Translator: SumTLMan
With two formal wizards present, and one whose true self is a pinnacle figure in the Wizarding World, it would be hard for the Magic Craftsman to even contemplate death.
However, within a quarter of an hour, the Magic Craftsman had regained his mobility.
Prompted by the Traveling Merchant, he hastily produced his magical cottage and invited everyone inside for a discussion.
In the Wizarding World, entering a stranger’s magical cottage is generally taboo, as one can never be sure what traps might be hidden within, especially in an alchemist’s cottage, which is likely filled with various traps.
But this taboo only applies to those of similar realm or power. With three formal wizard level combatants on Angel’s side, there was no need to fear the abode of a mere second level apprentice.
Without any hesitation, they entered the magical cottage.
Indeed, the magical cottage contained traps, but the Magic Craftsman dared not activate them. Particularly because he noticed the red-haired wizard, who had pleaded on his behalf, eyeing three specific spots upon entering, spots where his mentor had installed traps.
It was clear that not only were they unafraid of the traps, they even knew their exact locations.
Seeing this, the Magic Craftsman dared not act rashly and glared at the Traveling Merchant, who seemed utterly unconcerned. Instead, the Traveling Merchant began to ponder what his next steps should be.
The Traveling Merchant was the first to step into the magical cottage. Upon entering, he immediately began showering Angel with obsequious praise.
The sole purpose of his flattery was to beg for mercy, specifically requesting that Angel either erase or alter his memories; this was not a problem. The Traveling Merchant’s only condition was that his memories related to the Merck Soul Source Oath remain untouched, as tampering with these contractually sealed memories would mean certain death.
This demonstrated the Traveling Merchant’s utmost desire to survive. Allowing one’s memories to be erased is akin to exposing them; if Angel chose, he could even dredge up the Traveling Merchant’s childhood memories. Even if he refrained from accessing the oath-related memories, it was still a bold decision.
A step behind, the Magic Craftsman was initially stunned by the Traveling Merchant’s audacity. Upon reflection, given the overpowering strength of their opponents, who could crush them as easily as ants, if they still clung to their pride, it would be a truly fatal adherence to vanity.
With this in mind, after a moment’s hesitation, the Magic Craftsman followed suit, mimicking the Traveling Merchant’s actions.
Angel, observing these two volunteering for memory erasure, was speechless.
He had just entered the cottage, intent on searching for items they needed, but before he could begin, both men had successively approached him.
Listening to their nearly identical flattery… or rather, the Magic Craftsman’s blatant copy of the Traveling Merchant’s words, Angel felt as if mosquitoes were buzzing in his ears.
Pinching the bridge of his nose, Angel interrupted: “Enough, both of you. Just follow my instructions, and there’s no need for us to kill you.”
The Magic Craftsman, being a newcomer, was unaware of what had transpired. However, the Traveling Merchant, understanding the situation clearly, knew that the two formal wizards opposite were not looking for him, but for the Magic Craftsman. Thus, the Traveling Merchant quickly said: “Then, my lords, I will wait outside. I assure you, I will not wander off.”
It was clear to everyone that the Traveling Merchant wanted to avoid overhearing any secrets and thus bringing trouble upon himself. The best course of action, then, was to promptly leave the magical cottage and be like a puppet, seeing and hearing nothing.
Angel did not intend to make things difficult for the Traveling Merchant, and indeed, there was little left that involved him. Thus, with a flick, Angel sent a wave of Nightmare Power into the brow of the Traveling Merchant, allowing him to leave.
Once the Traveling Merchant had left, the eyes of those present turned to the only person visibly trembling——the Magic Craftsman.
Despite his shivering legs, there was an unusual flush on the Magic Craftsman’s face. Angel, noticing this, realized that it was Daus’ doing. Earlier, Daus had helped Magic Craftsman recover his life energy, but had also played some tricks in the process.
However, it was nothing serious. It was merely an excess of life energy, not harmful to the body, though it might cause some discomfort. The sensation was somewhat similar to… an insatiable craving, a desire to vent but with no outlet, leaving no choice but to wait for the body to assimilate the excess vitality.
Angel glanced at Daus, who stood proudly, his eyes gleaming with pride: How about that? My masterpiece isn’t bad, is it?
Angel said nothing, merely updating his mental image of Daus: dislikes show-offs in front of himself, and… a bit petty.
But these were trivial details, returning to the main issue.
In the Magic Craftsman’s bewildered state, Angel revealed their purpose.
“Where is the top of the podium?” At first, the Magic Craftsman could not recall this matter, until Angel conjured an illusion of Raven before him, prompting the Magic Craftsman’s sudden realization.
