Since the Azure Source Tower's enrollment period had passed, enrolling Serena—Kai's cousin—ended up taking most of the day. But with Official Mage Irene's recommendation, the process went smoothly, with no real hurdles.
The only minor hiccup came when signing Serena's enrollment contract. An irritable Irene suddenly held out her hand to Kai.
Kai frowned, confused. "What? Do you expect me to cover her tuition too?" Irene snapped, her tone sharp with annoyance.
Kai was caught off guard. Even Serena noticed the female mage's impatience and inched closer to Kai—he was her only anchor here.
"How much is it?" Kai asked.
"Two Level 1 energy crystals!" Irene replied.
For a Level 1 Mage, two Level 1 energy crystals were no small sum. This steep tuition explained why the academy gave apprentices two energy crystals annually and offered so many free public courses.
Before Kai could respond, though, Irene waved a hand dismissively. "Forget it—I'll bill it to Director Johnny. Heisyour sponsoring mage, after all!" She huffed, clearly aggrieved. "And why didn't Terra's lot contact Johnny directly when they couldn't reach you today? I only listed him as your sponsor on the forms—I was just the middleman!"
Kai and Serena both stayed silent, letting Irene vent. As for charging the tuition to Johnny? Kai said nothing, even though he could easily afford it.
It made him wonder: Was Johnny truly swamped, or had he forgotten about Kai? Since Kai joined Azure Source Tower over five years ago, he'd never seen the director again—only a note with Johnny's tower residence floor number. Not that Kai had ever bothered him, either.
Johnny was probably busy. Most of the instructors Kai had met in recent years were Level 1 Mages; he'd never seen a Level 2 Mage teach public courses.
Once Serena's enrollment was fully processed, Irene hurried off. Kai had planned to thank her with two or three Level 1 energy crystals, but she was gone before he could speak. She must have been truly busy—likely with a critical experiment.
This small detail revealed Irene's true nature: despite her grumbling and impatience while handling Serena's enrollment, she was actually easygoing and responsible. Her irritability was just a mage's typical reaction to having their work interrupted. After all, Kai's own face had been dark enough to scare people when he'd stepped outside the academy earlier.
Irene flew straight toward the tower—apprentices were forbidden from flying inside the tower grounds, but official Mages had that privilege.
As they watched her go, Serena murmured, "That official Mage… she's a good person, isn't she?" She might have seemed like a naive noble girl, but she was perceptive.
Kai said nothing. Instead, he studied her for a moment before asking, "How old are you?"
"Eighteen," Serena replied softly, clutching her stack of apprentice supplies.
"Eighteen?" Kai blinked in surprise. An 18-year-old Mid-level Apprentice was impressive even at Azure Source Tower. No wonder her grandfather had been so proud of her.
Serena must have brought a storage artifact from her family, though its capacity was probably small. The Feren family's emphasis on her proved she wasn't incompetent.
Kai wasn't good at small talk—even with family. After a few brief questions about her journey, an awkward silence settled between them. Serena was just as reserved; two quiet souls together made for a strangely stiff atmosphere.
Then Kai suddenly slapped his forehead. "Wait—did Irene assign you a dorm?"
The academy provided dorms for apprentices, but since it wasn't enrollment season, there were no vacant rooms. And with Kai's connections, he couldn't exactly ask the mages at the admin hall to rearrange housing for Serena. Bribing a mage with energy crystals? He'd rather avoid flaunting his wealth.
Serena, however, seemed unfazed—almost naively trusting. Since entering the tower, she'd seen Kai as her rock, as if he could solve anything. She looked like a young girl who'd just left home.
Kai sighed, rubbing his temples. "You'll stay with me for now."
Serena's face lit up. "Really? Thank you!"
Serena might have been new to the world, but she wasn't stupid. No mage—even an apprentice—was to be underestimated. She'd thought through far more than Kai realized.
Before leaving her family, her elders had urged her to build a good relationship with Kai. An apprentice accepted into a tower had boundless potential; even if Kai never became an official Mage, his connections at the tower would benefit a small magic family like the Ferens, stuck in a backwater like the Licia Alliance. And the fact that Kai could get an official Mage to help enroll her only proved his influence.
