Chapter 152 : Achieving a Dream
“I intend to name Aracila as my successor.”
The name everyone had anticipated flowed from Philip’s lips. In truth, Aracila herself had half-suspected it, and now her heart raced wildly.
Thump, thump, thump.
The moment she had dreamed of since childhood had finally arrived.
Her chest swelled with such overwhelming emotion that she felt as if she might expel everything she’d eaten for lunch. Gripped by surging tension, Aracila clenched her fists tightly beneath the table.
Philip glanced briefly at her in that state before continuing in a gentle tone.
“However, I cannot decide the next Tower Master solely by my own will.”
Aracila’s hands trembled involuntarily. Philip casually proposed to the wizards.
“How about we decide by a vote of approval or disapproval?”
“That sounds good.”
The executives agreed. Just as when Aracila had been ousted from the Tower, this time a vote would determine her nomination as successor.
Thus, the voting proceeded among the five remaining executives, excluding Aracila.
Aracila stole sidelong glances at the wizards as they came and went to cast their votes. Back during her expulsion, only three had voted against it. The other two, swept up in the prevailing opinion, had voted in favor and were still here.
What choice would they make this time?
Without someone like Fernando actively steering the sentiment, everyone was silently casting their own votes, making it impossible to predict.
Aracila herself wasn’t entirely sure how the survivors truly regarded her. She supposed this opportunity would reveal it clearly.
“The voting has concluded.”
Philip’s aide declared as he placed the ballot box containing the slips on the table.
“We will now begin the count.”
Aracila swallowed dryly, watching the aide reach into the box.
He drew out the first slip and announced.
“One vote in favor.”
Fortunately, it started well. Aracila held her breath soundlessly.
Even she, usually so carefree, was trembling uncontrollably now. If two more votes in favor emerged from the remaining ones, it would pass with a majority.
Her throat burned as if she’d been stranded in the middle of a desert. The aide pulled out the next slip and unfolded it.
“Two votes in favor.”
He continued the count in a low, precise voice thereafter.
By the time he opened the final slip, Aracila’s palms were damp with sweat. For someone who rarely perspired, this spoke volumes about her tension.
After gathering and organizing the slips, the aide announced the final results in a solemn tone.
“Five votes in favor. Zero against. The nomination of Aracila Vandemir as successor to the Magic Tower has been approved.”
It passed unanimously. In that instant, Aracila’s body went limp, and she blinked slowly. The joy was so immense that her reaction didn’t come immediately.
The wizards smiled as they offered congratulations and encouragement to Aracila, who remained seated in a daze.
“Congratulations, Aracila. You deserve this outcome.”
“Yes, think of all the contributions you’ve made to the Tower. There’s no other wizard whose future holds as much promise as yours!”
“I believe you’ll write a new history for the Tower.”
“Heh heh heh, I hope you’ll lead the Tower well after Tower Master Philip.”
“We’ll support you steadfastly, so don’t hesitate to ask for help whenever you need it.”
This was the first time since joining the Tower that she had received support from anyone besides Philip. Gone were those who had once defined her limitations through prejudiced eyes.
They had come to objectively recognize that no young wizard possessed the talent and capability to lead the Tower as Aracila did.
Snapping back to reality at last, Aracila sprang to her feet, her face flushed as vividly as if stained with balsam leaves, and bowed deeply to everyone.
“I look forward to working with you all.”
The next Tower Master’s brief yet resolute greeting warmed the atmosphere in the meeting room. The wizards regarded her with pleased smiles.
In their eyes, unlike before, a clear sense of anticipation toward Aracila now shone.
After the meeting ended and the others had filed out, only Philip and Aracila remained in the room. Master and disciple slowly faced each other.
She had always awaited this moment.
The master passing on the future to his disciple, and the disciple receiving glory from her master.
Philip examined Aracila’s face, still flushed and her eyes sparkling like the Milky Way, before speaking in a voice tinged with amusement.
“Do you perhaps feel like crying?”
“…No. My parents told me not to cry on happy occasions if I can help it.”
“Ho ho ho. Yes, it’s best to smile on good days.”
As she quietly gazed at her master, who deliberately laughed cheerfully for her sake, Aracila straightened her posture. Then, with utmost respect, she bowed at the waist and said,
“Thank you for believing in me and watching over me all this time, Master.”
Without Philip’s support, Aracila would have taken far longer to reach this point.
Because he possessed the discerning eye to truly see people, she had been able to walk a path that was arduous and grueling yet profoundly meaningful.
She wanted to repay him for that. Aracila added in a voice filled with determination,
“I’ll work hard not to betray the trust of you and the others, Master.”
“You’re truly reliable.”
Philip replied sincerely. His disciple had always been capable and wise, exceeding expectations.
Floating lightly into the air, he met Aracila’s eye level and placed a hand on her shoulder.
“Aracila, I believe you’ll become the new guide and hope for the Tower, which has stagnated for far too long.”
