Last Wizard King's SSS-Level Magic system in Modern World-Chapter 98: Join us- Part 2

Zane frowned, clearly dissatisfied with the answer.

Sensing the tension, Liam added.

"That said, I don’t mind running a dungeon or two with you guys from time to time. No strings attached."

Zane exhaled, knowing that was probably the best offer he would get.

"Fine. I’ll take it. But don’t think this is over. I’ll convince you to join us eventually."

Liam chuckled.

"Good luck with that."

With that, the group parted ways. Liam stretched, ready to head home, when he spotted a familiar figure walking toward him—Darius.

Grinning mischievously, Liam called out.

"Oh, hey, Senior Darius!"

The reaction was instant. As soon as Darius’s eyes landed on Liam, his face paled, and in the blink of an eye, he spun on his heel and fled.

Liam blinked in surprise before laughing.

Ethan, who had been watching the exchange, turned to Liam with suspicion.

"What the hell did you do to that poor man?"

Liam smirked.

"I just had some fun."

Liam answered, only for Asger to add the next comment in a low voice.

"Perhaps, you had too much fun."

No one questioned him further. In fact, no one wanted to.

With a satisfied sigh, Liam made his way home.

______

When Liam arrived at his small apartment, he tossed his gear onto the couch and collapsed onto his bed.

He had made a good profit today, but more importantly, he had confirmed something crucial—his control over magic was improving significantly. Even an A-rank hunter like Darius had been wary of him.

’Good. That means I’m progressing at the right pace.’

Liam rolled onto his side, staring at the ceiling. Tomorrow, he would have to return to work, which meant no dungeon runs for a while. He didn’t mind; in fact, he welcomed the break.

But all good things must come to and end and for Liam, that meant heading back to work the next morning. He did not want to, but beggars could not be choosers.

Liam stepped into his workplace after his short break, but the moment he crossed the threshold, he felt... off.

The once-familiar environment felt almost foreign now, and the routine tasks he had done a hundred times before suddenly felt tedious.

Even worse, he couldn’t focus.

Despite his best efforts to return to normal, his mind kept drifting.

He found himself unconsciously trying to manipulate magic even while performing simple tasks, like brewing coffee or organizing inventory.

The sensation of mana moving through his body had become second nature, and resisting the urge to practice while working was proving to be more difficult than he had anticipated.

To make things worse, Aria was just as clumsy as ever.

Within the first hour of their shift, she had already knocked over a stack of menus, tripped over her own feet, and almost spilled an entire tray of drinks onto a customer.

Normally, Liam would sigh, roll his eyes, and pick up after her, but today, he barely even reacted. His mind was elsewhere.

When Aria bumped into him while rushing to serve a table, causing him to nearly drop a plate, she gave him a sheepish smile.

"Ah, sorry, Liam! I didn’t see you there."

Liam just blinked at her. Normally, he would have some sarcastic remark ready, but instead, he just mumbled,

"It’s fine."

And turned back to his work.

Something had changed in him.

Even Aria seemed to notice.

"Hey... are you okay? You’re usually more annoyed when I mess up. Did you finally come around and noticed how " freewēbnoveℓ.com

Liam waved her off.

"I’m fine."

But he wasn’t fine. He kept making mistakes—forgetting orders, miscalculating bills, and spacing out at the worst times.

More than once, he caught himself absentmindedly tracing mana through his fingers, trying to practice subtle control, only to be snapped back to reality when someone called his name.

Eventually, Lucas, his boss, noticed.

"Liam, you got a minute?"

Lucas called, pulling him aside to the back of the shop.

Liam sighed, already knowing where this was going.

"Yeah."

Lucas crossed his arms and leaned against the counter.

"You’ve been off all morning. That’s not like you."

"I know. Sorry, I’m just... going through a rough patch."

Liam admitted.

Lucas studied him for a moment before nodding.

"You need another break?"

Liam hesitated. He wanted to say no, but deep down, he knew that wasn’t the answer.

Lucas smirked.

"Or maybe... you just found something else you enjoy more than this place?"

Liam’s eyes widened slightly.

Lucas chuckled.

"I’ve seen it before. People take a break, find something they’re passionate about, and suddenly, they realize they don’t belong here anymore."

Liam exhaled and rubbed the back of his neck. Lucas was right.

The past few days had changed him. His time in the dungeon, the thrill of fighting, and the satisfaction of growing stronger—it all felt right. Compared to that, working here felt like a waste of time.

"...I think you’re right."

Liam admitted.

Lucas arched a brow.

"Oh? So would an hour suffice? You can take your lunch as well and-"

Liam straightened up.

"I quit."

Lucas blinked before laughing.

"Well, damn. I didn’t expect you to say it that fast, but I kinda saw it coming."

Before they could continue, Aria suddenly walked up to them, holding a notepad in one hand and a confused expression on her face.

"Wait... what? You’re quitting?"

Liam turned to her.

"Yeah."

Aria looked at him for a second before nodding firmly.

"Alright, then I quit too."

Both Liam and Lucas stared at her in shock.

Lucas, however, quickly recovered and let out a relieved sigh.

"Well, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t expecting that either. Honestly, Aria, I don’t know how you lasted this long."

Aria looked annoyed before she raised her fist up in a threatening way.

"You wanna get beaten up by me?"

Lucas and Liam shared a look before simultaneously saying,

"No thanks. Just enjoy your newfound freedom. I hope you both the best of luck in whatever you do. I have a feeling you would need it a lot more than Liam, Aria."

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