Chapter 2694 Stay or Leave <TOC> Chapter 2696 A Minor Interlude
Translator: SumTLMan
Angel: “Didn’t we already talk about this?”
The Black Count: “Are you sure you don’t want to make any changes? By the way, the deal I discussed with you would actually be more suitable for Daus. Are you certain you want to pick this?”
Suddenly being mentioned, Daus wore a completely confused expression as he looked at the Black Count, then at Angel, having no idea what they were talking about. Had they really discussed this before? When did that happen? And what kind of deal would be more suitable for him?
Daus wanted to ask, but the Black Count dismissed him with a single remark: “You chose to leave the talk.”
The implication was that, since you opted to leave the talk, don’t butt in now and chatter away. If leaving was meant to ensure stability, but upon hearing a bit more, Daus discovered that staying to talk sounded better, and he then suddenly changed his choice, the previous two-option scenario would become meaningless.
Daus was left speechless, forced to bottle up his irritation while listening to the Black Count’s conversation with Angel, hoping to glean hidden information from their words.
Angel: “It doesn’t matter who it’s suitable for; what matters is broadening one’s horizons.”
The Black Count gazed intently at Angel: “So you agree with Spivey’s theory, that opening your horizons is more important than fencing yourself in to study alone?”
The Spivey that the Black Count suddenly referred to was not the one whose soul entered a boy’s body, who had fallen from formal wizard back to apprentice and started over under Flora. Rather, he meant the Cunning Great Wizard Spivey from five thousand years ago.
Angel: “Don’t extend my words to the ancient faction disputes and theoretical battles. I really don’t want to walk outside someday and find all the major magazines labeling me a supporter of their own side.”
Rhine had warned him before that, when dealing with the Black Count, he needed to be cautious. The Black Count might not dare to make a move against him directly, but he might lay traps in small details. Sometimes you’d fall into a snare before you even realized it. Moreover, the Black Count owned a wizard magazine with decent sales, subscribed to by nearly all wizard families in the Vast Continent.
Plenty of gossip magazines also kept an eye on those family-subscribed magazines, then would embellish the stories and circulate rumors.
Hence, since public opinion was largely in the Black Count’s hands, Angel had to minimize definitive viewpoints around him and focus more on right and wrong.
“My thought is very simple. Undeniably, the scope of knowledge I’ve delved into is too limited. If I want to firmly establish myself as a formal wizard, I still need to absorb more diverse knowledge. Only by seeing more can I integrate and reorganize, seeking what suits me best.”
Angel paused, then added: “This theory comes from a witch who recently created a new spell. She drew this conclusion, and I trust it because she did precisely that.”
Though Angel was serious at first, he then diverted the topic to a “recently advanced” witch, obviously shifting the focus to avoid stepping into the Black Count’s trap. Everyone could tell he was changing the subject, not wanting to fall into the Black Count’s snare. Still, they followed his lead and began to speculate.
Who was the newly advanced witch? Angel used a female pronoun, so a witch?
While everyone was mulling over it, the Black Count privately messaged Angel, asking: “Are you referring to Gloria?”
Angel: “Mmm.”
The Black Count: “As far as I know, Gloria’s recent breakthrough happened on Phantom Island, with your involvement behind the scenes, correct?”
Angel: “I didn’t expect that someone as close to Lord Rhine as you, the Black Count, would also plant spies in the Savage Grottoes.”
This wasn’t information outsiders should know; Rhine had even issued a gag order. Only a spy could have carried the news out.
“How can you call it a spy? It’s merely a single intelligence operative at the apprentice level,” the Black Count said, with a rather aggrieved tone: “And that old fellow Rhine directly turned one of my descendants from three generations down into his agent. Compared to that, I’m much more gentle.”
Angel: “…Lord Rhine is impressive.”
Of course, what was even more impressive was that the Black Count was aware that his descendant had been turned. However, since it was still a bloodline descendant, it wasn’t so simple to dispose of them; he’d have to try to make them defect, or at least turn them into a double agent…
But, setting that aside, they were somehow talking about espionage now.
Angel shook his head, steering the topic back on track: “Yes, I was indeed referring to Gloria. I was there when she created her spell, so if you insist on saying it was due to me, fine. But the impact? It was negligible.”
“Lord Rhine was also present at the time, and he said that the reason she was initially stuck was that she was too focused on the gourmet branch. When she discovered a much broader view and witnessed a more splendid world, she was able to trace her way back to her core and reach a new height in the gourmet branch.”
