Chapter 125 (2/2)

Carrido then rose from his seat and was about to excuse himself, but Link stopped him before he could open his mouth.

“Mr. Carrido, I can sense that you are a gifted Magician yourself. Our troop needs someone like you. Would you like to join us?”

Link knew that Carrido was not a bad person by nature and he was not without talents. He was just unlucky enough to be born poor, so he was unable to receive any formal training in magic. When someone like this was given enough training and guidance—he could one day be a helpful and prominent figure in the mercenary troop.

Carrido hesitated for a while, then shook his head.

“No, I’m used to freedom,” he replied, “So I don’t like to be bound to anyone.”

He didn’t think that joining a mercenary troop was a terrible idea at all, only that this particular troop seemed a little unpromising. He still had his pride as a Magician, after all, and when he considered it more carefully, he realized that the troop was just too new and too small. He could see that their headquarters weren’t too impressive and that apart from a handful of core members, the rest were equipped with very basic gear and weapons.

If he decided to attach himself to such a troop, he feared that there wouldn’t be much of a future in store for him.

Link actually understood Carrido’s thinking and didn’t expect that he would agree to join them the first time he asked anyway. He knew not to take offense from the rejection, but he wasn’t going to give it up that easily.

“Oh, I understand. But if you had any problems that I may be able to help in the future, you can always come find me here. By the way, I think you’ll find this helpful.”

As he spoke, Link used the Magician’s Hand to thrust a textbook titled The Magician’s Path to Carrido. He knew that the drifting Magician only knew a few spells. Though he seemed to have mastered those few quite well, Carrido still lacked a strong foundation of magic theory knowledge, which was fine if he didn’t wish to make much progress. However, if Carrido wanted to improve himself and become a better Magician, he would need to study the underlying theories and structures of magic spells.

Carrido quickly picked up the book, but his hands shook the second he noticed the book’s title and author. It was a classic magic textbook written by a Level-7 Master Magician of the East Cove Magic Academy more than a century ago! The difference between this book and the other book he’d spent 5 gold coins on was like the difference between heaven and hell!

He flipped the book open and skimmed through it hastily. Now his whole body was shaking as he could discern how each sentence was packed with wisdom, with not a single word wasted on its pages!

He was sure that after reading this textbook, there would be a big leap in his understanding of magic!

“I…I…can’t…it’s too precious…” mumbled Carrido incoherently.

Carrido was aware of how the deepest and most profound knowledge in magic was locked up within the walls of the few ancient and reputable magic academies in the Firuman Continent. This wasn’t a result of any deliberate conspiracies among a tight circle of Magicians, but was in fact caused by the long-term accumulation of textbooks in the libraries of these academies.

Each magic academy invested a great fortune in creating the ideal environment to promote the research done by their Magicians. Once these the research yielded results, the Magicians would naturally record all their findings in their notebooks, which would then be stored in the academy library as textbooks. As time went on, the academy would house an accumulation of invaluable magic knowledge within its library walls.

Thus, these magic textbooks were among the most treasured objects in these magic academies, so they wouldn’t just lend it to anyone. The textbook that Link had just offered Carrido, for example, could not be bought with any amount of gold coins, but could only be borrowed by the apprentices and Magicians of the East Cove Magic Academy.

For this reason, the dream of becoming a Magician was an almost impossible one for commoners. Even a rare genius like Eliard had stumbled upon some almost insuperable hurdles before he could enter the East Cove Magic Academy. So, it’s no wonder that a Magician with average talents like Carrido would have to walk a treacherous path just he could reach this point.

“I can only lend it to you for one night,” said Link with a smile, “So please return it to me tomorrow morning.” There was a magic stamp on the textbook that would transmit its location, so Link wasn’t worried even if this drifting Magician decided to run off with it.

“Thank you, thank you very much,” said Carrido earnestly, “And I’ll give your invitation to join the mercenary troop some serious thought.” Carrido bowed deeply at Link and gently pressed the textbook to his chest. He then turned away and left the cabin.

Even when he was already out of the Flamingo Mercenary Troop’s headquarters and was walking on the road heading back to River Cove Town, the image of the dark-haired Magician still floated in his mind.

He was born a lowly commoner and the only life he knew was the miserable life of a peasant; he knew nothing about honor, chivalry or courtesy. But he knew that the young Magician had treated him with kindness and respect, and that he felt at ease and relaxed when he was around him.

Link had seen through Carrido’s situation in a glance, but he never mentioned it aloud or mocked him. Though he had the right and the opportunity to demean and humiliate him, Link had chosen instead to treat him with generosity, as if he were a friend.

It’s hard to believe that someone with such a formidable power would be so humble at the same time. Carrido had certainly never met such a person before in his life.

Carrido had a vague premonition that in a few years, the young man would be a bright shining star who would stand a head above all the Magicians of the Firuman Continent.

Have I just met a Legendary Magician in the making? Carrido sighed gently and began to seriously consider joining the Flamingo Mercenary Troop.