Another World’s Versatile Crafting Master c1-1074

by Zhuang Bifan

  "Oh?"

  "Brother Felic, we're not strangers, so I'll tell you frankly…" Mason looked at the closed door again, then lowered his voice with a mysterious smile and whispered to Lin Li, " My uncle, Morris, is one of the leaders of this trial. He told me about all about it…"

  "…" Lin Li did not expect that this roommate, who seemed to be quick with his intimacies, actually had such a strong connection.

  "Brother Felic, let me tell you, this trial is quite different from those of the previous years." Mason smiled in contentment before continuing. "There are 24 Guilds of Magic including the Alanna Council. We will be divided into eight groups to complete the trial missions that will be announced by the Supreme Council…"

  "Three in a group?" Lin Li understood at once; so this was the reason for the strange arrangement of the accommodation. The Alanna Council had it planned from the start.

  "That's right." Mason nodded. "Us two, and that Orrin…"

  "…" Lin Li had the thought to die. These two fellows… one being overly enthusiastic and unable to shut his mouth once he opened it, and the other being haughty as hell, as if he couldn't care less about anyone else. What were the prospects of passing this trial in the same group with these two fellows?

  "Don't be afraid, Brother Felic." The look of disappointment on Lin Li's face turned into one of worry when it fell into Mason's eyes. The guy beat his c.h.e.s.t and assured, "Although you are a little lacking in strength, I, Mason, will not abandon you. You can rest assured if you just follow my lead. Even if we exclude Orrin, I will guarantee you'll be able to bring a decent placing back to Jarrosus."

  "Then… Thank you, Big Brother Mason." Lin Li could feel the corners of his lips twitching…

  "Hahahaha! Brother Felic, you're too polite…" Mason pretended to be modest, but the smile on his face was unusually bright.

  "Big Brother Mason, and then?" Lin Li had to whisper a reminder seeing the fellow had become delirious with joy.

  "Oh, right… And then…" Mason remembered the matter at hand and quickly put away his smile before continuing, "According to Uncle Morris, in order to ensure everyone's safety, there will be an Archmage assigned to follow each team. The Archmage will not participate in the trial mission, remaining passive except when we are in real danger, but… If he does interfere, it would mean that the team has failed their mission."

  Chapter 104 - A Cheap Trick

  "I'll tell you, Brother Felic, it'll most likely be an Archmage from Sienna who'll be assigned to our team." The look on Mason's face was unusually mysterious when he said this.

  "How do you know?"

  "Heh heh…" Mason took a glance at the surroundings, then revealed the l.e.w.d smile on his face again. "My uncle arranged for it. He's old friends with the Sienna Archmage. When the time comes… Heh heh…"

  "…" Lin Li was startled to hear that all the Guilds of Magic would actually risk doing anything for the trial. It was kind of Gerian to send a level-twelve Magic Shooter to cheat; look at Mason's uncle—he had simply manipulated the rules of the game by bringing in an acquaintance into the team. What was the point of all this in the end? The Archmage could just interfere when the time came and everything would be settled then. Anyway, it would only be the few of them who'd know; if no one said a thing, who else would know what had happened in between…

  "So… Brother Felic, just rest assured and follow my lead. I guarantee you won't lose out."

  Mason smiled proudly, but the closed door suddenly opened again and Orrin walked out with a gloomy expression on his face. He looked at Mason as if he was looking at some rare animal. After sizing him up for a while, he said coldly, "An idiot who only knows how to daydream."

  "F*ck…" Mason was smiling in self-satisfaction when he heard what was said, and he immediately sprung up from his seat.

  "Why, you want to fight?" Orrin stood there without budging, and a sarcastic sneer came across his face. "You think that only you have an uncle and everyone else is an idiot?"

  Although Mason talked without much consideration, he was not a real idiot, after all. He held back his anger and asked, "Why do you say that?"

  "I'm not afraid to tell you the truth. We in the Rotterdam Guild have received news long ago. The Archmages who will be following the teams will all be sent directly from the Supreme Council. The reason why the Supreme Council made such a decision is to target people like you."

