Chapter Twenty-Six

Another day quickly passed. Lark once again spent his day inside the library. Finally, he finished reading the book written by the Grand Historian. To his dismay, the events recorded in that book were focused on the war of demons and mortals. The history of how several Kingdoms were founded were written too, but he was unable to find a definitive clue whether or not this was the same world or a different one entirely.

My only lead is the magician called Pollux. He's supposed to have founded that so-called Institute of Magic.

According to the book, the Institute of Magic founded by Pollux held enough strength to rival an Empire. If he looked further, he should be able to find records about it.

Lark went to the man guarding the lower floor of the library. He asked him where he could find records about the Institute of Magic.

"Pollux? Institute of Magic?" said the man. He yawned. "Easy enough. After all, this tower's named after that great magician. See those shelves over there?" He pointed at the shelves near the back. "Turn right after that one. If my memory serves me correct, there should be records about him over there."

"Thank you."

Lark went towards the shelf the man indicated. After brushing away the cobwebs, he looked through the titles. He picked two books and went towards the nearest table.

Pollux, the Millennium Magician.

The title of the book made Lark wonder what kind of person the magician was, for him to be given such title by historians. He started flipping through the pages and was struck speechless by what he read.

More than a thousand years ago, there existed a group of magicians capable of toppling Kingdoms on their own. Each of those magicians held enough might to fight against a dragon. The records of the old said that those people have reached the pinnacle of magic, a height never seen before.

Leanne, Deity of the Desert.

Pollux, the Millennium Magician.

Kubarkava, the Dragon Devourer.

Loumen, King of Beasts.

Leonard, God of Fighting.

Qeurvanu, God of Poison.

Uurvesk, the Great Emperor.

Dantes, Ruler of Fire…

These magicians, who were considered invincible in their own might, have one thing similar –

—They were all under the tutelage of a single person. A magician known to be the absolute strongest. The Arcane God – Evander Alaester.

After the death of their master, these invincible magicians went on their separate paths. Loumen, the King of Beasts, confronted the Demon Lord in the south and lost his life. Dantes, the Ruler of Fire, sacrificed his own life to resurrect the Phoenix. To this day, the whereabouts of the divine creature remained unknown. Leonard founded his own school, the Martial Arts school located in the Savage Land. Uurvesk conquered several small Kingdoms and founded the Great Empire.

In an attempt to revive their master, the Devourer of Dragons and the God of Poison conducted a ritual to open the gates to the Realm of the Dead. Unfortunately, the spell failed and the two lost their lives in the process. After their deaths, Leanne went back to the desert and created the White Stream Oasis, an absurdly large paradise where water and food never ran out.

Pollux, the oldest of all disciples, founded the Institute of Magic. There had been records that time indicating that Pollux successfully completed the Ritual of the Immortal. The ritual extended his life for another several hundreds of years, before he finally perished at the age of more than a thousand. As the oldest human in history, he was granted the honorary title – Millennium Magician.

Before the Institute of Magic was destroyed in the Fifth Great War against the Demons, it nurtured numerous geniuses that soon led different Kingdoms and Empires.

It was suffice to say that out of all the disciples of the Arcane God, Pollux engraved his name the most in history of humankind. His a thousand years of existence paved the way to the prosperity of magic.

Lark breathed in heavily. The things written in this book struck him speechless. He felt his chest tightening from shock.

So many questions ran through his head, but one thing was sure now: this was the same world, but a different timeline. If he went according to the dates in the books he read, then it had been more than a thousand and a half years since he died.

But why did he suddenly reincarnate now? And in the body of this noble at that? Did it have something to do with the attempt of Kubarkava and Quervanu to revive him? He was not sure. He held no answer right now.

And Pollux…

So, he successfully completed the spell I left behind before my death.

Lark was not sure if he should be happy or sad about this truth. That very same spell was the one that cursed his soul and led him to his death. Although he was sure that Pollux was unable to perfect the spell he created since he still died from age, he was certain that his disciple somehow managed to complete the spell.

Lark continued reading the book. After finishing all of the available titles related to his disciples, he finally came to a conclusion.

"Agh! This is driving me crazy!" he shouted as he ruffled his hair. The things he learned after reading those history books drove him nuts.

He felt the piercing glare from the guard.

"If you're not going to shut that mouth, get out!" he snarled. "It doesn't matter if you're the only person here right now. This is a damn library. Shut up!"

"Sorry," breathed Lark. The furious guard quickly faded away from his mind. His head was filled with various thoughts – thoughts of the fate of his disciples. Reading about their lives felt surreal, as though he actually went with them throughout that journey.

Lark knew that they were all dead by now. After all, more than a thousand years have passed since then.

"If I was reincarnated a bit soon. Around five hundred years ago, then maybe…"

Maybe, he could have met Pollux again, at the very least. He wanted to personally ask him why he performed the ritual that took the life of his master. Why such a sincere disciple like him extended his lifespan despite knowing the risks. Lark also wanted to see what kind of Institute of Magic he built. If it was Pollux, then he would have surely focused on support magic.

My disciples paved the way for the next generation. They created the path for the future magicians. But why is it that the level of magic in this era's like this? If the teachings of those guys have indeed spread far and wide, why is that common people don't even know the proper concept of mana?

Lark could not correlate the things he had read to what he was experiencing right now in this life. After all, a basilisk was already considered a Calamity Level beast in this Kingdom. Back in the Magic Empire, monsters like that would be eradicated in the blink of an eye.

It's unfortunate that my current shell's unable to move according to my will. I had to let the female basilisk go back then. Otherwise, it'll be too dangerous for this weak body.

A creature like a basilisk held a decent-sized magic core inside of their bodies. It would have greatly help Lark in expanding his mana had he gotten his hands on it. It was unfortunate, and he decided that he would hunt that monster down once he finished training his new body.

It'll take several years before I finish expanding the mana pool of this body to a decent level. Maybe the Head Merchant knows where I can find high grade mana stones? I'll ask him later.

Lark looked out the window. It was getting dark, probably an hour or two before dusk.

Originally, he planned on touring the city. But he no longer have the energy for that. After the shocking revelation, he simply wanted to lie down on the bed and rest, and think of various things.

He was surprised that only Loumen openly confronted the Demon Race after he died. It was a completely unexpected outcome considering the hate Leanne and Pollux have towards the demons.

What made them forgo of their hatred and live on normally after his death? Why did Dantes try to revive the Phoenix? Even Leonard, who used to hate associating with other people, founded his own Martial Arts school.

So many questions without an answer.

After putting the books back to their proper shelves, Lark wordlessly left the library. As expected, the men tailing him quickly followed suit.

Lark looked back and stared at the tower named after Pollux. According to most historians, Pollux was among the greatest magicians that have ever roamed this land, probably even greater than his master – Evander Alaester himself.

The bald, old man that used to follow him around have accomplished so much after Lark's death. Lark felt proud and at the same time crestfallen that he was unable to witness that day.

Lark heaved a sigh. "I guess I'm not such a bad teacher, after all." He smiled softly. "My disciples have accomplished so much in their lives. I only wish I could be there to congratulate them."

Lark noticed that tears have started forming at the corner of his eyes. He rubbed them off. "Damn, I'm getting sentimental."

After one last look at the tower, Lark went back to the inn and immediately fell asleep.