"It's been three days already, and still no sign of that thief?"

As he spoke, Two Hooked Brows on Forehead Nightmare furrowed his thick eyebrows into inverted hooks, conveying utmost gravity despite the soft curves of his large eyes below, which undermined his fierce demeanor.

Lilyrest dared not look at Nightmare's face, for fear of betraying her urge to laugh and provoking his ire.

To divert her attention, she lowered her gaze to study the carpet's floral pattern.

"Sly Seller laid too many beguiling mists along his trail," she explained. "Through resonating our feather powers, we can only ascertain he still lurks near Whitetown, yet pinpointing his exact whereabouts proves elusive."

Nightmare's inverted hooks tightened: "Stealing feathers yet brazenly lingering about, whatever is he scheming?"

By all reason, shouldn't he have fled far away already?

Lilyrest said nothing, but cast a telling glance at Rosen painting nearby.

Nightmare immediately grasped her implication.

"Because of Rosen? Why? Even if his paintings fetch good coin, surely not worth gambling his life over?"

Lilyrest spread her hands helplessly. "Past intelligence shows Sly Seller of narrow mind and extreme temperament. When fixed on something, he'll see it through to the bitter end. Now, he's likely set his sights on Rosen, so..."

Nightmare laughed in exasperation. "Ha! This thief shows some flair!"

He pondered briefly before instructing Lilyrest, "Keep searching. I'll wait right here! I'm keen to see what tricks this thief can pull off!"

"Yes, Sir Nightmare."

Lilyrest respectfully acknowledged then moved to exit the room.

"Wait, fetch me a strong bow, draw weight at least 100 pounds or a steel crossbow."

Lilyrest paused in surprise. "Sir Nightmare has no strong bow?"

Nightmare glared sharply. "Which eye of yours spied me carrying a bow, eh? Your asshole?"

Lilyrest flushed at his coarseness, awkwardly clarifying, "I assumed you simply hadn't one on hand."

Nightmare's expression softened slightly.

"I used to have a bow. But arrows cost coin and bowstrings demand care, too much hassle, so I tossed it."

Lilyrest's face betrayed her quandary. "Neither strong bows nor crossbows are found outside the military... Perhaps it would be easier for Sir Nightmare to request one from the Baron?"

"Ask the Baron? Forget it. Too trivial to owe that pretentious man any favors."

"Now scram!"

Despite facing merely a low-ranked mage empowered with ashes feathers, he felt no apprehension.

Lilyrest bowed once more before quietly exiting the room.

With her departure, Nightmare's face fully relaxed as he addressed Rosen. "You said Sly Seller was your magical tutor. What exactly did he teach you?"

Naturally, Rosen selected only the presentable parts. "He taught stillness meditation and mage's hand, plus some miscellaneous magical knowledge."

The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

In truth, he hadn't been idle these past days either.

Seizing opportunities during bathroom breaks to secretly practice contemplation, his mana had increased somewhat, and he'd mastered the new spell 'Fire Barrier'.

"Hmm, quite a lot for just imparting the basics."

Nightmare's tone dripped skepticism as he contemplated briefly before asking, "So have you learned the mage's hand?"

"Yes, I have."

"To what level of mastery?"

"Currently I can lift the teapot on the table."

In fact, he could already heft over forty pounds and sustain it for three minutes.

"Empty or full?"

"Full."

Rosen revealed a modicum of his capabilities.

These past days of interaction had made something clear.

Despite his quirks and rough-hewn features, Nightmare's character was forthright and brimming with self-assurance, a stark contrast to Sly Seller's devious nature.

Even if he discovered Rosen's outstanding talent, it likely wouldn't invite trouble.

Naturally, Rosen wouldn't volunteer anything unasked.

As expected, Nightmare looked somewhat jolted by his answer.

"Just a fortnight of stillness meditation, and you can lift a filled teapot already? You're full of surprises, lad!"

Not a mage himself, Nightmare was nonetheless a high-ranked warrior, renowned across the Northlands for his extensive experience.

By his knowledge, stillness meditation was merely an introductory practice with negligible mana increase.

A typical magical novice needed one month just to get started, three months before sensing a distinct well of mana within.

Whereas lifting the filled teapot on this table using the mage's hand required at least six months of dedicated training.

That Rosen had grasped this much through minimal guidance in just over a fortnight constituted astonishingly swift progress.

Nightmare scrutinized Rosen from top to bottom, wishing he could see right through his body and into his soul.

His mind rang with repeated exclamations. "By the Golden God, so this is what a magical genius looks like!"

Soon after, a fiery zeal welled up inside him.

"Ah, Milady has long lamented her lack of exceptional magical heirs. And here we have a ready-made one!"

Initially, bringing Rosen to Silverkeep to study magic was merely humoring a whim, to barter some alluring portraits. But now, Nightmare had become genuinely invested.

When his agitated mind calmed somewhat, he eagerly continued his questioning. "What else did you glean by sneaking peeks?"

"I saw parts of a high-level Solar Contemplation." Rosen admitted frankly. "I meditate daily visualizing the sun, which seems to rapidly increase my mana."

"Hmm, Solar Contemplation, though quite commonplace, is indeed a rather effective fire-aspected contemplation. So your mana has a fire polarity?"

"I suppose so, it seems similar at least."

He couldn't clearly define it as fire polarity, only that it resembled such.

This answer mildly disappointed Nightmare, for Milady was a full moon mage, specialized in lunar arts with a mana polarity of 'Baneful Silvery Moon'.

Fire polarity mana was ill-suited for studying her magic.

But on second thought, with just a fortnight's meditation, Rosen's mana remained weak, his fire polarity not deeply ingrained, leaving ample opportunity for re-training.

So Nightmare pressed on. "Anything else?"

"I reinforced the mage's hand to fling things like stones, useful for pelting people."

"Flinging stones at people, haha, child's play."

Nightmare dismissed this without concern. The mage's hand had limited potential to begin with, and how profound could a novice's mana be anyway?

He estimated at best it could hurl stones maybe fifteen meters, mildly hurting if it struck someone's head.

"So, anything more?"

"That's all there is."

Nightmare reckoned they'd covered the extent of it and laughed. "In just half a month, grasping this much already makes you exceptionally gifted."

"Once we're back at Silverkeep, Milady will likely appreciate your talent greatly and may even instruct you personally."

"Truly?" Rosen felt a glimmer of excitement but held no expectations.

"I cannot guarantee, for I cannot fathom the mind of a full moon mage. I can only say it remains a possibility."

He paused before continuing. "Also, from now on, Sly Seller is no longer your tutor but your sworn enemy."

"Having stolen ashes feathers yet lingering about, he likely plots a risky gambit. If he acts on it, we could face real trouble."

Rosen steeled himself inwardly but feigned confusion outwardly. "I don't really understand."

"It's complicated, explaining would likely overwhelm you... For now, let me teach you some basics of self-protection. Study them well, you may need to apply them soon."

"I will study diligently."

Nightmare pondered briefly before fishing a thin parchment tome from his pocket. Its cover read 'Intro to Magical Combat'.

"Milady gifted this book to me. While it contains few techniques, every one proves highly practical."

"Take this and read it. Ask me about anything unclear. Return it when finished, and be sure no paint stains the pages."

"I'll remember, Sir. Thank you for your generosity. I owe you a tremendous favor. Should opportunity arise in future, I swear to repay your kindness in full."

Hearing this, Nightmare simply laughed it off. "No need for repayment, just paint me more beauties."