Advent of the Archmage - Chapter 191

Chapter 191: The Story of an Upright Tiger (Part 3)

The Magician who was clad in an ice bearskin cloak walked out from the forest under the watchful eyes of the Wind Tiger. The hood of the cloak covered most of the Magician’s head, concealing his face. As he walked, hints of garnet Magician’s robe beneath the outer cloak were revealed, and in his hand, the Magician was holding an exquisitely well-made wand.

At first, the Wind Tiger saw the figure but still couldn’t recognize the mysterious Magician’s identity. But, the heavily wounded Warrior beside him was much quicker in this regard.

“That’s the Starcatcher wand!” he shouted. “And you’re wearing the Flame Controller Magician’s robe! You’re Link!”

This Warrior had been a core member of the Syndicate, so he was familiar with the weapons and gear of the strongest figures in the continent. Furthermore, Link had been the one who had completely wiped out the Girvent Forest branch of the Syndicate and single-handedly killed the demon Tarviss, so naturally, the Syndicate took special notice of any news and information about him.

It was no wonder then, that the moment Link appeared the Warrior could easily pin down Link’s identity with just a few details exposed.

Link had planned to remain anonymous in front of these people, but the moment he heard the Warrior’s words he went silent for a while and decided to pull down the hood of his outer cloak. The moment he did that the fire elements that revolved around the Flame Controller were suddenly revealed in all its glory. These elements flowed all around Link’s body and then gathered at the top of his head, forming a visible crown of flame.

The snowy white bearskin cloak, the bright red fiery aura, the glorious crown of flame and the intense fluctuations of Mana energy around Link’s body all combined to carve a striking figure whose power and talents were most obvious to even the least experienced of observers.

Just as it was on earth, an intimidating external appearance was very useful in the world of Firuman as well. With a presence that Link radiated then, the last remnants of defiance in the Warrior’s eyes were now gone and were replaced instead with a look of fear and awe.

There stood right in front of his own eyes, the very person who had crushed the Level-8 demon Tarviss with a magical fiery hand. Even though the Warrior was himself an elite member of the Syndicate and was respected and feared by thousands of people, he still couldn’t muster up the courage to hurl insults at such a mighty figure.

“You shouldn’t be here!” was all he could manage. “Why are you here? Shouldn’t you be in the Ferde Wilderness?”

The intelligence network of the Syndicate had done a very good job apparently, even though they still weren’t good enough to outplay someone like Link.

Even the Wind Tiger was stunned! It had seen the Magician who had defeated the demon Tarviss that night, yet this man still exceeded all its expectation. Never in its dreams had it ever imagined that anyone could drive Andre into a corner and force him to flee in just a few attacks!

That was truly impressive!

Link approached the Warrior until he was about 20 feet away from him. He then bent down his head and looked down at the Warrior.

The armor on his body had mostly been scorched by the Flaming Hand earlier. There were burn wounds all over his body, although some traces of Battle Aura still remained. Albeit, it was now far too weak to pose any threats to Link.

He then examined the armor closely and discovered that it was pure black with an engraved insignia on the chest. It was an inscription of a dagger with six drops of blood trickling from it—the insignia of the Syndicate. The six drops of blood signified this Warrior’s level and position in the organization.

“The Syndicate, huh?” Link remarked.

The Warrior made no reply.

“The Shadow Shield?” added Link.

Previously in the game, Morpheus had by this point ignited the Sacred Fire. Because of the powerful MI3, the Norton Kingdom in the North was still largely unaffected by the rise of the Syndicate. But here in the South, the whole region had by now fallen into the tight grips of this evil organization.

This was due to the emphasis on trade and commerce by the six southern kingdoms, which meant that their military power was weak. Moreover, these were only six small kingdoms who couldn’t amass enough power and resources on their own to fight against such an expansive organization like the Syndicate. Thus, the southern kingdoms became the fertile grounds for which the Syndicate grew in power and influence—so much so that they were said to be ubiquitous here.

Meanwhile, the Shadow Shield was an elite branch of the Syndicate which comprised of shield-wielding Warriors.

“How do you know anything about the Shadow Shield?” asked the Warrior with terror in his eyes. This wasn’t something that a Magician from the North should know about!

“Oh, I wasn’t sure earlier,” said Link smilingly, “but now you’ve confirmed it.”

The Warrior was left speechless. This kind of interrogative technique was one of the first things he’d learned as the core member of the Syndicate. How embarrassing was it to inadvertently leak the secrets of the organization by falling into such a benign trap!

Now that the matter was confirmed, Link noticed a notification lighting up on the interface. He looked over at it and realized that it was the message of a completed mission. He’d now earned 100 Omni Points and the Soul Stamp. Link showed no discernible reaction to this news and turned back towards the Warrior.

“I don’t feel like fighting anymore today,” he told the Warrior. “But I’m not letting you go either. You know what to do, don’t you?”

The Warrior breathed a long sigh of relief at Link’s remarks. He knew that there would be no chance of him defeating this Magician and no chance of escaping alive. If he continued to fight him, it would only bring more suffering and pain to himself. The only choice left for him was to commit suicide.

The warrior then took off his armor and promptly stabbed a dagger straight into his own heart. With one decisive move, the dagger pierced through his skin and flesh and struck his heart. The Warrior then slumped to the ground, dead by his own hands.

The Wind Tiger watched the scene with shining eyes, his heart filled with awe and respect for the Magician.

He uttered a few words and the Warrior obediently killed himself without a protest, thought the tiger. What a fearsome man!

Once he’d made sure that the Warrior was dead, Link then turned his attention to the Wind Tiger.

“Do you have a name?” asked Link.

“Yes,” replied the tiger proudly. “My name is Dorias.”

“I see,” replied Link tersely. He circled around the weak and heavily wounded Dorias and discovered that it was not in mortal danger.

“I’d really like to know,” said Link again, “what you were thinking hanging around a forest that was so near to a big city. Don’t you know how bottomless the greed of humans can be and what danger that would bring you?”

“Oh, but Master,” lamented the tiger after a long sigh, “you don’t know the pain of a broken heart!”

As it spoke, the tiger dragged itself to the banks of the creek and slumped down haplessly. Not a trace of ferocity could be found in its eyes, only the wistfulness of memories.

“Enlighten me,” said Link, his interest now piqued.

Dorias’ eyes concentrated as he tried to recall the events that occurred all those years ago. He lay there silently for a while before finally spilling out his story.

“Did you know that this whole region was a lush forest 200 years ago?” began the tiger. “Back then, I was the king of this forest. Us Wind Tigers were few in numbers and were spread far apart. Every full moon night of the spring we would all gather together and feast on small animals, engage in conversation and play games together, forming tight bonds among our kind and finally choosing a mate for the year.”

As the tiger reached this point in his story, its head slumped sorrowfully and hung limply over its shoulder.

“At the time, I had a mating partner who’d been with me for more than a decade,” said Dorias. “Her name was Ora, and she was my queen. She had thick and soft fur that was pure green in color and a slender figure. I’m always intoxicated by her gentle eyes, and even after all these years, I can still distinctly recall that surge of pleasure I feel when I’m mating with her. I’m the strongest of my own kind, and I could always sustain it for a full minute. A full minute! Can you believe that? I know all my brothers could only sustain it for half a second! Yet now everything is gone…my queen, my children, my home—everything has been buried by time and belongs to the unreachable past now.”

Then, the Wind Tiger turned around to face Link with a face distorted by grief and pain.

“Human Magician,” he addressed Link, “you will never understand the depths of my despair. I have nowhere to go now. Why don’t you bring me back to Azura Tower? Although it can get quite boring in there, at least no one would bother me.”

Well, then, now that the tiger had spilled out his story; Link began to understand the motive behind his seemingly odd behavior earlier. He stared at the thick black fog that surrounded the tiger, then he reached for his wand and pointed it towards Dorias.

“Expulsion!” he chanted.

Expulsion

Level-5 Spell

Effects: A high-level dispelling spell that can expel very strong magic from a target.

This was a spell Link recently mastered in his spare time. It was from a notebook written by Master Magician Grenci where he recorded invaluable lessons he’d learned and his precious experience along with his Supreme Magical Skills. Naturally, Link found the spell to be interesting, so he took the time to master it.

Once the spell was cast, a fist-sized light orb radiating with the colors of the rainbow took form at the tip of Link’s wand and flew straight towards the Wind Tiger Dorias. It danced around the tiger for a while, showering it with its glorious light. Everywhere the light hit on the tiger’s wounded body the remnants of dark energy and dark elements that remained inside were squeezed out and scattered into the air.

Once the spell was complete, Dorias’ body was completely purged and purified, and not a thread of dark elements remained. It moved its body tentatively and started to stand on its feet. It then began to walk in circles. At first, his steps were wobbly and unstable, but soon enough, it regained its footing and gained its speed again. Even the wounds on its body were almost healed now, and the bleeding had completely stopped. He was recovering at an astonishing speed!

It must be stated that one of the reasons for its speedy recovery was the Wind Tiger’s own relentless will to live. It then stopped in its track and turned towards Link.

“Master,” it said, “did you come down south to eliminate those fugitives?”

“No,” answered Link as he shook his head. “I had another plan in mind.” Even so, Dorias’ question had reminded him that there were still some mighty and, most probably, evil escaped prisoners still at large. He should do something about it.

As for this magical beast, he had at first intended to keep it as a battle animal and used the Soul Stamp to control it and keep it in its place. But now that he’d heard the beast’s story, Link had started to empathize with Dorias, so much so that he felt uncomfortable using the Soul Stamp on it.

The reason for this was simple, it wasn’t so much out of sympathy, nor did he intend to let this beast go free. He just felt that for such an upright beast who also possessed high intelligence, there would be no need to use the Soul Stamp or any other spell to get his loyalty. Instead, a few simple psychological tricks would suffice.

Link made a move as if he was about to leave, but then turned his head around at the last moment.

“The human world is full of cruelty and greed,” he said to the tiger. “It’s too dangerous for a magical creature like you. You should escape and go as far away from here as possible and don’t come back. Also, don’t commit any more crimes.”

After that, Link pulled up his hood and simply turned around and left.

Dorias was caught off guard by Link’s actions. This was completely unlike what he’d expected to happen. This Magician had saved his life and banished dark elements from his body, yet he just left him here before he could even say thank you?

“Hey, wait!” shouted Dorias. “Are you mocking me?” Dorias was a mighty Wind Tiger after all! He would never just run away from his obligation to repay a debt of gratitude!

Link ignored him and just kept on walking. He soon entered the forest and continued heading towards the South. After about half a mile, he heard the rustling sound of light and swift footsteps following him. Soon the loud voice of the tiger emerged out of the silence of the forest.

“Hey! Human Magician!” shouted the Wind Tiger. “Where are you going?”

“Why would that concern you?” asked Link, concealing a smile.

“Of course it concerns me!” answered the tiger. “You saved my life! I can’t just leave you! This isn’t the way I, the honorable Wind Tiger Dorias, should behave!”

Link smiled secretly but remained unmoved in his words.

“Don’t worry about it,” he said. “It was no big deal.”

“It’s no big deal to you, but it was a matter of life and death to me!” answered the tiger. “Besides…I have nowhere else to go. And now that the Syndicate had put a price on my head, it won’t be safe for me to move alone. Why don’t you let me go to the Girvent Forest and hide there? I won’t harm anyone, I promise!”

Although Dorias could be a little too upright and naive sometimes, it was still very clear of the tight situation it was in at the moment. It was aware that the world was a dangerous place for a magical beast. Right now, there must’ve been countless other pursuers who were out to capture it. If it still remain as a lone tiger, there was no hope for it to survive!

If it wanted to live, he would have to find strong allies. Obviously, the Magician in front of him was a man powerful enough to save him. Furthermore, he had saved its life, yet did not demand it to do anything for him in return. Dorias was sure that this was the kind of man he could trust!

Link knew Dorias was in his hands now.

“How about we work as a team?” suggested Link. “I will protect you and give you shelter, and you will become my Warrior. Once we return to the North, I will let you stay in my estate. I will order my people to prepare food for you that would suit your taste, groom your fur, trim your nails, clean your teeth and so on. If you want to, I can even send my people to find you some wives. Would you like that?”

“That doesn’t sound too bad at all!” answered Dorias, his eyes shining brilliantly. He never even dreamed of such luxurious treatments! Tsk. He might even get a few wives and would have people serving him all the time. Just thinking about it had made his mouth water!

“Very well, then,” said Link. “If so, then kneel down now and let me ride on your back to the Opal City in the South.”

“Alright; you’re not that heavy, anyway.” Dorias then somewhat reluctantly let Link step on his back. He would only allow this for someone like Link. Had anyone else make this kind of demand to him he’d eat them up in one bite, even if they had saved his life!

