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Chapter 26: Disappointment and Protection

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

"General Miorich, is my father inside?" A handsome young man stepped out of the transport portal. Next to him was another man, just as young and handsome. Judging by his robes, he was already a high-level mage.

"My lord, His Grace is already waiting for you." Miorich dipped his head. "And this is…?"

"This is my friend, Brufit."

"Ah, the friend you've mentioned in your letter. The one that saved your life."

"Yes."

Miorich hesitated, then moved out of the way, "this way, my lord."

The oldest prince of the Maho Empire, Wester, smiled, nodded, and walked into the great hall. Miorich followed the two silently. He was the leader of the King's Guards and had to be on guard at all times. The prince was not an object of concern, but the young man Brufit was. They had only met once, and Miorich did not know who he really was.

The emperor of Maho, Yolanthe, appeared to be a young man. If it wasn't for the wrinkles around his eyes and his slightly bloated physique, he could have passed for a thirty year old. Seeing Wester, he dropped his scepter and hurried over with his arms wide open, "Son! It's good to see you back here. I heard you ran into some trouble on the road?"

"Father." Wester hurried over and embraced his father. "It was because of my carelessness. I apologize for the trouble."

"You saved my son?" Yolanthe's gaze turned to Brufit. "Tell me your name, child. You saved the hope of the empire, and I will repay you for your kind act."

"You're too kind, Your Grace," Brufit said. "Anyone with honor would not have stood idly by. It is my honor to help a prince."

"Well said." Yolanthe laughed as he sat down on the throne. "Honor lives. Wester, you've taken care of your business?"

"No, Father. I heard Alisen Empire's Dark Moon Legion arrived at the front line, and we were facing immense threats. I was worried and thought my business could wait."

"Really?" Yolanthe looked around. This kind of confidential military information could not be kept secret forever, but Wester shouldn't have known about it so fast. The only explanation was that there was someone who had leaked information. After twenty years on the throne, there was no way Yolanthe didn't understand this. Wester had already began gathering his own informants.

"Father, I only have one request," Wester said, kneeling down in front of Yolanthe.

"Speak," Yolanthe said, looking at his son, smiling.

"Our empire is facing an incredible threat. As the eldest son, I cannot sit idly by! Father, I request to go to the front line immediately, so that I may help Granden with the threats from the Alisen Empire."

Yolanthe didn't say anything. Wester was his oldest son, and he had watched Wester grow up. Wester had just started on his road to power, and his plans couldn't evade Yolanthe's eyes. Wester claimed that he wanted to help Granden, but he really wanted to limit Granden's power.

His request was impressive, but Yolanthe could not agree. Granden was a supervisor. With two supervisors, the front line would be filled with quarrels and infighting.

To Yolanthe, Wester was amazing. He was smart, cunning, and knew how to talk his way into things. He was Yolanthe's oldest legitimate son as well, and for the longest time Yolanthe had plans for Wester to take over the throne once he died. However, he was concerned about Wester's ambition. He could not endure his brothers being better than him in any field. When they were, he had to prove he was better.

Even before Alisen sent the Dark Moon Legion, Yolanthe had already detected Alisen's intention of launching a full-scale war. So he sent out Wester to meet someone. Yolanthe knew Wester had never experienced a truly harsh situation, and he was worried Wester would make mistakes, so he had told his entire plan to the man Wester was going to meet. Yolanthe told him to strike a marriage between Wester and the Shansa Empire. This would relieve tension and draw the army from the eastern front to face Alisen Empire.

He never thought that Wester would turn back halfway, overturning his entire plan. After the message, Yolanthe was disappointed, to say the least.

As a father, Yolanthe was amazing. He didn't show how upset he was in his expression and instead had tried to lighten the mood, so that he wouldn't hurt Wester's pride. But for a king to protect his child so much, was he choosing to do the right thing?

"Father," seeing that Yolanthe had remained silent, Wester urged him on.

Yolanthe sighed, ripping off a piece of bamboo from a curtain nearby and tossing it to Wester. "Break it."

Wester blinked but did as he was told.

Yolanthe asked a maid to roll the curtain together and tossed it to Wester again. "Break it."

"Father," Wester frowned. "This is impossible."

"Why?"

"Because it's too thick!"

"You're wrong," Yolanthe said. "It is because they are united. I cannot compare to Baidah or Miorich in terms of military tactics. I cannot compare to Saul in magic, or to Scotty in knowledge. And yet, I am the emperor. Do you know why?"

Wester stared at his father, speechless.

"Compare to the powerful and the skilled, I am the weakest," Yolanthe said, pacing to the curtain and breaking off a piece of bamboo. "You can break me, just like this."

"Father.."

"But," Yolanthe said, unfolding the curtain. He placed the piece of bamboo inside and bundled it together. "Who can break me now?"

Wester looked at the curtain, then back to his father, and sank into deep thought.

"As a king, you must learn how to unite and accept. Accept forgivable mistakes and unite all that you can. That is the only way to become the most powerful man." Yolanthe didn't want to give up on Wester, and wanted to help him understand the situation with his words.

"When Baery became a top-tier swordmaster, I left my scepter and my good clothes behind, and we drank ourselves unconscious in the tavern. When Miorich became a gold knight, I…"

"Your Grace!" Miorich interrupted, fluttered. They obviously did something embarrassing.

"What are you scared of?" Yolanthe grinned.

Miorich looked away, still blushing, and did not make any eye contact.

Yolanthe's eyes turned to Wester, "Child, do not be envious of your subjects' success. Do not strip them of their glories. Otherwise," his voice turned sharp, his scepter turning to his son. "Otherwise, you have no right to sit on that throne."

Wester stared but didn't say anything.

"Granden has always liked the military, and he is stronger in that field than you and I. Let him worry about the war. Do not interrupt him." Yolanthe rubbed his temples. "Once the war broke out, my work increased. I'm old now. Stay, help me."

"I understand," Wester whispered.

Yolanthe waved his hand. Wester stepped out of the hall, wiping his brows. In his memories, his father was always kind and loving, but today his words were so pointed that Wester didn't know how to deal with it.

"My lord, are we still going to the frontline?" Brufit asked.

"What do you think?"

"Then petition…"

"Stop that. Stop all of that," Wester growled. "I can feel it. Father is angry with me. I can't be too careless right now."

"I understand." Brufit nodded.

The two stepped into a portal and activated it. Wester, standing in the front, couldn't see it, but Brufit's left pinky suddenly became a fragment of a bone. A drop of black liquid fell silently onto the portal and disappeared. When they emerged from the portal, his finger had returned to normal.

"My lord, where are we going?"

"To my mother. My father always listens to my mother. She will talk some sense into him."

"Ah," Brufit said. "My lord is wise."

"From what I can tell… Father always liked me. If I had known about this, I wouldn't have returned."

"My lord, these small problems will surely be resolved soon by your brilliance."

"Hopefully." Wester sighed.

On the other side of the portal, a grey shadow abruptly appeared. It stared at the portal and, finally, sighed.

Chapter 27: A Time of Peace

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

"Be careful!" Christian called urgently.

Before he could finish, though, Anfey was already falling more than twenty feet to the ground. Christian hurried over, conjuring a levitation spell to try and save his falling colleague. However, he was only a novice mage, and could not conjure such a complicated spell in such a short time. Before he could finish casting the spell, Anfey had already hit the ground. Christian was scared speechless, but he soon saw Anfey's body fold into a ball. After a few rolls on the ground, Anfey stood up, smiling.

"You… Are you alright?" Christian asked, unable to believe what he had just seen. For a normal mage apprentice, levitation spells were the hardest to master. For other spells, one only had to worry about losing control of their magic. However, a badly done levitation spell could result in lifelong disability or worse.

"I'm alright," Anfey said as he stood up, dusting himself off.

"You're too stubborn," Christian complained. "You're just an apprentice, you shouldn't be doing any intermediate magic. I'm so tired of trying to lecture you, but you still won't listen."

Lately, the relationship between Anfey and Saul's other students had been improving significantly. They had been hostile towards him because of Maris and Melinda, but people tended to pity the weak. Maris and Melinda's actions were repulsive, and their fellow students had preferred Anfey from the beginning. Most importantly, every time Anfey met someone, his first move was to smile and greet them, and he spoke ever so politely. His attitude had helped him make several friends; very few still held their initial grudges against him.

Out of everyone, Christian was the closest to Anfey. This was very closely tied to how Anfey treated everyone around him. Every time he saw that Christian wasn't doing anything, he would always appear and sincerely ask Christian about magic. When Christian was busy, Anfey would never bother him.

"Actually… I was close to succeeding. It was my first time, and I was nervous. I can probably get it after a few more tries."

"Never mind," Christian said. He was terrified. Should anything happen to Anfey, he, as the person who had taught him the levitating spell, would be severely punished by Saul. "Anfey, it's magic, you have to take it one step at a time. You can't push it. This time you simply lost control, but who knows what will happen next time?"

"I understand." Anfey nodded, smiling.

"You!" Christian sighed. He couldn't find any problems with Anfey's attitude, but he had a feeling that Anfey would be practicing in secret anyway, no matter what he said.

"Anfey!" Niya said.

"Here," Anfey replied.

Niya walked over, smiling, and extending her right hand. "There you go," she said.

Anfey accepted his dimensional ring, now looking very differently than before. The extravagance had disappeared; it was now an ordinary looking silver ring.

"I used the power of a magic-concealing crystal to disguise the surge of the ring and covered it with platinum. No one can tell," Niya said, smiling. "Anfey, you're such a coward. Are you scared of people stealing it?"

"My lady, Anfey's right. He's just an apprentice, wearing such a ring would attract unnecessary attention."

"Thank you, my lady," Anfey said sincerely.

"No problem," Niya said. "Tell me if you need anything." Niya might have seemed rude and uncaring at first, but she was still kind in the end. She felt sorry for Anfey, so when Anfey had asked her for help, she agreed immediately. Whether it was finding a magic-concealing crystal or looking for an alchemist, neither was something a normal mage would be able to accomplish. But in the end, Niya was the daughter of the greatest archmage. She went to the palace and talked to the emperor himself. She then found the best alchemist in the empire, Monfela, and completely transformed the ring.

Anfey smiled but didn't say any more.

"Christian, say, what do you think about Anfey's potential?" Niya asked. "How long do you think it will take him to become a mage?"