“I remember now, yes, there was such a matter.” With a trigger for his memory, more recollections began to flood back.
The Magic Craftsman recounted everything that had happened, as well as the subsequent situations concerning the podium top, without any omission.
The results, however, were not entirely satisfactory.
Initially, Angel had thought that the Magic Craftsman had some discernment, hence he had specifically collected that podium top. But as the Magic Craftsman narrated, it became apparent that he had only noticed that the podium top was made of a rare and scarce type of plant material.
Although he had also observed some strange marks and mysterious patterns on the podium top, the Magic Craftsman did not take them seriously and merely processed it as a fine material.
Intending to craft three short staves from the sizable podium top, the Magic Craftsman failed twice and succeeded only once. Nevertheless, he was pleased with the final product, a short staff that could amplify elemental efficiency, considering it one of his masterpieces.
Later, this staff was sold for a “steep” price of nearly two hundred magic crystals at the market in Bylron Tree Court.
As for the materials wasted during the failed attempts, the Magic Craftsman had disposed of them.
In essence, the podium top had been completely broken down and consumed, leaving no physical trace.
No one expected the ending to be such, but considering the Magic Craftsman’s standard was merely that of an alchemy apprentice and his experience was limited, it was already commendable that he could recognize magical materials. Therefore, such a maneuver seemed reasonable.
“You collect these artifacts for your Traveling Merchants organization, don’t you hand them over? You just used it yourself?” Angel expressed his confusion.
Magic Craftsman: “Generally, artifacts whose uses are unknown and clearly extraordinary are handed over. This podium top is just magical material…”
The Magic Craftsman paused, then added: “At least in my eyes, it’s just material, so there’s no need to hand it over.”
The Magic Craftsman also realized that the podium top seemed somewhat extraordinary, but he hadn’t noticed that, in the end, he treated it as regular magical material.
The Magic Craftsman was not disappointed due to missing out, as if he had truly discovered its extraordinary nature, he would have had to surrender it to the organization, bound by his oath.
Not having discovered its extraordinary features, and treating it just as magical material, he inadvertently circumvented the oath’s restriction and even earned two hundred magic crystals.
This was probably the “luck” brought about by “ignorance.”
However, the “luck” that “ignorance” brought to the Magic Craftsman at that time, was it possible for it to bring him luck again now, facing Angel and the others?
The Magic Craftsman took a deep breath, showing a solemn demeanor as if waiting for the final judgment.
In his view, his fate was now at the mercy of the red-haired wizard standing before him.
Yet, the red-haired wizard said nothing for a long time. Was he pondering how to deal with him?
However, the Magic Craftsman was overthinking. Angel had never considered killing him; there was no real enmity, nor had he crossed any of his red lines. Moreover, he had honestly confessed everything. Apart from a bit of arrogance, there was no other reason to kill him.
Of course, this judgment was based on Angel’s personal values.
And the others, whether Daus or the Black Count, had no intention of killing the Magic Craftsman either. Firstly, Angel was leading this expedition, and his decisions were final, including the decision on the Magic Craftsman’s fate. Secondly, he was just a small apprentice; killing him was pointless.
The vast gap between a formal wizard and a wizard apprentice meant they didn’t take the threat of the Magic Craftsman seriously, whether he lived or died.
As for why Angel was silent for so long, it was because he was in the mental connection, discussing the next steps with the others.
Although the Magic Craftsman had completely Destroyed the Podium’s Top, from the fact that he was able to refine it, it was evident that the podium top itself didn’t have many secrets.
The real secrets might involve the patterns and characters on the podium top.
If this speculation was true, there was no need for them to find the podium top; they just needed to probe the memories of those who had seen the podium top to determine what exactly was inscribed on it.
There were many who had seen the podium top, but most were ordinary people, and forcibly probing their memories could harm them significantly.
Unlike ordinary mortals, the Magic Craftsman is a transcendent, with half of his mental power model already constructed. Even when probing his memories, the stability of this mental model ensures that no significant harm is done.
Furthermore, both the Magic Craftsman and the Traveling Merchant had voluntarily requested the erasure of their memories, which provided a convenient excuse for probing the Magic Craftsman’s memories of the podium top.
As for why they didn’t just ask the Magic Craftsman what was inscribed on the podium top? He had previously answered that he couldn’t remember.
Memory is a curious thing; you think you don’t remember only because the brain relegates redundant and irrelevant fragments to its depths. If truly pursued, memories from as early as infancy could be unearthed, let alone traces on that podium top.
