Chapter 711: Assessing
Unlike Sein, who looked rather pathetic while struggling slightly to catch his breath, Lorianne maintained a calm demeanor throughout.
Today, the Rank Four mage wore emerald green crystal shoes.
As she ascended the floating stone steps that spiraled upward, her heels clacked along the ground, drawing Sein’s mind to them.
Holding his breath, Sein hurried to keep pace with his mentor.
This time, walking beside her, he found himself unaffected by the external distractions around him.
He stared at the runes on the walls, suddenly intrigued by occult arts, particularly the truly cursed magic—they were far beyond the petty tricks Sein had encountered when he was still an initiate.
The pinnacle of occult arts and curses was reached by the Northern Witches Council, a top-tier force in the Magus World.
Whether Master Cipher had any ties to this council remained a mystery.
The floating stairs of the leaning tower seemed lengthy, yet the climb was unexpectedly brief.
Conversely, it could appear short and turn out to be a lengthy journey—all at the whim of the leaning tower’s master.
The profound abilities possessed by creatures of Rank Four and above were truly beyond Sein’s imagination, akin to how initiates struggled to grasp the elemental bodies wielded by Rank Two mages like Sein.
Their understanding was constrained by the disparity in their vision and life levels.
Although Sein regularly interacted with his mentor, he had only seen Lorianne’s formidable side a few times.
He remembered how cool she was when she unleashed her dendro elemental forbidden spell during the Viridian Venom Flame World War, and how she had quietly defeated a demigod-level Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly and sealed it in amber during the Verdant Leaf World War.
At the end of the stone steps, a blinding white light flashed before Sein.
When the light finally receded, he found himself in an ancient castle-like laboratory.
Lorianne’s laboratory was white, turquoise, and verdant green—colors that evoked a sense of relaxation and closeness to nature.
In contrast, Master Cipher’s laboratory was dominated by shades of gray, black, and white.
The white was distinctly different from Lorianne’s hue. It was a pale, empty white that inexplicably exuded a sense of cold silence.
Sein could not help but shiver, uncomfortable with the strange surroundings.
The eerie environment made him feel unsettled.
Unlike the darkness of Mystralora City which did little to intimidate Sein, he found Master Cipher’s leaning tower and laboratory quite the opposite.
“Is this because of occult arts?” he wondered.
The more fear and apprehension Sein felt, the deeper his fascination with occult arts grew.
It was said to be the power explored by witches and magi—the oldest profession in the Magus World.
What, then, was the true nature of occult arts?
Sein yearned to dispel the fog obscuring his understanding.
As he pondered, a woman’s soft laughter snapped him back to reality.
Master Lorianne and Master Cipher were conversing in hushed tones.
Their occasional light, melodious laughter hinted at a warm personal relationship, dissipating the strangeness and mystery enveloping Sein.
The dense runes seemed to retreat, and even the heavy, almost viscous, air began to flow naturally.
Everything around him returned to normal!
“You have a fine apprentice,” Master Cipher remarked to Lorianne, eyeing Sein intently.
Master Cipher was clad in a black robe, starkly contrasting with Lorianne’s green one.
Sein usually favored black magic robes as well. Although they lent him a cold, scholarly, and powerful aura, Natalya had always been particularly captivated by this allure.
Master Cipher, clad in her black magic robes, exuded an air of mystery, haziness, and a touch of eeriness.
Sein met Master Cipher once, right after the Regional Inter-Divine Tower Academy War.
Even then, Master Cipher’s face had been obscured, as it was now.
An invisible veil seemed to shield it from view; Sein could only make out a pale face and gleaming pitch-black eyes.
These eyes seemed like whirlpools, pulling Sein deeper whenever he dared to glance at them.
It was not until Lorianne coughed softly that Sein managed to break the spell, shaking himself free of the mesmerizing gaze.
He took a deep breath and avoided gazing directly at Master Cipher again, nor did he want to scrutinize his surroundings any further.
The place felt too bizarre, and Sein harbored an instinctive resistance to things he could not understand, which was perhaps a manifestation of his sense of self-preservation.
Yet, his curiosity about Master Cipher and the occult arts she wielded only deepened!
“We’ve just arrived and you’re already assessing my apprentice? Besides, I remember your secret realm, it didn’t used to look like this, did it?” Lorianne noted, gesturing toward the full moon visible outside the window of the leaning tower.
“He was the initiate that drew the Summer Guardian’s attention during the Regional Inter-Divine Tower Academy War. Naturally, I want to know what’s so special about him,” Master Cipher replied.
“To think he’s grown so rapidly. In just over a hundred years, he’s already a Rank Two mage. And his constitution...” she continued. her eyes fixed thoughtfully on Sein.
This Rank Four mage’s insight proved far stronger than anticipated.
She not only uncovered many of Sein’s hidden strengths but also discerned changes in his constitution.
Sein’s Aura Restraint spell, inspired by Tourmaline’s abilities, had previously been flawless, capable of concealing his presence even from most demigod-level entities.
However, it was rendered ineffective in Master Cipher’s presence.
Lorianne was well aware of Sein’s robust constitution and rapid growth; it was the very reason she had doubted her capability to further guide her apprentice on multiple occasions.
When Master Cipher scrutinized Sein, Lorianne watched with a mix of agreement and amusement.
She suddenly regretted snapping Sein out of it; perhaps she should have refrained from intervening and watched what would happen.
Then again, she did not want to embarrass herself.
Most of the time, Lorianne would defend Sein.
While mages were expected to pursue truth independently at home, they could rely on their mentors when they were outside.
That was what Lorianne had been through all these years.
Her protectiveness toward Sein could also be seen as upholding the traditions of the Verdant Flame Faction.
Sein had been extra fortunate in his apprenticeship; both of his mentors were known to be protective.
Then again, perhaps this was not a unique trait.
In the Magus World, with the exception of the black mages group, the vast majority of normal divine tower mages and their factions were fiercely protective of their apprentices.
After all, the preservation of knowledge was valued far more deeply here than creatures from other worlds could comprehend.