Chapter 1588 Joining Forces <TOC> Chapter 1590 Exhaustion
Translator: SumTLMan
After enduring a challenging duel for half an hour, Hilary emerged victorious.
Although Hilary was the final victor of this match, Angel observed that this “Shining New Star” had quite a few noteworthy qualities.
This “Shining New Star’s” real name is Izumi.
The reason everyone knew his name was because as soon as he stepped onto the stage, he beamed a smile as radiant as the sun and announced loudly to the entire audience using amplification magic, “I am the Shining New Star, Izumi, and Izumi is the Shining New Star!”
It sounded not just embarrassingly self-aggrandizing but also rather juvenile.
However, coupled with Izumi’s hearty and sunny smile, it won the hearts of a substantial number of female fans.
From the beginning to the end of the match, Izumi would flash a smile at the audience whenever there was a lull.
Among wizards, there are those who often wear a smile, but few have smiles that reach their eyes. Izumi was a rare find for Angel; his smile seemed to emanate genuinely from the depths of his soul.
It seemed that as long as he had the support of the audience, Izumi was extraordinarily happy.
Even if he ultimately lost to Hilary, and even if he covered his chest with a pale face, his lips tinged with traces of blood, his admirers looking pained, he would still offer them a comforting smile.
However, this man, who appeared to be an embodiment of sunshine from head to toe, was actually a soul wizard wrapped in an aura of death.
Izumi was very similar to “Soul of Stars” Saka; they both manipulated souls. Generally speaking, the disposition of such soul wizards would tend to be somewhat dark. Yet Izumi not only didn’t seem like a soul wizard, he appeared more like a fire elemental wizard, or even a cleric devoted to the light.
Moreover, it is said that since entering the Wizarding World, Izumi has almost always stayed in tomb ruins, frequently keeping company with the dead.
For a person like this to still display such a sunny smile, Angel felt deeply moved.
There’s no doubt about his strength; he’s even stronger than Saka. Unfortunately, the opponent Izumi faces is a drugged Hilary. As long as Hilary doesn’t doze off, there are truly few who can beat her.
If Hilary enters a frenzied state, she could even set her opponent’s blood on fire. However, so far, Hilary has only entered this state when facing Jiebo.
As the match concluded, although Izumi lost, the impression he left on Angel was actually quite positive. At least compared to his peer Saka, Izumi was much better.
After finishing the match, Hilary fell asleep in the corridor before even reaching the contestants’ backstage area.
In the end, it was Nausica who carried Hilary back.
Angel didn’t go to the Bliss Pavilion but returned to the Blooming Estate alone. By nightfall, Angel checked the advancement statuses on the communicator.
All of today’s matches have come to an end.
There was no suspense in Cherie’s match with “The Spring Waltz” Dominico; Cherie won.
Besides that, Angel also took note of other people’s matches.
Jiebo, known as the strongest apprentice, undoubtedly defeated his opponent. However, both Hilary and Jiebo are in the same group. There’s a strong possibility they’ll face off. If they do meet… all Angel can do is pray for Jiebo.
Carvelyn and Onassis have also advanced.
The former’s advancement was hardly surprising; dressed in the Shepherd God’s Garment, she’s a potential champion.
“The Philosopher” Onassis from Uto Academy, on the other hand, is a dark horse. Up until now, assessments can’t pin down his capabilities, and Angel is quite interested in him. If time permits, Angel even plans to watch his match.
Apart from these candidates who are looked upon favorably, the outcomes of some matches surprised Angel.
Sunisha, the “Cuisine of Spirits” who had an excellent relationship with Carvelyn, lost. She was defeated by “Phantom Moose” Trom.
Likewise, Yuridia, who had previously battled closely with Shalem, also suffered defeat. Her opponent was quite well-known, a member of the Song of the Deep Sea team like Jiebo——“The Philosopher Scholar” Suyatutai.
Moreover, Shirley, the disciple of the Water Ripple Witch, lost to an utterly unknown Azaz.
Angel had high expectations for these three because he had personally witnessed their strength and considered them among the top competitors in their peer group.
Regrettably, they all lost.
