'Table manners' were very important. Even Leylin needed something to cover up Cassley's murder, those large noble families often investigated these things thoroughly.
Due to the racial conflicts, the rulers of various human nations had sent their armies to help in the north. However, even the most ferocious armies could only push the frontlines of battle closer to Yorkshire. There was basically no difference even with them around.
There was a solemness and tragedy to the paladins who were heading north alone. Leylin didn't dwell on it long, though. Soon enough, the troops of Yorkshire brought the conditions of the city.
Leylin and the nobles could enter, but the army would have to stay outside. That was their bottom line. Leylin merely rolled his shoulders back and accepted this condition calmly.
The surge of nobles from the north had inflated Yorkshire's prices greatly, to the point that even nobles found it hard to stomach it. Of course, there were still benefits to holding power. A luxury villa was arranged for Leylin, with everything free of charge.
Leylin then met the Marquis Lancet he had heard about so often in rumours.
"Baron Leylin, I've long since wanted to see the rare wizarding genius of the north!" Lancet had a head of silver, curled hair, and a poised appearance. After seeing Leylin, even the wrinkles on his face smoothed out. He had evidently conducted a thorough investigation before meeting him.
"I am extremely grateful for the Marquis' generosity when the north has fallen into enemy hands!" Leylin's behaviour astounded the marquis. Most geniuses were arrogant, but Lancet saw none of that in Leylin's expression.
On top of that, he lacked the inflexible thinking and apathy so common to wizards, and instead seemed more like a scholar. His bearing even surpassed a few of the grandmasters he had paid a great deal of money to hire.
Lancet poured Leylin a glass of dark red wine, looking sorrowful. "Before we get to the formal discussions, I wish to tell the Baron something with regards to the north…"
"Has Silverymoon fallen?" Leylin's eyes glinted as he asked indifferently.
Lancet's hand halted pouring the wine for an instant, causing the stream of liquor to break off for a while. He then sat in front of Leylin as if nothing had happened, a profound look in his eyes. "It seems like you have your own intelligence channels, Baron… Indeed, Silverymoon fell just yesterday…"
...
One day ago, the north. Silverymoon City.
As the chief advisor to Silverymoon, Scholar Buren who was like the prime minister was watching Alustriel with worry in his eyes. She looked tired, her brows furrowed. The sight was heartbreaking.
Forgetting her real age for a moment, if one were to judge her based on her mental age and outer appearance, the life and death of the city had been put into the hands of a little girl. Scholar Buren thought this was just too cruel.
While Alustriel had great reputation and charm, she was not a qualified leader. The stress of war practically overwhelmed her.
"No, the Goddess has yet to give me an answer!" Alustriel now seemed to have ended her meditation, the wrinkles on her forehead deepening.
The Goddess of the Weave, being a greater god, was the cornerstone that maintained SIlverymoon's existence. Now, however, she was rejecting Alustriel's prayers and requests for help, which made things clear.
"It's not just any god. Has even the mighty Mystra abandoned us?" Seeing this, even a powerful legendary wizard like Buren felt his heart sink.
*Roar!* The cries of distant beasts travelled into the palace, causing Alustriel's expression to change.
"It's starting again," Scholar Buren sighed. A teleportation gate opened up, and Alustriel stood on the city walls next to Buren.
"Long Live Her Majesty! Long Live Her Majesty!" Seeing her appearance, the morale of the city guards soared. They were now full of hope.
Alustriel had displayed her might as the Goddess' Chosen these past few days. Only the orc emperor Saladin could contend with her.
'But the queen is the leader, her responsibilities do not lie here. Battling the opposing high-ranked Professionals should be the job of the military wizards!' Scholar Buren sighed inside. While Alustriel had immense charm and strength, this queen was still too inexperienced.
Buren watched the orcs' formation under the city. There were huge siege vehicles and terrifying behemoths with them, and the worry in his heart increased. Even with the aid of all sorts of smelted items, as well as high-ranked and legendary wizards in charge, they were now at a disadvantage.
'We have too few men… Few in the Silverymoon Alliance contributed much, and the troops that were sent out with orders didn't bring any others back. Less than half of the original city guards that could take on the most rigorous missions returned…'
Scholar Buren thought it over, and then proposed to Alustriel, "Your Majesty, things have gotten this bad already. Please consider my suggestion!"
"No need for that. I can't abandon my people, especially at a time like this!" Alustriel resolutely interrupted Scholar Buren's words.
"Look!" She pointed downwards, "There are still so many of my people, so many of those who believe in me here. How could I abandon them and leave?"
Alustriel's face flushed red, an even greater might exploding forth from her body. Rafiniya quietly looked in the queen's direction from a corner of the crowd. Powerful energy undulations were radiated outwards, and the golden light shining on her made her feel comfortably warm.
'Is this grace? No! This… It's a large-scale buff!' Rafiniya's face flushed, and she felt as if she could slay a dragon right at that moment.
Alustriel's little face was now pale. Even with support from the large-scale magic formations under the city walls, such a large boost was still difficult to cast. She had even used up some divine force for this. However, she wouldn't appear frail. The young, girlish voice resounded, "We will achieve victory!"
"Victory!" "Victory!" "Victory!" Countless troops roared.
Rafiniya was moved, her eyes glimmering with sparkling tears. As she watched the paladins around her whose faces were just as flushed as hers was, eyes showing their firm resolve, she felt as if she had truly chosen the perfect path for herself.
'This is the work of justice! Fighting for well-being and happiness!' Rafiniya clenched her fists tightly, 'Leylin… Someday, he'll definitely come to realise his mistakes and regret this!'
*Roar!* At this moment, the orc emperor Saladin had arrived at the frontlines.
"A large-scaled buff?" There was no emotion in Saladin's eyes right now. The maids and other orc leaders beside him all lowered their heads respectfully, not daring to move at all.
"All preparations are done. Our master's strength can descend at any time!" A few high-ranked priests headed over as they reported.
"Very good!" Saladin suddenly took a step forward. The earth's surface seemed to tremble as a terrifying might burst forth from his body.
*Ka-cha! Ka-cha!* Saladin's body abruptly increased in size, and in an instant he turned into a miniature giant, five metres tall and still growing. His clothes, armour and all items shattered with the violent movements.
This was the legendary spell— War God's Possession!
Finally, Saladin turned into a terrifying giant over fifty metres tall. Only one item scaled up with him, the Thunder God's Hammer!
"Lightning Strike!" Rafiniya heard Saladin's voice loud and clear. The loud, horrifying sound caused her eardrums to tremble, with a stinging pain.
Afterwards, berserk lightning filled the skies and tore the clouds apart as everything gathered at the battle hammer.
Lightning from the highest of heavens rumbled as it seemingly turned into a terrifying dragon, releasing the most powerful flames of its fury!
Violet! As if a new world was being born, violet light quickly spread around the area. Under this light, the city gates and everything else completely melted away…
...
"Just like that, the orc emperor Saladin brazenly went against the agreement in the continent and used a terrifying legendary spell. With the boost of a divine weapon, he defeated Silverymoon thoroughly in one shot."
Marquis Lancet narrated calmly. However, from how he suddenly gulped down a mouthful of wine, it seemed that this strength of legends still caused terror to well up within him. Leylin listened to everything he said. While he knew this would happen, he was still unclear on the exact process, "Then… Where is Her Majesty Alustriel now?"
Seeing Leylin getting the main point, the Marquis' eyes were full of praise, "It is said that her whereabouts are unknown, but there is a large possibility she survived. After all, the vitality of those with divine force is frightening…"
With Alustriel's strength, few would be able to find her if she truly wanted to conceal herself. However, based on her personality, she was unlikely get back on her feet quickly after this. She would probably require a long time to recoup.
At the end, Lancet intentionally brought up something, "Leylin, I have a wine reception here the day after tomorrow. I hope you can come!".
-x-X-x-
'Has the feast for the division of power and party after the war already begun?' After walking out of the Marquis' mansion, Leylin sighed inside. After the fall of Silverymoon, the chaos in the north could be said to have ended.
With powerful defensive spells and numerous strong beings, Silverymoon did cause huge damage to the orc forces. Even the orc emperor Saladin had sustained grievous injuries and was now in a coma. It was said that he had only been able to retain his life because of the god's possession.
After swallowing up Silverymoon and the surrounding regions, the orc armies now had no more strength to carry on south. With the trials and unions of war, an orc empire took shape and slowly established itself in the skeleton of Silverymoon. This was much more important than expansion.
Once they succeeded, this would also be a boost for the orc god Gruumsh. After all, he was the god of all orcs.
'The human gods wouldn't let the orcs head south anyway…' Leylin sat in the horse carriage, his eyes dark.
'Mystra is far too powerful, and that caused the reservations of the gods from her faction. The numerous conflicts that amassed in the north combined to give this result… All the scheduled plans have succeeded. Weakening the Goddess of the Weave is enough, and the human gods would probably not want the orc god to get stronger…'
Leylin was rather surprised by Mystra's tolerance. That she could even disregard her daughter in name and Silverymoon showed how immense the stress on her was.