Her grandfather had once tried to arrange a marriage for her with a noble heir, but no suitable match had emerged. The Ferens were a declining magic family, but they still held a Baron title—Serena could have married into a Viscount's family. Most nobles in the Licia Alliance were knight families, and few would refuse a connection to a magic lineage.
The words that lingered most in her mind, though, came from Zeratul, the Ferens' Archapprentice and her great-granduncle: "You could marry Kai. Your union would purify our bloodline and strengthen ties with the Grants. And it would benefit you most of all."
Intermarriage among nobles was common—so long as they weren't full siblings, cousins often married to keep bloodlines "pure." It also solved the problem of finding suitable allies when no good matches existed outside the family. The wizarding world valued bloodlines; knight families obsessing over it, and even old magic families cared about preserving their direct lineage.
Aligning herself with Kai was Serena's best bet. And honestly? She'd taken a liking to him at first sight—not for his looks, but for the sense of security he gave her. After traveling all the way from the Licia Alliance, he was all she had.
Kai's residence was more than just a three-story detached dorm. Each floor had multiple spacious rooms, plus a basement. He assigned Serena to a few rooms on the first floor— the second floor was his lab and meditation room, and the third was his living quarters.
Serena's arrival disrupted Kai's routine. Even his large dorm couldn't compare to Count Grant's castle; they ran into each other daily, and awkward small talk was unavoidable.
Owl Xiao Qi was also affected. The first floor had been its territory—a mix of playspace and nest. Now it had to relocate, but the magical beast took it in stride, only watching Serena with its brown eyes, curious about this new addition to Kai's life.
Serena was equally fascinated by Xiao Qi. Her cousin was far more mysterious, knowledgeable, and powerful than she'd imagined—he knew high-ranking magesandkept a powerful magical beast as a pet.
"Starting tomorrow, attend the public courses at the academy's central hall," Kai told her over dinner. "You're a Mid-level Apprentice, but Azure Source Tower's knowledge is deeper than you can imagine. Even introductory courses will help you as a new apprentice."
"Got it, Cousin!" Serena nodded firmly.
She'd cooked dinner—and surprisingly, the 18-year-old noble girl was a good cook. The fruit soup's sweetness and the crispness of the toast suited Kai perfectly. It was one of the few small comforts her presence brought.
Serena was obedient and thoughtful—qualities Kai appreciated. If she'd been arrogant or demanding, he would have sent her away, cousin or not.
The next morning, when Kai descended the stairs, a plate of delicate breakfast waited on the table. Serena was gone, but a note lay beside the food: she'd eaten early and gone to explore the academic buildings and library to familiarize herself with the tower.
Kai sipped the juice she'd left—his favorite flavor, with ice. "Not bad," he muttered. "She's low-maintenance."
After finishing his breakfast, he returned to his second-floor lab. Five years at Azure Source Tower had let him master all basic courses in every element; he'd even taken countless advanced courses that required extra fees. He had no need to attend classes anymore.
"The Sun Eye spell's upgrade was almost done last time," he thought, his eyes alight with excitement. "Today, I'll perfect it—make it live up to my expectations!"
These days, only the pursuit of truth and elemental secrets could make Kai this enthusiastic. He realized, with a faint chuckle, that he hadn't been with a woman in years.
Kai and Serena's cohabitation was far less dramatic than one might imagine. Their lives were almost parallel—they only crossed paths briefly at breakfast and dinner, exchanging a few words. Most days, they barely saw each other.
The fault lay mostly with Kai: he either holed up in his lab or rushed to the library for research. As Sun Eye neared completion, he visited the library even more frequently—sometimes sneaking out in the middle of the night, waking Serena, who was a light sleeper on the first floor.
Serena didn't mind. She attended public courses daily, cooked Kai's meals, and cleaned the dorm. Perhaps the way to a man's heartwasthrough his stomach.
Because she took care of his meals and chores, Kai gradually opened up to his once-strange cousin. With his Archapprentice knowledge, he could easily guide her in her studies and magic practice.
It was during a casual dinner chat that Kai—ever the inattentive cousin—finally learned Serena specialized in Fire and Light magic, with a focus on Light.
