by Zhuang Bifan
"You know the creator of this spell?" Lin Li's eyes lit up.
That entire night, he had been researching how to isolate the section with Mental Blast. Until now, he'd only gained a little bit of inspiration. However, there were a few runes written in the High Elves Print that gave him some dilemma. He could not decide how to modify the runes such that he would not affect the section with Mental Blast.
"If only we could ask the creator of this spell…" Lin Li could not help but hope for an easy way out.
Of course, it was just a dream. How could he meet somebody who could create a level-15 spell that easily?
Never did he expect that the old man would say that.
Chapter 244 - Mausoleum Map
"I know him, of course…" Andoine pursed his lips. "The creator of the spell is my colleague, Sir Lothar. He is a very interesting man. If you are free, I can bring you to meet him, then you can ask him whatever questions you want."
"Alright, alright, alright…" Lin Li smiled. He stopped looking at that parchment and rolled it into his pocket. Since Andoine knew the man, Lin Li would be able to meet the creator very quickly. Why would he need to waste his energy on those freaking runes?
"I say, you shouldn't have anything on after the competition in Alanna, right? Until then, I can bring you to a place and introduce Sir Lothar to you."
"That will do…" Lin Li replied after thinking for a moment.
The two of them continued to discuss their schedule after the competition. Then, just when Andoine wanted to retire to his room, Lin Li suddenly remembered something.
"Oh, yes. I have something with me written in the High Elves Print. Can you help translate it for me?"
"High Elves Print?" Andoine paused for a moment. He reached out his boney arm, and said, "Let me see."
"Hold on…" Lin Li opened the Ring of Endless Storm and searched for quite a while before finding those two rags.
"Eh?" Andoine received the rags and his expression suddenly changed. He frowned as he scanned through the unusual runes. After reading the contents of both rags, he pieced the two of them together carefully. Then, he took them to the table to look at them again.
Lin Li's heart was also suspended in the air.
At this point in time, he was trying to suppress all of his questions. He did not even draw any deeper breath as he feared it might disturb Andoine.
There certainly would be some issues with the two rags!
Andoine looked up and asked Lin Li seriously, "Felic, tell me, where did you find them?"
"Where?" Lin Li repeated his question, and thought for a moment. "I found one in the Sunset Mountains. It was given to me by a Thunder Gorilla. The other one was from Gerian. He found it in the treasury of the Merlin Family, hehehe…" Lin Li answered honestly.
"Merlin Family?" Andoine smirked. "I knew it would be with them…"
"What's the problem?" Lin Li froze. He could not help but feel weird. Although Andoine was from Jarrosus Guild of Magic, he spent little time in the Emerald Tower. How could he have any issues with the Merlin Family?"
This time, Andoine did not reply directly. "Felic, do you know that the things in your hands are related to a crucial secret…" he said gravely.
"What's the secret?"
"You should have heard about Osric, right?"
"Nonsense…" Lin Li pursed his lips. How could he not know him?
"Before the High Elves collapsed, the great leader Osric built a massive mausoleum for himself. Everyone in the World of Anril knows about it…" Andoine said with a smile, and his tone was dripping with sarcasm. "Almost everyone knew that Osric had hidden some things in that mausoleum. However, most thought that it was all his wealth. None used their brains to think about why Osric would be interested in wealth when the entire Felan Kingdom belonged to him.
"Do you know what were the treasures?"
Lin Li gradually figured it out now…
Andoine said nothing. He gave Lin Li a light nod. "What I'm going to tell you now is a top secret—a secret that very few people in the Supreme Council know about…"
"Continue!" Lin Li prepared himself for what Andoine was about to say.
"In reality, the Supreme Council has gotten ahold of some information on the mausoleum many years back. We have always been looking into it all this while. That was the reason why we travelled to the Sunset Mountains, and how I met you. Of course, that was not important. What I wanted to say is, if our information is correct, we are very sure that the treasure inside the mausoleum is not wealth, but a weapon. A weapon that had the ability to destroy the entire Felan Kingdom…"
Andoine paused for a while. "However, I can't imagine what weapon could destroy the whole of Felan Kingdom…" he continued doubtfully.