'In general, the orcs have gotten a pretty good opportunity. It'll be hard to get them to spit up what they've already gained, but they also don't have more strength to stir up trouble…' Leylin had a keen grasp on this, something far too few in the World of Gods understood.
The gods here were held high and untouchable! With tens of thousands of years of praise from the churches, regular humans now treated gods like true saints, believing them to be emotionless. They forgot that these deities were merely stronger versions of regular people, and had it in them to feel happiness, anger, sorrow and joy.
On one level, the gods were even more emotional than regular humans!
'It's not that they can't recognise it. It's more that they're afraid to do so!' Leylin snickered. 'It's not as if I haven't seen people who blindly make excessive declarations and fool themselves into believing it while they're at it…'
This was an exaggeration caused by the environment, and a limitation from the era they were in. If not for Leylin coming from another world and having had experiences in the Magus World, he wasn't guaranteed to have seen through this either.
Not everyone dared tear off this pretense, looking down on the gods with contempt. The terror of burning at the stake for disrespect had long since shackled the original occupants of the World of Gods.
The few who were aware of the situation could not make any changes to it, and could only grieve and go insane over this...
"Master!" A dim light enveloped the cabin in an instant, creating a noise-isolating barrier. A small figure jumped out from within the cabin, bowing to Leylin respectfully.
Even with Leylin's strength, it was impossible to create a tremendous intelligence network out of nothing in a short period of time. However, with Beelzebub's generous aid, things were different.
Leylin had taken control of all the worshippers of the Sovereign King of Gluttony in the north. The methods he'd used were the same as always. The name of Kukulkan had long since been blacklisted by many churches, marking him a wanted man.
"Did you investigate properly?" Leylin flicked his nail, producing a crisp sound.
"Yes… the human nations in the south have already passed a secret motion regarding the division of land amongst the feudal vassals in Yorkshire and other places. Marquis Lancet seems to be backed by the church of wealth, though he is also colluding with devils…"
Working with devils did not mean believing in them. Who knew, it could even be someone under Beelzebub.
In reality, other archdevils were doing quite well in the prime material plane. While gathering his forces here, Leylin had met followers who believed in other devils as well. After all, the worshippers who had lost Beelzebub's protection were the best prey.
"While everything was done on the sly, our men managed to find out about it…" The tiny figure sounded smug, but Leylin was not really happy. After all, it was easy for devils to discover other devils.
"Do you know which devil it is?" Leylin asked dully.
"Archdevil Mammon, in charge of the third level of the nine hells of Baator. I've seen one of the devils under him, and he's appeared near the Marquis' manor…" The small figure answered surely.
"Greed? That does seem to suit Lancet." Leylin chuckled as he spoke.
The World of Gods had a huge dimensional universe. The outermost layer was the terrifying crystal sphere, tenaciously rejecting all communication with the outside.
Within it, the prime material plane was the foundation of the rest. There were tremendously vast dimensional spaces both above and below it, greatly surpassing it in scale.
If the World of Gods was compared to a meat pie, then the prime material plane was definitely the filling. The top was the land of the world of gods, while the bottom layer was the boundless abyss and hell. Around the pie were many semi-planes, littered around like sesame seeds.
While this description had some errors to it, it was pretty accurate.
The prime material plane wasn't just connected to numerous semi-planes and the dimension's core. It was also the world's main source of faith and souls. Thus, the gods, demons, and devils all coveted it, launching into wars for its control. This had already happened numerous times.
The hells of Baator had originally been one with the abyss, but they'd separated for some reason. The devils and demons had turned into mortal enemies, occasionally breaking out in huge bloody wars.
The hells now had a total of nine levels. However, as the devils were in charge of order, they usually had the upper hand in battles.
The archdevil unlucky enough to fall at Leylin's hands, the Sovereign King of Gluttony Beelzebub, was the master of the second layer of hell.
'The first layer of hell is a public area, where many huge, ambitious devils try to gain control. There are even some humans and other races living there. The second level is Beelzebub's territory, though it now lacks a master. The third belongs to Mammon…' Leylin immediately recalled the intel he had on the hells. That was only possible thanks to Beelzebub's selfless contributions.
"Greed, huh." Leylin sighed. As devils could control human hearts, these archdevils' laws were usually inclined towards emotions.
"Forget it, don't do anything for now." Leylin shook his head, "Anything else?"
"Hehe… Master, I bewitched another follower on my way here. She wanted my help to protect her status as a noble, and I've already agreed…" The tiny figure's voice became tender, like a little girl acting coquettishly.
"Don't even think of doing that in front of me." Leylin warned her, a dark lustre shining in his eyes. That immediately caused the figure to start quivering.
"Your– Your subordinate wouldn't dare!"
"A noble? Who is it?" After disciplining her, Leylin asked with interest.
"Miss Mila of the Shump Family! Her father and brothers all died at the hands of horse-mounted, and their territory is coveted by her other relatives. Without support, she'll probably await death in a monastery…
"Based on what I know, she will appear at Marquis Lancet's wine reception!" The figure added.
"An arranged marriage? While this might be a terrible custom, it really is the best method." Leylin nodded. Thieves still had to observe table manners when sharing the loot. It was far too difficult to allow the poor to directly become nobles, and the resistance was far too powerful.
A marriage would make things easier, making the other nobles accept things more comfortably. In a situation like this where all the direct family members were dead, the daughter they left behind was a target that a whole group of wolves would drool over.
"She's rather smart. What does she want? What can she give?" Leylin asked calmly.
"The Shump Family has the hereditary title of viscount, and they have land north of Yorkshire. She can take in our people and allow them to hold office in the territory that will belong to her husband. However, only heirs of her bloodline will succeed the noble title…"
"That's not too harsh. I'll agree once I see her…" Leylin nodded.
'However, taking her as my bride at this point would seem like I'm showing off. Getting the title of viscount while my father is still a baron makes things awkward… More importantly, I can't stay in the north permanently…' Leylin sunk into deep thought.
'Seems like Miss Mila should look for a husband from among my underlings. Tiff's not that bad. It's not like we can't change things in terms of his appearance and age, and I can use this opportunity to give him a new identity…' Leylin promptly decided the fate of this noble lady.
This was how cruel the real world was. If not for Leylin taking over, she would be in a more pitiful state.
"I'll also need to help my men settle down and reward them…" Leylin knew fully well that the reason they were following him was because they believed he could bring them wealth and status. It was the basis of their loyalty.
Most of the time, what those at the bottom yearned for was to have his leftovers after he took the juiciest benefits. It was only because of their existence that Leylin could participate in this feast of bandits, getting his share of the profits with difficulty.
-x-X-x-
An enormous ship sailed across the ocean, its black bottom making it look like a floating castle of steel. Leylin sat in the most luxurious room of the ship, looking at a scroll made of beast skin.
'It's already been over 5 months…' Leylin sighed.
A lot of time had passed since the feast where they had divided Silverymoon's power. Tiff had followed Leylin's instructions and married the viscount mistress, forging an identity and becoming a glorious noble. As for their feelings? That merited a chuckle, many noble couples disregarded all that.
Afterwards, Leylin had cleansed and reorganised his own troops. He had hired trusted aides and the elites, leaving the rest for Tiff to settle in his territory. He would give them wealth and land. In the end, he had circled back to finished what he had started.
The northern territories had gradually grown more stable, and the orc empire had been established without incident. Saladin had become the first emperor, which caused a sensation in the World of Gods.
After seeing that there were no benefits left for him to pick up, Leylin happened to receive a letter from his family and chose to return home.
'If I hadn't been backed by a Legend, then I would have been completely unable to participate in the inner circle's feast…' Leylin sighed, his eyes filled with a thirst for power.
The changes in the northern territory had led to the orcs emerging as the fully deserving winner. The other human gods had also won what they wanted, and Leylin had also arrived in time to ruthlessly cash in on the opportunity. The only losers were Mystra and Silverymoon itself.
However, competition between gods were very slow. The Goddess of the Weave was very powerful, and this recent defeat couldn't harm her fundamentally. She would be able to lick her wounds in silence and could make her comeback in the future.
However, all of this no longer affected him. Leylin looked outside the translucent closed glass windows at the boundless azure sea. There were even a few white seagulls circling in the distance.
"I've gained enough from this trip to the northern lands…' Leylin silently counted up his profits. In terms of power, he'd received a great deal of material on the arcanists and even raised his power to rank 15!
He was now a rank 15 arcanist-cum-wizard! At his age, it was universally shocking for him to have attained so much in such little time. Even before the dusk of the gods, in the times of Netheril, no genius could be compared to him as he was now.
Moreover, he'd exchanged military merits for Silverymoon's collection of resources for legendary wizards. It was enough for him to grasp the path of wizards as well.
