Mage's Profound Truths

Chapter 23: Encounter (Part One)

"Boom."

A loud and muffled sound rang out, as if the entire basement was trembling.

After a while, Merlin finally stood up from the ground, gently patting his head, which, like his clothes, was covered in dust.

On the ground, at the spot where the massive fireball had struck, a half-meter wide pit had formed, clearly showing how terrifying the fireball’s power was.

Merlin quickly checked his sea of consciousness and found that the horizontal bar had turned gray again. Other than his mana being exhausted, there were no other changes to the spell model.

Looking at the massive pit on the ground, Merlin still felt a lingering fear. The fireball’s power had exceeded his expectations, and its appearance was definitely closely related to the sudden appearance of the horizontal bar in his sea of consciousness.

Next, Merlin tried every possible method, closely observing changes in the horizontal bar within his sea of consciousness. Eventually, he discovered its function.

It turned out that whenever Merlin cast Fireball Spell three times, the horizontal bar would turn from gray to red. At that moment, if he stimulated the bar with mental power, the spell model would be triggered to release a gigantic fireball with terrifying power—at least three times stronger than an ordinary fireball.

As for why the horizontal bar appeared, Merlin couldn’t figure it out. Perhaps it was due to the redesigned spell model from the Matrix, or perhaps it was because of his unique constitution as a transmigrator.

In any case, the horizontal bar was a great benefit to Merlin—at least for now. It allowed him to release a spell that was three times more powerful than an ordinary level-zero spell.

Although Merlin didn’t know the power of level-one spells, he believed that even if the fireball released through the horizontal bar was weaker, it wouldn’t be by much.

Moreover, this was Merlin’s hidden power—something he could use as a trump card.

Based on the enormous fireball released by the horizontal bar, Merlin named it the "Greater Fireball Spell", a name that was both fitting and descriptive.

After that, Merlin continued practicing Fireball Spell in the basement.

※※※

Late at night, in the quiet stillness, Merlin lay over the desk under dim candlelight, carefully flipping through the final volume of the spell journal.

Old Etha's spell journal had three volumes. The first contained his introductions about spellcasters and his experiences from casting spells.

The second volume recorded the various spell models Old Etha had painstakingly constructed over the past ten or more years.

Merlin had already finished reading the first two volumes. Thanks to them, he reconstructed his spell model and successfully simulated a Fireball Spell model in his sea of consciousness. However, during practice, he discovered some shortcomings.

The most important issue was his lack of mental power!

Spell models determined whether one could become a spellcaster, while mental power determined how powerful a spellcaster one could become.

To become a formidable spellcaster, one must excel both in building spell models and in mental strength.

The only way to increase mental power was through meditation.

At present, Merlin could barely manage a single spell model. Constructing a second one in his sea of consciousness was beyond his capacity.

That was why Merlin turned to Old Etha’s journal again, hoping to find a meditation technique.

When he opened the mysterious third volume, he indeed found a few meditation techniques among the few pages it contained.

However, according to Old Etha, these were all basic-level meditations with limited effects.

Each had its own characteristics: some specialized in restoring mental power quickly, especially after significant depletion.

Others could enhance mental power over time, which was exactly what Merlin needed.

After careful selection, Merlin chose one basic meditation technique and began practicing it, closing his eyes and stabilizing his mental power.

This kind of meditation required long-term practice to bring about subtle changes. So after learning the steps, Merlin stood up without checking his mental state, not expecting immediate results.

※※※

"Young Master Merlin."

Outside the room, Lucy Jia’s voice called out.

"Come in."

Merlin had already gotten out of bed and was fully dressed.

Lucy Jia pushed open the door and entered with her head lowered, saying to Merlin, “Young Master Merlin, the butler asked me to take your measurements to have some clothes made for you.”

Merlin looked down at his body. Recently, he had also noticed that his clothes seemed tight. For some reason, his body had bulked up rapidly over the past few months like a balloon, and his old clothes no longer fit properly, making movement inconvenient.

"Alright."

Merlin hesitated briefly, then removed his coat, leaving only a thin shirt, and stretched out his arms to let Lucy Jia take his measurements.

Lucy Jia hurried forward with a measuring tape to measure Merlin’s height.

However, Merlin had grown significantly taller in recent months, and Lucy Jia couldn’t quite reach, so she had to tiptoe, pressing gently against Merlin’s chest as she struggled to measure his height.