"Anfey is very hard-working," Christian said truthfully. "If he can be patient, half a year at most." His words were not just a reply to Niya, but also a hint to Anfey that he should be more patient and move forward one solid step at a time.

"Anfey, hang in there," Niya said, waving her fist.

"Of course."

"All right," she said. "I won't bother you two anymore." She turned and left. She was going to ask Ernest for instructions in sword arts. If Ernest heard about her helping Anfey, maybe he would change his mind about her and teach her what she needed.

"Christian, do you have any advice for levitation?"

"God, let's not talk about the goddamn levitation spell anymore, alright? Your strongest affinity is fire, so I'll teach you that first. In comparison, mages tend to be weaker in their physical bodies. So before you start attacking, you have to have a defensive line. Don't underestimate a Fire Shield. It may be easy to do, but its shield power will increase with your strength. A proper mage's shield can block a novice swordsman's combat power."

"Alright, alright," Anfey said, shaking his head.

Christian let out a sigh of relief, and explained to Anfey everything he needed to know to conjure a Fire Shield. Then, he said solemnly, "Anfey, I will be in the lab, so practice here by yourself. And promise me you won't try levitation again, alright?"

"I promise," Anfey said with determination.

Christian shook his head with a bitter smile. Anfey's attitude was applaudable, but he had the feeling Anfey wouldn't listen to him.

Christian was still worried, so he doubled back quietly, checking on Anfey. It was only after seeing that Anfey really was practicing Fire Shield that he left, satisfied.

For a youth like Christian, his experience was very limited, so his idea of good and evil was very basic as well. When they dislike someone, they would rarely interact with the object of their disapproval. When they accept someone, they would try their best to take care of them and provide help. Maris and Malinda teamed up to frame Anfey, but their plan was flawed at best and could not withstand the truth. After they were exposed, they had fought each other and tried childishly to lay blame for the crime on each other. If someone more experienced had helped with their plans, it would have been much less flawed.

Unlike Christian, Maris, and Malinda, Anfey had been an assassin for a long time. He was cunning and patient, and his hands were not clean. Even Saul and Ernest had not uncovered the truth about him, much less youths like Christian.

"Alright, you can stop pretending," Ernest said, walking out from behind the trees. "I know you're not interested in Fire Shields."

"I don't know why, I'm just particularly interested in levitation," Anfey said, smiling.

"Maybe it's because we all like freedom," Ernest said, smiling. "But Christian's right. You have to be careful. If you lose control as you are now, you will not be able to handle it."

Ernest, however, was not nervous. He was the one that understood Anfey the best in this world. Anfey wasn't a hotheaded youth. Every move he made was done after careful consideration. If Anfey wanted to practice levitation, Ernest knew he had a certain degree of control over the spell already.

"Uncle Ernest, can't you use your combat power to levitate?"

"I cannot," Ernest said. "The master swordsmen from a thousand years ago could shoot themselves right into the sky, but such a usage of combat power was very depleting, and nowhere as free as that of mages."

"Then how are you going to fight against mages? They can all use levitation."

"Mages have magic, and we have our swords and combat power, so we are not terribly disadvantaged," Ernest said. "Mages tend to be weaker in hand-to-hand combat. If a warrior approaches, no shield can protect the mage forever."

Anfey nodded. "I see. And if you fight Master Saul?"

"Among all the archmages of the Pan Continent, Saul's power is medium at best. But for master swordsmen and golden knights, he is deadly, because we can never catch him. If I had to choose, I would choose anyone but Saul."

"Then I must master levitation!"

"Of course, but don't overestimate it either. When you try to fool a master swordsman or a golden knight, you'll realize how childish your idea is," Ernest told him. "Levitation may be quick, but you still cannot be much quicker than a master swordsman's sword. You'll be chopped down like a bird. Even a mid-level swordsman can pose a serious threat to you. Unless you become the Dimensional Archmage, you have no reason to be arrogant."

"I will do my best," Anfey said, smiling bitterly.

Chapter 28: Change in Secret

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

"Currently, the situation in the Tumen Commercial Union is very unstable. Among the seventeen mayors, nine of them firmly advocated the original position, while the other eight mayors responded ambiguously, they—"

"I'm not listening to that! Just say what's important!" Yolanthe said.

Yolanthe was sitting on the throne in the main hall. The strange thing was that there were only two people in the whole main hall; there were no guards or ministers. The one sitting on the throne was Yolanthe, and the other was a gray shadow covered in gray smoke.

"According to our analysis, their target was Saul. The whole action was chaired by the Black Ghost. But, surprisingly, Saul did not go to see Basdack, so their plan failed."

"Young people nowadays really have the courage to challenge themselves, even wanting to deal with the greatest archmage..." Yolanthe laughed. "I admire their courage."

"Your Majesty, my people told me that the Black Ghost is very confident. I think that... this self-confidence is not arrogance."

"Self-confidence? Was Basdack on their side?"

"We don't know." The gray figure shook his head.

"Continue." Yolanthe closed his eyes, as if meditating.

"Saul recruited a young man from an isolated island, named Anfey, to be his apprentice..."

"Wait! Anfey? I think... this is the second time I have heard that name," Yolanthe said. "Yes, our beautiful pearl came to me to ask for a magic-concealing crystal for Anfey!"

"Yes, Anfey is living in Saul's home now." The gray figure nodded his head. "Back to Saul, though. Later, he stayed in the Rose House Hotel in Wild Willow City. The Black Ghost was not willing to fail. They first sent people to lure Saul and Ernest away, and then were ready to seize Anfey. They had Ghost Master Layton control Anfey's soul to trap Saul. Your Majesty, here I want to say that the Black Ghost did not know the middle-aged man was Master Swordsman Ernest, or they would not have risked doing this!"

"That's a problem. The Black Ghost should not have made such a foolish mistake!" Yolanthe shook his head. "Even if the black ghost made a mistake, do not forget their master, Magic Fog. This mysterious organization has been secretly developing for hundreds of years. Their forces were very large, and even I knew that Master Swordsman Ernest was accompanying Saul; they had no reason not to know!"

"Your Majesty, what do you mean..."

"I felt like someone wanted to let the Black Ghost die, but... killing Saul was the most important task of the Magic Fog organization, so I'm not sure. Maybe my judgment was wrong?" Yolanthe pondered a while. "Well, you may continue."

"On that night, Saul and Ernest were fooled and led astray. However, in the Rose House Hotel, a strong, mysterious man suddenly appeared and saved Anfey by destroying the Black Ghost's plan, eventually killing the Black Ghost.

"Oh? Interesting..." Yolanthe smiled.

"Your Majesty, there was something even more interesting."

"Continue."

"Besides the three people in Saul's party, there were twenty-one guests in the Rose House Hotel that day: two businessmen with eight bodyguards, a couple that seemed to be having an affair, a small mercenary group of six men, and three prostitutes staying on the third floor as permanent residents. My subordinates tested them and found that the strongest one was only a middle-level swordsman!"

"Go on!"

"The owner of the Rose House Hotel had a lower-level title denoting his family's loyalty. There are a total of thirteen people in his home. The hotel employed four male waiters, all less than 20 years old, and two maids. We did a detailed investigation on all those people, but none could have posed a threat to the Black Ghost!"

"You mean... that strong, mysterious man fell out of the sky?"

"No, sir, there was a man present who should not be forgotten!"

"Who?"

"Anfey!"

"Sure enough... Interesting!" Yolanthe's big hand was stroking the huge sapphires, pondering. "Have you investigated Anfey?"

"We just performed an investigation."

"What kind of person is he? What do you think?"

"An idiot, a very naive idiot," the gray figure slowly said. "Based on our observations, Anfey simply cannot be that strong, mysterious man. He only has weak magic fluctuations in his body, which are easily ignored, and he has no combat power. But from all the clues collected from the Rose House Hotel, Anfey should be suspected the most!

"It seems... we should send someone to test Anfey."

"Your Majesty, that is not necessary."

"Oh?"

"When my group was doing their investigation, we found the Magic Fog group was doing the same. After the Black Ghost was killed, they stopped all actions against Saul, instead focusing their investigation on the Black Ghost's death. What we have done, they have done too. Anfey attracted their attention as well." The gray figure paused. "The Magic Fog group has sneaked into the sacred city in batches!"

"What do you think the result will be?"

"If Anfey was really that strong, mysterious man, the Magic Fog people will not be Anfey's opponent! Anfey was able to kill the Black Ghost without using any combat power. Once he begins to use that power, he will be unstoppable. With Ernest's help, Anfey will not lose the battle with the Magic Fog group. Please, your Majesty, please pay attention. Anfey must have a unique way to completely hide his power! If we can master this method, we will have a huge advantage!"

"You said that Anfey was recruited as Saul's apprentice on that island? Before this, where did Anfey come from?"

"I don't know. It seems... no one knows."

"Well, let the Magic Fog test Anfey, and we can wait for the results, but..." Yolanthe lowered his voice and said, "No matter what the results are, kill all the Magic Fog people!!"

"Yes." That gray figure nodded. "Your Majesty, the oldest prince..."

"There's no need for you to care, and I have my own thoughts." Yolanthe waved his hand.

"Yes, your Majesty."

※ ※ ※

Anfey could hide his real self from Saul and Ernest, but, under the empire's impermeable investigation, some people had already paid attention to him. However, Anfey didn't know any of this.

The next morning, Anfey got up, putting on clothes as usual, and knocked on the door to Ernest's room.

"Boy, it is still dark. I really doubt you are a magician!" Ernest said while opening the door.

"Uncle Ernest, can we go running together?" Anfey laughed.

"Running? Like what you did yesterday?"

"Yeah, don't use any combat power. Run the entire course depending on the body's original strength."

"The old man in the village taught you this?"

"Ah." Anfey nodded.

Ernest hesitated. Running blindly like a fool? Other people certainly would laugh at him. He had never seen this method, but it was still dawn, so most of the people in Saul's home were sleeping. Why not give it a try? Maybe this would be a unique practice for the elderly!

"Well, wait for me."

A moment later, Ernest and Anfey were running in the garden trails. Anfey's movements were natural and coordinated, full of energy, but Ernest constantly looked around, fearing that anyone would see him. His eyes soon fell on Anfey's feet. He noticed that Anfey's running pace didn't change, but sometimes he ran with the toes, and sometimes with the heels. Ernest could not help but learn from Anfey.

