Mage's Profound Truths

Chapter 35: Spellcasting Tools (Part One)

Merlin had imagined many times what it would be like to meet Old Wilson again, and had speculated on the many possible scenarios, but now that the meeting was really happening, he felt very calm inside.

“Merlin, why are you here?”

Old Wilson quickly jumped down from his horse and strode over to Merlin, his gaze full of affection.

Merlin had to slightly raise his head to look up at Old Wilson, because Old Wilson was very tall, almost two meters, with a broad back and thick waist. As he approached Merlin, a strong smell of blood hit his nose.

“Father, did you encounter bandits?”

Merlin didn’t rush to answer, but asked a question in return.

Old Wilson casually sheathed his bloodstained greatsword and said indifferently, “It was just a few petty bandits. I killed them all. No threat. Come, let’s go inside and talk.”

So Merlin followed Old Wilson into the castle. With the help of the servants, Old Wilson removed his black armor. Merlin was shocked to see two or three servants struggling to lift the armor—it must have weighed at least three hundred jin.

Wearing armor close to three hundred jin, an ordinary person wouldn’t even be able to move, let alone wear it for long. But Old Wilson not only wore it with ease, he could even fight in it, which showed how exceptional his physical strength was.

Originally, Merlin had thought that Old Wilson was only a second-level Flame Swordsman, but now it seemed that he was far more than he appeared to be. A mere second-level Flame Swordsman couldn’t possibly wear such heavy armor.

Besides being a second-level Flame Swordsman, Old Wilson was also gifted with an outstanding physique. His strength was terrifyingly great—his raw physical power even surpassed that of second-level Elemental Swordsmen.

“No wonder Father survived the war against the Black Moon Kingdom, known as the ‘Slaughterhouse,’ and even accumulated vast military merit to become a noble. His physical condition is his greatest asset!”

Right now, Merlin could feel countless fire elements madly pouring into Old Wilson’s body. He should have already reached the peak of second-level Flame Swordsman—he only needed an opportunity to possibly become third-level!

As for Old Wilson’s true strength, Merlin couldn’t determine it, but he believed that with Old Wilson’s terrifying power, he should at least be on par with third-level Elemental Swordsmen.

Led by the housekeeper, Old Wilson went to bathe. Before long, he changed into clean clothes and came out into the main hall looking refreshed.

Now that he had taken off the black armor, the fierce and bloody aura around Old Wilson had vanished. He looked very calm and peaceful. He walked over to Merlin, gently patted his shoulder, looked him over from head to toe, and smiled with satisfaction. “Not bad, you’ve grown strong. Now you look like my son!”

It was obvious that Old Wilson was very happy about Merlin’s improved health. After all, anyone who had seen Merlin’s formerly weak body would have doubted he was Old Wilson’s son.

“By the way, Merlin, why are you here instead of in Blackwater City? Did something happen at home?”

A sharp gleam flashed in Old Wilson’s eyes. The calm aura from just now suddenly turned violent.

Fortunately, Merlin's spiritual power was already strong enough that he could control his emotions and resist the impact of Old Wilson’s fierce aura.

“Father, nothing has happened at home. The City Lord is inviting all nobles of Blackwater City to the castle to discuss plans against the bandits. That’s why I came to inform you.”

Merlin explained everything in detail, while Old Wilson frowned slightly and fell into deep thought.

After a long while, Old Wilson finally raised his head and said calmly, “The towns surrounding Blackwater City have generally been harassed by bandits, but strangely, no town has suffered devastating destruction. It seems these bandits are not just looting—they probably have other purposes.”

“But in any case, these bandits must be driven out. Otherwise, the towns around Blackwater City, and many nobles’ territories, will never have peace. A few days ago, I encountered a small group of bandits while on patrol—no more than a dozen. They weren’t very strong and were all killed by my heavy-armored knights. But the large group of bandits is still hiding in some secret place and has not been found.”

“If we can unite all the nobles of Blackwater City, it will be much easier to deal with these bandits through coordinated action. By the way, did Augdin say when the meeting will be held?”

“Around the day after tomorrow,” Merlin replied indifferently.

“The day after tomorrow? Very well. If we set out tomorrow, we should be able to make it in time. Merlin, we’ll depart for Blackwater City tomorrow.”

Old Wilson made the decision quickly. It seemed the threat from the bandits was indeed significant, enough to make him feel that it could not be handled alone—only by rallying all the nobles of Blackwater City could they be expelled.

※※※

Early the next morning, Merlin awoke from his sleep. At that time, the sky was just beginning to brighten, but the servants were already busy.

Merlin put on his clothes, left the room, and went straight downstairs.

At this time, Old Wilson was still asleep. Merlin looked up at Old Wilson's room. Last night, he had vaguely seen the beautiful female housekeeper quietly enter Old Wilson’s room.

Merlin shook his head and shook off the chaotic thoughts in his mind. His gaze turned toward a section of the castle’s outer wall. He remembered that last night, the strange wind originated from beneath that weathered wall.

“Master Merlin!”

Many guards and servants in the castle had already come to know Merlin, and each of them respectfully greeted him. Merlin nodded with a smile and walked straight out of the castle.

“Hoo...”

It was still very cold on this winter morning. There had been a light snowfall the previous night, so the ground was still a bit slippery.

Merlin looked around and, seeing that no one was nearby, headed toward the wall. Before long, he arrived at the place where the strange wind had appeared last night. The ground here was very flat, seemingly having been forcibly smoothed by that wind.

“This is the place.”

Merlin crouched quietly in a corner of the wall. The strange magical fluctuation he had sensed last night should have come from beneath this section.

The soil under the wall was very damp and not very hard, so Merlin carefully began to dig away the surface dirt with his hands.

Before long, in the wet soil, Merlin touched a hard, icy-cold object.

“Is this a casting tool?”

Delighted, Merlin didn’t care what the object was. He quickly wrapped it in a cloth he had prepared beforehand, then calmly returned to the castle as if nothing had happened.