The banquet continued in full swing. Some guests had begun leaving their seats to mingle, the ladies chatting and laughing lightly, while the men drank and talked, making the atmosphere even livelier. At the corner table, except for Leonie who vaguely sensed something, Sam and his sisters were oblivious to the emotional rollercoaster William had just experienced, and the group continued eating and chatting happily.
Unintentionally, William's gaze swept to the platform, just catching Margaery laughing, covering her mouth, her eyes crescent-shaped with delight, extraordinarily charming. William's heart stirred again.
"Margaery's magical aura is pure and natural, almost undeveloped. If she truly is a wild mage, could I turn her into an ally? My own magic is still too limited. If we studied and exchanged knowledge together, it should be more effective than working alone. Could she be the key to breaking my bottleneck?"
Over the past four years, William had learned no fewer than a hundred spells, but only four were usable: Enhance, Heal, Restore, and Absorb.
Enhance pushed his physical abilities to the human limit—strength, reflexes, speed. Heal could rapidly mend injuries, letting him fight and train without hesitation. Restore converted mental energy into stamina, making him seemingly tireless.
Absorb took longer to prepare, unlike the first three, which were nearly instantaneous, but as a passive magic, it provided a chance to turn the tables in the face of lethal attacks, especially unexpected ones.
Unfortunately, these spells could only be used on himself. Otherwise, with just Heal, he could amass a fortune without entering tournaments.
Without magic, William would still have no problem completing his training and becoming a knight, but that would be all. With magic, he leapt to the top tier of knights, capable of facing anyone, even the Mountain.
Yet he remained puzzled as to why he could only use so few spells, and why their functions seemed similar. If he mastered other types of magic, his combat power could rise even further. He had subtly asked his magical advisor, the male mage Glop, but the answer was that male mages never considered such a scenario; for them, spells were either fully effective or completely useless.
Fortunately, following the principle that "more skills never hurt," William had not ignored the unusable spells but studied them diligently, memorizing them exactly. Reflecting on the moment he had locked eyes with Margaery, a few spells he couldn't use flashed through his mind. Now he realized they were all plant-related.
"That makes sense. The Tyrells carry the bloodline of the Garth Green-Hand, whose legendary power is plant manipulation. Perhaps different people can only master certain types of magic. If I could get Margaery to learn magic, maybe we could discover even more…"
The problem was, even if Margaery were willing, how could he teach her? Her magical aura seemed weak to William; she likely couldn't learn from books alone and would need hands-on instruction—literally. But Margaery was the cherished jewel of the Lord of Highgarden, seen as key to the family's future. How could he be allowed such prolonged, close contact without tarnishing the Tyrells' reputation?
Seeing William staring at Margaery again, Garlan couldn't help but warn, "William, we're friends. If you plan to court her formally, I'll be pleased. Otherwise, I'll act on my word!"
'If I could marry the little rose, that would be ideal… but is that even possible? Might as well let me fly to the heavens!' William pouted. "Formally court her? Lord Mace would just order you to chop off my head. No difference there."
Garlan laughed. "Margaery is the most beautiful rose of Highgarden. She won't be plucked that easily!" He patted William's shoulder and continued chatting with Leonie.
William looked at him speechless and thought of another problem: 'What if she tells Lord pufferfish about my magic?'
So far, William believed no one could be certain he had magic, though some might suspect.
The two Warlocks, Glop and Mokken, might be suspicious; after all, he frequently discussed magic with them, leaving traces. Archmaester Marwyn might also suspect; early in his studies, William often consulted him to verify knowledge taught by the mages, as caution was necessary—but that could reveal more details and expose him.
And then there was the "Mad Maid" Malora Hightower… just thinking of her gave William a headache. A true lunatic, since their first meeting, she had been babbling about his powers—well, he didn't deny it, but her frequent attempts to draw his blood were intolerable. His magic came from mental power, not blood. After his first mishap, she escalated, even trying to seduce him for her schemes… a fiend, and he was just a child!
As the saying goes, possessing something valuable invites trouble. Magic might seem useless in ordinary life—the Children of the Forest could manipulate seawater to destroy Dorne's coast and were still driven from their homes by Andal spears—but rare and coveted, it was still extraordinary. If Margaery did tell her father, William might be in some trouble. At worst, he could accelerate his plans and go to serve the Dragon Queen. With dragons as a reference point, his magic wouldn't stand out so much.
With that in mind, William decided he had to make contact with Margaery and see the situation. Rising, he said, "Excuse me, everyone. I must go offer a toast to the adults."
"Ah-ha! You want to meet Miss Margaery!" Sam blurted the obvious truth.
At that moment, Garlan also rose to fetch a platter of roasted chicken filled with onions and mushrooms. As he approached William, he whispered lightly, "Watch out for Lord Randyll, Warlock."
William blinked and quickly understood. The Warlock incident had caused a city-wide uproar. Lord Randyll had publicly denounced Glop and Mokken as frauds, yet had still hired them himself. If William had remained obscure, it wouldn't have mattered much, but as his fame grew, the story became widely known, making things rather awkward.
In the gossiping public's mouths, either he was the fool or Lord Randyll was—the interpretation depended entirely on the speaker's mood and context. As for the truth… who cared?
It was a deadlock William couldn't untangle. Fortunately, he had little direct contact with Lord Randyll, so he just planned to keep his distance in the future. Right now, his only concern was Margaery. He thought, At worst, I'll get a scolding. Randyll is notoriously blunt; being criticized by him isn't shameful.
William lifted his wine glass and calmly said, "I won't deny it, Sam." Then he shrugged. "But that's nothing to be ashamed of." The ladies at the table suppressed giggles, smiling delicately.