8 - 15

Chapter 8: Go with the Flow

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

"This is it…" Saul sighed. He explained the current situation on the Pan Continent at the table. For some reason, Saul's explanation of the situation was a lot more exaggerated than reality.

Tumen Commercial Union was a union consisting of many cities. The union developed in a special way because of specific characteristics of its organization. Each city in Tumen Commercial Union was extremely wealthy, and people lived good lives there. Each city took turns leading the union. Since each city held its own interests, when the time for war came, requiring them to band together to fight the invaders, they could not agree on when and how to fight. What usually happened was that some cities fought, while others refused to do so. It had been a mess in terms of battles. To survive, Tumen Commercial Union relied heavily on the Maho Empire. Every time Tumen Commercial Union was under threat, the Maho Empire would send troops to help. Undoubtedly, Tumen had to pay gold coins to the Maho Empire as tribute to keep this relationship going.

Kings of every era in the Maho Empire understood that it was not a smart move to kill the goose that laid the golden egg. They provided security for Tumen Commercial Union with everything they had. When Tumen needed help, Maho Empire lent a helping hand. There were hundreds of young men continuously going missing in Tumen, so Maho Empire sent out their best archmage to do the investigation. This was the reason Saul had come to Yagor's island. It was very obvious that the Maho Empire took Tumen's issues seriously.

There were other powerful empires that did not like the Maho Empire's monopoly on Tumen Commercial Union's tributes, so they picked fights with the Maho Empire a couple of times. The relationships between the Maho Empire and the other empires were getting seriously tense, which forced Maho Empire's troops into defensive mode.

Saul exaggerated the tension between empires as being a lot worse than it really was. He also lied about the involvement of the Dark Mage and the Necromancer. He even advised Anfey to be careful about a flying route since he could suddenly turn into a zombie on that route.

Anfey's face turned pale with Saul's words. He used to watch horror movies. He knew they were just movies so they didn't scare him. However, everything could change in a single second in the magic world! If he turned into a walking dead… he'd rather die.

"Anfey, which level did you reach with fire magic? Can you use medium-level magic yet?" Ernest asked

"I…I can only shoot out little fireballs."

"Only shooting out little fireballs?" The look on Ernest's face was quite weird. "With the skills you have, you cannot survive in this dangerous world at all…"

"What should I do, then?" Anfey asked anxiously, "How about… going back to the island? It's safe there!"

Anfey had already read Saul's minds, but he still had to play a simple and kind young man. He couldn't screw it up!

"Going back? To that island?" Ernest laughed. "You want to live alone for several years, even many years? There won't even be a single person you can talk to! You will probably die one day and nobody will notice. You will be unnoticeable, like a grain of dirt blown away on the earth. You will be forgotten by the world. Do you really want that kind of life?"

"I…" Anfey's face got even paler.

"Ah, I have an idea." It seemed that something had struck Ernest.

"What idea? Uncle Ernest, please tell me!" Anfey urged.

From the very beginning, Anfey acted the way Saul and Ernest had expected. Life was like this. Everyone thought themselves to be the director. What he did not realize was that he was on a track laid by someone else.

"You are still young. Why don't you study in the Mage Academy for a few years? Not only will you get protection from the Mage Academy, but you'll also learn magic skills to make yourself more powerful." Ernest smiled "The Maho Empire Mage Academy is a good school, very popular on the Pan Continent, however… They do not currently accept apprentices!"

"Uncle Ernest, are there any other ways to get into that Academy?" Anfey asked nervously.

Saul gave Ernest a grateful look. He took out a book, the Legend of Magic. He posed like he was reading it.

Ernest approached Anfey and said in low pitch "Dummy, Archmage Saul is the director of the Maho Empire Mage Academy. You can ask him to do you a favor. There shouldn't be any problem getting into that school if he agrees."

"Is that true?" Anfey was so excited and turned to look at Saul. "Archmage Saul…"

"Ah? Can I help you?" Saul put down the book and looked kindly at Anfey.

"I …I am only a magic apprentice at the beginner level, capable of shooting little fireballs right now, but I really want to learn magic at the Maho Empire Mage Academy. Can you help me?"

"So… you are still a beginner level apprentice…" Saul frowned. It seemed like such a difficult decision for him to make. He stopped playing around when he saw the disappointment in Anfey's eyes. "All right, I will admit you to the Academy!" He could not wait to have Anfey join the Academy.

"Wonderful! Wonderful!!" Anfey was screaming out of happiness and excitement.

"Dummy, say thank you to Archmage Saul!" Ernest smiled.

"Thank you, Archmage Saul," Anfey said in a such formal and sincere way.

"Kid, Since you are a student of the academy, you cannot call me 'archmage' anymore" Saul smiled "You can call me professor."

"Yes, Professor." Anfey was really good at taking good advice.

"Haha…" Saul said happily, "Kid, come over, tell me your understanding of the myth of fire magic. I am a space mage, but the theories in magic are related. Maybe you can find some inspirations by talking to me." Saul was very humble. People in high positions need to remind others by starting the sentence with "please". Therefore, it was very likely for them to become even more humble.

In fact, with Saul's instruction and help, it was not a question of maybe. Anfey would definitely be able to learn and improve a lot.

The students in the Pan Continent Mage Academy were quite different than their peers in other Academies. They had more potential than the ones from other academies. All the top archmages on Pan Continent were alumnae of the Pan Continent Mage Academy.

One person's wisdom was limited. Each archmage was a collector of wisdom. It was the reason they could be famous and make breakthroughs in their magic. They collected various magical objects and gained experience through battles and learning from others. These archmages were striving to be the legends in the magic world. In many senses, the mages who studied on their owns were not comparable to the mages in great clans.

Archmages would pass their knowledge and experiences to their children and apprentices. What a gift to them! Archmages didn't fret over their apprentices one day surpassing them. It would be a dream come true instead!

Saul already had 16 apprentices whom he saw had great potential. Saul had a different feeling about Anfey.

He liked Anfey for his simplicity and loyalty. There was sadness and desperation in Anfey's eyes when he was almost defeated under Ernest's sword. However, Saul would never forget his stubbornness in not giving up.

Of course, there were many people who were simpler and more loyal than Anfey, but it was fate for Anfey and Saul to meet.

Saul invited Ernest to come to the island and fight against Yagor. It could've been a tough battle. Although Saul had more help on his side, he was still somewhat nervous. As an archmage himself, Saul understood how tremendous the damage could be if an archmage was pushed too far and tried to die with his enemy. However, he could not avoid Yagor either, as it would backfire on the Maho Empire if Yagor partnered with an enemy empire. Saul heard that Yagor was practicing dark magic alone on a deserted island. No wonder countless monsters from the Evil Abyss came to Tumen and rushed to the border of the Maho Empire. What happened to Tumen and the Maho Empire made Saul worried.

Saul was relieved after feeling the intense flow of fire element at Yagor's tomb, which assured him that Yagor had died. Saul's defensive mode was turned off after experiencing the tension and relief. Anfey stubbornly never giving up was magnified a couple of times in Saul's eyes. In another word, Saul was impressed by Anfey's strong willpower.

Saul expected his other apprentices to be successful in the future. Every mage had the hope of revisiting the glory of the magic world from thousands of years ago. The reason Saul wanted Anfey to be his apprentice was simply the affection he held towards this kid. Saul would not regret his decision even if Anfey did not have the potential to be a great mage.

Anfey lifted a chair, approached Saul, and asked excitedly, "Professor Saul, Is it true that I can ask you any questions?"

"Yes, I believe I have the ability to answer all your questions." Saul smiled.

"Can magic be done without chanting an incantation?" This question had bothered Anfey the most for a long time. He hated incantations and felt it was like the symbols burned in his own world. He actually answered this question by himself today. Anfey never chanted any incantation when he practiced fireballs. Today he focused all his energy on responding to the fire element. He successfully shot out his first fireball without an incantation after one year of practice.

"Yes, you can. You can silently or simultaneously use low level magic when you can focus your energy to a certain level." Saul reached out his right arm. A sword blade was shot out from his hand and a hole appeared in the wooden cabin.

"Wow… Professor, you're awesome!" Anfey yelled out. Anfey did not add Saul after professor on purpose. He simply called him professor. Anfey knew Saul wanted to take Anfey as his apprentice. He just went with the flow and got an archmage to have his back. His life would be a lot easier this way. It wasn't bad to have such an old man as company, since he did like Saul as a person.

"Haha… Don't worry. As long as you are willing to work hard, you can do it too!" Saul smiled.

Ernest watched them talking to each other happily and he quietly walked out of the cabin. In fact, Anfey surprised and touched him a lot today.

Stars twinkled in the sky and the milky speckles danced along. The light shone from the moon was like the currents moving on the river. Ernest stood on the bow as his eyes moistened. He was remembering his own apprentices who rushed into the fight against the three swordsmen and their own apprentices. They risked their lives by joining the battle. Otherwise, Ernest definitely wouldn't have been able to survive the battle on Mount Torrez Hill.

The memory of his apprentice Jenison's words still seemed real to Ernest, "Master, go, go! They don't want anyone to know what happened today so they have to kill us. We cannot escape even if we want to. Professor, hurry, go! Get revenge for us someday!"