However, this also indicated that the talent pool in this Novastar Competition was far from shallow.
As Angel was checking the competition results on his communicator, suddenly, the device emitted a beam of light. Startled, Angel touched the energy node on the screen.
A pale-blue humanoid light sprite emerged from the glass pane of the screen.
“Good evening, Lord Pat,” said the sprite with elegant emphasis.
“Ah, it’s Antonio. What brought you here this late?” Angel inquired.
Antonio: “Lord Pat, here’s the situation…”
Antonio began to speak, and Angel gradually understood. After nearly two weeks of disputes between Muse and Rosen, a decision had been made to send a team to search for Ivo near the Guman Domain — essentially, to locate the Ghost’s Box of Reincarnation.
Angel was already aware of this. Although Muse and Rosen had been in disagreement, they had long reached a consensus——that they must find a way to rescue Ivo.
Given this common ground, deploying a team was just a matter of time.
According to Antonio, Fingernail Granny would also accompany the mission.
This news, although somewhat surprising, was also within the realm of reason. For Fingernail Granny, finding Ivo was not merely a matter of so-called binding connections; it was also to untie the knot in her heart.
Had it not been for this emotional entanglement, Fingernail Granny would not have kept her distance from alchemy for all these millennia.
It was for this reason that Antonio informed Angel.
By the time Angel arrived at the Research Institute, the area was already teeming with specialized mechanical airships, all dispatched to find the personnel for this mission.
Fingernail Granny was not standing amidst the crowd; instead, she stood alone to the side, her gaze fixed on the distant horizon. It was as if, through the oppressive darkness of the sky, she could see a figure standing on the other side of time.
Angel approached slowly, without uttering a word.
After a long period of silence, Fingernail Granny finally lowered her gaze and looked at Angel: “Do you think my sudden decision to leave is impulsive?”
While Angel did indeed harbor such thoughts, he verbally responded, “It’s your choice, Granny.”
Fingernail Granny shook her head: “I’m not acting impulsively, nor am I the main force in finding Ivo this time. I’m simply going to the Guman Domain to establish an outpost, much like how Horus came to Sky Mechanical City.”
If it’s just about establishing an outpost, anyone could go, right?
Perhaps sensing Angel’s puzzlement, Fingernail Granny chuckled, “I just want to be a little closer.”
Closer? Angel still did not understand Fingernail Granny’s sentiment.
“Don’t worry. Even if we do find the Box of Reincarnation, I won’t hastily enter it,” Fingernail Granny reassured with a smile.
Having her own considerations, Fingernail Granny knew where she stood. Angel refrained from further comment, taking out a box and handing it to her instead. “This is a newly alchemized ‘Shadow of the Cage,’ consider it a farewell gift.”
Looking at the box in her hands, a gentle light flashed in Fingernail Granny’s eyes.
“If it were anything else, I might have declined. However, I am happy to accept this Shadow of the Cage,” Fingernail Granny paused, “I have nothing else to give you in return. Anyway, I’ll be leaving, so my Fingernail Alchemy House…”
Angel quickly waved his hands, “No need, the Fingernail Alchemy House should stay with you, Granny.”
Fingernail Granny shot Angel a piercing look. “What, you thought I’d hand over the Fingernail Alchemy House to you? I’m just leaving temporarily. I might be back in a month or two. Don’t think I’d hand it over so easily.”
A sheepish expression crossed Angel’s face; he had indeed assumed that Fingernail Granny was going to gift him the Alchemy House.
“What I mean is,” she continued, “I’m leaving my Fragrant Wood Puppet——Neha in charge of the Fingernail Alchemy House temporarily. If you ever need materials in the future, you can go see Neha; I’ll instruct her to give you a discount.”
Angel nodded in appreciation. A little savings on materials was indeed a decent perk.
Leaning on her cane, Fingernail Granny nodded at Angel, “It’s time for me to go.”
As the airship slowly moved towards the horizon, the figure of Fingernail Granny gradually faded from view. All that remained was her final words, carried by the wind.
“Thanks to you, I’ve heard news about Ivo… Regardless, thank you.”