If his wizard tower on Faulen Island had been completed, Leylin was certain that he would be able to increase his wizard ranking further. It wouldn't be impossible to become a Legend, although it would need both innate talent and luck.
In actual fact, Leylin had also thought of going to Silverymoon City while he was in the northern territories. When the city walls had fallen he had considered wantonly making a killing, but he had given up on this idea in the end.
Although it was quite possible for him to make a profit, the dangers were similarly extremely high. Having obtained so much already, Leylin didn't intend to take more risks.
'As for organisations, the northern territories' Beelzebub worship network has already been subdued. With Tiff a viscount, the territory can be considered a gathering point for the organisations, and more can be done there in the future…' Leylin stroked his chin, 'And as for goods, I have legendary red dragon materials, as well as this!'
A bag of holding flashed, and a black scroll of beast skin appeared in Leylin's hands. It still had traces of dried blood on it. Leylin paid attention to the scroll, growing sombre.
'Why did Distorted Shadow leave this scroll behind?' Leylin felt a lingering fear as he thought of the dangerous experience he'd had. Distorted Shadow was an ancient rank 8 Magus who had found his own path, and if his true body had appeared it would have been bad.
As for that pocket dimension, even if it had fallen already the thing left behind would certainly be profoundly interesting.
"The remains of Netheril must still hold some secrets…" Leylin muttered to himself. As he had been tempted into opening it, that pocket dimension had already collapsed. However, Leylin believed the ruins weren't that simple in layout.
'And Helen…' After careful consideration, Leylin had decided not to bring the half-elf arcanist and mid-ranked wizard along. He had left her in Tiff's territory in the north.
'The power of the law of distortion…' The intent Distorted Shadow had left behind had been extremely terrifying. More so was the power of distortion that it wielded, which could affect even time and space. It completely exceeded Leylin's expectations, which fuelled his interest further. If not for that, he would long since have disposed of something like this beast skin scroll.
No matter what these ancient Magi had prepared for him, wouldn't it all be useless if he did not take the bait?
'The ancient Distorted Shadow… Even in the Magus World, there exist very few records of him. It is only known that he is not a native of the Magus World, but a formidable power from another world. No one has ever seen his true body,' Leylin thought of the research that his main body had seen, 'As for his path, clearly the law of distortion is his main one. It has the power to melt time and space, and even has illusory abilities.
'Is it inevitable that the path of a rank 9 Magi must touch upon laws dealing with space-time?' Leylin's eyes flashed as he rose to his feet, moving in front of the desk beside him.
The mahogany desk was mottled with black dots and marks, as well as numerous nicks. The debris on top of it had already been cleared and the desk was clean, leaving behind only a distorted pentagram array.
He put the beast skin scroll into the center of the array and his eyes seemed to glow blue.
"A.I. Chip! Pay attention to scanning and record all the information down," Leylin commanded.
[Beep! Mission established, initiating scan of experimental data.] The A.I. Chip loyally executed Leylin's commands.
'The World of Gods rejected the laws of the Magi. Because of this, Distorted Shadow couldn't use his full power. The risk of contamination should be low…'
"Seawater, salt, petals, dragonblood stones, feces of a nightmare bat…" Leylin threw everything into the corners of the pentagram, occasionally spitting out incantations.
'The power of the bat and the dragon's blood, adding in the blessings of the petals…' It had to be said that even though it was an improved version, his spell models were filled with the style of a Magus. If other wizards saw this, perhaps they would be scared to death by this strange ritual.
Leylin finally snatched up a pinch of green sand and sprinkled it down lightly.
*Bang!* The grains of sand spontaneously burst into green flames in mid-air and rained into the pentagram array. Little by little, the flames wrapped the beast hide scroll into itself.
"In the name of the devouring serpent, reveal the truth within the illusion…"
*Zzz! Zzz!* The scroll seemed to melt into the green flames, and the bloodstains on it grew even brighter and more real. Drops of beautiful blood began to drip down, bringing with them the power of distortion.
[Warning! Warning! The power of another world's laws has been detected, reaching the limit of the World of Gods' suppression.] At this moment, the A.I. Chip also issued a new red warning.
'Wait!' Leylin's face was flushed. He suddenly made up his mind and plunged his finger into the array.
A warm feeling spread into him the moment his finger touched the red bloodstain. Afterwards, Leylin saw his hand grow endlessly old and rot. The skin grew wrinkled, yellowed and even rotted black. The ageing process spread unceasingly, extending from his fingertips to his shoulder, his chest, then his entire body.
*Zzz!* The skin was followed by his flesh and bone, the red and white wasting away under the force of time. Time seemed to speed up in the region, and the world seemed to transform. In the blink of an eye, several thousand years had passed.
'I am the Distorted Shadow! Your devouring serpent shall feed my heart!' In the end, all that was left of Leylin was a pair of eyeballs. It was at this moment that he finally saw a formless mass spreading everywhere. This was Distorted Shadow who lacked a true body.
[Beep! Energy has been exhausted from law probe, process automatically terminated!]
'Mm?' Leylin looked at his hand. His white fingers were bright and clean and filled with the vitality of youth. There was not the slightest trace of age and decay. Nothing in the room had changed, as if everything that had transpired had only been an illusion.
The pentagram array's green flames had already burnt themselves up, and the bloodstained scroll rested nicely in the centre of the array. However, the dragonblood stone and other items had already disappeared without a trace.
"The belongings of ancient Magi are very dangerous. As expected, it's strange enough to be terrifying…" Leylin muttered, "Did I immediately get cursed after I opened it? Did Distorted Shadow use this method to resurrect himself? Or did he make other arrangements…"
After pondering the matter for a long time and meticulously examining the A.I. Chip's records, Leylin sealed the scroll and put it away. At the very least, it had the traces of a rank 8 Magus' craftsmanship and his power of laws, so it was a great inspiration to him now.
'No matter what, I'll still continue to walk down my own path. Growing stronger is always the right thing to do,' Leylin's goal had always been extremely steady, and did not change under any circumstances.
'There's still some time left before I reach the outer seas of the Dambrath Kingdom, which is just enough for me to completely read through the arcanist materials. I can record all the arcanist spell models as well…' Leylin tidied up the desk and sunk deeply into his thoughts once again.
-x-X-x-
A noble youth with curly golden hair and blue eyes lay on a soft silk bed in a dim room, a contemplative look on his face.
'Arcanists… Magi who comprehended laws descended into the World of Gods during the final war, and created them to adapt their power into this world's laws. They attempted experiments to make themselves like natives, and this was the result… They were the founding fathers of wizardry…'
Leylin viewed the materials he had obtained from the ruins of Netheril. With the A.I. Chip's powerful capabilities, he had copied all of the ruins' information and begun to arrange them into categories.
Arcanists weren't simply battle spellcasters. There was a whole lot else to them as well. Alchemy, botany, enchanted architecture, forcefields, arcane runes… It was almost an all-inclusive package. If arcanists were used as the standard to select the best wizards, then the number of wizards would drop by over 90%.
After all, arcanists were Magi who had localised themselves to the World of Gods. They couldn't be compared to the wizards who used the Weave.
Among all this data, what Leylin cared most about was the Magi who comprehended laws. These ancient Magi were gloriously powerful, and Leylin admired them deeply. He longed to learn from them.
Although it was difficult to perform research on arcanists, Leylin didn't think much of it. The only thing that he needed to focus his mental and physical efforts on was the paths of those ancient Magi and their inheritances. Their thoughts and reasoning spilled forth from the arcanist inheritance.
This was the truly valuable aspect and the greatest guiding light for him!
The inheritances of the Magi had been damaged due to the ancient final war. Only the inheritances of mysterious and powerful ancient Magi circulated in the World of Gods, but there had been very few truly crucial and pertinent ones.
Although Leylin's original body had risen to near rank 7, only after meeting ancient existences like the Mother Core did he truly begin to come into contact with Magi who comprehended laws. Even those existences did not truly comprehend the paths walked by other rank 8 Magi.
Far too many Magi had fallen in the final war, and few had been able to leave behind inheritances.
Leylin had completed integrating everything he'd gleaned from the arcanists' inheritance. With this he could finally form an image of an ancient Magus, and acquire a general idea of the path walked by those who comprehended laws.
'A Magus needs to surpass an enormous threshold every three ranks. Rank 1 to 3 Magi cultivate their spiritual force, and rank 4 to 6 Magi expand their soul force. For rank 7 and above, one needs to grasp the power of laws!' Leylin's eyes gleamed.
'A rank 7 Magus needs to grasp a complete law, and rank 8 Magi need to grasp several different ones. To break through the threshold of rank 8, one needs to refine all the laws they've grasped to form their own path. And in one's own path, they need to leave enough leeway to grasp the power of space and time, else they will never be able to advance to rank 9.'