"Jerrofick, wait for me. Just because I am not looking for you now does not mean I have forgotten about revenge. Soon, soon… Wash your neck clean and wait for me!" Ernest said quietly to himself.

Chapter 9: Friendship

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

"Lower the skiff, we will land elsewhere," Saul said to the captain, glancing at the coastline in the distance.

"As you say, Archmage Saul," the captain blinked before putting on a smile. "But… City Chief Basdack has already prepared your welcome feast, my archmage…"

"There is no time for that. My friends and I have some business to attend to. Plus, I need to get back to the Maho Empire right away. I have no time to linger in Tumen." Saul hesitated, then said, "Please tell the chief that Yagor was dead. He can sleep soundly tonight." He paused. "There is one more thing. I don't want Basdack to flaunt the news around. I will be back in ten days. Yagor may be my enemy, but I still wish him peace in death."

The captain was a smart man, and of course knew what Saul meant. "I understand, my archmage," he said hurriedly. "None of these sailors know your identity or what happened on that island. Only City Chief Basdack and I know. If we keep it a secret, no one would know anything."

"Good," Saul said with a nod. He glanced at Anfey, who was lingering behind him. "Anfey," he said, grinning. "Do you want to go see Tumen in all its glory?" After their long conversation yesterday, Saul found himself liking the scholarly young man more and more by the minute. Should Anfey express his wish to stay in Tumen for a few days, Saul would very happily change his original travel plans.

"No, Professor," Anfey said. "Maybe it is because I've spent too much time on that lonely island, but I prefer solitude."

"I see," Saul said. "That is a good trait. Only those undistracted by worldly chaos can really achieve greatness. Keep that in mind." To Saul, Anfey was the embodiment of the traits he most admired. Not only was the young man scholarly, down to earth and loyal, but Anfey purposefully woke up early this morning to prepare warm water and breakfast for Saul and his companion Ernest. It was a small thing, but Saul found himself admiring the hard-working young man even more than he thought possible.

"Archmage Saul, the boat is ready," the captain said. "Do you need anything else?"

"No, this will do. You stay docked here for a bit, then go into the city, okay?" City Chief Basdack was a very welcoming man, especially towards Saul. Saul knew the reason for such hospitality was his position as the court archmage, but it never hurt to have a friend. He had always found it hard to reject Basdack's overwhelming enthusiasm, so slipping away unseen and unheard was the easy solution.

"Quit wasting time here!" Ernest said impatiently. He marched to the small boat and hopped into it. Ernest's movement, although it appeared simple, was a show of self-control and power. His landing point was in the middle of the boat, and the boat took the fall evenly, without tipping over or making a splash. Should he have leaned a hair to the left or right, the landing would not have been so steady.

Saul grabbed Anfey, and the two of them fell into the boat gently, mostly thanks to Saul's levitation spell. Anfey sat down and grabbed the oars. There was no sailor in the boat, and he couldn't let Saul or Ernest do the physical work.

"You know how to paddle?"

"Yes, I do," said Anfey, smiling brightly.

"There is no need. Sit still." Saul said, pointing to the boat and whispering a spell. A gust of gentle wind answered his call, and the boat lifted out of the water slightly before driving to land at high speed.

Anfey lifted his brows. He had only spent a day with Saul, but the man had already changed many of Anfey's prejudices towards magic and its uses. It didn't matter to him if high-level magic was really as powerful as the stories said; its usefulness in daily life had already been made apparent to him.

The captain stared after the boat, his eyes filled with resignation. His task, given to him by City Chief Basdack, was to keep Archmage Saul in the city for a few days. Even though he was a top-ranking captain, he did not dare to stop the great archmage. The only thing left for him to do was figure out how he would report this to the city chief.

After a few moments, the boat hit the shore with a soft thud. They landed at a place far from the major port city; the only place in sight was a small fishing village not far ahead. A few tanned fishermen fearfully watched the strangers from afar. In villages like this, even seeing an apprentice was rare. A common mage would appear high and mighty to them. Everything, from the people to the small bugs crawling onto the side of the boat before scurrying away, knew what to fear and when to stay away. Saul and Anfey both wore their mage robes, a garment more eye catching than a king's crown, and the fishermen knew better than to try to speak with them.

"Saul," Ernest said as he stepped onto the sand. "This idiot is going to be your responsibility now."

"I'm not an idiot," Anfey protested quietly.

"Ernest, are you leaving again?" Saul asked, realizing that Ernest had intentions other than staying. "Where are you going?"

"Me? I am used to wandering. I don't need a destination. Go, go back to the Maho Empire. I'll probably look around in the Tumen Commercial Union before deciding."

"Ernest, why don't you come with us to the Maho Empire?" Saul asked, taking a step forward.

"You're not worried about me causing trouble?"

"Trouble?" Saul frowned. "Ernest, if I considered you a troublemaker, I wouldn't even extend this invitation to you. You are my friend, one of the closest. How many times have I asked you? If you and I team up, there is no man that can stop us, not even Jerrofick. Ernest, I am begging you. Stop turning me down! Forget that damned justice. I am the court archmage, I know things you couldn't possibly imagine. Have you forgotten how Jerrofick treated you?"

Ernest stared at Saul silently. After the event that stripped Ernest of his innocence, he could distrust anyone or anything, but he would never doubt Saul. Even in his darkest days, when all had betrayed him, turning to that coward Jerrofick, it was Saul who had trusted and helped him. Ernest knew deep in his heart how precious this friendship was to him and Saul.

Saul stole a glance at Anfey. He was worried that such a conversation would bring unnecessary negativity to the young man, but Anfey appeared calm. Saul turned back to Ernest. "Listen to me, my friend. I know you are waiting for your chance at revenge, but you can't wait for that chance to drop into your lap, you need to find it yourself. Jerrofick is now a high-ranking general of the Alisen Empire's Storm Squadron. He is surrounded by the most powerful men and women in that empire. Jerrofick is rising in the ranks, and your chance of vengeance is diminishing. Come with me to the Maho Empire, my friend. The relationship between the Maho Empire and Alisen is tense now. Should war break out, the Storm Squadron would surely be a major player in the field. Then you would surely find your revenge. Listen to me. I have troubles of my own in the Maho Empire, and you would be of great help to me."

"My friend," Ernest began, his voice shaking, "I know. You are the court archmage. You have all this power in your hands, but you keep finding me. I know, I know. You want me to help you now, so you will have an excuse to help me when I go against Jerrofick, right?"

Saul felt a rush of blood to his face. He started, frustrated by his friend's stubbornness. "Then why are you still resisting? Just tell me, yes or no?" Ernest was right. Saul wanted to show him that he didn't need to be alone. Like how he sought Ernest's help against Yagor, the end justified the means. How they reached it didn't matter. The only thing that mattered would be that Ernest finally got his revenge against Jerrofick.

Anfey watched them, and felt himself moved by the two men's friendship. No, this was not an act. This was true friendship. One, running, was afraid that he would bring unnecessary trouble. The other, chasing, was determined to help no matter what, regardless of whatever excuses his friend had. Friendship this pure and this devoted was hard to come by nowadays.

As an assassin, Anfey was born to be a stranger. He didn't want to, and could not, have a close friend. There would be too many ways to make him spill his secrets—sleep talking, drunken slurs, accidents which could all lead to the exposure of his secrets. Whenever he was with someone else, Anfey felt uncontrollably nervous, fearing that others would find out who he really was. Only when he was alone could he truly relax. An assassin needed to rest his body and mind, or his mission would hardly be successful. Anfey would rather shut himself away in his bathroom than speak with a tavern owner or a patron.

If it was anyone else, being alone on an isolated island would cause at least some degree of psychological damage, but Anfey found himself like a fish in water there. He tried, on a few occasions, to cross the narrow channel that separated him and the world, but in the end he smothered that urge and kept himself on the island. Of course, he could manage it simply because he was used to loneliness.

"I…" Ernest smiled bitterly. Saul had left him no room to reject. "Alright. I will go with you to the Maho Empire."

"Good," Saul let out a sigh of relief and grinned. "We have a deal."

"Looks like you have to cross paths with Basdack now," Ernest said. "He controls Tumen's Commercial Union's teleporters."

"Why use teleporters?" Saul asked. "Let's go find a carriage. We can see some scenery on the way."

"Carriage?" Ernest asked, amused. "Since when are you willing to settle for carriages?"

Saul shot a glance at Anfey, but didn't say anything.

Ernest nodded. For a young man fresh from isolation, the world had become a stranger to him. If they just sent Anfey to the Mage Academy like this, he would perhaps become even more isolated. The best thing for him now was to have more contact with the world. A carriage was just an excuse to give Anfey more time to immerse himself in the culture of a world unfamiliar to him. Ernest had to admit, Saul did have the qualifications of a teacher. He was even more considerate of Anfey than Ernest had initially expected.

Chapter 10: Whereabouts

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

On the boxing stage, two werewolves and a barbarian warrior were in a silent confrontation. The two werewolves kept roaring, their claws full of flesh and blood from a dead warrior. The barbarian looked very nervous, breathing in and out rapidly, both fists gripping so tightly that the knuckles turned white.

"Go, kill him!"

"Bite his throat, bite!"

