Wizard's Tower - Arc 3 - Chapter 58

As the spell finished, I floated down to land on the top of Froom’s tower and couldn’t withhold my smile. Alred, though, sighed and shook his head.

“What is it?” I asked with a brow raised.

“Nemon, it’s… I… well, are you certain this is what you wanted for payment?” He asked.

I nodded vigorously. Of course it was! “Come now. I told you that this is the best moment to vanquish this evil. To try any other time would give them time to return. It must be now. And when I return to my tower, I will continue the fight.” 

“How long have you been planning this?”

“Only a decade or so,” I lied with a straight face. Who would admit to fighting against an enemy for longer than that and not already being victorious?

Alred sighed again and turned to walk beside me. His back was bent with age and his pace was slow compared to what it once was. In a way, I envied him for that. As we began to descend the great spiraling staircase down his crystal tower, he spoke again. 

“I know that it is a lot to ask of you my friend, but this seems an unequal bargain for you. I was reluctant to ask, originally.  I just can’t see another way. Four times now my mages have found others sneaking in hydra eggs. Not just merchants, either. There is nobility behind them. Closing the gates is the only—”

“It’s fine.” I waved my hand dismissively. It wasn’t, of course. Who knew when the threat of the Pestilence would wane? To be charged with watching for when it was safe to reopen the gates and allow the return of humanity was an enormous responsibility. Yet, because he asked, I would grant him his request. “Let us speak of other matters. How is Lilly?”

Alred smiled in response, an earnest smile that was good to see. “You know she calls me uncle? We never had the chance for a child, the adventuring life was too thrilling. She’s a lively young lady, and meets with me every time I walk to visit Natali’s tree.”

I was already in a pleasant mood, and that news only propelled me further. “It’s a shame she wouldn’t meet with me today. I may never see her again. Yet, if she is happy here, then I will not bother her.”

Alred chuckled but said nothing.

“And my other assistants?” I inquired as we both ignored the mages who stopped and offered bows as we passed.

Alred paused in his steps as he thought, only continuing when he began to answer, “Stelk tells me that Phillipe and Drina are wed. They’ve laid claim to a tower on the northern coast of Tervan.”

My smile only grew. “Good for them. I will check on them myself when I find time then.”

Alred frowned, and I knew the next news might not make me happy, “I’ve heard that your assistant Jax has achieved some kind of 5th Tier [Beast Magus] class. I’ve also heard that two Heroes, Diedre and Leslie, have built separate towers atop fallen Mirktallean cities. And that Jax stops at both between assignments.”

I withheld a sigh. Of course, it wouldn’t be all good news. That would be too much to ask. I could see Jax doing something of the sort as vengeance for how Leslie had once treated him and his brother. Those types of things can sometimes twist people, and while it wasn’t pleasant to hear, I was slightly appreciative that he waited until after the evacuation to do so. 

We had neared the bottom of the tower, now and were making our way through the first floor towards a tunnel that led to the gateways. Alred took my silence as a grant to continue talking, not that I minded.

“The Hero Tond has wed Queen Eistoni, though she forbid him taking on title. There is rumor that he slips away to visit with Diedre when they argue. If I am right, closing the gateways will leave him trapped at her tower.” 

If Jax arrived while Tond was there, that could lead to… I shook my head of the notion and noticed Alred’s smirk. Well, at least someone would get some enjoyment out of that. As far as wizard tricks go, I couldn’t think of one to top it. 

“Have you heard from… what were their names? Meathead and that priestess?”

“Diedre. And no. After she healed his head injury, he thanked her very vigorously at the inn. They were so loud that complaints rose to my ears and I sent them off adventuring.”

“Adventuring?”

“Yes.” I coughed into my fist and looked at Alred with a suppressed smile. “I may have issued them to find the crown of a fallen king in the Tervan mountains. A crown that doesn’t exist.”

Alred gave a great belly laugh in answer, and we stepped into the room he housed all the gateways. I couldn’t help but frown. The room had been greatly changed. Rather than a marketplace and crossroads, he had made it a throne room. Thick colorful carpets lined the hall, and the great number of enchantments thickened the very mana. 

Behind the throne, stood two tall statues. On the right, a statue of Mena stood, looking heroic and beautiful. The inscription along the bottom of it read ‘blessed of Elora’. The other side was graced with a similarly made statue. Paladin Adam’s figure cut a more disciplined pose, though the sculpture had taken liberties with a mustache. The inscription beneath his read ‘blessed of Bi’. 

