Yuri buried his face in his knees, feeling down once again.

He recalled his recent visit to the Magic Tower.

He had sought out the Tower Master, his mentor, to find answers to two pressing questions.

The first was the nature of this magic.

The second was why the magic circle appeared on someone other than the one who cast the spell.

Yuri found his first answer when he saw the Tower Master become furious the moment he looked at the magic circle Yuri had drawn.

“Yuri, didn’t I tell you never to touch this magic! And yet you completed it behind my back!”

There were only two types of magic the Tower Master had strictly forbidden young Yuri from ever touching: interfering with time and the lifespan of a person.

‘So, it really is magic to turn back time.’

Honestly, as soon as he saw the magic circle engraved on Yujin’s body, he knew what the magic was intended for. He just didn’t want to believe it.

Yuri crossed his arms and muttered as if he were talking about someone else.

“Could I have been the one who made this?”

The Tower Master, unable to contain his anger at Yuri’s carefree words, swung his staff.

“Do you think that’s something to joke about! Even if you roll sideways or forward, it’s still your magic. Do you think there’s another mage in this tower besides you and me who can complete magic related to time?”

This was a serious crime that warranted stripping him of his mage qualifications and banning him from using magic for life.

“You little…! You’ve finally crossed the line!”

The Tower Master stomped his feet in frustration, realizing that his treasured disciple had crossed the line.

‘So he knows he did something wrong, huh?’

Instead of dodging, his disciple, who should have been avoiding the hits from the staff, just took them without complaint. Eventually, the Tower Master, who loved his disciple too much, put down his staff.

As his mentor’s anger subsided, Yuri lowered his eyes and spoke in a sulky voice.

“But I really don’t remember.”

The Tower Master frowned as if hearing some absurd nonsense. Irritated, Yuri explained his situation in detail.

“As you said, the only mages who could create this are you and me… but I have no memory of it.”

The Tower Master snorted.

“Look at this rascal. Trying to pin it on me?”

“That’s not what I mean.”

“Did you decide to erase all the shady parts of your past now that you’re in love? No matter how much I adore you, I won’t take such a blame!”

“Ugh, this is so frustrating! I’m telling you, I literally don’t remember! I came to discuss what could have caused this!”

“How would I know? Whether you erased your own memory or if time reversed and erased it.”

Yuri, who was about to argue with his mentor for treating his words as a joke, unexpectedly found a clue in what was said. He pondered deeply and muttered.

“That’s right. Memory.”

That had been bothering him all along. If he had cast the spell, the magic circle should have been on him. But now, the one with the magic circle was Yujin, who wasn’t a mage.

That’s why he couldn’t find an answer.

It seemed like Yujin was the one who cast the spell on Titiana, but Yujin wasn’t a mage. And Yuri himself had no memory of casting magic on either of them.

But what if, from the start, the magic had activated without his will?

In other words…

With a stiff expression, Yuri asked the Tower Master.

“Is it possible to transfer magic to someone who isn’t a mage?”

By transferring all of a mage’s abilities, for example.

***

Autumn Handridge was holed up in the Magic Tower, in his own laboratory. He was trying to create a brainwashing drug as ordered by Princess Sabina.

‘Why isn’t this working?’

But there was no progress in his research.

Autumn simply didn’t have the skills to make such a drug.

He was on edge from repeatedly failing to create the substance. Just then, there was a knock, and a young mage opened the door to the lab.

“Senior, you need to eat.”

“Don’t come in!”

Autumn shouted irritably. The mage froze, looking startled.

Seeing this, Autumn felt a twinge of guilt and mumbled in a softer tone.

“I’ll handle it myself… Just stay away from here for a while!”

“Got it. I understand.”

In the Magic Tower, where individualism was rampant, there weren’t many people who looked out for fellow mages like this. Realizing he had lashed out at someone kind in a moment of anger, Autumn stood awkwardly by the door.

