Leegaain and Baba Yaga already knew the magical principles behind tower crafting while Kamila and Shargein had the same level of understanding about Forgemastery. "You heard me. Take a look at the blocks on the right side of the room with your breathing technique. I've already enchanted them." Silverwing said and they complied. Not only did the gold-veined white marble have thin veins of Adamant spread throughout its structure, creating a homogeneous mana flow, but it also had a simple yet powerful pseudo-core. "How did you achieve it?" Lith asked. "For the Adamant, the trick is to keep the marble over the geyser after the first Infusion. It strengthens the flow and opens new channels that you can coat with more Adamant. Rinse and repeat until you are done." Silverwing replied. "As for the pseudo core, I'm sorry but that's my own method and I'm going to keep it that way. Ripha only told me her idea just like I've done with you and I worked my ass off to achieve pseudo core crafting during the preparatory step." "Oh. Too bad." Solus didn't even bother hiding how disappointed she felt. "What's the third step?" "Good question." The First Magus sighed sharply. "When I discover it, I won't reveal that to you either. It's where I'm stuck. According to Ripha, the third step is about merging the marble blocks together so that their enchantments flow into each other. "The order you connect them matters and so does the kinds of enchantments you imbue the different sections of the tower. That's all I know and one of the reasons I allowed Baba Yaga to come along with you. "I could use a fresh start." Silverwing waved at the already enchanted blocks and at what now her audience could recognize as failed attempts at assembling the tower core. The Mother weaved her Creation Magic, undoing Lochra's spells and restoring the precious and rare ingredients that would have otherwise been wasted. Once she was done, the marble was still Infused with Adamant and ready to be enchanted again. "Did you help my mother as well, Malyshka?" Solus asked. "Yes." Baba Yaga nodded. "By now you must have learned that in order to succeed, you have to fail a lot first. It's the reason I worked my ass off to learn Creation Magic and Ripha asked my assistance so often that for a while I moved in with you. "Your mother needed not only my advice about her theories but also my help to not turn every single failure into a dramatic loss that would have set back her research of months. "Can you imagine having to mine marble, infusing it with world energy and Adamant, just to waste powerful ingredients every time you think to have found a solution?" "The horror!" The entire audience but Kamila and Shargein said in unison, a cold shiver running down their spines. "Aunt Loka, how did-" "No offense, Solus, but I invited you here because I wanted to mend our relationship, not to spend the whole day imparting you magical lessons." Silverwing lowered her head, tormenting her fingers. "I wanted to show you everything I should have shared with you on our first meeting. Tell you all the things Ripha had entrusted me for you. Help you to find back your way to your memories and your old life. "Instead, I treated you like a fool in need to be rescued and I almost lost you for a second time. Do you mind saving those questions for another visit? I would love for you to come here again, even if you want to talk solely about magic." Solus blushed a little and felt like a jerk. 'Damn, I did it again. Grandma Salaark often complains that I only think about work and that's what I'm doing right now. Aunt Loka is doing her best to make me feel welcome yet I'm trampling over her feelings. 'She clearly has prepared a lot yet the only thing I'm showing any interest in is her magic, not her as a person. I haven't asked her a single question about our shared past.' Solus thought. "Sure. Better save something for our next meeting. Sorry, Aunt Loka." She gave Lochra a small bow to which she replied with a warm smile. "No problem." Silverwing caressed Solus' hair, happy that her goddaughter already planned to return there in the near future. "Now come. It's almost lunchtime and I've prepared a feast with your favorite dishes." The dining room was barely bigger than the one in Lith's house in Lutia. It was cozy and intimate, furnished with a cherrywood rectangular table and chairs. The table had been set just for four since Leegaain, Kamila, and Shargein were unexpected guests. A wave of Silverwing's hand made three more sets of silverware appear and filled the plates with steaming food. "Wait, is it safe to do that?" Kamila asked Leegaain as he used a spoon to eat the stew and another to feed the wyrmling. "Shargein is not a human baby. He was supposed to be born from an egg." The Guardian explained. "Hatchlings are weaned from birth and can eat cooked food with ease." "But I've seen Salaark breastfeeding him." "The fact that she can doesn't mean that she has to." Leegaain focused on the wyrmling taking care that Shargein didn't try and get a taste of the tableware. "By the way, Silverwing..." Lith attempted to say. "Please call me Lochra." She cut him short. "Silverwing it's too impersonal for a friend of Elphyn while Loka is too intimate so bear it in mind." "Okay, Lochra. If you are trying to make your own tower, I must assume that those of this castle are not up to the task, correct?" "Wrong, they are the perfect means of offense and defense. By channeling all the elements at the same time non-stop, I can weave hundreds of spells without burdening my body and without spending one iota of mana. "The same happens when I craft something, perform magical research, and even when I cook. As Baba Yaga said earlier, here I'm at my peak. On the other hand, however, away from here I'm just an average white-cored Awakened. "The castle cannot move and if discovered, my life would become a nightmare. The Council would siege me and I would be forced to trigger the self-destruct mechanism to keep my secrets from falling into their hands. "I would lose my home and all the sacrifices I made to build this place would go to waste." Everyone understood the real meaning of her words. By inviting them into her home, Silverwing had made herself vulnerable. If any of them exposed the location of the fortress to the Council, sooner or later she would be forced on the run. Sure, the fortress was powerful, but far from impregnable. The elders of the Council would take their sweet time studying her arrays and defenses until they found a way around them. Then, they would swarm Silverwing after sealing the space to keep her from running away. To make matters worse, if by then the First Magus had yet to complete her tower, she would be in the same situation as a rogue Awakened. With no safe haven or friend.