“Achoo! Damn, is someone badmouthing me?”

Roan wiped his nose as he emerged from the dimension portal. Yachi followed closely behind, raising her eyebrows at the magician’s sudden lack of physical form. She had been living with Roan for a few days now, and she’d never seen a single vulnerability from the man. Which prompted the young girl to ask:

“Master, are you alright?”

“Yeah, don’t worry. I’m immune to most diseases and poisons. Something must have gotten caught in my nose during the dimensional transfer.”

“I see, that’s a relief.”

Yachi beamed brightly. The young teenager trusted Roan words like they were gospel, but she still made a mental note to stick closer to her Master. She shuffled her feet and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the magician, ready to assist Roan if he were to collapse. However, before she could observe her Master’s physical condition, something spectacular caught her eye.

“Master, where are we?”

The pair walked out of the portal and were greeted with a glorious, scenic view. Verdant trees grew from the sides of the rocky terrain as if they were twisted in place through the hand of God. Earthen vines grew down from the precipice, draping the backdrop with more green than the eyes could endure.

Moving her gaze to the right, Yachi saw a gentle creek with freshwater running ever so sweetly. It reflected the empyrean sky of blue with many snowy peaks on either side. Milky white clouds covered the numerous hills, obscuring the view of the top, but Yachi could vaguely imagine the beauty of the hidden valley.

The air was thin, and yet Yachi didn’t feel light-hearted. In fact, by inhaling the fresh high altitude air, the young girl felt invigorated as mana pulsed through her veins. The low humidity and optimal temperatures helped immensely as well.

It was a holy land for sure, Yachi thought inwardly. Unfortunately, Roan was about to burst her delusions of the secluded grounds.

“We’re in a random place I found when I researched the region. I couldn’t go to the places that I frequent since others are chasing me, so I had to settle with this substandard place.”

While Yachi was bewitched by the new landscape, Roan wasn’t all too impressed. As the Magic God, he’d seen the headquarters of every top magician lineage in the world. Even at the Frontier, where Humans and Demons frequently clashed, many more breathtaking places were both rich in mana and were picture-perfect for the eye.

“Substandard? This?”

“Sorry about this Yachi. Eventually, I will personally create a Holy Ground for our Magic Tower. I still lack some materials so I can’t complete it right now. Also, we will need to find some juniors for you.”

“Juniors?”

“That’s right. There isn’t a Magic Tower in the world that can function with just two people.” Roan lazily explained as if it were a matter of fact.

“In time, I will create a system that would allow yearly intakes like the other lineages. But for now, I’ll have to hand-pick my first generation of disciples. I am, after all, starting from scratch.”

The Magic God groaned as he thought about the many things he had to do. Starting a new lineage from the ground up was no easy task. Roan had to source for the best Holy Ground that could help in his disciples’ development. He had to build libraries, armouries, protective barriers, herb gardens, and a variety of supplementary facilities to train his disciples.

And most importantly… Roan needed disciples!

Brining Yachi in was a good start, but Roan needed far more than one disciple to achieve his ultimate dream. If Roan wanted a life where he could just laze about in his Magic Tower while his disciples did all the work for him, Yachi alone was far from enough.

“Ah… So I won’t be the only one...” Yachi dropped her head in disappointment.

“Haha! Don’t be so down! As much as I would love to go hunting for new disciples immediately, it’s best that I lay low for the time being! Rainbow Thunder must’ve been detected by someone, and if they come chasing after me, it’ll be quite troublesome. So you’ll have my undivided attention until then!”

Roan mistakenly interpreted Yachi’s words as a frustrated cry that she had to share her training time with others and moved to reassure her. Though, that didn’t do anything to improve the young girl’s sour mood. Yachi’s frown only grew deeper as thoughts perplexed her brain.

“Lay low? I should have asked you this earlier, Master. But what are you running from?”

“Right… Now that we’re all alone, I should tell you.”

Roan realised that he hadn’t revealed much about his true identity to Yachi. In fact, he was still in his transformed self!

“We were still in the village, and I wasn’t sure if you were going to become my disciple back then, so I hadn’t revealed myself to you. But now...”

The Magic God raised his favoured staff to his face, and a light came bursting out from his crown. Roan’s ‘face’ blew up like an overinflated balloon and his body was morphing back to its original size. In less than two seconds, Roan’s transformation magic was utterly broken, revealing the handsome young man that laid beneath.

“T-This is...”

“Yeap! This is how I really look like.”

Roan brushed his rich black hair like a diva and straightened his back. Before, he was an unassuming man in his thirties, and that held its own charm. But nothing could beat the mystique of Roan’s original body.

Standing at about 1.85 metres, Roan towered over Yachi by an entire head. His rich hazel eyes seemingly hid an infinite amount of knowledge, and staring into them was akin to gazing into a never-ending pit. Athletic and lean, there was hardly an ounce of body fat on Roan, which made him look much healthier than the average spellcaster.

Yachi was stunned by her Master’s sudden appearance change, but she wasn’t spellbound by Roan’s striking looks. What Yachi was most surprised about was...

“M-Master, how old are you?”