"Hurry up, don't just stand there!"

The boxing stage was completely surrounded by a noisy crowd. Everyone was shouting, hoping the fight would start soon.

"After the rise of the Brilcardin Empire, with the advantage of its geographical location, they successfully blocked the invasions of the barbarians from the Pan Continent. Throughout the years, although the mainland was not peaceful, no country dared to attack the territory of the Brilcardin Empire, even in the most chaotic of times; whoever did so would become the enemy of all mankind! Seventy years ago, there was a truly strong one among the barbarians named Ahdibaijan. He won the respect and obedience of all of the barbarians and became their leader. He gradually became more and more ambitious and wanted to conquer the human lands with a concentrated attack against the Brilcardin Empire. It was a very tough period of time for the Brilcardin Empire, as they lost battle after battle and were pushed to their breaking point. But Archmage Richard stood up and went to visit Ahdibaijan as a messenger. They used to be good friends, so Ahdibaijan was not vigilant against Richard. Richard carried a vacuum confinement scroll with him. While Ahdibaijan was talking to him, Richard suddenly launched the scroll and instantly froze Ahdibaijan in the vacuum scroll. But Richard, the archmage, was also under countless barbarian attacks and died in the Moon Shadow City. Without strong leadership, the barbarian warriors were torn apart, and their power greatly reduced. When the Brilcardin Empire took the opportunity to launch a large counterattack, they recaptured the lost lands and regained their authority," Saul said slowly. He found Anfey knew nothing about the Pan Continent's historical events, so he took every possible opportunity to instill a variety of historical knowledge into Anfey. To Saul's relief, no matter how long he talked, or how boring the topic was, Anfey showed great interest.

"What was going on with the barbarians at that stage?" asked Anfey.

"The barbarians live in the bitterly cold lands, envious of the bustling mankind, always wanting to steal human land and get a share of their prosperity. This… This is what they ended up with." Saul pointed toward the barbarians on the stage." In fact, in the battle against the invasion of the demon tribes, both the barbarians and the humans were united together against the demon tribes. However, humans valued the rules the most, as they thought the world would be chaotic otherwise, while the barbarians liked to challenge the rules. Perhaps because of this built-in nature, the barbarians always thought that challenging the old rules was real power. As time passed, people were increasingly unable to tolerate the barbarians. The conflicts could not be suppressed any longer. The barbarians lost the fight against the humans and were driven away from this land. They were expelled to the remote western desert with no hope of returning." Saul paused, then asked, "Anfey, are you feeling sympathetic towards the barbarians?"

"There is nothing to be sympathetic of. If the humans had lost that war, we would be the ones living in the bitterly cold West," Anfey faintly said. A person's role was not static, Anfey could tell that Saul and Ernest cared about him dearly. He did not want to lie to the ones who cared about him the most. Of course, Anfey couldn't let them know that he himself was too wise, otherwise he would be treated as a suspicious person.

"Well, yes!" Saul nodded. He was not worried that Anfey would become another Yagor. Instead, he was worried that Anfey would become a good person. Over the years, Saul had seen a lot of the dark side of this world. He knew well that a good man could only receive the fate of being fooled.

"What are those beasts?" Anfey looked at the two werewolves on the stage.

"They are orcs, originating from the barbarian species. But in the most critical battle between humans and barbarians, the orcs were deceived by the humans and suddenly betrayed their own species, making the barbarians suffer heavy losses." Saul sighed softly, then said, "Speaking in terms of physical strength, both barbarians and orcs are much stronger than humans, but in terms of intelligence, they are far worse and lag behind. The orcs did not expect, after the barbarians were defeated, to become the target of the human's attack. In the end, those orcs had to flee away into the deep forests, where they mixed with the demons. The barbarians to the west would not accept traitors, and the human armies were everywhere to the east, trying to push those orcs towards extinction.

"Unfortunate people must be full of hatred." Anfey frowned. "I feel the orcs are more brutal than the barbarians!"

"The truth is the truth." Saul laughed. "In the countless years of exile thereafter, resentment rooted so deeply in their hearts that their characteristics became more and more extreme. In the eyes of humans, the orcs were nothing more than magic beasts. In the Mage Academy's graduation exam, the students had to kill a certain number of orcs in order to graduate."

At this point, the fight on the stage had already begun. The barbarian was obviously a newbie. That's not to say that his skills were poor, but he didn't understand the brutal nature of fighting. His attacks weren't strong enough, and it seemed like he was still holding back. Instead, the two werewolves worked together very well, attacking without reservation. It seemed that they had a lot of fighting experience.

Suddenly, a werewolf, desperately suffering from the barbarian's heavy attack, stretched out its claws towards the barbarian's face and left five deep bloodstains on his forehead and left cheek. The barbarian's left eye was also destroyed.

The barbarian roared with great madness. He had retained his strength until now. He didn't want to be enslaved by humans and was always looking for opportunities to escape, but now things had changed; he would not have a chance if he didn't use everything he had!

Facing the big crowd at the bar, Saul and Ernest were already used to this. To them, these types of fights were dull and boring. The only reason they came here was because they wanted Anfey to see things like this and get a taste of what real fighting was like.

Soon, the barbarian on the stage could not support himself, and blood poured out of his wounds. The madness reflected in this barbarian's red eyes gradually faded. When his eyes changed from red to brown, his body had come crashing down on the boxing stage.

The two werewolves did not let go of the dying barbarian. They rushed up, biting at the barbarian. The boxing moderator saw that the fight had ended and removed the shrouded boxing enchantment. But at that time, one of the werewolves suddenly jumped outside of the boxing stage, howling. Without the enchantment, to the werewolf, the iron net was very fragile and would easily break after a few strikes.

The audience was a mess, and the guests backed away from the stage. Several guards rushed out from the corner near the back door, holding longbows. They started shooting arrows, but the two werewolves in the net desperately struggled to break a hole and escape. Obviously, the two werewolves were obedient in the past, so the guards were simply not prepared or vigilant enough. The moderator was a medium level mage who cast a spell on them again, but in the end, it was unknown whether or not these two werewolves could successfully escape.

Guests inside the bar retreated, but Saul and two others indifferently sat there, motionless.

"Come and help! You will run out of luck if you let the werewolves escape!" A guard shouted at Saul, as he had seen the mage gowns Saul and Anfey wore.

"Anfey, are you afraid?" Saul said to Anfey with a smile.

"What should I be afraid of with you and Uncle Ernest here?" Anfey smiled.

After breaking the mage's spell, a werewolf had stuck half his body out of the net. His mouth issued a terrible roar, a pair of blood red eyes staring at the people around. They were smart—in order to reduce the alertness of those around them, they behaved like weak and obedient animals, making the bar guards gradually think they were no longer a threat.

Today was a rare opportunity for them. From the morning until now, they only killed three opponents who were relatively weak, allowing them to retain enough strength. The boss of the bar also went out with three high-level swordsmen. There wouldn't be a better chance than today!

Just as a flood was the accumulation of individual drops, so was the werewolves' anger and revenge! Their wild hearts were imprisoned for a long time, inevitably becoming more violent! The werewolves struggled outward from the iron net, staring at the people. Escaping had become a secondary goal, before he fled, he first wanted to get revenge on all the people around him!

A subtle but dazzling electric arc suddenly pierced and hit the iron net. The two werewolves screamed miserably. The second werewolf was heavily struck by the electricity and paralyzed on the ground. The bar was suddenly filled with a toasted smell.

The bar became extremely silent, and everyone turned to look at Saul, who had silently cast a middle-level spell. Everyone with a little knowledge knew that this old guy was certainly a middle-level, or maybe even a high-level, magician! If people knew that Saul was not an electric spell master, they would be more surprised, because only the top archmages could cast silent and fast spells!

"Let's go, the air is too turbid here." Saul took out a few gold coins and threw them on the table.

Ernest smiled, standing up and walked towards the exit with Anfey. The silent crowd moved quickly to give a way to the three mystery men. The bar guards didn't have to courage to stop them or even say "Thank you."

"I remember now!" A fat man suddenly shouted, shocking the people around him. "He is Saul, the Greatest Archmage Saul, ah!!"

The crowd got even more shocked, the Greatest Archmage Saul! To them, he was a legendary figure!

Hiding in the corner, a blonde young man was stunned for a moment, then smiled, "He is Saul! He is here!"

Chapter 11: An Eventful Night

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

"Saul did not meet up with Basdack. It ruined our plan. Luckily, Eddie tracked him down. We still have a chance to make it up!" a very thin old man said gloomily.

"Very difficult," another old man commented. "Don't forget, Saul is a top archmage and has power we cannot even think of! If it's in the city of Basdack… we might have a slight chance, but right now… probably isn't a good idea!" That old man shook his head. It was obvious they could not act without doubt or hesitation, considering it was Saul.

"Layton, you practiced in the Magic Beast Forest for three years, but I think… your vision and risk-taking skills have not improved at all."

The gloomy-looking old man sneered. "Archmage? So what? I used to challenge master swordsmen when I was only a medium-level swordsman. I did it, didn't I? Levels are not everything, wisdom matters!"

Layton's face turned purple with rage. Words lingered infuriatingly on his tongue.

