I saw her black hair swaying in the wind.
Her hair, cascading down to her waist, was so neatly maintained that it hardly seemed like something belonging to a warrior.
Her clear eyes were fixed intently on me.
Within those pupils lingered an emptiness, as though her thoughts had momentarily paused, giving off a faintly vacant aura.
Her eyes, combined with her characteristic dreamy expression, made it impossible to discern what she was thinking.
It even made me question if I had heard her correctly.
“What did you just say…?”
At my words, she tilted her head slightly.
Then, slowly, she began to speak again.
Carefully, she enunciated every word.
“I said I want to borrow you for two months.”
I blinked.
I hadn’t misheard.
Beside Cassian, I saw the bear doll clapping its hands enthusiastically.
Its face wore a deeply satisfied expression.
“If I stay far from you, this doll will lose consciousness.”
It was true.
‘When she moved away from me, the shadow doll’s consciousness would go dormant, turning into nothing more than a basic puppet that followed orders.’
‘I had sometimes wondered if it was possible to overcome that limitation.’
That thought had led me to give some of my students their own dolls.
Those dolls contained the first conscious minds I ever created.
The magic that had created them was crude, and so their consciousnesses were unstable.
But maybe because of that, they exhibited more distinct personalities compared to others.
Their personalities developed through interaction with their owners.
Students who invested enough points to modify their dolls cared about them equally as much.
Through that care, the crude consciousnesses began to grow.
Now, some of those dolls could act independently even without me—so long as they stayed with their owners.
Of course, if too much time passed, they would fall asleep again.
If their owners were to separate from them, those consciousnesses would lose their individuality and become ordinary shadow dolls once more.
Most of the dolls abandoned by students had ended up like that.
For that reason, I returned dolls with distinct personalities to their owners.
Keeping them with me held no value.
Giving away a few dolls didn’t burden me, either.
By staying with their owners, there was a chance they might awaken again someday.
If such a doll existed, it could present me with new possibilities.
Among them, this bear doll was the most likely candidate.
Cassian had invested an unparalleled amount of care and points into modifying it.
“I thought about staying here, but you said that wasn’t possible.”
“That’s right.”
I nodded absentmindedly.
***
After lectures, the tower was usually quiet.
I had even considered running an inn.
I’d heard other towers did that.
They invited students during breaks and charged them points.
When I heard that, I couldn’t help but imagine the potential earnings.
I went straight to the professor.
But I was promptly turned away.
She loved sleeping.
To celebrate the end of lectures, she had fallen into another deep slumber.
According to her butler, she intended to sleep for the entire month.
Hearing that, I knew running an inn was off the table.
The professor despised foreign elements in her domain—especially while she slept.
That’s why every evening when she slept, all the students were expelled from the tower.
It was to prevent any unexpected incidents.
So, she slept soundly.
The tower would remain sealed until she woke.
No one was allowed inside during that time.
“I was debating whether I should leave this doll behind.”
At her words, the bear doll shook its hands furiously.
Its lively movements radiated a deep sense of rejection.
Understandably so—its consciousness depended entirely on Cassian.
“But yesterday, this doll sent me a message through the bulletin board. It suggested, ‘Why not just take him with us?’ That’s why I decided to bring this up today.”
Cassian patted the bear doll on its head.
It beamed with joy and nodded eagerly.
If there was any risk, they thought, they could simply eliminate the possibility altogether.
That was the solution the doll had come up with.
I nodded.
The flow of the conversation was becoming clear.
But there was no way this doll had thought of that plan alone.
Anyone could tell by its innocent expression.
It didn’t have the intelligence to devise such a method.
Someone else must have been involved.
“Haha, during this trip, you can entrust your body to me every night. I’ll make sure to fully unwind you.”
Mira chuckled as she spoke.
She began chatting casually with Cassian, while I was naturally relegated to the role of an escort.
Watching their conversation, I realized it had to be Mira who orchestrated this.
‘But why?’ I glanced at her face.
In her gaze as she looked at Cassian’s body, a glimmer of greed sparkled.
She still wanted that body.
Ever since the last lecture, she had been scheming to claim Cassian’s body for herself.
It was to use it in the treasure vault.
Clearly, the shock she had suffered from the professor was greater than I had imagined.
***
After that incident, she had clung to Cassian like this, claiming she was “adjusting” his body.
She was reviving the memories that had once resided in his body and helping further refine the talents within it.
That process had brought them closer.
Of course, once the transformation was complete, there would be a window for Mira to inhabit that body.
It was all part of her optimization plan to enter it.
Even so, she couldn’t stay in it for long.
Her heart was already tied to the doll.