Leylin's eyes glowed even more brightly, 'The path cannot be walked twice, and perhaps a peak rank 8 existence like the Mother Core walked down the wrong path. Her powers cannot extend to control spacetime, and she can't advance.'
"As for my path… How should I plan this?" Leylin muttered to himself. His path of advancement had to remain steady, and the choice of what laws he would refine was even more important.
This was just like the ancient Distorted Shadow. Although Leylin could not confirm what laws he grasped, he understood that the power refined from them was one of distortion!
The power of distortion held the law of spacetime within it. As a result, Distorted Shadow had been extremely close to the realm of rank 9. Even having fallen thousands of years ago, he could still cause some trouble today.
'It is very important to have a stable foundation of laws. The feeling that I get from Mother Core is one of stability and gravity, so her foundation must have something to do with the power of the earth and fire. Perhaps it's too difficult to extend that to control spacetime,' After his worldview was expanded, Leylin held a deeper understanding of the strength of the other Magi who comprehended laws.
'The Snake Dowager is different! Although she has not advanced to the peak of rank 8, the power of shadows she has chosen is rather good. At the very least, the power of shadows is more compatible with space, so if she truly obtains the world origin force of the Shadow World and breaks through to the limit of rank 8 she'll be stronger than Mother Core. Still, it'll be difficult to advance to rank 9 since shadows aren't related to time at all…
'One needs to choose a path compatible with spacetime before advancing to rank 9,' Leylin stroked his chin, 'Then… is it possible to directly refine the laws of space and time in rank 8? No, impossible! Someone who has yet to form their own path cannot touch the power of spacetime at all. Normal refining methods cannot touch the laws of spacetime…'
As his understanding of the paths of ancient Magi grew deeper, Leylin's knowledge of his own path also furthered.
'With the arcanists as a guide, I'll advance rapidly. The ability to break away from the Weave will allow me to overcome its restrictions. Although instant casts of legendary spells will be impossible, it won't be a problem to use rank 9 and below spells if I pay a bit of the price…
'Even if I am discovered by a god, they would most likely think that I'm an arcanist's descendent or perhaps a fortunate person who discovered the inheritance of an arcanist. This will always be better than being thought of as a visitor from another world…
'Since it's like this, I can put many of my earlier plans into action!'
"The news came at just the right time." Leylin's eyes grew more serious. Having become a high-ranked wizard, the legendary realm would not be a bottleneck to him. He could later prepare to ascend into godhood.
At the very least, he would have to be careful in choosing his divinity in the future, making sure to pick one that was compatible with the path of his original body.
'The path of divinity will affect my ascent to godhood and my church, so it must be considered carefully!' Leylin's expression grew sombre. Many divine wars had broken outs between gods due to opposing paths. He did not want to cross swords with other powerful gods the moment he ascended to godhood.
'I'm currently a human. Those of us who ascend to godhood automatically join the human faction, so the best thing to do would be to ally with the pantheon of gods. This eliminates many divinities and territories… It's also necessary to find something that would be compatible with the future path of my original body…' Leylin massaged his temples, and found all of this a headache.
'However, if a god dares to stand in my way, then I can only ask them to die as soon as possible…' Gods such as these did not have the qualifications to stand in the way of someone like Leylin, someone who had grasped the path of laws and truth.
From his point of view, these gods would only have mastered one or a few powerful laws at the very most. There was too large a gap between them and a Magus who comprehended laws. This was the limitation of godhood. Since their power came from the world and their followers, there would naturally be limits to it.
A god was like an officer. They could use their divine force to wield power on par with Magi who comprehended laws. In their own divine kingdoms, they could even surpass such Magi. It was just that, once they left their realm or their followers lost faith, they wouldn't even equal peak legendaries.
Magi were different, however. No matter where they were, their strength would at most be suppressed. However, their power could not be stolen or exchanged, it belonged to them and them alone.
Consequently, there were rank 9 Magi who managed to find their own path. However, the most powerful amongst the gods with greatest divine power was the Overgod, who was also the incarnation of the World of God's World Will.
'Once I ascend to godhood, I will only be a weak god comparable to a rank 7 Magi in the Magus World. If I were to encounter a mid-ranked god or rank 8 Magi, or other gods who are like peak rank 8s, then it won't be possible for me to win. As a result, it's best to avoid those two. I should also avoid clashing with any Chosen…'
'This leaves me very little wriggle room, but luckily it's not like I'm out of options,' Leylin's lips curved into a rather strange smile.
...
As he drew closer to Dambrath Kingdom, Leylin's studies had also increased in speed.
[Beep! Arcanist build has been recorded, spell models collected. Legendary: 3, Rank 9: 17, Rank 8: 23…] The A.I. Chip's prompt caused Leylin to nod in satisfaction.
He still saw many of these arcane spell models using wizard spells as their base, and several of them were similar to the spell models of Magi. If he relied on the A.I Chip's slow analysis, perhaps he would need thousands of years to deduce all of this. However, he had relied on own power to achieve this knowledge, and did not need the A.I. Chip's deductions.
[Rank 8 Arcane spell models have been completely recorded. Record rank 8 spell models?] The A.I. Chip issued yet another prompt.
'Yes.' Leylin now had the power of a rank 15 arcanist, and could use rank 7 spells without consumption. Rank 8 spells on the other hand needed some extra effort.
For a rank 15 Professional to use rank 8 spells, a traditional wizard would have their requests completely rejected by the Weave. Arcanists however would use their arcane knowledge and some preparations to successfully cast such spells after paying a certain price.
As it was like this, rank 8 and rank 9 arcane spell models would become Leylin's strongest trump cards. It was comparable to the spell torrent that he released using the Weave.
[Transmitting rank 8 arcane spell models!] The A.I. Chip loyally fulfilled Leylin's orders.
Sensing that his sea of consciousness suddenly possessed even more data on arcane spell models, Leylin nodded as he looked at the other benefits he had gained. He had found other interesting things in the data from Netheril.
A multitude of data and news flashed before his eyes, before it stopped at several short poems.
-x-X-x-
Leylin had found information regarding the arcanist ruins in the Dambrath Kingdom, using a book he'd found from decoding a map. Leylin now found something else from the information the A.I. Chip had copied.
The information that the A.I. Chip had recorded was complete, with the information on the spell models that arcanists had used among others. This included even personal diaries of some arcanists and the like.
There was some short poetry in the disordered data, something that most people would probably overlook.
No! In the short span of time it took for the pocket dimension to collapse, most adventurers would find it difficult to even find information on the arcanists, having to turn their heads. Only someone like Leylin who possessed the A.I. Chip could copy this information.
Along with these few poems were some recipes that caused Leylin to look disconcerted. Even if adventurers unknowingly found the resources that had this information, they would quickly ignore it, but he was different. With his previous experience breaking code, he immediately saw that there was something different about these poems. They were encrypted the same way, and likely came from the same arcanist.
'Such high-level encryption and difficulty in getting the resources… The secrets hidden must be astounding…' Leylin transferred the information into his mind with interest.
With his previous experience breaking code, he made much quicker progress. It took just a few hours for the information hidden within the incomplete phrases to be laid bare before him.
"The coordinates of a location and a specific time?" Leylin scratched his head.
"If I calculate it… year 37670 of the Calendar of the Gods. That's three years from now. When the black crows cry out to the blood moon… It's in the Frostfall Valleys, slanting to the east of Cygnus."
"This again… A specific time and location. What appears will be…" This method of stacking space caused Leylin to frown slightly, he associated it with Distorted Shadow. Only he could warp space and hide his items as he wished, waiting for people to unearth them.
"But… Distorted Shadow has already passed down his path. It might be possible for a legendary arcanist who was his disciple…" Leylin pondered over this as even more information was decrypted.
"What will appear is a floating city?" Leylin stroked his chin, seemingly in disbelief. A floating city didn't seem like much to his eyes. The Magi of Sky City had already developed such a technique.
The city floated eternally using the powers of the Adept Scepter, something that could even boost one's vitality a single time. Leylin had made use of that feature, and even toured the core control room of Sky City to personally touch the scepter. He hadn't found it all that amazing.
"No, that's not it. It mentions a floating city, it might be due to an arcane spell that the legendary arcanists came up with by themselves! It's a fort used by arcanists to fight gods, and one of the major accomplishments of arcane spells. How could it be that weak?" Leylin's expression changed, and he then looked through the descriptions of the arcane spells.
Soon enough, he learnt that the arcanists' floating city and Sky City's floating vessel were two entirely different things.
"I see… a true floating city is powered by a Mise energy core, and needs the strength of a pocket dimension. At its final stage, it's a dimensional fort! In such a floating city, legendary arcanists would be comparable to gods! So terrifying, even divine kingdoms aren't much in front of this… Sky City's floating can at most be considered a weakened version that lacks this amount of power," Leylin muttered.
It now seemed like the arcanists' floating city had truly inherited the design concepts and core of the ancient Magi. Sky City was probably a copy from incomplete information and not authentic. It was like a clumsy version of a toy made by a child.