Anfey gradually accelerated his speed, Ernest following immediately on his side.

Ernest did not even use any combat power, since his physical strength was still far above Anfey's. After a few laps, Anfey was already out of breath, but Ernest seemed like nothing had happened.

"Uncle Ernest, how did you feel?" Anfey stopped, relaxing his shoulders.

"Pretty good." Ernest imitated Anfey's movements. "What's next? Let's try the swords again."

"Sure," Anfey answered very readily.

"Where is your sword?" Ernest was overjoyed.

"Today I am not using a sword!" Anfey smiled very mysteriously. In fact, he was ready a long time ago.

"What will you use?" Ernest was surprised.

"Uncle Ernest, promise me. You will neither use combat power nor cut my weapon with your sword, or you lose!"

"Good boy, let's begin and let me see what tricks you have!" Ernest was interested.

"Be careful not to lose, Uncle Ernest!" Anfey's hand was touching the other side of the tree.

Chapter 29: Being Upset

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

Anfey took out a three-meter-long, white wax stick from behind the tree. He stepped forward and thrust at Ernest without any hesitation. That thrust was called Golden Rooster's Three Nods. The white stick was shaking so hard and so fast that it created three imaginary shadows.

Anfey's ancestors used to practice the spear. Later, in modern times, spears were replaced by knives and short swords, with which Anfey's great-grandpa had developed a new set of thrusting techniques. They did not totally ditch spear techniques that were the origin of his family's martial arts skills. Instead, they first learned the spear techniques, which made learning other skills much easier.

Ernest had never seen any martial art like this. He stepped back fast enough to be out of Anfey's attack range.

When the momentum of Anfey's last move stopped, he lifted his left hand and pressed against the white wax stick with his right hand. The pointy stick thrust towards Ernest's right foot. The stick moved so quickly that it looked like a serpent's tongue.

Ernest finally took out his sword and parried the stick with the edge of his sword. Then he immediately stepped forward.

Anfey pushed the stick down with his left hand and lifted the front of the stick with his right hand, thrusting towards Ernest's cheek with lightning speed.

Ernest moved backwards, barely dodging away from Anfey's strike. He could feel the stick swiping against his cheek. Ernest was astonished.

Anfey took the upper hand first in the battle. Of course, he would continue to have the upper hand as he attacked more. He moved the stick a little to point at Ernest's chest and thrust it forward.

If a sword was considered a gentleman, then a knife would be a knight, and a spear would be the king amongst all weapons. Anfey moved his stick like a "dragon" in an agile and accurate way. His attacks were so intense that it looked like a storm and strong wind were centered on Ernest. Anfey did not use one hundred percent of his power to attack Ernest, but Ernest already felt the threat and was forced to step back continuously.

The longer they fought, the more shocked Ernest felt. The agile movements, abnormally angled and dangerous moves, and the agreement they made that Ernest was not allowed to use any combat power to block Anfey's weapon forced Ernest to continuously move backwards. Anfey was greatly shocked as well. He had tried to constrain Ernest's power with an agreement. He thought he would win without a doubt, but he could not hit Ernest with the stick even though he tried his best. At each critical point, Ernest was able to dodge away from his seemingly dangerous strikes or move backwards out of his attacking area. These failures at the verge of success made Anfey frustrated and upset.

When Anfey thrust from the left towards the area below Ernest's ribs, Ernest did not move to the right to dodge but took the risk of "losing the battle" and moved diagonally to the left. Anfey did not have time to think about the reason for Ernest's move, instead he quickly thrust again towards Ernest's chest.

Ernest crouched down, causing the stick to pass over his head and fall into the bushes behind him. Anfey was shocked for a second. The key to striking with a spear was to "thrust." When one strike did not work, the spear should be pulled back or swept sideways. It was a strategy of defense by forcing the opponent to move backwards to defend. Anfey seemed to have lost the ability to continue the fight, since his stick fell into the bushes. He immediately realized that he had fallen into Ernest's trap and quickly moved backwards.

Ernest was so experienced in all kinds of battles that he definitely would not let this opportunity go. He ran towards Anfey and thrust his sword towards Anfey's shoulder.

Anfey slid to the side, away from Ernest's sword. He shook both his hands and picked the stick up from the bushes. Before Anfey could get into position to resume fighting, Ernest flicked Anfey's head with his left hand with just the right amount of force.

"Alas…" Anfey was upset and tossed away his stick.

"Anfey, what weapon was that? Did the old man teach you that?"

"Yes." Anfey nodded. "This is a spear, Uncle Ernest. How was it?"

"Very nice!" Ernest said seriously, "Someday, when you have the same level of combat power as me, I bet very few people will be able to beat you."

Anfey smiled grimly. Practicing and actually fighting were quite different. He saw what Ernest could do with his combat power in the Rose House Hotel. Ernest didn't even use his sword to fight. He had rushed into the battle with mere combat power. He had fought in such an uncontrolled manner that stones, walls, and trees were crushed into powder beneath his combat power.

Anfey knew himself. If he could not beat Ernest with a white wax stick, he would not even be able to cause damage to Ernest with a long steel spear. Ernest could have easily broken his long spear in half with his combat power.

Anfey had been deep in thought until breakfast. He figured that he could easily kill entry-level mages, and maybe some powerful ones with surprise attacks. He would not have any chance to fight back if he met a really powerful mage.

Ernest signaled everyone not to bother Anfey. Anfey walked out of Saul's house without any breakfast. He had gained a lot of confidence by posing a threat to Ernest when he got the chance to fight with Ernest for the first time. He thought he could defend himself with his attacking techniques. Even if his opponents had strong combat power, he still would be able to fight against them with his dodging skills. As long as he was able to consistently leave some wounds on his enemies and defend himself well, victory would eventually be his.

But today's battle was mind-blowing for Anfey. He realized there was a huge difference between being a threat and attacking his enemies. Besides holding back a little on the speed and power, Anfey had put a hundred percent into that fight but wasn't even able to touch Ernest at all. With a huge difference in power, techniques became something ridiculous. The reason Ernest focused on techniques was that they were the deciding factors in battle when his rivals had the same level of power.

After turning into another alley, Anfey saw more people on the street. Saul's house was located on a street where reclusiveness was not allowed. The street across from the Mage Academy was a public street, open to civilians.

Sacred City, as the capital, was very prosperous. The stores on both sides of the street were mainly selling magic tools, since the Mage Academy was not far away. Besides the magic stores, there were also some hotels, jewelry stores, entertainment facilities, and luxury stores.

Anfey felt unexpectedly nervous as he was walking. He stopped for a second, suddenly becoming alert. He unintentionally bumped into a little kid, knocking the kid down by accident.

Anfey hurriedly bent down, smiling and comforting the kid. He took out a silver coin from his pocket and put it in the kid's palm.

The power of money couldn't be ignored. That kid may not understand the importance of money, but he knew this silver coin could be exchanged for a lot of good food. He stopped crying, then smiled and stood up.

Anfey was like a nice older brother, watching the kid walking away with a grin. Glancing quickly at the people behind him, Anfey turned around and walked rapidly and nimbly towards the Mage Academy.

"Hey, Anfey, how come are you so lazy today?" A girl's voice arose from behind him.

"What do you mean by that?" In fact, Anfey had already seen Doris, but he pretended not to and walked by her. He turned around as she called him.

"I can usually see you in the woods by the time I get to the Mage Academy, but you came at the same time as me today."

"Wow… The woods!" the girl next to Doris screamed. "Doris, tell me, tell me, which woods was it?

"Doris will never tell you! That's her secret!" Another girl burst into laughter.

"Stop it." Doris blushed. "This is my friend, Anfey. This is Rhone. This is Jenova. They are my good friends."

"Hi, Hi." Anfey smiled and nodded at them. His attention was drawn by the crowd behind them.

"Anfey? You are Anfey?" Rhone screamed in surprise.

"Is there any other Anfey?" Anfey asked, confused.

"The apprentice of Archmage Saul, who came to our academy to be a servant. Is that you?"

"Probably… Yes."

"We were talking about you a few days ago. Oh, right, Doris. How could you keep this a secret for so long!" Rhone said loudly.

"You never know, Rhone!" Jenova posed like she knew everything. "Good stuff is always kept to oneself!"

"You... The two of you…" Doris could not take it anymore and she threw herself at them.

Unfortunately, Rhone and Jenova were well prepared for her reaction. They ran away immediately. Rhone even turned around, screaming as she ran, "Doris, you do not need go to school today. I will ask the professor for a day off for you. You guys hurry up, otherwise the woods will be taken!"

"They… They were just joking… Please don't mind them," Doris said with a red face.

They felt awkward to be called a couple since they were just friends. Anfey didn't know what to say. "It's fine."

"Then… I am going to class now," Doris said. If they hadn't been made fun of, she might have gone to the woods with Anfey. She had learned everything in the Academy, but to be an advanced-level mage she needed to rely on her own understanding. However, she didn't dare to miss school today; she didn't want to risk being made fun of by Rhone and Jenova.

"Hold on," Anfey yelled.

"What's up?"

"Doris, can we find a quiet place? I need to ask you about something." Anfey thought about levitation magic.

"Uh…" Doris hesitated for a second and then nodded. "Alright."

Chapter 30: Waiting

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

"Anfey, what is it?" Doris asked beneath her breath, glancing around. There wasn't really anything between them, but now, after people began joking about it, it was as if there really was something. Doris shifted uncomfortably.

"Do you know how to use levitation magic?"

"Um, not particularly. Why?"

"Didn't they say mages can start practicing it at the novice level?"

"You mean a space wizard," Doris said, grinning. "I'm a water wizard. I can't practice other element's magic before I become an actual mage. Why?"

"You can't help me then," Anfey said, disappointed.

"Help you? You're not saying you want to do levitation, right? You've got to be crazy."

"I'm not," Anfey said, whispering a few spells. His body began rising in the air.

"Anfey, no!" Doris covered her mouth with her hands, trying not to make a loud noise. An apprentice using high-level magic was unheard of, as they might very well lose control over the magic. If she startled him, something would surely go wrong.

However, in her panic, Doris did not notice the fact that Anfey's magic had been used silently.

