Chapter 64: The Wish Tower, I

The man emerging from the tower had stark white hair and a pale face that looked younger than his age would suggest. He also sported heavy shadows under his eyes. At first glance, he appeared to be a meticulous old man.

But what caught Louis off guard wasn’t just the elder’s appearance but rather his attire.

Is that…a lab coat?

Most mages wore robes, yet this being donned a white lab coat over casual clothes. As Louis observed him, one thought popped into his head:

A mad scientist!

A scientist obsessed with research—that was exactly how Louis perceived the old man at first sight. And as Louis watched, something struck him.

I can sense it! It’s coming off of him!

He could detect the strong scent of overused sci-fi clichés emanating from the elderly mage.

Meanwhile, the old man lazily glanced at them from behind the door: one burly man and three children. After giving them a once-over, he grumbled loudly:

“Oh boy… Are they sending these kinds of riffraff now?”

“…?” Pablo was utterly confused by the old man’s disgruntled tone. It seemed like there had been some kind of misunderstanding.

“I think you have the wrong idea—”

“What misunderstanding, my ass!” The old man’s mouth was as sharp as his temper.

Pablo barely managed to suppress his own irritation. “It really appears that you do—”

“If it’s a misunderstanding, then what’re you doing loitering outside someone else’s house?”

“Well, we were just—” Before Pablo could finish, Louis interrupted him.

“Aren’t you Master Tower of the Wish Tower?”

“What? Yes, I am.” The old man looked down at the small child before him, whose eyes sparkled with excitement.

Louis approached the high priest closely. “Hello! My name is Louis, and these two are Khan and Kani.”

“Hi!”

“Hel-loooo!”

The twins placed their hands on their bellies and bowed deeply at ninety degrees—the belly greeting Louis had taught them. Their polite introduction put the high priest slightly more at ease.

He turned to the seemingly smartest kid among them. “…Were you sent here by those village brats?”

“We just arrived today, sir.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes, sir.”

Hearing this, the high priest snapped sharply at Pablo.

“Well, then, why didn’t you just say so?!”

“…I can only speak if given the chance to do so, sir.”

“Ahem.” The high priest awkwardly cleared his throat under Pablo’s stern gaze and hastily changed the subject.

“Oh, well, anyway. It’s nice to meet you. I am Dexter. So what brings you here?”

“We’ve come from far away to see you, Master Tower.”

“You wish to see me?”

“Yes, indeed!”

“But why?”

“Did you author The Top Hundred Talismans of the World?”

“I did, but…?”

“I was deeply impressed by your book and came seeking you! I also have something important to discuss with you.”

“Hmm…” The old man scrutinized Louis before glancing at those behind him as well.

“Very good.”

That was it. Dexter slammed the door shut right there.

Slam!

“…” Both Louis and Pablo stared blankly at the closed door.

After a beat, Pablo came to his senses and knocked again.

“H-hello!”

A voice answered from inside the room.

“Oh, go away! Beat it!”

“No, wait—…”

The voice fell silent.

Flustered, Pablo turned to Louis. “What should we do now? He seems quite cantankerous.”

“Hmm…” After pondering for a moment, Louis knocked on the door himself and called out, “I’d like to purchase something!”

This time, the door cracked open slightly.

Dexter’s beady eyes peered out from behind the narrow crack of the door.

”…What do you want to buy?”

“Yes, sir!”

“What is it?”

“The rusty sword mentioned in Master Tower’s book, found within the Wish Tower! If possible, I’d like to purchase that!”

At Louis’s request, Dexter’s gaze turned icy cold. He bellowed at them.

“I’m not interested. Get lost!”

Slam!

The door slammed shut so forcefully that the metal frame shook.

Pablo mumbled, stunned, “Th-that old man sure has quite a temper.”

“…This won’t be easy.”

Acquiring the rusty sword from the Wish Tower, which would later become known as the Draconic Sword, was essential for Louis. However, its current owner refused even to engage in conversation.

Is it because I asked outright to buy his sword?