At best, she might be able to remain in his body for one or two days.
Still, that would be more than enough time to accomplish her goal in the treasure vault.
During that time, she could fabricate the memories as she saw fit.
Mira glanced at me with a sly smile.
Her intentions were clear.
She wanted to stay by Cassian’s side for two months to remodel his body.
I recalled the last treasure I had seen.
Its terrifying appearance made me shudder.
If she could use Cassian’s body, it would surely help when facing such a treasure.
Cautiously, I joined their conversation and addressed Cassian.
“Then, how much were you thinking for the price?”
“Oh, Mira already received the points. Ten thousand points per month, so twenty thousand in total.”
This was unexpected.
I turned to Mira, who gave a sly smile and stepped back slightly.
“Your points are basically my points, aren’t they? Since they’ll be used for me anyway, I just went ahead and took them.”
I gave a bitter smile.
She wasn’t wrong.
Most of my points had indeed been used to maintain her body.
Twenty thousand points.
That was an immense sum, especially now, with lectures over.
From a points perspective, it was an offer I couldn’t refuse.
With the professor deep in sleep, doing anything in the tower was difficult, and traveling to the city felt like a waste of time.
It was the perfect way to fill this empty period.
I glanced at Mira.
She was stroking Cassian’s body, her expression brimming with anticipation.
A two-month plan to refine the body was certainly intriguing, but the plan had many flaws.
“I understand why you want to take me with you for two months. But what happens after that? I’ll need to return to the tower, so I won’t be able to stay with you any longer.”
I tapped the bear doll gently.
That was the issue.
No matter how much work they did on the body, it would be pointless if Cassian wasn’t near the tower.
Cassian tilted her head.
“I plan to reapply for lectures. Mira already collected the points for that, too.”
I blinked.
It seemed Mira had already planned everything out.
Cassian looked at Mira, and Mira returned her gaze with a soft smile, devoid of the greed that had been there earlier.
“You’re planning to attend lectures again?”
“Yes.”
“Do you really need to?”
I couldn’t quite understand.
Cassian had already received a certificate of completion from me yesterday.
It was impossible to get another certificate from the same lecture, so there was no reason for her to take the course again.
“I’ll just apply for another one. I can spend time here with the doll and then attend that lecture.”
I was reminded of my past self.
I used to stay here and attend lectures by Professor Heisen as well.
It wasn’t a method many used.
It was hard enough focusing on one lecture—’why attempt two at once?’
Moreover, there wasn’t a need to attend multiple lectures.
Most people took lectures not only to pass but also to train using the tower’s magic as a foundation.
Reaching the fourth floor and beyond required significant time.
Focusing on a single lecture was more efficient than splitting attention between two and risking failure in both.
Ultimately, taking multiple lectures only drained more points, making it an inefficient strategy.
Yet, Cassian spoke of it casually, as if it were nothing.
A sudden curiosity struck me.
“Where are you getting all these points?”
Cassian gently patted the bear doll’s head and replied.
“Sponsorships. When I took Evan’s recommendation letter to places outside the academy, they gave me points. Right now, I get twenty thousand points per month. Once I reach the third floor, they’ll give me thirty thousand points.”
‘Was that even possible?’ Cassian hesitated, fidgeting with her lips, before continuing.
“In return, they asked for my help later on.”
“I see.”
I gave a bitter smile.
‘Was this what talent looked like?’ I thought of Evan, who had boasted endlessly about Cassian being a genius.
To think she’d been sponsored since the beginning.
Some people struggled endlessly just to gather enough points.
Now that I thought about it, Mira’s interest in Cassian was also because of that talent.
Cassian’s body was a vessel capable of fully containing the power of that heart.
It made sense for others to want to secure their claim early.
“Actually, the reason for this trip is related to that.”
Cassian’s face grew slightly gloomy.
The bear doll patted her gently, comforting her.
Cassian hugged the doll tightly and muttered.
“I failed to ascend to the third floor, so they want to talk about it.”
She rolled on the floor with the bear doll.
I organized my thoughts.
Leaving the tower for two months wasn’t an issue.
The dolls tied to the artificial tree could handle the magic management.
I opened my eyes slightly.
Attaching the artificial tree to the bear doll might be an option.
I swallowed hard.
Maybe I could subtly bring it up on the way.
I might even earn more points.
“Alright. Since the points are already received, it seems I have no choice but to go. When do we leave?”
“Hmm, we’ll be nearby, so anytime within two days is fine.”
Cassian replied.
I nodded and looked at Mira.
She wore an immensely satisfied expression, with a line of drool dripping from the corner of her mouth.
I quietly averted my gaze.