Based on his appearance, Roan looked at most in his early twenties. No, if not for his matured gaze, Yachi would have thought that he was a teenager.

“Twenty-five, just ten years older than you.” Roan declared.

“TWENTY-FIVE?!”

“Is there a problem?”

“N-No, Master it was just… I didn’t think that our ages were this close.”

“Ah, my bad. I should have disguised myself as someone younger then.” Roan half-heartedly gave an apology.

“But you know, if I made myself any younger, my cover would have been blown. Once the Alliance figures out where I am, I’m sure they’ll send pesky rats to chase after us.”

“The Alliance? You mean the Human Alliance? The biggest union on the continent? Why would such an organisation chase after you?”

“Oya? I didn’t think that a recluse village like yours had any information about the Alliance. Colour me surprised.” Roan chuckled.

“Well, if you have heard of the Alliance, then you must’ve heard of my name. Listen well, Yachi! The name of your glorified Master as well as the most respected name in Eusora. There is none like me, and I’m the best magician in the entire world. Demons tremble before me and humans kneel to say my name!”

“...”

“There is a reason why the entire Alliance is chasing me even after I resigned. There is a reason why I have to hide my face even though it’s the best thing in the world. There is a reason why I have to lay low after casting Rainbow Thunder. It is because... I am the most famous person in the entire continent, no maybe the entire world!”

Yachi listened in fervently as Roan slammed the bottom-end of Serenity on the floor. Magical light beamed out from the Divine Magic Staff, and a humongous magic circle appeared behind Roan. Five seconds later, an enormous villa appeared in the backdrop of the hidden valley, seemingly in response to Roan’s words.

“I am the Magic God, Roan Erymneus!”

“...”

Yachi blinked twice, not knowing how to react. In the end, she just gave a bitter laugh.

“Ermmm… Sorry Master, I’ve never heard of the Magic God.”

❖❖❖

It took five minutes for Roan to get over the shock of Yachi’s claims. He held the belief that everyone in the world should know of his legendary name, or at the very least, the moniker that he went by. Alas, Roan had severely underestimated the ignorance of Ebony Village.

“As I’d thought, that village needs some serious re-education. Should I just teleport back and force everyone to study my name?”

“Master?”

“No, it’s nothing. Those idiots aren’t worth my time. They can’t even teach their children right.” Roan played with the idea for a moment before finally shaking his head.

“Instead of wasting my time with them, I’m better off teaching you.”

“Y-Yes! I will do my best to learn!”

“Haha, that’s the spirit!” Roan threw away his sour mood and wore his happy face.

“Come, let me show you around our temporary lodgings! For the next month or two, I’ll be teaching you magic here, so you might as well get used to the place.”

Roan held Yachi’s hand and brought her into the luxurious estate. There was no way for Yachi to have known it then, but the moment the pair entered the villa, a phantasmal mist arose from the corners of the massive house, shrouding it with a transient barrier. Unless someone had a hound-like detection spell, the enormous estate was now invisible to the naked eye.

Upon entering the villa, Yachi was met with a reflection of white light that beamed down from the skylight. The welcoming floor was spacious as if adhering to a minimalist design.

Lulus, the obedient grey, slime humanoid familiars that Roan created, ran excitedly all over the massive floor as they unpacked everything for Roan to live in. Yachi noticed that some of them were running to the basement with boxes of wheat and grain. Presumably, that was where their kitchen was located.

Roan didn’t look back and just walked straight to the second floor of the residence, where an array of rooms were located. He randomly picked a door closest to the stairs and twisted the doorknob.

There was a canopy bed centred in the middle of the room, with a translucent fabric falling down from the upper posts. It was two metres on both sides, giving more than enough room for Yachi to sleep. Plus, there were two fluffy pillows with a warm duvet rested on the lavish bed.

Other than the bed, there was a built-in bathroom, filled to the brim with essential tools. A toilet seat, a bathtub, a sink and even a warm jacuzzi. At the other end of the room, there was a walk-in closet and a study area. Rounding it all off, there was even a balcony for Yachi to get some fresh air or to watch the stars at night.

It looked like a standard luxury hotel suite, and that was more than enough to wow the young and impressionable Yachi. Though, Roan didn’t share his disciple's sentiments.

“This will be your room. If you need clothes or any decorations, talk to the Lulus. They will help change the room to your liking.”

For Roan, this room was just one of many. He’d designed the villa to accommodate a few guests as he usually used it as a temporary shelter when he was travelling.

“But do that later, I have something to show you first.”

Moving inwards, Roan brought Yachi to a double oak door, which looked far too heavy for the average man to split open. Instead, Roan leaned closer to the doors and whispered a magic word. And then, just like the stories, the door magically opened up as if it were Moses splitting the Red Sea.

Curious, Yachi took a peek in and well… what she saw completely blew her mind away.

It was a library, a place where books and knowledge gathered. However, it’s size was just unfathomable. There were shelves upon shelves of books with their spines facing outwards. But the shocking thing was, the bookshelves seemingly went on for a few kilometres, and there wasn’t an end in sight.