Golden light shone on a young man standing at the door. He cleared his throat and said, "Sir, I think Mr. Layton's concerns are right. If something goes wrong and affects our whole scheme, it would do more harm than good." That young man looked sincere and respectful, but he had no respect for that old man. Of course, the old man did kill a master swordsman, but not in a fair fight. He killed the whole family of the master swordsman and disguised himself as a family member lying among the dead bodies. He attacked the master swordsman by surprise when he was still in shock from seeing the bloody scene.

It might gain some respect if it was mentioned only once. It would get very annoying if it was talked about all the time.

"Eddie, there is no place for you to talk. Get out!" The gloomy-looking old man yelled.

"Yes, sir," Eddie answered in a low pitch, then turned himself away. The moment he stepped outside of the door, a ferocious look appeared on his face. His face returned to normal after he walked out of the room. He continued to walk along the corridor and went downstairs.

The gloomy-looking old man said, "Tanane, you go first… Everybody, relax. My plan will work without a doubt."

"Alvin, what are you doing here? Anything urgent?" Eddie stopped a man in a black jumpsuit who was rushing into the building's entrance

"Mr. Eddie, I recognized the middle aged man standing next to Saul. He is Ernest!" Alvin said hastily.

"Who?" Eddie was shocked.

"It's Ernest! Master Swordsman Ernest!!"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes!" Alvin breathed heavily as he said, "Where is my master? I need to report to him immediately!"

"He's in the lab. Ok, I will take you there." Eddie's eyes were moving fast.

"Thank you, Mr. Eddie."

"No worries, we are together." Eddie smiled while he was talking to Alvin. He showed the way and Alvin followed him leniently.

"It's right here." Eddie moved to the side, "Alvin, you did a good job, your master will definitely reward you for it. Don't forget about me at that time."

"Mr. Eddie, you must be joking." Alvin pushed the lab door open with a bright smile on his face. No one was in the lab and only two candles flickered. The moment Alvin was shocked by what he saw, his mouth was covered by Eddie. He felt a tremendous pain from his back. Alvin slid down to the ground after a few attempts to struggle.

"Stupid, go, you will never come back…" Eddie said grimly.

The gloomy-looking old man had set up the lab upstairs. "It's done! There is no chance for Saul if Layton and I are fighting against him together. Saul will be taken off guard if he is in deep sorrow. Do you all understand?"

"Yes, sir." It didn't really matter whether or not they agreed to fight against Archmage Saul. They had to obey their leader's order.

Saul, Ernest and Anfey returned to their hotel after walking around for quite a long time. There was no doubt that Saul had been taking good care of Anfey. Even though he had decided to personally craft a space ring for Anfey when they got back, he bought a substitute ring at a magic shop which cost him over 50 gold coins.

It seemed that Anfey liked the ring a lot, as he kept staring at it. In fact, he was thinking about Yagor's space ring he had hidden since he did not know what to do with it. Anfey wouldn't know how much joy it would bring him until he returned to the deserted island.

"Anfey, are you tired?" Saul smiled at Anfey. Saul was happy to see Anfey really liked his gift.

"No, Professor," Anfey responded with a smile. "Professor, can I borrow a silver coin?"

Saul took out a few gold coins without hesitation and asked curiously, "What do you want to buy?"

Anfey shook his head. "I don't need that much. One silver coin is enough."

"Take them if the archmage is giving them to you," Ernest suggested. He snickered. This dumb kid would have passed out if he knew that ring cost over 50 gold coins. Luckily, Saul sent Anfey to do something else while he was buying the ring, so Anfey did not see how much Saul paid for the ring. Everyone believed themselves to be correct. However, Ernest would be the most shocked by who Anfey really was.

"Then… I will borrow a gold coin." Anfey reached towards one of the gold coins and picked it up with two fingers.

"Stupid…" Ernest didn't know whether or not he should be happy. Ernest knew Anfey was simple and kind. He still could not help cursing when he saw Anfey did not take those free gold coins.

Saul did not say anything. He put away the rest of the gold coins. There was no doubt that Saul was rich, but he never showed this generosity in front of his other students. Anfey was the exception.

Anfey walked quickly towards a stand that sold magic tools across the street. He looked at those crafts at the stand. Saul and Ernest gave each other a wry smile. Those crafts on the stand were not comparable with the ones in a famous store. They were almost like toys for kids. The ones in the famous stores could actually perform magic and save lives when they were needed!

"Sir, you have good eyes. This is the best one at my stand!" The peddler was showing him the items. "Sir, look at this bracelet, look at the pure and strong magic flow. It's only four silver coins. Look at this one…"

"Here!" Anfey gave the peddler a gold coin.

The peddler was shocked and hesitated for a second, before reaching out with his hand. Anfey put the gold coin in his palm and brushed it lightly with his fingers. It seemed that he did not do it on purpose.

"Sir, what else do you want to buy?" The peddler gave a friendly smile. "Everything here is…" He stopped talking when he noticed Anfey was staring at him. The disdain in Anfey's eyes turned into killing intent.

The peddler felt uneasy. "Sir, which one would you like to buy? You… Can you say something! You…"

Anfey stared at the peddler for a while, then smiled. "I'm sorry. I thought you were someone else. I was cheated last month by a guy who looked like you. He had an incisor missing, but you do not. I am sorry."

"No worries." The peddler smiled. "Sir, which one do you like?"

"This bracelet." Anfey picked up a bracelet.

"Sir, you have great taste. This bracelet was passed down through generations of my family. Ahh… I wouldn't sell it if I didn't need money urgently." The peddler said with some regret.

"How much is this bracelet?"

"Ten silver coins."

"What? Didn't you say four silver coins before?!"

"No, I didn't, sir! This bracelet is so nice that I would never sell it for just four silver coins." The peddler scowled. "You must have heard it wrong. It's ten, not four!"

"Nonsense! I heard four!" Anfey angrily said, "Are you bullying me now? Because I am a newcomer? Ok. I will ask my master to come. He can back me up."

"Don't…" That peddler was worried, "Sir, you… you really heard it wrong. Alright, alright, take it. It's just my bad luck, alright?"

"Just joking." Anfey laughed, "You can just give me a silver coin back as change. 99 is my lucky number."

"You… What did you say?" The peddler was lost.

"You can just give me a silver coin back. Didn't you say you need money? I am just helping you out this time, what do you think?"

"Thank you, I really appreciate it. You are a kind man," the peddler gratefully said. " Sir, you are a nice man!" That peddler took out a silver coin from his inside pocket and carefully passed it to Anfey.

Anfey rubbed the seller's palm with his fingertips again when he picked up the silver coin. Anfey grinned at the peddler after putting the silver coin away. He hastily walked back to the hotel with the bracelet.

"Professor, does this bracelet look nice?" Anfey showed the bracelet to Saul.

"Yes, very nice." Saul would not say anything to upset Anfey. "Anfey, what will you do with the bracelet?"

"Professor, you're allowing me to move in with you after you admit me to the Mage Academy, so I don't have to stay in the dorm. At the very least, I need to buy you some gifts."

"Good kid, you are very considerate." Saul laughed.

Anfey pretended to smile in front of Saul. However, he knew there was nothing worth smiling about at all.

As an assassin, Anfey had a great short-term memory. He could remember everything his eyes captured within a certain period of time, regardless of how important or unimportant it was to him. For example, Anfey walked into a messy room and came out right away. He could correctly tell exactly where everything was at. He would wipe any useless memories from his brain after several hours. Assassins might experience many unexpected situations. It was very possible that some minor things an assassin saw a few seconds earlier, which most people would easily neglect, could save their lives. Short-term memory was the most basic skill assassins needed to learn.

Anfey was suspicious of the peddler. It was confirmed when he saw the movements of the peddler's sly eyes. Anfey had seen this pair of eyes three times in two hours. One time was when he walked out of the hotel room. Another time was at the magic store. The last time was across from the hotel!

Anfey had a very simple but effective way to test out any suspect. It was to create an opportunity to look at the suspect's eyes. The eyes would tell if the suspect was scheming something. Anfey might be scolded for being a psycho if the suspect was innocent. However, it was better to be scolded than to make mistakes and fall into another's trap.

The peddler's pam felt dry when Anfey first touched his hand. Then Anfey sent out hostile vibes when he stared at the seller. The peddler's hand was wet, along with the silver coin, the second time Anfey touched his hand, after he mentioned calling Saul over. People's hands would become wet only under three circumstances. One was when exercising. Second was the weather. The third was nervousness. The first two possibilities were eliminated, so what was the peddler nervous about?

It would be an eventful night today… Anfey secretly moved his fingers a little bit. This was his habit.

Chapter 12: First Battle

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

"Professor, why do I feel something is wrong?" Anfey asked, his eyebrows knit together, as he walked into his own room.

"What happened? Are you not feeling well?" Saul asked.

Saul and Ernest were both at the peak of their careers. However, they were not better than Anfey when it came to their sensitivity to their surroundings, since Anfey was an assassin. Saul and Ernest didn't notice anything fishy around them. Anfey could not tell them the reason he made that kind of judgement, because he could not contradict the role he was playing.