This surprised him. Given his current research, he asked, "Do you have any important public courses tomorrow? If not, could you help me in the lab? Just simple data recording. My research is on Fire-Light magic—it might teach you something."
Serena's face lit up with surprise and joy. "Of course! I don't have any classes tomorrow." She'd been curious about Kai's lab ever since moving in—she'd cleaned his room, but never dared enter the second-floor labs.
Kai's lab exceeded Serena's wildest expectations. She'd been in her family's lab before—reserved for Senior Apprentices and Archapprentices—but Kai's equipment was more complex, and his worktables more precise than even the Ferens' Archapprentices used.
Six worktables operated simultaneously, their Light Element theories so intricate they made Serena's head spin. Luckily, she didn't need to understand the principles—only to record data from each table at set intervals. Kai handled the rest: overseeing the lab and making tiny adjustments to the crystal lenses on each worktable.
Watching Kai, Serena was reminded of how Kai himself had once assisted his mentor Moses in the alchemy lab. Unknowingly, Kai had grown almost as capable as Moses. Though he wasn't yet a Level 1 Mage, few apprentices could conduct such complex, large-scale experiments—even some official Mages couldn't match his setup.
Of course, this was also because Kai chased perfection for Sun Eye.
Serena proved a capable assistant. She was fascinated by the Fire-Light magic in the experiment, but never disturbed Kai, who was fully focused. Instead, she thought through the elemental secrets on her own while completing her tasks. For a Mid-level Apprentice, participating in such advanced research was invaluable. And Kai had promised her a reward.
With Serena's help, Kai made rapid progress on Sun Eye's final upgrades. About a month and a half later, a blinding golden light flooded the lab—so bright it lingered for minutes. It was nighttime, and from outside, Kai's dorm seemed bathed in a soft golden glow.
Luckily, his residence was in a quiet, remote part of the academy. Few people passed by at midnight, so the light didn't attract the attention of other apprentices or mages.
In the lab, Kai's eyes sparkled with excitement. Even Serena, standing by the door, looked thrilled.
"Cousin—did we do it?" she asked. Though she'd only assisted for a month and a half, she'd learned a great deal. Most notably, the experiment had inspired her to master Scorching Ray, a powerful Mid-level Light spell.
Kai snapped out of his excitement. Sun Eye's upgrade was finally complete—and initial calculations showed its power was nearlyfour timesthat of the original. Of course, he'd need to inscribe the spell's model into his mental sea and test it on the training ground to know its true strength. It would be even better if someone like Mark—looking for a rematch—showed up to be his "test dummy."
"Yes," Kai said. He turned to Serena. "Here's your reward. You've pulled three all-nighters with me—go rest." He held out several Mid-level Fire energy crystals.
Serena shook her head. "You gave me crystals half a month ago. I can't take more."
"Those were for last month's help," Kai replied firmly. "Mages live by equal exchange. You helped me—you deserve this. Take it." His tone sharpened, almost commanding.
If he'd been gentle, Serena would have refused. But with his firm tone, she obeyed—likely because they still didn't know each other well.
She accepted the crystals, her expression grateful and respectful. The amount Kai gave her exceeded what the Ferens provided in a month. It made her even more curious about him—but after two months of living together, he still felt like a mystery.
Before leaving the lab, she worked up the courage to ask a question she'd been hiding for weeks: "Cousin… you're an Archapprentice, right?"
Kai was tidying the worktable, rechecking data on the crystal lenses—he was always meticulous, even though the chance of error was less than 5%. He paused, then nodded. "Yes. Why?"
"Nothing," Serena smiled. "I just don't think a regular Senior Apprentice could handle such complex dual-element experiments. You're amazing! You're not over 35, are you?" Her tone was admiring.
"Thirty-one," Kai replied.
A 31-year-old Archapprentice—surely the youngest at Azure Source Tower. But Kai kept a low profile; few knew his true level, not even Irene. The line between Senior Apprentice and Archapprentice was blurry—Archapprentices were just "enhanced" Senior Apprentices, after all. The real gap was in knowledge.
Kai's expression softened at her awe. "Being an Archapprentice isn't a big deal. You'll get there too."
Serena nodded fiercely. "I will!"