The Sorcerer's Handbook

Chapter 248: I Can’t Bring Myself to Spend on the Watcher!

In the Harvest Orchard at Sword and Roses University.

Mifa stepped out of the treehouse in her work uniform, ready to begin her shift. She squinted at the sun, only to find it glaring back down with shameless intensity, turning the entire orchard into its domain. It was scorching. The weather station had clearly reported partly cloudy skies for today, but the Cailleach’s clouds, like its rebellious nobles, had wandered off since morning, leaving her exposed.

The orchard’s glass walls blocked much of the heat, yet Mifa still found working under such bright light draining. Her hometown, renowned as the City of Fruits, came with the price of being exposed to nearly twenty hours of sunlight each day. In her first few nights on Cailleach, she would lie on the lawn to watch the stars, often drifting off to sleep under the vast, uninterrupted sky. Sleeping without light prying into her eyes felt like a luxury she had never known.

After exchanging greetings with the other student workers, Mifa took her place at the tree counter. Before her stretched rows of fruit trees, but instead of fruit, their branches bore crystallized fluorite that held sealed spirits.

The glass-encased orchard held hundreds of such trees, each cradling at least twenty spirits. Among them were high-level spirits, some with two or even three wings. This was the Spirit Trading Center of Sword and Roses University, the Harvest Orchard.

As with the Sylvan Library, the university had never built a conventional trading center. Instead, it designed the space as an orchard, allowing students to see rare spirits hovering above them the moment they entered. The thrill of seeing them up close far exceeded browsing any directory. Visible yet untouchable, they were tantalizing to anyone who laid eyes on them.

On the surface, the orchard seemed unguarded, but it was the work of Legendary sorcerers. The last student who tried to steal a fruit had almost become one with a tree. The orchard could restrain spirits from retaliating and feed them continuously through the branches. Even on Cailleach, it was famed as a spirit trading hub. Its only drawback was that its spirits didn’t match the quality found at Truth University’s Grave of Knowledge.

For Mifa, however, the work environment was more than satisfactory. Most of her shift was spent behind the counter, scrolling through forums on the screen.

She wasn’t a local, but she wasn’t poor. Her parents worked as sorcerer specialists at the city’s Agricultural Bureau and were respected figures throughout Cailleach. Thanks to their influence, she managed to gain admission to Sword and Roses University. Following their advice, she joined the university’s work-study program in her first year. She didn’t need the money, but the position offered more than just pay, earning her Sword and Roses Points.

These points weren’t currency; they measured a student’s achievements. Winning competitions, ranking high on exams, or inventing miraculous spells all earned points. Reaching certain thresholds elevated a student’s status, from Ordinary White to Outstanding Green, Honorable Gold, and, at the very top, Legendary Orange.

Higher status came with perks, so most students eagerly immersed themselves in campus life to accumulate points. Before arriving at Sword and Roses, many had been prodigies in their hometowns and assumed they could easily earn points through exams or competitions. On her first day, Mifa had thought the same. I’ll study hard, rank in the top three, and compete... if Truth University recruits me later, should I accept?

However, reality soon humbled them. Their peers were geniuses as well. Only the very top could truly stand out. The rest were just green leaves in the crowd. It often took a year or two to recognize and accept their own mediocrity, by which point most had little chance to earn points and would graduate as ordinary students.

Mifa, however, had chosen the safest path. Heeding her parents’ advice, she took a job at the orchard. It didn’t pay much, but it was the most reliable way to earn points. Her parents had calculated it carefully. She only needed to work steadily for four years, graduate as a sorcerer, and she would finish as an honorable student.

Being an honorable student carried significant benefits, including permanent student privileges, continued access to campus facilities after graduation, and priority consideration for faculty positions at Sword and Roses University. Securing such a position would allow her to settle on Cailleach permanently, unlike her parents, assigned to sun-drenched agricultural cities, able to live comfortably but only catch glimpses of the city’s splendor through screens. Living on Cailleach and becoming a ”preparatory noble” had long been her parents’ hope, and now it was hers as well.

Mifa didn’t work solely for points. She genuinely enjoyed her orchard job. Students arrived daily to buy or sell spirits, giving her glimpses into their lives. Some were quiet yet reaped rich rewards in the Virtual World. Others purchased multiple spirits from different sorcery classes, perhaps planning to switch classes later. A few spent lavishly on spirits outside their own classes, maybe as gifts for loved ones.

Trading spirits required real money, and nothing captured their worth more clearly than this. The orchard was also a place where famous students could be seen, like the Orange Dancer, the Vlozrada noble, and...

Creak.

The glass gate opened, and the first visitor of the day stepped onto the orchard path. Mifa instinctively held her breath as the sunlight seemed to grow hotter against her skin.