The Wind Tiger’s speed was indeed as fast as it was rumored to be. At first, Dorias was jogging slowly as his body was still weak from the attacks. But then, Link cast the Elemental Cure on Dorias, so its speed accelerated very quickly as its body healed. It had taken them less than two hours to traverse the distance of about a hundred miles, and they were now at the gates to Opal City.

“There’s the headquarters of the Southern Magician Alliance in the city,” said Dorias. “It’s full of Magicians there; I can’t go near it.”

“Fine, wait for me here,” said Link. “I’ll be in the city for a while.”

Link then hopped down the tiger’s back and entered the city gates. His perceptive soul had now detected the tangled mess of dark energy inside the city even from here.

There are definitely demons from the abyss in this city! Link thought. Good. That means that Celine isn’t far from here then.

…

In a Southern Magician Alliance Meeting.

Right at the moment when Link entered the city, a brand new investigation team had just left the Mage Castle and was entering the Opal City as well. The team comprised of 30 people and was led by Master Magician Hanlott. Among the members of the team was one of Hanlott’s disciple, Wavier.

“The demons are evil entities that must be exterminated,” said Hanlott before their departure. “Whoever stands in our way in this mission will be regarded as our enemy, whether it’s the Syndicate or anyone else!”

“Exterminate the demons!” echoed the team members.

Wavier had joined his colleagues in shouting those words as well, even though he was unknowingly gripping his Merlin’s Wand tightly in his hand. An image of the woman who had stolen his heart popped up in his mind.

Forgive me, thought Wavier as he gritted his teeth. This is my duty; it is what I have to do.

Hanlott didn’t notice his disciple’s odd behavior. He could only sense the high spirits and full enthusiasm shown by the Magicians in his team and was deeply satisfied by it.

“Let’s go!!” shouted Hanlott. It was his last command before they left the Mage Castle and head for the Opal City.

 

Chapter 192: The Mighty Festival of Endless Slaughter

Opal City Market.

There was a famous pawn shop in the area with a peculiar name. The shop was called the “Little Pawn Fish.” The assistant had an honest look on his face while the shop owner always had an inviting smile. They seemed ordinary enough.

However, this was all a farce. This shop had a hidden secret on the second level. The second level seemed to be the shop owner and assistant’s bedrooms. However, closer observation would reveal that the second floor seemed smaller than what it looked like. One could not specifically point out exactly which part of it was peculiar, although there was something visibly not right about the building.

The pawn shop had no customers today. This was a common sight. One would usually not see long lines at a pawn shop. However, once they managed to strike a deal, they would probably earn enough to support themselves for a long time. Hence, only a few customers would enter the shop occasionally for business matters.

The entrance to the pawn shop was usually a one-way ticket. The people who entered the shop planning to strike a deal often do not appear again. One also could not find any traces of the person in the shop. It was as though he had evaporated into thin air.

Where did the person go? No one cared. The market was filled with people who had come from other poorer districts and areas. Everyone was only concerned with their own livelihoods.

At that moment, a figure clad in a full body, gray cloak entered the shop. He then spoke in a raspy voice, “The shadow engulfs the world!”

Upon hearing those words, the inviting shop owner respectfully greeted him and said, “Sir, this way please.”

The mysterious figure nodded and headed towards the second floor. They walked along the corridor till they reached a dead end. The mysterious figure then gently pressed the wooden wall with his skinny and sinister finger. All of a sudden, the plain concrete wall became a shining wall filled with glowing runes. The man then pushed the wall with all his strength, causing the wall to move backwards, revealing a narrow staircase leading down towards the basement. Faint voices could also be heard traveling upwards.

This was the entrance to the secret underground chamber. Who would have thought that the secret entrance to a basement would be built on the second floor instead of the first? The staircase was well hidden in the gaps of between the two walls. It was extremely narrow. However, as this mysterious figure was very skinny as well, he could walk through the stairs with ease.

There was a sharp bend along the staircase. Once one got past the bend, dim flickering candle lights could be seen, and the voices would become more prominent. One could even hear strange breathing sounds.

The mysterious figure then walked towards the secret underground chamber.

This chamber was extremely huge—it was at least 60 feet in length and width. There was a table in the middle of the room with a candle stand on top of it. Under the dim illumination of the candlelight, one could see five vague figures sitting around the table.

To be exact, it was two humans and three demons.

The three demons had a stature similar to humans apart from their hideous appearance. One of them had two big axes as his arms instead of hands, one was a giant lizard in a human form, while the other was a giant toad also in the form of a human. When this creature breathed, one could hear strange bubbling sounds as the vesicles on the side of his cheeks expanded. The vesicles also seemed to hold black a sinister-looking liquid.

When the mysterious figure appeared, an Assassin wearing a crimson armor whispered, “Andrew, you are late.”

The leather used in the production of this armor was extremely special. As he moved, one could see traces of blood mist emanating out of it. The presence of this mist concealed much of the Assassin’s presence and made the contours of his body vague. Even in such close proximity, it was difficult to determine his exact position.

“You cannot blame me, Bren. There has been an accident along the way.” The mysterious figure was Andrew, the Necromancer who was just defeated by Link.

“Accident? What about the two shadow shields I sent as your protection?” The Assassin named Bren was in disbelief. Andrew was a Level-7 Necromancer. Furthermore, he had specially equipped him with two Level-6 Shield Warriors. There should have been no one in the entire Leo Kingdom who could stand up to such strength. What kind of accident could have happened?

Andrew sat down and sighed. “Something happened when we were trying to capture that Wind Tiger. An outrageously strong Magician appeared out of nowhere. The three of us couldn’t even scratch him. The two Shield Warriors are already dead. I had to use all my power in order to escape.”

“Magician? One versus three? Did you recognize him?” Bren did not accuse Andrew right away. He knew that one could not simply look at the results. Although Andrew indeed messed up their plans this time round, he had to first determine the threat they were up against.

Andrew helplessly laid out his hands and said, “The battle happened too quickly. It was a sneak attack, and I did not get a good view of his spells. However, he only used one spell the entire battle. It was a giant handmade of fire elements. It looked like a Level-6 Fist of Firomoz spell. Though in the middle of the battle it did change form…”

“A flaming hand?” another figure that was under a cloak suddenly spoke. The sound was exceptionally delicate, like that of a young lady.

“Yes, Lina. It was a hand of fire.” Andrew shrugged his shoulders as he commented. Although the Magician was young, she was a High Elf, a race with natural talent in magic. She was merely 40 years old but had already attained Level-6. He treated her with the utmost respect.

Upon hearing Andrew’s words, the High Elf called Lina turned to Bren and said, “The one from the North seems to have arrived.”

Bren was horrified, “The one from the North? You mean the Demon Slayer, Manipulator of Flames, Link?”

Lina nodded.

Andrew immediately understood his defeat. “No wonder he was so strong.”

He fled early that night and did not witness the entire battle. After hearing the terrifying news of the appearance of a Level-9 Magician, he made his way to the South at full speed. Hence, he naturally did not recognize Link’s signature move.

He then heaved a sigh of relief. He thought he had really gotten old and weak such that any random Magician could make a fool out of him easily. He had been frustrated and depressed this whole time. However, after knowing the true identity of his opponent, he felt a lot more at ease.

He was still strong. The only reason he lost was because his opponent was way stronger!

Bren had nothing to say as well. In the face of an opponent who had just crushed a Level-8 demon, Andrew had proved his strength simply by escaping unscathed. To have met that person during their mission was simply their bad luck.

At the same time, he was met with new problems. He looked at the demon in front of him and said, “Ballie, this is bad news, The Magician who killed Tarviss might very well be here for Princess Celine.”

The demon with axes was the leader of the three demons. He was the strongest at Level-6. If he had to fight against a human of a similar level, he could probably take on up to five of them at once due to his combat talent as a demon.

However, he was not confident enough to face off with a Magician who could defeat even Tarviss. He had no faith in his own abilities and said with a trembling voice, “What proof do you have that he is here for the Princess?”

Bren took out a scroll and threw it towards Ballie, “This is his information, given to us by The Death’s Hand. In Gladstone City, Princess Celine once saved his life. The fact that General Lund failed in his attempt to kill him was partly due to the Princess’ intervention as well. Based on this connection they had and his unknown motive for coming down south, what do you think?”

Ballie fell silent. One could tell his unease and fear from his heavy breathing.

The lizard demon then whispered, “Leader, he is alone. We have an entire group behind us.”

The lizard demon then turned towards Bren and said, “You can’t just watch for this one. You also have to help.”

Bren stayed silent while Lina, who was sitting beside him started shaking her head. “We will not intervene directly. The most we will do is to aid in your retreat if needed. You should know that he is not our only opponent. If we deal with him, we will also make enemies with the Magician Alliance, and Opal City is its headquarters!”

Bren silently acknowledged Lina’s statement.

However, Andrew suddenly commented, “I think this is a chance!”

“What?”

“How is this so?” Everyone in the room looked at him, awaiting his speech.

“You see, Link is here for Princess Celine. He is definitely here to save her. However, the Princess is a demon and the target of the Magician’s Alliance. As long as we sow discord between the two parties, Link would become enemies with the Magician Alliance. We just need to wait for the perfect chance when both sides are terribly injured. We might even secure a total victory!”

A glimmer of hope appeared in everyone’s eyes. However, Lina merely sneered and disdainfully said, “Andrew, if you think he will be fooled so easily, I think you have underestimated his power.”

Andrew stood firm to his views, and he defended them. “There is a risk to everything. This is especially true for Master’s goal. If we don’t take any risks, we will never get any results! Bren, what do you say.”

Before Bren could speak, the axe demon immediately replied, “My master’s promise still holds. As long as Princess Celine is brought back safely, he will support your master with all his might.”

This speech was like a sharp knife that immediately severed the hesitation in Bren’s heart. “May the shadows engulf the world. This plan is possible, though we need to plan it in great detail.”

Andrew’s face then broke out into a satisfied and sinister smile. While he could not defeat Link alone, with the help of so many powerful people and the Magician Alliance, it might be possible. Even if Link were to defeat everyone, his reputation would go down the drain. It would be devastating for him either way.

Although Lina had differing opinions, she knew that the plan was set in stone, and nothing she said would change their decisions. She then pulled down her hood, revealing her pale flawless skin and an expressionless face.

Bren ignored the overly cautious female Magician and laughed, “This will be a mighty festival of endless slaughter!”

…

The extermination team of the Magician Alliance had already reached the area outside of Opal City marketplace. They started splitting up into groups of four except one which was formed by only Hanlott and Wavier. There were a total of eight groups.

“Our informant has identified the hiding place of the female demon. We will seal her escape routes. Remember, once you see the target, go all out and exterminate her. Do not hesitate!”

Hanlott cast a glance at his own disciple, Wavier as he said these words. His motive of bringing him on this mission was to sever the impure thoughts running through the mind of his talented disciple once and for all.

It was his responsibility to guide his disciple up the correct path.

Wavier could feel the pressuring gaze coming from his mentor. He did not evade it this time round and stared back, his eyes shining with resolve.

“Good.” Hanlott was satisfied, “Commence attack!”

 

Chapter 193: Dark Undercurrents in the Opal City

In Opal City.

After entering the city, Link found a dark corner to change into another attire. He took off the Flame Controller Magician’s robe and the ice bear cloak and changed into a very plain-looking gray long robe. He then used a non-toxic alchemy potion to dye his hair brown, then tied a plain cloth around his head. Added to his already unremarkable looks, Link had now transformed from a Master Magician into a plain pedestrian.

Once that was done, Link began to snoop around the city for any news of unusual events that recently occurred. He’d spent a hundred gold coins within half an hour doing this, after which his understanding of the underworld in Opal City had deepened. He’d also gathered much information about Celine’s current plight.

Celine must now be hiding somewhere in the downtown area, Link surmised. There are still three demons here, and they had the aid of the Syndicate. This isn’t good news for Celine at all since the downtown area is where the Syndicate’s influence is overarching. At the same time, the Magician’s Alliance placed many of their people in that area. The moment Celine appeared she would instantly be traced by both the Syndicate and the Magicians Alliance there.

This was the information he gathered so far. In this situation, even if Link actually found Celine, he would still have no idea where to hide her. The walls and the streets were full of spying eyes all waiting to catch her in their traps.

Link then quietly contemplated the matter for ten minutes after considering all the information he’d gained.

He had a plan.

Link immediately put his plan into action. He circled and wandered aimlessly through the downtown area for a while. He went into the big streets and small lanes, and each time he stopped at a crossroad, he would stop in the middle and write down some special runes in the hidden corners of the wall using his specially created quill pen and invisible ink.

The pigment of the ink was a special invention made by the master alchemist, Grenci. It was great for quickly jotting down secret runes. Link had found this in Master Grenci’s notes and thought it might come in handy someday.

The shapes of the runes Link jotted down were somewhat complicated, but Link could jot it down perfectly in about three seconds. Once that was completed, the invisible ink would penetrate into the stone wall and leave no trace of the rune to be detected from the outside.

