FALLEN ORACLE

**Chapter 8: The Wizard and the Tower (1)**

"You want to leave for fifteen days?" General Tros could hardly believe his ears. It was the first time anyone had made such an outrageous request of him.Chen Yi said, "Yes. In fifteen days, I'll bring back what you want.""Why should I trust you? And you promised that after seeing the Duke, you'd introduce me to this Carl.""Rest assured, General, I won't break my word. Though I'm leaving, Mendes will remain here. If I don't return in fifteen days, you can use him to force Carl's hand.""Besides, my only request is that you hold your position. To be honest, given the current situation, if there were no other variables, that seemed to be your plan all along, wasn't it?" Chen Yi gave a sly smile.Phil was sweating for Chen Yi. He knew his father well—this was basically haggling with him.General Tros laughed. But his laugh somehow made things feel more ominous. "His father, Duke Sedek, is currently my guest. And you're suggesting I need his roommate as a hostage?"Chen Yi said, "General, forgive my bluntness. Duke Sedek is a special case. You still have use for him. To avoid completely burning bridges between the two nations, everyone knows you won't actually harm him. Carl knows this too. Besides, if you had any intention of using the Duke to threaten Carl, you would have done so by now."The general's smile gradually faded. He realized he should not underestimate this young man. He was worthy opponent."So I can just take a newly appointed professor of Rongqi Academy hostage? How dare you assume that old bastard Morin won't come after me?"Facing the general's interrogation, Chen Yi, prepared, pulled out a piece of parchment. "General, this is Mendes's signed waiver. It clearly states that if I cannot return within fifteen days, he will voluntarily surrender his life to you.""As you can see, it bears his psionic mark—there's no forgery. With this, even if you kill Mendes, the academy can't touch you."For the first time since meeting Chen Yi and the others, General Tros fell silent. He was pondering what exactly the young man was after.Whether or not Carl valued brotherhood as they claimed, this waiver from Mendes was indeed a significant bargaining chip to control Carl.Clearly, in the current situation, Carl Sedek was extremely important to the Kingdom.After all, the people of the Central Plains still recognized the Sedek bloodline. If they couldn't eliminate the entire ducal family, the Kingdom's rule over the Central Plains would never be secure.As an outstanding soldier and a shrewd politician, he knew that war was a means, not an end.For the Kingdom, the means served to gain benefits. For the general himself, the means also served to gain benefits—merit, prestige, rewards...But war was a very special means, accompanied by enormous risk. His long military career had taught him that victory would not always be his.Seeing the other man fall silent, Chen Yi pressed his advantage. "General, you marched here on the direct order of His Majesty the King. Don't you want to know why the King made such a decision?"This hit the general where it hurt. As a soldier, obeying the King's orders was his duty—he had no complaints.But was it possible that this order did not reflect the King's own will?The general thought of the noisy, talkative civil servants around the King, who already saw him as a thorn in their side. Under their instigation, the King's decisions might not be wise.When the King gave the order, he had only said to recapture a cache of staves—originally belonging to the Kingdom—in a mine in the Central Plains. He had given no further details.The general had always feared political daggers more than battlefield spears."Very well. I'll give you fifteen days." General Tros finally made his decision. He hadn't planned to go on the offensive anyway.He already controlled most of the Central Plains. Even without the staves, this was a great achievement.On the other hand, a reckless attack could be disastrous if the Duchy's army, armed with thousands of staves, counterattacked."Thank you, General."Chen Yi exited the hall, and Phil saw him to the door, asking anxiously, "Chen Yi, are you sure about this? My father can do anything when cornered."Chen Yi said, "Nothing is a hundred percent certain. I'll do my best. After I'm gone, I'm counting on you here."He clapped Phil on the shoulder and hurried away.---"Would you do the same?" After Chen Yi left, General Tros examined the waiver in front of him and asked suddenly."What?" Phil didn't understand."My men told me that when Chen Yi brought up the waiver, that man named Mendes signed it without even blinking. Why is he so trusting?"The general had spent years commanding troops and had used many methods to secure his men's loyalty. But it seemed none of his methods were as effective as Chen Yi's."If he asked you to sign a waiver, would you hesitate too, Phil?"Phil said nothing.The general knew his son's character. In this situation, silence was admission.---**Eight days later – Northwest outskirts of the Kingdom of Klem's capital, Dagon City**Rain poured from the night sky. Only when occasional lightning flashed could one see a tall, eerie silhouette standing on the plains outside the city.It was a wizard's tower, several times taller than the majestic walls of Dagon City. Whether by day or on a rainy night, it commanded the reverence of commoners and nobles alike.Everyone knew the person who lived in the tower was a wizard.All wizards were mages, but not all mages were wizards.Only those who mastered a vast number of spells, could translate them into tremendous combat power, and swore allegiance to the realm could be knighted as wizards.This tower belonged to the senior wizard, Yudian. He lived, worked, meditated, and studied magic within it. This stormy night was no exception.Two minutes ago, this powerful wizard had sensed someone enter his tower. The visitor climbed the stairs—neither too fast nor too slow.