In Li Mo's restaurant,
"Touko? Touko?"
Li Mo's repeated calls finally brought Touko back from whatever she had been absorbed in. She looked at Li Mo in a daze.
Huh?
"Could you pay a little attention? I'm talking to you! Your problem is your eyesight, not your ears!" Li Mo glared at her irritably, then casually picked a piece of chicken from the pot for himself.
"Was today's food not good? It feels like your mind's been somewhere else.
But come to think of it, do you want me to go get you a pair of glasses? Otherwise, every time I talk to you, it always feels like your attention isn't on me." Having completely forgotten what he had originally wanted to say, Li Mo mumbled incomprehensibly through a mouthful of meat.
Touko smiled foolishly and shook her head. "Thank you for the offer, Mō-san, but recently, I've been developing glasses suited to me."
"Oh, alright..." Li Mo nodded, staring blankly at Touko's smile. That innocent smile of hers really made it hard to understand how she had become so cold in the future.
Maybe something had happened during her years at the Clock Tower? Or perhaps she simply thought too much about too many things?
Who the hell knew what had happened!
Li Mo shook his head. Maybe the Touko before him was her truest self.
He refused to believe that a sheltered young girl could turn into that cold, obsessive person after only being out in the world for a short while and going through a few things!
"You'd better use those Mystic Eyes less," Brishisan suddenly interjected from the side, his mouth glistening with grease as he ate, while Li Mo continued his inner monologue.
Yes, Touko possessed Mystic Eyes too. Li Mo had known that before she arrived.
But their rank was not high, and their effect was nothing earth-shattering, so Li Mo had never bothered asking about them.
Not that he had any himself~
Yet Brishisan's words did bring some related knowledge to Li Mo's mind.
Strictly speaking, Merlin's Clairvoyance also counted as Mystic Eyes—specifically, supernatural eyes among the classifications of Mystic Eyes. Clairvoyance had its own ranking system, however, rather than falling under the normal Mystic Eye ranks.
Mystic Eyes were divided into two types: magecraft eyes and supernatural eyes. Magecraft eyes referred to Mystic Eyes with magecraft-like effects such as fascination and suggestion. Mystic Eyes acquired by magi who engraved magecraft formulas into their eyes after birth could also be classified this way.
Supernatural eyes, on the other hand, were different. They were fundamentally distinct from magecraft eyes. Most were innate traits granted to people with extraordinarily high magecraft talent, and the realms they reached were beyond what magecraft eyes could even glimpse.
For example, Ryougi Shiki's Death Perception, or the Clairvoyance possessed by Merlin, Solomon, and Golden Pikka. With Mystic Eyes of that level, magi could not even slightly interpret their essence, so how could they possibly construct Mystic Eyes themselves?
Of course, not every mage with outstanding talent possessed Mystic Eyes.
Glancing at a certain someone who was fighting him for meat, Brishisan shook his head, not knowing what to say.
Touko Aozaki only had a little over twenty Magic Circuits, and Mystic Eyes were hardly rare among magi. How could this brat possess the talent of 108 Magic Circuits yet show no sign of having them?
Li Mo had no idea what Brishisan was thinking. He puffed his cheeks, swallowed the meat inside, and said, "Right, Touko. How about you stop using those Mystic Eyes? Worst case, I'll find you a better pair to replace them someday."
For example, the Reincarnation Eye or the Tenseigan?
Touko nearly cried in exasperation. This wasn't the world of some overpowered Song guy—could eyes really just be swapped whenever one wanted?
Did he think she was some Copy Ninja?
Shaking her head, Touko refused Li Mo's kindness. "There's really no need, Mō-san. The glasses I'm developing now are meant to restrain these Mystic Eyes of mine. Besides, I probably won't need them at the Clock Tower."
Yes, in the eyes of Touko, who had only been at the Clock Tower for a few days, Mystic Eyes probably had no use here.
Yet upon hearing that, Li Mo nearly laughed out loud. Was she really an innocent, naive girl who had only left the mountains after more than ten years?
What a joke. No use for them?
The Clock Tower was no harmonious organization. On the surface, it was merely a place for magi to exchange knowledge of magecraft, but behind the scenes, all sorts of filthy schemes happened there all the time.
The only reason no one dared provoke Li Mo was because he was Brishisan's sole disciple, and Brishisan was the most mysterious Lord of the Department of Lore.
But just because Li Mo had not personally gone through it did not mean he truly knew nothing. He had been at the Clock Tower for almost half a year, after all.
No, saying he had never experienced it might have been too absolute. Director Ken's collision with the Mage Association mission today—was there really no shady business behind that?
If something really happened to Li Mo, what would Brishisan do?
They even dared scheme against Brishisan. It showed just how unfathomably deep the waters of the Clock Tower were. It was no sacred place for magi to study.
But since Touko would not listen, Li Mo did not want to keep persuading her. Young people always had their own paths to walk, and his relationship with Touko had not reached that point yet.
Besides, Touko was already developing those glasses. Did that mean her other personality would soon emerge?
Li Mo did not believe that Touko, who would earn the title of Grand Puppeteer, would fail to handle the Clock Tower's messes.
Thinking of that, Li Mo smiled. He suddenly understood the subtle feelings parents had toward their children. Wasn't this situation pretty much the same as his own?
Thoughts were one thing, but he absolutely could not say such things aloud. Otherwise...
Touko: I thought you only wanted to pursue me, but it turns out you wanted to pursue my mom?
"Hehehe," Li Mo grinned endlessly. The only sounds left were Brishisan and Touko, the two foodies, noisily eating and drinking.
A moment later, "Where's my Dry Pot Chicken?!"
Li Mo threw back his head and roared, only to receive eye-rolls from Brishisan and Touko.
You stood there grinning like an idiot instead of helping yourself, and now you're blaming us?
But this Dry Pot Chicken really was delicious. They had to make this kid cook it again next time.
As they wiped the grease from their mouths, Brishisan and Touko arrived at the same thought without speaking.
As they thought about it, the two could not help smiling. "Whoever finishes eating last does the dishes!"
Li Mo glared furiously, but the two got up and left. He could only lower his hand helplessly, pick up his bowl, and stare fixedly at the pot before him, desperately trying to find even a scrap of leftover meat.
How unfair could heaven be!
It was bad enough that they had bullied him and left him with no meat to eat. Now they even wanted him to wash the dishes!
Li Mo looked around and shouted, "Intres! Intres!"
From outside the door, Brishisan's voice drifted over. "Stop calling. Intres went to buy materials for me."
Ahhh!!!
I, Li Mo, a peerless genius with 108 Magic Circuits—was I really going to become a dishwasher?
From the moment I first came into contact with magecraft, I secretly swore that in this life, I, Li Mo, would definitely not! be! inferior! to! anyone!
"Heh," Li Mo let out a cold laugh as he looked at the leftover dishes on the table.
One day, I too would have my own magecraft puppet that obeyed only me!
Before you continue