Having served as the Tower’s leader for decades, Philip had at some point begun to sense its limitations. He got the impression that the Tower and its wizards were no longer advancing, merely circling the same ground.
The single-minded obsession with one pursuit was a universal trait among wizards—a strength, and yet also a flaw.
Philip had grown wary of the wizards’ world narrowing bit by bit.
Moreover, his own talent was undoubtedly among the finest. However, he hadn’t brought innovation to the Tower, and he recognized that he wouldn’t in the future either.
With the Tower and its Master unchanging, the people remained the same as well. That couldn’t continue. Without the will to move forward, there would be no future.
With that mindset, Philip had set out to find a new figure, and he encountered Aracila.
Accepting her as his final disciple had been one of the best decisions in his life as a wizard, easily ranking among his top five.
His small, wrinkled hand gently stroked Aracila’s shoulder with affection.
“I have no doubt that the light I saw in you will become the light of the Magic Tower.”
“I’ll make certain it does.”
Aracila replied, her voice infused with resolve. She wanted to prove in reality the potential her master had glimpsed in her. So that no one would come to regret the choice made today.
Philip let out a hearty laugh, fingering his beard.
“Ho ho ho, you’re the sort who always sees through what you set out to do, so I’m not especially worried.”
“Of course—who’s disciple am I, after all?”
In contrast to her spirited retort, Aracila’s chest swelled with emotion. She had never realized that receiving someone’s complete expectation could feel so profoundly proud and joyful.
She tried not to get overly excited, but inevitably, the corners of her mouth kept curving upward.
That lasted until she heard Philip’s next words.
“But if there’s one thing that concerns me.”
“……?”
“It would be when your false marriage comes to an end.”
Aracila’s lips froze stiff in an instant.
Philip was the only outsider aware of her contract marriage with Damian. Since he had never pressed or hurried her about it until now, she had let it slip from her mind.
With Aracila displaying subtle signs of unrest before him, Philip continued in a serene voice.
“Didn’t you say you’d separate once you’d gained what you wanted from the marriage? If divorce is inevitable anyway, wouldn’t it be more convenient to part ways before you become Tower Master?”
Though the inquiry was tender, Aracila couldn’t form a single word. It was as if a silencing spell had been cast; her lips clung together, refusing to move.
The words she herself had uttered in the past now tightened around her current feelings like a vise. Philip had awakened her to the reality she had forgotten, swayed by the immediacy of the present.
“You said you wouldn’t ruin your future over something as trivial as emotions. That’s one reason I nominated you as successor.”
“…….”
“So, Aracila, if you want to forge the very best future for yourself, clear away any potential obstacles from your life ahead of time.”
His kindly advice—to sort out her relationship with Damian before ascending to Tower Master—shook Aracila to her core and constricted her breath.
She remembered vividly the words she had spoken to Philip before her marriage.
‘It’s not a serious marriage. We’re getting married because we each want something, and we’ll divorce once we achieve that.’
‘With that insufferable knight? I couldn’t bear to waste myself like that.’
‘Work matters more to me than love. I have no intention of derailing my future over insignificant feelings.’
Back then, every bit of it had been sincere. She never imagined she’d grow this close to Damian, let alone develop such fondness for him.
‘What if my feelings come to light? The contract would end right away, and would the Tower Master position be at risk too?’
Inferring from Philip’s words, it seemed he had backed her as successor under the belief that she would one day neatly conclude the contract marriage.
To betray her master’s trust in that way… was an act so utterly dreadful to Aracila that she recoiled from even imagining it.
All at once, her affection for Damian filled her with fear. The notion that it might shatter the dream she had cherished for so long only amplified that dread.
‘…No, get a grip. No one knows yet, so I can just erase them.’
Aracila rebuked herself inwardly. She still had ample opportunities. Chances to uphold the promises she had made to Philip.
By wiping away her feelings for Damian, she could safeguard everything without loss. At least the very last of her statements to Philip remained true.
Aracila still desired to fulfill her dreams more than to pursue love.
Concealing her faintly trembling hands behind her back, she nodded with a faint smile.
“Don’t worry. I’ll bring it to a close at the right time, so it doesn’t become an obstacle.”
“Yes, yes. You’re the kind who manages things well without needing lectures, so I don’t have major concerns.”
Aracila merely smiled in response to Philip’s words, which were wrapped entirely in his faith in her. She continued smiling politely until she bowed in farewell and departed.
Since this was the day she had finally realized her dream, it was only right to smile as much as possible. That was the proper thing.
Then, perhaps her heart would once again brim with unadulterated joy. This unease, like sitting on a bed of thorns, might finally dissipate.
Yet, even as she made her way back home, Aracila couldn’t lighten the heaviness in her heart.
Because that burden was the weight imposed by her feelings for Damian, which she simply couldn’t shake off.
In the end, Aracila resolved to tuck those indelible emotions deep within her bosom and stepped into the mansion.
─── ･ ｡ﾟ✧: *. ꕥ .* :✧ﾟ. ───
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