But Louis had no choice but to be direct. He was determined to acquire that blade from Dexter someday, so he needed to make his intentions clear sooner or later. Of course, this approach hadn’t yielded favorable results.

I see this will take longer than expected…

Even if it meant wasting some time here, they needed to gradually gain Dexter’s trust.

“What should we do now, sir?”

“We should first—” As Louis was about to order a strategic retreat…

“Who might you be?”

An elderly voice came from behind them. Louis turned around and spotted a dirty old man who appeared to be a farmer. The farmer eyed Louis’s group standing at the entrance of the Wish Tower with suspicion.

Pablo scratched the back of his head as he responded cautiously under the farmer’s watchful gaze.

“Oh, we have some business here…” Pablo trailed off as the farmer sized them up.

The old man clicked his tongue and asked, “Tsk! Did that stubborn Dexter kick you out?”

“Well, more like he wouldn’t let us inside at all.”

“That hotheaded fool…” The farmer glared at the door disapprovingly before letting out a soft sigh. “So, I haven’t seen your faces around here. Are ye travelers?”

“We just arrived today.”

“Oh dear, tsk, tsk.” The farmer clicked his tongue again and glanced at the children standing next to Pablo. He dusted off his clothes and spoke up.

“Follow me.”

“Excuse me?”

“That stubborn mule won’t open the door unless it’s something truly important.”

“…”

“But there’s no need for ye to spend the night outside, especially with kids, right?”

“…That’s true.”

“There’s no inn around here anyway. Is this your carriage?”

“Yes, it is.”

“If you take me home, I’ll let you stay for the night.”

With that, the old man swiftly climbed aboard.

“Aghhh…my knee… What’re you waiting for? Hop on!”

The old man settled comfortably as if he owned the carriage. Pablo looked at Louis, seeking guidance. Louis nodded, and Pablo turned to address their guest.

“Which way should we go?”

“Thataway,” the old man directed from his seat next to Pablo.

Once Louis and the twins joined them, Pablo set the carriage in motion.

Clip-clop, clip-clop.

Soon, with the steady rhythm of the horses’ hooves lulling him, the elderly farmer fell asleep after a hard day’s work. Louis watched him quietly before speaking up.

“Grandpa.”

“Hm?”

The old man’s eyes slowly opened at Louis’s clear voice.

“What is it?”

“May I ask who you are, Grandpa?”

“Heh-heh, curious all of a sudden?” The elder chuckled mischievously at Louis’s question.

“I’m just the handsomest grandfather in this village.”

“Oh, so you’re Mr. Yoon, the headman.”

The old man appeared surprised by Louis’s response.

“Huh? How did you know?”

“Well, they say the most handsome grandfather becomes the headman.”

“Hmm? Ha-ha, ha-ha-ha! That’s right! Yes, indeed!” The old man burst out laughing heartily.

Of course, Louis had simply taken a guess and gotten lucky, but he didn’t bother correcting him. There was no need to lose any favor unnecessarily, especially when dealing with the village headman.

There was no need to unnecessarily lose points with this man, especially since he was the head of the village. It would only benefit Louis to stay on his good side.

It looks like he’s close with High Priest Dexter as well…

Otherwise, the headman wouldn’t have brought Dexter’s guest all the way here. Maintaining a positive relationship with him seemed prudent.

While Louis mentally plotted out his next move, the headman urgently called out:

“Stop right there! We’re here!”

“Here already?”

“Yes, thanks to you we had a comfortable ride. Come inside.”

Pablo pulled up in front of an ordinary two-story house. The old man hopped off the carriage and headed toward the door with his hands clasped behind his back.

Louis and Pablo exchanged glances before disembarking from the carriage to follow the old man. Of course, not everyone needed prompting. The twins had already jumped out of the carriage and were clinging to the headman’s legs.

“Mr. Elder, Mr. Elder! Is this your house?”

“Is it grandpa’s house?”

“Ha-ha, yes, indeed it is my humble abode!” Pleased with their enthusiasm, the headman led them inside his home.

