Chapter 121 (2/2)

A man alone, without any guidance or supervision, was capable of doing anything. This was the reason why Anthony wouldn’t trust himself to guard the Occultic Rune alone and instead chose to have all three of them mutually preventing the other two from ever touching the evil crystal again. He was confident that this was the most secure method to prevent anyone from misusing the powers that the Occultic Rune contained.

Link still had one last cause of qualm, though.

“But sir, may I ask why you would trust me to guard it too? Wouldn’t the academy’s high council be more suitable as the guardians of such a portentous object?”

Although Link was now officially a Level-4 Magician and could hold his own in the battlefields, Link was aware of how much he fell short in the actual understanding of the theories in magic compared to the Master Magicians. He doubted if he could be trusted to guard the Occultic Rune together with Herrera and the dean.

“Don’t belittle yourself, young man,” said Anthony with a smile, “It would be a terrible idea to let more people know of the object’s existence. And those graybeards in the council might even try to get you expelled from the academy.”

Anthony raised his hand and interrupted Herrera as she was about to protest.

“I know, it may sound outrageous, but it is the truth. The masters of the high council are old and obdurate. The only things they care about are the rules.”

As he finished his sentence, Anthony then took out his wand.

It was an imposing looking wand called the Dean’s Decree. It was a sacred gear that was passed down from one dean to the next. It was similar to a king’s scepter in appearance, except even more elegant and delicate. Legends had it that the wand was made of the branch of the World Tree from the Elf kingdom. The gemstone on its tip, on the other hand, was called the Rainbow Moonstone and it was a precious gem found in the heart of Mount Chalfield – the highest mountain in the Rocky mountain range. All the world’s most gorgeous gemstones would be eclipsed by the Rainbow Moonstone’s brilliant gleam if they were presented next to each other.

As Link gazed at the wand a notification appeared on the interface.

The Dean’s Decree, the Guardian’s Wand.

Quality: Legendary

First Effect: The wand holder’s spellcasting speed will be increased by 100%.

Second Effect: The power of the wand holder’s spells will be boosted by 150%.

Third Effect: The Mana recovery speed of the wand holder will be increased by 200%.

Fourth Effect: Because of the magical properties of the World Tree, the wand holder is able to use a Legendary spell that would resurrect a corpse that has been dead for no longer than a day. This spell is only limited to once a year.

(Note: This is the Legendary Magician Bryant’s magic staff, formerly known as Fiona’s Hug.)

Link was filled with wonder as he read through its description on the interface.

Tsk tsk, that is quite a list of effects for a single wand!

Anthony then pointed the wand to an empty space beside him, where a black hole then emerged out of thin air. He reached his hand into the void and took out a beautifully decorated notebook.

“Young man, this is my gift to you.” He then handed Link a notebook.

“But tutor,” exclaimed Herrera, “This is your lifetime’s worth of effort!”

Anthony laughed.

“Yes, of course. It’s precisely because of that why I must carefully select a successor who will receive this notebook of mine. Moira, please don’t tell any of your brothers, or they might get green-eyed with envy.”

He then turned around and focused his gaze on Link.

“In this notebook I’ve recorded everything that I have learned ever since becoming a Magician. I had planned to leave it to Moira after my death, but I’m giving it to you now. And once you’re done studying it, you can pass it to Moira then,” explained Anthony.

Link’s heart almost burst with happiness knowing that Level-7 Master Magician’s lifetime’s worth of knowledge was going to be handed down to him. The value of this notebook far exceeded that of the Occultic Rune. It seemed he had made the right choice in revealing the truth to Herrera!

He then took the notebook from Anthony very carefully with both of his hands as though it was as fragile as glass.

“I will not let you down, Sir,” he said solemnly.

“I have faith in you,” said Anthony, nodding. He then suddenly tapped his forehead with his wand, as if considering something.

“Oh, by the way, young man,” he said, “I’ve heard that you are a nobleman’s son. Would you be interested in joining the army as a knight?”

“Me, in the army?” Link couldn’t quite follow the dean’s train of thoughts.

“Yes, you, in the army. The kingdom’s army has now advanced far to the North, but I fear they still lack an experienced Battle Mage. If you are interested, I can recommend you to the army and you may join as a deputy commander. You don’t have to give me an answer now. There’s still time before the army reaches the northern border, and even then, there’ll still be many preparations to make. You have two months to think about it.”

Link fell silent. He took the matter seriously and took his time considering it.

“Since there is still so much time left,” said Link finally, “Then I’d better sharpen up my magic skills now and learn as much as I can before the time comes.”

“Go on, young man,” said Anthony. Herrera was slightly taken aback by the kindly smile that lit up the dean’s face. In all these years as his disciple, she had never seen such a joyful expression on Anthony’s face before.

Afterwards, when Link and Herrera were on their way back from the Heaven’s Thorn, Link seemed to be deep in thought.

“I still think that something must be done about Felidia soon. The Dark Elf could be working on an evil plot right as we speak. I must take a visit to River Cove Town.”

“You’ve got a point,” said Herrera, “Go ahead, then. Be careful on your way, and don’t take any brash actions if anything unexpected occurs. Use this to contact me.” She then handed him something that was shining brightly.

After examining it closely Link discovered that it was a white feather. He wasn’t so surprised because Celine had once given him a similar feather as well. He took the feather then carefully kept it inside his storage pendant.

“Understood,” Link nodded.

He did not return to the Mage Tower after that but went directly to the academy stables instead.