You should be more careful—was something Virgil had always heard, ever since he was still a rowdy child. But as he grew, each of his mistakes was accompanied by harsher disappointments.

And if he's being honest, he wasn’t any good at dealing with disappointment, even now. Even if Carson didn't scold him like his family, the sense of failure still weighed inside his mind. Sure, all the mistakes were his own fault—but it sure was draining, being reminded that he would eventually mess up‌ somehow.

As Virgil kept the rest of bandages back in the shelf, he wondered. If he were to accidentally cut Carson's eye instead of his face, Carson wouldn't have to face the same thing as Virgil. Family, aspirations, and so on—Carson lived a different life from him. But knowing that he would be the one who made Carson lost his eye, he couldn't help but to worry about the thought—

"Virgil?" As Carson snapped Virgil from a mess of his thoughts, he had a glass full of water in his hand.

"What's wrong?"

"Just drink this."

Carson shoved the glass in Virgil's hand. With a filled glass in his hand, Virgil could've ended up dropping this glass at any moment. But Carson didn't seem to be bothered by that possibility—not at the slightest.

When Virgil caught Carson staring at him, he finally realized he had to drink it. Knowing Carson, he probably hadn't gotten used to this side of Virgil. This would be the first time Carson had seen this side of Virgil, wouldn't it?

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"Hmm..." Carson's eyes remained on Virgil. It sure didn't feel any reassuring, being stared at.

"What is it?"

Carson shut his eyes, as if he was deep in thought. But moments later, he opened his eyes again. "You mind if I go to Ace's place?"

"Oh, not at all. Is he home?"

"Eh, no idea." Carson stood up. "But I'll figure out."

Virgil nodded as Carson headed outside. It's been a while since they had seen Ace, so this could be a good change of pace for Carson. And for Virgil, he finally had some time to himself. And since John would be late at home, Virgil might as well contact with his family, again.

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As days passed, Virgil hadn't practiced charms since then. And with the letter he got from his family, he was basically told to put work first—and so he did.

And he received another letter from John, stating he would be gone for a month because of his family business.

Now that John was away and Carson was hanging out with Ace, he might as well use this weekend to practice charms again.

But as Virgil was reviewing the chants from the book while having the clothes laid down on the floor, Carson and Ace arrived at the house.

"Ace bought you some snacks," Carson said, as Ace handed a paper bag to Virgil.

"Ah, thanks. It's been a while since I've seen you. How's the work going?"

"Good." Ace's uncharacteristically bothered expression said otherwise, unlike his usual stoic expression—as he took a glance inside Virgil's house. "Were you practicing charms?"

"Mhm, I'll go clea—"

As Virgil was about to head inside, Ace grabbed his arm. "Follow me. I know a place for that."

"Where?"

"Ironport's tower. I have the key."

With anything he recalled about the Ironport's tower—it was known as the alchemist's tower, with only a few families being able to access the place. And he had no clue on what kind of connections did Ace have, let alone ever knowing Ace as an alchemist or anything similar.