Amazed by how well the twins connected with him, Louis followed suit, admiring their rapport.

How neat and tidy.

Upon entering, Louis was greeted by a clean and organized interior. However, he couldn’t shake off a strange chill in the air. Once he pinpointed the source, he cautiously asked:

“You live here alone?” Louis asked cautiously.

The old man smiled gently and nodded. “Ha-ha, yes, I do.”

“What about others? Your wife or children perhaps?”

“My kids left for the city to make their fortunes, and my wife… Well, she couldn’t stand looking at me anymore, so she left long ago—about thirty years now?”

“Oh…” Louis was taken aback by this revelation.

The headman chuckled softly and patted him on the head. The scent of earth from the older man tickled Louis’s nose.

Reassured, Louis followed as the headman gestured toward the second floor.

“Well then, there are plenty of empty rooms upstairs. Make yourselves comfortable.”

“Yay!” With that, the twins dashed up the stairs immediately.

The headman put down his hat and looked at Louis. “Are you hungry?”

“A little bit.”

“I apologize… I didn’t expect guests today, so there’s nothing prepared or cooked…”

Pablo stepped forward. “Sir, do you have any ingredients we could use? If you provide me with some, I can whip something up.”

“Oh… I’m truly sorry about this.”

“It’s okay, sir.”

“Well then, please go ahead and look around the kitchen over there. Feel free to use whatever you find.”

“Understood.” Pablo rolled up his sleeves and headed toward the kitchen.

Louis and the headman were left alone together. As the sun set and the temperature began dropping, the elderly man approached the fireplace. With practiced hands, he quickly lit it, filling the room with warmth.

As the headman sat down near the fireplace to warm his weary body, Louis cautiously approached him and spoke softly as its warmth cast a glow on the elder’s wrinkled face.

“Grandpa.”

“Yes?”

“Um… Do you know Dexter, Master of the Tower?”

“Ha-ha, yes indeed. We grew up together here in this village.”

The headman then turned the tables with a question of his own.

“What brings you to see him?”

“We needed something from him. But he slammed the door before we could even properly talk to him…”

“Ha-ha! He must’ve been preoccupied at the time. Although, it’s true that he has always had a peculiar personality.” The headman chuckled warmly.

“But it seems like villagers don’t really care for the Wish Tower… Why is that?”

“Hmm? How did you know about that?”

“Well…”

Louis recounted how the villagers had acted upon their arrival at the village.

The headman clicked his tongue in response.

“Tsk! That Dexter claims he’s conducting research, but who knows what he’s smashing all day long? There’s no peace and quiet around here anymore. That’s why they feel this way. It wasn’t always like this, but lately, it’s been particularly bad…”

“I see…”

“In any case, take what the villagers say with a grain of salt. They’re just venting frustrations built up over time. Dexter isn’t a bad person.”

“Yes, understood.” Louis nodded slightly.

The headman gazed at Louis, impressed by the boy’s maturity. A sense of pride shone in his eyes.

The headman observed Louis for some time before stroking his chin and speaking again.

“So you need something from the Wish Tower?”

“Yes, sir.”

“I’m not sure what it is you’re after, but if it’s urgent, why don’t you try approaching one of his disciples?”

“He has disciples?”

“Ha-ha! Of course he does, despite being such a recluse. He has four, so at least one should be able to help you with whatever you need.”

“But…if Master Tower won’t open the door, we’ll get chased away without even getting a chance to talk to them, wouldn’t we?”

“No need to worry about that. His disciples live outside the tower.”

Louis raised an eyebrow at this revelation. “They don’t reside with him? Why not?”

“Ha-ha!” The headman chuckled heartily, then gave an unexpected answer.

“That brat Dexter kicked them all out.”

“All of his disciples?”

“Yes, every last one.”

Louis’s eyes twinkled.

Hmm? Now there’s something interesting.

His instincts were tingling. There seemed to be some sort of conflict between Master Dexter and his disciples, and Louis sensed that this could provide him with an opportunity to get closer to Dexter.