”Good morning, Mifa,” Sonya greeted, taking a seat across from her with a smile. ”What a coincidence. You’re on shift again today.”

Mifa swallowed her excitement and nodded quickly. ”Yes... What a coincidence.”

It was no coincidence. She had requested the morning shift and hadn’t taken a single day off for a month. She knew Sonya would come to the orchard to sell her spoils from the Virtual World, so she stayed at the counter and waited.

If anyone understood the growth of the Scarlet Swordswoman, it was Mifa. Even Professor Trozan might not know as much.

Mifa had handled Sonya’s very first visit to sell spirits. Both came from outside Cailleach, and Sonya’s friendly nature made conversation easy. Mifa’s first impression of her had been that she was a kind, gifted sorceress.

It didn’t take long for Mifa to realize that genius was far from enough to describe Sonya. The Scarlet Swordswoman returned every two to three days, each time selling spirits in such volume that Mifa half-expected to hear reports of stolen spirit warehouses or rumors of a red-haired phantom thief.

It wasn’t just the quantity. Most of the spirits Sonya sold came from Fish-Slaying Dragon drops, as if she were constantly under the watch of the Fish-Slaying Dragon’s Protection Association. The Fish-Slaying Dragon was the most reliable source of Swordsmanship Orbs. Judging by the number of monsters she had slain, Sonya had likely absorbed at least one, perhaps even two, of those orbs. That alone was enough to make any swordsmanship student dizzy with envy.

Then there were the rumors that she had fully unfurled her Silver Wing overnight within the Whirlpool.

With each new piece of information, Mifa’s admiration only grew.

Sonya was no ordinary sorceress. Mifa believed without a doubt that she was chosen by the gods, a sorceress under the gaze of the stars, and that the name Sonya Selby would be remembered for generations.

She joined Sonya’s support circle, following every update, hoping for even the smallest glimpse into the Swordswoman’s daily life. It was hard to explain, but simply knowing that Sonya trained tirelessly and had recently summoned new Sword Class spirits filled her with energy. While she was destined to remain an unnoticed minor star, it did nothing to quell her longing to witness the rise of a blazing shooting star.

Sonya held out four spirits. ”Let’s start by selling these first.”

Mifa immediately scanned them with her work bracelet to determine their prices.

The night before, news had already spread across the school that Sonya’s soul had recovered, and that she had left a friend gathering midway to explore the Virtual World. As a result, Mifa wasn’t surprised by her haul.

What caught her attention was that, while all four spirits were One-Winged, the Fierce Claw spirit was rare in the Sea of Knowledge. If Mifa remembered correctly, its primary source should be the pack-dwelling Feral Wolf Dragons from the Continent of Time. A bold thought flickered through her mind, but she said nothing and continued serving Sonya as usual.

Mifa quoted the purchase price for the spirits and added, ”Since your student rank is Outstanding, your sale price is increased by 5%. That’s already included here.”

Last semester, Sonya had earned a scholarship, racking up plenty of Sword and Roses Points. Selling spirits at Harvest Orchard added even more points. Sword and Roses University encouraged students to sell their Virtual World acquisitions, helping to expand the school’s spirit collection.

However, due to the students’ competence at Sword and Roses University, the top spirit trading platform on Cailleach remained Truth University’s Grave of Knowledge. Harvest Orchard ranked, at best, among the top three, with five universities competing for those spots.

As an Outstanding student, Sonya enjoyed a 5% boost to sale prices, a 5% reduction on purchase costs, and no consignment fees at Harvest Orchard. For ordinary sorcerers, such perks were trivial, but for a heavy-hitter like Sonya, that 5% could cost the university significantly. Of course, Mifa didn’t mind. If she could, she would have granted a 500% bonus.

Sonya chose to sell everything. ”I want to buy Miracles and spirits.”

Harvest Orchard was connected to the Celestial Hall, which maintained the Starry Miracle Catalog, allowing students to purchase Miracles directly.

”Go ahead,” Mifa said.

”First, I want an offense-type Miracle based on Sword Scar and Swordheart, preferably without rare spirits.”

Mifa checked the database. ”Three Miracles match your criteria. The Mid-True Gold Heart Pen costs fifteen Gold Coins, the Lower-Glorious Gold Sword Prison costs fifty-eight Gold Coins, and the Upper-Glorious Rainbow Heart Form costs one hundred Rainbow Coins. Would you like to see their effect previews?”

”No need,” Sonya said, frowning. ”I can’t afford them anyway.”

