Chapter 448 - The Winds of Change (2/2)

Straightening up, and with a deep breath, Gretel smiled apologetically at him. “Sorry… And thank you.”

She pushed the doors into the great hall, and within, the four Astral Magicians were in the midst of putting on the finishing touches of the spatial stabilizing spell. They turned towards Gretel with a questioning look.

The Dwarf Mountain Sage Heroto asked curiously, “Your Highness, didn’t you say something big had happened? I didn’t think you would be back so soon.”

Gretel did not reply; instead, she stood to one side, allowing Link, dressed in a dark blue Assassin Robe, to enter the room. His eyes fell on the magical structure above the table and shook his head, smiling. “Forgive me for speaking so bluntly, but this spell you have here is pure rubbish!”

The four Astral Magicians were rendered speechless and looked at each other before exploding on Link.

The ever brusque Mountain Sage Heroto was first to speak. “You’re Link? Young man, I have farted for far longer than you have been alive to utter nonsense like this. How dare you call this spell rubbish?”

Bryant spat out coldly, “Know your place, whelp!”

The Dark Magician laughed coldly. “You have spunk, young one.”

The Light Magician did not say a word and instead turned towards Link, waiting for an explanation from him.

At that moment, Gretel had an urge to hide herself in the nearest hole she could find. She did not expect Link to start off with such insolence; he had basically dug his own grave by speaking that way!

Link chuckled, striding towards the table. He then pointed his magic wand at the magical light construct and began rearranging some of its details.

He was able to retouch ten or so sections of the structure with a few deft movements. With a light wave of his hand, the runic silhouette began slowly revolving. Link gave it a couple brisk taps with his wand, removing and adding runes wherever he saw fit. Half an hour passed, and an entirely brand new magical structure was left floating above the table.

Link stowed his wand back with a smile. “Though your original spell would have been able to stabilize the spatial structure, it lacks the capacity to stop the spread of Mana effectively. As most of you should know, Mana is able to keep any spatial tear open. Ever since the appearance of the crack, the density of Mana in the world had risen to 80 percent, and the Space Barrier of Firuman has thinned considerably. But with my spell, any collateral effect brought about by the spatial crack will be contained within the barrier; even if the space within the barrier has collapsed, it won’t affect any other parts of the realm of Firuman.”

Link applied much of what he had learned recently into designing the spell. Of course, he had only scratched the surface of his newfound knowledge. The core fruits of his research remained untapped.

Still, the spatial spell that an expert Spatial Magician such as himself had concocted should prove to be much more effective than what any of these dabblers could hope to conceive.

The other Magicians were able to recognize the workmanship that had gone into the newly designed magical structure. They simply marveled at it without a sound.

After a moment, Heroto spread out his hands. “Alright, it certainly looks better than before.”

“Hmmph!” Bryant let out a huff of discontent through his nose.

The Dark Magician expressed his acknowledgment as well, though reluctantly. “I guess you do have the right to speak.”

The Light Magician, however, asked, “There’s more to this, isn’t there, Master Link?”

Hardened in the ways of the world for as long as any of them could remember, these Astral Magicians knew Link would not have helped them without reason.

Link smiled coyly. “I guess there’s no point in hiding the matter. Lucia Silverstar is in deep trouble.”

By centering the conversation on Lucia’s position as an equal among the Emerald Circle instead of bringing up what had befallen the dragon race, Link had hoped that the Magicians would be more willing to help out.

The idea of saving a fellow member would sound far more appealing to this lot than meddling in the affairs of the dragon race, even though the end result of either path was essentially the same.

Upon hearing this, Heroto the Dwarf bellowed, “What happened? She was just fine the other day, what happened to her? Where is she? No, let’s just go get her!”

Still harboring much resentment towards Link, Bryant laughed coldly. “About Lucia…”

Before he could finish, Link interrupted him. “Your Excellency, I have always had the utmost respect for you. Our legends have portrayed you as nothing less than a legendary savior to us humans. I do sincerely hope that you could come visit me in Ferde again; I’ll make sure to give you the proper treatment befitting of an honored guest such as yourself, if there is such a chance, of course.”

Bryant’s face stiffened considerably. “Thanks. But Lucia’s matter takes precedence at the moment. We should resolve it quickly.”

His eyes were fixed threateningly on Link, and the message was clear to him, What happened in Ferde stays between us, no one else should know about it.

Should anyone else catch wind of his humiliation, his reputation would crumble in an instant.

Link nodded, satisfied that they were able to come to a mutual understanding.

He then turned to the Dark and Light Astral Magicians. “As far as I know, Lucia Silverstar has been possessed by the Void Tyrant, if nothing is done, things may get out of hand quick… What do you think?”

After pondering in silence for a bit, the Light Magician spoke, “I will help you in tracking down Lucia, but I will not aid you in dealing with the Void Tyrant.”

The Dark Magician also spoke up, “I’m with him. We’ll look for the girl with you, but you’re on your own with the creature.”

This was more than enough. Link took a step back and bowed before the Magicians in gratitude. “You have my thanks.”

And so the matter was settled.

In the entrance, Gretel looked on, dumbfounded.

Four Astral Magicians, two of whom had decided to help, while the other two had chosen to sit on the sidelines. This outcome had far exceeded Gretel’s expectations. She stared at Link, a mix of admiration and dread on her face.

Just then, a couple of the Red Dragon Elders had returned. They stood beside the Red Dragon Queen, in time to see what had transpired.

Pettalong observed Link, who was able to settle things with such speed and resolve and then looked at the queen beside him. He let out an inward sigh. The times are indeed changing, thought Pettalong rather wistfully.