"Nothing, Professor, you should get some rest. I might just be too tired." Anfey closed the door slowly. "So… It's all on me now!" Anfey's eyes were cold, but a confident smile was on his face. Self-esteem was one of the basic qualities an assassin should have. In other words, it was hypnotherapy he was doing to himself. A more powerful enemy will bring out a better version of him. He could often fight beyond his ability when in grave danger. A person in battle would perform below his ability if he was intimidated by the enemy, and would be unlikely to come away from the battle safe and sound.

It was said that the dark of night was ideal for killing, as were high winds for setting a fire. However, in terms of the changing weather, it was impossible for one person to predict. Moonlight cast on the water lightened up the place. People with evil intentions were setting out towards Archmage Saul's Rose Home Hotel from all directions.

Three cuckoo calls appeared in the air at night. A dark shadow pulled out a scroll from his shirt and tossed it out with all his strength. The scroll transformed into a flying flaming dragon the moment it left his hand. The whole sky was lit up by the humongous flaming dragon. It swooped down to the room at the far end of the Rose Home Hotel with irresistible power. That dark shadow was too afraid to see the result of his ambush. He turned away and ran away from the hotel. He ran so fast and so far away from the hotel, he seemed like he was running for his life.

Archmage Saul was meditating in his own room. Saul's eyes opened wide the same moment the flaming dragon appeared in the dark sky. The next second, he was standing in front of the window. He heard a loud cracking sound from the next room before he could open the window. Ernest rushed out the window and chased after the dark shadow that was already running far away from the hotel. It looked like Ernest was covered by a bright white light when he rushed out of the window.

Saul started to chant when the flaming dragon was 300 meters away from the Rose Home Hotel. He finished chanting when the flaming dragon had approached to 200 meters. A mirror suddenly appeared suddenly in the air, like a floating aurora. The flaming dragon ran into the mirror and disappeared, like a stone tossed in a deep pool. Everything went back to normal, as if nothing had happened.

Saul secretly used levitation magic to set up a barrier in front of Anfey's windows. It was not a great defense system, but Saul could sense any intense magic surges or combat power the same time Anfey would. Saul followed Ernest and chased after the dark shadow. He did not know who attacked Rose Home Hotel with a flaming dragon, but he knew it would have burned down the hotel and killed everyone inside of it if he was not there. He had to capture this murderer and interrogate him as to why he was so inhumane and cruel.

"These two old men! Can't one of them stay?" Anfey smiled bitterly. He did not sleep. Obviously, he did not dare to fall asleep. The rival obviously did not expect to kill Saul with the flaming dragon spell, so… was this a trick to get Saul and Ernest out of the way, or a diversion to lure them out and kill them? The second possibility could be eliminated because, if they wanted to catch Saul by surprise, it would be better to find a time when he was not on guard. Right now, Saul was awake, which left them no opportunity to kill him. Saul was a space archmage. There was no way they could attack him. Anfey already understood the traits of space magic, having hung out with Saul for the past few days. Saul was not invincible, but he was nearly unkillable. Even falling into a trap and being surrounded, Saul could still escape with his space magic! Saul was not afraid of fighting against anyone unless they wielded dark magic or spirit magic.

"So the only possibility left is that they're trying to clear Saul and Ernest out of the way… Who was their target? It couldn't be me, could it?" Anfey thought.

Anfey was in thought for a while, with his brows knit together. He could not find the potential value in himself. It seemed pointless to think about their motive since it had already happened. "Adopt measures appropriate to the actual situation. Be careful, I am a tough nut!" Anfey spoke aloud to himself.

High-ranked swordsman, Mott, strode towards the corridor. He could barely cover the sound of his footsteps. His best friend, Tanane, had already lured Saul away from the hotel. What else should he be afraid of? Tanane was just a low-level mage, but Mott was not concerned about his safety. Tanane was a master when it came to escaping. He had been on the Wanted List of both the Mage Union and Mercenary Union for three years, but no one had laid a finger on him. Tanane planned on escaping through the sewer at the end of the chase, betting that Saul would not chase after Tanane in the filthy sewer. Saul had too much pride to do so. He would have to reluctantly go back to the Rose Home Hotel without Tanane. The Master seemed to know everything and could predict what would happen. This time was no exception either.

Mott pushed Anfey's door open. Although the young man showed neither any magic surges nor combative vibes, Mott still vigilantly scanned the room out of professionalism.

The room was decorated simply. A bed was against the wall in the south, a loose mage robe on a hanger above the end of the bed. A man was laying on the bed, sound asleep. Two closets were opposite the bed. There seemed to be nothing abnormal about the room.

It was pretty good to be able to see these things in the dark, but what Mott did not see was what was inside a normal looking closet. Two bent bamboo sticks were pressed against the closet, but the pressure from the bamboo wasn't enough to push the top of the closet open. The closet door was held tight with clothes stuck in between. There were two strings hanging on the closet handle, drooping all the way down the ground and connected underneath the bed.

Mott walked to Anfey' bed in big steps, lifting the blanket quickly with his hand. He was shocked by what he saw; there was no trace of the young man, only blankets shaped into a long roll under the blanket.

Damn it! The moment Mott realized what happened, he heard a banging sound, like that of a heavy object dropping onto the ground behind him. He felt that something was shooting towards him. Mott slashed his sword backhanded, and gathered Qi to fight. The sword was covered under a cloud of bright redness.

At the moment Mott turned around, he saw, from the corner of his eyes, a silver lightning shooting out from under the bed. He felt a surge of pain in his lower leg. He was tricked! That damned kid was under the bed!

Mott swirled away with all the strength he had while prodding with the sword. He'd run out of time to catch the young man alive, as the young man had already obtained the advantage in this fight. If he was given another chance to fight, he might become crippled even if he could kill his foe.

If Mott's moves slowed down and the room was brightened up, the scene would be like this: Mott gathered all his strength and leapt off the bed with his sword. He could not take any new actions to protect himself at that moment, as Anfey flew out like lightning from the robe and jabbed the wooden stick into Mott's throat. A humming sound followed.

The magic wand Anfey used looked ridiculously powerless at the top, but it was sharpened at the bottom. Anfey was an assassin who was familiar with the human body structure. He would never try to pierce the strong bones, instead he attacked the throat, which was the weakest part with the least muscle!

Mott's face crumpled in pain, dropping his sword on the floor. He tried to grab the wood stick. Anfey smirked at him while he lifted the wood stick and knocked it on Mott's chin.

If Mott's chin was a fulcrum, Anfey applied the force from his hand on the stick. According to the Law of the Lever, if ten kilograms of force was applied, then hundreds of kilograms of force was amplified on the short arm of the lever. The wound on Mott split open. His eyes began to water, his nose began to run, and he was rendered incontinent from the pain. No strength was left in his hands.

Anfey stepped forward and took the stick out at an angle on purpose. Blood oozed out from the wound, and Mott slid down to the ground helplessly. He lost his life after trembling a few times.

Anfey walked towards Mott, picking up his sword and slashed a few times, then slightly smiled. "If the adversaries are at this level, then… they will just embarrass themselves."

"Master, we still… I have been feeling that young man is not as innocent as we thought," Kalibim said in low pitch.

"So what? Are you asking us to stop now?" The gloomy old man grunted with dissatisfaction.

"Master, we'd better be careful."

"Did that young man figure anything out?" Layton asked in surprise.

"Layton, be smart! How could Saul fall into our trap if that young man figured something out?" The gloomy old man sneered.

"Master, but…there was something about his look that frightened me, I think he…" Kalibim was that peddler selling magic crafts in front of the Rose Home Hotel. He could not forget the way Anfey had stared at him. He could not tell exactly what about Anfey had frightened him either.

"Ok, Ok! There is no way we are stopping our plan!" The gloomy old man said impatiently, "Kalibim, if you think that young man was not that innocent, could you please help Mott? You are a master swordsman, and Mott is a high-level Mage. There is no way you will be defeated by a young man, right?"

"I understand, Master." Kalibim sighed, turning around and walking out of the room.

"Layton, you do not need to wait here. Do you think you can lure Saul away if Tanane did not make enough time for us?"

"Yes, Master."

Kalibim walked down the fourth floor to the second. He hesitated for a while but finally walked towards Anfey's room. In his mind, he was afraid of fighting against this young man, but he did not dare to disobey the Master's order.

Suddenly, Kalibim pricked up his ears. He heard a very light sound from another room, belonging to Archmage Saul. Saul should have been lured out. Who was in the room? Or… was it a hallucination?

Kalibim held his breath to get a sense of the surroundings. He did not feel any magic surges or combative vibes from the room. He was slightly relieved. He walked slowly to the door. The moment he grabbed the doorknob, it slammed open with a loud banging sound, which took Kalibim by surprise. It knocked him out so hard that he saw stars and felt some coldness from his chest. A long sword had pierced through the door and into his chest.

Anfey walked out like nothing happened. Before he started the fight, he could tell the person outside of the room was a mage instead of a warrior. This judgement was based on the uniforms… Mages would not wear armor, while warriors would not wear a mage's robe. The sound of footsteps could barely be heard and his shadow moved fast, like he was floating in the air. Although these helped Anfey make a reasonable judgement, he paid too much attention to the timing of the attack, instead of the force of the attack.