Angel: “That’s also why I don’t confine myself to specific fields of knowledge. You say that a split-body spell is more suited to the bloodline branch, like Daus, and I won’t deny it. But I don’t necessarily plan to practice it. I only want to learn the underlying principles, to expand my perspective through analogy.”
“Who knows, if I create a spell someday, perhaps it will be related to the split-body spell that you, the Black Count, shared with me.”
Angel mentioned this casually, yet the Black Count was not only unoffended but rather pleased. He actually wasn’t such a generous person, though not a hoarder of secrets, he wouldn’t typically divulge the core secrets of his spells. But if someone with Angel’s genius came seeking instruction, he wouldn’t mind talking about the purely technical aspects.
Just as Angel stated, if he created a spell later that incorporated the Black Count’s split-body spell, that would shine favorably upon the Black Count’s own reputation. More importantly, it could open an even wider perspective for the Black Count as well, given that such a new creation was rooted in his spell.
It was a unique interaction that happened only among geniuses. The Black Count wouldn’t hide knowledge in that case; on the contrary, he would hope Angel genuinely found inspiration from the split-body spell he provided, thereby inventing a new ability.
Angel himself wasn’t aware of this “unspoken rule” among wizards. He spoke simply off the cuff, not realizing he had hit upon something that strongly appealed to the Black Count.
“In that case, I’ll look forward to whatever spell you create.”
With that, the Black Count effectively sealed the agreement with Angel.
As for Angel, he didn’t give it too much thought. Previously, the Black Count had implied he wanted to exchange knowledge on the split-body spell, and Angel viewed that as little more than a sweetener. Since Angel also wished to visit Augustine’s inheritance quite desperately, no additional offerings were necessary: he would still go. Getting a sweetener, then, made it all the more worthwhile.
But, back to the mention of Gloria just now.
Angel had told a little lie: when Gloria created her spell, Angel’s influence wasn’t truly “negligible,” though he certainly hadn’t been the main factor, either.
Under normal circumstances, she wouldn’t have attempted her second round of spell creation until she found her true body and spent years or even more than a decade recuperating. But Angel accidentally accelerated that timeline.
It stemmed from the most hidden ability he learned from the spotted puppy: the Mysterious Concept Object.
That, in fact, was the catalyst for Gloria’s sudden act of spell creation.
Angel seldom employed the Mysterious Concept Object, mainly because, back when he was still an apprentice, Sanders had advised him not to use it. It was like a baby showing off a treasure in a crowded market, sure to draw envy and danger.
Unless Angel became a formal wizard or even a true knowledge wizard, someone with solid power to back him up, he should avoid using it. And even then, it was best kept for himself.
Now that he was only half a step away from being a true knowledge wizard, factoring in Eremy and Toby’s combat power, his overall strength might surpass an ordinary true knowledge wizard.
Given that, perhaps he could utilize the Mysterious Concept Object now?
He could try combining it with spells or apply it in alchemy?
Because he was thinking about this, Angel’s mind had begun to wander, his desire to act on it growing stronger, to the point that he nearly forgot where he was.
His unbridled train of thought was only reined in when Daus’ voice sounded near his ear.
“So, what exactly did you exchange with the Black Count just now? Tell me. Maybe I can use it as a reference.” Daus had listened intently for a while without understanding the nature of the conversation, and near the end, they had even switched to a “private channel.” He couldn’t help his curiosity and went over to Angel to ask.
Angel glanced over at the Black Count, who remained silent, apparently unconcerned whether Angel revealed their exchange or not.
In truth, the Black Count really didn’t mind. Earlier, he had mentioned that the knowledge he was offering, his split-body spell, would be more suited to someone like Daus, in the bloodline branch. Indeed, in principle it could be.
Yet his own split-body ability was not a typical one. It involved physically splitting one’s body, yes, but each separate body possessed its own independent consciousness, a terrifying concept. If you couldn’t keep them under control, they might well rebel.
Of course, the Black Count had various spells to restrict each split body’s awareness, but the more he restricted them, the more meaningless they became, essentially no different from other conventional split-body spells.
Hence the Black Count allowed them to develop freely. With no limit, every separate body possessed his knowledge base.
As for how to keep the “main body” in control, the Black Count had his ways, another reason his split-body spell was classed as an original spell.
For Daus, if he really wanted to learn this spell, but couldn’t solve the problem of each consciousness’ independence, it would end up being just another run-of-the-mill split-body ability.