"Freak…" Lin Li exclaimed nervously.
He knew what the treasure was…
The focus of the Supreme Council was not wrong. The treasure inside the mausoleum was indeed a weapon. To be exact, it was a part of the weapon.
And that weapon was the Eternal Furnace!
"What's the matter?" Andoine couldn't help but ask after he realized the changes in Lin Li's expression.
"Nothing, you can continue…" Lin Li shook his head. He'd briefly told Andoine about the Eternal Furnace before, and left out a lot of details. If he were to properly explain everything to him, he would need an entire day to do so. Hence, he wanted to wait for Andoine to tell him more about the two rags before Lin Li slowly told him about it.
"But, no one could ascertain the existence of that weapon. With our limited resources, we couldn't help it. Those precious doc.u.ments from the Dark Age have long been swallowed by flames of war. Even if with my authority on the High Elves, I can't confirm any assumptions at all…" After saying that, Andoine picked up the two rags again. "But, with these two things, we should be able to conclude our research…"
"Is it related to these two things?"
"Yes." Andoine nodded as he pieced the two cloths on the table. His boney finger underlined a section of the High Elves Print. "Have a look at this— no, I've forgotten you do not know how to read the High Elves Print. It generally means that before the collapse of the High Elves Kingdom, Osric knew his life was coming to an end. Hence, he let a powerful weapon accompany his eternal rest…"
"Apart from this section, what does the rest of the print mean?"
"In layman's term, this is a map of a mausoleum. But, the High Elves are different from humans. They do not like monotonous lines, and felt that the High Elves Language is the most perfect language in the entire world. Look, since the High Elves use riddles to communicate, there's this line: 'The fangs hidden in the darkness welcome every uninvited guest…'"
"What?"
"Look at this line too. 'The asleep hero is going to gain eternal life within the flames and ice…"
"So, you are saying that the whole mausoleum is filled with more complicated sentences like these?"
"You're right…"
"Did they have nothing else better to do?!"
"But, it is not related to what I'm researching. I'm not interested whether Osric actually hid any weapon in the mausoleum. The weapon is best buried deep underground and never to be discovered. If one weapon is enough to destroy the entire Felan Kingdom, I wonder what else that lunatic Osric had done…" complained Andoine as he rolled up the two rags.
"Felic, can I discuss something with you?"
"What is it?"
"Can you lend me these two things first? I want to bring them back to the Supreme Council to let the others have a look at it."
"I can give it to you too…" Lin Li pursed his lips. After all, he couldn't read the High Elves Print. "But, before you take it away, can you translate a copy of it for me?"
"What, are you interested in Osric's mausoleum too?"
Lin Li nodded, and replied frankly, "If there is a chance, I might go and take a look. Since it was left behind by the great leader, there might be unexpected discoveries…"
"Then you must be very careful. The High Elves were beyond proficient in the use of curses."
"Yeah, I understand."
The two men continued talking for an hour until they felt overcome by tiredness. After reminding Lin Li about other things to take note of, Andoine yawned as he returned to his room. Lin Li, however, could not fall asleep at all. He tossed and turned in the bed, his mind still on the two rags. There was one thing Andoine wasn't clear when he told him about the rags—how the Merlin Family was related to them. Why did he say he "knew it" when the Merlin Family was mentioned? Doesn't that mean that Andoine long knew their family would be related to the cloths?
After leaving Jarrosus, the Merlin Family did not bother him anymore.
After Cromwell died in battle and Old Merlin mysteriously disappeared, the Merlin Family was not considered a threat anymore. However, the situation now gave Lin Li an unspoken edginess. Come through think if it, the disappearance of Old Merlin was too unusual…
Lin Li could not shut his lids for the entire night. His mind was filled with a lot of things. He only managed to fall asleep unknowingly when the sky turned brighter.
