Chapter 770: Chapter 463: Invitation_2
"Please come in," Colin set down the letter from Ryden, his heart still entangled in some indecision.
The invitation from Ryden was actually very simple; it was an invitation for him to go to the frontline to undertake a special mission with a generous reward.
Perhaps due to the need for secrecy, Ryden was very vague, not mentioning any detailed content of the mission at all—just that it was very challenging, extremely difficult, and of utmost importance...
This made him somewhat conflicted... However, if he truly planned to go to the frontline to obtain Divine Blood, the special mission mentioned by Ryden might be a good choice.
After all, Divine Blood was exceedingly rare, and simply fighting on the frontline wouldn’t be enough to earn sufficient military merits for exchange. This special mission, with a reward even Ryden said was generous, might just allow him to directly obtain the Divine Blood!
Yet, going to the frontline, he still hesitated...
Thinking this, Colin lifted his gaze toward the door and then slightly startled.
"Instructor, what brings you here?"
He frowned slightly and asked, "Has something happened on the Tilamei Plain?"
"No," Atbolde shook his head, a gentle smile on his face: "I came to see you."
"The Tilamei Plain is all normal... well, even more than normal, people are singing and dancing."
"Today is the Harvest Festival of the Tilamei Plain, have you forgotten?"
"The Harvest Festival..." Colin was taken aback for a moment, turning his head to look out the window shrouded by night, his eyes looking somewhat distant, "It’s already the Harvest Festival."
"Yes, according to past years, all the wheat on the Tilamei Plain should have just finished being harvested and dried at this time," Atbolde remarked with a sense of nostalgia.
"Thanks to the Grain Reaper machine you led us in making."
Colin just smiled, saying nothing.
"Would you like to go out for a walk?" Atbolde asked again, "Renee has prepared a sumptuous Harvest Festival feast for us. Lillian and Shelley are there, and Jennifer too."
Colin clearly paused for a moment.
"If you’re busy, that’s fine too... Important matters come first," Atbolde added.
He then smiled with a teasing tone:
"However, I think as a Third Rank Wizard, the great autonomous ruler of Tilamei, the respected Supreme Council Member, perhaps you don’t have to push yourself so hard. Sometimes you can afford to relax a little... What do you think?"
"...I think so too." A warm current surged through Colin’s heart.
He had been secluded these past days, each time he emerged, his brow furrowed and his steps hurried, his inner restlessness spilling into his demeanor...
All this, it seemed, had been observed by those around him.
Hearing Colin’s affirmative response, Atbolde’s smile broadened.
"Happy Harvest Festival, Colin."
"Happy Harvest Festival! Master Colin."
No sooner had he spoken than a petite figure rushed in from outside the door, smiling and offering congratulations—it was Jennifer.
"Happy Harvest Festival, Junior Brother Colin!"
Behind Jennifer, not to be outdone, Lillian followed quickly but seemed to think it beneath her to compete with a child and slowed her pace upon entering, standing still as she offered her congrats.
"Happy Harvest Festival, Colin." The last one to enter was Shelley, who was as calm as usual, but a smile clearly shone in her eyes, also offering her best wishes.
In such a moment, it was impossible for Colin not to feel touched.
In this lonely foreign land, he felt once more, even more precious than in his previous life, those emotions of companionship.
"Happy Harvest Festival to you all too," Colin slowly stood up, looking at everyone with a smile.
"Let’s go, Renee and the others are still waiting in the dining hall, especially Nasi—she’s specially made a surprise for you!" Lillian urged again.
Colin nodded, his heart finally settling on a decision.
The dark clouds of war loomed overhead, and the Wizards still at a disadvantage; he couldn’t afford to waste any more time, letting his strength stagnate.
A choice had to be made!
...
The next day.
Merredith City.
"You really came, Colin."
In a study, Ryden looked at Colin in front of him and said gravely,
"I knew that, like me, a genius like you would never be content with a dull life!"
Colin smiled, wondering why Ryden had emphasized the difficulty of the mission in his letter...
However, he hadn’t come because the frontlines offered a more thrilling task.
If possible, he would have preferred to spend his days leisurely in the Tilaimei Plain.
Sadly... with the Yanan World engulfed in war, there was no room for a life of leisure.
As for the option of abandoning his Knight Cultivation and following the traditional Wizard’s path, Colin had indeed hesitated for a long time.
But in the end, he had given up on this approach.
The path of the Knight had not been an easy one, and he couldn’t bring himself to abandon it. Moreover, even if he chose to extract the essence of his physical strength, it was still unknown whether it would interfere with his advancement – considering that the will born from his body had now merged with his spirit.
Furthermore, he could feel that the path he was on was superior to that of a traditional Wizard.
This was easily discernible when comparing strengths and weaknesses.
As a Third Rank Knight and Third Rank Wizard, his current power could truly be considered the strongest below the Fourth Rank.
After weighing all these factors, he had finally decided to come to the frontlines to seek Divine Blood.
Despite myriad thoughts swirling in his mind, in reality, only a moment had passed, and Ryden continued to speak:
"I see you have already advanced to Advanced Third Rank, care for a friendly match?"
"Now?" Colin paused, his expression troubled, "This doesn’t seem like a good place for a match, and with the mission at hand, it would be unwise to risk injury."
"True, a match wouldn’t really mean much anyway, and since we can’t go to the Supreme Council Duel Arena every time, we would have to pull our punches..." Ryden sighed and then added, "The reason you refuse must be the same as mine, you don’t like this aspect either..."
Colin twitched his eyebrow, unable to help but criticize internally: ’I simply don’t want to duel... not all Wizards are keen on battle...’
Although he didn’t know why Ryden felt this way, he clearly saw himself as a Wizard who, like Ryden, was not content with mediocrity and craved battle.
On the other side, Ryden continued:
"However, you can rest assured once you reach the frontlines, for what we have here in abundance is intense battle! Those Divine Believers and Divine Avatars make for the best opponents!"
"But be aware, even if Divine Believers are Third Rank or even Fourth Rank Popes, they generally still have a physical body that’s exceptionally strong, and dealing with them differs from facing Wizards of the same rank."
"They still have a physical form?" Colin felt a sudden leap in his heart.
"Yes, Popes are not like us. Even though they use the surrounding Magic Power when casting Divine Arts, unless their bodies are destroyed, their souls normally won’t leave the body..."
"This is quite peculiar, could it be that those Divine Believers cultivate both body and spirit?"
"You forgot, Believers don’t cultivate; their power is a gift from the Divine. Perhaps this is a unique manifestation of the Divine’s empowerment... I don’t know much about this area, but you can look up the details when you have time," Ryden said.
"A slip of the tongue on my part." Colin nodded gently, suppressing his excitement.
How could he not know that the power of the Belieans was a gift from the Divine?
But the fact that both body and spirit were strong made him think of himself immediately.
Remembering this, Colin thought for a moment and then asked, "Earlier, Lord Ryden mentioned that, apart from us, two others are on this mission. May I know who they are?"
"One I’ve mentioned before when we were in Pansai City, Lord Mill. The other is Yeats, from the Yista School of Neustadt," Ryden replied succinctly.
"Lord Mill... is that the genius Fourth Rank Wizard, Mill Pansay?"
"Indeed, in fact, Lord Mill is the main person responsible for this mission, and Yeats is also a Third Rank Wizard. Our role is mainly to assist Lord Mill," Ryden continued to explain, then glanced at his Pocket Watch and added:
"It’s about time. Let’s go, I’ll take you to meet Lord Yeats and Lord Mill, and while we’re at it, brief you on our mission."
"Alright."
Colin nodded, stood up, and followed Ryden out of the study.