***
Filina turned her head to the maid and asked.
“Who told you to let just anyone into the house?”
At her words, the maidservant looked puzzled.
“But he said he’s a very close friend of the lady…”
“My friend?”
Filina turned her head and stared at the man with a puzzled look on her face. He shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly.
“How the hell did you get here? Are you stalking me?”
At Filina’s words, he grabbed his stomach and began to burst into laughter.
She stared at him silently.
The man’s red eyes were narrowed.
He was the main culprit who broke Leon’s sword.
She couldn’t figure out how he knew her and came all the way here.
The man wiped away the tears from his eyes and said to Filina.
“Do I look like a man with a lot of time on his hands? Following a woman around?”
“Yes, you do.”
“Actually, you’re half right.”
……so quick to admit it.
Filina put her hand on her forehead as if she had a headache. Then she sighed and asked the maid to bring tea.
“You would have been kicked out of the house right away if it weren’t for that handsome face.”
Filina sat down and spat the words out pensively, holding back swearing.
“How long are you going to keep laughing like that? Tell me how you came to visit me, every single detail.”
The man blushed slightly at Filina’s firm voice.
“I’ve never been treated like garbage before, so I’m very nervous.”
“I think you’ve come to the wrong house, haven’t you?”
Even though she said the words in a serious voice, the man only smiled at her. Then he looked at Filina with a curious expression and said.
“You look better than I thought.”
Filina’s face twisted into silence.
“Explain it to me so I can understand.”
At her words, the man placed a small bottle of medicine on the table.
“I actually came to give you this.”
“………… What is this?”
“It’s a cure.”
Filina raised her eyebrows at his words.
The man asked in an indifferent voice.
“How many potions did you drink?”
Filina sighed and said with a tired look on her face.
“You’re still talking about that? I tested negative.”
The man opened his mouth in a low voice at Filina’s shrewd reply.
“I made it.”
At his reply, Filina was speechless for a moment.
Silence fell in the parlor.
The man smiled at her.
“What did you just say…?”
When she asked with a frown, the man said it clearly once more.
“I’m the one who made the potions…”
The man’s lips gently drew a line. His mischievous eyes quietly watched her face.
Filina asked, staring blankly at the man.
“You are the master of the Magic Tower?”
“Yes, I am.”
“Don’t lie to me.”
“It’s true.”
A ridiculous laugh broke out from her lips.
‘This person is the owner of the Magic Tower?’
‘He’s not just a wizard, but also the master of the Magic Tower?’
‘The genius wizard I’ve only heard from rumors? The wizard that the imperial family doesn’t even touch?’
“How’s young master Bruno doing?”
He deliberately mentioned Bruno, who bought the potions from him. Looking at the man’s expression, he seemed to be enjoying this situation very much.
Filina said with a ridiculous look on her face.
“But why didn’t you tell me you were the owner of the Magic Tower?”
“Why should I say that?”
“You were the one who brought up potions to me first.”
“Oh, that’s true.”
The man nodded his head in immediate agreement.
“It was just a little fascinating. I’m sure he took the potion for your physical test, but you looked perfectly fine.”
“What do you mean?”
“Actually, it’s fascinating even now. I’ve never seen anyone so compatible with me before.”
Filina frowned as the man spat out incomprehensible words. Seeing her like this, he added a few words.
“As much as the potions I made are effective, the aftereffects are significant.”
Filina asked with a firm expression.
“What aftereffects?”
“The symptoms vary from person to person. The most common are headaches, dizziness and nausea.”
She was silent for a moment and then asked again.
“How long do the aftereffects last?”
“Three months at the shortest, and some people might experience it their whole life.”
Filina said in an overly calm voice.
“Why are you telling me all this now? Shouldn’t you have told me from the beginning?”
The tower master, who had been staring at her, wrinkled his brow.
“In case you forgot, I’m a merchant. You dared to ask a merchant for a potion without being afraid, and you think it wouldn’t have these after-effects? Isn’t that more arrogant of you?”
Filina bit her lips at his remarks. She really had bad luck with this man.
“Well, that doesn’t mean I’m here to sell you a cure.”
Then he pushed the potion he had put on the table toward her.
“I’ll give you this as a gift. Especially.”
Filina asked as she glanced at it.
“Why?”
To her question, the man said with a sly smile.
“I’ve never seen anyone so compatible with my blood. So this is a commemoration of that.”
He added in a soft voice as he leaned his back deeper into the chair.
“I don’t think you’ll have any use for it, since you seem fine anyway.”
Filina stared at the small glass jar on the table. Then she asked the man with a curious look on her face.
“When you make potions, do you include your blood in the ingredients?”