Kalibim already recognized Anfey. His pupils contracted. Then he tried to scream out the warning. Anfey strangled Kalibim's neck in his arms. "I will give you some advice. You'd better not walk in a corridor with burning candles. Your shadow sold you out!" Anfey told him. He added more force on his arm. Kalibim's neck broke.

Chapter 13: Assassination

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

Anfey, like a cheetah, slowly and arrogantly walked to the third floor. It seemed that he was looking straight forward, but his eyes were not focusing on anything. Things were never perfect. Anyone who gained something would lose other things at the same time. A person would neglect other things easily if he focused too much on one thing. Details were captured only if attention was diverted away from your focus.

Anfey was not blindly confident. He was able to quickly analyze and then utilize the advantages and disadvantages of both him and his opponent, no matter where he was or whether or not it was a good time for him to do so. He learned a lot from Saul and Ernest recently. Judging from the current situation, Anfey thought he held the advantage in this battle. When advanced-level people fought, they searched their opponents for magic surges and combative vibes, to identify both surprise attacks and counter attacks. Anfey did not possess any combative vibes and only had very slight magic surges. In other words, they couldn't find him unless they saw his actions with their bare eyes. However, Anfey could easily locate all of them with his senses.

Anfey walked into a room on the third floor and blew out the candle behind him. He waited there for a while before he took a small package, wrapped in a piece of cloth, out from his shirt. He unwrapped it and took out a magnet he'd bought today, but hadn't expected to use so soon.

Anfey checked Saul's, Ernest's, and his own room. He found every door in the Rose Home Hotel was locked with a snap bolt. The outside layer on the edge of the door bulged out, which made it very hard to open the door with a card. He hadn't brought a card anyway. It might sound stupid to unlock the door with the magnet but it could be very effective.

In two minutes, Anfey was already in the room. There was a bald, middle-aged man sound asleep. "Dumb luck! It is fortunate to be a commoner. He can neither feel the surges from the flaming dragon nor notice me walk into his room. Even if the flaming dragon turned the hotel into a flaming hell, he wouldn't notice. He would die without any fear or pain," Anfey thought aloud.

Anfey walked quietly toward that middle-aged man and chopped, with the edge of his palm, towards the man's neck. That man was sleeping deeply earlier, but becoming unconscious now.

Anfey stood in the middle of the room, pulling out his sword from its sheath in slow motion. He thrust it downwards and stuck it into the ground. Anfey pulled out the sword afterwards and fell into thought while making observations.

The gloomy old man was worried. Tanan should have already gotten down to the sewer and escaped from Saul, according to the timeline. It meant that Saul could come back at any minute. However, he didn't understand why there were no messages from Mott or Kalibim, or why there weren't any loud fighting noises.

"Stupid pig! I have to do every little thing myself!" The gloomy-looking old man cursed. He couldn't wait anymore, so he stood up and walked outside.

Anfey suddenly opened his eyes in the dark. He sprang up and thrust his sword upwards, like a poisonous snake launching a sneak attack.

Anfey had done the experiment three times in his room and one time in the lab on the third floor. The structure of Rose Home Hotel seemed to be all wood. He noticed the floor was only five to six centimeters thick; to be more exact, he only needed to use 60 percent of his power to punch through the floor. Therefore, it would be a piece of cake to pierce it with a sword.

The gloomy-looking old man never expected the attack to come from beneath the floor. Anfey had already stuck his sword into the man's foot before the man realized something was wrong. The sword pierced his foot all the way up to the lower leg. The old man screamed out loud.

Then, there was a huge banging sound. The floor behind the old man was punched through by Anfey. The old man was a medium-level swordsman and his ability was way above that of Mott or Kalibim. No wonder he could still stay calm even when in serious pain. The old man slashed the sword backwards instantly. Even though he did not use any combat power, there was still the sound of the blades whipping through the air.

Anfey was moving so fast that the old man didn't have time to think before making a move. The old man responded totally out of instinct, causing him to neglect a few things he shouldn't have.

Anfey did not pull his sword out from the floor after his first successful strike. The sword was still stuck in the floor. The old man's heels inevitably turned at a certain angle to allow him to slash backwards. The blade was turning and twisting inside his lower leg. What torture! This torture was tearing his tendons and breaking his bones. It was so painful that it went beyond human endurance. The old man screamed out one more time. Anfey punched the ceiling so hard that it almost fell. He jumped to the fourth floor through the hole and landed three meters away from the old man. Anfey ran to the old man and stabbed the old man's chest with a pointed candlestick.

No wonder the old man was a medium-level swordsman, he was still trying to fight back by slashing his sword all over the place, even after he suffered a few surprise attacks. The old man slashed the candlestick by accident. Anfey was forced to drop it because of the pain in his hands. The candlestick hit the ceiling, fell onto the floor, and rolled a few times before finally stopping.

Anfey stepped back to keep some distance between him and the old man, saying with a smile, "Not bad, you are very tough!"

The old man could barely contain his rage. Usually, he was the one stabbing people from behind, not the other way around. He felt that what had happened this time was really unfair. The old man stared at Anfey with hatred. He put all of his weight on his left leg to keep the right one still. However, the right leg had to bear some weight to keep him balanced. He felt sharp pain from his right leg. The old man tried very hard to focus, gathering his Qi. A Qi-covered long sword shone with white light.

Anfey jumped swiftly on the sill. The window was open, so Anfey grabbed the top edge of the window frame and lifted himself upwards, leaving the room with a fleeting smile.

Anfey's climbing skill was not as great as Qing Gong[1]. It did not allow him to jump up and down freely, but he was able to climb up and down as long as there was a place for his hands to hold. He climbed onto the roof easily, then he took out something from his shirt and tossed it upwards.

What he tossed was dried peas he had prepared. They made loud sounds when they rolled down from the roof.

The old man could not let his guard down despite seeing Anfey disappear right in front of him. He held the sword and pricked up his ears for any suspicious sounds. What confused him was the continuous sounds made from the peas hitting the roof. He had no idea what Anfey was trying to do.

Anfey had already returned to the third floor and was quietly looking at the sword hilt in the ceiling. Looking through the hole on the ceiling, Anfey found the shadow was moving. Anfey was trying to find a perfect spot to attack the old man. Could he create some illusions? Yes, every great mage is a master of creating illusions to distract the audience!

Anfey climbed up to the roof and made some sounds on the roof. The purpose was to fool the old man into believing Anfey was still on top of the roof, waiting for the perfect moment to attack him. The old man fully focused on the roof. However, Anfey unexpectedly climbed down to the third floor, right underneath him again.

"You cannot step into the same river twice." Deceiving a person twice in the same way shared the same idea. If an assassin tried to kill a person twice in the same way, it only showed how impotent he was. Anfey would be the one to suffer if he couldn't deceive the old man in a different way.

The old man was in a disadvantage in this fight since he was suffering from severe pain. Moreover, Anfey's unusual tricks frightened him. He subconsciously considered Anfey to be his most dangerous opponent. He did not think Anfey had left. He believed that Anfey had not had a chance to show his finale yet. Anfey was such a formidable opponent that he would not act silly and repeat the same tricks. The sounds on the roof continued.

The gloomy-looking old man was covered by a cloud of white light, as was the tip of his sword, as he gathered all his strength onto himself and his sword. He knew he could not move much, so he tried to do a quick attack against Anfey with the Qi on his sword. He was trying to turn this fight around even though he knew he at a disadvantage.

Anfey was hesitating about whether to kill or just hurt the old man when he found a spot to attack from. Anfey held a candlestick in his hand. If he tactically attacked the old man's crotch with a candlestick, it was unlikely Anfey would kill him in time! If he waited until Saul came back… This was not what Anfey wanted to happen. He did not want to lose the trust Saul and Ernest and given him.

Anfey made a quick decision. He raised his arm and jabbed the candlestick upwards into the ceiling. There was huge pain from the old man's left foot while he was still looking upwards at the roof. He screamed and fell onto the floor. It did not matter that he was a medium-level swordsman, even an advanced swordsman would not be able to continue to stand up if both feet were severely hurt.

The old man was forced to pull the sword and candlestick out of his feet as he fell. The momentum had almost gone away after the candlestick pierced through the ceiling. The force left on it was not very strong, so it didn't cause too much damage to his right foot. The sword was deep in his leg. It hurt unbearably when it was broken by his body weight. The old man fainted, the pain so bad that his body curled up into a ball.

Anfey jumped up and punched a hole through the ceiling with his right fist. The old man sprang up instantly when the ceiling pieces fell and smashed into his chest.

Anfey jumped through the ceiling to the fourth floor. He shook his hands and a set of forks and knives slid down his sleeves. They disappeared the moment his fingertips touched the forks and knives. The next second, they were stuck in the throat of the old man. Anfey breathed out lightly. He turned around and rushed downstairs. He needed to take care of a few things before Saul and Ernest came back.

In fact, Anfey could have chosen to hide away and waited for Saul and Ernest to return after killing Mott and Kalibim. Mott and Kalibim were never threats to him. Anfey needed to compare his ability to someone else. He targeted the strongest person he could sense. The reason he needed to judge his own ability was to make sure he would not fail to do things beyond his ability in the future.

[1] There is a Kung Fu skill called Qing Gong, which allowed the practitioner to come and go as swift as the wind.

