10 Magic String Medicine Part 1 (2/2)

There was not a big market locally in Ceylon City; Decca was clever in that he customized Saleen's medication for use by bandits. Besides the portion he used, a large quantity was sold to foreign lands. He had taken merely half a year to create a steady sales channel. The members of the neighboring bandit gangs all knew that there was special medication being sold in Ceylon City. Decca also earned a little from this.

After accumulating over five thousand gold coins, the standard of Saleen's production of pharmaceuticals had improved by leaps and bounds. He finally reached grade-3 apprenticeship and could continuously release five level-0 spells. At the same time, he possessed seven types of level-0 magic – Reading Magic, Poison Detection, Acid Sputtering, Flame Combustion, Blending of Elements, Magic Alarm, and Detection Magic.

After boosting his health, Saleen's body had also become stronger. Although he still looked a little thin and weak, he could now walk briskly while carrying a leather sack that weighed hundreds of kilograms. He had to go to the city to make purchases every week, and Jason always filled the large leather sack.

The plan was approaching its final stage little by little. Saleen could put together three sets of materials for magic medicine. Having inherited business acumen, Saleen did not spend all of his gold coins, in case he was successful in his first few attempts.

The weather was so stiflingly hot in the first week of June that it was sweat-inducing. Saleen had just turned fifteen years old and decided to start making the magic medicine. Saleen felt uneasy. He had even wanted to kneel down to pray, except he did not have a faith.

Despite the fact that the high priest of the Holy See had said there would be favoritism for those who showed provisional grace, Saleen did not believe so, even deep in his bones. It would be easier to make the people of Qin Empire give up their pride than make the people of Sikeqinya into believers.

Saleen pulled out the box from beneath his bed and dug out his family badge. The things that his father had left behind had all been sold. This was the only item that he had kept by his side.

The shield-shaped black metal badge was palm-sized, extremely thick, and heavy. The dark green magic patterns represented that the family was the one and only, and had been designed by a great mage. Anyone that imitated this type of badge would be challenging the mage's dignity.

Saleen had understood the significance of this only after he had joined Jason.

The badge was as thick as a thumb, with a deep lightning-shaped mark in the center. This deep mark had destroyed the completeness of the magic patterns. Hence, Saleen could not deduce the identity of the mage who had designed the badge.

A great mage had worked for the Metatrin family. What an honor that must have been!

”Father, please bless me in becoming a powerful mage.” Saleen touched the badge and felt the uneven hidden patterns on its surface. There was another group of magic patterns which had been destroyed by the deep lightning-shaped mark in the center of the badge.

Creak?

Saleen suddenly discovered that a touch of faint blue light had flashed deep within the lightning-shaped marks. He rubbed his eyes, but that tinge of blue had dissipated.

What was that? Was it a magic imprint? His own family had declined this far, and even if there had initially been a magic imprint, it probably would have disappeared by now.

Saleen had some worries. The more books he read, the more he understood how wide and profound the world of magic was. Similarly, this world was full of danger. One's carelessness could result in them being smashed into pieces beyond redemption.

Saleen instinctively released detection magic at the badge.

A faint light masked the badge in Saleen's hand. Time seemed to have stood still. To Saleen's panic, detection magic could actually be interrupted, like a person hovering midfall while falling off a cliff.

This pause was not as long as a frame of time. If Saleen had not already begun to grasp the principles of instantaneous magic and had not possessed astute mental power, he would not have noticed the pause.

Then, the magic light that had enveloped the badge was sucked into the badge within an even shorter period of time. The power of the elements surged crazily towards the lightning-shaped mark in the center of the badge. The mobilization of elemental power of level-0 magic was not sufficient for such absorption. Saleen felt that the hand holding the badge had become ice cold, as though his elemental power, mental power, and blood had been drawn away in that moment.

Emptiness. Saleen's body immediately felt like an empty shell. His eyes became expressionless, his life was extinguished, and his heart stopped beating.

Saleen felt himself sinking into darkness. There was nothingness in his surroundings. It was colorless, soundless, scentless, nothing at all. Every memory from birth to his fifteen years of age seemed to have disappeared.

Was this death? Saleen was left with this only thought, the purest response in the face of death.

Saleen's body fell backwards onto the floor. The blue light appeared again in the deep lightning-shaped mark on the badge in his hand. The fine, undetectable lightning did not enter through Saleen's body, but entered directly into his heart.

Saleen's heart had stopped beating, but in that moment, it began to violently spasm from the sudden strike of the current. His blood was squeezed by the intense compressive force applied to all of his body.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Saleen's body was revived and he regained his awareness. The nothingness in his surroundings had disappeared. Saleen's body bounced up from the floor, nearly hit the ceiling, and then fell down heavily.

This fall made his mouth and nose bleed; the blood was purple and contained clots. Saleen could not describe the pain he was in. When his body had restored its awareness, all kinds of negative symptoms were felt throughout his body – weakness, pain, coldness, burning…

These frightful feelings kept repeating over and over again. Aside from that first bounce in the beginning, Saleen did not have any energy to struggle. He did not even have the strength to lift his fingers. He shut his eyes tightly, and his mind nearly broke down.