'Interesting! When my main body awakens, I should get the Monarch of the Skies to do research on my behalf for a few days…' Leylin quickly made up his mind. Given his strength near rank 7, the Monarch of the Skies had no power to resist whatsoever.
"As for this…" Leylin eyed the resources in his hand, sighing a little.
The information hidden in the short poems said that an arcanist who was performing experiments during the fall of the Netheril Empire had made a mistake. Due to it, he'd jumped the floating city to a lost plane.
The legendary arcanist, his students, and all other life forms had died in the floating city, but that plane might still exist. Due to this incident, the floating city evaded the gods' investigations and luckily got away. That was probably the only one in the World of Gods.
The arcanist who had left this trail behind had spent his life pursuing the peak of arcane arts, and had found this treasure in a ruin. He had successfully deduced the time and location that the floating city could return.
However, He had been born far too early. There were over ten thousand years till the floating city leapt back. Evidently, unless he successfully become a god or turned into an undead lich, he would not be able to wait that long. Hence, he chose to leave the information and related clues behind for others to discover.
"From the inheritance left behind, the arcanist that discovered the clues must have died long ago…" Leylin sighed.
After the destruction of the Netheril Empire, the churches went all out in persecuting the arcanists. To be able to find this, the arcanist must have reached the legendary realm himself. That led to more fear from the gods, and chances of him still surviving were far too low. However, that made things easier for Leylin.
"A floating city that can rival the gods' realms?" Leylin stroked his chin, eyes full of wonder. Ancient floating cities were very powerful. There had even been records of legendary arcanists piloting them to attack divine kingdoms
Even if it wasn't for defensive purposes and just research, Leylin was very interested in the design, Mise energy core, and magic cannons.
"A floating city without a master that can independently operate for tens of thousands of years and even automatically leap back to the World of Gods… The intellectual core and Mise energy core must be incomparably perfect…
"Treasures from the peak of arcane culture? Interesting. Interesting! I'll have to give it a go if I get the time." Leylin made up his mind.
...
Tens of days passed by. The weather was exceptional that day, and Leylin had left the hold of the ship and arrived at the deck.
The sea breeze had a clean, salty smell, and the warm sunlight felt very comfortable.
"I've already made records of the arcane spell models. Information on the floating city has all been deduced…" With these two parts done, Leylin was in a good mood, "The calculations say I should reach Port Venus today."
He'd left home for many years, and was finally returning. In that moment, Baron Jonas, his wife, Ernest, Jacob, and many other faces appeared in Leylin's mind, causing him to feel emotional.
"I was only around rank 10 when I left, but now I'm a high-ranked wizard. Master Ernest will be shocked." Leylin took a look at his stats.
[Leylin Faulen. Race: Human, Rank 15 Arcanist. Strength: 13. Agility: 11. Vitality: 12. Spirit: 15. Arcane Energy: 150. Status: Healthy. Feats: Sturdy, Erudite, Elementary Perfect Body. Specialties: Arcane Energy Detection, Arcane Amplification]
Becoming an arcanist had changed his stats greatly, and the window had grown more concise. He could still use spell slots like before, and he also had the spell slots for a rank 15 wizard, but after becoming an arcanist Leylin now had another card up his sleeve beside the analysis of the Weave.
'After somewhat breaking away from the Weave, the A.I. Chip's analysis of the Weave has increased in speed… Seems like the Weave has a very tight hold on wizards…' Leylin took a look at the A.I. Chip's analysis report of the Weave, lowering his head in thought.
At this moment, the A.I. Chip's prompt rang out, and Leylin's stats changed once more.
[Beep! Analysis of level 4 Weave: 100%. Obtained all rank 4 spell models. Spell slot limitations removed. Host is now immune to forgetting rank 4 spells, no materials will be required to cast them.]
[Analysis of Weave: Level 0 Weave 100%. Level 1 Weave 100%. Level 2 Weave 100%. Level 3 Weave 100%. Level 4 Weave 100%. Level 5 Weave 55.21%. Level 6 Weave 33.89%. Level 7 Weave 17.22%.]
[Spell Slots: Rank 7(1), Rank 6(4), Rank 5(6), Rank 4(???), Rank 3(???), Rank 2(???), Rank 1(???), Rank 0(???)]
Rank 7 spells were considered high-ranked spells. The Ring of Wizardry had now lost all its effect, increasing only a single spell slot for spells below rank 6 originally.
"I'm advancing too quickly! My equipment isn't keeping up with my needs." Leylin muttered to himself, "Thankfully, I still have many ingredients from the legendary red dragon that I can use to make a new batch of items…"
-x-X-x-
Port Venus was right up ahead. With the Pirates' Tide and the fall of the Baltic archipelago, the port was now booming. Countless shipping routes were opened up, and the closer one got to the port the more ships they could see.
The port had already expanded several times, and there was no issue with accommodating over a hundred ships now. This had been something Leylin had considered when choosing the location. His choice of a wide deepwater port showed his foresight.
The dock was crowded with people, though there was also a gathering of some who were out of the ordinary. A few people in the front were wearing gorgeous noble attire, and Leylin's excellent eyesight allowed him to vaguely see some familiar faces.
Right in front were Jonas and his wife. Madam Jonas was waving a white handkerchief in his direction, occasionally wiping away her tears.
The moment he got off the boat, Madam Jonas pounced into Leylin's arms before he could even greet her, "Oh… child! My child! How could you be so heartless as to leave us behind for so many years…"
Upon seeing this, Leylin could only nod towards Baron Jonas and begin to console his mother.
"Alright. That's enough, darling! Leylin's return is something to be happy about!" Baron Jonas looked much older now. The hair on his temples was already greying, but he seemed to be in good shape.
The stern decisiveness he had from his time in the military had dulled. What was left was grace, calmness and the steadiness of power.
"Father, I've returned!" Leylin smiled and bowed.
"It's great that you're back!" Baron Jonas nodded, and then led a pair of children who were around five or six years old over.
"These are your brother and sister, Jake and Sherlyn. Come, meet your brother!"
"Brother!" "Brother!" The two pairs of eyes held innocence and fear within them. They were still at an age of ignorance, but still listened to their father and sweetly called out for him.
"Mm." Leylin nodded. Leylin sensed his father's bloodline in these children, but they didn't have his mother's blood.
However, this was common among nobility. Children born of concubines had no status whatsoever, made obvious just from the fact that their mother had not come along.
As children of concubines, the most they could do was enter a god's church or become the housekeeper of another noble family, unless of course Leylin was willing to divide and hand over part of his territory to them.
As they posed no threat to Leylin's status, Madam Jonas was not hostile to them.
"Hello Jake. Hi, Sherlyn!" Leylin now acted like a gentle big brother. While he had not known this would happen, he still managed to produce gifts quickly. A beautiful rag doll and intricate moccasins he produced caused the children to cheer.
Leylin had long since prepared a ship full of presents to distribute, and naturally wouldn't mind giving out two more.
"Seeing you being so friendly puts me at ease," Baron Jonas nodded in satisfaction. What Leylin was doing was making his stand clear. At the very least, he would not need to worry about how his children would be brought up after he passed away.
Based on his understanding of Leylin, he definitely knew that when it came to scheming and strength, the pair definitely could not match up to him.
'Now, I can only hope Jake and Sherlyn know to be content with what they have…' Baron Jonas sighed inside.
"Jacob! Leon!" Leylin greeted a few other people, passing them their presents.
"Young Master Leylin!" Jacob and Leon bowed respectfully, looking emotional. They looked to have aged a fair bit, and it was about time they retired.
"It's been hard on you!"
Leylin scanned the area, and then saw the Gold Priest of the Goddess of Wealth, Xena. "And Priest Xena! Long time no see!"
"It's really been a long time!" Xena still maintained her appearance as a young girl. The glory from the gods allowed her to slow her aging, to the point that she would retain her youthful looks even at death. The look in her eyes, however, showed how she had matured.
"I have many things to discuss with you regarding Port Venus and our future cooperation. By the looks of it, I think it'll be better for me to visit you in the future," The priest spoke considerately.
Leylin nodded. There hadn't been change in the management of the church of wealth here, but there was in the two others. There were new bishops for the God of Knowledge, Oghma, and the God of Suffering, Ilmater. They met up with Leylin individually, getting to know him as he did them,
"Come to the wizard tower tonight. I have something to show you!" Ernest was still the same as ever, leaving after throwing him a few words as if he had an important experiment to attend to.
The corner of Leylin's lips quirked slightly. At this point, the wizard tower should have been about finished. He was sure that his master wanted to discuss something related to that.
'When the time comes, I hope my progress doesn't scare him…' After the complicated and disorderly welcome ceremony, Leylin returned to his villa in Port Venus. With the maturation and development of this area, the core of the entire island had shifted to this area, turning the manor into a resort.