Angel, however, was different. He made his intentions clear: he wasn’t learning the spell blindly, because no matter how far he pursued it, he couldn’t surpass the Black Count in that spell. Rather, Angel sought to sample knowledge from different fields, extracting the essence from each, so that, if and when he created his own spell, it might end up having nothing to do with actual split-body abilities.
But if Angel could extract certain principles from the split-body spell, the Black Count stood to gain fresh insight once Angel put forth a new creation of his own. That was something that could only happen among geniuses.
Daus might have the makings of a genius, but the Black Count didn’t believe his split-body spell would gain any novel twists in Daus’ hands.
So, he didn’t mind if Angel divulged the matter to Daus. If Daus truly wanted to learn the split-body spell, he could just arrange for Daus to “study” alongside Angel at the same time, which was more efficient, teaching two people simultaneously was surely to his benefit.
Still, not minding did not mean he specifically approved. He also wanted to see how Angel would handle it.
“An exchange of knowledge,” Angel said to Daus: “As for what kind of knowledge, you can ask him yourself after we leave. Don’t let the Black Count’s words, saying it’s more suitable for you, make you assume it will definitely fit you. For all you know, you might already have similar knowledge. So don’t expect too much.”
“If you want to exchange knowledge too, I suggest you focus on what you currently lack rather than following my choice.”
Daus mulled this over for a moment, then nodded in agreement with Angel’s words.
The Black Count also approved Angel’s handling of the matter.
Although the Black Count didn’t mind Angel telling Daus, the fact was that Daus had already opted for “learning later,” and Angel sharing the details now would have broken that rule the Black Count established.
Breaking the rule wouldn’t have made the Black Count act out, but he would certainly have taken note, and his estimation of Angel might have dropped a bit. Not drastically, for Angel’s displayed skills were too valuable. Even if Angel had low emotional intelligence or a poor disposition, as long as his alchemy skills remained high and he didn’t directly oppose the Noah family, the Black Count would maintain a cordial relationship.
But whether that was mere civility or genuine friendship depended on Angel’s conduct.
For the moment, though, Angel’s response was very fitting: he didn’t break the rules, yet still gave Daus a measured suggestion, both sincere and earnest.
The Black Count indeed preferred befriending academic faction wizards, especially those with actual skills.
Having settled the matter they needed to discuss, Angel finally lifted his head, ready to tell the Sovereign of Wisdom their decision.
The moment he looked up, he realized that the Sovereign of Wisdom had been staring at him, rather, at something behind him.
Angel turned around, and upon seeing the scene, first froze in surprise, then gradually furrowed his brow.
The Wood Spirit was still hiding behind him. However, whereas it had previously refused to shelter in Angel’s shadow (because Eremy was there), it had now moved into the shadow and was frolicking with Eremy.
To be precise, not with Eremy himself, but with the blue lantern flower growing out of the shadow.
The blue lantern flower was under Eremy’s control, swaying back and forth while sending out countless bubbles.
The Wood Spirit seemed enthralled by these bubbles, poking them one by one. At first it popped only the outer bubbles, but once those were gone, it hesitated for a few seconds before stepping fully into Angel’s shadow, snuggling beside the blue lantern flower. Whenever another bubble emerged, the Wood Spirit would quickly reach out with a branch to pop it.
The entire picture was quite harmonious.
Yet Angel’s brows remained knit in puzzlement.
That the Wood Spirit was fond of the blue lantern flower was understandable. Though the lantern flower was produced by Eremy, it was indeed a plant.
A plant would naturally feel an affinity with another plant. What was more, having never encountered any other plant in the underground sewers, the Wood Spirit likely found this new “companion” especially dear.
That much made sense.
What really bothered Angel was Eremy’s behavior.
Eremy rarely did anything without purpose. Generally, unless Angel issued a specific command, Eremy’s top priority was Angel’s protection.
Under the influence of the Seed of Distortion, Eremy carried out orders without question, never taking any extraneous actions.
But now, what was Eremy doing?
Sprouting a blue lantern flower and blowing bubbles to amuse the Wood Spirit?
At a glance it seemed harmless, but on closer reflection, it looked like Eremy had gradually Developed Sentience.
This was why Angel’s brow was tightly furrowed.
He had noticed faint signs of this before, but this time it was even more obvious.
He had no idea whether this was a good thing or a bad thing.
Chapter 2694 Stay or Leave <TOC> Chapter 2696 A Minor Interlude