had been forced to accept the conclusion:
That he had no talent for magic.
‘Ray must know that too.’
So why was he suddenly asking if he wanted to try learning magic?
Sensing Philip’s confusion and uncertainty, Ray spoke.
“In this place, anyone can become a mage. It’s different from the outside beyond the Wall.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
At Ray’s gesture, dozens of construction materials stacked in one corner of the open area flew up and began orbiting around them.
A display of overwhelming control over mana.
The workers nearby stopped what they were doing and stared blankly.
“Philip, what do you think is the very first step in learning magic?”
“Uh, well, first you have to feel mana. Only then can you form a circle, and use refined mana to cast spells.”
Ray nodded.
“Exactly. But sensing mana isn’t easy. Mana doesn’t settle—it disperses. Its presence is faint, so only those born with mana sensitivity can perceive it.”
At that moment, the materials orbiting the two boys began stacking themselves up in an orderly fashion.
*Tack! Tak-tak! Tak-tak!*
In the blink of an eye, they rose overhead and formed a dome-shaped structure.
A glowing sphere floated from Ray’s hand, lighting the dark interior like daylight.
“But what if we could force the scattered mana to stay concentrated in one place?”
“Then even someone completely insensitive to it would have no choice but to feel it?”
Philip was quick to catch on, responding immediately.
Ray nodded, and began releasing yellow and green mana, increasing the mana density in the space.
“This space is designed to be a training chamber inside the mage tower. The walls and ceiling are made of special metal that blocks mana transmission.”
“So it’s an artificially created mana-dense environment.”
“Exactly. It’s a setup that makes it easier to sense mana and form a circle.”
The mana density inside was rising rapidly.
Normally, this would require dozens of mana tanks and several days of preparation.
Ray was accomplishing it in just a few minutes.
“And this.”
“A bracelet?”
“It’s a tool that enhances mana sensitivity. I borrowed it from the Ristoa school.”
Technically, “borrowed” was more like “confiscated,” but that wasn’t the important part.
Philip took the bracelet and put it on, then closed his eyes to focus on the sensations throughout his body.
How much time had passed?
“Good god… this is mana…?”
“You can feel it?”
Philip nodded quickly, his body trembling with a thrill.
A sensation like being immersed in warm, gentle water—something he had never felt before.
Then he felt Ray’s palm on his back.
“I’m sending a mana orb to revolve around your heart. Can you feel it?”
“Uh, not quite yet.”
“Try focusing even more.”
A few minutes passed.
“I feel it! It’s like a tickling inside my chest! A small orb is moving around!”
“That’s it. Try to take control of the mana orb.”
Ray added that if the orb kept revolving, it would eventually form a circle.
“Anyone can reach the 1st Circle. Beyond that is the realm of talent, but the difficulty is much lower here compared to outside the Wall.”
“……”
“You’re probably too focused to hear me, but the receipt I showed you earlier wasn’t everything. I actually spent twice that amount.”
“I heard that, Ray.”
Though they spent quite a bit of time afterward, Philip wasn’t able to control the orb himself.
“I’ve heard it’s rare to succeed on the first try. Keep practicing and you’ll see results.”
“Of course. No way I’m giving up.”
Philip, drenched in sweat, said with determination.
His body was exhausted, but his eyes were clearer than ever.
*
*
*
Over the next few days, the ordered furnishings began arriving at the completed mage tower.
During that time, Ray and Philip made rounds of the auction house, looking for items that might be related to the Rainbow Shard.
“What about that circle?”
“I don’t feel anything.”
Ray stared at the platform next to the auctioneer.
A ring lay on the pedestal.
Embedded in it was a orange gem.
But the yellow and green stones sleeping in his body showed no reaction.
Philip tapped an X on the item list on the tablet in his hand.
“This one’s a dud too. There aren’t many items left to check now.”
“How many are left?”
“Two Special Grade items including Orea’s Tear, and three Grade 1 items.”
“Time to head upstairs.”
The Tenenbaum Auction House was a multi-story structure shaped like a giant tree.
The higher the floor, the more valuable the items up for auction.
Special Grade auctions were held in private rooms at the ends of branch-like hallways at the very top.
Just as they were about to stand up, with nothing more to see on this floor—
“Next, we have a relic excavated from the northeastern ruins. It’s a special device that increases the indoor mana flow, greatly enhancing training efficiency. Effective range: 10 square meters. Starting bid: 2 million shillings!”
“Oh.”
Ray immediately turned to Philip.
“No, Ray.”
“……”
“We’ve already bought dozens of items at this auction.”
“……”
“Do you even know how much money we’ve spent in just a few days?”
“……”
“Think carefully. Is that thing *really* necessary for the mage tower?”
Philip threw out every reason he could think of, but Ray’s expression didn’t waver.
On the verge of tears, Philip shouted:
“Two-point-seven million shillings!”
“2.7 million! We have a bid of 2.7 million!”
“2, 2.8 million!”
“2.8 million on the floor!”
Bids flew in from every direction.
After a fierce battle, Philip emerged victorious and muttered with a drained expression:
“So I have to pay for this one too… I have to pay for it all… It’s not too late… I should hand over Philip’s spot to that fox…”
*Krung?!*
The auctioneer struck the gavel and shouted the final call.