At every large intersection, Link would leave about eight to ten runes on the wall, spending a total of one minute doing it. At any small intersections, he would leave about two runes there, spending no more than ten seconds there. Then, Link would continue to walk down to the next junction before anyone could suspect that there was anything amiss about him.

The entire downtown area of Opal City was a circle of about half a mile wide, with six main streets comprising of 3 vertical streets and three horizontal streets. There were also more than ten small lanes and alleys and about a hundred intersections. Link had left runes at every one of these intersections without a single omission.

Then about an hour later, when Link had walked through half of the downtown area he suddenly came across a shop called Little Fish Pawnshop from which he could sense a dark abysmal aura.

So this is where you bastards are hiding, huh? Link jeered. Not bad at all, I must say.

It would be nearly impossible for the average Magician to detect this very faint aura through the hustle and bustle of the busy commercial area of the city. But to Link, the strength and power of the demons were as clear as a flaming torch under a black moonless night sky. He could easily sense the presence of the demons from about three hundred feet away.

One of the reasons why he was this perceptive of the demons was his strong soul which had been boosted by the God of Light. The other reason was because he had dealt first-hand with a demon before, so he had become familiarized to the aura and presence of the demons from the abyss.

Link circled around this pawn shop and left more than 30 secret runes there as he did so. When he had completed a circle and was once again at the shop entrance, he saw a figure clad in a loose black cloak entering the shop.

So you’re here as well huh, Andrew? Link thought. You’re quite fast!

Link had managed to arrive so quickly because he had the Wind Tiger that could cross the distance of a hundred miles in two hours. Andrew was only an hour later than him, which meant his speed was quite impressive. (Note: Because the flying spells were too conspicuous and were very likely to incur dangerous accidents, they were not the most efficient mode of transportation and were rarely used by Magicians. The Wind Tiger, on the other hand, was quite safe and could reach a destination a speed that was only second to teleportation.)

Link turned away from the pawn shop and walked down towards the next block to leave more secret runes. Another hour had passed when he’d almost drawn secret runes at every intersection of the downtown area. Link reached a place near the city gates where he saw a group of Magicians at the entrance.

Is that the demon-catching team from the Magicians Alliance? Link wondered. It seems that they’ve begun their operation. Have they sniffed out the demons’ hideout? Or did they find Celine?

Link was deeply troubled by this possibility. He observed the thirty-strong group of Magicians closely and slowly took a step back to blend into the crowd. He then quickened his pace and rushed towards the merchant bank in the downtown area.

He’d noticed earlier that the bank was the tallest building downtown; he could observe the whole area from its rooftop.

Link reached the bank very quickly, and he cast a high-level invisibility spell on his body. He then walked into the bank as if he had stepped into his own house, not worrying about concealing his presence at all. He then headed towards the staircase inside and finally reached the attic within half a minute.

The attic was occupied. There was a small bed, a tiny desk, and various other daily necessities. Most importantly, there was also a young man writing at the desk. Link walked up behind the young man and glanced at the words he was writing. He discovered that he was a novelist busy at work. Link read a few lines of what he’d written and found out the hard way that this young man wasn’t in the process of writing the next literary classic at all. He was, in fact, writing a vulgar erotic novel that involved the depraved act of bestiality between a man and his mare.

The Magician’s Alliance team was fast approaching the area, which meant that Link had no time to waste now. He pointed his wand at the young man’s head and chanted, “Slumber.”

The young man’s head slammed into the desk, and he fell straight to sleep. Link hurriedly closed the door and made sure that it was locked. He then canceled the invisibility spell and walked to the front of the attic window. There, he turned around and pointed his wand at the floor and chanted, “Clean.”

The stains and dust on the stone floor were immediately cleared out and what was left was a clean, polished floor that shone as new. Link took out his magic quill pen and started to draw a magic seal on the floor. He didn’t use the invisible ink for this magic seal but had opted instead for silver ink. One by one, the almost perfectly drawn runes appeared on the floor. After about three minutes, Link had successfully drawn 246 magic runes which created a complete magic seal.

After that, he put the wand away and sat cross-legged in front of the magic seal.

He pointed with his finger at the controlling runes. Mana started to flow into the seal and lit up the runes in the magic seal one-by-one. Once Mana had filled up the magic seal, a layer white silvery light appeared on top of the magic seal. It was as clear as water, and its form altered rapidly. After five seconds, the scene of the whole downtown area was represented there on the surface of the magic seal right in front of Link’s eyes.

There were a few moving spots in this real-time map. Each spot was of a different color—some were red, others were green or blue, and there were also black smoky light rings. These all represented four different important classes of strengths: professional fighters below Level-4, Magicians, demons, and Warriors.

This spell was called Heaven’s Eye, and it came from Anthony’s notebook.

Heaven’s Eye

Level-4 Secret Spell

Mana Consumption: 420 Points

Effects: Through the remote interaction of the magic seal and detecting runes, the spellcaster will be able to see everything that happens within the area where the secret runes have been left. The spellcaster can also communicate with a target who is within the area through telepathy.

(Note: This is a highly covert spell, but it also requires the spellcaster to have an immensely robust soul.)

There would hardly be anyone else whose soul was more suitable for this spell than Link. He was currently using the spell to observe a vast area of a city, which was something that had never been attempted before. Had Anthony known the scale that Link was utilizing his spell, his eyes would’ve popped out of their sockets as it was far beyond the spell creator’s own imagination!

Link scanned quickly through the entire map and finally found an extremely restrained black orb that just lay there unmoving in the attic of an ordinary city-dwellers house. Link instantly recognized this aura as none other than the Demon Princess Celine Flandre!

I’ve finally found you, Celine. A smile cropped up on Link’s face, although it quickly dissipated as Link noticed that the group of Magicians he saw earlier weren’t heading for the lair of the demons. Instead, they were now surrounding the area where Celine was hiding. By the looks of it, they must be spreading out in order to block all the possible escape routes that Celine could use.

In other words, these Magicians had begun their operation because they’d found Celine’s exact location.

If things went on like this, in ten minutes all of Celine’s possible escape routes would be blocked, and she would have nowhere to run. If that happened, the only way Link would be able to save her was to attack the Magicians Alliance head on. If he did that, although he might be able to save Celine, trouble would follow him. He might even be expelled from the Realm of Light!

No, that wouldn’t happen. He still had time; he could still save Celine now.

Link took a deep breath and focused his eyes on the black orb that represented Celine. He directed his Mana to the black orb and began to speak in his mind.

Celine, it’s me, Link.

Immediately afterwards the black orb showed intense fluctuation, and soon enough, a pleasantly surprised voice emerged in Link’s mind.

Is it really you, Link? Celine asked. Where are you?

There’s no time to explain now, replied Link. You’re in grave danger. You must listen to me and do as I say. Leave the attic now by jumping out of the back window. That’s right, jump out now!

From the lights on the map, Link saw how Celine had done exactly as he told her to immediately and without any hesitation. He sighed in relief at this. Now that he knew Celine trusted him, there was a higher chance now that he would be able to take her away from Opal City.

At that moment none of the members of the Magicians Alliance team noticed any changes in Celine’s actions. They continued to close in on her previous location and tried to block every possible path which she could use to flee.

However, somewhere else the Syndicate had detected the anomaly. Five minutes later, Bren received a report from his underling.

Signs of the Princess’ movements discovered.

Bren creased his brows in confusion. He thought that it must be a mistake. Link hadn’t yet appeared, so why did the Princess make a move without him?

“Lina,” he instructed a High Elf Magician beside him, “check the current movements of Princess Celine.”

“As you command,” replied Lina plainly.

She then took out a clear crystal ball of about six inches in diameter and grasped it in both of her palms. A moment later, the crystal ball lit up and inside it was a scene of the downtown area.

The scenes changed several times until it stopped at the scene where a blonde-haired girl appeared.

“That’s the Princess,” said Lina after taking a glance at the girl. “She must be in some kind of disguise, but she can never trick my eyes.”

“Do you recognize the area?” Bren asked the demon, Ballie. “Prepare for action now, and head to the place immediately. Don’t ever let the Princess die at the hands of that group of Magicians. But remember, if Link doesn’t appear then you don’t appear as well, except as the very last resort.”

Ballie stood up and waved his hand impatiently at Bren.

“You didn’t need to say anything,” he said. “I know what I should do.”

He then turned to his two underlings and ordered, “Let’s go!”

“Master,” said Bren to Andrew once the three demons had left. “To be perfectly honest, I don’t trust the demons. They tend to be so impulsive. Didn’t you see how they barged out just now…”

But Bren had forgotten how smart and careful Andrew was.

“I’ll be watching over their actions,” he said as he got up to his feet. “I will never allow those idiots to drag the Syndicate into the dumps.”

Bren nodded. How could he forget that Magicians were smart people after all?

At that point, Opal City’s downtown area still looked calm, and everything went on as usual. The streets were crowded with people, and merchants and customers were busy buying and selling. None of them seemed to notice the dark undercurrents that were roiling in the underbelly of the city.

The Magicians were then busy setting up their nets and were getting ready to pull in the big fish. The Syndicate was preparing to be ambush the predator that lurked in the dark and was getting ready to pounce at the very last moment. Celine, who was the prized prey in this situation, was moving quickly but stealthily through the streets of the downtown area where they were densely packed with people.

By this point, some Magicians had noticed that there was something wrong and began to change their directions towards Celine. All the possible escape routes that could save Celine were rapidly blocked off, though Celine remained oblivious of the fact. There would be no point in knowing it anyway, because all she had to do was listen to the voice that was guiding her in her mind.

Celine trusted Link with all her heart.

But who would emerge as the winner ultimately?

Nobody knew. Even Link who was safely hiding in a secret spot was in a cold sweat. All he could do now was to trick the two powerful forces to play a dangerous game against each other.

 

Chapter 194: Help from an Outrageously Powerful Being?

Opal City

“That demon has realized our plan,” a Magician said as he saw a blonde figure skid past him on the streets. He recognized her immediately. He did not identify her through her features, but the aura emanating from her body

“Give chase!” the Magician beside him shouted.

This group of Magicians then started chasing the blonde figure. At the same time, a Magician in the group activated a rune stone he held tightly in his hand. The rune stone then began to shine and emit powerful magic fluctuations. This fluctuation was stable and regular. It spread throughout the entire market district of Opal City, sending a clear message to all the Magicians currently stationed there.

“The demon is between Leiden Road and the Altai Mountain; we will go over from the South!”

“The north exit will be sealed as well.”

“Activate the barrier; seal the exits!”

One magic fluctuation followed another as the Magicians transmitted information amongst one another. The 30 over Magicians on this mission seemed to be operating efficiently with strong chemistry. They formed an almost impenetrable network of blockades, swiftly encircling Celine in their grasp.

Link’s voice constantly sounded in Celine’s mind. Stop, someone is blocking the road in front. Head left immediately and jump over the stone wall. It is not very tall.

Just as Celine jumped over the stone wall, she saw a group of Magicians running towards her. These Magicians were all at least Level-4 in strength and the leader was even a Level-5 Magician. If Celine were to be involved in direct combat with them, she might be able to achieve a narrow victory, but at the same time, she risked meeting the backup groups that would arrive soon after. She would then be trapped in a hopeless situation.

Therefore, she could not be held back by a battle.

“Damn it, the target leaped over the wall and is now in Wyeth Street,” one person in the group saw Celine’s actions and cursed.

The moment Celine leaped over the wall, Link said, Stay put and wait. Ten, nine, eight, seven…okay. Now go back to the other side of the wall and walk along the same road.

Celine once again leaped over the wall. The group of Magicians had long ran off in another direction, going on a detour to the location they thought Celine was at. Who would have thought that Celine would turn back to a previously dangerous spot.

This had allowed Celine to tear a small hole in the almost impenetrable defense set up by the Magicians.

Alright, now continue going forward. Do you see the exchange building two blocks away? Run towards it…wait, retreat! Hide in a shop and pretend to be buying something.

Celine immediately backtracked and ran into a shop. It was a hat shop, and she grabbed one frantically and placed it on her head. She then stared at the mirror on her side to act like a customer trying on a hat.

Five seconds later, a group of Magicians ran across the street she was supposed to cross. They missed Celine just like that.

Alright, now go out and run 90 feet in front of the intersection. Then hide in the clothing store, Link ordered.

Celine followed the instructions accordingly. She had no idea how Link was doing all these. However, after many close shaves with the Magicians, she had complete confidence in Link and executed her actions with conviction. Sure enough, the moment she entered the clothing store, another group of Magicians ran past the street and missed Celine by a few seconds.

Bren and the High Elf Magician Lina was observing Celine’s actions through a crystal ball. After seeing the skillful maneuver of Celine through the City, Bren had a tight frown on his face. Something was not right.

Lina then spoke, “Do you feel like she has eyes on the back of her head?”

“It’s not even just that! It seems as though she can foresee the future. She is playing hide and seek with the Magicians,” Bren commented.