Anfey was entirely focused on the control of his magic, despite how seemingly dangerous his wobbling body was. He could feel the surge of his magic, but he could control so little of it. It felt as if he had the entire ocean at hand, but he could only hold a tiny scoop in his hands.

The longer he stayed in the air, the more magic escaped from him. He began falling from mid-air.

Doris raised her right hand, and a ribbon of water suddenly appeared from the grassy ground and caught Anfey in the air. He tumbled onto the ground.

"You're absolutely out of your mind!" Doris cried angrily. "You're just an apprentice. Using intermediate level magic will kill you!"

"I…" Anfey opened his mouth to say something but, in the end, chose not to argue. He wouldn't get hurt falling from this height. Now that he was drenched in water, he felt his nose itching and knew that a cold would be coming soon.

"Do you know how dangerous that was?!" Doris asked pointedly.

"I said I would be fine!"

"Those wizards that lost control over their magic said so too! Nonsense!"

"Alright, alright," Anfey said, defeated. He came from a world where innovation and novelty were applauded, and there were easy ways to solve almost every problem. He wanted to use the least amount of work to achieve the greatest amount of success. This world had already developed an entire system of magic and its studies, but he didn't want to follow tradition. He looked up to Doris because he wanted to exchange some of his experience with her. At this time, he was far too juvenile to discuss magic with people like Saul or Steger. Doris was his best choice so far.

"Anfey, I understand. For someone like you, studying magic in the Academy in secret as a servant is going to be embarrassing. Men, always leaving everything behind your honor. But you're pushing yourself too much!" Doris exclaimed. "Last year a student did what you did, and he lost control over his magic. Three years ago, a high level mage used a forbidden spell, ten years ago…"

"Doris, I understand. I get it," Anfey responded as Doris's example began tracing back hundreds of years. He had to respond sincerely to stop Doris from going mad.

"You're lucky," Doris said conclusively. "If you keep this going, your body may not hold magic anymore."

Anfey closed his eyes and pretended to meditate, but was interrupted by several sneezes. "I'm fine," he said. If he didn't do anything, then he would probably be sick by tomorrow.

"You're too careless," Doris said. "God, why did Saul ever take you in?"

"Doris," Anfey said, trying to shift the topic. "Are you free later? After class, I mean."

"What?" Doris looked at him, surprised. Who would ask a girl out so directly? Doris smiled.

Anfey was direct in learning magic, and it appeared that he was direct with girls too.

Girls tended to be sensitive, and after a few jokes, Doris began to notice Anfey as well. And now this question… His intentions seemed very clear.

"I want to ask you a favor."

"What is it?"

"I have a letter. Can you go to Master Saul's place and hand it to someone called Ernest?"

"Letter? Ah, alright," Doris said, blushing. She had thought that she didn't know Anfey well, and was going to turn him down. Now that she realized his intention wasn't anything romantic, she felt embarrassed and disappointed.

"You have a pen?"

"Yes," Doris said, pulling out a quill from her pocket.

Anfey glanced around. He found a book from his ring, opened the book to the blurb section and ripped it out.

"Hey!" Doris called, but it was too late, and the page was already separated from the book.

"What?" Anfey looked at her, strangely.

"You are so careless with public property! Why are you ripping apart the book? Do you know how much effort I had to make to get one when I was an apprentice?" Doris asked angrily.

"This is not the school's, but my professor gave it to me."

"Then it's even more wrong! You should treasure a gift from your professor forever, not ruin it like this." Doris suddenly felt that Anfey perhaps had a lot of shortcomings: rushing into things and disregarding property. So as a friend, she felt responsible to help him improve.

"I'm sorry," Anfey said. "It won't happen again." He wrote down a few words on the paper and handed it to her. "Don't forget it."

"No worries, I have an excellent memory," Doris said, putting the paper in her pocket. "Anything else?"

"No." Anfey shook his head.

"Then I'll be on my way."

"Go ahead," he said.

"Alright. Remember to change your clothes, as you're all wet. Otherwise you'll get sick."

"I'll be fine. I'm going to find Headmaster Steger in a bit."

Doris nodded. She began trekking out of the woods before turning back, "Anfey, who did you say I should give the letter to?"

"Ernest. A man called Ernest."

"Alright," Doris said. "Ernest? You mean Master Swordsman Ernest?" Ernest's reputation may not be good, but it was still there. There were very few who did not know his name.

"Shhh, keep it a secret for me, would you?" Anfey asked, pressing his finger to his lip.

"Alright," Doris nodded. It was Anfey's secret, and she wasn't in a position to ask anything.

Seeing that Doris had disappeared, Anfey extend his right hand and summoned a small ball of fire. The fire traced along his body as if it had a mind of its own. As it passed, the water evaporated from his clothes. If Saul had seen it, he would be shocked. Even an archmage like him could not control elements as well as this. Anfey had already mastered the way of controlling small amounts of elemental magic.

After a few seconds, his clothes were mostly dry. He dispersed his magic and sank into his thoughts. Anfey was certain that he was being followed. After a few glances he had already spotted his followers, but Anfey didn't know why anyone would bother to do such thing.

Ever since leaving the island, Anfey thought that he was careful enough to not catch any attention. He had only two enemies, Maris and Melinda. Were they finally deciding to strike out against him? Possible.

He never thought he would be in trouble, since he had laid low for so long. Of course, things happen because they were bound to happen, not because he wanted or didn't want them to happen.

Anfey closed his eyes and began meditating. The Academy was full of powerful mages. As long as he was with a teacher or any mages that were above him, whoever was following him wouldn't dare to move carelessly. As long as he was in the school, he would be safe.

Chapter 31: Fruitlessness

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

"Anfey!" Christian smiled as he approached.

"Christian, why are you here?" Anfey raised his head in surprise.

"Mr. Ernest told me to." Christian laughed. "You really aren't easy to find. It took me a while. Eventually, I ran into a girl called Jenova and found out you were here."

"What did Uncle Ernest say?" asked Anfey.

"Mr. Ernest asked me to accompany you home. He said he knew." Christian looked at Anfey.

"Oh, yes, on the way to school today I found Maris following me quietly. Christian, you know that I am just a magic apprentice. If they wanted to hurt me, I would be screwed, so I asked for protection from Uncle Ernest," Anfey justified. He intentionally brought up Maris, or else he wouldn't be able to explain his concerns.

"How dare they!" Christian frowned. Since Maris had been driven out of Saul's home, they were no longer family. Christian would not allow Maris to harm Anfey.

"They both probably hate me a lot." Anfey shrugged his shoulders.

"Shameless people are everywhere!" Christian sneered. "They conspired against you first. If they want to frame someone, should that person just do nothing and wait for trouble? I think not! What do they want? Professor only kicked them out of his home, but I think that punishment was too light! If I was Professor, hum..."

"Oh, I felt very awkward too. Not much you can do." Anfey smiled back wryly.

"But caution pays dividends. Anfey, do you normally come to the academy after breakfast?" Christian became Saul's student long ago, so he rarely went to the Mage Academy. There was no wonder that he was not familiar with the school schedule.

"Yes."

"I'll accompany you to school starting tomorrow."

"Thank you, Christian." Anfey grinned.

"You're welcome! Let's go. Anything else you need from school?"

"Nope." Anfey shook his head. They took their time and left the Academy side by side.

Although the day's classes had been over for a while now, the nearby street was still quite busy. Anfey and Christian were carrying a quiet conversation while enjoying the night's view. Anfey appeared to be poised, as he was used to following instead of being followed, but Christian acted a bit nervous. From time to time, he would look over his shoulder, seemingly looking for something.

"Christian, relax. There are so many people around, they are not going to bother us right now."

"I know—" Before Christian could finish, they saw a carriage in the distance rushing toward them. The people on the street dashed to the sides to make way for it. Anfey was more alert, but Christian also gathered his magic power and pulled out a scroll with his left hand.

The curtain in the cart was blown open while the carriage flew by Anfey and Christian. A sharp, hawk-like gaze laid on Christian, and then turned into a mild smile.

Though the carriage passed Anfey in a flash, he saw exactly what happened. He could not help but start observing Christian covertly.

"Why did he come back?" murmured Christian.

"Who is he?"

"Baery."

"You know him?"

"I..." Christian had recovered from the shock. He smiled and shook his head. "I do not know him in person, but I know his name. Everyone in Maho Empire heard about Master Swordsman Baery!"

Anfey chuckled. "I don't."

"You... Go to the library and check it out. Books about him will take you days and nights to read!"

"That famous? Fill me in with a summary, please."

"He is the vice marshal of the Maho Empire East Corps, and the commander of the Death Roar Legion. I couldn't list all of his meritorious services within a day even if I tried." Christian regretted that he negligently revealed the name of Baery. Baery secretly returned to the Sacred City, apparently a result of a new deployment by the empire. The spread of this news could be very unfavorable to the empire. But since Anfey already knew, Christian could not just blow it off. He needed to find ways to make it up. "Anfey, what I just told you, please keep it to yourself and don't tell anyone. Anyone! Ok? "

"You can rest assured that I will keep this secret." Anfey rubbed his nose and concluded the conversation. He felt that Christian and Baery must have a tight relationship, and that Christian was lying. However, since Christian did not want to talk about it, Anfey needed to not pursue an answer. Especially since he was new in town, even if he wanted to collect information, he would not know whom to go to. Anfey planned to just drift along.

"Go here." Anfey suddenly pointed to an alley.

Christian immediately understood Anfey's idea. Even if Maris had the nerve to do something, he would not dare to publicly take Anfey down in the middle of the Sacred City. Anfey was trying to lure Maris out. Gutsy move!

Christian followed Anfey into the alley. He turned to Anfey seriously. "You are not afraid of Maris' assault?"

"I have you here, why would I be?" Anfey smiled. In fact, the truth was "I have Ernest here, why would I be?"

"Do not lower your guard," Christian warned Anfey.

"I don't want to be too bothered by it. I just want to get it over with. Christian, if Maris really does attack, and there's a casualty... what should we do?"

"It doesn't matter. Maris has become a joke. His deed was well-spread, and even the Mage Union wouldn't support him anymore." Christian shook his head. "But... Anfey, are you sure it was Maris?"

"It has to be him."

"I didn't feel any magic fluctuations." Christian frowned. "Did you just accidentally run into Maris?"

"He followed me along the entire street. It can't be an accident," Anfey said firmly. "Let's slow down. They might not have kept up with us."