My pleasant emotions fled at the sight of the two, a reminder of those who had fallen. A reminder of duties to fulfill. I was more and more considering taking the magical Authority of Life as my third. Kine’s request pushed me in that direction even further. It held the promise of healing Mena, of a solution to my Longevity spell, and of fulfilling Kines request. I didn’t think the hydra would take long to die out, but I don’t know how long the End of an Age should last. It had already been a year and there was little change I could see.

Yet, in thinking of Mena, another name crossed my mind. A man who suffered similar injuries to Mena and would serve as an excellent test subject for healing spells. “Alred, have you heard anything on the whereabouts of the assassin Cothram? I’ve not seen or heard of him since the battle.”

Alred, sensing my change in mood, shook his head. “I heard that some bard hired an assassin to kill an up jumped bandit pretending to be a nobleman, but I don’t know if that killer is the man you seek.”

We stopped before the gateway leading back to my tower and turned to look at each other. We shared a quick hug followed by parting words.

“Farewell, my old friend,” Alred said with thick emotion

“You as well,” I answered. We both knew we would never see each other again. 

As I stepped through the portal, Kine stood there to greet me. He was wearing fine robes and looked healthier than I had seen him in a long time. 

“Welcome back, Master.” He bowed.

I nodded in return. His expression told me that he wanted to speak about something, so I motioned towards the tower. “Walk with me.”

 The afternoon sun felt warm against my back and went well with the thin air of the plateau. Behind me, the gateway fell silent. I could start it up again when I desired, but, for now, I let it be.

“Of course!” He paused and, as we walked, he then began what was clearly a prepared speech. “Master Nemon, I wanted to request an audience with you.”

“Oh?” I raised an eyebrow.

“Yes, I have been thinking about Rhaela recently, and she’s already been imprisoned for—”

“Say nothing more. Free her or execute her. Justice is for you to decide.” I offered him a smile but was thrilled at his request. I was more than annoyed with her constant watching me while I experimented. Not that I blamed her, I imagined confinement was an utterly boring experience. Still, the feeling of a set of eyes on you as you worked wasn’t a welcome one to me.

“I—I see.” Kine fell into a silence as we entered the tower and began walking up the staircase. A confused look passed over his face, and he glanced back down the staircase to where he knew Rhaela was being held. “So, master, if you will set her free, then what—”

I clapped him on the shoulder, and offered a happy grin, “Kine, today you will see mankind’s worse enemy laid low!”  

“The Pestilence?” He asked in confusion.

“No—well, perhaps, but it wouldn’t be what I am speaking of. Kine, my good man, today you will see me cast a metamorphosis spell that will make every other spell you’ve ever seen seem like a worm compared to a hydra.”

The confusion on his face seemed to grow worse. “A worm compared to a—"

“Yes! I’ve already struck the dreaded foe from the crystal planes, and now I will eradicate it from what remains of the five kingdoms.”

“What enemy is this?!” [Magus] Nichols asked. She had crept up behind us as we walked. While normally I would reprimand her for not attending to her duties—she had recently been assigned to work with the [Totem maker] Bimly to see if an entire tower could function as a totem as well—but I was too excited. 

“What enemy you ask? Carrots, of course!" I took a breath and began to lecture, "I simply couldn’t destroy every carrot, unfortunately. Our farmers need their crops, and I wouldn't want anyone to starve. But to change them all into something else? Something like a turnip? Turnips are severely underappreciated. That, I tell you, is the path to victory!” I turned to look at the two who were following me and basked in their stunned faces. Having another see and understand the magnitude of such achievements was such a pleasant feeling.

Surprise! This chapter is the epilogue for the third book / arc!  Thank you for reading and supporting the Wizard's Tower story.  I hope you enjoyed it.

I will be taking about a two week break from today to outline the next arc/book. This will likely be about a one month or more break from when royal road reaches the end of arc. So there may be a brief overlap when both RR and patreon are all caught up, but you all won't have to wait nearly as long to get the next chapters.

If you have suggestions for what you liked and didn't like for this arc, please feel free to mention them here!  No suggestion or comment is a bad one, and I will be collecting them all for when I looked to edit and rewrite this arc.

Again, thanks for your support and for reading, Wizard's Tower will be back soon!