That wasn’t the only mystical part of the colossal Library. Dozens of box-shaped bookshelves floated in the air in total defiance of gravity. Hidden within those boxes were even more priceless grimoires and scrolls, and there were even some embedded into the ceiling. There was almost an infinite supply of reading material in this mystical Library, and that alone made Yachi’s jaw drop.

“Come in,” Roan lazily ordered.

“This is?”

“My personal Library. It contains copies of all the grimoires, books and scrolls that I’d deemed useful. I created an entire dimensional pocket for this Library, and it’s only accessible from this door. I attached the Library to the villa for your future convenience. That way you can find everything that you need.”

The Magic God explained in detail. Like any pocket dimension, it was far bigger on the inside, and for good reason. Roan had collected a wealth of knowledge by reading everything that he could get his hands on, and that became the source of his infinite power.

In time, Roan made copies of everything that he’d read and even collected far more books than he’d ever thought possible. Therefore, Roan had to create an infinitely expanding space to store his ever-growing wealth of books.

“Librarian! Register this girl into your system.”

Roan snapped his fingers at the reception, where a pale white priestess sat. She was obscured by her thick veil, but Yachi could tell that the woman was of epic proportions. In fact, her perfectly aligned body was something that nature was unable to produce.

Arising to greet Roan, the white priestess replied with a disgusted tone: “Urgh, I look away for two seconds, and you’re already kidnapping girls. Should I call the FBI?”

“As if the FBI can do anything to me! I am the Magic God, after all.”

“Good to see that you’re shameless as ever.”

“I would rather you call it confidence… Anyway, register this girl. She’s my first disciple.”

“Disciple? She is?”

The white priestess bent down and stared at Yachi from the head down. Although the Librarian’s eyes were hidden by her veil, Yachi felt as if a thousand gazes were plastered all over her body, dissecting her atom by atom. It was as if… there was nothing that the Librarian couldn’t decipher. Every puzzle, every cypher… they were all child’s play in front of her all-knowing eyes.

“You’ve picked up an interesting one… Pinnacle Tempest Body? And with such a beautiful Magic Source. Yet, she doesn’t seem to have trained with magic. How odd...”

“That’s why she’s my first disciple!” Roan boasted. “Hurry up and register her! Also, bring me the Grimoire of the Lightning Wyrm. We’re going to need it.”

“Grimoire of the Lightning Wyrm? Oh, so that’s it… Haha, you’re a genius, Roan.”

“Do you really need to state the obvious?”

“Hehe, wait here.”

Leaving with a snicker, the White Priestess turned into a ray of light and disappeared from sight. In the meantime, it gave Yachi an opportunity to stammer uncontrollably as she recalled that previous exchange.

“That person is...”

“The Librarian. She’s a Spirit I contracted to guard the Library. Other than myself, her authority in the Library is absolute. She knows every book in here and can locate them in a split second. She’s also responsible for security and in here, her overall fighting prowess is almost equal to mine.”

Yachi snapped her head towards the priestess in shock. One Roan was powerful enough, yet there was another that could match his might?

“Is she really that powerful?”

“Yeap! But if you take her out of the Library, she’s worthless. Well, you’ll understand if you spend more time in the Library.” Roan yawned and didn’t bother to elaborate on the Librarian’s powers.

Ultimately, she was just a Spirit that was contracted to protect his personal Library. Of course, she also served another function.

“Here it is! I’ve also memorised this girl’s soul signature so as long as she says the passcode, the door will open for her. What type of clearance do you want to give the girl?”

“Public for now. I wouldn’t want her touching books that are out of her league.”

“I hear and obey.”

The Librarian bowed down and stood to the side, allowing Roan to do his thing. Roan reached out for the purple hardcover that she’d left behind and pried open the book with all his force. An ancient roar tore the pin-drop silence of the sacred Library as electric sparks flew out from the sealed Grimoire.

“Master?!”

“Don’t worry, most grimoires have their own unique personalities. This one just happens to be cranky. It will settle down in a second.”

“B-But… why do you need this grimoire?”

“Why, you ask? Because of you, of course!”

“M-Me?”

“Well yeah. From the first time we met, I had been racking my brains on the best Magic System to train you in. You can’t inherit my Magic Tyrant System, at least not in your current state. And as someone with the Pinnacle Tempest Body, you can’t learn some run-off-the-mill Magic System either.”

Roan sighed as he remembered the hard days he had, thinking of the best suited Magic System for Yachi. In the meantime, the Grimoire of the Lightning Wyrm finally quelled its rage, allowing Roan to flip to his desired page.

“Finally, after a full three days of scouring through my database, I found the perfect Magic System for you! It was hard to remember since it was quite an ancient book, but it’s made for someone with high lightning affinity and an overwhelming amount of mana. Perfect for you, don't you think?”

The Magic God gestured for the girl and brought her attention to the final chapter of the Grimoire. Yachi stared down at the bold letters, blinking rapidly to prevent her eyes from melting by its splendour. However, for some innate reason, the young teenager couldn’t look away. It was as if… there was a magnetic attraction between her and the ancient magic book.

There was no doubt about it… this was the Magic System for her.

“How do you feel about learning the Call of the Lightning Wyrm?”