Through the slightly open door, he overheard the mage who had just left talking with a colleague.

“Isn’t Senior Autumn acting strange lately?”

“Senior? He’s just another mage like us. You sure are respectful.”

“He’s older and joined the Magic Tower way before us.”

“Is being a mage a profession where you’re respected for your age? It’s all about skill.”

Upon hearing those words, Autumn gritted his teeth. As much as it pained him, they were right. Despite being older, he hadn’t earned the respect of others in the Magic Tower because of his skills.

He remained in the Magic Tower, determined to enhance his abilities as a mage…

Just then, the conversation shifted to someone he disliked the most.

“By the way, I heard the Grand Mage visited the Magic Tower again yesterday. Is he planning to stay here now?”

“Well, I doubt it. They say he’s found someone he loves.”

“I’m so envious. I’m barely managing my research, and yet he’s in love and has reached the rank of Grand Mage at such a young age…”

“That’s talent for you.”

“When you think about it, magic can be so cruel.”

“The God of Magic must be a woman. Look at how she bestowed talent on such a handsome man like the Grand Mage.”

“Hey, don’t say such sad things.”

The two laughed heartily as they walked away.

Autumn, trembling with anger, punched the wall.

“Damn it! Everyone just looks down on me!”

Seething with rage, he sat back down. But research that hadn’t progressed even when he was calm wasn’t going to improve now that he was emotionally agitated.

“Argh!”

In a fit of rage, Autumn threw everything off his desk. After venting all his pent-up anger, he took a deep breath and suddenly had a thought.

“Well, I don’t really have to make a brainwashing drug, do I? If the goal is to kill him anyway…”

Jealousy had already clouded Autumn’s mind. He laughed maniacally as he rummaged through his materials.

Throughout history, the Magic Tower had seen many mages who didn’t get along, and many researches started from feelings of hatred towards others.

The materials Autumn had were created by one such mage.

“How to kill a mage.”

Ironically, it was easier to create magic that could lead a mage to death than to make something like a brainwashing drug.

Frantically flipping through the materials, Autumn finally found what he was looking for and burst into laughter.

“Yes, this is it. Even if it doesn’t kill him, it can at least ruin that handsome face of his. Of course, it’d be better if he died.”

At that moment, Autumn felt no guilt. He was convinced that Yuri had oppressed him countless times.

This wasn’t baseless jealousy; it was rightful vengeance.

“Just wait, Yuri Esrenche. This time, your precious magic won’t be able to save you.”

***

Yuri didn’t return home the next morning either.

I had hoped that by morning, Yuri would greet me with a bright smile, but I was disappointed and slumped over the counter on the first floor.

There was so much to do. I had to organize the items bought from the flower market and take care of the tulips.

But I had no motivation. I lay there, listless, pouting my lips.

“The mood just got worse.”

This was the first time Yuri hadn’t come home for so long.

“Ah, it’s because I acted like I knew Asel.”

I blamed Asel, who appeared at just the wrong time, but then shook my head.

“No, I shouldn’t regret feeding him. Not just Asel, but his sick younger sibling was starving at home too.”

He wasn’t a stranger, and I couldn’t just leave him collapsed from hunger on the street.

“Yuri gave him some money yesterday. I wonder if he managed to buy some bread and go back.”

My thoughts drifted to Asel’s sibling.

His sibling wasn’t an easy child to take care of. As is often the case with those who have been ill for a long time, the child was emotionally fragile and often said strange things.

Once, he had killed the only livestock we had at home, a hen.

Naturally, I was horrified and asked why he did such a thing. The child replied:

[I heard from the lady next door that if you kill a live chicken and draw a circle with its blood to keep bad luck out of the house, all misfortune will disappear.]

Even if it was just a superstition, he must have desperately wanted to live.

“It wasn’t easy to calm him down once he threw a tantrum.”

I closed my eyes tightly. Remembering those times when even eating a piece of bread was difficult made me feel drained.