Chapter 47: The Failed Apprentice

Riding an Engel Swift-Spin Snail felt like riding a speeding car. As Magical Creatures selectively bred and modified through beast-taming magic, these creatures moved at incredible speeds, naturally possessing the 0.3-ring-level cantrip [Drift Spell].

They could run nonstop for five or six hours at high speeds, making them the preferred choice for wizard apprentices of Lilith's Cottage when rapid urban travel was needed.

Locke's gaze followed the Enforcement Squad's target, and his pupils slightly contracted—the familiar Dwarf Street lay ahead.

However, the iron statue of the Hearthstone Dwarf that once stood at the street's entrance had been forcibly removed, leaving behind a bare stone pedestal.

At the same time, a bizarre, rope-like humanoid figure stood at the street's entrance. Its limbs were unnaturally elongated, and its body was covered in appendages—child-sized arms sprouted from its shoulders, while a pair of adult arms and another pair of monstrous limbs protruded from its back.

A jagged hole pierced straight through its chest.

The humanoid monster clutched a third-class wizard apprentice in its hands. With a twisted mix of laughter and roars, it tightened its grip and crushed the unfortunate apprentice in an instant.

Flesh and blood exploded outward.

Among the panicking third-class wizard apprentices on Dwarf Street, most froze in shock, while a few desperately attempted to cast spells to escape their predicament.

But the feeble Mana of third-class wizard apprentices barely affected the monstrous figure.

The creature advanced relentlessly, shrugging off the spells as it scuttled spider-like through the street, its elongated limbs reaching out to snatch another Wizard Seedling from the terrified crowd.

"Almost... just a little more..."

"Where did I go wrong? I didn't make a mistake... My head hurts... Kill... kill... kill..."

"I have to become a Second-Class Wizard Apprentice... I can't fail... This is the last year... I refuse... Kill... kill..."

From the monster's head, Locke caught a glimpse of human eyes—blue irises drowning in madness, the last traces of reason fading away.

Captain Bruno Suarez observed the scene coldly and sneered. "How many times has it been this year?"

"Damn the Blood Curse Court. They plant spies to slip corrupted advancement methods into the hands of desperate wizard apprentices who've lost all hope, leading them astray until they turn into these abominations."

"All to crush our morale—to make us question whether the academy's system is flawed."

"Enforcement Squad, listen up. That Wizard Seedling is beyond saving. Its flesh has been deeply altered."

"Kill it. Collect its remains for disposal."

The next moment, the Second-Class Wizard Apprentices of the Enforcement Squad leaped from the snail's back, unleashing their cantrip models upon the mutated monstrosity.

["Minor Fire Arrow"]

["Acid Splash"]

["Mage Hand"]...

Under the command of Captain Bruno Suarez, over twenty Second-Class Wizard Apprentices coordinated seamlessly, quickly suppressing the monster altered by Dark Magic.

A Minor Fire Arrow struck the humanoid monster's right arm, causing it to explode, and the severed limb fell to the ground.

Captain Bruno Suarez chanted an incantation, casting the cantrip ["Thorn Whip"], manipulating the Tiff Loron Vine concealed beneath his wizard robe, coiled around his right arm.

Instantly, the vine lashed out like an iron whip, striking the humanoid monster's back and nearly cleaving it in two.

Moreover, Thorn Whip was an advanced cantrip from the Vine Hand series. Under the spell's effect, the Tiff Loron Vine sprouted needle-like barbs as hard as steel, flaying strips of flesh from the monster's body.

The humanoid creature shrieked in agony.

Just as everyone thought the monster was nearing its end, it suddenly tore away its tattered clothing, revealing a human wizard apprentice's head hidden beneath its chest.

Captain Bruno Suarez froze for a moment. Locke, standing beside him, noticed that the captain seemed to recognize the original identity of the head's owner.

Bruno Suarez muttered under his breath, "The Blood Curse Court… they're truly mad. Before, they only deceived our apprentices into using Grafting Magic from Necromancy to transplant limbs from powerful Magical Creatures, forcibly boosting their mental strength."

"But now, they've tricked our Wizard Seedlings into grafting the heads of dead wizard apprentices onto themselves."

"That head… I've seen it on the battlefield. It belonged to a Second-Class Wizard Apprentice from the Blood Curse Court. That Wizard Seedling actually transplanted that head onto his own body…"

Locke shuddered at the sight. "The Dark Magic power in that head is clearly stronger than his own. Is this a case of him grafting the Black Wizard's head, or the Black Wizard grafting his own head onto the apprentice's body?"

"Captain Bruno, I'm also skilled in the Vine Hand series of spells. Maybe I can assist you."

Bruno Suarez glanced at Locke standing behind him. "You're the new one, right? You're not wrong."

"Even within the Blood Curse Court, Grafting Magic is a forbidden art—a dead end."

"It twists you into something neither human nor ghost, severely warping your sense of self."

"Listen, rookie. Be careful. Our enemy now isn't just a failed experiment—it's an elite Second-Class Wizard Apprentice from the Blood Curse Court. Before death, he was already close to becoming a First-Class Wizard Apprentice."

"You don't have much combat experience. Stay on the fringes and observe. You overseas wizard apprentices have come a long way to get here."

"There's no need to push yourself."

Bruno Suarez gave Locke another look. "I believe in the principle of equivalent exchange. You weren't around to enjoy the patrol squad's glory days in Lilith's Cottage."

"There's no need for you to risk your life now."

Locke was taken aback momentarily before realizing why Captain Bruno Suarez was certain he came from overseas.

Any wizard apprentice who could join the patrol team at this time must have no significant background, perhaps not even fully aware of the underlying complexities.

Being from overseas, it was easy for others to guess.

A bizarre voice, resembling both a child and an adult, emerged from the chest-head of the humanoid monster. "Oh, if it isn't Bruno Suarez?"

"Hahahaha... You useless potion-brewing fools from Lilith's Cottage never expected me to enter this way, did you?"

"This body has been modified perfectly for my rebirth."

The head chanted an incantation: "Blood Feast is Truth, Dark Night Forges Eternity; Sin Condenses Shackles, Those Who Fear Light Forever Submit!"

Then, the head controlled the humanoid monster, initiating a transformation. The four monstrous arms on its back began merging, forming a pair of bat-like wings.

Its muscles and bones shifted grotesquely—its spine protruded from its back like a segmented worm, with bone spikes growing inverted and piercing through its flesh.

The chest-head gradually migrated upward, settling at the throat of the body, while the original head shifted to the left shoulder.

The head bared a pair of vampiric fangs.

Locke stared at the creature, sensing its ominous and unsettling Mana. "Blood Curse Court... Vampire..."

"No wonder it's called the Blood Curse Court."

"This must be a branch of necromancy—a smaller Magic category within the Curse Branch—using curse magic to transform oneself into a vampiric Magical Creature."

(End of Chapter)