Chapter 14: Luck

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

Ernest sprang up like a shooting rocket. The Forbiddance Array Saul set up only blinked once, then totally disappeared. Ernest had used all his combat power just now, so the Forbiddance Array did nothing to Ernest.

"Who is it?" A voice rose in the dark.

"Are you all right, kiddo?" Ernest asked, heaving a long sigh of relief after hearing Anfey's voice. They went to chase after the wizard who brought out the flaming dragon; who would think that wizard would dive into the sewer? Neither Saul nor Ernest was willing to chase after him into the filthy sewer, so they had to give up and let him go. At the same time, Saul felt intense combative power from the Forbiddance Array. Both of them were surprised and rushed back to it.

In fact, Saul got back to Rose Home Hotel earlier than Ernest. He was a space archmage, allowing him to act a lot faster than other mages at the same level as him. Saul used his power to focus on sensing Anfey's breath. He found Anfey was still alive. Saul also sensed that a man at his magic level was running away from the hotel. That mage was Layton. Saul did not get a chance to check on Anfey, but it would be alright since Ernest would come soon. Saul felt today's happenings needed to be explained, so he left the hotel to chase after Layton.

"Is it Uncle Ernest? I'm okay," Anfey said. He lit the candle with his fireball.

Ernest's attention was drawn to the dead body of Mott. Anfey had done some work on Mott's body. It was now covered with hundreds of fireball burns. Mott's clothes were almost burn down to nothing. His face was burned charcoal black and barely any hair remained. These burns could not cover the wound in his throat. Anfey used some sinister tactics and turned the two-fingers-wide wound into a fist-sized one. It looked horrible where the extruded muscle was mixed with blood vessels.

"Did you do this?" Ernest asked in surprise. He noticed a sign on Mott's collar. Entry-level swordsman only had one small sword sign, medium-level had two, advanced-level had two swords with a shield print. The sign on Mott showed he was an advanced swordsman.

"Yes." Anfey nodded but was still startled. "Uncle Ernest, he was powerful! I could not beat him with my fireballs. In the end, I had to use all my fireballs to shoot his face and thrust my wand at his throat."

"Ahh?" Ernest had some doubts about what Anfey said. Anfey was merely a magic apprentice. He could only shoot out the lowest-level fireballs. This entry-level magic would not allow him to present any threat to an advanced level swordsman. Anfey was hiding something from him. "He should not have lied to me, what happened?" Ernest thought.

"Anfey, Can you tell me what happened—" Saul came in from the window before Ernest could finish his question. Ernest raised his brows, "You did not catch him, did you?"

"No." Saul did not look too good. It was almost an insult for Saul to let the antagonists escape twice. He was an archmage.

"How come?"

"He was a death mage."

Ernest's eyes shone with coldness. He asked seriously, "A death mage?"

"Yes, I was not able to locate him in the death fog. He had already disappeared when I finally blew away the death fog."

"When did death mages become so aggressive? How daring was he to show up and do whatever he wanted? It's going to be a mess…" Ernest sighed.

"Anfey, are you all right?" Saul asked again. "Is this person… You killed him?"

Saul and Ernest looked at each other. They both felt something wasn't right. Ernest asked, "Anfey, can you describe what happened one more time?"

"He kicked the door open and ran into my room. I was woken up by him. I was shocked, but I quickly jumped off the bed and started shooting fireballs at him. Professor, he was very powerful, very powerful! My fireballs couldn't even get close to him. He slashed his sword casually and all my fireballs were blocked by his sword. Later, he did not even need his sword to block my fireballs. He was catching them with his bare hands." There was confusion in his eyes as he tried to recall what happened back then. His eyes showed a hint of being "appropriately" startled.

"This is what was expected!" Saul and Ernest thought. They looked at each other again. "What happened later?

"Then he screamed 'Ahhhhh', and ran towards me. I was so frightened that I shot out as many fireballs as I could. I don't know what happened, but he suddenly started acting silly. He didn't care about my fireballs hitting him all over. He didn't even bother to use a sword to knock them down."

"I finally had to hit his face with my fireballs and thrust my wand into his throat. Then he fell on the ground." Anfey thought about it a little bit and tried to sound smart. "Professor, is it because he used up his combat power?"

"No way." Ernest shook his head, checking the body carefully. He turned the body over by foot. His attention was drawn immediately to a serious sword wound Mott had on his back. The cut was so deep that the bones were exposed.

"Did you do this?" Ernest asked.

"No…" Anfey was shocked.

"Who did it?"

"No… I don't know. I was facing him when we fought. After he fell down and died, I hid in the corner and waited for you and Professor to come back. I did not move. I don't know what happened," Anfey murmured. This was his way of doing things. No matter what kind of secrets were out there, Anfey would not speak them directly. He would guide them to the secrets, but leave them to investigate and make their own judgements. Anfey acted like nothing happened and waited for Saul and Ernest to figure everything out. When given the choice of believing themselves or believing others, most people tended to choose the former. Saul and Ernest couldn't help speculating based on Anfey's story. They would trust whatever they found out themselves.

"You are lucky, it looks like someone helped you again." Ernest checked the wound on the body carefully. The cut was deep, but it was not fatal. This only proved Anfey was telling the truth. If Mott was not attacked and wounded, Anfey would be gone for good. An advanced swordsman defeated by a magic apprentice was not a likely scenario.

Saul did not look good. He was blaming himself for putting Anfey in danger. Reality was laid out right in front of him. If this advanced swordsman were not hurt, what would have happened to Anfey? He would never forgive himself if things happened in that way. "Ernest, you are becoming even more impulsive! This time Anfey was lucky, what about next time? Next time, you have to stay to protect Anfey!" Saul complained.

"I…" Ernest did not know whether he should laugh or cry. He was blaming himself for leaving Anfey behind as well. However, shouldn't Saul stay and protect Anfey, as Ernest was the first one to rush out?

"Professor, I can take care of myself," Anfey said quietly.

Saul sighed at him. This silly kid still had no idea how dangerous it was. Whom to blame? There was no one but him. He brought Anfey here and admitted Anfey as his apprentice. It would be a loud slap to his face if anything happened to Anfey in the Rose Home Hotel.

After giving it some thought, Saul wanted to set up a few touch-sensitive arrays for Anfey. However, to be honest, considering Anfey was only a magic apprentice and only understood entry-level magic, it might put him in danger if the elements in the magic array were accidentally disturbed. Saul did not have much material for building the magic arrays. He might build an unstable one, which could be interfered with and might not work properly. He'd rather wait to build one after he went back to the Maho Empire.

"Saul, can you stay here? I will check out a few other places." Ernest could tell Saul looked even worse than before. He did not want to stay here and have a conflict with Saul.

Saul nodded without saying anything. He was still thinking about how to protect Anfey.

Ernest gave Anfey a smile and walked out of the room. There was a person in the opposite room lurking outside and watching their room. The person in the opposite room slammed the door closed after seeing Ernest walking out of the room. Rose Home Hotel had more and more guests noticing something was wrong. They woke up from it. Ernest had strong and intense combat vibes, and he never meant to cover them either. Even normal people can feel the unease and fear, so none of them dared to walk out of their rooms.

Saul laid his eyes on Anfey's "magic wand." "Anfey, why did you make your wand in this shape?" Saul hadn't paid attention to Anfey's wand until Anfey said he killed Mott with it. He just noticed the end part of the wand was shaped to be sharp and pointy.

"Professor, there were a lot of snakes on the island. I was almost bitten by them several times. I didn't know how to shoot out fireballs back then, so I made this wand to kill the snakes."

"I see." Saul nodded. He was quiet for a few seconds, then slowly said, "Anfey, tell me, what series of magic interests you the most? Or… have you decided to be a fire mage?" Saul did not have the urge to ask before, but he felt it was time for Anfey to make a decision on his future path. Once Anfey made a decision, he could start systematically practicing magic. This way he could have the ability to protect himself, and Saul wouldn't need to worry about him. The odds of Anfey getting so lucky again were very slim.

"I… I like space magic." Anfey was telling the truth. Anfey, as an assassin, was facing two problems. One was looking for opportunities to kill his targets, and the other was leaving the murder scene as fast as possible. If he couldn't kill the target in one strike, he would be able to escape quickly with space magic. There would always be a second chance if he could escape and survive. A dead body could do nothing.

"Are you serious?" Saul was shocked by Anfey's answer.

"Yes." Anfey nodded sincerely.

"Great… Great…" Saul was so happy that he wore a bright smile on his face. Anfey choosing space magic over fire magic showed that Saul had more influence on him than Ernest did. Now Anfey was literally his apprentice.

"Do you know about the Black Wraith?" Ernest appeared at the window. He jumped off the window and landed lightly on the floor.

"Black Wraith? Isn't he the killer? That wretch! I know him!" Saul's brows twitched. "I heard he successfully killed a master swordsman. Is it true?"

"Yes, that guy has a gloomy personality and is hard to track down. He never ever trusts anyone. He doesn't have any family, so he spent all his life killing people for money," Ernest said slowly. "I also heard that he joined a secret organization and works for them now."

"Does what happened today have anything to do with them? Ernest, you are also a master swordsman, so… be careful!"

