Happy as Can Be

Thor's first lesson with his mentor turned into a thorough cleaning.

Fortunately, Thor already had experience with manual work and quickly got the hang of it.

Seeing how meticulous and conscientious he was, Mark's mood improved. As they cleaned, he explained some things Thor needed to keep in mind while studying.

Two hours passed just like that. Mark had something to do, so he gave Thor instructions for finishing up.

"Later, dump the trash into that yellow bin. Remember, it has to be the yellow one. If it isn't yellow, leave it in the bag, seal it up, and deal with it tomorrow."

Thor looked at the yellow trash bin beside the Laboratory door, taller than his chest, and nodded seriously.

"All right." Mark pulled over a chair and sat down with his legs stretched out. "I'll give you five minutes for any last questions. After that, I'm going on a date."

Thor immediately asked the question he had prepared long ago.

"Senior Mark, how do Mental Power and Magic Power affect the study of Witchcraft?"

Mark was not surprised by Thor's question. From what Mentor Kazi had said, he had already guessed that this junior's Magic Power talent was probably truly terrible, while his Mental Power talent was quite good.

He was probably unwilling to give up.

"According to what the books say, both are equally important. But for a Wizard who values practice, Magic Power is the medium through which we turn knowledge into Witchcraft."

"Let me give you a rough analogy. The elemental ions outside are a river a hundred meters away from you. Your Mental Power talent is how fast you can run, while your Magic Power talent is the tool you use to carry water."

Mark gestured with his hands.

"Ordinary Wizard Apprentices usually use buckets to carry water." His gesture shrank again. "But you use a bowl. So your growth will be much slower. Understand?"

Thor immediately said, "Then I'll make more trips."

Mark shook his head. "It's more than that. In the Wizard world, there is almost never a time when Magic Power isn't needed. You cast Witchcraft, make tools, draw Magic Arrays, construct Runes—these all require you to carry two bowls of water at once, or even a whole bucket. Your bowl can't do that. What then?"

Thor lowered his head and raised his left fingertips slightly. "Senior Mark, is there no way to turn the small bowl in my hand into a large bucket? For example, through Witchcraft modification?"

Mark also glanced at Thor's left hand, but such a minor bodily modification was nothing to him.

"Of course there is, but almost none that a Level 1 Apprentice can endure. The Witchcraft modification Mentor just mentioned requires at least a Level 2 Apprentice to attempt."

He raised both hands. A large mouth split open in each palm, constantly opening and closing, wanting to devour, wanting to lick.

Two bright red tongues kept probing toward Thor, drawing nearer.

Thor gritted his teeth and forcibly stopped himself from instinctively backing away. At the same time, his left hand was ready to move at any moment.

Just as the atmosphere in the room turned cold, Mark suddenly pulled his hands back.

"Don't move around. This is a Laboratory."

His expression remained calm, as though he had merely wanted to scare Thor.

"Okay, Senior Mark." Thor lowered his left hand as well, but still unwilling to give up, he asked, "Isn't there any modification a Level 1 Apprentice can manage? I'm afraid I only have three months."

Senior Mark stretched, then stood up. "Then you can only gamble with your life. For example, go to the Library and look at the textbooks used by Level 2 Apprentices."

Thor could tell that Mark was preparing to leave. He did not have much time left to ask questions.

He hurried after Mark toward the door. "Can I borrow books for Level 2 Apprentices?"

Mark strode quickly to the door and pulled it open with one hand.

"As long as they're in the public Library, you can borrow them." He looked back with an eerie smile. "The Library has never stopped low-level Wizards from reading high-level Wizards' books. They're bored too."

With that, Mark left the Laboratory and casually shut the door behind him.

Thor stood before the door, lowering his head in thought. "Gamble with my life?"

Meditation alone made it impossible for Thor to meet Mentor Kazi's requirements within three months.

He looked at the Hardcover Book floating quietly over his left shoulder. "This is what I'm good at."

At that moment, the Laboratory door was suddenly pushed inward again, and Mark poked half his face through the opening. "Remember to clean everything up before you leave."

"Got it, Senior."

Thor jumped, watching Mark's half-face withdraw again.

The door closed.

Only Thor remained in the room.

Probably...

Thor turned and looked around. He did not have much work left: some simple sorting and putting things back, dumping the trash, and checking whether all the cabinets were tightly shut.

Thor made a round through the Laboratory.

He pushed back the chair Mark had pulled out, then scooped up the trash beneath the table and threw it into the yellow bin.

The inside of the yellow bin was pitch-black and bottomless. It did not resemble a bin so much as a passageway.

Thor did not look any further. After dumping the trash, he immediately put the lid back on.

"A Laboratory with only me in it always feels unsettling." Thor rubbed his arm, as though he could feel goosebumps popping out from beneath his skin with little pattering sounds.

Thor found several scribbled sheets on the table in the middle of the Laboratory. Something had once been drawn on them, but it had been completely covered by chaotic black lines, leaving nothing visible.

The paper was crumpled, as though someone had thrown it away, then picked it back up and smoothed it flat.

"Were these sheets here just now?"

Thor carefully swept them into a small bucket, then turned around to make another troublesome trip to dump them out.

However, just as Thor reached out to lift the trash bin's lid, the bin turned red before his eyes in an instant.

Thor's hand stopped short in midair, then slowly withdrew.

He pretended he had seen nothing, turned around, sealed the small bucket, and placed it beneath the table.

He continued his inspection and reached a row of cabinets at the deepest end of the Laboratory.

For some reason, he suddenly thought of the Human-Monster Walking Diagram he had used for meditation today.

According to the diagram's layout, Thor was currently standing where the monster at the very bottom should be.

He hurriedly shook his head, trying to shake off that unlucky thought. Yet when he stepped forward again, he stepped on something.

He looked down and nearly jumped.

It was the Puppet Doll they had used to test the newcomers' talents.

The Puppet Doll's eyes were clearly nothing but two hollow holes, yet Thor felt a gaze watching him from within.

"...When leaving, make sure there is nothing on the floor in the cabinet area. I'll clean it once first. If you find something on the ground when you're about to leave, don't panic. Find a cabinet nearby that contains the same thing, then pick it up and put it back. Make sure to shut the cabinet door!"

Thor recalled Mark's earlier instructions.

When he turned his head, he saw that the cabinet beside him had opened a narrow Seam.

Through the glass cabinet door, he could see... piles and piles of Puppet Dolls lying every which way.

"Well, looks like we're at your home."

Thor tilted his head slightly so he would not look directly into the Puppet Doll's eyes on the floor, then bent down and reached for it.

The moment his fingertips touched the Puppet Doll's rough, cool surface...

"Rustle..."

A sound only Thor could hear rang out. The Hardcover Book flew before him, its pages flipping rapidly before stopping on a new blank page.

[Shuoyue Calendar, Year 314, May 26,

You were left behind by Mark to clean the Laboratory.

This really wasn't a good job.

A naughty Puppet Doll jabbed your foot, and you prepared to throw it back where it belonged.

You opened the cabinet door, held the Puppet Doll by the head, and carefully placed it inside.

You were held by the head and carefully placed inside.

You lay atop your companions' bodies, watching the glass cabinet door close. Outside, Thor hummed a pleasant tune and happily ran away.]