This was the drawback of rare spirits. As one of the Five Unmatched Secret Swords, Swordheart pushed any derived Miracle to an exceptionally high level. The most expensive option, Heart Form, was an Upper-Glorious Rainbow Miracle, considered formidable even among Sacred Realm sorcerers. If it were based on Slash and Sword Scar instead, there would be far more affordable Upper-Glorious Silver options.

Still, Sonya hesitated. ”Show me Heart Pen’s effects.”

Mifa turned the transparent display toward her so Sonya could watch the Heart Pen in action. Watching Sonya from behind, she pretended to be calm, but deep down, her thoughts were racing.

Scarlet Swordswoman... you’re incredible... No one amazes me more than you. And you’ll continue to surprise me tomorrow, too. Your duel with the Orange Dancer... that armor, that style... they’re all so striking! How can you be this powerful? Swordswoman, remember to eat well, sleep well, and stay happy every day...

Mifa’s heart thudded with longing. I wish the guild leader would share more photos of you sleeping... Now that you’re heading back into the Virtual World every night, we won’t get to see it anymore... No, that’s too much. I just want to see...

”Alright, thank you,” Sonya said.

”Are you buying it?”

The village girl unconsciously bit her finger, unaware that such a small gesture excited her fan. ”Not for now.”

It wasn’t that she lacked fifteen Gold Coins or was unwilling to spend them. Spending that much would halve her liquid assets, leaving her risk tolerance dangerously low. Besides, she simply didn’t want to. She had never spent fifteen Gold Coins on herself.

If only I could trade spirits directly in the Virtual World.

Sonya would rather help the Watchers study new Miracles than spend Gold Coins on him! Even if her wallet could bear it, her body could not. It would hurt too much, enough to ruin her appetite. Besides, the Watchers’ Sword Painting Miracle wasn’t unusable; it’s just a little weak.

Maybe a better spirit compatible with Swordheart will appear in the future. For now, the team’s strength is already more than enough.

That was all it took for Sonya to convince herself not to spend the fifteen Gold Coins. She continued, ”Do you have any spirits that can quickly calm the mind?”

Mifa replied, ”Many. We have the Peace of Mind, Tranquility, Purge Thoughts... They are mostly Mind Class spirits.”

Mind Class spirits were costly but flawless. They were cheaper than Miracles, but still expensive enough to leave the village girl in tears in the middle of the night. A thought suddenly crossed her mind. ”Do you have any Miracles with the Sincerity spirit as part of their ingredients that can calm a sorcerer’s mind?”

Mifa nodded. ”Yes.”

***

By the time Sonya finished her exchange, her assets hadn’t increased at all. In fact, she had lost a sixth of her fortune. Yet the village girl seemed cheerful, clearly expecting the investment to pay off later.

As Sonya prepared to leave, Mifa could no longer contain her excitement. She leaned forward and whispered, ”Good luck!”

Sonya glanced at her, puzzled. ”What?”

”Good luck tonight!” Mifa said, clenching her fist. ”I know you’ll definitely win at Trajectory University!”

Sonya froze. ”Trajectory University? Wait, what do you mean?”

Mifa explained, ”They’re holding an intercollegiate gala with Sword and Roses University tonight. You didn’t know?”

”I know,” Sonya replied.

She had heard of it. Just as Truth University might invite Sword and Roses University for a gala, Sword and Roses invited other schools, too.

”But what does that have to do with me?”

Mifa blinked in surprise. ”You’re one of the participants. I also heard that Senior Leona voluntarily gave up the top spot to let you take charge of the Chief Battle.”

Friendship matches typically consisted of five rounds, which included Vanguard, Forward, Center, Vice, and Chief. Sonya’s first reaction to learning she would handle the Chief Battle was excitement. After all, the Chief Battle pitted the strongest participants against each other. In other words, the university had officially recognized her as its current top student.

However, she quickly realized a problem. The Chief Battle, being the most anticipated match, was almost always scheduled last.

”Mifa, do you know what time the friendship matches at the gala usually end?” Sonya asked.

After a moment’s thought, Mifa said, ”Usually around 3 a.m. After each round, teachers from both universities give feedback, and sometimes they even hold an immediate rematch so students can fight again under their guidance. Once all five rounds are finished, there’s a special exhibition match with the professors.”

”So one professor against five students from the other university. That’s the real highlight.”

”If it weren’t for the Virtual Channel that appeared out of nowhere last time, the intercollegiate gala would have gone on until around 3 a.m. as well.”

In the Starry Kingdom, the more important a sorcerer event was, the later it was scheduled, sometimes deliberately. The stars above symbolized the gaze of the Starry Lord. While people rarely worshiped the Starry Lord openly, everyone instinctively respected the night sky and hoped for the favor of starlight.

Sonya blinked. ”So, when does the Chief Battle start?”

”Midnight,” Mifa replied.