Anfey and Christian reduced their speed. But even after they passed the entire alley and waited for a while at the end of the street, nothing happened. They did not sense anyone approaching them either. What a headache! Anfey felt himself being tracked for sure, and those people must be after him for something. The problem was that he had shown himself, yet the enemies were still hiding in the dark. Ernest could protect him for some time, but not every day going forward. If those people really had the patience, then they would find their opportunity soon enough.

"Anfey, it didn't seem... there was anything." Christian looked at Anfey.

"Maybe they didn't think today was the right time," Anfey muttered. As an assassin, he was used to hiding in the dark. Suddenly becoming someone else's target, Anfey was very unsettled.

"Anfey, do not worry. I will send you to school and pick you up every day. You have my protection. You will be OK."

Anfey grimaced. He was not a kindergartener and really didn't need to be babysat every day. What he needed to do was find ways to solve this problem for good.

"Come on, let's go home first," said Christian.

"OK." Anfey nodded. Go home first, then come up with something.

In Saul's dining room, Niya was sitting at the table and talking with the other students. Ernest was not here, as he had not yet returned. Niya was cheerful and was dancing around. She seemed to be very content.

Anfey and Christian took their seats, as Niya shouted, "Anfey, do not blame us for starting without you. It was Christian that told us not to wait."

"It's alright." Anfey smiled. "Look how happy you are! What are you chatting about?"

"Miss Niya was talking about her future." Blavi laughed.

"Future?"

"Miss Niya said her future Prince Charming would be the most powerful, most handsome man in the the Pan Continent. He will protect her and bring her—"

"Shut up!" Niya disrupted him.

Anfey was confused. Hadn't Niya's prince already been chosen? The second prince, Granden, wasn't he? Why was she still daydreaming? "Granden—"

Blavi kicked Anfey under the table before Anfey could finish his sentence.

"I am warning you all! No one will ever mention him again!" Niya's face turned cold.

Anfey snickered. Niya's mentality was still far from being mature. Her so-called "love" was just like a child's new toy. Anyway, based on her reaction, she must still think very highly of Granden.

"Miss, Prince Wester is here!" A servant hurried into the dining room.

"Lead him to the living room and wait for me. I'll be right down." Niya pushed the plate aside quickly and ran to the stairs.

Christian and the rest of the students looked at each other. To be fair, Niya was blessed with exceptional beauty. Otherwise, she would not be known as the Sacred City Pearl. There were all young men here, and inevitably, they all more or less were fond of her. But the status disparity between Niya and the students, on tops of Niya's bad temper, made everyone think twice about romance and suppress their inner desires. Reality proved that they were correct. Niya would never pick them for a relationship. The younger prince had just left, and now came the oldest prince...

Chapter 32: A Gadget

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

"Anfey, what are you doing?" Ernest walked out of a bush, looking curiously at Anfey.

Ernest had no idea where Anfey brought a huge pot from. Anfey had built a simple stove with stones. There was a big fire inside the stove and no water in the pot. The pot contained very fine, greyish-white stones, which Anfey was constantly stirring with an iron stick.

"A gadget." Anfey smiled. "Uncle Ernest, why didn't I see you yesterday? I went to your room to look for you several times, but you weren't there."

"Yesterday you asked that little girl to send me a letter, saying you had some unavoidable trouble which had to be dealt with immediately. I sent Christian to look for you. He could help you if anything happened, and I was following the two of you as well."

"How about this evening?"

"I walked around here at night, but didn't see any suspicious people." Ernest smiled.

"You didn't find anything?"

Ernest shook his head. "Not even a shadow."

"It might… be me being too cautious, haha." Anfey decided to solve this problem on his own. He should not have involved others.

"No!" Ernest had a sly smile on his face. "Do you still remember the Rose House Hotel?"

"Yes, that night was so dangerous!"

"You told Saul that you felt something was wrong before you went to sleep that night, right?"

"Huh… yes, that day I felt…"

"You don't need to explain anything; I trust you." Ernest smiled. "After I received your letter, I got really nervous. You wouldn't ask for help from me if you didn't run into serious trouble."

Anfey didn't respond with anything. "Thank you" was not enough to show how much he appreciated it.

"Anfey, what are you going to do with this?" Ernest looked inside the pot.

"You will know later." Anfey gave him a sly smile and poured the powder in the pot into a small iron wok he had prepared.

"You…" Ernest grinned and shook his head. "Huh? Anfey, why did you pick those flowers?"

"I like their fragrance."

Ernest grabbed a handful of withered petals and smelled them. "Fragrance? I cannot smell anything."

"Uncle Ernest, is there anything wrong with your nose?"

"Nonsense!" Ernest threw the petals away. "You could have practiced magic with all this time. Why would you act like a little girl, picking flowers everywhere?"

"These petals are good for your body!" Anfey rolled his eyes.

"Bullshit. Why don't you buy some perfume if you like the fragrance?" Ernest stood up slowly. "Move, let me see that… Snake Spear!"

"Uncle Ernest, I am busy now. Tomorrow, ok?" Anfey smiled grimly. He went to pick up all the petals Ernest had tossed away, putting them on a stone and placing an iron stick on top of them.

"Making it so mysterious, I think you are already qualified to be an alchemist." Ernest felt helpless and sat down.

Anfey gave Ernest a big smile but didn't say a word to him. He continued to focus on his work.

"Anfey, from now on, I will have someone take you to school. Don't worry, I will follow you without anyone seeing."

"Christian already agreed to go with me." Anfey smiled.

"Ok." Ernest nodded. "Christian is a good kid."

Anfey did not stop working until breakfast time. He put all the stuff away carefully. Ernest was still quite confused about what Anfey was doing. Ernest tried to test him a few times, but Anfey didn't tell him anything, so Ernest didn't bother asking again.

Christian usually meditated until midnight and woke up late in the morning. He rarely had any breakfast, but he remembered his promise to Anfey and woke up very early this morning.

Anfey chatted with Ernest in private for a while before leaving the house together with Christian.

It had been a safe trip so far and they already saw the gate of the Mage Academy in front of them. Anfey was a little disappointed. "Christian, you can go back now. I think I will be fine today."

"Okay, be careful." Christian nodded.

Suddenly, there was a quarrel in front of them. A woman with long light-green hair and a graceful figure was arguing with a big man with a long sword hanging on his waist.

No matter where it was, there was never a lack of onlookers. In a second, there was a big crowd around the couple.

"You b*tch. Will you go with me or not?"

"Go f*ck yourself. You are trash. Stop bothering me!"

"Do you f*cking dare to say that again?"

"I said it. What are you going to do?"

Their argument was clearly getting intense. Onlookers were chatting and laughing quietly. They were either guessing the reasons behind the couple's fight or talking about the woman's figure and appearance. Most people held the attitude that the argument was none of their business. At the end, a high-level swordsman with an ugly face walked into the scene, trying to stop their argument.

Anfey and Christian walked into the crowd. Something happened which moved Christian to the front of the crowd. Before he could stop, Anfey dragged him through half of the circle, ending up in front of a few females students of the Mage Academy. These female students gave them a lot of dirty looks. They were unable to move anywhere else, as the crowd seemed packed, and had to stand on the tips of their toes to watch the couple.

The couple's argument was getting hotter and hotter. It was unexpected to see a woman with a nice figure and a beautiful face have such a hot temper. She yelled out a curse and then pulled out her sword, thrusting it backhanded towards the man's chest.

The man had a quick reaction as well. He moved sideways and slid diagonally. He avoided the blade of the sword and then hit her hard in the back. In other words, he pushed hard on her back.

The woman failed at stabbing his chest and could not control her body, continuing to rush forward. With the push on her back, her rush was sped up. However, her sword was pointing at Anfey in the crowd, not anyone else.

Once Anfey was in fighting mode, nothing seemed to be unexpected to him. Assassinating, guarding, tracking, and covering tracks were nothing to Anfey. He was exceptionally experienced with these. In any unusual situation, he would be 120% alert and would not allow himself to miss any details.

The moment the woman pulled out her sword, Anfey had already grabbed the paper package under his belt with his left hand and tossed his simple-looking wand out with his right hand. What he tossed out later was that paper package. In other people's eyes, this magic apprentice was panicking in shock. He threw away the wand and the gadget he carried around. They must have thought Anfey was thinking of neither attacking nor defending. He must have acted on instinct.

The woman did not show any fierceness in her eyes until the sword was two meters away from Anfey's chest. The man followed next to the woman. The high-level swordsman showed his true colors as well, throwing himself at Anfey from the side. Obviously, this was plan A, B, and C. If one missed, the next one would continue the attack. If the second strike failed, then the third one would attack.

Anfey could finally show off the fireballs he had practiced so long and hard. He swung his hand out, and a fireball rapidly shot towards the paper package. The fireball's speed was a lot faster than what most magic apprentices could do.

With a huge noise, the fireball splattered the contents of the paper package. The quicklime inside the paper package formed into a cloud of smog, and all three of them were submerged in this smog.

Anfey did not randomly switch his position. The girls standing behind him were real students from the Mage Academy. He didn't have to worry about any attack from behind. Where he stood was upwind, which ensured the quicklime would not blow back to him.

The couple did not know what Anfey had thrown out and laughed inside when they saw his fireball falling before it hit them. They were rushing forward with no idea of what was going to happen to them. Their cries and screams rose in the air. The high-level swordsman behind them was confused when he heard his fellows screaming. He stopped himself and take a few steps back, watching what was happening ahead of him.

Christian's reaction time was a lot slower than Anfey's. Christian shot out an entry-level lightning arrow which hit the woman in the front. She was rubbing her eyes hard, not able to see anything. She even forgot to use her combat power to protect herself. With a numb feeling, she could not help but fall to the ground. The man was running around like a blindfolded donkey. He accidentally tripped over the woman's leg and fell on the floor.

Christian now had time to chant. Anfey took out a paper package from his shirt, tossing it towards the high-level swordsman.

The high-level swordsman realized his fellows must have been hurt by the "dirt" Anfey tossed out at this moment. He knew they had failed when he saw Anfey tossing out another paper package, and the entry-level mage was chanting next to him. He didn't dare to stay where he was, so he turned around and slashed his sword toward the crowd.

The people in the crowd scattered in all directions, making a path for the high-level swordsman. By the time Christian finished chanting, he swung magic wand forward. There was an electric arc cleaving towards the high-level swordsman.