"Young master!" "Young master!" Two beautiful maids lay in wait inside the villa, their eyes reddening as they saw Leylin.
"Claire, Clara!" Leylin nodded. The pair seemed to have matured quite a bit, and looked on the verge of tears.
"The decorations in the room haven't changed at all." Leylin placed his hands behind his back and looked around. The arrangement of the furniture, carpets, curtains and the like were the same as when he'd left.
"Madam was afraid that young master would feel uncomfortable after your return, so we maintained the appearance of the room." Claire spoke softly. She had now grown into a strong woman.
Leylin sighed inside. At this age, most maids in the manor would probably have gotten married. The fact they were still here definitely had something to do with him. Before he said a word about this, even the father of these two beautiful sisters, the old housekeeper Leon, would not dare make any decisions.
Sometimes, a mere idea by someone with power could cause a huge change in the lives of the people below. However, Leylin had no other thoughts about this. What was past was past. At the most, he could just give them some more compensation.
"Boil some water, I'm going to take a bath before bed. I've had enough of life on the sea!" Leylin ordered, and the sisters quickly did as he said well.
Leylin didn't have much time left after a brief rest. Far too many things had piled up when he was gone.
First was the wine banquet at night to welcome his return, and it also included interaction with a few other powers. He had to go attend. After that, Leylin went to Baron Jonas' study room.
The baron's study room was much larger than before. There was a faint aroma from the dark red Semen Hoveniae, and it was illuminated with magic lights. The conditions were much better than before.
Baron Jonas sat at the desk and watched his son, "You did well, my child. You are my pride!
"It's a pity about the north. We've no choice but to let go of the Violet Territory, but the title of the Violet Baron can be passed to your other heirs…" Leylin had mentioned his title in the north to the baron before.
His Violet Territory was in the hands of either orcs or werecreatures, having become a part of the orc empire. It was impractical to expect to reclaim it. However, what Baron Jonas prioritised was the title of Baron that could be passed on through generations. This was much better than the titles of the nobles in the court, and could also be passed down through generations.
Leylin had lost his territory through the chaos of war, but his title had not been robbed from him. A loss of territory was an unspeakable humiliation for many nobles, but they still retained their titles. Already passing the threshold of status, they could climb up the ranks much more easily elsewhere.
Even with the loss of the land in the north, it wasn't difficult to gain it in Dambrath. There were still many deserted islands in the outer seas, and with some work Leylin's hereditary barony could well be transferred to Dambrath. In that case, the Faulen family would have two baronies to pass on, so in a sense their strength would double.
Perhaps the baron viewed the ability to pass down land as something worthy of being happy over.
"With our family's current strength and trade relations, it won't be difficult to influence the king. You're also a noble, and as long as your land is in the outer seas and doesn't affect the interests of the other nobles in the continent, there shouldn't be many going against you…" Baron Jonas spoke confidently.
Even now, his eyes were still trained on land of the nobles, as well as the profits from trade.
Leylin listened on, declining to answer. His only target was immortality, but different people had various paths and ideas. He would not force anything on the baron.
"How about Marquis Tim? Has he made any trouble for us?"
"Him… After coming back from the capital, he's become more honest… I actually called you back for other matters," Baron Jonas turned serious at this point.
"What is it?" The letter had only said that some issues had come up, so Leylin had no idea what this was about.
"Traces of devils and demons are becoming more common in the outer seas. Cyric's church is rising, and the Barbarians have returned and are expanding…" Baron Jonas spoke unenthusiastically.
-x-X-x-
Everything was happening in secret. The baron's enemies were not so easily dealt with, and the person most qualified to do so was Leylin.
He now had control over the Scarlet Tigers and had even gotten rid of the Baltic archipelago. Baron Jonas had his suspicions about this, but the father and son maintained a tacit understanding and did not lay it bare.
"I understand!" Leylin nodded. In his opinion, the return of the Barbarians and the rise of the devils and demons was only to be expected. The period post calamity was a golden time for churches to expand, but so it was for demons and devils as well. The ripples caused by the Pirates' Tide still hadn't faded.
"And Cyric?" Leylin's eyes shone. He had some things to settle with this church. What they had done before had left Leylin slightly discontent.
"I'd be at ease handing all this over to you. If there's anything you need, do tell me. Prioritise your safety, I don't want to lose an outstanding heir. Is that understood?" Baron Jonas spoke seriously.
"Yes, father!" Leylin nodded.
"Good! Go meet your Master Ernest. He has a surprise for you!" Baron Jonas had a smile on his face, "Spend more time with your mother now that you're back. We can't delay your wedding either…"
At the mention of this, Leylin felt a headache coming on. He found an excuse to leave the study room.
...
It was night, and Port Venus still had lights everywhere.
At the very least, there were huge torches burning at the pier, where ships hurried to unload their cargo. This would have been unimaginable in huge cities. With the labour and physical resources in the dark ages, the cost of illumination in the night was a huge burden.
Till now, Leylin had only seen one city capable of using lights to brighten the area, and that was Silverymoon. Port Venus was now added to that list. It was a pity that the port was several times smaller than Silverymoon, so it wasn't comparable.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Ernest watched the pier that seemed to glow with stars, his voice showing his awe.
"This is the result of the effort of father and everyone else!" Leylin spoke in a very humble manner. He could tell the delight and fondness in his master's tone. Ernest probably treated this like his second home.
"The more prosperous Port Venus is, the more people will come. The crime rate here is now almost at a stage that even the guards can't deal with it. The Mercenary Association and the Warriors' and Thieves' Guilds will definitely increase the pressure on public security, as will the requests of other churches…"
Ernest stated calmly, while Leylin listened close. He was controlling the situation from afar, and what he knew was surely less than what the wizard who had been staying here all this while did.
"That's why we planned to build this, right?" Leylin looked at the main part of the huge wizard tower, a smile on his face, "Once the wizard tower is built, those mice in the sewers should stop…"
Ernest nodded in agreement. The two of them were on a mountain next to the Port Venus, one that had a clear view of the port. The general structure of a wizard tower had already been built at the top of the hill.
With the power of wizard towers, even the most low-levelled wizard would still be able to control Port Venus without trouble. It would also serve to intimidate others. After all, a wizard tower was comparable to a high-ranked wizard! This was a loyal slave that was fully controlled and knew no exhaustion.
"Thanks to the batch of resources you brought back and our investment later on, we've finally built the main body…" Ernest caressed the sturdy body of the tower, a smile on his face.
"Want to see her?"
"Of course!" Leylin smiled and nodded.
The construction of a wizard tower would require an investment of at least two million kronas. Some high-ranked wizards might not be able to amass so much wealth even if they worked hard for centuries. There were plenty who were willing to sell themselves for it.
If not for Leylin looting the Baltic archipelago and retrieving the materials meant for the wizard tower, as well as the Faulen Family's investment from Port Venus, the wizard tower would not have been built so quickly.
"The main material for the wizard tower is granite and wizards' alloy. It's a total of 32 metres tall." Ernest brought Leylin into the wizard tower, making introductions as they walked.
"The strengthening runes and defensive spell formation of the tower have been completed. The mithril and adamantine that you brought have been completely used up, and we've even had to buy a new batch. The tower itself has seven floors, with the basement, drawing room, storage room, laboratory, leisure room…" Ernest seemed to be very invested in the tower.
He abruptly pulled a large door open. It was empty and very dry. "This is the storage room. It can hold enough rations to last two hundred people a year. There's eternal warmth and maintenance spell formations, so the food won't go bad. You can cultivate fruits and vegetables in the garden…
"Also, the spell formation connecting the four main elemental pools has been completed. Energy can be unceasingly drawn from the four elemental pools, and the pure water from the water elemental pool can create a water cycle…"
At this point, Ernest looked to be hesitating, but still spoke, "Also, based on what you said you wanted in the letter, the dimensional summoning spell formations and negative energy pools have been set up in the basement…"
As a traditional wizard, Ernest had a natural hatred for these things, but could not prevent this. Advancing from higher ranks to the realm of legendaries definitely required research in these two areas. He believed that Leylin knew to restrain himself and not deal with devils and demons, and was rather at ease.
"Of course, with your current strength and talent, you'll be able to use these facilities within ten years..." Ernest spoke with confidence.
In his eyes, the strength Leylin displayed gave him a very good chance of becoming a high-ranked wizard within ten years. That speed alone would have been shocking.
After all, the advancement of wizards was not similar to other close combat professions or priests. There was a lot of accumulation required, which was also why many young wizards were weak.
"You didn't call me here to discuss this, right master?" Leylin smiled. He had not placed his wizard ranking emblem at his chest. He hadn't verified that he was rank 15 even in Silverymoon, so he was being treated like a rank 12 to 13 wizard. For Leylin's age, that was already outstanding.
"Yes… uh… how do I explain this…" Ernest had a flush on his face.