"You are an archmage, you should be even more careful!" Ernest smiled. "But he isn't a threat anymore, because… he has already been killed!"

"Who was able to kill him?" Saul asked in surprise, "He should be the most dangerous killer on the Pan Continent. Who has the ability to kill him?"

"It should be… the one who secretly helped Anfey." Ernest turned to Anfey.

Anfey kept his face peaceful, but he was laughing inside. What is the definition of the most dangerous killer? The real killers always come and go on their own, making them hard to track down. Didn't Ernest say that old man had joined an organization? It seemed this information was correct. For a killer, no matter what organization he joined, he would become less of a threat. Even if he was powerful and had an advanced ability level, he would only be an official in the organization. Killers without mystery have nothing to do with "danger."

Chapter 15: Gifts

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

Anfey was finally able to lay down and rest a little at night, but Saul and Ernest were not. Ernest checked Black Wraith's body. Saul went to check on the body few times as well. They could not agree on things that mattered.

Ernest didn't find any wounds on the body, which revealed there wasn't a physical fight. In other words, Black Wraith's level was not high enough to fight with combat power! It was inconceivable. Black Wraith was a medium-level swordsman. It would take some effort to take him down without using combat power, even if it was Master Swordsman Ernest. It was even possible to force Ernest to use combat power in the end. Ernest felt the chill on his back when he really thought about. Judging from the scene, that guy must be really good at cunningly using diversions to make surprise attacks. An assassin good at surprise attacks was usually able to take down people a lot stronger and more powerful than them. An assassin that had the same ability level as a Master Swordsman… Ernest clearly felt the threat. Luckily, that guy saved Anfey. It seemed that he was not hostile towards them.

Saul focused more on the methods that guy used to kill Black Wraith. What scared the mages? It had to be killers who can quietly kill people. Mages usually held the advantage at the beginning of the battle, regardless of whether or not they were fighting with a master swordsmen or a golden knight. However, whether or not they were able to maintain that advantage in battle depended on their experiences and magical knowledge. Only assassins who could kill quietly were able to force mages into a passive stance at the very beginning of the battle. Without their magic, mages were no different from ordinary people. The odds were very high that the killer could defeat a mage with a single strike. It wouldn't be wrong to call assassins the natural enemy of mages. Saul was concerned about that killer because he had the ability to hide his combat surges. Saul was so worried, he had no appetite or desire to fall asleep.

Anfey slept through the night, while Saul and Ernest spent the night talking. They decided to stop having Anfey explore the world, instead taking him to Empire Maho immediately. If they didn't have to worry about Anfey's safety, Saul and Ernest would have preferred to stay and find out who killed Black Wraith. At the very least, they could figure out what the Black Wraith wanted with them and why he started the battle at Rose Home Hotel. However, with Anfey's presence, they didn't dare do anything. They did not want to get Anfey involved in a battle.

At dawn, Saul and Ernest walked out of the hotel with Anfey. The hotel was surrounded by Tumen Commerial Union's army. A soldier had knocked on Saul's door at night. Saul told the soldier who he was, and no one dared to bother him afterwards. No one dared to stop Saul when he wanted to leave the hotel. A few patrol sheriffs watched the three of them walk away until they disappeared. They really wanted to beg for Saul's help to investigate last night's murder. The Chief was not in town. None of them dared to ask Saul to do anything. They had to swallow down what they wanted to say to him.

Saul, Ernest, and Anfey arrived at Freedom City, the downtown of Tumen Commercial Union, in a couple of hours. He put his mage insignia on. It was awarded by Tumen Commercial Union and allowed them to go anywhere without any trouble. They went to a Path Array, started it, and disappeared in a bright light before Chief Basdack rushed to the array to see them.

Anfey was trying to feel the magic surges. The scenery around him changed dramatically in the blink of an eye. They heard a warm voice welcome them, "Welcome back, Sir."

"Miorich, why are you here?"

"Sir, you should have told us!" A man over 40 walked up to them. "Don't forget you are the archmage of our Maho Empire. It would an unbearable loss for the empire if anything happened to you. Do you think we aren't able to help you?"

"There is no point talking about 'lost'. It is a talk between us, not a negotiation in the palace!" Saul muttered, "Miorich, Does… the king already know about it?"

"Of course. Do you really think we didn't know anything about it?"

"No, never…"

"The king received a secret letter from Basdack and knows about everything." Miorich smiled. Miorich, with his sideburns and pair of warm, compassionate eyes, was likely to leave people unnerved. He was not at a young age anymore, but Anfey found him interesting.

"That guy! Dare to betray me?" Saul was enraged.

In fact, Saul underestimated Basdack's political power as a chief. Basdack had his own way of dealing with things. Basdack did not send out the secret letter until Saul safely returned to Tumen Commercial Union. If anything happened to Saul, Basdack would never admit they had any contact. Then, the fight between Saul and Yagor would simply be Saul acting on his own. It would have nothing to do with Basdack. This was the only way that the king of the Maho Empire would not be mad at Basdack for losing his best helper. To most people, this would look cunning. However, it was normal for a chief to act this way, especially he who was trying to survive among empires.

"Have you ever thought of how to reduce the king's anger, instead of whether or not Basdack betrayed you?" Miorich smiled.

"Are you laughing at me?" Saul rolled his eyes.

"Maybe." Miorich had been very polite until this point…

"You… Never mind, no point getting heated with you." Saul shook his head.

"This is…" Miorich laid his eyes on Ernest. Intuition told him that Ernest possessed unneglectable power.

"He is Er—"

"Ahem, ahem…" Ernest coughed to stop Saul's talk.

Saul shrugged. "This is my new apprentice, Anfey. Please help him in any way you can. Otherwise, if you do not treal him well, I will come after you."

"Uncle Miorich, how are you?" Anfey smiled. This was Anfey's other strategy. When he met someone for the first time, even if they were a 70- or 80-year-old man, he would call them "Uncle." Who did not want to feel young?

"What a polite kid." Miorich briefly laid his eyes on Anfey. He was very nice to Anfey, but he was not a moron. Saul introduced this young man in such a formal way, it revealed Saul must like him a lot. Even though Miorich only sensed weak magic surges from Anfey, he would have to treat Anfey well.

Anfey was not so happy to be called a kid. Why was everybody calling him "kid" or "dummy"? Judging from the body he inhabited, he should be almost 18 years old. He was mature and no shorter than Miorich, where was the "little" from?

"Miorich, did anything unusual happen in the empire?" Saul asked with a lowered voice.

"Unusual? Do you mean…"

"I met a death mage in Tumen Commercial Union. Unfortunately, he escaped from me."

"Death mage?" Miorich looked startled. "Really?"

Death magic was a very strange magic. Maybe death mages and apprentices were not able to beat other types of mages with the same ability level, but once they reached the level of an archmage, the death mages' power would be amplified several times. All of their spells would reach their maximum power. Then, archmages of other types of magic were not their counterparts. Several archmages needed to fight together to beat one death archmage. They were only able to beat him. It would be a lot harder if they wanted to kill him.

"I did not lie to you." Saul sighed quietly. "And... I met a very dangerous killer!"

"Dangerous?"

"Yes, very dangerous!" Ernest said seriously, "I bet you have heard of Black Wraith. Black Wraith was killed by him, and that killer did not use any combat power!"

Miorich looked at Saul with suspicion. Saul nodded firmly at him.

"Tumen Commercial Union…" Miorich took a breath. "Sir, I think I need to report to the king about these matters."

"I agree."

"Sir, do you want to see the king now, or after you go back and get things settled?"

"I will go back first." Saul glanced at Anfey.

"Sure, I will go to the palace first and wait for you there." Miorich said. Miorich nodded at Ernest and walked out hastily. Tumen Commercial Union was an important and strategic place for the Maho Empire. The reason the Maho Empire could provide its people good lives had everything to do with the tributes from Tumen Commercial Union. If there was any change in Tumen Commercial Union, the economy in the empire would suffer a huge loss. They could not afford to let that happen.

"Let's go, Anfey. I will take you home." Saul smiled.

The soldiers who were responsible for watching the magic array stood in two rows. They tapped the floor three times with the handles of their polearms to salute Archmage Saul.

"Going back to your house?" Ernest stopped. "You guys go back first, I will walk around a little bit."

Saul smiled at Ernest wordlessly.

"Don't worry. I will contact you later. I won't break my promise of staying in the Maho Empire."

Ernest explained that he was used to the freedom and worried that he would feel uneasy living in Saul's house.

"My house is huge. Are you worried about bothering me?" Saul said without emotions. "And I have few other students live with me in my house. Two of them are already entry-level mages."

Ernest gave a wry smile. He already guessed something from Saul's weird speech. The reality was that competition was everywhere in life. Saul was worried about Anfey being bullied and looked down upon by his other two apprentices. Those two apprentices seemed to have their own pride. Saul was their professor, so he couldn't show any favoritism towards a student. If Ernest lived in Saul's house, Anfey could go to him.

"Ok, I will go with you." Ernest said.

"Professor, should I buy some gifts for your family?" Anfey asked. "I heard you have a daughter. I only got a present for her." Anfey took out that toy-like magic bracelet as he spoke.

"Don't worry about it. You can wait until you get to know everybody." Saul smiled.