He fell into a deep sleep until the wailing sound of the hungry little Dragon Hawk woke him up.
"That's so weird. Why didn't that old man wake me up today?" Lin Li asked as he got out of bed. Just when he wanted to find some food for the little fella, he noticed a note on the table.
"I'm leaving first" were the only few words in the note.
"Shaun, let's pack up. We're going back to Alanna!" Since Andoine had left, there was no reason for Lin Li to stay here anymore. He called Shaun down and headed out of Andoine's tower after packing his things.
Lin Li's luck was rather good this time. Although the roads in the Twilight Forest were rather complicated, he did not get lost with the help of the fat bandit. After reaching Alanna successfully, Shaun spoke up.
"Oh, yes. Mr. Mage, I will not be entering the city with you, because I still need to prepare the Tricolored Flowers you were asking for. Why don't you give me a time and place, and I deliver it to you immediately when I'm ready?"
"Yes, that will be good." Lin Li nodded. He pointed in the direction of the Guild of Magic, and said, "I will meet you at the entrance of the Guild of Magic tomorrow afternoon."
"Okay."
After sending Shaun off, Lin Li carried the little Dragon Hawk and walked towards the guild's entrance slowly. Since the finals was nearing and he had nothing much to do, he decided to walk around Alanna.
He took an hour to travel from the north of the city to the Guild of Magic. Lin Li used the entire afternoon to bring the little Dragon Hawk around. After Lin Li was satisfied with patronizing different stalls, and the little Dragon Hawk was happy with all the food it ate, the little fella curled in Lin Li's arms and fell asleep soundly.
Lin Li only reached the Alanna Guild of Magic in the evening.
Who knew that before he even walked into the Guild Hall, he saw a familiar figure in the corner of the street.
"What a coincidence, Argus."
"What coincidence are you talking about? I am here to look for you…" Argus replied as he looked around furtively. "I have some information with regards to the things you asked me to find out the other time…" he spoke in a low voice.
"Oh?" Upon hearing that, Lin Li withdrew his joking expression. After scanning the surroundings carefully, he brought Argus to an isolated area.
"Tell me more."
"According to what I know, when that equipment was out of the Marathon smithy, it was sent to the north."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course." Argus nodded confidently. "The person that told me that was a supervisor in Marathon smithing workshop. I saved his life when he was still an Adventurer. He would never lie to me."
"It seems like I'm guessing it correctly…" At that stage, it was clear that Jarrosus was in the north of Felan Kingdom.
"Oh, yes. Did you see Matthias recently?" Argus asked hesitantly as Lin Li trembled in rage.
"Nope, I was not in Alanna these 10 days. Did something happen to Matthias?"
"Erm…" Argus hesitated for a moment, but still said the truth. "I don't know, either, but I can sense that Matthias has started to be wary of me…"
Chapter 245 - The Bustle
"You are saying that Matthias knows you are keeping in touch with me?" Lin Li frowned. It was not good news to him.
"No, no, no. I don't think it is that serious." Argus shook his head, but the expression on his face turned anxious. "But I can tell that Matthias trusts me less than before…"
"Maybe your failure in the Fire Plume Ridge upset him."
"Hmm, it might be due to that too…" Argus replied.
"Don't worry. No one else knows about this matter. As long as we don't tell anyone, it will be a secret forever," Lin Li assured while patting Argus's shoulders. He knew what Argus was worrying about.
"Hope so then…" Argus forced out a smile, but his expression did not become even a bit better.
"Alright, you go back first. Update me again if you need to. Don't come to the Guild of Magic like today. If Matthias were to find out, you wouldn't be able to explain it to him," Lin Li advised Argus after realizing that the sky was getting dark.
"No, it is alright. Matthias has not been coming to the Guild of Magic for a few days already…" Argus told Lin Li. "Oh, yes. Matthias's ability is improving at considerable speed. He was close to level-15 the last time I saw him…"
"What?"
This time, Lin Li was really taken aback.
