"A spellbook? What kind of spellbook?"
Ethan's soul-piercing question made Ivy fall silent. In truth, she had no idea what sort of spellbook the Winter Witch had left behind—couldn't imagine it, either. And even if she did know, she wouldn't tell Ethan.
A grand grimoire left by the Empire's most brilliant Elemental Shaper.
That title alone was enough to get countless people killed.
She shook her head. "That's not something you need to worry about."
"Then… what if you never find it?"
"One year."
Ivy understood exactly what he was worried about. She raised a single finger.
"If I still haven't found it after a year, I'll honor my promise and recommend you to the Headquarters Intelligence Department."
"Deal!"
Ethan was still young. One year was nothing. And it was the perfect window to quietly build up Old Sen's Magic Scroll Shop, stockpile some living expenses, and then head for the Imperial capital without having to beg or gamble.
Then he added, "In that case, I won't bother you any longer today. Miss Chloe and I will head back first."
"Back? Where to?"
Ivy tilted her head in confusion. The little golden tuft atop her hair lifted as well.
"Back to the Guild to pack. I've transferred to the Containment Bureau, so I have to clear out my old room and hand it over."
The only thing Ethan felt a little regret about was that tiny room on the second floor of the Guild. It had been an employee benefit—two years of living there rent-free, saving him a painful amount of money.
"Where are you planning to move?" Ivy asked.
Ethan could be insufferable sometimes—annoying, infuriating, one sneeze away from sending her teleporting into the sea—but he worked under her now. His daily living situation was something she had to care about. Besides, he'd just dumped a huge pile of Gold Lions on books. His savings were probably close to zero.
It was Ivy's first time being someone's superior. She decided she would be a responsible one.
"The cabin in the mountains," Ethan said optimistically. "With a bit of tidying, it's actually pretty nice."
Granted, the cabin had a few minor issues.
A corpse had been dragged into it once, the scene resembling a cult sacrifice. Blood had splattered everywhere. Later, a few more people died outside the door. Their ashes were packed into jars and buried in the soil out front. The cabin was old and leaky; any heavy rain meant water dripping in. The door was barely a door at night, offering almost no protection—any passing beast could stroll right in…
But if you ignored all of that, it really was a decent place.
The Guild had long since forgotten they even owned a piece of property outside town. They probably wouldn't mind him and Miss Chloe staying there for a while.
There was a unique charm to mountains and wilderness. Even the illustrious Tianlu celebrity had once said, "Really nice—living in the mountains is really nice," to express his love for the great outdoors.
"That dump is livable?" Ivy blurted out.
Even the tuft of hair on her head shook violently, as if trying to stop him.
She had been to that mountain cabin. If she lived there, she'd be covered in itchy red rashes within two days.
"And what about Miss Chloe?" Ivy continued. "She's still growing. Her appetite is terrifying. You probably can't afford her food anymore."
She added quickly, "Don't misunderstand—Miss Chloe is also a member of our station. Of course I have to care about her well-being."
Ethan pouted. He strongly suspected Ivy and her tuft had a questionable level of disrespect for nature.
He understood the logic, sure. But if you had money, who wouldn't want to live in a nice place?
As for Miss Chloe's appetite, Ethan's plan was simple: trust nature. Nature always provides. Deep in the wild, there were kindhearted beasts like the Great Wild Boar King—warm souls who couldn't bear to see other creatures go hungry.
Seeing Ethan fall silent, Ivy suddenly said, "What do you think about the apartment next door?"
Ivy lived on the busiest street in Elmwood Town. The building was a standalone duplex apartment—its target clientele obvious: Elmwood's upper class. Big bankers, major shop owners. Several equally luxurious apartments lined the newly built boulevard.
"If we live closer, it'll be more convenient to discuss work. And by regulation, the Containment Bureau also provides housing for certain key staff."
"The apartment next door… is Bureau property?"
"It can be."
Just three words, and they hit Ethan like a thunderclap.
When Miss Ivy Margaret talked about buying an entire apartment building, she didn't even blink. To her, it was as ordinary as eating and drinking water.
"Thank you, Organization, for your trust! Thank you, Leader, for your promotion!"
What else was there to say?
"Cluck-cluck!"
Miss Chloe, who had been hiding under the table, came trotting over too. She dipped into a graceful little bow toward Ivy in gratitude.
Ethan couldn't shake the feeling that the little hen was getting smarter by the day.
"Go pack your personal things at the Guild, then move in next door," Ivy said. "Your ID from the Gear City branch should arrive by tomorrow night. Until then, rest properly."
Ethan agreed out loud, but in his heart he'd already prepared for an all-nighter. He wanted to devour A Simple Guide to Making Magic Scrolls from cover to cover—then turn the twenty sheets of energy-storing parchment into Ice Arrow scrolls before his official first day. The thought alone made him itch.
By the time he finished the handover, hauled his luggage back, and stepped into the new apartment, dusk had already fallen. Elmwood Town was still under full lockdown; the streets were empty. Before leaving the Guild, he made one last "withdrawal" from the free bread provided for hunters—Miss Chloe's dinner.
Standing at the apartment door, Ethan felt as if the world had turned over.
Two years after transmigrating, he finally had a new home—not a borrowed little room.
It was technically employee housing, sure, but he still couldn't bring himself to step inside for a long while. A set of expensive-looking vessels sat on the coffee table. The reception room hit you the moment you entered—grand, imposing.
He had his own washroom.
His own study.
He assigned Miss Chloe a bedroom. She inspected the soft bed with cautious curiosity. Only after Ethan nodded did she hop up happily, burrow under the blanket, and curl into a warm little fire-red ball, eyes squinting into crescents.
"From now on, this is your room."
"Cluck!"
And him—Ethan—was finally stepping into a brand-new world.
This lavish apartment gave him a fresh goal: teach himself scrollcraft, grow Old Sen's Magic Scroll Shop into something real… and maybe one day, even in the Imperial capital, he could rent a place like this.
He strode into his bedroom and set A Simple Guide to Making Magic Scrolls on the desk.
The oak table was large enough to lay out all twenty folded sheets of energy-storing parchment at once.
With a pounding heart, Ethan flipped to the first page.
It was time.
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