Chapter 282 – The Way

Benlajie Nokani’s Magic Tower stood east of the swamp, neither too far nor too close to Punk’s own Magic Tower.

This evocation mage had decorated his tower in an exceptionally eye-catching manner. Amidst the drab gray buildings and murky black swamp, his Magic Tower alone blazed in vivid fiery red, its edges adorned with golden-yellow carvings. It looked less like a mage’s Laboratory and more like an opulent castle built by Nobles—specifically the kind favored by newly wealthy upstarts.

Punk approached this “unique” Magic Tower with a sense of bewilderment.

Then, just as expected, Punk encountered Master Benlajie Nokani studying at the tower’s entrance.

Judging by appearance alone, Benlajie was a short, plump old man dressed in a vibrant fiery red Mage Robe. His hair and eyebrows had turned a flaming red from prolonged exposure to fire elements.

From a distance, Punk had sensed that this previously unmet Benlajie Nokani must be a highly distinctive mage. The reason was simple: the moment Punk entered the fat old man’s line of sight, Benlajie enthusiastically strode out of the Magic Tower to greet him:

“Heavens! Heavens! Look who’s here! Just look who’s here! If it isn’t Mr. Cyan! How wonderful!”

Watching this chubby old man rush over like a rolling ball, Punk felt an overwhelming sense of incongruity. Soon, he pinpointed the source of his discomfort—the old man was far too enthusiastic.

In fact, thus far, Benlajie Nokani could be considered the most warm-hearted mage Punk had ever encountered. Before this, every mage Punk knew—including the casters in Vedrasha’s memories and even himself—had been coldly aloof in temperament, with at most a few eccentric exceptions. But a mage like Benlajie, who embodied “all are welcome guests from afar, and what joy to have friends visit from distant lands,” was truly unprecedented in his experience.

However, as the saying goes, one doesn’t strike a smiling face. Regardless, Benlajie Nokani was a Master-Level Caster of equal status to Punk, and his spellcasting level was even one tier higher. Since the other party had courteously come forward to greet him, Punk saw no harm in offering a tepid welcome to maintain civility:

“Greetings, Master Nokani. Pleased to meet you.”

Punk delivered this greeting with an expressionless face. But since he wasn’t actually feeling pleased, whether he appeared happy was left to individual interpretation.

Benlajie, however, clearly paid no mind to such subtleties. Beaming broadly, he said to Punk:

“To be frank, I’m an exceptionally hospitable person. I’ve been meaning to invite you over since your very first day here, but I got caught up in work and forgot. Today, you simply must come inside my Magic Tower for a visit! I just acquired some ‘Wonderful Firelight’ tea leaves the day before yesterday—you absolutely must try them!”

“No, perhaps another time. I think it would be more convenient to complete the Minisen Alloy transaction now.”

Punk declined the invitation with impeccable subtlety.”Don’t be like that, those Minisen Alloys are stored in the basement. It won’t be too late to mess with those messy studies after having a drink. Let me tell you, this old man has many things to discuss. That exchange point system of the Thought of Truth has made everyone so distant, it’s really boring.”

“Exchange points?”

Punk automatically ignored Ben Lajie’s useless ramblings. In Ben Lajie’s speech, both the beginning and end were typical meaningless pleasantries, but the sudden mention of exchange points in the middle stood out as particularly abrupt.

“How interesting. It seems this isn’t someone who plays by the rules. I’ll see what this fellow has to say that requires entering the Magic Tower to discuss.”

Punk immediately understood that Ben Lajie had ulterior motives. Clearly, this enthusiastic fat old man must have some shady business he wanted to discuss with Punk, and judging from the inexplicable words, it was likely related to exchange points.

With his curiosity piqued, Punk didn’t persist in resisting. He simply followed Ben Lajie into the reception hall of the Magic Tower.

The reception hall of Ben Lajie’s Magic Tower was decorated in a style completely unbecoming of a mage. The large carvings on the walls weren’t magical runes at all, just murals adorned with diamonds. The tables in the hall were elaborately carved in an artistic style, and three lightly-dressed young women stood on either side of the walls. The pure gold floor, which could even reflect the three young girls, was filled with the luxurious aura of a nouveau riche.

If there was one redeeming quality about this hall – it was indeed specifically used for receiving guests. The entire hall surprisingly contained no magical items whatsoever, nor were there any dangerous magical fluctuations. In terms of sincerity, it was quite good… Of course, had it been otherwise, Punk would never have entered.

“What are you all standing around for? Go get the best batches of Wonderful Firelight tea leaves, and quickly bring over those four fox girls I bought the other day! Can’t you see we have guests? How did I end up with such stupid apprentices!”

Ben Lajie, who had entered the hall side by side with Punk, loudly scolded the flustered young women. From Ben Lajie’s words, it wasn’t hard to deduce that these young women he ordered around like servants were actually apprentices he had recruited.

The female apprentices who received the scolding showed no trace of resentment. They all scurried toward the side door of the hall like startled kittens to prepare refreshments for the guests.

After witnessing this scene, neither Punk nor Ben Lajie, who had just finished giving his loud commands, showed any particular reaction.

In fact, such situations were quite common in the world of mages. Generally speaking, the relationship between apprentices and mentors was only slightly better than that between masters and servants. When mages invested energy and resources in their apprentices, they generally followed the principle of “even if we don’t profit, we shouldn’t incur losses.” Therefore, in neutral mage organizations like the Thought of Truth, it was perfectly normal for mentors to order their apprentices around like servants.

As for evil organizations, needless to say, apprentices were completely equivalent to living lab rats!It seemed these apprentices, capable of becoming disciples of a Master-Level powerhouse—even if only nominally—were at least clever enough. In less than three minutes, a pot of fragrant, ruby-red tea was placed on the golden table before Punk and Benlajie.

“Hurry and try it. This is top-grade ‘Wonderful Firelight’ black tea. Most of the ‘Wonderful Firelight’ on the market nowadays are fakes padded with ‘Flame Fern.’ Without special connections, you’d never get your hands on the genuine article.”

Benlajie Nokani spoke with layered meaning as he carefully picked up the delicate teacup.

“Special connections?”

Punk did not lift his cup to drink. Frowning slightly, he looked at this seemingly unremarkable, stout old man. By now, this was already Benlajie’s second hint. At this point, Punk felt he had almost guessed the purpose behind this sudden invitation.

(End of Chapter)