After taking the magic badge — now showing three black rings — to the mission center to collect the detailed information and location for the "Exorcism Mission," Lucian did not take the newly opened "Altor–Capital of Capas County" magical steam train route to complete the task directly. Instead, he called for a carriage outside the Magic Parliament headquarters and rode it slowly toward the Elemental Will's branch tower in Altor.
This mission had arrived too early; it felt slightly suspicious. And since he was backed by an organization, it was only natural to have the organization "verify" it!
In a study on the upper floor of the tower, Gaston — who had been left in Altor to oversee affairs there — sat with his hands clasped, listening quietly as Lucian described the mission's contents.
A flicker of something odd passed through Gaston's dark yellow eyes. Then, in a voice that was somewhat aged yet commanding, he said, "It shouldn't be a dangerous mission. The devils and demons a third-circle mage can summon are limited in power, and with the 'Elemental' ring, even if you can't complete the mission, escaping shouldn't be a problem. But to be safe, I'll contact Florence first — she might know more about the details inside."
He gestured with his eyes for Lucian to wait there and stepped into a small inner room of the study, using "Fernando's Electromagnetic Telepathy" to communicate with Florence.
Lucian used the opportunity to review what he had been doing at the Magic Parliament lately, and found that no faction or mage had a strong desire to bypass the Elemental Will in order to target him. The matter of the Human Vitality Theory had already concluded; the Pale Hand had barely achieved its goals and would not keep pressing the "Professor." The regulation on purifying corrupted magic circles hadn't harmed the mages' interests — it was more about the Magic Parliament contributing some money as subsidies — so there was no reason for anyone to blame him.
As for the Church, their eyes and hatred were basically absorbed by Felipe now. Using any spies they had managed to preserve through the earlier purge to go after him would be utterly pointless.
So could this mission be considered free of any deliberate intent to harm him?
After a while, Gaston opened the door of the inner room and walked out.
Settling into his seat with the unhurried gentlemanly composure characteristic of the Holm Kingdom, he then smiled at Lucian and said, "I've asked Florence. It's a sudden assignment — there shouldn't be any danger. But Evans, you're the most promising mage of our Elemental Will's current generation, and you've already advanced to mid-tier mage within a single year, so I'm lending you a magical item."
Gaston took out of a drawer a monocle attached to a handsome silver-gray chain. "It has the fifth-circle spell 'Fernando's Electromagnetic Telepathy' permanently inscribed on it. If you sense anything wrong, contact me immediately. My specific frequency and password code are this." As he spoke, he tore off a sheet of white paper and wrote the details on it.
Clearly, the Storm Tyrant had already considered simple encryption when he invented this spell.
Following Gaston's instructions, Lucian inscribed his spiritual mark inside the monocle, then tucked his gold-rimmed glasses into the right inner pocket of his double-breasted frock coat, with a pocket watch in the left. He put on the monocle, picked up his black top hat, and took his leave. Gaston stood as well, smiling kindly. "Evans, congratulations on smoothly advancing to the third circle. Not only was this an insurmountable barrier in the ancient magical empires, but even within the current Magic Parliament, it serves as the threshold for measuring whether a mage possesses a solid arcane foundation. Reaching this step means you've surpassed seventy percent of all mages. From now on, the Elemental Will will provide you with a monthly subsidy of forty arcane points' worth of materials."
Hearing that his income had increased again, Lucian smiled from the heart. "Thank you, Director Gaston."
……
Near a mountain pass in the Capas mountain range — the small town of Freyzer.
This was a very remote town. You first had to ride six hours on the magical steam train from Altor to the capital of Capas County, then spend half a day in a long-distance carriage to reach the small city of Tenning, and after that endure two more hours of bumpy travel on mountain roads to arrive — though mages who could fly saved considerable time.
The mountains were rich in animals and trees, and most of the town's residents were hunters and lumberjacks. On top of that, the mages' castles deep in the mountains — controlling portions of the mineral veins — employed quite a few magic apprentices, servants, and miners who needed a large quantity of daily necessities. As a result, Freyzer was not sparsely populated, desolate, or cut off like other remote towns. Instead, it was bustling and noisy, even drawing many adventurers and mercenaries — the gems, minerals, strange plants, and treasures hidden deep in the mountains were an irresistible lure for them.
The largest tavern in Freyzer, the "Golden Cup," was packed with adventurers and mercenaries. Before heading into the mountains, they always liked to drink heartily — after all, in the life of an adventurer, no one could be certain they would live to see the next sunrise, so when you had the chance to enjoy life, you had better take it.
Amid the thick, heady aroma of alcohol, well-informed adventurers exchanged whispered accounts of recent events.
"Did you hear? The third-circle mage in 'Bertrand' Castle was killed by his own summoned devil!" a dwarf with a long golden beard asked in a lowered voice to the companions who had gathered.
A middle-aged man with a savage scar across his face nodded gravely. "The two magic apprentices who escaped from the castle described it as hell — living people burned alive by flames, corroded by concentrated acid, torn apart by claws, cleaved in two by swords, with blood and innards scattered all over the floor."
He pointed toward the corner, where two magic apprentices — a man and a woman — were numbing themselves with golden liquor. Deep fear still lingered on their faces, as though they remained trapped in a nightmare.
"Should we try going to the castle? Maybe we could sneak past the devil and find some treasure." The greedy dwarf's eyes gleamed with intense desire, filled with the image of gold thalers. "Mages are a symbol of wealth, and this one was a mid-tier mage — that's enough fortune to live out the rest of our lives in comfort!"
An older middle-aged woman looked at the dwarf with contempt. "I'm not about to throw away my future. Didn't you see that even the third-circle mage died?"