This was not the first time he had crossed swords with the demon princess. He had a good gage of her abilities. Previously, when the Magician Alliance sent a ten-man investigative team to crack down on her location, she was already at her limits.

However, now that the number of Magicians had increased to 30, she had gotten the upper hand instead. It was all too strange.

Lina smiled, “Bren, don’t you feel that someone is giving her directions in the dark?”

“You are saying…?” Bren was increasingly horrified by the prospects.

“He should already be here.” Lina had a smile of disgust and mockery on her face as she sneered. “Andrew’s plan was crap to begin with. It would be enough for him to give directions from afar. He did not even have to appear physically.”

Bren’s face sank. Lina was completely relentless with her words. If Andrew’s plan was really crap, then as the person who agreed with it wholeheartedly, it must have reflected really badly on him.

However, he knew that it was not a time to lose his temper. He said, “What do we do now? The Magician Alliance seems to be useless. Are we really going to let this demon princess get off the hook?”

Lina did not answer. She kept her eyes fixated on the crystal ball. After ten minutes, she suddenly spoke, “The tables have turned.”

Celine seemed to have run into some trouble.

Two people could be seen in front of her. One of them was old and frail while the other had silver eyes and hair. The two of them were not deceived by Celine’s disguise. They directly blocked Celine’s path of escape.

A hundred and fifty feet behind the two of them was the exchange building of Opal City’s market district. Celine was now 60 feet in front of them. In the crowded market district, all the Magicians had gotten news of the new location and were making their way here rapidly.

Although the fish was agile and nimble, the net was cast too far and wide. She was eventually captured.

Bren’s eyes widened. “This group of Magicians will not let her live. Link will then have to appear physically to save her. Alright, Hanlott had started casting his spell. Hang on; Link is going to appear soon…Damn it! Why did Ballie charge out!?”

The scene depicted on the crystal ball was extremely clear. The first few people who rushed out in Celine’s defense was not Link, but Ballie and his two assistants. Ballie had his own concerns as well. To him, the Syndicate’s plan towards Link was only second in terms of priority. His main concern was still his master’s order.

When he left the abyss, his master had only one request: “Bring back my daughter. She must be alive!”

The princess had to be alive. If she was killed, who could withstand the rage of the master? Therefore, to hell with the Syndicate, Bren, Andrew, and Lisa. This group of Magicians was about to kill the princess; he had to protect her life!

The three demons rushed out together and couldn’t have cared less about Celine. As long as she was alive, they could always find her again. However, these two dangerous Magicians had to die!

Hanlott and Wavier originally thought victory was already in sight. They did not expect back up forces to arrive at this crucial moment. Three Level-6 demons—an axe demon, a lizard demon, and a toad demon—charged towards them from three different directions.

“Damn it, Wavier; Defend!” Hanlott shouted. He then canceled the spell he was casting to prevent mutual mana disturbance.

Wavier had quick reactions. Mana surged into his Merlin’s Wand and caused the strong Epic Wand to glow in five different colors. A rainbow dome then appeared, surrounding Hanlott and Wavier in its defensive barrier.

This was the spell stored inside the Merlin’s Wand—Elemental Sanctuary. It was a Level-6 spell that could be cast instantaneously, possessing extremely strong defensive strength.

The barrier was formed in the nick of time as the three demons reached their side. The demons then ferociously attacked the defensive spell as Ballie shouted to Celine, “Princess, please leave! Do not care about us!”

Celine was speechless. She never intended to save them anyway.

Once again, Link’s calm voice sounded inside her mind, Bypass them and enter the attic in the exchange building. There will be a transmission magic circle inside.

Celine was euphoric. She quickened her pace and bypassed Hanlott and Wavier.

Hanlott had also heard Ballie’s screams. He now knew that this female demon was a key figure in the demon world. Otherwise, the three demons wouldn’t have called her the princess and risked their lives to save her.

“Wavier, stop that demon! Leave this place to me!”

Hanlott then let out a low bellow as mana surged into his staff. The howling sounds of the wind could immediately be heard as he shouted, “Wrath of the Storm!”

Wrath of the Storm

Level-5 spell

Cost: 900 Mana Points

Effect: An extremely strong wind elemental spell. It can create a high-speed rotating cyclone that will fling the target into the air. The wind blades will then chip at the target’s flesh continuously.

One-and-a-half seconds later, this Level-5 spell had taken form. A huge cyclone surrounded Hanlott’s body. At the same time, he made use of the power of the wind to fling Wavier in Celine’s direction together with his Elemental Sanctuary spell.

This intricate spellcasting technique not only prevented the interference of mana between their spells, but also closed the gap between Wavier and Celine. It was a testament to Hanlott’s strength.

The three demons did not expect to be attacked all at once and were caught off guard. They were then flung 30 feet into the air by the cyclone and continued rotating in mid-air. Apart from being unable to retaliate, their flesh was also constantly chipped off by the countless wind blades menacingly attacking them. Fortunately, these demons had a tough exterior. This spell would merely render them immovable and slightly injured.

On the other side, Wavier had reached a comfortable attacking distance after the help of his mentor. The figure that he had missed day and night was finally right in front of his eyes. However, he had to kill her with his own two hands.

What was the most cruel thing in the world? That would be having to kill a girl that you fell in love with at first sight.

That was the exact mission Wavier was tasked to accomplish.

Celine had felt the incoming danger and unsheathed her sword. However, even before she brandished her sword, her defensive preparations had already broken Wavier’s heart.

He wanted to stop and turn back. However, the words of his mentor, the oath he took in the name of the God of Light, the strange looks he got from his fellow Magicians—all of these images started flashing through his mind. They then coalesced into a strong and powerful voice, She is a demon, don’t have any mercy! This is all for the cause of justice!

This voice was so strong that Wavier momentarily forgot the pain of his own soul. He raised his Merlin’s Wand and began charging it with mana, activating the Level-6 offensive spell stored within.

Elemental Disintegration!

Elemental Disintegration

Level-6 Combined Elemental Spell

Cost: 1020 Mana Points

Effect: Combines the mysterious forces of all the elements and ignores any defensive power from Battle Auras. Directly disintegrates the elements within the target’s body.

The only drawback of this spell was its inability to lockdown on the target. It would thus easily miss when fired from afar.

However, Wavier was now merely nine feet away from Celine. Even if Celine were a swordswoman who prided herself on her speed, she would still be slower than a Magician’s thought process.

An invisible power began to emanate from the wand before accumulating into a giant translucent ball. A beam that emerged from this translucent ball and flew straight towards Celine. The moment the attack was released, Wavier felt a great deal of remorse in his heart. However, what’s done was already done. There was no going back.

Wavier was completely dumbfounded, and his eyes seemed to be robbed of its usual glimmer. He closed his eyes as he could not bear to see the results.

However, in the next moment, his mentor roared in frustration, “Damn it, it’s a transportation spell! Some powerful being is helping her in the shadows!”

Wavier was pleasantly surprised. He opened his eyes and saw an elemental image of the female demon after the transportation. A quiet and beautiful smile seemed to have appeared on her face in the final few moments of the transportation.

She did not know any transportation spell. Someone must have helped her along the way. But who?

Wavier suddenly had mixed feelings about this. He felt some remorse, pain happiness, and even jealousy.

Who the hell did this? Another demon? Why did she have such a calm smile? Was it someone that she loves?

Wavier was extremely frustrated, and his whole being was cloaked in a deadly gloom.

In a dark alley, Andrew seemed to witness Wavier’s mood transformation. He was first shocked before a sinister smile appeared on his face. “His soul seems to be damaged. That means…”

He had no idea why he was so elated. He also ceased to care about the demons who were still thrashing about in the air and left the scene.

 

Chapter 195: We Must Be Flexible to Achieve Great Things

A flash of light suddenly appeared out of thin air with a buzz in the forest on the outskirts of Opal City. From that point of light, two people emerged and fell to the ground from the height of six feet above the ground.

It was Link and Celine who had escaped here with the help of the spell, Dimensional Jump.

To prevent from being transported to the top of a big tree, Link had set a good destination point in advance before he entered the city. It was slightly above a nice clearing in the forest where he had parted ways with the Wind Tiger earlier.

Thud! Thud!

Link and Celine had fallen on a bed of soft grass, so neither of them were badly hurt. They were both still in a daze which was a common side effect of the people who had just been through Dimensional Jump.

Celine was a strong Warrior, so she felt nothing from the fall at all. Link, on the other hand, wasn’t much stronger physically than a layperson, so he was still seeing stars for a while after the fall.

As he lay on the ground to recover, Link felt a weight pressing on his body and the light that was streaming into his eyes got blocked. He opened his eyes and saw that Celine was half leaning on top of his body and was looking down at him. The distance between their two pairs of eyes was no more than eight inches.

Link noticed how even at such a close distance Celine’s face still looked smooth and delicate like the surface of jade stone. Her black eyes were clear as crystal and as vivacious as young fawns in the forest. Her arched brows gave off a flirtatious charm, and her lips were as red and shiny as red pomegranate seeds.

It’s no wonder that she was one of the top four most beautiful characters in the game! She looked perfect no matter which angle you look at her from.

“You saved me this time, Link,” whispered Celine. The gentleness in her voice echoed in her eyes as she looked straight into Link’s eyes.

Link almost fell into a trance and had the urge to reach out his hand to caress Celine’s cheek but was afraid that it might be inappropriate. Although when he thought about it, wasn’t it the perfect moment for at least a kiss?

But reality never turned out to be as perfect as imagination.

Just as Link was enjoying the moment, a rough and crude voice suddenly rang out near them. It was the Wind Tiger.

“What are you waiting for, Link?” shouted Dorias. “Your woman is ready to mate with you!”

The voice had appeared so suddenly that it gave Celine the fright of her life. When she turned around, she saw the green-furred giant tiger who just jumped out of the forest. She quickly jumped away from Link and pulled out her blue crystal sword.

“What’s up with the beast, Link?” she asked.

By that point, even Link himself was a bit annoyed at the tiger.

“That’s Dorias,” he answered as he sat up. “It’s a Wind Tiger. It was the one who had brought me here to the South.”

“This is Celine Flandre,” Link then told Dorias. “She’s my…good friend.”

“Oh!” replied the tiger. He then stared at Celine with keen interest and even circled around her. Suddenly he turned up his nose and turned back to Link and asked him, “Argh! Why do I smell dark energy from her?”

Celine’s face darkened as soon as she heard those words. She had always regarded her true origin the greatest shame in her life. Still, her aura and inner force were things that she could not conceal, and they were the things that anyone who’d encountered her would point out without fail. Although they didn’t always mean it as an insult, it still caused her to be upset.

The perceptive Link knew instantly what Celine was feeling and thinking the moment he saw Celine’s eyes darkened. But he didn’t think he should evade the subject this time, so he decided to explain the matter plainly and honestly to Dorias.

“Let’s get moving,” he told Dorias immediately after getting up to his feet. “We must make for the North now; I’ll explain everything about Celine on the way.”

“Fine, then.” Dorias took another glance at Celine and realized he must’ve hurt the girl’s feelings, so he stopped pressing the matter entirely and crouched down to let Link climb onto his back.

Link then signaled to Celine to climb up as well. Once they were both safely settled on the tiger’s back, Dorias then promptly headed towards the North.

“Celine’s father is the Lord of the Deep, Nozama…” explained Link.

Dorias was so shocked its feet almost got tangled and lost its balance.

“What did you say?!” he exclaimed. “The Lord of the Deep Nozama? You’re not jiving me, are you?!”

Even though Dorias was a magical beast who had lived for over 400 years and had lived to witness countless powerful figures, Nozama still remained—after all these years and all that he’d seen—one of the top three most fearsome figures in the whole wide world.

To Dorias, Nozama was the kind of powerful figure who could topple the whole Firuman continent upside down with a flick of his finger! Even 300 years ago, in the time of the legendary Magician Bryant, Nozama was infamous throughout Firuman for his frightening power, and the demon Tarviss was, in fact, his underling!

Although the demon couldn’t descend upon the Firuman continent himself, legends said that he would transform himself into an ordinary human form and walked the earth, leaving many half-blood spawns behind.

Of these descendants of his, some possessed mediocer talents with only a low level of dark energy in their bodies, while some were said to be extraordinary geniuses who could each set off a wave of terror and destruction throughout the continent. When he thought of this point, Dorias sneaked a look at the girl on his back. He thought the legends must be true and that the girl riding on his back must be one of the most talented descendants the Lord of the Deep had ever had.

“Celine’s father had always tried to capture her and bring her back down to the deep abyss,” Link continued. “He’d even sent some demon minions of his here to do so. The reason I came down here was to rescue her from them.”

“But, how will she escape a powerful figure like the Lord of the Deep for the rest of her life?” asked Dorias.

Celine noticed how Dorias showed neither scorn nor hatred towards her, so she began to relax. She then shook her head gently in reply to the tiger’s question.