Because the wizard apprentice’s sea of consciousness is weak, they cannot piece together memory fragments, but it is different for a formal wizard.
This is why formal wizards are generally masters of memory, like Sanders and others who have hyperthymesia, capable of retrieving centuries of memories at any moment.
Once the plan was decided, while the Magic Craftsman trembled in anticipation of his “life or death verdict,” Angel spoke slowly.
“Alright, since the podium top is destroyed, let this matter rest. However, I don’t want others to know we were here. Call the Traveling Merchant in, and I will alter your memories of today, then you can all go back.”
Although his memory was to be modified, the Magic Craftsman was not unhappy. Memory modification was acceptable; after all, his memory of today was like a nightmare, and it was good enough to save his life.
However…
“Lord, before you alter my memory, may I make a request?”
Angel: “If you are talking about the death oath, I will not touch it.”
The Magic Craftsman quickly shook his head: “It has nothing to do with the death oath, it’s a personal matter…”
After a moment, the Magic Craftsman finished speaking and went out to find the Traveling Merchant.
Angel rubbed his throbbing temples, his expression speechless. It wasn’t just Angel; aside from the Black Count, everyone else had the same expression.
Everything stemmed from the Magic Craftsman’s request.
They thought it might be something significant, but it was really… insignificant.
Before altering the memories, the Magic Craftsman hoped to find the ordinary people who had seen him embarrassing himself and, through a special forgetfulness spell, make them forget the sight of his embarrassing moments today.
The value of forgetfulness is not considerable. Moreover, because it’s just a matter of casting a trick, even making ordinary people forget a day’s memory won’t affect them.
In essence, the Magic Craftsman’s request was entirely for one purpose: nothing else mattered, but his prestige absolutely must not be compromised. Especially not in front of ordinary people!
This request wasn’t a big deal and wouldn’t affect the ordinary people’s lives. Although Angel internally ridiculed the Magic Craftsman’s obsession with prestige, he agreed to his request.
“This kind of person is really rare…” Vai held back for a long time but couldn’t help speaking up.
No one else spoke, but they silently agreed in their hearts.
The Black Count, with an air of nonchalance, remarked: “What’s the big deal? There are plenty of oddities in this world. Just to give you an example, there’s this old guy called the Silencer. By the title, you’d think he doesn’t talk much, right? But in reality…”
“Cough, Lord Black Count, perhaps we should steer clear of irrelevant topics,” Angel interjected.
Although Angel knew that Rhine’s personality didn’t match his reputation, this was, after all, a private matter of the Savage Grottoes and not something to be gossiped about.
“I’m just making an example, how is that irrelevant?” the Black Count grumbled discontentedly.
Angel pondered for a moment: “Actually, before coming here, I had a conversation with Lord Rhine, and he had nothing but high praise for you, Lord Black Count.”
Emphasizing his words, Angel clearly intended a message.
The Black Count understood Angel’s implication: “What, that old geezer wants to spill my secrets? I’ll tell you, I’m not scared. If it really comes down to it, I’ll just write for the —Forest of Time— and expose all his deeds.”
The Black Count continued his tirade, but eventually, he refrained from bringing up Rhine again, showing that Angel’s threat had its effect.
However, there are always those who enjoy stirring up trouble.
After the Black Count stopped cursing, Daus immediately chimed in: “—Forest of Time— probably doesn’t accept such exposé articles. Why not try submitting to —City Firefly’s Night Whisper—? By the way, I know a witch from the Night Whisper Forest; if you write it up, I can help you send it out. It’ll definitely make it into the next issue, sure to be a hit.”
Daus’ well-meaning facade left the Black Count at a loss for words.
He talked a big game about exposing others, but actually doing it would likely lead to a deadly conflict with Rhine.
Seeing Daus’ encouraging demeanor, the Black Count suddenly felt he was losing face. If he refused, it would show his cowardice, giving Daus a good laugh; but not refusing could lead to even scarier outcomes.
As the Black Count contemplated how to respond, footsteps sounded from outside.
Angel spoke up: “The Magic Craftsman and Traveling Merchant have arrived, let’s get down to business. Also, let’s not discuss irrelevant matters anymore. If we continue, someone might just experience what it’s like to be devoured by a shadow.”
With a pointed look at Daus, Angel’s warning was clear.
This guy just couldn’t resist stirring up trouble. Daring even to mock the conflicts between the Black Count and Lord Rhine, if not stopped in time, he would surely face consequences.
Daus, however, laughed carelessly, having already forgotten his instigation, and mused to himself: Angel has started to care about me, could it be that his liking has increased?
Perhaps now, were they friends?