Chapter 63: Chapter 47: Dream Builder
It was true that Sean didn’t know anyone.
But the moment he headed for the second floor, Elvire and Elise felt like they hardly knew him at all.
To enter the first floor of the Holy Sanctuary, one first had to touch the statue in the plaza. Sean hadn’t done that.
To reach the second floor, one had to touch the statue in the first-floor garden. Sean hadn’t done that either.
He just went straight up.
’So, this man had not only entered the Holy Sanctuary before, but had even reached the second floor...?’
’A Tier Two can get to the second floor??’
Elvire’s doe-like eyes widened as if she’d just witnessed the impossible.
’Was this really Sean, the shut-in writer she’d casually saved from the hospital? The same one who had only been a Wizard for two weeks? Or was he some High-tier Wizard transformed by a Witch Potion?’
Elise’s lips parted slightly as well. She watched Sean ascend the stairs to the second floor, speechless for a long while.
After a long moment, she finally shook her head and laughed in spite of herself. "That guy... he really knows how to shock people."
A Tier Two entering the first floor was a pleasant surprise. After all, there was precedent for it, proving Sean had good Talent and had earned Blake’s recognition.
But for a Tier Two to enter the second floor of the Holy Sanctuary... that was genuinely shocking.
"I remember you were already Tier Three when you first made it to the second floor, weren’t you?" Elise asked.
Elvire: "..."
Yes, she had been.
She had tried to enter the second floor when she was Tier Two as well.
If she were being honest about her more embarrassing moments, she’d actually tried back when she was just Tier One.
’It wasn’t that she was overconfident or thought too highly of herself. The main reason was her connection to the creator of the Hall of Truth—she was his sister-in-law. His actual sister-in-law. Although she had been reincarnated and was no longer the same Elvire physically, her soul hadn’t changed. And since the Void Technique Space was a Spiritual Domain where the soul carried far more weight than the body, Elvire felt that, as Blake’s family, she deserved at least a small privilege, right?’
Instead, the statue sent her flying ten meters away.
So she had no choice but to diligently increase her Magic Power and Spiritual Strength.
By the time she reached Tier Three, she could finally access the second floor. This "achievement" was actually something to be proud of. Before her, no Tier Three Wizard had ever earned the recognition of the second-floor statue. She was the first. Her record stood for a very long time... until today—
She had been surpassed by Sean.
Elvire felt a complex mix of emotions.
On one hand, she desperately wanted to know how Sean had done it. Had he figured out the statue’s trial mechanism?
On the other hand, she felt a little indignant. ’Did Sean really have more potential than her?’
And on yet another hand, she felt a flicker of joy. After all, Sean was one of her own. His success was a good thing for both her and the Dawn Council... ’Wait, why is it a good thing for me *personally*?’
"Who wouldn’t want their good friend to become stronger?" Elise said with a knowing smile, seeming to have read the girl’s mind.
’That makes sense,’ Elvire thought, and then nodded. "You’re right."
"Let’s hurry and catch up. We can’t have our good friend getting lost."
...
...
Unlike the shocked delight of Elvire and Elise, Sopea was in a very bad mood today.
He had entered the third floor just yesterday.
At first, he was frantic when he discovered the Book of Ancient Language was gone. He searched everywhere for footprints. But as he searched, he realized something far more serious: if someone had already taken the book, didn’t that mean they had reached the third floor even before he did? And at least a week earlier, at that.
The belated realization soured Sopea’s mood further the more he dwelled on it. The book might be gone, a loss of knowledge for everyone, but he had lost something more personal: the honor of being the first to enter the 3rd Floor of the Holy Hall!
He could have simply not mentioned seeing the footprints. Then he would still be known as the first Wizard to reach the third floor. But his pride wouldn’t allow it. So, he could only seethe in private and inflict his foul mood on everyone else.
The meeting was held in the same conference room as last time.
When Sean and the others arrived, they saw an older man sitting at the round table, his face pulled into a deep pout.
Standing beside him was a girl, his student, named Koni. She was the one Elise had gotten her information from earlier.
"Mr. Sopea, good afternoon. And hello, Little Koni," Elise said, greeting the master and student with a smile.
"Hello, Miss Elise." Koni’s lips curved into a sweet smile, revealing two adorable dimples.
Her teacher, Sopea, wore the complete opposite expression. He snorted. "Do I look like I’m having a good afternoon?"
Elvire rolled her eyes. Not even bothering to acknowledge him, she gestured for Sean to take a seat.
Elise, long accustomed to Sopea’s foul temper, just laughed. "You certainly don’t look it. So, shall we cut to the chase and get down to business?"
"Fine," Sopea said coolly. "Then let the one among you who can enter the 3rd Floor of the Holy Hall speak with me."
Elise: "?"
Elvire: "?"
Seeing that neither woman was speaking, Sopea acted as if he’d just remembered something. "Oh, my apologies. I forgot that out of all the Wizards, I’m the only one to have entered the third floor fair and square."
Sean: "..."
’What does he mean, "fair and square"?’
’Why does it feel like this old man is taking a shot at me?’
In just two simple sentences, he had managed to offend all three of them.
Koni couldn’t get a word in while the adults were talking, so she could only shoot everyone an apologetic glance.
’Her teacher was always like this. He was a good person, really—he just had an unfortunate habit of speaking.’
"Go on, what do you want to ask?" Sopea said, clasping his hands on the table. He was seated at the head of the table, looking for all the world like a caustic boss waiting for his underlings to consult him.
Elise asked, feigning ignorance, "Have you found the book?"
Sopea retorted, "If I’d found it, would I still be sitting here?"
’He would’ve been on the third floor learning new Magic long ago. Did they really think he had time to chat with a few Little Wizards who were stuck on the second floor?’