  "What!?" Mason was taken aback. This was not a joke. In order to get Sienna's Archmage into his team, whether it be Uncle Morris or the Chevan City's Guild of Magic, much consideration and effort had been made for the past few months. His Uncle Morris had sent several pieces of priceless magic equipment, including a magical staff worth at least a million gold coins, just to convince the Sienna Archmage.

  If the truth was really as what Orrin said—that the Archmages who would be following the teams would be sent directly by the Supreme Council—then things would be bad. By that time, the gold coins and what they bought that would fall through wouldn't matter much; messing up the trial would be the real problem instead…

  Mason suddenly felt his head pounding.

  His two teammates… one was totally incompatible with himself, and would absolutely end up in a fight with him in three sentences; the other one, though easy to talk to and with personality much to his liking, well, in terms of strength… His uncle was right—Jarrosus Guild of Magic had been in a terrible state of decline these two years. They had actually sent out a level-seven mage for this trial… And he didn't even look like he had any impressive magical equipment with him…

  This, this… How were they going to go about doing this?

  Orrin glanced coldly at the pale Mason, then turned around and left the living room. Before he left, he gave a piece of advice to Lin Li. "You're Felic, right? I would advise you not to hang around with people like Mason. The trial depends on strength, not schemes and intrigues. Otherwise, even if you complete the trial missions, you will lose in the final guild qualifiers."

  "Ah?" Lin Li was baffled by what Orrin said, but when he wanted to clarify, Orrin had already disappeared, so Lin Li had no choice but to turn to Mason…

  "He's right." If it had been a while ago, Mason would have been talking big again. However, the bad news that Orrin had delivered had dampened his mood for bragging. At present, there was only one thing on Mason's mind—how to convey the bad news to his Uncle Morris. As for Lin Li's question, he briefly explained it. "After the trial mission is completed, a guild qualifying competition will be arranged to determine the final ranking according to the outcome of the competition. Alright, Felic, I have to go out now. I'll elaborate on the details when I come back."

  "See you later." Lin Li nodded and watched as Mason left.

  In the twinkling of an eye, only Lin Li was left alone in a room where three people stayed.

  "There are three people sharing a room, and it turns out all three are cheaters. I wonder what the other teams are like…" Lin Li chuckled and began to tidy up his bedroom.

  He had to admit that the Alanna Guild of Magic did a good job with the accommodations. The bedroom had been tidied up for Lin Li even before he arrived. The room was cleaned spotless; there was a rattan chair in the corner beside a small wardrobe, and the bed was covered with white sheets and a soft blanket. Although the bedroom was not spacious, it gave him a comfortable feeling.

  Lin Li opened up the Ring of Endless Storm and took out a set of clothes to change into.

  While he was taking his clothes out, he suddenly felt something familiar—the two crumpled rags.

  Seeing these two rags, he thought of Andoine and wondered how the old fellow had been recently. Was he still bombing the potion lab every day like how he used to…?

  He had heard from Old Grimm that the old fellow had been in Alanna. It seemed that he had to ask Old Grimm out for a chat someday and enquire about Andoine's whereabouts while he was at it. The old fellow had fooled him by saying that he'd return to Jarros
us in a week or two, but it had been more than a month, and he was still nowhere to be seen…

  At the thought of Old Grimm, Lin Li fumbled through the Ring of Endless Storm once again.

  Before Old Grimm left, he had left behind a ring with instructions that Lin Li would be able to find him at the Pharmacists Guild if he brought the ring there.

  I'll go look for Old Grimm on the way to the Silver Hand tomorrow…

  After deciding on the schedule for the next day, Lin Li started to feel a little sleepy. To be honest, he was really worn out these two days—the long journey was energy-consuming on its own, and they were met with the robbers at Blackhills Town. He had not had a good shuteye all night. Now that he was finally lying on a soft bed, he felt a wave of drowsiness overcome him…

  That night, Lin Li had no idea when Mason and Orrin returned. He slept like a log in his room until dawn the next day, when he was awakened by a sudden knock on the door.

  "Felic, wake up!"