Lucy Jia tilted her head upward, wearing a white maid outfit with a somewhat open neckline. Merlin only needed to glance down to see a flash of snow-white skin.

Lucy Jia was already very beautiful. The few freckles on her face didn’t detract from her looks; in fact, they added a touch of charm.

Merlin squinted slightly, his gaze brazenly examining Lucy Jia. For a moment, even though it was cold outside the castle, he felt a surge of heat rising within him.

"Young Master Merlin, I’m done measuring."

Lucia seemed to notice Merlin's gaze, and her expression showed a trace of panic as she quickly stepped back a few paces, lowering her head and not daring to look at Merlin.

"Alright, you may go."

Merlin waved his hand, dismissing Lucia, then walked to the mirror. Looking at the young face in the reflection, he couldn’t help but smile faintly and mutter in a low voice, "Looks like it's been bottled up for too long..."

Ever since coming to this world, Merlin had always had a strong sense of crisis, so he was extremely cautious in everything he did.

Later, when he came into contact with magic, he devoted himself entirely to studying it.

However, after all, this body was only sixteen years old, a time when blood runs hot; even if he had no such thoughts, his body would still react instinctively.

Merlin put on his coat, went downstairs, but did not see any sign of May Snow.

"Butler, where is May Snow?"

"Miss May Snow has already gone to the church."

Merlin nodded. For the past month, he had been busy practicing fireball spells in the basement and had rarely seen May Snow. But seeing how she left early and returned late every day, it seemed she still hadn’t made a breakthrough to become an Elemental Swordsman.

As for Elemental Swordsmen, Merlin only knew the basics. He didn’t really understand what was required to break through and become one.

However, the most important thing to becoming an Elemental Swordsman was the accumulation of elements. Only when the elements in one’s body reached a certain level could one successfully become an Elemental Swordsman.

May Snow had a fire-elemental physique, so she needed to accumulate fire elements. Merlin's spell model in his mind was also absorbing fire elements, so there might be some similarities between the two.

“When May Snow returns, I’ll find a time to test it and see if I can help her break through to become an Elemental Swordsman.”

Merlin made up his mind silently.

After breakfast, Merlin wrapped a gray scarf around his neck and headed straight out of the castle.

The butler asked in surprise, "Young Master Merlin, are you going out?"

"I'm just going for a walk."

"Please wait a moment, Young Master Merlin. I’ll call Moss."

Merlin shook his head slightly and said, “No need. I just want to take a walk alone.”

With that, he ignored the butler’s surprise and left the castle directly.

Merlin walked for a while and arrived in front of Old Etha’s wooden cabin.

From afar, he looked at the cabin with a complicated expression.

The wooden cabin was completely abandoned. Since an evil heretic had once lived there, people usually avoided it. The small garden in front, which once had some flowers and grass, was now blanketed in snow, leaving only a field of white.

Merlin put his hands in his coat pockets and wore a hat. After glancing around and confirming no one was nearby, he stepped forward and pushed open the rusty iron gate, then climbed the wooden stairs.

He took off his hat and lightly brushed off the snowflakes on it. Just as he was about to go upstairs, he suddenly narrowed his eyes, and his expression turned tense.

"Footprints. Someone has been here."

Merlin spoke softly. He had spotted distinct footprints on the dust-covered stairs, with moist mud still clinging to them. It was clear someone had recently been here—perhaps they were even still upstairs!

Thinking of this, Merlin looked up cautiously at the second floor, then quietly put his hat back on, lightened his steps, and carefully ascended.

The footprints on the stairs remained clearly visible, thanks to the thick dust that hadn’t been disturbed in a long time.

On the second floor, Merlin examined the doorknob and saw that there was very little dust on it, indicating that someone had opened the door recently.

"Who could it be?"

Merlin didn’t barge in. Narrowing his eyes, he thought of several familiar faces. The footprints looked small and delicate—not a man’s, but a woman’s.

"Could it be Miss Kalis?"

Merlin couldn’t help thinking of Kalis. After all, Old Etha was an evil heretic, and people from Blackwater City usually didn’t dare come here. The only ones familiar with Old Etha and who visited often were Merlin and Kalis.

Just then, Merlin’s keen hearing picked up the faint sound of footsteps from inside the room—someone was walking toward the door.

Merlin’s heart stirred. He quickly pressed himself to the left side of the door, eyes locked tightly on it.