“If I fail in the end,” she said, “then I would rather choose to die by my own hands.”

“You truly are a tenacious girl!” replied Dorias. He then continued without thinking. “It’s no wonder that Link likes you!”

Celine blushed and turned towards Link. She saw that his face was full of smiles and that, for some reason, cheered her up immediately.

“Still,” Dorias continued, “the problem of Nozama will still loom over us like a big dark cloud. Link, have you thought about how you’re going to deal with his demon minions?”

Dorias wouldn’t worry about any other people, not even the Level-7 Necromancer Andrew, because he had faith that Link would have no problem in defeating them. Nozama, though…Just the mention of his name was enough to make Dorias’ knees buckle and the courage drain completely out of its body. In fact, Dorias found that he was shaking at that very moment!

This was a very real problem indeed. Celine half-turned her head and glanced at Link herself. She was surprised to find that the smile still lingered on his face.

“Nozama isn’t as frightening as you might imagine,” said Link calmly.

“Don’t be stupid, Link,” said Dorias in disbelief. “Nozama? Not frightening? You must be joking!”

Link remained unperturbed by Dorias’ reply.

“Right now,” he began to analyze, “I’m already able to fight against a Level-8 demon, and I’m still very young. My strength still has a large room for improvement. In a year or two, I might even face a Legendary-level demon. Moreover, this isn’t a battle that I will fight alone. Right now, I’m building my estate and my own army. If Nozama dared to send his demon minions, then I will kill them all. I believe that after ten years, even if Nozama came here himself, I will still face him without any fear.”

Link had said those words with full confidence, and he knew that the confidence wasn’t misplaced or just an illusion of grandeur on his part.

One very simple reason was the fact that the deep abyss where the demons came from was of another realm. The demons must expend a huge amount of energy just to enter this world. According to legends, in order to send the demon Tarviss into this world, a total of 1000 souls of high-level demon Warriors were sacrificed. Such a high price was something that even the great Nozama could not afford to pay easily.

In other words, merely one talented daughter was not worth such a sacrifice.

Dorias was sure it would burst into maniacal laughter had these words been spoken by anyone else. It might even bite their head off afterwards for being so conceited. Still, because they had come from Link, the mighty Magician who had recently killed Tarviss the Level-8 demon, he felt that those words carried much weight and credibility and deserved to be taken seriously.

“Alright, alright, I get it,” said Dorias good-humoredly. “I know you’re a powerful figure yourself!” He then said nothing more and kept on running.

Link was sitting comfortably behind Celine on the tiger’s back, his arms hugging the surprisingly slim waist of the demon Princess. Celine had made no protests at his gesture, making him enjoy the ride back to the North with an unimaginably gladdened heart.

After a while, he decided to break the truth to Celine of his motives.

“Celine,” he said, “I need your help to do something once we’ve reached the North.”

“Go on,” responded Celine with a smile. Although it was true that Link had made a great leap in improvements since she last saw him, she was still at Level-6 herself and was far from useless dead weight.

Link then explained everything from the events leading up to him being awarded a piece of land by the king and his need to change the climate of his estate, up to his meeting with the Lich Vance, and how he promised to help him reclaim his underground palace.

“The underground palace is a complex labyrinth,” said Link finally. “I need the help of a Warrior with outstanding skills, so I thought of you.”

“Then you’ve found the right person,” said Celine, clenching her delicately pinkish fist in the air keenly. She couldn’t be happier to help Link.

Dorias shook his head as he heard Vance’ name and the description of this figure.

“I know the bastard,” said the tiger. “He was the only one in the Azura Tower who refused to leave. He was even less willing to take part in releasing the demon Tarviss. Had it not been for the fact that the tower had been blown up into pieces, I’m sure he’d still be there wasting away in that damned rotten place.”

“What? Is that true?” asked the surprised Link. He was glad to hear of this account of Vance because he had been suspicious of the Lich. But after hearing what Dorias had to say about him, he felt he knew more about the Lich now and started to reconsider him in a new and more positive light.

By the looks of it, Vance might actually be a decent person who was worth cooperating further with. After all, the Lich was the man who had founded the studies of Battle Aura and Battle Art. So, who could be better in helping Link to develop a special Battle Art that could be practiced by everyone in his troop of Warriors?

Meanwhile, Celine was curious about this figure herself.

“Did you say that this Vance is a Lich?” she asked.

“A Lich my ass,” replied Dorias. “He’s just a skeleton!”

Celine turned around to face Link and smiled at him.

“A Lich, a magical beast, and now me, a demon,” she said. “Link, aren’t you afraid that we’d get you into trouble?”

“Hahaha, don’t worry,” replied Link with a smile. “It’s no big deal. I can handle it.”

Link’s remark wasn’t out of arrogance; it was only out of the self-confidence and the faith that things would all work out fine. In the past, he’d been afraid to come into contact with anything or anyone associated with dark magic, and these people were, to the average Magician, just the kind of people that he must avoid like the plague. Yet now, he’d seen through the situation and the consequences that everyone was in much more clearly.

He had been afraid to associate himself with dark magic because he feared that he would be sucked into the darkness and had his wisdom and judgment affected by the darkness himself. He also wanted to protect his resolve and his principles so that he might never deviate from the main purpose that he had been sent here in the first place.

He didn’t want to associate himself with the Magicians who practiced dark magic or to any creatures who had been involved with dark energy, because he was worried of the public opinion and his reputation.

In the past, he was only an insignificant Magician’s Apprentice of the East Cove Magic Academy, so such a negative reputation might indeed be unfavorable to his growth and progress as a Magician in the future. This was because he could easily be ousted and banned from the world of magic simply because he’d made one Master Magician suspicious of him. Even Herrera might easily discard of him and send him away had she found out that he was involved in less-than-savory things like dark magic.

But now, he had gained his own reputation and status and was no longer an insignificant weed on the ground. He was a mighty oak tree that stood proud and tall among the others. His words alone carried great weight and influence throughout the Norton Kingdom and maybe even the whole Firuman continent. By this point, he had little cause to worry himself about such petty matters as a little criticism from the public.

As the saying went, when the water was too clear there would be no fish. If he, as a lord in his own right, were too rigid with rules and too obsessed about towing the line there wouldn’t be much hope in his future. The most important thing to do when attempting something important was to amass alliances and forces from as many areas as he could.

Now, it was the Lich Vance who was able to help him to transform the climate of his estate. He now believed that Vance deserved his full trust, so Link would cooperate with him without any hesitation or misgivings about the Lich’s shady past.

It was as the popular saying went: a true hero did not concern himself with the past, only the present.

As long as Link knew the limits that he would never cross, even if the truth were exposed, no one would be able to punish him for anything. At most, someone might exhort him about the matter, and Link already had a way to deal with this—he would just ignore them!

Seeing how confident and calm Link had become now, Celine couldn’t help but recall the events during that fateful night in Gladstone.

He was still a young boy then, she thought. But in a blink of an eye, he has now become a noble lord with a high reputation as a Magician across Firuman. Ah, how time flies, and how quickly he has changed. Celine wasn’t too disturbed by these turn of events, though. She just settled down calmly and found herself a comfortable space right there in Link’s arms.

The three of them chatted and laughed for the rest of the journey. Dorias’ body had almost healed perfectly now, so his speed had improved and was as lightning fast as it had once been when he was in his prime. And so they headed to the North.

…

At the same time, Opal City had descended into utter chaos. The demons had appeared on the streets and were in a fierce battle with the Magicians. About 236 civilians were caught up in the scene, of which 127 were dead. It was simply a massive disaster!

Soon, the whole city was overcome with panic. The people were in fear while the leaders pointed their fingers at the Magician’s Alliance and accused them of misusing magic. The Magician’s Alliance, in turn, retorted that it was their duty and highest priority to exterminate the demons and that the deaths of the civilians were unintended but inevitable. While it was a pity that many innocent people were caught up in this event, the Magician’s Alliance had promised to make compensations to the families.

The leaders of the kingdom then replied that human lives could not be measured by gold coins. The Magician’s Alliance had been too rash and allowed too much power, so there must be an established royal decree that would limit the activities of these Magicians. This statement received widespread support from the people as soon as the word spread out.

The people didn’t care whether there had been demons or not; what they knew and clearly saw was that the unlucky people had died horribly, or they were heavily injured because of the Magicians.

At last, the Magicians Alliance had to relent and give in to the pressure from the authorities above and the common people below.

Meanwhile in the underworld, as the highest authority of the Leo Kingdom’s branch of the Syndicate, Bren was not happy of their limited success in constraining the Magician’s Alliance at all. His face was as dark as the blackened bottom of a pot because Princess Celine had once again slipped through their fingers. Furthermore, all three demons were now killed by the Magician’s Alliance, so he no longer had the aid of the Lord of the Deep, Nozama anymore.

Overall, everything had been an utter failure!

It was true that he knew where Celine had fled to, yet he couldn’t think of a way to pursue her in the North. Besides, Bren knew that it would be crazy to attempt to recapture Celine from the hands of that bastard.

The members of the Syndicate knew how stormy Bren’s mood was at the moment, so they all avoided him the moment he approached.

Meanwhile, the Necromancer Andrew had gone out every day and wouldn’t come back for about twenty hours. He’d wear a maniacal smile on his face every time he returned—only heaven knew why he would act so bizarrely.

 

Chapter 196: What Dreadful Weather

Two days later, Dorias entered the Ferde Wilderness together with Link and Celine.

After running through the area for around ten minutes, Dorias could not help but comment, “Link, is this truly your territory? This is the most barren land I’ve seen in my entire 400 years in Firuman. You cannot even find a proper place to take a dump in this place.”

Celine also frowned at the sight of this territory as she said, “This is a lot worse than what I’ve imagined.”

Along the way, Link had warned the both of them that the territory was extremely barren so as to prepare them psychologically on what to expect. Celine and Dorias originally thought that it was normal for a wild plain to be barren and thought nothing much of it. However, it was still difficult for them to accept it the moment they saw the Ferde Wilderness’ true form.

This was more than just barren. The whole area was simply a pile of rubble that seemed to be unsalvageable no matter how much gold coins one invested.

Although Link was ambitious and already had a detailed plan in his mind, it was undeniable that the current situation was unsatisfactory. He simply laughed, “It will get better. This is just temporary.”

As those optimistic words were said, the weather began to change. It was only a few gusts of wind at the start, but ten minutes later, the wind started howling, and one could distinctly feel the raindrops splattering onto their bodies. It did not take long for the weather to completely turn hostile, into a storm with hailstones and lightning. What a way to welcome two new guests into the area.

“No wonder you wanted to change the climate.” Celine gasped as she was horrified at this sudden change in weather. Dorias immediately activated his wind elemental shield and protected them from the rainwater and the hailstones. However, an ordinary person would be powerless in the face of such weather. It would not be possible to grow crops or house farmers in this area.

As Dorias carefully trod through the mud, he asked, “You mentioned that there would be people serving me. Can I just not take up your offer? Just let me go to the Girvent Forest and hide to the end of my life.”

Dorias felt that this place was extremely unsuitable for a Wind Tiger to call home. His lifespan would be shortened by 100 years.

“We had a deal. Are you going to go back on your words? What about the pride of the Wind Tiger clan?” Link rebutted.

Dorias roared in despair and continued forward helplessly. He felt as though he had been deceived. He was unable to go back on his words as he had to protect the legacy of the Wind Tiger clan. Furthermore, Link had promised to find him some female tigers as companions.

The Scorched Ridge appeared in sight after half a day.

Although there were no Magicians in the Scorched Ridge, Link was not about to take any chances. Before they entered the camp, Link handed an intricate pendant over to Celine.

“This is an aura concealing pendant. It can also double up as a dimensional storage pendant if you’d like.”

This was a pendant Link crafted in the carriage while he was heading south. Although it was a rushed work, Link still ensured it was delicate and aesthetically pleasing so that it would not trigger his Obsessive Compulsion Disorder.

The pendant was created from Khorium and shone with a lavender hue. There was a hint of thorium used as well, which gave it speckles of silver much like the stars in the night sky. Finally, Link used a high-quality Dokun stone to create the dimensional storage function in the pendant. The stone was milky white in color and was polished almost perfectly by Link, making it crystal clear and smooth.

Celine loved the pendant at first sight. However, she did not take it from Link’s hand. Instead, she lifted her chin slightly and spoke with her back facing Link, “Put it on for me.”

Link smiled and gently put the pendant around Celine’s slender neck. From his angle, he could vaguely see the enticing scene right under Celine’s blouse.

Link was suddenly flustered and immediately averted his gaze and changed the subject, “Dorias, do not lose your temper when you get to the camp. Also, don’t joke around too much; you might cause panic amongst the people.”

“Alright. Just don’t forget what you promised.”

Link then turned to Celine and said, “Do not showcase your powers as well. Just stay secretive.”

