Chapter 117 (1/2)

Chapter 117: Anthony, the Dean of the Academy

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Anthony was 63 years old, but unlike the doddering Bale, his body was still very healthy and strong and his hands and feet were as nimble as a young man’s. He was also still full of energy and could most likely live up to a hundred years old.

At seven o’clock in the morning, he was still in the East Cove Magic Academy. But by 8 o’clock he was already in Springs city and he had been discussing with a large group of senior officers about the appointment of an army Magician. By 3 o’clock in the afternoon, he had basically decided on the most suitable candidate.

The expedition with the army would be a challenging task. Although the Magician would receive some special treatments, the expedition would still require a Magician with some physical strength. Therefore, the Magicians involved in the army were no older than 40 years old. In Anthony’s view, one person who fit the position the most was Darris, the first genius of the younger generation in the academy.

At the young age of 30, Darris had already advanced to becoming a Level-4 Magician and his future looked very promising. Anthony saw the shadow of his own past in the young Darris, so he wanted to give him this chance to accumulate experience and prestige.

Originally, he had considered his disciple Herrera as well. Unfortunately, she was a woman, so she wasn’t suited for the position. In the world of magic, there was no discrimination between men and women—in fact, there were many powerful female Magicians. But in this case, a beautiful woman like Herrera working among the army would probably be a bad idea.

At 6 o’clock in the evening, Anthony attended a sumptuous dinner that King Leon had specially prepared for him. After all the perfunctory greetings and social ceremonies, the time was already 8 o’clock. He then rushed to the palace of the portal tower of the palace, ready to go back to the academy.

So far, everything was in line with his plan, and nothing had happened that had diverted him from his schedule. Overall, he was satisfied with the trip to the capital city this time.

Although Anthony didn’t always like to attend these tedious meetings and dinners, he understood that it was his duty as the dean of the East Cove Magic Academy. The whole thing had wasted a whole day of his time, but now that everything was settled, he was eager to come back as soon as possible and hated wasting another second in the city.

Shrouded in the flickering glow of a magic aura, Anthony was finally back at the academy, the place where he spent nearly 40 years of his life. But as he was walking down from the portal tower, Antony frowned as he could sense that there was something amiss with the academy today.

Under the portal rune, Maxim, the Magician responsible for the maintenance of the portal tower, was standing there quietly with his brows slightly creased and his face gloomy. Anthony could instantly sense that something was troubling him.

“Maxim, what happened?” asked Antony with a frown. His white beard seemed to stand on its end, his nostrils were flared, and his thick lips and his round eyes were piercing. He didn’t look manifestly angry then, but his features were nonetheless very imposing.

Maxim immediately bowed respectfully to the dean, then said in an overwrought voice, “Sir, there has been a problem.”

“What is it?” asked the dean.

Anthony’s face sank and the air around his body became depressed. The elements in his surroundings began to agitate while tiny tornados began to form in the air around him – these were the effects a powerful Level-7 Magician could exert on his surroundings.

Cold beads of sweat started to form on Maxim’s forehead; he knew how tempestuous the dean’s temper could be. Even though he had mellowed slightly with age, the oppressive air he exerted now when he was in a bad mood was enough to intimidate anyone. In fact, anyone not used to it might even be scared stiff by it.

“Sir, I don’t yet have the details,” said Maxim, “but all the Master Magicians have been waiting for you in the Hall of Truth, so you’ll get much better information when you get there.”

The Hall of Truth was where the academy’s most important meetings were held. Only Magicians of Level-3 and higher were eligible to attend the meetings held here. Generally, these Magicians were the elites of the academy.

And right now, all of the Master Magicians were gathered there. Even Maxim, a Level-5 Magician was reluctant to reveal any details himself. Anthony surmised that the cause of this commotion must inevitably be grave indeed. His brows were now tightly knit together just from thinking about it.

He forced himself to maintain his composure and followed Maxim all the way to the northeast corner of the academy, to the Hall of Truth.

Along the way, they met some Magician’s Apprentices who seemed to be oblivious to the dire situation looming over the academy. Their expressions bore no worry nor anxiety, and as they encountered the dean, they bowed at him and quickly scurried away.

This discovery made Anthony feel relieved. Although the current situation upset him deeply, he was still glad that the top officials had kept everything concealed from the apprentices. This thereby prevents the problem from being scandalized or spread panic throughout the academy.

Five minutes later, they arrived at the entrance to the Hall of Truth.

The magic barrier of the Hall of Truth had been activated and a purplish, semi-circular barrier enveloped the entire hall. This prevented anyone from the outside to overhear or use magic spells to spy on whatever was happening in the hall.

There was a thick and sturdy magic door in front of the hall. Maxim rushed in front and opened it for the dean. Through the door, Anthony noticed that there were not many people inside. There were only a handful of people there and most of them were white-haired, old Magicians.

Maxim did not enter the hall but stepped aside to let the dean in instead. Anthony took a deep breath and walked into the hall then immediately sealed the magic door behind him.

He glanced around the spacious hall and found that five Master Magicians were sitting at the long table for the academy’s High Council. There were six members in the council: Grenci, Fendan, Vossmir, Hanswise, Andorras and Bale – all were present, except Bale.

When they saw Anthony, all five rose to their feet and greeted the dean.

In the middle of the hall, a young man stood there with a familiar-looking young woman by his side. After a while he recognized the woman as his favorite disciple, Moira. The young man near her looked very young—he was probably no older than 20 years old. Yet Anthony could sense a very powerful aura surrounding him. He must be at least a Level-4 Magician.

“Who is this?” asked the very surprised Anthony. He’d never heard of a Level-4 Magician who was under 20 years old in this academy. Such a gifted Magician should be renowned throughout the Firuman continent. But who could this be? Could he be Wavier, the famous Magician from the South?

Wavier was a 19-year-old Magician whose Mana had already reached Level-4. He was known as the most gifted young Magician among mankind.

Link then took a step forward and with one hand on his chest and one hand behind him, he bowed respectfully.

“My name is Link Morani,” said Link. “I am Magician Bale’s apprentice.”

“Link? Oh, it’s you,” said Anthony. “Yes, that’s right, I remember reading your thesis…By the way, where is Bale?” Suspicions started to creep up on Anthony. If it really was a big problem, all six members of the council should be present. So why was Bale still missing?