The high-level swordsman was quite alert. He lifted his sword, tossing it into the air. The electric arc hit the sword. The sword span in the air and fell to the ground. Luckily, no one got hurt.

Soldiers didn't usually throw their weapons in battle, since they wouldn't be able to continue to fight even if they could escape. However, it was to save his life, so he didn't hesitate.

Christian was so enraged that his teeth clenched. Before he could use his magic again, that high-level swordsman had already run into a store and disappeared.

"Chase!" Christian yelled.

"No need," Anfey said as he held Christian back.

Chapter 33: Knell

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

The Sacred City was prosperous, but like every other city, it had its own slums. Located at the northwestern part of the city was a group of squalid wooden houses, and near where the wall was were straw huts.

In one of the huts, a man sat in silence, staring at a candle. He was around fifty and had on a pure-white wizard's robe. There were no windows in there, and since he could not pull aside the piece of fabric used as a door, the candle was necessary for him to see what was around him.

A carriage came toward the slum. It was slow and appeared old, a fitting appearance for the slum. If it was lavishly decorated, the residents would all be gathered around the street, trying to catch a glimpse of the carriage.

The curtain of the carriage was pulled aside and someone observed the slum from the inside. Then he jumped out of the carriage and hurried into the hut.

"My Lord!" he called. "Trouble, my lord! Trouble!" He was clearly a high level swordsman, which made his action of kneeling on the floor seem strange and borderline ridiculous.

"You failed?" The old man asked.

"Yes."

"And you were not followed?"

"My lord, I came according to our first plan. They could not have followed me," the swordsman explained.

"Mhm," the old man said, nodding.

They were both a part of the secret organization called Magic Fog. It had existed for hundreds of years and much of its way of operating had become systematic. Many things, such as escape routes, had four different types: blooming, falling leaves, scurry, and puppet. The leader of the operation usually decided which plan to use.

"Blooming" meant that there would be a temporary safe house near the target. When a member of the organization entered the safe house, the house would dispatch several carriages that would go in several different directions. When the carriage arrived at a designated location, more carriages would appear, heading in more directions. This greatly lowered the chance of any members getting caught.

In comparison, "falling leaves" was much more dangerous. The leader of the mission would place the strongest member at an ideal point for ambushes, or he would be involved in the plan himself. In case the mission was unsuccessful, the leader would lead the target to the ambush, sacrificing his life to ensure the mission was successful.

"Scurry" meant that the members would use the city's sewage system or premade tunnels to escape. "Puppet" involved the use of several decoys to confuse the pursuers. Of course, specific missions had their own specific plans.

"Did Anfey use any combat power?"

"No, my lord."

"Then how did he defeat you?"

"I saw him throw a paper bag, my lord, and light it on fire. There was some dust flying out of the bag, and I heard Gina and Peter's screams. I was frightened, my lord…"

"You said Anfey defeated them with a bag of dirt?"

"Yes."

"Then you came back by yourself?"

"My lord, I couldn't stay there. Anfey had a junior magister with him, I couldn't risk staying there any longer," the swordsman loudly begged.

"Be quiet. You know this is only a probe. I won't punish you, even though this result is unsatisfying…" Before he could finish, however, he suddenly summoned a shield of water and his body stooped downward.

The flash of a sword swept across the hut, cutting the shield into droplets, grazing the head of the old man, and hacking the back wall of the hut in half. Two people appeared in the hut that now seemed more like fence.

The swordsman recognized Anfey and Ernest, becoming pale. "Impossible!"

Anfey didn't say anything. He played with a white candle and stared at the old man. He had many questions, but with Ernest there, he didn't want to ask anything. Did he make a series of mistakes he wasn't aware of that required him to lie even more? More lies in order to explain to Ernest his unexplainable past?

Although many didn't realize it, lying was a very strenuous and difficult thing to do. Lying was easy, but keeping up with the lie was extremely difficult. One lie required a hundred more to cover it up. Like a snowball, it would only keep rolling and growing.

"Swordmaster Ernest?" The old man smiled bitterly. "I'm curious. How did you find me?" He couldn't think of any weak links in his plan.

Ernest pressed his lips together and tightened his grip on his sword, which was now shining even brighter than before. He wasn't the kind to make jabs once he had the advantage. Winning was winning, and Ernest didn't want to bother speaking.

Anfey didn't want to say anything either. It hadn't been hard to find them. The dirt had Anfey's custom spice, and unless they hid in a sealed room or a car, like a modern man, they could not outrun him.

"It is my deepest honor to spar with you," the old man said politely, holding out his wand, waving it at Ernest. "The Great—"

Before the old man could finish his spell, the white candle flew out of Anfey's hand. The old man had focused all of his attention on Ernest; although he didn't know the extent of Anfey's abilities and had come to the city to probe them, his enemy at the moment was Ernest. He didn't pay any heed to Anfey, and the candle flew right into his open mouth. He screamed, falling backwards and stumbling to the ground.

"Anfey, respect your opponents," Ernest said, smiling.

Ernest was used to his own way of sparring, but Anfey was someone who wanted to take advantage of as much of the situation as he could. The two men had two completely different personalities. Them becoming as close as they were could only be chalked up to fate.

"They only know how to ambush, never showing themselves. They deserve no respect," Anfey said righteously. Who knew if he was talking about himself or the man in front of him.

"You," the old man pushed himself off of the ground, looking at Anfey with eyes filled with hatred.

"Do not celebrate just yet." Before he could finish, he began coughing and spitting out blood.

The candle had ruined his mouth, knocking out several teeth, making it hard to say anything at all.

"You do realize that he is issuing a challenge, right?" Ernest said weakly.

"Uncle Ernest, he is not qualified to challenge you! It's a disgrace!" Anfey said. He was never easily persuaded, and in fact was often persuading others.

"The Magic Fog will not…"

"Just go to sleep already," Anfey snorted, raising his hand. He couldn't hear what the old man was saying, and even if he did he wouldn't understand. He had decided to kill the old man to prevent him from spilling his secrets.

"Wait!" Ernest said, stopping Anfey. "You're the Magic Fog?!"

"Ha," the old man said, slumping on the ground, laughing, "ha, ha." Then his face began bloating, turning an unnatural black. A puff of black clouds emerged from his mouth, covering his entire body.

The swordsman by the door screamed. Like the old man, he was surrounded by the black cloud, but while the old man appeared happy, he was clearly in pain.

"What is that?" Anfey asked, alert.

"Damn it," Ernest said, return his sword to its sheath. "It's the death mages again."

"Death mages?" Anfey frowned. He knew very little about those people, only that they could turn the living into the dead and use bodies as puppets.

After a few moments, the clouds dissipated, and only two skeletons remained. The bones were gleaming; it was as if the two men had died years ago, rather than just now in front of Anfey and Ernest.

"They were both death mages?" Anfey asked, curious. One of the men was obviously a swordsman, and he had never heard of anyone that could train as both a mage and a swordsman.

"No, but a terrible one is controlling them," Ernest sighed. "Anfey, they will likely come back for you."

"It's alright," Anfey said. "If you're here to protect me, I have nothing to fear."

"Never mind, let's go home," Ernest said. Anfey was brave, but for Ernest it was a difficult and delicate situation.

Outside of the hut was a group of peasants trying to catch a glimpse of what had happened. The screams were so loud that everyone except for the deaf had heard the commotion. They wanted to know what happened, but seeing the two strangers leaving the hut, they automatically made way, watching the strangers fearfully.

Ernest had wanted to say something, but was interrupted by a wave of slow, solemn bells. The peasants turned, staring blankly at Mount Saint Brunswick.

Chapter 34: Intrigue

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

As soon as Anfey and Ernest stepped into Saul's place, they were escorted into the front hall by a gloomy butler. Confused as to what had happened, they saw that Niya and all of Saul's students had gathered there, and the atmosphere seemed heavy. Niya held her face in her hands, staring blankly at nothing, tear streaks still visible on her face. Christian's face was buried in his hands, and he was sobbing softly. Blavi was softly whispering something to Christian.

"What happened?" Anfey asked, his heart sinking. His instincts as an assassin caused him to be pessimistic. The only person that could cause this heaviness, that he could think of, was Saul.

Did something happen to him?

"Lord Anfey, did you not hear the knell?"

"Knell?" Anfey glanced towards Ernest. The bell from atop Mount Saint Brunswick? Sure, they had both heard it, but neither had thought much of it.

"His Grace has been reclaimed by the gods," the old butler sighed.

"Oh lord…" Anfey said and let out a sigh of relief. He didn't care for this majesty or that grace, just that Saul was fine.

Next to them, Niya sighed. She was very upset. The emperor had treated Niya like his own for as long as she could remember. If anything was wrong, Saul would still scold her out of courtesy, but Yolanthe would not tolerate any degree of mistreatment towards Niya.

Christian was sobbing even harder now, his shoulders shaking. Anfey, seeing that everyone was upset, decided that he would feign some sadness as well. No one here was as good as him when it came to acting.

The news of Yolanthe's death quickly travelled through the city. His manner of death was perplexing. The magic transportation portal he was using had a sudden mutation, and it had disappeared with the emperor inside. The four guards responsible for the portal were killed in a subsequent explosion.

The Royal Guards of the Sacred City now had no leader. If this situation continued, there were sure to be riots. Thankfully, Miorich was in the city. Using his position as a powerful golden knight, he was able to assume control over the Royal Guards and issue a state of emergency to stabilize the situation in the capital.

On top of Mount Saint Brunswick was a large platform. On the platform was a building with a huge dome adorned with realistic carvings. Near the railings was a throne made of warm jade, and in front of it was an eagle carved from stone. This was Yolanthe's ambition—even the eagles that ruled the sky must bow before him.

Usually, Yolanthe loved sitting in the chair and watching the scenery, but now the man on it was the oldest prince of the empire, Wester.

The portal on the platform lit up, and Wester's friend Brufit came onto the platform and slowly walked towards Wester.

"Your Grace…"

"I said not to disturb me," Wester said hoarsely.

Brufit's eyes lit up with a moment of sarcastic coldness, but soon turned to sadness. "Your Grace, I know you are upset, but now is not the time. You are in trouble, my lord, big trouble."

"It doesn't matter. Do not bother me."