  Lin Li recognized Mason's voice. He hastily put on his Robe of Wrath and opened the door with a sleepy face. "Big Brother Mason, why did you wake up so early?"

  "I've got no choice, I was forced as well…"

  "What happened?"

  "All mages participating in the trial must gather in the guild hall before nine o'clock this morning; if they fail to gather before the stipulated time, it'll be treated as forfeiting," Mason said in one breath, and looked at Lin Li in puzzlement. "Why, nobody told you about it?"

  "No…"

  "Who brought you here yesterday? How could he not have told you about such an important matter? It's so irresponsible of him…"

  "It probably slipped his mind…" Lin Li smiled apathetically, but in his heart, he made a note of the middle-aged mage called Darian. From the first meeting the previous day, Lin Li felt that this man's attitude towards himself was a little out of the ordinary—he had been too harsh and too cold. They had no previous history of antagonism; even if he was unimpressed by his late-coming, he could have just reprimanded him. Why did he stoop to such a cheap trick and leave out such an important notice?

  Lin Li could tolerate many things. For example, Mason's bragging in front of him, and Orrin's arrogant attitude. But playing such a petty trick behind his back was something that he could not tolerate…

  It seemed like… he had to find a chance to talk to this Mr Darian.

  Lin Li hurried to tidy up. Just as he was about to go out, Orrin came out of his room.

  This fellow was still looking as if everyone owed him millions; he merely shot a cold glance at the two of them and left without turning back.

  "So c.o.c.ky for what…" Mason groused bitterly as he watched Orrin's receding figure.

  But the Mason today seemed to be a lot more low-key; he said nothing more after the grousing.

  Lin Li guessed that his uncle had brought him some bad news when he'd gone out the previous night.

  By the time they arrived at the hall, there were already many people standing around. Over 20 young mages were gathered in groups of twos and threes, chatting away. A little farther away, there were some middle-aged men in long gowns engaged in discussion. Lin Li had a better vision—looking ahead, he spotted the fellow named Darian. The latter was talking to an elderly man with white hair and white beard. He looked very respectful, totally different from his cynical attitude the day before.

  "Big Brother Mason, do you know who that man is?" Lin Li asked Mason, who was next to him, quietly.

  "You mean the white-bearded one?" Mason looked at Lin Li with some doubt. "Come on, Brother Felic, you don't even know him?"

  Chapter 105 - Aldwin

  "No, I don't…"

  "He's Aldwin, the President of Alanna Guild of Magic. Also… he's probably the most powerful mage in the whole Felan Kingdom…" Mason answered weakly. He thought that he might go crazy; sometimes, he really suspected whether this kid was pretending. How could a mage be this ignorant?

  "So formidable?"

  "It's more than that… It is said that President Aldwin had broken through to level twenty-one ten years ago. Perhaps only God knows what realm he's in now…"

  "…" Lin Li was probably more aware than most people how horrifying a power beyond that of a legendary level was, for he had exchanged strikes with Old Grimm. Although Old Grimm had used only strength below level-ten, it was enough to suppress a level-twelve Magic Shooter like him. If he did not deliberately suppress his power, not to mention Lin Li, even Gerian would be reduced to ashes in a flash.

  "If only I had half the strength of President Aldwin…" For a young mage like Mason, Aldwin was a true legend. Even though he liked to brag, he had not the audacity to say "as good as President Aldwin", but cautiously chose only half.

  "The idiot's daydreaming again," Orrin said dryly.

  "Damn it…" Mason's anger shot up at once. If they weren't at the guild hall, he'd have jumped on Orrin and fought him.

  The two guys were now at battle pitch, but Lin Li ignored them. He had gotten used to it.

  Anyway, this was the guild hall; even if they were given a hundred times more guts, they wouldn't dare to make trouble here.

  Lin Li's eyes were fixed on Aldwin. He was full of curiosity about the legendary level twenty-one mage.

  Like most old people, Aldwin looked thin and slightly hunched. He wore a long gray robe, which looked too big on him. Judging from appearance only, who could imagine that the most powerful magic strength of the Felan Kingdom was contained in this old body?

