Chapter 1255: Section 1256 Arthur and Merlin
The journey back to Barbarian Cave went smoothly.
As they descended from the chasm, they encountered several wizards.
During the exchanges with these wizards, Angel noticed that although they were friendly towards him, their interest seemed to be primarily because of his alchemy. The conversation lacked enthusiasm without that topic.
From this, it appeared that news of the Abyss had not yet reached the Barbarian Cave.
After all, they were not in the same world. Moreover, it hadn’t even been half a month since the upheaval at Lassudral. Based on the usual rate of information spread, it would take half a year or even longer for journals to publish and disseminate the news. Of course, many individuals would have other channels to learn the inside story earlier, but it would take a while for the general public to be informed.
This made Angel think of the Wilderness of Dreams. If it developed in the future, the transfer of information should become much quicker.
...
Of course, this was limited to the Wizards’ Realm since the Wilderness of Dreams currently existed only there. As for other worlds… until they could deal with the terrifying behemoths coveting the Wilderness of Dreams, they could only postpone that thought.
Knowing that news of the Abyss hadn’t yet reached Barbarian Cave gave Angel a significant relief.
They returned to the Mirror World along the mirrored surface, and during this process, didn’t see Lady Mirror. Considering her “thirst” for Sanders, her absence meant that she was likely still in slumber.
After returning to the Mirror World, Sanders had said he would visit Cloud Tower to meet with Sir Rhein while Angel should head back to Illusion Demon Island first.
Before Sanders could voice this suggestion, a lazy-sounding voice came to their ears, “Oh, you’re back?”
No sooner had the voice faded than a green Phantom Shadow appeared before them, within which an athletically built man was visible, modestly covered only by strategically placed leaves.
“Spirit Tree Hall,” Angel greeted with respect. The glaringly shiny skin alone was enough to identify the figure as one of the three great Ancestral Spirits of the Barbarian Cave: the Tree Spirit.
“Ah, just in time, Angel. I have something I need from you.” The Tree Spirit glanced back at Sanders, “I’d like to borrow your apprentice if you don’t mind?”
Knowing Sanders well, the Tree Spirit expected no refusal.
Sanders, with a cool expression, didn’t agree immediately as the Tree Spirit had anticipated but instead turned to Angel, looking for his consent.
The Tree Spirit raised an eyebrow. Of course, he knew how much Sanders valued Angel, but there had to be clear boundaries with regards to attitude.
Sanders’ attitude towards Angel was noticeably different than before.
Although the Tree Spirit sensed something, he didn’t say it, instead smiling along with Sanders’ glance at Angel.
“Of course, I don’t mind at all,” Angel replied, how could he refuse.
“Then you should go with the Tree Spirit for now,” said Sanders without asking the Tree Spirit’s intent; knowing they were back at Barbarian Cave, the Tree Spirit surely wouldn’t harm Angel.
Sanders nodded towards Angel and flew off towards Cloud Tower on his own.
Angel had assumed the Tree Spirit would recall his Phantom Shadow Avatar, but instead, he walked amiably alongside Angel towards the Spirit Tree Hall, smiling all the way.
On the way, all apprentices respectfully bowed and made way when they saw the Tree Spirit. As for Angel, some of the apprentices didn’t recognize him, merely glimpsing him curiously. But undoubtedly, anyone that the Tree Spirit accompanied must hold a special status. Thus, Angel also received a measure of reverence.
Walking alongside, Angel couldn’t help feeling slightly uncomfortable as if he were basking in borrowed glory.
To ease the awkward atmosphere, Angel turned to ask, “Tree Spirit, may I know what you need me for?”
“Nothing major; just so happens I have two newcomers ready for Talent testing, and I thought you could lend them your Ocean’s Rhythm to enhance their affinity for the Water System.” The Tree Spirit paused, “Of course, it’s not for free. They don’t have Magic Crystals income yet, so I’ll set up mandatory tasks on their Bone Card. You can summon them once, and they can’t refuse.”
Activating Ocean’s Rhythm wouldn’t consume much energy. As it was the Tree Spirit’s first request of him, Angel immediately said, “Activating Ocean’s Rhythm is no problem, but there’s no need for the mandatory task; consider it a one-time gift for the newcomers.”
“How can that be? We had an agreement last time. Besides, there should be an exchange of equal value for everything. If you give it away for free, won’t others come to you too?”
Angel was about to respond that it wouldn’t matter if others came to him since he could just refuse. Besides, he wasn’t planning to stay in Barbarian Cave for long.
However, before Angel could speak, the Tree Spirit slung a long arm over his shoulder, smiling, “Don’t underestimate those two novices; this mandatory summon task can be quite useful. You could have them serve as your alchemy assistants or even conduct human experiments.”
At this point, Angel looked at the Tree Spirit with a hint of suspicion.
Two talented individuals who hadn’t even stepped into the threshold of the Wizards’ Realm had no experience. How could they serve as alchemy assistants? Calling them in for assistance would most likely backfire, as he would have to waste time teaching them the relevant alchemy knowledge… Couldn’t this be the Tree Spirit’s actual agenda?
Despite his suspicions, Angel didn’t voice them, looking at the Tree Spirit’s cheerful face.
Ultimately, whether he would use the summoning task was up to him. He could just as well act as if this discussion had never happened.
With this thought, Angel nodded to the Tree Spirit.