“Then what will be my identity?” Celine looked at Link expectantly as she asked.

This question was tough. Link thought for a moment and said, “You are a friend I brought back from the South…a very good friend. That’s all.”

He wanted to make their relationship sound more intimate, but at the same time, he was afraid that Celine would be unhappy. It would also not be right to make it sound as though they were strangers. Hence, friends would be the most valid term.

Celine simply agreed; it was impossible to tell from her expression what she felt about this identity.

It had merely been four days since Link left the Scorched Ridge. However, the weather in this period had been disastrous. From afar, Link could already see potholes and planks of wood being blown off the rooftop by the strong gale. There would occasionally be a figure that would appear only for a few seconds, only to rush to the next shelter they could find.

It was impossible to continue with the building for the harbor in this weather. Link was also sure that all the other developments were also halted. Everyone was probably staying in their homes and waiting in a state of boredom.

This is not looking good. The climate problem has to be resolved as fast as possible! Link felt that it was a pressing problem that had greatly affected the progress of his territory development.

When Dorias reached within a 150 feet radius of the castle walls, Link could hear the blaring sounds of the alert siren echoing through the Ferde Continent. It seemed like the Flamingo Band of Mercenaries were still vigilant despite the bad weather.

A moment later, the castle guard who was originally taking shelter in the corner of the castle wall rushed out into the storm. Ten seconds later, Jacker also appeared on the castle wall in full battle armor.

Link was extremely satisfied with this reaction speed.

At that moment, Jacker caught a glimpse of Link riding on top of the giant tiger. He wiped his face drenched in rainwater and raised his hand to signal the archers on guard, “It is the lord, put down your weapons!”

Upon knowing that it was Link, the tense atmosphere immediately dissipated.

The pressure coming from a giant beast more than 12 feet tall was immense. However, seeing that their lord was sitting comfortably on its back, there should be no complications. In their eyes, the lord could accomplish almost anything. Even if he came back riding on the back of a giant tiger with a beautiful lady by his side, there was nothing to be surprised about.

As Link entered the Scorched Ridge, Celine and he dismounted from Dorias’ back. Jacker, Lucy, and Gildern were already waiting in the storm to welcome him.

Link waved his hand and said, “Don’t just stand outside. Let’s talk in the house.”

He then spoke to a mercenary captain, “Find some workers, a decent number of them. Build a big shed within an hour for Dorias over here. This is an urgent arrangement and remuneration will be given accordingly.”

Link then passed ten gold coins to this mercenary captain.

The workers in his territory were all people who came over from the Girvent Forest to earn money. His words as the lord of the Ferde Wilderness held no power over them as they were not citizens of this area. He hence had to use gold coins to mobilize them instead. As for the exact payment, they had a detailed agreement. For example, a task like this which required the workers to be mobilized instantly and to work in the storm would garner the workers at least one silver coin in remuneration.

Link had never defaulted on his payments. Therefore, although the conditions here were tough, there were a number of workers who had decided to make the Ferde Wilderness their base.

“Yes, sir.” The mercenary captain said and immediately went off to organize the required manpower.

Link then turned to Lucy. “Get the chef here to roast an entire cow for Dorias. Oh, Dorias is the name of this tiger over here.”

Dorias then spoke, “One is not enough. I need two cows. It doesn’t even have to be cooked; just give it to me, I am starving.”

His ability of speech came as a surprise to everyone present. However, this meant that it would be possible to converse with him, making him a lot less intimidating.

Lucy then immediately went over to the barn for the cows. Dorias followed closely behind as he was simply starving.

The rest of the people entered the house.

Once they reached the hall, Link introduced, “This is Celine Flandre, a Magician’s Apprentice of mine, and a good friend.”

The Magician’s Apprentice part was something Link thought of on the spot. He had remembered that Celine once studied magic in the Flemmings Magic Academy. Following which, he then introduced Jacker and the rest to Celine.

They exchanged greetings as Celine responded with a warm smile on her face. Link observed the expression on her face as he wanted to see her thoughts. However, his usual keen observation skills seemed to have failed him this time round. After failing to get what he wanted, he eventually gave up.

Lucy then came back, and Link introduced her to Celine officially this time.

Lucy had a much sharper expression on her face. After alternating her gaze between Celine and Link, she gave a smile and passionately welcomed, “Celine, look at how pretty you are.”

These were the exact words Link’s mother Lilith used on her that day.

Celine smiled and said, “Miss Lucy, you are a beauty yourself as well.”

Lucy simply sighed, “I am already old.”

As Lucy spoke, she subconsciously looked at Link. Link, on the other hand, was preoccupied as he was talking to Jacker. Celine could observe the hint of disappointment in Lucy’s eyes and immediately went on guard. Not good! Lucy will be a formidable enemy; She seems to like Link as well!

Link was totally oblivious to this psychological battle going on and sat down on the long table before saying, “The climate here is simply horrible. However, I have found one solution. In a week’s time, I will be leaving once more, and when I am back, we can start work.”

This had helped to boost the morale of the commanding team. A glimmer of hope could be seen on everyone’s faces as Link said those words. Although the territory was indeed barren, there was hope after all. The only thing troubling them was the climate, which they had no idea how to resolve. Link’s announcement was thus a huge relief.

The atmosphere immediately lightened up as everyone started giving their opinions on the future development. Link listened intently and occasionally interrupted. At the end of the meeting, they came up with a few feasible things they could work on.

At that moment, a person appeared at the door. It was Magician Carrido.

Carrido had been staying in the Girvent Forest recently as he was currently responsible for magic affairs. He was the middleman between Link and Merchant Warter, handling all the magic equipment Link crafted and Warter’s payment to the territory. Hence, he would not be in the territory most of the time.

He greeted Link respectfully before handing him a dimensional pendant “Sir, these are the earnings this time around.”

Link took a look and found 15000 gold coins within the pendant. It was once again a good trade. After thinking for a moment, he handed his dimensional pendant back to Carrido and said, “Take this money to East Cove Higher Magic Academy and find Master Magician Weissmuller. He is an expert in creating magic puppets. Tell him I want a giant puppet that can do traditional tillage work.” Weissmuller’s proficiency in magic puppet creation was evident in his notes. The first person Link thought of when he wanted a magic puppet was naturally him.

Carrido did not understand it at first. “Magic puppet for tillage purposes?”

Link explained, “Yes, I have already observed that the inner area of the territory has soil that is completely arable. We simply needed to get rid of the layer of gravel around 2 feet thick on the surface.”

Usually, the soil on the surface of any plot of land would be arable. However, the Ferde Wilderness was a peculiar place where the surface of the ground was covered in gravel instead. The arable soil of this land was hidden underneath the two-feet-thick layer of gravel. This magic puppet would thus be responsible for turning the soil over. Furthermore, Link was also prepared to exploit the anti-magic soil that could be found on this land.

Carrido nodded and said, “I will work on it immediately.”

“There is no hurry. Take some rest.” Link waved his hand before handing over a magic book titled Breath of the Wind to Carrido. He then said, “This book should be helpful to you. Take some time to read it.”

Carrido was immediately filled with gratitude. He took the book and carefully put it away.

The magic books that Link recommended were usually of another level. He had already read five of such books by now and had a completely different understanding of magic as he did in the past. He could now be considered half an official Magician due to Link’s tutelage.

After a few discussions over superfluous stuff, Link then started arranging a place for Celine to stay.

Lucy said, “The camp is currently full. Miss Celine can stay with me for now. She can move in to the new wooden houses when the construction work is complete.”

Link thought that it was a good idea and looked at Celine, to which she nodded with a smile. It was a good chance for her to test out Lucy’s true intentions. After which, Link left the hall and returned to his room to craft magic equipment for Warter. He also had to create Vance’s magic staff. As the climate problem was indeed pressing, he had to quicken his pace and complete the underground chamber mission as fast as possible.

As Link exited the wooden house, he saw Dorias sitting comfortably under a shed while munching on a large piece of barbecued meat. He looked as though he could swallow the cow whole including the bones. There was also a piece of raw, bloody meat beside him, to which he ignored completely.

It seemed like this creature had already been subdued by the chef’s barbecue technique.

 

Chapter 197: The Mad Genius Vance

One week’s time had passed in a blink of an eye. Meanwhile, Link was cooped up in his wooden cabin creating magical gear all along.

Once he’d received the notebooks from the Magicians of the East Cove Magic Academy, Link’s enchantment skills had now broken into a whole new realm. Within a week, he’d managed to create two epic quality magical gear, comprising of one Level-5 wand and another Level-5 bracelet fixed with a defensive spell.

The bracelet was for Celine, of course. It was so exquisitely made and Celine adored it so much that she couldn’t put it down for a second.

Afterwards, both of them then headed to Shark Bay to meet up with Vance.

The passage into the underground palace would be too narrow for Dorias to pass through, so there would be no point in him following them. Thus, the tiger remained in a protected area specially built for it in Scorched Ridge. Link had also fulfilled his promises to Dorias and ordered his people to feed him, groom his fur, clean his teeth and polish his claws. He’d even dispatched people to find a female Wind Tiger across the continent.

Shark Bay was only about five miles away from Scorched Ridge, so even as Link and Celine strolled casually, it only took them half an hour to arrive.

Celine’s eyesight was as sharp as an eagle’s; she saw a white skeleton lying on the surface of the stone cliff from afar. The skeleton seemed carefree and nonchalant as he lay there, even the Mana it emitted was very faint and weak while the eye sockets were dark and hollow with no signs of the ghostly flames. To put it simply, the skeleton looked exactly as if it was a dead body that had been there for decades and decomposed there.

“Is that him?” asked Celine uncertainly. “Doesn’t he look too…laid-back?

“Yes, that’s him,” answered Link, nodding. No one else could have such a smooth and shiny jade-like skeleton.

Once they approached the skeleton, Vance still lay there and made no attempt to get up. The only response he made was lighting up the ghostly flames in his eye sockets, but even then, only faintly.

“Oh, you’re here,” he said. “You’re earlier by a few days than what I’d expected.”

“Are you hurt?” asked Link as he stared at him suspiciously.

“Hurt? No!” replied the Lich as he folded his bony hands above his chest. “No, I was bored and had nothing to do, so I lounged around for a bit.”

Vance still lay there as if he was never going to get up.

Link furrowed his brows slightly when he heard Vance’s response. He could feel a thick sense of apathy from the Lich. If he could fall asleep so calmly on a cliff in the wilderness, wouldn’t he sleep for years and years once he’d reclaimed his underground palace?

Link then took out the wand with the Magician’s Hand out from his robe and handed it to Vance.

“Here,” he said, “it’s your wand.”

The flames in Vance’s eye sockets turned much brighter again, and he sat up and took the wand into his hand. He thought Link’s enchantment skills had turned out to be pretty good as he noticed the subtle details on the wand that displayed its exquisite quality.

“Tsk tsk, your basic skills are quite solid,” said Vance. “You’ve even thought to use thorium, that’s not a bad material at all. Oh…and the Mana structure is…Ah, wonderful. Quite wonderful!” His tone had become livelier and more impassioned now, and the languidness in his aura was reduced by half.

Vance stood up and tested the new wand by casting a Level-1 dark magic spell called Ball of Decay on the cliff stone. As the Mana fluctuated, a fist-sized gory green orb appeared and hit the surface of the cliff. A buzzing noise followed, and a basketball-sized pit then appeared on the stone surface.

“So, it works very well with dark magic too!” praised Vance immediately. “I must ask, kid, have you learned dark magic before?”

Link shook his head in reply.

“That’s not it,” said Link. “I’ve only just come to learn the basics of secret spells from the Master Magician, Eleanor, so I thought I might incorporate it into the wand.”

“Ah, no wonder, then,” said Vance. “Does it have a name?”

“Gray Flame,” replied Link. “Gray to signify its support of secret spells and dark magic. Flame because it is specialized in attacks and offensive spells.” In his eyes, these were the strongest aspects of the wand.

Gray Flame

Quality: Epic

Effect 1: The speed of Mana unleashing is increased by 80%.

Effect 2: The attacking power of elemental spells is increased by 60%. The attacking power of secret spells is increased by 80%.

Effect 3: Fixed with one Level-5 spell—the Flaming Hand. (There is a Mana channel in the wand where a small number of dark elements could be mixed into the spell, forming a more powerful attack of the Gray Flaming Hand.)

(Note: This is a gift for the Lich Vance.)

“Excellent,” said Vance, very satisfied with his new wand. “It’s only slightly less powerful than my original wand.” He then turned towards Celine and glanced at her for a few seconds then furrowed his brows.

“A demon Warrior?” he asked.

Compared to the past, Celine had now been able to adapt to this kind of attitude. As long as Link didn’t mind her true identity, though, she couldn’t care less what other people thought of her. She also had no intention of worrying herself sick about leaving a good impression on those people who treated her with this attitude.

Celine then squinted her eyes and addressed Vance with a menacing tone.