Matthias is close to level-15 already?
Lin Li was very aware of Matthias's ability. Matthias was still around level-11 when Lin Li had first come to Alanna—at most a little better than Mason and Orrin. Yet, to be able to advance from at most level-12 to nearly level-15 was terrifying. Lin Li managed to achieve that just with the trial in Shadowglen and his experience in the Omniscient Tower.
Despite being envied by Andoine for his talent, Lin Li had not even improved at such a monstrous speed before. How could it be possible for Matthias? Did Matthias take in the energy from the wyrm like he did?
"I feel that it is unusual too…" agreed Argus. "I saw him twice these few days. He grew even stronger the second time I saw him. It was as if he was a different person. He became… became very weird…"
"Alright. Thanks, Argus. I will take note of him."
After sending him away, Lin Li returned to the Guild of Magic. He did not know why the guild hall was so quiet and empty today. There were only a few young mages, all rushing around anxiously as though they all had important things to attend to.
What is the situation now? Lin Li went back to his place full of doubts. He was surprised to see only Mason there—Orrin who hated to move around and Kevin who loved to visit them were absent. As for Sean that usually would not come back, let's just consider him nonexistent…
No one knew it it was because he got tortured too harshly by Orrin, but Mason seemed to have changed much in personality. At this time, he was actually sitting in the room alone with just a magic book. He was so immersed in the book that he did not realize Lin Li came in.
"Brother Mason, why are you alone?" asked Lin Li after he settled the little Dragon Hawk down.
"Oh! Felic, you're back?" Mason jerked up from the sound of the knocking on his door. "I say, where have you been these days? How could you disappear for over 10 days just like that…" Mason asked. He was surprised by Lin Li's appearance.
"I went out for a while, and brought you some good things."
"Like what?"
"Shh…" Lin Li reached into his pocket mysteriously and fished out a few scrolls. "I copied these in secret. Go and split this with Orrin, and don't let anyone know."
"Oooh~" As Mason received those scrolls, he realized those were all spells between level-10 and level-15. They were so rare that one might not be able to find them in the Omniscient Tower. Mason was so elated that he had no time
to wipe his drool from excitement. He lay the scrolls on the table and started to pick those he was interested in.
"Oh, yes. Brother Mason, where are the others?" Lin Li asked casually.
"The others?" Mason looked up from the pile of scrolls. "Oh yeah! I would have forgotten about him if you did not mention him. Kevin and that pretty boy went to watch some fun. Why aren't they back yet?"
"What's interesting?"
"Haha, it is something great…" The mention of this diverted Mason's attention from the scrolls. He pulled a chair over and started explaining.
"The Guild of Magic is really full of life these few days. Renowned people kept visiting us—for whatever reasons. Prince Lionheart Johnathan came a few days ago, followed by Assassin Oro from Ruby Moon and Archbishop Englos… Oh! The person that visited today is even unexpected. Felic, I'm sure you would not guess it correctly…"
"Other than that fatso from Glittergold trade union, I really don't know who would come," Lin Li said as he pursed his lips.
"…" Mason gaped at him.
"What's wrong?"
"H-h-how… how did you know?" Mason stuttered, staring blankly at Lin Li like he was a ghost.
Lin Li pursed his lips. Wasn't that obvious? Other than these old fellas, who would make their way to the Guild of Magic?
Trouble's big! What if Macklin brings them over?
Lin Li looked around guiltily. "This is a little complicated to explain now. Oh, yes. Brother Mason, why are you spending your entire afternoon here reading books? I bet you haven't had your lunch. Why don't we go out to find a place for food? I'm very hungry…"
"Oh, you're right…" Mason scratched his head. He suddenly realized he had not eaten. "Give me a while," Mason said as he put the magic book aside.
"Which scroll should I pass to that pretty boy?" Mason pondered as he held onto the scrolls. He could not bear to share them with Orrin. "I shall decide that later…" Mason said as he put all the scrolls in his pocket unreservedly.
"…"
