17. Ignore that creature

Simon wasn't swayed by Liv's innocent puppy eyes but rather by his curiosity. After all, the situation had to be dire for someone to ask him of all people for help. "Fine… tell me why you need my help, and I might reconsider my opinion." After sighing loudly, Master Simon slumped onto a wooden chair and gestured for the others to join him.

As the others joined the table, teacups began flowing in the air before gently landing in front of them. Luz was amazed by what was happening as Master Brian filled their teacups with tea from midair. To his surprise, no drop landed on the white silk tablecloth.

Liv reached for her porcelain cup and told Simon about Luz's problem while the former took a sip of his tea. "To keep it short, my dumbass brother used the teleportation spell and strained… well, probably cracked his mana core a bit, and…."

Simon spat out his tea in shock before yelling, "JODOC. COME HERE. IMMEDIATELY!"

"Sorry, Liv. Did I understand it right that this greenhorn used a teleportation spell?" Master Simon asked carefully with a raised eyebrow, mustering Luz.

The latter felt a shiver run down his spine as it felt for him that no secret of his body was safe from his greedy eyes.

Master Simon had a carefree demeanor even though he looked like a zombie whose body was running on nothing but caffeine, as one could clearly see the bags under his arctic blue eyes. His glances felt as if he could see right through one's soul. As for Simon's face, there wasn't really anything else remarkable as his skin bore no scars like the one from butler Alfred.

Well, Master Simon also had short blond hair. But as the narrator, I believe that's not something too remarkable. Blue eyes and blond hair, just like the master race.…WAIT, that's the wrong novel. Please forget what I just said. Anyway, let's continue.

As Master Simon was thinking about how he could help Luz, a flying and shrieking monster shot across the room and landed on his shoulder, glaring at the bird in Luz's cage.

"Ignore that creature," commented Master Simon with a sigh, and after a quiet minute, he stated: "Well, Liv. I'm going to scan Luz mana core, and after that, I might think about a solution. You can leave the young man here and continue whatever you were doing."

Liv nodded before whispering into Luz's ears, "you gotta take me out to dinner as compensation for saving your life, lad.~"

"Well, I heard it," commented Master Simon with a dry voice before adding, "If I end up saving Luz, he gotta take me out to dinner and not a brat like you."

Liv winked to Luz before departing, leaving Luz alone with a stranger and a giant bird that stood alert on Master Simon's shoulder while burying its claws into it.

The eagle, whose height was 80cm, stood proudly on Simon's shoulder while staring right into Luz's eyes.

'Why is that creature staring at me?' wondered Luz before staring back into the latter's amber-yellow eyes.

The bird's plumage was a combination of the colors black and brown. The feathers in its chest/belly area were hazel brown, while everywhere else, they were brown. If that sounds confusing, its wings, head, and back feathers are black, while its chest and belly feathers are hazelnut brown.

Seeing how Luz didn't utter any comments, the bird bent to his master before whispering, as quietly as possible, into the latter's ear: "Is that human and the small bird there my meal?"

"I'm not your food, and neither will be my bird your food," sighed Luz, while Master Simon smiled before putting his teacup down.

"So, Luz. That thing on my shoulder, also known as a black-and-chestnut eagle, is my pet," before he could comment further, the eagle intervened, shouting with its hoarse voice, "I have a name. My name is Jodoc. I'm an intermediate mage and a research assistant for the latter."

"Yeah, we get it. But you are still my pet," sighed Master Simon before continuing his speech, "It depends on how much we can help you. The chances are high that you have to live here for a few days or even a couple of months. Anyway, follow me, young lad, so that we can take a few images of your mana core."

"Wait! What will happen with my job if I have to reside here for a few months?" Luz asked in a hurry.

The bird Master duo chuckled both at Luz's question before Simon replied, "Ah, don't worry about that thing. Master Brian would understand that. Also, I would even pay your debts. But that old geezer wouldn't accept any money coming from me."

Luz nodded, and the three went up the stairs till they reached the fourth floor. Luz even got a glimpse of every floor and what awaited him there.

Most of the floors looked ordinary. The first two floors, for example, were living rooms packed to the brim with books. The sight of all these books sent shivers down Luz's back. 'Damn. I hope that I don't have to read that much to get strong,' prayed Luz. It's not like Luz can't read, but who the hell wants to read that many books?

Unlike the other floors, the fourth floor was a research laboratory where one could see machines that neither Luz nor the narrator was familiar with.

"All right. Follow me. I won't bite," Simon casually remarked before leading him towards a chair that resembled more of a torture device rather than a regular chair.

As they moved towards it, Luz walked past a tank filled with murky water, with no animal inside. On the other hand, the walls were decorated with occult objects that chilled him as he saw a corpse nailed to a cross.

After reaching the chair, Simon instructed him to undress and take a seat.

Luz stared at the chair, which had straps on the armrest, while the machine behind the chair had several sharp, long needles.

Reluctantly, however, Luz did as he was asked to, undressed, and took a seat on the cold metal chair.

The eagle that was quiet till now jumped from Simon's shoulder before landing on Luz's armrest, where he tightened the straps. After that, Jodoc jumped onto the ground to tighten the belts meant for his leg.

Simon gently placed his hand on Luz's chest before expressing his concern. "Yeah, it seems Liv was right. You really used a spell way above your class."

Filled with embarrassment, Luz looked to the side while muttering, "I had no other choice."

"You don't need to justify your cracked mana core," commented Simon before moving towards the machine behind Luz. From there, Simon shouted, "Yo, This may be a bit painful, but I'm just going to shoot mana through your body for a moment to create a detailed picture of your strained mana core."

But before Luz could even comment, several thin needles were rammed right into his exposed back. These needles were responsible for either measurement or for the mana transfer.

Groaning, Luz tried to stand up the moment those thin needles got inserted into his skin. But the lashes prevented him from any attempts."Stand still," shouted Simon while pulling down one of the switches.

Shortly afterward, a strong mana current shot through Luz's body, almost bursting his mana veins. Although the current did not last even a second, its strength was strong enough to make Luz's head drop, and blood immediately began dripping slowly from his orifices.

"I think that was too much mana at once," Simon commented before pausing at the sight of his patient before shifting his gaze towards a monitor measuring Luz's heartbeat.

'We are lucky that he still got a regular heartbeat,' sighed Simon before shouting to his bird, "JODOC. Please note that the mana flow rate for mage apprentices should be lowered to a third of what we normally use."

Afterward, the bird-Master duo shifted their attention towards a screen that depicted a few 3d images of Luz mana core and other charts.