“Of course. It’s the most important ingredient.”
The man leaned forward and put his chin on his hand, smiling. Filina muttered quietly.
“No wonder it tasted bad.”
“That’s because I purposely don’t add any flavoring. It’s a potion made by a prestigious Master. It would hurt my pride if it tasted like strawberry or chocolate.”
Filina frowned at his very low-level reason.
“I hope you don’t only care about your pride, but about other people’s as well. I’m terrified every time I drink the potion.”
He asked, tilting his head at an angle, whether he had listened to Filina properly.
“Are you not going to order anymore?”
Filina replied with a light shrug.
“Of course not. I won’t be using it anymore. Besides, I still have one potion left that you made.”
At her answer, the man asked in a low voice.
The tower master heard her words in a low voice.
“One potion is enough? You got into the academy doesn’t mean everything.”
“What do you mean?”
Filina looked at him, her brows furrowed. Then the Magic Tower Lord raised his lips in a thin line and seduced her with a sly look.
“Think about it. The academy requires you to pass regular exams to advance, and by the way, do you think you can do that without the help of potions?”
“…What is it that I can’t do?”
“The academy isn’t as easy as you think. It’s even more dangerous, especially if you’re a woman. Most of them are illiterate and overpowered, so no one knows what to expect. It is a place where all the standards are designed for men from the beginning. How well do you think you, a woman, will be able to endure in such a place?”
Filina looked dumbfounded at his story.
“Why don’t you put a curse on it?”
The man replied in an indifferent voice.
“Even if I feel bad, I can’t help it. Because this is reality.”
He pushed his face forward with a mischievous smile.
“You’d have to have a hell of a lot more weapons than that to counter this bloody reality. Only then will you be justified.”
“So now, that awesome weapon is the potion, isn’t it?”
He nodded at Filina’s words with a look of obviousness on his face. She smiled wryly.
“You want me to rely on potions all the time? That’s amazing advice.”
The man said, leaning his back against the couch.
“I can confidently say that if you go to the Swordsmanship Academy, you’ll be using all the potions you have now in less than half a month.”
Filina said in a ridiculous voice.
“When did I say I was taking potions to the academy?”
The Demon Tower Lord smiled and replied.
“Well, you won’t last half a month and you’ll be back home.”
Somehow, the more she talked to him, the more tired she got. Sighing for no apparent reason, Filina changed the subject.
“I don’t even know your name yet. Let’s introduce ourselves.”
“I’m Hugh Fieldman.”
With a short reply he opened his mouth again.
“I already know your name. Filina Debussy.”
At Hugh’s low voice, she stared at him with a dull face.
Even in the original story, the name of the ‘Magic Tower Lord’ had never been mentioned.
Even if she considered the last four lifetimes, the information regarding the Magic Tower Lord was only heard through a few rumors. This was the first time Filina had a direct involvement with him.
Hugh, who was staring at her, who was lost in thought for a while, raised her lips smoothly.
“You can call me by my name. I’ll give you special permission.”
Then he narrowed the corners of his eyes and continued his words.
“In return, can I call you Filina?”
Filina looked at Hugh with a wrinkle between her brows. Filina never thought she wanted to call his name.
But as if her opinion didn’t matter much Hugh as he crossed his arms and asked earnestly,
“So, what about potions?”
Filina blinked slowly, as if pondering for a moment, and then nodded quickly.
“Okay. I’ll buy it.”
Hugh gave a satisfied smile at her words.
“Okay. But you’ll have to pay for the potions other than the money.”
Filina frowned.
“What will it be?”
Hugh’s eyes lit up and his lips lifted in a pouty smile.
“How about something like this?”
“….”
“One wish for every three potions.”
“…A wish?”
He nodded with a sly smile.
“Yes, fulfill my wish.”
“…Do you know what wish you’re going to make?”
Hugh replied as Filina stared at him with a suspicious look on her face.
“I don’t write strange wishes. You can listen to it later and if you don’t like it you can cancel it right away.”
When Filina looked troubled, he spoke again.
“This is a great deal for you. Because you don’t know what the price is for a single potion, do you?”
“I think money is better. There’s no loose ends.”
Filina was still furious when she thought about the fact that Hugh broke Leon’s sword.
Whether he knew how Filina felt or not, he said nonchalantly.
“If you don’t like this condition, you should buy someone else’s potion.”
Hugh, who was spitting out as if he had no regrets, suddenly whispered with a devilish smile.
“By the way, those who have tasted mine once can never drink other potions.”
“….”
“Because they’re never going to be satisfied.”
Looking at his relaxed smile quietly, Filina had no choice but to sigh and nod.