Having reached an agreement, Angel, now curious, asked, “How have new people arrived during this period?”
The Guide’s task had just been handed to Angel, according to the usual time between each term, it shouldn’t be so soon for newcomers to arrive, right?
“It isn’t a Guide’s task. Instead, an apprentice encountered two Talented Ones halfway through and brought them back along the way.”
Angel nodded in understanding; such cases were not uncommon. Speaking of which, he was also someone Sanders had brought back halfway through.
As they traveled, Angel and the Tree Spirit occasionally chatted about recent news from the Barbarian Cave. Inhaling the fragrance in the air and feeling the rich energy around him, his mood became even more relaxed.
Soon, they arrived at the location of the Tree Spirit’s main body — on the leaves behind the Spirit Tree Hall.
The Tree Spirit’s main body was lying on a sun chair, basking in the warm sunshine, just as Angel had imagined.
In front of the Tree Spirit were two young men who looked very restrained; evidently, those were the newcomers the Tree Spirit had mentioned.
The two seemed like complete opposites, one burly and strong, his hair spiked and clearly distinguished, giving off an impression of masculine vigor; the other had smooth, long hair, pale skin, and was quite handsome, though his demeanor was more gentle and delicate.
The delicate-looking man kept his eyes shut, and there seemed to be a special fluctuation around his eyes.
Angel silently mused – could this delicate-looking man be someone innately capable?
The Tree Spirit had them introduce themselves; the man with the masculine air was Arthur, and the delicate man was Merlin. Merlin’s eyes could naturally see some memories of Spirits, but his fortune was mixed. His unique eyes brought him the attention of a Wizard who carved them out, and since then, Merlin had been blind.
The two had been close friends with paths of their own, one aspiring to be a scholar, the other to be a Royal Knight. But when the Eternal Night Country suffered from the catastrophe of the dome, they were forced to become refugees. After many twists and turns and by sheer chance, they were fortunate to come to the Barbarian Cave.
Angel was not particularly interested in the backgrounds of these two newcomers, but hearing that they were refugees from the Eternal Night Country stirred something in him… after all, he bore some responsibility for the events in the Eternal Night Country.
“This is Angel, the only alchemist in the Barbarian Cave who specializes in Metallography. He is also the only one in the Southern Domain who has had contact with the mysterious levels of Alchemy,” the Tree Spirit introduced Angel with great enthusiasm, “… Anyway, once you enter the Wizards’ Circle, you’ll hear about him from various channels, without needing my introduction.”
This introduction by the Tree Spirit made the two newcomers secretly size up Angel. Merlin, unable to see, was described everything through Arthur’s eyes, which faithfully conveyed what he saw.
Faced with this powerful alchemist, who seemed their age or even younger, Arthur and Merlin both held a sense of awe.
They respectfully saluted Angel.
Angel nodded at them, then turned to the Tree Spirit, “Lady Tree Spirit, are we ready to begin?”
The Tree Spirit was about to nod when suddenly, he paused, his expression growing strange as he said to Angel, “Can you wait a moment? A few more apprentices wish to join.”
Angel nodded indifferently, the energy consumed in triggering the Ocean Rhythm was fixed, a few more participants wouldn’t make a difference.
After Angel’s agreement, not long after, a Witch emanating a night fragrance, accompanied by three slightly uneasy Apprentices, appeared before them.
“If you’d mentioned this earlier, I would’ve arranged it for you,” the Tree Spirit said, moving closer to the Witch with a smile.
The Witch nodded to the Tree Spirit without much expression but let out an enchanting smile when she saw Angel, “Angel, I’m counting on you for this time.”
Angel glanced at the Tree Spirit, who seemed unscathed, and replied to the Witch, “Lady Nysarvei, this is no trouble. After all, Lady Tree Spirit asked for my help, and helping two or a few more makes no difference.”
Angel recognized the Witch, known as ‘Leaf Blossom’ Nian Nysarvei. Rumor had it that the Tree Spirit harbored affection for Nysarvei.
Whether it was true or not, Angel’s response highlighted the role of the Tree Spirit, which was not a bad thing for himself.
After hearing Angel’s words, Nysarvei’s eyes twinkled before she turned to the Tree Spirit, “Thank you for this time, Lady Tree Spirit.”
The Tree Spirit beamed, “No problem, Angel isn’t giving his help for free. These two have been assigned a forced task and will need to heed Angel’s call in the future.”
When Nysarvei heard this, she seemed to think of something and turned to the three apprentices behind her, “You three add this forced task as well.”
Hearing Nysarvei’s words, the apprentices, already reluctant and uncomfortable, now looked even more dejected.
Angel interjected at the right time, “No need, Arthur and Merlin are bound by a forced task in exchange for lacking Magic Crystals. For them, just providing Magic Crystals will suffice.”
Angel’s words brought a flash of joy to the eyes of the three apprentices. Although Magic Crystals were precious, they were certainly preferable to an unknown forced task.
Consequently, they all looked at Angel with gratitude.
Contrarily, Nysarvei shot her own apprentices a look of irritation. These fools were given an opportunity and yet failed to make the right choice.
Nowadays, the wizards of the Barbarian Cave had basically figured out Angel’s character. Undertaking forced tasks with Angel may not bring many benefits, but certainly wouldn’t result in harm.
But since Angel had spoken, and the apprentices had failed to grasp the situation, Nysarvei had no choice but to agree, “So be it, then.”