Paqina had gone to class, and Loren generally couldn't be bothered to teach in the mornings, so he planned to hang around in his office for a while.

The office environment was excellent, equipped with all sorts of amenities, and best of all, Loren had it all to himself.

Loren wasn't bored, either—like a kid who just got a new toy and takes it everywhere, he had brought Orianna along. Right now, Orianna was brewing tea for him.

Besides, with the Hermit card active, no one could detect Orianna anyway.

The teapot heated up on Orianna's floating sphere, then drifted over to Loren. He picked it up and poured himself a full cup.

This sphere was quite versatile, too. It could release magic, transform into water droplets to ram into enemies, or function like a drone to harass opponents from a distance. It could even coordinate with Orianna for suppressive fire.

But Loren didn't get to relax for long before a knock came at the door. Without even thinking, he knew it was Casper.

"Master Mentor, may I come in?"

Sure enough, Casper's voice followed right after.

"Come in."

When Casper pushed the door open, Orianna didn't bother hiding. She just stood openly behind Loren, completely unnoticed by Casper.

"Master Mentor..."

"I know. I'm about to tell you how to learn Super-tier Magic."

Hearing this, Casper immediately sat up straight. He had been waiting for this day for gods knew how long.

He had been a genius since childhood, and everyone had high hopes for him. He was also extremely confident in himself, believing he could become the strongest, dreaming of obtaining magic beyond the ninth tier. He had always believed that ninth-tier magic wasn't humanity's peak.

A long time ago, he had already become a ninth-tier mage. Even across the entire history of the Nofica Theocracy, he was the youngest to achieve that.

His entire life had been smooth sailing. After becoming a ninth-tier mage, he believed he would definitely obtain magic beyond the ninth tier.

Not long after that, he learned that there might really be such magic beyond the ninth tier. He thought his life would continue smoothly from there.

But from his prime to his old age, until he was a flickering candle in the wind, he made no further breakthroughs and found no more information about Super-tier Magic. Truth be told, he should have died long ago, but the obsession with finding ninth-tier magic had forced him to cling to life until now.

It wasn't until he met Loren that he found a new lead.

"Do you remember how the Dawn Princess died?"

"I do. She wanted to rebel against the gods, so they united to kill her. In the end, she stopped her own country and sank the entire nation into the sea. Her subjects transformed into Merfolk..."

As he spoke, Casper suddenly recalled something Loren had said before, and his excitement surged:

"You mean... there's Super-tier Magic in the deep sea?"

"That's right. The deep sea is a god-forsaken land, filled with countless secret treasures, including Super-tier Magic."

Saying it was "god-forsaken"—a place abandoned by the gods—sounded nice, but in reality, it meant the Orthodox Gods couldn't control it. They wanted to govern the ocean more than anyone else.

Countless demons and monsters had spawned in the sea, inevitably posing a threat to the Orthodox Gods. Especially the Sea God, who was already close to having the power to threaten them—the Sea God was an evil god, after all.

The biggest concern was still the Merfolk. These subjects of the Dawn Princess had always been a thorn in the Orthodox Gods' side. They held secrets about the gods and possessed terrifying power.

If the Orthodox Gods could intervene in the ocean, they would have already charged into the deep sea and slaughtered the Merfolk long ago.

Loren knew all this, but Casper didn't. In his eyes, searching for treasure in the deep sea was still simpler than the methods Loren had mentioned before.

"Show respect for legends—especially legends of the sea. Many of them are real, including those legendary treasures."

Loren continued guiding him. Legends, the Dawn Princess, Super-tier Magic, the ocean... putting it all together, Casper quickly connected it to a certain legend:

"You mean... that legendary treasure of the Dawn Princess—the magic that can make one invincible under heaven—is real?

"That invincible magic is Super-tier Magic? Super-tier Magic can actually reach that level?"

As he spoke, Casper began trembling with excitement.

"No, Super-tier Magic can't reach that level, but the things in the Dawn Princess's treasure can indeed make one invincible under heaven."

After all, friendship was magic. If you were friends with the whole world, you'd have no enemies—Super-tier Magic really couldn't do that.

"Then... is there magic even stronger than Super-tier Magic?"

"Saying that isn't wrong."

Loren's answer was ambiguous, but Casper was already too worked up to consider the details.

"Master Mentor, could I trouble you to temporarily act as headmaster?"

"I can't be bothered with that..."

"Then could you please inform the Church for me? I'm quitting. I'm going to sea."

"... "

Loren really hadn't seen that coming. His goal was just to string Casper along. He had guessed Casper would set out to find the treasure, but he didn't expect him to leave right now.

"Wait a moment before you go..."

"Is there anything else you want to instruct me on?"

Since the mood had already reached this point, Loren didn't try to dissuade Casper. After all, he no longer needed Casper's help. If Casper died, it wouldn't affect Loren at all.

So, Loren decided to give him a hand.

"I'll give you a gift."

With that, Loren grabbed a vase and activated his magic. A bunch of straw sprouted out of it.

Just as Casper was confused, the straw quickly dried up. Finally, Loren used the dried straw to weave a straw hat for Casper.

"Take this with you. It carries the blessing of the Pirate King, wishing you find the great treasure."

"Thank you, Master Mentor. Your kindness is beyond my ability to repay..."

Casper, a man over a hundred years old, actually shed tears at that moment.

"Alright. If you really find the great treasure, remember to tell me what it is.

"Don't waste time. Set off now."

Loren was also getting into the playful spirit. He wanted to see how this would turn out.

*The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Wants to Become Pirate King.*

"Yes, Master Mentor."

Casper put on the straw hat, solemnly thanked Loren, and then leaped straight out the window. He didn't even bother taking the stairs.

At the same time, Loren started looking forward to what would happen in the end. Maybe Casper really would find the great treasure and obtain the magic of friendship.

But most likely, he would just die at sea.

Casper was certainly powerful, but he was a pure Bountifulness mage who couldn't use magic from other sequences. Out at sea, his Bountifulness magic wouldn't be of much use, and his strength would be severely limited.

Still, his existence was a threat to Loren. If he died, that was fine too.

"Maybe I could head out to sea as well. There really are quite a few destined opportunities out there..."