“You might like to know, Lich,” she said, “that I am very good at cracking bones.”

“Now, now, calm down,” said the Lich with a grin. “I was only stating the obvious. I’ve got no problem with it if Link trusts you.” He then clapped his bony hands which made a rattling sound.

“Let’s go!” said Vance. “Time is of the essence!”

“You lead the way, then,” said Link as he stepped aside.

“No problem,” replied Vance. He took a few steps forward then leaped down the cliff. He didn’t use any flying spells or even floating spells as he jumped.

Sure enough, three seconds later there was a crackling noise of crunching bones on the white sandy beach down the cliff. Vance had disintegrated into a pile of bones on the ground.

“…”

Link and Celine looked at each other with horror. They couldn’t figure out what kind of tricks Vance was playing on them. Did he just commit suicide?

Just then, the scattered bones began to move and gathered together, finally reuniting to form the immortal Lich again. He then climbed up to his feet and waved at them.

“What are you waiting for?” he shouted. “Come on down!”

That was indeed a shocking behavior. Link couldn’t figure out why the Lich had to act in such a way. Although his body might be invincible and able to re-form into its original state, would it hurt to cast a simple floating spell? Wouldn’t that save more time ultimately?

Anyway, Link didn’t think it necessary to bring up the point as Vance had turned out to be fine. He then cast a floating spell on himself and was about to do so on Celine as well when he saw her open up her own wings and jump down the cliff. And so, he followed her and jumped down as well.

Soon, they were all on the beach under the cliff.

“Now we’ll just move south along the beach,” said Vance, leading the way as Link and Celine followed him from behind. It was going to be a long journey ahead.

“Vance,” said Link, “what are your plans once we’ve reclaimed your underground palace?”

“What else can I do?” answered the Lich. “There’s an ice stone coffin in there, so I’m just going to lie down in it and sleep.”

“…” Celine found Vance’s logic very odd indeed. “If that’s all you want to do, then why bother reclaiming the place? Wouldn’t anywhere be fine to sleep in?”

“You don’t understand,” said the Lich with a smile.

Link said nothing, although he felt that he could understand the Lich’s reasoning somehow.

This person had once been a mad genius in the past. In his pursuit of the truth, he had tried every method possible without spending a thought for morality or ethics. And yet, he was not an evil person by nature, so he regretted his past crimes. Although he was mad, he had, in fact, lived and survived long into the future.

Still, he was now a Lich and had been imprisoned in the Tower of Azura for more than 400 years. His passions had all been exhausted, and he was now only a ghost of his past self. Dorias had mentioned that he didn’t even want to come out of the tower, which meant that this person was not much different from a walking corpse.

Then why did he want to return to the underground palace so badly, though? Could it be to recapture a lost memory? Or was it just because he wanted a safe place to sleep forever? Who knew?

Surprisingly, the Lich smiled and spoke up once again after a period of silence.

“Young lady,” he said, “you’re right in thinking that I could sleep anywhere. I could sleep right there on that cliff for a hundred years without moving. But there are too many precious things in my underground palace that it would be a waste to just let it rot there. Someone must take them out and use them.”

After that, Vance looked at Link and smiled.

“You, boy,” he said, “you still lack a proper Mage Tower. But don’t worry, once we’ve got my underground palace under control, you can take anything you want in there. There would be enough in there to help you build a grand Mage Tower. I must advise you not to ask the help of anyone from the East Cove Academy in building it, though. Those Magicians just won’t do; they’d waste too many materials. To build the perfect Mage Tower, you must find a High Elf.”

Link was speechless as he heard Vance’s words. Did the Lich just say he could take anything he wanted from the underground palace and that he was looking for a place to go to sleep? There was something odd in those words; it was almost as if Vance was relaying his last words.

Link couldn’t hold his tongue any longer.

“You don’t really want to reclaim your underground palace, do you?” he asked.

“Why that’s absurd!” answered the Lich with a smile. “Why wouldn’t I want to? How can I stand by doing nothing while those barbarians stomp around my palace with their dirty feet?”

Even so, there was still something odd and unconvincing in his voice, as if he was still concealing parts of the truth.

“I feel as if the Lich no longer wants to live,” whispered Celine. “How long had he been alive?”

There was lethargy and guilt that Celine could sense clearly from this Lich. It wasn’t the kind of urge for relief from suffering that she herself felt from being constantly hunted down and oppressed. Instead, it was an indifference to life that was caused by having lived for too long and experienced too much until all passions and interests had been extinguished and exhausted from the heart.

“He’s lived for a thousand years,” answered Link with a frown. He’d wanted to ask for Vance’s help in guiding him to create a Battle Art that could be practiced by anyone in his troop, but now it seemed his dreams were too big.

“So he’s a thousand-year-old Lich…” murmured Celine, stunned by the revelation. “No wonder…”

Meanwhile, Vance waved his hand at the two to urge them to move along.

“Stop chatting and hurry up, both of you!” he shouted. “We’re almost there. Those Necromancers aren’t that easy defeat!”

Link and Celine said nothing; they just quickened their paces and caught up with Vance. They walked along the beach for about 15 miles until they encountered a big pile of rocks. Vance glanced at it and immediately cast a spell.

“Traceless!”

Traceless

Level-4 Master Spell

Effects: A group invisibility spell that can also almost completely mask the sound and scent of the targets.

(Note: An original spell invented by Vance.)

A sheet of water-like, translucent aura flowed out from Vance’s wand and scattered out to enshroud all three of them. In that instant, an outsider looking on would see that they suddenly disappeared into thin air.

“What’s going on?” asked Link. He stared at the pile of stones but didn’t notice anything suspicious.

Vance then pointed to a black beetle crawling among the heaps of rocks.

“Do you see that bug?” asked Vance.

Link and Celine looked over in that direction and saw a small beetle the size of a thumb. Its outer shell was glowing and very eye-catching, although it was otherwise a common-looking bug. It was seemingly indistinguishable from any other bugs while also not emitting any Mana or magic aura. Had it not been for Vance, Link would definitely walk past it.

“What’s wrong with it?” asked Link humbly. In the area of black magic, Vance was definitely a much superior Magician to him.

“This is a Death Beetle created by a secret method,” answered Vance. “It’s a high-level detecting device used by high-level Necromancers. This looks like a very active beetle; it can’t have been released for more than an hour, which means that there’s another guest in my underground palace now.”

“What should we do with the beetle?” asked Link.

“Let’s just crush it,” said Vance. He then turned towards Celine. “Young lady, I need a drop of demon blood for my spell.”

 

Chapter 198: This Girl Has an Interesting Bloodline!

Vance needed only one drop of blood. Upon hearing that request, Celine gave it to him without any hesitation. She concentrated her Battle Aura onto her hands and lightly squeezed it. A drop of fresh blood then formed at the tip of the finger.

She acted way too fast. It was too late by the time Link wanted to stop her. Link then sighed as he thought about how Celine was a lot more trusting than him.

If a Level-7 Lich were to ask for a drop of his blood, he would think it through carefully before deciding whether to agree to his request. This act was extremely risky. A drop of blood could be used to play many tricks on the victim in dark magic.

Fortunately, Vance had no ill intentions. Upon getting the drop of blood, he pointed his fingers at the Death Beetle and whispered, “Blood Mist.”

The drop of blood flowed towards the beetle and exploded in mid-air into a ball of pale blood-red mist. The beetle was crawling around freely before the mist covered it. However, after it was hit by the mist…it seemed to be unaffected by it at all.

Link and Celine stared at Vance, waiting for him to explain. Both of them had a foundation in magic; it was impossible for them to not notice if the spell had taken effect.

Vance was embarrassed at his failure and scratched his smooth skull with his bony fingers, emitting a screeching sound. After a while, he looked at Celine and said, “Your blood has issues. You are not a pure-blooded demon.”

“My mother is a human.” Celine nodded. For Vance to have been able to tell this just from a drop of blood was a testament to his strength.

“No, that’s not all!” Vance stared at the remaining drop of blood on Celine’s fingertips and immediately salvaged it with his fingers and placed it in his mouth.

Following which, he grinded his teeth against one another. After half a minute, Vance shouted, “How could this be? This is unbelievable! Oh my god!”

Link and Celine exchanged glances as they did not know what would make a thousand-year-old Lich like Vance so agitated.

Vance started circling Celine as he asked, “Celine, do you still remember your mother? What did she look like? What traits did she possess?”

“My mother? She was really pretty and looked quite similar to me. Also, she was very nice to me most of the time. However, she would get angry at me for no reason sometimes. Then…That’s all! From what I remembered, she is simply an ordinary lady.”

As time passed, when Celine reminisced about her mother, she no longer felt the burning hatred she did for her father. Currently, she merely cherished the memories she once had with her mother. It was not to say that the hatred completely disappeared—it was merely buried deeper as part of her life experiences.

“No, that’s not right. She is definitely not an ordinary lady. Your blood possesses an extremely mysterious power. I feel like I have seen it before. Let me think…Damn it. I can’t remember! Oh my god, my memory is horrendous. It has been too long.”

Vance knocked his skull with full force, creating a loud hollow sound. From the looks of it, it appeared he would only give up after he smashed his skull into smithereens.

Link had to stop him, “Alright, Vance, it is fine. What we have to do now is to deal with this beetle!”

Vance stopped and cast his glance back at Celine, ignoring Link’s words. Even though it was only a pair of green flames staring at her, Link could still feel the passion and drive within those eyes.

“Celine, listen to me, you are a miracle! Your blood possesses two extraordinary powers. One of them is extremely pure demonic power, while the other one is an exceptional mysterious force. I cannot pinpoint it, but I am sure you will reach terrifying heights in the future.”

Link was slightly surprised as well. He only knew that Celine’s father was a powerful figure. However, he did not expect her mother to be so prominent as well.

Celine seemed to be less surprised than expected. She fell silent for a while before turning to Link and said, “I believe this is why my father is so bent on pursuing me despite the countless children he left on the World of Firuman.”

Link looked up as though he was reminded of something and said in a serious tone, “Yes, your father probably knew about the truth of your mother’s strength.”

These two sentences seemed extremely disconnected for people who had no knowledge of Celine’s background. Vance then asked, almost in a trance, “What do you mean? Who is Celine’s father? If it is such a pure demonic power, I’m afraid he must be a Legendary status individual?”

Link stared at Celine, and upon her approval, Link said, “Celine’s father is the Lord of the Deep, Nozamas.”

The moment Link mentioned that name, Vance gasped as the cold air shot through his skull, emitting a slight whistling sound. No one knew how he managed to accomplish that with two rows of empty ribcage.

It took Vance three whole minutes to recover from his state of shock. He then stared at Link and spoke with a very serious tone, “I can assure you that once Nozama gets hold of Celine, something terrible will happen. Link, you have to stop this from happening!”

“I will do my best.”

“No, not just do your best. There can be no slip-ups. If not for the fact that she is a good-natured girl, I would even suggest that you kill her right now.” Vance said these words unapologetically.

Link fell silent upon hearing those words while Celine’s face turned a sickly pale. She had realized that she had underestimated her father’s determination to seize her all this time.

Would her father have spared if she possessed such value? Would Link have enough time to grow stronger?

She had no idea.

However, this was not what Link was thinking about. He was a lot more optimistic. He would always deal with the situation at hand first. As for problems that may appear in the future, he would deal with them when they come.

After all, who knew what could happen in the future? For all you might know, your current efforts might be the preparing you for failure.

He pointed at the beetle and told Vance, “It will be fine; let’s settle this beetle.”

“If we do not have demonic blood, let me think…” Vance started patting his skull again. Sooner or later, a dent would appear in his head.

This time, it only took half a minute. Vance then said, “I have another idea.”

Following which, he stuck out his finger and rubbed it onto Celine’s crystal blue sword. He immediately shaved off a pile of bone dust. After collecting the dust, Vance threw it in the direction of the beetle and said, “Skeletal Jungle.”

These bone dust completely covered the beetle. Eventually, the exterior shell of the beetle was completely covered with a layer of white powder. The spell took effect this time. The beetle immediately began to spin around, while the feelers on its head twitched uncontrollably. It then fell off the stone after a few moments of struggle.

“Alright, this little guy is now blind.”

Vance smiled proudly and signaled for Link and Celine to catch up. He then led the way.

After walking for 60 feet, they saw another Death beetle. Vance then skillfully used the same tactic to blind the beetle before he continued forward.

Around 150 feet later, a 15-foot-tall stone appeared right in front of them. An even taller cliff sat behind the stone. Vance then said, “The entrance to the underground palace lies behind this stone. It is filled with deathly spirits and detection spells I placed many years ago. Even my Traceless spell will not be fully effective in that place. We have to be prepared for battle.

“I understand.” Link took out his Starcatcher Wand while Celine held her crystal blue sword tightly, leading the way.