"The structure of the tower has been completed. What's next is vitalising the energy core and the constructing the tower genie…"
Ernest muttered, "You know that vitalising a tower requires at least a rank 7 spell, a high-ranked wizard is necessary… While we can discuss this after you've advanced, the safety of Port Venus is of immense importance. We have to activate it immediately…
"I think we should consider inviting a high-ranked wizard to cast an Activate Intelligence spell. Of course, they'd have to join the Faulen Family, sign an oath with the Styx and hand over the tower afterwards. However, that would only be used for observation for a while. This level of strength alone will arouse the interest of many high-ranked wizards, and can greatly increase the number of trump cards we have… After all, a wizard above rank 15 is a true high-ranked spellcaster!"
Ernest was very inarticulate at the beginning, but he spoke smoothly later. The control of a wizard tower was a sensitive subject, and anyone would hope for their own people to have it. Sadly, both he and Leylin were quite a distance away from meeting that requirement.
"While I'm still a low-ranked wizard, I never thought there'd come a day that a wizard's tower would be right in front of me, yet I'd be unable to control it…" Ernest laughed wryly as he spoke.
"Bring me to the core room," Leylin nodded calmly.
Upon hearing this, Ernest brought Leylin to the top floor and entered a narrow room, "Everything has been prepared. All that's left is a high-ranked wizard who can cast a rank 7 spell…"
Ernest sighed, but it was followed by a look of surprise as Leylin walked to the core of the spell formation.
"Wha- what are you doing? Did you think you can start the tower?" Ernest was stunned as he watched Leylin place his hand on the core control crystal.
"While what you say makes sense, it's too dangerous to let others control the wizard tower. Even with the restrictions from the oath, it can't be guaranteed that the outsider won't have their own methods. This could be fatal to the safety of the family's land…" Leylin spoke.
While an oath to the Styx was binding, in his experience there were many ways to find loopholes. Of course, that would've been their course of action if left with a choice. However, he already met the requirements, so why would he give the control of the tower away?
"Alright, alright, little Leylin… I know you're not resigned to this, but… I! Oh, god…" Ernest had been advising him while finding this hilarious, but then gaped immediately after.
-x-X-x-
Powerful spell light shot forth from Leylin's body, to Ernest's shock. He'd only sensed this sort of terrifying, imposing aura and pressure from high-ranked wizards before.
Now, however, this had appeared on Leylin!
"A high– high-ranked wizard! Haha… I'm definitely dreaming! This is a dream, right?" He slapped himself so hard his face was swollen, but that didn't allow him to wake up. He could only choose to accept this reality grudgingly.
"A rank 7 intellectual activation spell?" Leylin had chosen to hide his energy undulations before, and Ernest obviously did not have the ability to see through it. Even high-ranked priests would not be able to discover it.
'While this spell can illuminate the entire wizard tower, the tower genie that's generated will only be a low-ranked kind which won't be all that intelligent. It won't be able to become a wizard's right hand man… Besides, I didn't memorise this rank 7 spell yesterday…' The spell slots of a wizard had to be prepared a day in advance. Leylin only had one rank 7 spell slot now, and he obviously wouldn't have saved Activate Intelligence.
However, with the numerous arcane models in his hand, Leylin now had more choices.
"The rank 7 arcane spell Activate Construct is better than the rank 7 wizard spell…"
Arcanists naturally had their own wizard towers, and they had invented countless methods to activate them. Every genie born of their processes was far more exceptional than the alternative, so Leylin easily made his choice.
"In my name as Leylin Faulen, activate!" Leylin silently chanted in his mind, multi-coloured lights flashing at his hands. Through the crystal, it spread out.
"These energy undulations… This is definitely a rank 7 spell… But it doesn't seem to be Activate Intellect!"
Ernest had yet to become a high-ranked wizard, and obviously could not tell the difference between an arcane spell and a wizard spell.
Arcane spells looked just like wizard spells on the surface, they just weren't bound by the Weave. Forget Ernest, even if high-ranked wizards were here they wouldn't have been able to see the difference.
The dazzling light first lit up the core control room, spreading in all directions. The four elemental pools began to rumble as they began to draw continuous streams of energy from the four great elemental planes.
Level after level of the wizard tower lit up, the powerful magic light like bright torches in the darkness. A wondrous scene was created at Port Venus.
This wave was sensed by many powerful beings. Be it priests or other exceptional powers, everyone lifted their heads in the direction of the wizard tower, concentrating on the scene.
Bishop Xena of the Goddess of Wealth gazed at the wizard tower in the distance, looking stunned for a moment before regaining her usual calm. "I never expected that you'd already hired a high-ranked wizard to look over us in secret. Congratulations, Lord Baron, it looks like the security problems we were worried about can be set aside…"
"Oh, not at all…" Baron Jonas had a professional smile on his face. While he was saying something so modest, he was just as confused.
'Where did Ernest find a high-ranked wizard to help out? I wasn't even greeted before.' The Baron couldn't believe that a child like Leylin could advance to rank 15 either.
Many swears were uttered among the crowd at the port. Many shadows snuck out of the sewers, darkness, and even private houses, disappearing quickly from the harbour.
"Damn it! How did the Faulen Family activate the wizard tower so quickly? The intel isn't accurate!"
"Leave quickly! The detection abilities of a wizard tower are not to be trifled with!" With the powerful suppression from the wizard tower, all the schemes of these people had failed disgracefully.
...
Inside the wizard tower.
A hazy image of a girl's face formed in the crystal. Her eyes gleamed as she smiled at Leylin, "Master!"
In more vulgar terms, the tower genie was the seed of the wizard who'd activated it. The natural brand extended deep, and changing the master of the tower was a troublesome matter.
"Alright. Report the operational state of the wizard tower!" Leylin commanded.
"Defensive spell formations completely activated. The four elemental pools are operating normally and have amassed 12.15% energy," the female tower genie reported to him in a formal tone.
"Mm. Start the detection spell formation and set the scope to be Port Venus. The baron's residence and city hall are to be inspected thoroughly. Immediately report any energy undulations above rank 10!"
"Understood!" The tower genie quickly carried out Leylin's wishes.
Leylin then brought Ernest away from the core control room, layers of powerful lustre enveloping the area. Ernest seemed reluctant to leave. He knew that once the tower genie was activated, nobody could enter this place besides Leylin.
"What's going on? When did you become a high-ranked wizard?" Ernest shouted after they returned to the drawing room, unable to hold himself back anymore.
"It's a long story…" Leylin smiled slightly. The considerate tower genie then ordered for a few stone puppets to send over some cups of clear water. This potable water was sourced from the water elemental plane. Since it was a new construct, the daily commodities would only be moved here the next day. However, neither Leylin nor Ernest minded this.
"The stone puppets are at most comparable to rank 5 Professionals, which is a little low. They can only be used for odd jobs…" Leylin took a sip of the pure water that had a sweet taste.
After drinking all the cool water in front of him from the jar, Ernest finally regained his calm. However, his two eyes were firmly trained on Leylin, like huge searchlights, "Enough! You'd better give me an answer now!"
"Alright…" Leylin laughed wryly. He raised his hands in surrender before giving a brief account of his experiences. Of course, he withheld quite a bit and added some fake information. He was great at telling stories anyway, and many of the details were still hair-raising.
...
"So that means… my son has already become a high-ranked wizard…"
Leylin was inside the baron's study room, left with no choice but to retell the story in front of the baron and his master.
"Yes! He really is a wizard genius. I don't doubt his ability to become a legendary wizard at all! Who knew that I, Ernest, would be able to guide a legendary apprentice? The next time people see Leylin, they'll first think: Oh! So it's Leylin! The wizard that Ernest taught…"
Ernest was obviously immersed in his fantasies, while Baron Jonas was more practical.
"Good! I wouldn't feel at ease handing over our family's wizard tower anyone else anyway, so this is the best scenario…"
Leylin bowed. "Yes, father! However, please announce that you invited another high-ranked wizard to keep this secret. I would like to take this opportunity to help the family solve some issues at one go."
"Do as you please. I support you all the way!" Baron Jonas found that he had nothing to say to Leylin. From childhood, his son had never given him anything to worry about. Sometimes, he even wondered if this child of his was a genius or a freak.
"The port seems a lot more peaceful ever since the wizard tower began monitoring it…" Leylin sighed.
"That's normal with a wizard tower," Ernest rolled his shoulders back.
"I'm planning to leave for a period of time after this, I've handed most of the permissions of the wizard tower to master. There shouldn't be any problem with controlling it for now… We should also begin to take in wizard apprentices from our territory…" Leylin stated his thoughts.
With the wizard tower and a high-ranked wizard around, there would be no difficulty in nurturing apprentices by themselves. Even Ernest would be able to do this well.
"Don't worry. I discovered a few good seeds here, and only lacked resources and an environment to teach them…" Ernest's eyes showed how emotional he was. If a high-ranked wizard could improve by using the wizard tower, the benefits to a middle-ranked wizard like him would definitely be immense.