"Your Grace…" Brufit sighed but didn't say anything more.

Not long after, Wester closed his eyes slowly, on his face an expression somewhere between laughing and crying. "When I was young, father always brought me here. He told me stories, looking at the moon and stars and the Holy City's lights. He had said that everything would be mine one day. I was too young then! I had asked if the moon and stars were mine, and he said they were."

Brufit didn't say anything. He knew he was better off listening.

"Then I got older and had two younger brothers. It was then I began to harbor a dislike for Granden and Rodhart. I was afraid that what was promised to me would one day be taken away from me.

"After I heard that father had died, I realized, why are we like this? We never know what we have until we lose it." Wester shot up from his seat, hitting the ground with his scepter. "What is this? What is the good in this? Tell me. What has this brought me?"

"Your Grace, please, collect yourself," Brufit said.

"Collect myself? What do you want me to do? Go back to being a petty little princeling?"

"Your Grace… this is something I don't know if I should say," Brufit hesitated. "Lord Yolanthe was an excellent king, and his brilliance was unmatched. It was because of him that the Maho Empire became one of the most powerful empires. But do you know how he managed it?"

"Keep going," Wester said softly.

"Because he had the will to fight," Brufit said. "He had the will to continue. You, Your Grace, have lost that."

"What do you mean?"

"This all happened too fast, leaving no time for a will. If you tell everyone that you are the king, who would believe you? Would Rodhart, who holds an entire nation state, believe you? Or Granden, who controls the entire empire's army? My lord, you have a fire burning under your throne, and if you don't collect yourself from your late father's death, you will be burnt alive."

Wester sat down slowly, his face pale. Clearly, Brufit's words had hit a sore spot.

"Your Grace, you always said that you disliked your brothers. Who could say that they didn't harbor any dislike for you?"

Wester smiled bitterly. He knew the rule of the court. When someone smiled at him, he always repaid it with a smile, and he knew that the others did so as well. He knew well what his brothers' attitude toward him was. But what could he say? He had ruined it single-handedly.

"Your Grace, I am very disappointed. As a friend, I ask you, you do not realize what you have until you have lost it, but do you want to lose everything once more?" Brufit said. Then he turned and marched towards the portal.

"What are you doing?"

"Your Grace clearly has no more use of me," Brufit said, smiling. "My job here is done." He turned and began walking towards the portal once more.

"Wait! What do you want me to do?"

Brufit smirked. He knew Wester wouldn't let him go. He needed friends in his moments of weakness.

"Your Grace, are you ready to hear my advice?" He turned slowly.

"Say, what should I do?"

"Simple. You need to fill yourself with the will to fight. Think, my lord. You have lost your father, do you want to lose the power and throne he left you as well?"

"No!" Wester said, determined.

"Right now, you need to spread the news of you inheriting the throne, to seek the approval of the people. Of course, your enemies will oppose you. All you need to do is find the strongest enemy and crush them."

"Enemy..." Wester smiled bitterly. He understood Brufit, of course, but he didn't know where to begin.

"Your Grace!" Brufit said after studying Wester's expressions. "Who do you think poses the most threat to you?"

"Who do you think?"

"Granden, of course. He holds an army of two hundred thousand, and has help from Archmage Saul. He is of the greatest threat to you."

"What do you want me to do? Miorich has control over all the armies in the city right now, can you make sure he sides with us?"

"I cannot be sure." Brufit shook his head. "You must earn his trust on your own."

"What do you mean?"

"His Grace's death was too sudden an event for us, as it was for Granden. He has not made preparations. And, my lord, do not forget how influential Archmage Saul is in the empire."

"That is what I worry about. Granden alone cannot command two hundred thousand, it was only because of Saul that he was able to manage it."

"What if Saul was on your side, my lord?"

"Impossible!" Wester said without a moment of hesitation. "Saul had always liked Granden, and Niya was fond of him as well. The last time we met, I scolded Granden, and Niya almost lost it."

"Think, my lord. Where is Niya, and where are Granden and Saul?"

"You mean…" Wester's eyes widened in shock.

Chapter 35: Do What One Should Do

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

Stepping into Saul's house, Anfey felt something different in the atmosphere. He could usually see a few servants at the entrance, but no one was there today. Anfey stopped, trying to sense the room. His face grew serious and stern.

Hesitating for a moment, Anfey lifted his foot, walking straight forward.

Passing an arch, Anfey met two men in swordsman suits guarding the entrance. They saw Anfey as well, and one of them laughed. "There's one more! Kid, come here!"

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" Anfey asked loudly.

"Quiet!" A swordsman kicked Anfey with full force, making him wobble forward. He patted Anfey's back several times with both hands. It seemed like he was checking to see if Anfey carried any hazardous goods. He pushed hard on Anfey's shoulders. "Get in!" With his almost neglectable magic surges and ridiculous magic wand, people could tell how "powerful" he was. The two swordsmen disregarded the magic apprentice.

Anfey stumbled toward one of the swordsmen. He already knew that these people had some evil plans, but… how daring were they to make mischief in Saul's house? Unless they were not forced, no one would dare to bother a top archmage's family. It was hard to imagine the consequences of angering an archmage.

The corners of his eyes laid on the sword shaft of one of the swordsmen in the front, as a group of people walked in from the back yard. After seeing who they were, Anfey dispelled his own ideas.

Niya, with a blank face, walked in front. She was followed by an intermediate mage in a light-green magic robe and a senior swordsman. There were seven or eight guards after them. They were all dressed in the uniformed armors of the Sacred City Palace Guards.

Niya had dirt on her clothes, and her hair seemed messy. She still wore her sword sheath on her waist, but the sword was gone. It looked like she had been through a tough battle.

Anfey couldn't believe what he had just seen. He had been in Sacred City for a while and had heard a lot about Niya from the students in the Mage Academy. Niya was pretty young and not yet mature enough, but no one could deny the fact that she was an important person. There were few people who dared to challenge her. There was one more thing that confused Anfey. Where was Ernest? Did they catch him as well?

Niya glanced at Anfey. It was probably embarrassing for Niya to be seen like this. She combed her hair back with her hands, sighed, and continued her walk.

"What are you looking at? Go!" Anfey was poked hard on his waist with a sword shaft.

Anfey screamed and crouched down with his hands on his lower back, moaning in pain.

The senior swordsman waved impatiently, and two guards came out, grabbed Anfey's arms, and took him away.

Anfey felt darkness in front of him, and then he was tossed past the living room and into the living room. Luckily, there was carpet on the floor, so Anfey wasn't hurt too "badly." Only, his moaning was getting louder and louder.

"What are you doing?" Christian yelled. Anfey felt that his neck was held by someone's arms. The force on his neck wasn't much, though. "Anfey, Are you ok?"

"Hurt…" Anfey screwed his face up in pain. He opened his eyes and quickly glanced at his surroundings. All of Saul's students came. Their faces were blank with rage. They volleyed questions at Christian. It was strange for Anfey to see each of them wearing dark and shiny bracelets on their wrists. The bracelets looked so tight that they were digging into their flesh. Were they… cuffs? For mages?

"Bastard! This is ridiculous. I am charge you!" Blavi squeezed himself out, pointing at the face of senior swordsman and yelling, "Who gave you the authority…?"

The senior swordsman slapped Blavi, smacking down the words he had not yet finished, and then he kicked Blavi's stomach. Blavi fell hard on the floor, curling up in pain like a cooked shrimp, with his hands on his stomach.

"Zeda! Don't hurt them!" The intermediate mage, who was watching Niya, yelled.

"Did you forget the order from the Lord? Who is going to be responsible if something happens to them when the Lord pursues this?"

"I will be fine. As long as the pearl of the Sacred City, Miss Niya, is okay, we will be okay." The senior swordsman named Zeda snickered. "These trash… Haha, who would care about them!"

An intermediate mage was a lot stronger than a senior swordsman in terms of power, but their positions were not merely ranked by power. Saul and Ernest's power were almost the same, but one was an archmage in the palace and the other was a skillful master swordsman wandering around. Children from the royal family enjoyed wealth and power, which made it hard for them be outstanding in regards to their power and skill, but they were all in high positions. Niya was an example of that.

Among these unexpected guests, Zeda seemed to be the leader.

No! Coldness flashed in Anfey's eyes. It was obvious there was only one lord in the Sacred City. He was Wester. After Yolanthe passed away, only Wester could take command of the Palace Guard Troop. It didn't matter if Wester was trying to convince Niya, use her to blackmail Saul, or both, he did not want to do it with force. He saved some room for himself if things did not work out the way they wanted. Just as the intermediate mage said, only Wester had the authority to give orders on how to treat Saul's students.

The blood on Blavi's mouth seemed to tell Anfey that this was not "unleashing some of their rage," but beating Blavi to death. Normally, Zeda should not have dared to go against Wester's orders, but what he was doing was trying to intensify the conflict on purpose. Something was wrong with him!

A swordsman walked in front of Anfey. With two clicking sounds, Anfey received the same kind of bracelet on his wrist.

"They even used an anti-magic bracelet on you…" Christian smiled bitterly.

A grinning man walked into the living room, bowed, and greeted them, "Mr. Zeda, I have opened the lab's door, and shut down the magic arrays. You can send people there at any time."

Anfey looked up, smiling grimly inside. That man was his enemy Maris! Judging from the malicious look he gave Anfey before he left, Anfey already knew Maris would not let what was between them go. However, he could not kill Maris. Who would expect this… After a period of only several days, they got the chance to meet again, but the situation had totally switched. This time Anfey was in the disadvantaged position.

"Good job!" Zeda smiled.

"Thank you, sir," Maris flattered with a satisfied smile.

Seeing the way of Blavi was being treated, Christian and others didn't dare to yell and curse, although they hated Maris for what he did. They stared at Maris with hatred to unleash some of their anger.

Maris's smiled even brighter once he saw Anfey. The way he looked at Anfey seemed like he had found some treasures. He slowly walked toward Anfey. Anfey pushed away Christian, straightening his back and staring at Maris.

If Maris hadn't shown up, Anfey would have pressed down any desire to wait and see what Zeda wanted to do. But now he couldn't take it anymore, because he wasn't sure how much torture he would have to endure from Maris.

"Anfey, Anfey, have you ever thought… you would be like this one day?" Maris approached with a sneaky, kind smile and patted Anfey's shoulder.