They walked around the huge stone and true to Vance’s words, they saw a four-foot-tall and four-foot-wide entrance. They then entered the underground palace, and after walking for 30 feet and making a turn, they saw a ball of mysterious purple light on the walls. Under the illumination of the sinister light, one could see uniform indentations on the walls. Within each of those indentations was a skeleton, standing motionless.

Vance immediately reminded, “Be careful, they are all alive and are Level-3 in strength. Do not disturb them if possible. You will also trigger all the Skeleton Warriors in the area if you awaken one of them.”

Celine trod extremely carefully as she was leading the way. Link helped to look out for traps as well, although he had a question, “How about the person who infiltrated just a moment ago? Why didn’t he awaken these Skeleton Warriors?”

Vance then whispered, “I’m afraid he knows some high-level infiltration skills. You must know that the best way to deal with Skeleton Warriors is to not awaken them. This is not a very difficult thing to do, especially when they are all low-level undead.”

“I understand.”

The three of them then moved forward carefully. The deeper they went into the palace, the more spacious the cave. When they reached a depth of around 300 feet, the corridors became 15-foot-tall and 30-foot-wide. The pillars on both sides also became smoother. There were even more lights attached to the walls, providing more illumination.

“Take note; the Security Hall lies ahead. There are some security beasts I created dwelling inside. They are actually undead created from the body parts of many ferocious beasts. You guys might not like the way they look, but do not underestimate their strength! They can go against a Level-5 Warrior head-on!”

While Vance was speaking, the three of them reached the entrance of the Security Hall.

One could already see the security beasts at the entrance. These creatures were not motionless like the Skeleton Warriors. They patrolled the area constantly, completely blocking their way forward.

These security beasts indeed looked very peculiar. Link could clearly see the mouth of a wolf, the claws of a tiger, the tail of a crocodile attached to every one of them. They were formed from the body parts of at least 10 different animals, and the joints connecting those parts seemed extremely amateur and roughly made. It seemed as though they were merely tied up with a rope. A thick, viscous green substance also dripped from the joints.

Link could not help but comment, “Vance, I have issues with your taste.”

Vance then rebutted, “This is not about taste. I must first give priority to the feasibility of these security beasts, and not their aesthetics. After 400 years, the number of security beasts has already been depleted by 90%. There used to be 300 of them roaming around. Now, there are only 30 of them left.”

“How should we get past? Do we sneak across, or use brute force?” Celine ask.

“There is no way to sneak across; these creatures are sensitive…”

“Then how did the other fellow get past?” Link asked quizzically.

“That would only mean that that person is a friend of the magic swordsman. He is not their enemy.” Vance laid out his hands helplessly as he gave a bitter smile.

Link then stared at the security beasts and estimated their strength. He then said with a worried tone, “There are 30 security beasts around here. That would mean a total of 30 Level-5 Warriors. They are also well-dispersed. It will be difficult to deal with all of them.

“Don’t worry, I have already figured it out. Celine and you will block them. You only have to stall them for ten seconds. I will cast a Level-6 control spell to halt their movements…”

“Shh…” Celine interrupted Vance before she positioned her ear in the direction of the Security Hall. She then said, “Listen, someone is speaking. It’s getting closer, do you think they are coming out?”

“That is a possibility.” Vance was immediately excited.

“Then we will just wait and see,” Link smiled as he said.

 

Chapter 199: Let’s See Whose Traps Are Better

As the voices got closer and closer, the three of them relied on Vance’s Traceless spell to hide silently in the shadows of the hall entrance, patiently waiting. At this moment, they were like hunters lurking in the shadows, ready to lunge and attack the prey at the right moment. After a few seconds, the voices became much clearer. One of them was deep and dark sounding, laced with a hint of anger.

“Get your ass out of here!” said the voice. “Go back and tell your master that unless I die, there is no way he’ll get anything from me!”

“That’s the bastard Necromancer swordsman that took over my underground palace,” whispered Vance. “His name is Dorians, and he’s a typical cheapskate!”

The other voice then emerged. This one sounded cold and eerily calm, clearly none too pleased by the other’s words.

“Dorians, you must understand,” said the other voice, “this isn’t a request but an order. If you disobey this order, then you will face the master’s wrath! There would be no use for regret then!”

“Your master is nothing but a bandit!” roared Dorians. “Let him come then! I’ve got so many sturdy Warriors under me; I’ve got armed beasts, and I’ve got axe-wielding Warriors! In this underground palace, no one’s a master but me!”

The other voice went silent after this outburst by Dorians. Now their footsteps approached Link, and the other two got closer and closer. After about ten seconds, two figures emerged from the entrance.

One of them was very tall—about 7 feet tall. He was wearing a dark purplish-red war armor, and through the faceplate, sat a pair of eyes that were glowing in bluish white light. They were glowing so bright that they seemed to be emitting a five-inch-long light column. His weapon was an extraordinary giant sword, of which the hilt was made into a shape of a demonic goat’s head. The goat’s eyes were made up of two black crystals which emitted a strong Mana fluctuation.

The other figure was wearing a luxurious black robe, covered by a large hooded cloak. This was the standard attire of a Magician. The figure was also holding an oddly-shaped wand in his hand—its main body was a pure black rod while at the tip of the wand was a small skeleton. A pair of greenish flames were burned in the eye sockets of this small skeleton.

“That Warrior is Dorians,” whispered Vance. “He’s got a strength of a Level-6 Warrior, and that sword of his was my precious treasure. I called it the Giant Sword of Gloom. Not only is it an impressive slashing weapon, but it’s also a magic wand. Its core contains compressed Mana where I stored two spells: one was the Level-5 offensive spell, Soul’s Attack, and the other was the Level-4 defensive spell, Crystal Shield.”

Vance stared at the Magician in silence for a while to try to identify him.

“I know the other bastard as well,” said Vance. “He’s called Morestern; he’s a Level-7 Voodoo Magician who escaped from the Azura Tower as well. I didn’t think he’d find a master so quickly, hahaha.”

Link didn’t pay much interest in those words but was instead staring keenly at the Magician’s skeleton wand. This wand had looked so familiar to him. Link was sure that he’d seen it in the game before, although it might look slightly different from the one in the game. Link had no way of confirming his suspicions, but he knew that there must be something significant about the wand.

“Vance,” said Link, “do you recognize the wand in Morestern’s hand?”

“The wand?” replied Vance. “Let me see…” Vance then diverted his flaming eyes from the swordsman towards the Magician. After scrutinizing it for about ten seconds, Vance seemed to jump in shock suddenly.

“Link,” said the Lich in a perturbed voice, “I’m afraid there’s no way we can win this fight today. We should go back for now.”

“What do you mean?” Celine asked the exact question in Link’s mind.

“I’ve been too rash!” said Vance as he slapped his head in annoyance. “Morestern has a very powerful wand in his hand. Its full name is the Night’s Stare, the Dark Arbiter’s Wand. Among all epic-quality wands associated with dark magic, it is definitely one of the top three most powerful wands. Its biggest strength is that it allows the wand holder to instantaneously cast one Level-7 spell per day.”

Instantaneous spellcasting? And a Level-7 spell at that?!

Link and Celine stared at each other. They both realized that this meant the opponent could attack and instantly kill at least one of them with only a single move. And if the opponent used Dorians’ underlings to trap them in the middle and cast a wide-range attacking spell on them, then Link was sure not even his Dimensional Jump could save them then.

Furthermore, such a small battle wouldn’t warrant the use of the highly invaluable White Prophetic Stone. All in all, this powerful opponent was just too much of a hassle to fight, and the best thing they should do now is to escape. They all saw how the two figures were now only about 100 feet away from where they hid; it was their last chance to run.

“Let’s hide out in the cave for a while,” whispered Link. “Once the Magician’s gone, we’ll come back and deal with the Swordsman.”

“That’s the only choice we have,” said Vance nodding.

They then started to furtively escape.

But they’d only taken three steps when they noticed the Voodoo Magician stopped dead in his tracks as though he sensed something. He then directed his eyes straight towards the spot where Link and the other two were hiding.

“What’s wrong?” asked Dorians impatiently. He hadn’t sensed anything yet.

“It’s probably nothing,” said Morestern. “But I feel as if something is awry.” He withdrew his gaze in Link’s direction and continued to walk forward.

Only the gods knew how soaked Link and Celine were in cold sweat. They looked into each other’s eyes and could clearly see the gratefulness to their luck. Even Vance was so frightened that they could hear his teeth chattering.

The three of them then continued to make for their escape under the cover of Traceless. They moved as fast as possible, even faster than Dorians and Morestern.

Dorians walked Morestern to the entrance of a hall, and they both stopped there.

“Go back and tell your master,” said Dorian, “that everything in this cave belongs to me. He’s got no claim on this place. There’s no need to send any more messengers here. From now on, we are enemies.”

“You’ll regret this, Dorians,” answered Morestern in a flat tone that showed no trace of emotion at all.

“Ha! Yes, I do regret ever letting you into my underground palace!” retorted Dorians with a cold jeering tone. He then turned around and walked out of view.

Morestern then continued to walk out of the place very slowly, not posing any threat to Link and the rest in their escape. By the time he’d reached the entrance, all three of them had safely hidden behind a giant boulder in a cave almost 200 feet away.

Link, Celine, and Vance had been hiding in the cave for five seconds when Morestern walked out of the entrance and cast a flying spell without any pause or suspicion and flew out towards the sea. Flying spells weren’t safe to be used above land where someone might spot you, and so Morestern’s direction was quite a normal decision that a Magician would make.

“We’re safe now,” said Vance. “He’s gone. We should go back into the underground palace and deal with Dorians now.”

Link had no objections to that, of course. He had no concerns about Dorians now that he’d seen the man. Right now, with the Voodoo Magician gone, Link was certain that the three of them could easily take down the Necromancer and his underlings and reclaim the underground palace.

Still, he felt there was something wrong with the Voodoo Magician. He thought it wouldn’t be too great an idea to barge into the underground palace now while Morestern had just been gone a few minutes ago.

“We will eliminate Dorians for sure,” said Link. “But I think we should wait for another half an hour, just to be on the safe side. We should wait here and see if there are any more changes next before going in.”

Celine agreed with this suggestion. Her gaze was still locked on the direction the Voodoo Magician had flown in.

“To be honest,” she said, “I was sure the Voodoo Magician had seen us. That man scares me for some reason.”

“Let’s wait, then,” said Vance with a nod. He didn’t actually feel the way Celine did, but he didn’t mind waiting. Patience was one of the things you came to possess once you’d lived for a thousand years.

The three of them then waited patiently by the sea. After about ten minutes, Celine saw the figure of a man flying in the sky.

“Someone’s up there!” she said pointing upwards. “He’s back!”

Link looked up and saw a vague black spot in the sky. The spot quickly approached them, and the outline of the figure was soon clear to his eyes. It was indeed Morestern who had returned after seemingly flying away.

“Tsk tsk, what a sinister fellow!” remarked Vance. “He must’ve discovered us just now but pretended that he didn’t.” Vance was counting his luck as he realized that he almost fell into the sly bastard’s trap. Had they stormed into the underground palace just now they would’ve been cornered from the inside of the palace and the outside as well. There was a high chance that all three of them would be dead then.

Soon afterwards, Morestern dropped down at about 300 feet away from the underground palace secret entrance. Link and the other two all noticed how they couldn’t detect the slightest Mana fluctuations from Morestern’s body. The cunning Magician must’ve used a camouflage spell or magical gear to mask his own aura and Mana in order to sneak up on them from behind!

Morestern landed on the surface of the sea and walked on the water all the way to the entrance of the underground palace without any stutter in his steps.

Behind the boulder, Vance was thinking of how exciting today had been. Think about it; they are ambushing an ambusher! He felt alive and exhilarated for the first time in literal eons.

“What do we do now?” Vance asked Link. “Do we follow the bastard underground?” He’d now acknowledged Link’s extraordinary brains.

“There’s no need for that,” answered Link, shaking his head. “That man could instantaneously cast a Level-7 spell; if we follow him now, it’d be too risky for us. All we need to do now is to ignite a little fire.”

“Ignite a little fire?” asked Vance confusedly.

Celine instantly understood Link’s intentions, and this made her grin.

“Dorians and Morestern didn’t seem to like each other very much just now,” she said. “Dorians didn’t lift a finger out of respect for the master, but if he were to see Merstern sneaking back into his underground palace after having seen him off, what do you think he’d do?”

Once Celine put it this way, Vance began to understand what Link meant. He rubbed his smooth skull and sighed.

“Oh, how I feel old,” he lamented. “It seems my brain has rusted after such a long dormancy. I don’t think I can catch up with you young people!”

Then after considering the matter for a while, Vance suddenly laughed and made a suggestion.

“I’m also a dark Magician like that Morestern, you know,” he said. “And my skills and power are on par with him as well. Obviously, I’m the best person among us three to ignite this little fire. You just watch me, kids!”

After speaking, Vance then stealthily sneaked into the underground palace that he had built himself a long, long time ago.