  Compared with the arrogant Gerian, the president of the Alanna Guild of Magic was on the other extreme. When he listened to Darian's report, he was always smiling and his expression was serene. He expressed his opinions occasionally, but it was only in the intervals between Darian's words.

  Lin Li was accustomed to Gerian's autocratic rule. He was curious for a moment—how did such a kind old man get his subordinate mages to be so docile and compliant?

  This was Alanna—the heart of Felan Kingdom. In its Guild of Magic, there were over 30 Archmages and over 100 Magic Shooters. As for mages below level-ten, there were simply too many to count every one of them. The difficulty in Aldwin's management was not to be compared with what a Jarrosus rich man like Gerian faced.

  At this time, Aldwin seemed to notice Lin Li's gaze on him. He gave a few more instructions to Darian, then turned to face Lin Li, who was shocked to have been caught while staring covertly. Aldwin did not seem to mind, though; he merely smiled kindly before turning away and leaving the hall.

  As the thin figure faded away, Lin Li remained in doubt. He felt that there seemed to be some other meaning in Aldwin's smile besides the kindness and friendliness…

  Lin Li was in a bewilderment when he heard Mason's muffled cry. "Why is Gryffindor here as well?!"

  This time, it was not just Mason who was surprised; even Orrin's deadened face revealed an indistinct astonishment.

  Seeing the looks on both their faces, Lin Li couldn't help but ask out of curiosity, "Who is Gryffindor?"

  "You can't be…" Mason rolled his eyes.

  "This person is famous?"

  "Not just famous, but extremely, extremely, extremely famous!" Mason used 'extremely' thrice to describe him. "He was praised as Felan's first-ever magic genius at the age of ten. Don't you think he is extremely, extremely, extremely famous? He had become a mage officially at the age of ten and was a super magic genius who had advanced to level-nine at the age of 16…"

  At the mention of this, a trace of doubt suddenly appeared on Mason's face. Disregarding the baffled Lin Li, he began to mumble to himself. "Gryffindor is one year older than me, so he should be 24 this year… It has been eight years, why is he still at level-nine… No, no. I must have remembered it wrongly…"

  "Big Brother Mason, who exactly is Gryffindor?" Lin Li understood as soon as he heard what Mason said—it was another cheater. For a while, he was interested to know more about this super magic genius, Gryffindor.


  "Look to the left; it's the one wearing the black mage robe."

  Lin Li followed Mason's gaze and saw a young mage talking cheerfully there.

  The young man was good-looking—he was tall and handsome. It was only a shame that his eyes looked a little too small. In particular, they would narrow when he laughed, making them look thin and long, giving off an effeminate feel.

  His black mage robe was exquisitely crafted—it was probably made by a famous tailor. It also emitted a strong magical wave. From what Lin Li saw, the magical wave was even stronger than the Robe of Wrath's. But what really surprised Lin Li was the powerful aura emanating from the young mage.

  The young mage's strength was far beyond Lin Li's imagination. Among the young people he had seen, perhaps only Cromwell, who had gone through the transformation, could compare with him.

  He was at least level-fourteen, or even level-fifteen!

  "Which Guild of Magic is he from?"

  "The Alanna Guild of Magic, of course."

  "No wonder…" Lin Li nodded and did not question further. Perhaps only the heart of the Felan Kingdom, the Alanna Guild of Magic, could foster such an impressive character.

  Amidst their exchanges, Lin Li suddenly noticed the unusual expression on Orrin's face.

  Orrin's pale face showed a hint of agitation as he saw Gryffindor. Although his hands were huddled in his sleeves, anyone could guess that his hidden hands had to be firmly clenched into fists from the quiver of the mage robe.

  Lin Li was a little confused; Orrin had always been arrogant and indifferent. How could he have lost his sense of proportion at the sight of Gryffindor?

  And then he saw Gryffindor coming in their direction.

  "Heh heh… Orrin, I can't believe you're here!" Gryffindor's face was full of smiles, but as he approached the three guys, his eyes were fixed on the agitated Orrin. As for Lin Li and Mason who were just beside him, Gryffindor did not even spare a look at them.