It could be said that the existence of the wizard tower made him believe he had the opportunity to become a high-ranked wizard in his lifetime!
"Mm. I've also left behind some foundational and high-ranked wizard information in the wizard tower's library. Master can take a look…" Be it Ernest's advancement or gaining a few wizard apprentices from their territory, everything would increase their strength. Leylin would be more than happy for all this to happen.
"Information on wizards…" Ernest's eyes brightened.
Meanwhile, Leylin was snickering inside. Though no wizard organisation would allow wizards who had studied with them to leak high-ranked information, wasn't Silverymoon City already destroyed? Well then...
Still, he kept back the information for legendary wizards. It would be far too shocking, and Leylin did not want to get too much attention.
"Alright! Do you want to solve the issues with the Barbarians? The devils and demons? The churches? Do you need any help?" Baron Jonas muttered.
Leylin thought about it for a while. He then leaned his head to the side as he spoke, "The pirates first, then!"
-x-X-x-
The Barbarians had once been Leylin's ally. However, with the defeat of Marquis Louis, the relationship between them had gradually turned into a competition. Leylin had no guilt whatsoever of beating them. If they had a chance, he was sure that they would do everything in their power to destroy his own organisation.
This was the law on the outer seas. Cruelty and logic prevailed, not allowing for a whit of emotion.
"Mm, the Barbarians are a large issue. When the imperial navy still existed, they lay low for a period of time. Now, though, they're suddenly appearing and even attacking our commercial groups!"
Any huge merchant would hate these pirates to the bone. Only nobles could plunder, how dare those barbarians steal their things? Although there was a bias here, this was the general thought process.
"Don't worry, they won't be active for long!" Leylin promised.
...
"Good morning, Lord Wizard!"
In the blink of an eye, numerous days had passed. Within the wizard tower, a freckled girl saw Leylin approach and put down the book in her hands, shyly greeting him.
"Good morning! Your name is… Dylia, right? Work hard!"
Leylin answered without thought, and the girl instantly turned red, "Yes! I'll do that!"
Leylin was not surprised by her attitude. Her rough skin and hands full of calluses made it obvious that this apprentice was a commoner.
If not for Ernest finding her talent at wizardry by coincidence and Leylin just finishing his wizard tower, it was impossible for her to get here. However, with all these coincidences piling up, the girl's fate had changed.
She was destined to work the fields, marry someone, endure the rough treatment of her husband, and rack her brains over her children. However, now there was another possibility. She could become a wizard, serving a noble master and changing her fate! This hope alone was enough for commoners to fight hard for.
As he thought about this, Leylin placed the spellbook he had copied into the shelves and then left the library.
The wizard tower had become more lively. After gaining permissions to a few laboratories and a pass to go around most areas, Ernest had moved in and brought five or six apprentices. The tower had been constructed like a fort, so it could guard two hundred people inside it for numerous years without much effort. It was completely possible for a few apprentices to live there, and the place was even very comfortable.
Not bothering Ernest, who had become slightly deranged, Leylin came to the core smelting room at the upper levels.
"Tower genie, how's the progress with the items?" Leylin asked indifferently.
A projection of the tower genie's appearance formed, and it spoke to Leylin respectfully. "Master! The Red Dragon's Sword has already been completed. What's left is the last bits of processing and pyretic nourishment."
"Good!" Leylin nodded, lips curving at an angle. He'd evidently thought of Ernest's look when he gave him these legendary materials.
This was a dragon, a peak being in the World of Gods! Killing a legendary mature dragon required one to brave perilous dangers, and if not for the thousand elites and Tiff who was a legendary himself, it would've been basically impossible for Leylin to eliminate the red dragon. His life would probably have been lost as well.
Of course, once the dragon was successfully slain the profit was immense. Just the legendary materials from the red dragon was enough for any alchemic wizard to go green in envy.
"The Ring of Wizardry and a few other items before now give me very little benefits. I'll need to crush the Barbarians as well, and things might be troublesome if I don't have a few items I can use…"
Leylin came before a large petri dish, producing a red long sword from the silver solution. The slender blade of the sword emanated piercing light, and it had a beautiful arch. The hilt even had carvings of the red dragon. By design this was a sword for women, the draconic pride that was its motif causing a content smile to arise on Leylin's lips.
The A.I. Chip projected the related information to Leylin. [Item Name: Red Dragon Sword. Length: 91.5cm. Weight: 2512g. Materials: Red Dragon Bones, Dragon Scales, Refined Metal. Item Effects: 1. Armour Break. 2. Sharpness. 3. Fireball (3 uses a day) Description: This is a sword made with materials from a legendary red dragon. Based on the categorisation of this world, it has entered the ranks of legendary items! This item has a terrifying sharpness and ability to pierce through armour. In the face of this sword, most defences are frail. The blade also seems to have a mysterious magic that thirsts to drink the scalding blood of its enemies.]
'A legendary item? Not bad!' Leylin nodded and wiped the sword clean. He then sheathed it in the dragonscale scabbard. This was not for him, but a gift for someone else.
With Leylin's attainments as a grandmaster in alchemy in the Magus World, and mixed in with his skills of the World of Gods and the runes of the arcanists, there was no difficulty in creating legendary items.
'But it consumes so much magic… I can only complete it with the help of the wizard tower…' Leylin then headed to an area outside two glass rooms. Through the thick, reinforced crystal glass, he could see a dark red leather armour and a magic staff with a strange shape at the middle, enjoying the powerful force being channelled into them.
'The effects of fusing alchemical methods from the two worlds has quite good…' Leylin pondered over this once he witnessed the scene. If he were to do this based entirely on the methods in the World of Gods, creating a legendary item would require a lot of time. It would be astounding for him to make even one.
Now, however? The progress and innovation in production techniques was definitely a huge source of motivation for him. Leylin suddenly recalled something from his previous world and shook his head. Memories of that time were far too distant from him.
'Perhaps the techniques there aren't entirely useless. With my capabilities, I can begin to attempt fusing different laws together with various techniques. The antimatter experiment at the end would be very powerful even in the World of Gods…'
The A.I. Chip continued to twinkle, and the attributes of the two items were projected in front of Leylin.
[Item name: Dragon Armour (Incomplete) Weight: 1599 g. Materials used: Dragon Leather, Dragon Scales, Siren's Hair, Rainbow Feathers. Magic Effect: Can materialise Mage Armour II twice a day. Description: This is a powerful defensive armour. As the leather of a legendary dragon was used in its making, it is immune to most low-ranked spells. It can also adapt well to the spells of a wizard.]
Though a legendary red dragon had a lot of leather, not much of it was the true, essential portion. Leylin had extracted the best parts to make this legendary armour, and the rest of the leather could only be used to make regular exemplary items, even if their defence wouldn't be too bad.
Leylin then focused on the staff in the alchemy room, which had a strange structure. It had slender red scales on its body, and at the head was something similar to a dragon's claw that held onto a large red crystal. Within it was the faint image of a red dragon, roars still resounding.
[Item name: Red Dragon Staff (Incomplete) Rank: Legendary 1. Length: 91.5cm. Weight: 3500g. Materials: Dragon Crystal, Dragon Soul, Dragon Bones, Dragon Blood, Dragon Scales.]
[Item Abilities: 1- Storage. This staff can store spell slots. Currently empty: Rank 7 (1), Rank 6 (3), Rank 5 (5) 2. Spell: Can materialise Dragon's Breath thrice a day. 3. Ability: Dragon Aura Domain. 4. Soul Burn: By extracting the power of the dragon soul, one can create a single-use legendary spirit attack (This will harm the dragon soul).]
Description: This is a magic staff made entirely with materials from a legendary red dragon. Its creator has unreasonably confined the dragon's soul inside it, giving it unbelievable strength. However, this will lead to the hostility of the dragon race.]
It was evident that this Snarling Red Dragon Staff was the true star of the show. Many wizards would covet this legendary staff, but few would have the gall to use it. Even Leylin had made up his mind not to use it unless things were dire, and then he would silence those who saw it.
The dragon race in the World of Gods were quite powerful. Those ancient or primordial dragons were beings the gods themselves did not have the courage to provoke.
'The essence of a legendary dragon gave me the materials for three legendary items.' Leylin stroked his chin, 'This is a very high yield. Other alchemist grandmasters would not be able to do this, and even I feel quite emotional…'
'In addition… its bloodline seems to be quite useful…' Even Leylin had to admit that everything on the legendary dragon's body was a treasure. It was no wonder that they were coveted by all sorts of races.
"These two legendary items should be enough to allow me enter the realm of legendaries…" Leylin was rather satisfied with his work. "Once they're complete, I should head into the outer seas and settle debts with the Barbarians…"
Leylin's eyes suddenly glinted with a chilly look. He had plans for the outer seas, and it would be a great foundation to build on in his ascent to godhood. No outsiders could get a share of this!