*Bang! Bang!*
“3.6 million shillings! Sold to Ray of the Imaginus School!”
*The Imaginus School.*
Murmurs spread throughout the crowd.
“Damn it, them again? I’ve lost count of how many items they’ve snatched.”
“Never even heard of them before.”
“There was a message from the Association a few days ago. Said a new school had been founded.”
“But there was no paper attached. No idea what they even specialize in.”
“What? No paper? What was Chairman Gustach thinking…”
“Isn’t that an abuse of authority?”
“Then why don’t you have the Builders School file a complaint?”
“Ahem… well, perhaps not.”
The name *Imaginus* was already well known among the other schools.
A mysterious new school announced without even a thesis.
And in just a few days, it had been sweeping through the auction house, buying everything.
Even if their behavior hadn’t been so conspicuous, the other schools didn’t view Imaginus favorably.
Most of them were simply angry that a new competitor had appeared in the magical world.
“But isn’t that just a kid? Not even an adult?”
“Probably just a proxy. Their steward must be elsewhere.”
“Still, I wonder how much funding they actually have.”
Suspicious glares and whispered gossip.
Ray didn’t pay them any mind.
Dragging the stunned Philip along, he exited and headed straight for the elevator to attend the next auction.
*Wheeeeng—*
As the floor count rose, Philip came to his senses and spoke.
“Okay, this next one’s the last auction. It’s Special Grade, so the prices will be the highest. No impulse buying, alright?”
“That relic we just bought will help with your training too.”
“Well… yeah, that’s true.”
Groaning a little, Philip formed a small orb of light in his hand.
“The quality’s improved a lot.”
“Really? You’re not just saying that?”
“Compared to the beginning, both the shape and brightness are shockingly better.”
At Ray’s praise, Philip’s face lit up.
After days of grueling effort, he had finally succeeded in forming a circle.
He was now practicing the light orb spell continuously.
But for some reason…
“……”
“……”
Every time he looked at the orb of light, Philip felt not only joy and excitement—but also longing and sadness.
Ray, who had been quietly watching the colorful mana flickering in his chest, asked:
“Is there a reason you wanted to learn this spell first?”
“Huh? Oh, yeah, there is. It’s nothing super special, though.”
His mother had once left for another sector, saying she’d earn money and come back.
Before she left, she always kept the house dark at night.
“I think I was six or seven? It’s a vague memory, but the house used to be pitch black at night. It felt like she was afraid someone might come. Maybe she was just trying to save money. She did work, but I don’t think she earned much.”
Philip’s gaze turned hazy as he stared into the light orb.
“So my wish was to light up the house at night. I used to whine a lot to her. I was scared of the dark, and I couldn’t ask her to read my favorite storybooks either.”
“……”
“When that happened, she’d take me to the tree behind the house and let me lay my head in her lap. That part I remember clearly. There were bugs that gave off tiny lights there. You couldn’t see them well from afar, but up close they were bright enough to read by. I remember falling asleep to her voice as she read to me there.”
*Pop.*
The light orb vanished.
Returning to himself, Philip spoke.
“That’s why I wanted to learn this spell first. When I meet Mom again someday, I want to tell her she doesn’t have to worry about money anymore. That she can always keep the lights on at night…”
“You don’t actually save that much money just by turning off the lights at night.”
“Grr! Grrrr! Sir Ray, give me back my tears of emotion!”
As Ray fended off the furious fox Phillip’s playful bites, they arrived at the top floor.
Ray stepped out of the elevator first and looked back as he spoke.
“You’ll definitely find her. I’ll help you as much as I can.”
A voice without hesitation.
Somehow, it brought a sense of peace.
“Of course I’ll find her. I plan to search every corner of the world.”
Ray and Phillip passed through one of the branch-like corridors and arrived at Special Room No. 3.
“Identity verified.”
“We hope you leave with the item you seek.”
Though multiple guards stood watch at the entrance, they were able to enter without issue, having already proven their wealth upon their initial entry into Tennenbaum.
The room was structured with tiered seating surrounding a central stage where auction items were presented.
As Phillip took a seat, he whispered,
“Maybe because only a select few are qualified to enter, but it definitely feels smaller than the lower-grade auction houses. And there are a lot more people with their faces hidden by masks.”
“If they’re spending that much money, they probably don’t want to expose their identities.”
There were about thirty participants.
As the auctioneer stepped forward and greeted the crowd, Ray glanced around the seating area—and then his gaze stopped on one figure on the opposite side.
A woman wearing a butterfly mask.
Brown hair peeking out from beneath her hood.
Four circles radiating flesh-colored mana.
A name surfaced in his mind at once.
*Obsess.*
A high-ranking member of Murcred, whom he had encountered in the last forest.
That was when the auctioneer’s booming voice rang out.
“Then let us reveal it! A treasure that has resurfaced in the world after hundreds of years, coveted by all our esteemed guests present—Orea’s Tear!”
*Whoosh!*
As the red velvet cloth was pulled away, the item inside the glass case was unveiled.
A brilliant orange gemstone hanging from the end of a necklace—at the moment he saw it:
*Thump.*
Ray’s heart began to pound.