"Yes, I did." Anfey gave him a sneer.

"Huh?"

Anfey looked up at the ceiling and slammed his forehead into Maris's face. Everybody treated Anfey as a magic apprentice. Zeda and his fellows didn't think he vould pose a threat to them. Christian and his fellows did not believe a magic apprentice could change the situation. Maris even thought of Anfey as a toy, imagining all kinds of ways to torture him. This fierce and venomous strike turned Maris' dream into stars in front of his eyes!

Anfey grabbed Maris' throat with his left hand with lightning speed. Maris' scream was constrained by the tightness around his throat. Anfey lifted Maris up by his throat and used him as a shield, running towards Zeda.

Zeda was in such shock that he didn't have time to move back. He pulled out his sword and stabbed at Maris' back. Zeda's sword was thrust towards Maris' side. Anfey threw the body at Zeda, forcing him to lift his sword up, which left an area exposed to attacks. Zeda howled and gathered his combat power, ready to take Anfey's strike. Anfey had neither a weapon nor combat power. Zeda thought there was no way that Anfey could hurt him.

Even seeing how Anfey fought, Zeda still underestimated how fierce Anfey could be. He only had himself to blame for that. In the time Zeda spent trying to gather his combat power and pull out his sword, Anfey had already poked Zeda's eyes with two fingers.

Anfey's attacks were too fast and the distance between them was too short. Zeda only had time to close his eyes before feeling a sharp pain in his eyes. Anfey's index and middle fingers were already stuck in his eye sockets.

As a well-qualified assassin, he could kill a person without any weapon!

Zeda painfully uttered a piercing cry, stumbling backwards with his hands on his eyes. Anfey reached out to the shaft of Zeda's sword with his right hand. He pulled the sword out from Maris' body, and blood spattered everywhere.

All these happened too fast. When Maris' body was still flying in the air, Anfey had already beaten Zeda! Anfey slid to the side. He was already two meters away, rushing toward the intermediate mage behind Niya. Anfey was able to accurately and correctly calculate everything in this battle. He did not rush to attack the mage. Instead, he slid twice. It seemed so unnecessary, but in fact it was all part of his calculations.

From the angle he had fought from, he could avoid magic attacks, but Christian, behind him, could not. With his position changed, he not only ensured the safety of Christian and his fellows, but also used Niya to half-block the intermediate mage. From their previous conversation, Anfey knew they didn't dare to hurt Niya. If the mage wanted to use magic, he had to step sideways to start the magic. Anfey was sure the time taken to slide would be a lot less than the time needed to sidestep. Instead of losing, he had won!

Chapter 36: Escape Route

Translator: Nyoi_Bo_Studio Editor: Tennesh

Anfey dashed forward with sword in hand, lunging towards the mage like a preying leopard. The mage's reaction was just as Anfey had expected—he stepped aside, levitated, and then shot a few dozen blades of wind toward Anfey. Putting aside the fact that this intermediate mage could consecutively cast two spells, the ability to generate that many wind blades all at once demonstrated his unique and powerful magical prowess.

Anfey, however, totally overlooked the wind blades and continued charging forward. Christian and the rest were cold with fear toward Anfey. Most of them were still stunned, but even the few that were able to wrap their heads around the situation couldn't help Anfey. The anti-magic bracelets had restricted their magic, so none of them could do anything.

When the wind blades were less than two meters away, Anfey bent backwards. The blades grazed his body and planted themselves in the wall behind him.

The mage did not seem to get worried after the blades missed their target. He started chanting a spell. Those wind blades were mainly to keep the enemy from getting close; his most threatening skills would be ready after the chant finished.

Anfey was still dashing forward and had reached his maximum speed. After dodging the blades, he did not slow down. He was used to these kinds of movements. Maintaining his momentum, he continued gliding forward while keeping his body close to the ground.

Although his speed now could not compare to his speed when he was running, it was still faster than the intermediate mage's levitation. As Anfey reached the mage, who only floated about a man's height off the ground, he jumped up and slashed the man's leg off, like a hot knife going through butter. No one could maintain control of their magic under such pain. The mage screamed in agony and fell to the ground like a stone. Anfey pulled his sword up and left a fatal wound on the man's neck.

Then he turned around and swiped his sword toward Niya's neck, as if he wanted to cut her head off.

The senior swordsman behind Niya was greatly frightened. He dragged Niya backwards while holding his sword up to fend off Anfey. But how could he foresee Anfey's cunning attack? In no time at all, Anfey changed from swiping at Niya to pointing at the swordsman. He grazed Niya's neck and planted the tip of the sword right into the swordsman's throat.

Zeda's men were horrified. They had seen killing before, but nothing like this. In the blink of an eye, the battle was already over. Their superiors were bloodily slain one after another by Anfey, yet no one could even recall exactly how they lost their lives. However, no one backed off. Zeda was still holding his face screaming in pain. They had to retrieve Zeda if they wanted to live.

The men were holding up their swords, forming a half circle around Anfey as they approached him. He was pleasantly surprised, as he had expected at least one would be sent away to fetch help. Had they done so, Anfey would have had more trouble going forward. Thankfully, the circumstances were favorable for Anfey.

Niya was still in shock, terrified by what Anfey had just done. She subconsciously believed that Anfey wanted to kill her because she had offended him in the past.

Anfey pushed Niya away and shook his sword, waiting quietly. Zeda's men had surrounded Anfey, and they were all staring at him. None of them wanted to make the first move, though; they were all hoping their peers would initiate the attack.

Suddenly a mage's chant echoed in the living room. Anfey was nervous for a split second before recognizing Christian's voice. He breathed a sigh of relief and took a few steps back. The anti-magic bracelet on Christian's wrist had fallen off. Niya was now busy with Riska's bracelet. Obviously, Niya was the one who had released Christian.

Anfey was used to being alone and had forgotten about how powerful a dozen mages would be. Luckily, they had not forgotten about themselves. After Niya had been pushed away, Christian quietly asked Niya to help to get rid of the bracelet.

Zeda's group looked desperate. Anfey himself was horrifying enough, and now he had an entire squad of mages with him. It was impossible to win!

Christian held Anfey's magic wand and pounded it against the ground. A half circle of lightning began spreading across. When the lightning was about to reach Anfey, it carved a gap for him, as if it knew him, and then closed the gap to stun Zeda's men. Luckily, although Anfey's wand was almost useless, Christian himself was a junior mage whose magic was powerful even without a wand.

Zeda's men writhed in the lightning. They had combat power to protect themselves, but Christian didn't intent to hurt them with magic. Anfey's target was Zeda, and Christian's job was simply to immobilize Zeda's protectors.

Anfey smiled with praise. He jumped up quietly, swiping across the men with his sword. As Anfey was on his way back to Christian, the men were already falling to the ground. The lightning magic had only delayed them for a few seconds, but it was more than enough.

Anfey dropped the sword, his eyes flashed, and he kicked at the sword hilt. The long sword pierced through the air and planted into Zeda. Finally, the world was quiet…

Anfey's movements were very graceful. He had not intended to show off. This was just how he would normally act. Usually, after an assassination, the assassin would take the weapon away. However, sometimes Anfey would leave the weapon, if it was necessary. If the police investigated based on the weapons, they would find that they belonged to someone powerful enough to be out of the police force's reach. Well, from that point on, it would not be Anfey's business.

Anfey didn't expect to hear Zeda after he dropped his sword. That was why he chose to kick the sword and finish Zeda.

The room was so quiet that a pin drop could be heard. Everyone's eyes were on Anfey. They didn't know how to describe what they had just witnessed or how they felt about it, so they simply remained silent.

"You're insane!" one of the students cried. "You killed the Palace Guards! Palace Guards! We're going to be wanted by the empire!"

"Troick, I've already done it. So what do you want me to do now?" Anfey replied indifferently.

"Anfey, this is your problem," Troick shouted. "Go, turn yourself in. I don't want anything to do with this."

"Move," Riska said, shoving Troick aside. "Anfey, well done," he said, "but I want to know, what on earth are you? A mage or a swordsman?"

"Both," Anfey smiled, looking at Riska. Christian partnered with Anfey well, and he was also calm. Riska talked to him like a friend even after witnessing him killing a dozen men. And Zubin went to one of the bodies, rummaged through the pockets, found his stolen ring, and put it back on his finger. Anfey could tell all three had stories he didn't know about. The other students were either still in a daze, shaking with horror, or looking at Anfey with horror. Anfey was surprised how those three had handled their emotions.

"Why didn't you do something sooner?" Riska said, turning his gaze to their friend, Blavi, who was huddling on the ground, unconscious.

Anfey walked over and put his hand on his neck. "He's still alive."

"Really?" Christian hopped over and placed his hand outside of Blavi's lips. "He's breathing. Someone get the doctor!"

"Wait," Anfey said slowly. "Ernest. Has anyone seen him?"

They glanced at each other. Niya said fearfully, "No, no one had seen him for a while."

Niya had changed a lot. In the past, everyone tried their best to please her and accommodate her, and she had never experienced anything like this. She would never forget how terrifying Anfey was.

"For how long?"

"Since noon," Christian said.

"Know where he went?"

"Not that I'm aware of." Christian shook his head.

Anfey pressed his lips together. "We must make a decision. I am leaving the Sacred City. Anyone who wants to tag along is welcome, but you don't have to."

"Don't listen to that crazy person! He's going to lead us all to death!" Perhaps because Anfey's disguise was too successful, Troick dared to yell at Anfey, thinking that Anfey wouldn't hurt him.

"Hurry," Anfey said, ignoring him. "I am not going to hang around much longer."

"I'll go with you." Christian was the first one to join.

"And me," Zubin said lightly.

Soon, everyone except for Troick had made the decision to leave with Anfey. Things were pretty clear already. After killing so many people, the Empire would not let them go easily. Except for Anfey, everyone knew who Zeda was. Staying meant almost certain death.

After seeing Blavi being struck down, everyone had been enraged. Although Anfey's way of killing was brutal and terrifying, it made them feel better and eased their anger. Plus, Christian and Melinda had always been the center of attention of all the students. After Melinda left Saul, Christian became the one and only focal point. Christian's decision had great influence on the rest of the group.

"And me," Niya said frightfully. Sacred City was her home, her safe haven, but now, she was frightened and unsure. She needed to leave, and it was best to do it with someone she knew!