The Sorcerer's Handbook

Chapter 8: No, You’re Going to Practice Swordsmanship

Sonya leisurely flipped open the Fundamentals of Water Sorcery while removing her makeup.

Removing makeup was troublesome, which made reading the perfect way to pass the time. First, she had to carefully remove every eyelash with cotton swabs, then wash her eyes with eye wash. She’d applied sunscreen to her arms today, and the body wash couldn’t remove it completely, so she had bought a cheap, large bottle of makeup remover specifically for sunscreen.

After showering, she still had to follow her basic skincare routine. She couldn’t skip the essence sprays, and even her eyelashes needed treatment to prevent them from falling out easily. She certainly didn’t have enough money for the ”Perfect Glow” eyelash surgery.

Doing all of this together took nearly an hour. If she hadn’t made time to study during it, Sonya would never have earned the scholarship last semester.

She was also determined to summon her first Water Class spirit before next year, ideally before graduation, and to fully manifest the Silver Wings, becoming a One-Winged sorcerer.

Sword and Roses University wasn’t the top sorcerer university in Cailleach, but it was unmatched in training Swordmasters, Water Class sorcerers, and Wind Class sorcerers. Graduates of these disciplines had unlimited prospects.

Among them, Water Class sorcerers often became healers due to their many related spells, making it Sonya’s chosen field.

Having seen the prosperous world of Cailleach, Sonya knew she wouldn’t gain a foothold in it for decades if she relied solely on herself. Finding a capable man as a shortcut into high society was therefore her first choice.

She would never spend so much time, effort, and money maintaining her looks just to give some poor man a bargain.

According to Sonya’s research, more than half of all noble wives were Water Class sorcerers. If the noble himself was a sorcerer, that proportion could rise to over 70%. Thus, Water Class sorcerers were unquestionably a major advantage in a noble’s choice of wife.

Compared to them, Wind Class sorcerers often ended up as weather sorcerers, which was a job that required working outdoors in harsh conditions. Swordmasters were an even worse choice. Their strong physiques counted as a disadvantage for women. With that in mind, Sonya’s life plan became clear.

Become a Water Class sorcerer, get into events at the Truth Sorcerer University, get to know the noble students there, and eventually catch the eye of a young aristocrat.

Unlike the Sword and Roses University, the Truth Sorcerer University was the top university in all of Cailleach and even across the Starry Kingdom. The rich and powerful gathered there, and that was where Sonya expected to meet her future boyfriend. None of the boys at Sword and Roses would ever catch her eye.

By marrying into the upper class, I will be able to use my husband’s social resources to build my own foundation. Even if we divorced one day, I would still be able to stand firmly in Cailleach and bring mom to live a noble life.

Her thought was suddenly cut short by a voice, ”No, you should practice swordsmanship.”

Hearing the familiar yet strange voice, Sonya instinctively reached for her weapon with her right hand.

If she hadn’t been sitting, she would have used the Watch and Strike footwork to evade at once.

In the next instant, she froze in shock when she saw the figure who had appeared beside her out of thin air. He wore a dark coat, with the hood obscuring his features. He was none other than the Watcher!

The Watcher leaned against the wardrobe and raised a finger in a shushing gesture. ”If I were you, I’d first look at how the others are reacting. If you want to talk to me, do it in your mind. No need to say them aloud.”

Sonya looked toward Louisa and Adele. Adele was tapping at the air, fully absorbed in her lightscreen. Louisa had just stepped out of the bathroom. She walked right past the Watcher without so much as a glance. It’s as though she couldn’t see him at all.

Sonya looked down at the floor and noticed that the Watcher had no shadow. She immediately realized what was happening.

She barely held back the urge to speak aloud and asked in her mind, ”Who exactly are you?”

”I am called the Watcher of Doomsday. You may call me the Watcher. If you are so forgetful at your age, the only advice I can give is to abstain from lust...”

”That’s not what I’m asking.”

”But that’s all I can answer,” the Watcher replied. ”You know, I used to hate it when someone acted all mystical, dangling important secrets with that ’you’re not ready to know yet’ attitude. It used to make me want to beat the crap out of them.”

Sonya remained silent, simply staring at the Watcher.

The Watcher nodded. ”Exactly as you thought. Now, I’ve become that kind of mystical person myself. I realized it’s... interesting. Especially seeing you, clearly furious yet helpless, it makes my visit worthwhile. But it’s normal. People often become what they most detest... or perhaps the most detestable people just live longer.”

Sonya suddenly realized a problem, and a chill ran down her spine. ”You can hear my thoughts!”

”If I couldn’t, what would this be? Pantomime?”

”But you can’t! You’re not respecting me! You have taken away even my mental freedom!”

The Watcher said calmly, ”Don’t worry, swordswoman. I’m not your enemy. I’m not even a complete person right now. If you insist, I can refrain from appearing before you.”

”Then what exactly are you?”

The Watcher shook his head. ”I’m just a distant memory. But we’ve gotten off topic. Let’s get back to business. Honestly, soon you won’t even care that I can hear your thoughts.”

Sonya recalled the cruel experiences from her dreams. ”What business?”

Suddenly, a blue potion appeared in the Watcher’s hand. ”First, drink this.”

Sonya quickly rejected, ”No! I won’t drink it!”

To her horror, the liquid in the glass bottle visibly vanished, while at the same time, she felt it sliding down her throat.

The Watcher took out a wooden sword. ”Next, you are going to practice using the sword.”

”No, I don’t want to!”

The Watcher was right. Sonya no longer cared that he could hear her thoughts.

Compared to controlling her speech and actions, hearing her thoughts was trivial.

No matter how hard she struggled, she could only watch herself take the wooden sword, and...

Swish!

The scraping sound of a chair dragging across the floor made Louisa and Adele look up, just in time to see Sonya’s back as she left the dorm with a wooden sword in hand, slamming the door behind her.

Louisa muttered softly, ”What’s her problem?”

Realizing it made her sound petty, she scoffed loudly, ”She hasn’t practiced using a sword in a year, and suddenly she wants to train? She must be trying to hook up with some senior swordsman!”

Adele blinked with a puzzled look. ”I don’t remember her ever buying a wooden sword. Ingritt also doesn’t own one like this. Where did she get it?”