"Spirit!!!"
Leilin Farell's pupils contracted sharply.
Nobody knew when spirits had first appeared on the continent, but most wizards believed them to be an external manifestation of the soul.
As for how spirits came into being, that remained a puzzle that plagued many wizards.
It seemed that the creation of a spirit required a great deal of fortuitous circumstance. Sometimes, even an ordinary person could turn into an evil spirit after death, whereas formal wizards never experienced such a thing.
Moreover, spirits were extremely rare, and even at Black Bone Forest Academy, researchers had only managed to get a rough understanding of their habits through extensive observation.
Because he had studied at Black Bone Forest Academy, Leilin had picked up a bit of knowledge about spirits from his instructor's offhand remarks, so he wasn't thrown into a panic like anyone else would have been.
"Who are you?" Leilin took a few steps back, asking warily.
"A name?" The translucent spirit shook its head. "I can't remember it anymore!"
"Millions of years have passed, and I've been wandering here ever since—until today! I sensed an interesting little intruder break into my laboratory, so I came out to meet you!"
Leilin's eyes flickered. "So you're the owner of this laboratory! I apologize for the intrusion!"
With that, he bowed and performed a wizard's greeting, his form impeccable.
A faint smile appeared on the spirit's blurred lips. "I like well-mannered little ones!"
A translucent hand reached forward, and a ball of light materialized in its palm. "You may receive a gift from a great wizard!"
"Really? That's wonderful!"
Leilin "ecstatically" stepped forward a few paces, when suddenly a green sphere shot from his hand, passed straight through the spirit, and slammed onto the laboratory bench behind it.
Sizzle! The bench corroded right through, leaving a gaping hole.
"Physical attacks are useless?" Leilin's expression turned grave.
"What are you doing, little one?" The spirit said with a smile, though its voice had taken on a sinister edge.
"This is the gift of the great Wizard Roman—it can help you successfully advance to formal wizard!"
"Are you joking? A vengeful spirit impersonating the owner!"
Leilin retreated a few steps, and a purple potion appeared in his hand.
"I don't think for a second that whatever you're holding is anything good!"
Boom!! The potion flew from his hand and erupted into violent combustion. Purple smoke billowed out, and within the purple haze, the ball of light in the spirit's palm dissipated, revealing a hideous face—screaming in defiance—that looked disturbingly similar to the spirit itself.
"A vengeful spirit full of malice that likes to possess the bodies of the living!"
Leilin recalled a passage he'd once heard described. "An evil spirit! You're an evil spirit!"
"Who knows?" The spirit bared a bloodthirsty grin.
"The thing that really drew you out was this book, wasn't it?" Leilin waved the alchemy notebook he'd pulled from his coat.
"Correct! That belongs to me!" The spirit stared at the surface of the black notebook, a look of reminiscence surfacing in its eyes.
"You're the corpse by the door. You died exploring this laboratory—killed by the biting floor—and your soul was bound inside the villa by a magic array, eventually turning you into an evil spirit!"
Leilin had pieced together the truth, aided by the fact that he already knew the laboratory's true owner.
"Clever boy!" The spirit toyed with its fingernails. "Too bad! You're destined to die here today!"
Whoosh!!!
Leilin saw a flash of light and twisted his body, but several bloody gashes still appeared across his chest.
"The scent of blood!" The sight of blood made the spirit's expression even more frenzied. It extended its blood-stained finger into its mouth and licked it clean.
"Such incredible speed! I can't track it with the naked eye at all!"
Blue light appeared in Leilin's eyes as the Chip calculated at breakneck speed.
"You can't escape! Just accept your fate as an offering to Master Roman!" The vengeful spirit roared, lunging forward once more.
Its fingernails sprang outward, razor-sharp as blades.
Clang!! A luminous membrane suddenly materialized over Leilin's body, deflecting the spirit's frenzied assault.
Tirf's Vortex Shield Potion!!!
"Got you!" A cold smile tugged at the corner of Leilin's lips.
Against a spirit that moved like the wind, Leilin couldn't hope to match its speed. Even if the Chip could track the spirit's trajectory, Leilin's physical capabilities were far too slow. What's more, given the spirit's incorporeal nature, most physical attacks were simply useless.
Fortunately, the Tirf's Vortex Shield Potion he'd brewed earlier—the only defensive potion available to a wizard apprentice—was remarkably effective against spirits as well!!!
His hand sheathed in the luminous membrane reached out and seized the spirit's right wrist in its grip.
"No… impossible!!! How can you touch me!!!"
The spirit's face twisted in agony as it roared and struggled.
"Spirits may be mysterious to apprentices of other academies, but unfortunately, you've run into someone from Black Bone Forest! Accept your fate of defeat!" Leilin's expression remained calm as he produced a black crystal orb.