Episode 15
Lionel followed Lindsay into the log cabin, looking around with curious eyes.
A magic lamp on the ceiling gave off a soft white glow, and the place felt cozy.
By the fireplace, Lindsay was tossing in logs and lighting them up.
A chick-yellow rug lay in front of the fire, with a rocking chair and a round table set up—warm and homey.
But among all the cozy furniture, one thing stood out:
a tall iron umbrella stand with two umbrellas inside.
Lionel tilted his head.
He could sense faint magic in the umbrella, even though his senses were dull here.
“Lionel, do you like extreme stuff?”
The moment Lindsay said his name, all his thoughts and guesses scattered.
Her voice saying his name—it always sounded good to him.
He turned to where she was crouched by the fire.
“What’s ‘extreme’?”
By then, Lindsay had already finished lighting the fire and had come closer to him.
Lionel secretly hoped she was going to touch him again—she often surprised him like that.
Too bad. What she was reaching for was the umbrella stand.
She pulled one umbrella out and smacked her forehead—oh, right, that word didn’t exist here.
“I mean, do you like jumping from high places?”
“Not really.”
“Good. As long as you’re not scared of heights, we’re fine.”
She shoved the umbrella into his hands and explained how to use it.
“Tap the floor three times with your foot and say the keyword. That’ll open the passage to the lower level. The keyword is ‘Down.’ Watch me first so you don’t mess it—HEY! The umbrella, hold it UP!”
Before she could finish, Lionel had already tapped the floor three times with his heel and said the word.
But instead of holding the umbrella above him, he just let it hang down at his side.
The floor opened up into a massive hole big enough for five adults to drop through. Lionel fell right in.
“Open the umbrella!” Lindsay yelled.
A second later, the umbrella flared open, glowing in the darkness as he dropped safely.
Relieved, Lindsay grabbed her own umbrella and jumped in after him.
Air rushed past her ears as she plummeted.
She waited until she saw light below before opening hers.
The glowing umbrellas were her own invention.
She had stretched tough Ankala-rhino hide over them, dusted it with crushed glowstone from the deep sea, and finally enchanted them with floating and slowing spells so they could move up and down safely.
Nero had clicked his tongue and called it “a pointless waste of effort,” but Lindsay thought every moment spent on them was worth it.
Look—they were being put to perfect use right now.
She landed on the grassy ground and folded her umbrella.
Lionel was already there waiting, his face oddly flushed.
“I thought it’d be some kind of teleport or space-expansion spell… but you literally drilled straight down through the mountain? What kind of magic does that? To carve through solid rock this cleanly… must be some secret witch magic, right?”
“…”
Lindsay avoided his curious, sparkling eyes.
This guy definitely had some weird fantasy about witches.
Truth was, there was no special “witch-only” magic for drilling through a 10,000-meter-high mountain.
What you needed was raw strength, stamina… and a little magic on the side to make things easier.
“If it’s a secret, you don’t have to tell me.”
“No… It’s not really a secret. It wasn’t magic at all.”
“…What?”
Lionel blinked.
Not magic? Then how could anyone dig a tunnel this deep?
“Just pickaxe work. I dug it.”
“…No way. How could you possibly—”
“Who do you think dragged your half-dead body into my house that night?”
“…Are witches always like this?”
Nope. I’m just a special case.
She didn’t bother answering further and looked past him to the scenery.
Though they were deep underground, the space looked like a wide, open field under a blue sky.
The sun shone, clouds drifted by, and endless green pastures spread across the land.
Wildflowers dotted the ground, and a man-made lake shimmered with colorful fish.
But the farm animals were nowhere to be seen.
Last time she came, Lindsay had put them all in the barn, except for the horned goats.
Goats were precious—they provided milk—but during late spring to early summer, they went into mating season.
Normally gentle, they became aggressive and dangerous.
To keep the other animals safe, Lindsay had locked them up.
But she couldn’t keep them penned forever.
“So, my slave’s gonna have to do some work.”
“Anything you ask.”
Even being called a slave, Lionel only smiled brightly and nodded.
Lindsay’s heart gave a faint ache. Quiet, conscience.
I’ll put him to work and then show him something nice later, okay?
Compromising with her guilty feelings, she led him toward the white lighthouse on a hill.
“The goats are touchy right now, so we’re gonna make a separate area for them. I’ll handle the fence. You go round up the goats.”
“Alright. Where should I bring them?”
“I’ll show you.”
She pulled the handle at the lighthouse door and opened it easily.
Inside, everything was painted pure white, including the spiral staircase that led upward.
Only a pile of sacks filled with strange seeds broke the uniform look.
She scooped up a handful of black, plump seeds and handed them to Lionel.
“What are these?”
“They’ll grow into the fence.”
A really tough fence too—one even the rough goats couldn’t break.
She stuffed more seeds into his hands, gathered some for herself, and the two of them climbed the spiral staircase.
At the top, the wide field spread out below them.
Lionel let out a deep breath.
The open sky, the endless green land—it was completely different from the view of the heavens from the top of the Magic Tower.
The breeze was fresh and freeing.
Lindsay, instead of admiring the scenery, studied him from the side.
His silver hair gleamed under the sun, not like the gray of old age but something mystical.
His lavender eyes glimmered softly. Clearly, he loved this place.
A small smile tugged at her lips, and her voice softened.
“Do you like it?”
“Yes. Since it’s a space you created… it feels like I’m completely yours.”
He swallowed the last words before they could slip out.
No need to ruin the peaceful moment with careless talk.
Her answer, when it came, felt like a warm breeze brushing against him.
“Once the work’s done, I’ll show you something even better.”
“Can I look forward to it?”
“Of course.”
As soon as she said it, the seeds in their hands floated up, wrapped in soft green magic.
They drifted down in neat lines onto the earth.
Lindsay caught the magical thread linking her to the seeds and whispered a spell.
“Grow.”
The plump seeds sprouted, sending up sturdy shoots and stalks.
