Annan scattered ground-up Oddities fertilizer into the freshly turned soil.
After more than a month of careful tending, the Otherworld Tree had grown from a forked branch into a real Sapling, lush with leaves.
It blocked the entire window, and its pot could barely contain it. But it was too precious for Annan to bear transplanting it into the Garden and leaving it in Dade's care. For now, he moved it into a bathtub-sized planter on the terrace.
The distant barracks looked like the Southlands' weather these past few days: a dark mass. The Hellfire army was practicing breathing techniques under its "instructor's" guidance.
Annan grew curious and asked Ingrid as she came in, "Can I practice breathing techniques?"
"If you can stick with it," Ingrid said.
"Never mind, then."
Perseverance was a virtue, but Annan didn't possess it. He was only imagining himself as a Warrior who could knock down a wall with ease, then wave his hand and summon countless elements.
"Does anyone here practice Magic-Martial Dual Cultivation?" Annan couldn't help asking. At Ingrid's puzzled look, he added, "You know... like Sean in Law Breaks the Sky. A Mage and a Warrior."
"Try to have everything, and you'll end up good at nothing," Ingrid said bluntly. "So-called 'Magic-Martial Dual Cultivation' is just an ordinary person's fantasy."
Magic required vast amounts of study, while a Warrior needed endless hours of training. How was anyone supposed to practice Magic-Martial Dual Cultivation? Read while exercising?
"That's harsh. I wasn't a Sorcerer back then." Annan stood and brushed the dust off the leaves. "So what brings you here?"
“Deputy City Lord Olmedo needs you to open a Teleportation Portal to the Miren Kingdom.”
"I'll head over now."
Annan returned to the Bedroom, where the maid Abby, accompanied by Lily, was letting Little