A Wizard’s Secret

The square door opened slowly, revealing a small cabin. The cabin looked exceptionally delicate and contained a few expensive-looking glass cabinets.

Inside the transparent glass cabinet, there were treasures. Among them, Merlin could see a Runic Magic Disc the size of a washbasin. After all, the Great Wizard Fidel was a master of runes, and the Runic Tower had been built to nurture genius Spell Casters who excelled in runes.

This Runic Magic Disc was extremely invaluable as it was handcrafted by the Great Wizard Fidel himself. It would not be found even in the Resource Tower.

Besides the Runic Magic Disc, there were also some precious Runic Magic Circles that, if arranged correctly, were capable of killing even a Seventh-level Spell Caster!

Of course, the foremost requirement to achieve that goal was to be able to arrange the Runic Magic Circles correctly and also possessed a proficient grasp of manipulating runic spells. Back in the golden age of Spell Casters, it was not unheard of to kill Seventh-level Spell Casters or above using Runic Magic Circles.

On the other hand, nowadays, the study of runology was close to none, and the standards of Spell Casters had dropped significantly. Consequently, all Seventh-level Spell Casters and above were heralded as the untouchable elites. If any of them died, it would shock the entire Spell Caster world.

Other than the Runic Magic Disc and Runic Magic Circle, sitting on the topmost shelf was a very old and quaint book, its spine held together by bits of string. The book was so old that even its pages had turned yellowish over the long period of time.

“This is the handwritten notes of the Great Wizard Fidel. It contains some of his discoveries on runology and can be considered quite profound. This notebook is the most precious item among all the treasures on the sixth floor!”

Seeing the hesitation in Merlin’s eyes, Wizard Effidel started explaining to him.

It turned out that this book which had yellowed with age and held together with bits of string was actually the Great Wizard Fidel’s personal notes, which was truly rare and precious. Even though the Great Wizard Fidel also left behind a few of his notes in the Dark Magic Region, they were not accessible by the average Spell Casters and were extremely few in numbers.

These notes would be priceless to Spell Casters who were involved in the study of runology because the other items such as the Runic Magic Disc and the Runic Magic Circle would only increase their powers for a short time.

With the Great Wizard Fidel’s notes, it was akin to being personally guided by the Great Wizard in runology. Obviously, to Spell Casters who were proficient in runes, such guidance would be more precious than any other treasure.

However, the precious Runic Magic Disc, the powerful Runic Magic Circle, the almost-unrefusable notes belonging to the Great Wizard Fidel… All of them were invaluable to Spell Casters who were proficient in runes but were not very useful to Merlin. He already had a Runic Magic Disc, but since he was not proficient in runes, he had not even been able to use it at all.

Seeing that these few treasures were closely linked to runes, Merlin immediately lost interest.

“Are these all the treasure there is? They’re all related to runes, so they’re not very useful to me…”

Merlin was slightly disappointed, even though he knew that it was to be expected. After all, the main purpose of the Runic Tower was to nurture Spell Casters in the Dark Magic Region who were highly involved in the study of runology. Thus, it was not surprising that the treasures inside were highly related to runes.

Perhaps even the Great Wizard Fidel did not anticipate that there would one day be a Spell Caster below the Fourth-level who could release the ultimate limit power of the Sixth-level. Even back in the most golden age of Spell Casters, it was rare to come across a one-in-a-million Demonic genius.

However, the appearance of a Spell Caster like Merlin threw a wrench into things. Exceeding all expectations, a Third-level Spell Caster had managed to break the five-layered overlapping Runic Magic Circle by force. Right now, Merlin was dissatisfied with the treasure he found on the sixth floor.

“So, have you chosen which treasure you would like to keep?”

Wizard Effidel smiled good-naturedly. If he were to guess, Merlin would either choose the Runic Magic Disc or the notes belonging to the Great Wizard Fidel. After all, these two were the most practical gifts among all the other treasures.

The former would immediately heighten the Spell Caster’s power for a short period of time whereas the latter would be equivalent to receiving personal guidance from a great rune master. Regardless of which one Merlin chose, both treasures were incredibly precious.

Merlin shook his head discreetly. He understood Wizard Effidel’s intention, so he walked further into the small cabin and began to search the transparent glass cabinet carefully.

There were quite a number of treasures within the small cabin. However, they were mostly related to runology, which Merlin glossed over as they were of no use to him.

There were also some Enhancing casting tools that were engraved with runes. These items could be activated using Mind Power and did not require any runic knowledge.

Nevertheless, these Enhancing Casting Tools were all Defence-type tools and were only marginally better than the robe that he was already wearing. If he really could not find anything he liked, Merlin would much rather choose the Runic Magic Disc compared to these Enhancing casting tools.

At least with the Runic Magic Disc, if he could find a Spell Caster who was proficient in runes, then it could potentially be put to good use.

“Oh? What is this?”

Suddenly, in one of the corners of the glass cabinet, Merlin spotted a plain-looking glass cage. Inside, there was a shiny pale golden sculpture.

The carving of the sculpture was extraordinarily unique, and it also piqued a sense of déjà vu in Merlin.

The sculpture not only gave him an inexplicable sense of familiarity but upon closer inspection, it also roused a sense of curiosity in him.

“Wait a minute, this sculpture…”

Merlin’s heart skipped a beat and he immediately extracted four relief sculptures from his ring. Judging by their color and carving styles, these four relief sculptures were completely different from the golden sculpture inside the glass cage.

The only similarity between these items was that persistent sense of curiosity that they roused. Moreover, although the posture of these sculptures might appear different to a casual observer, Merlin could see a special link between the postures of the four relief sculptures and the golden sculpture.

Maybe, just maybe, they came from the same origin!

“Hum hum hum.”

True enough, Merlin’s guess was proved the next moment when he removed the four relief sculptures. The four relief sculptures began to vibrate gently and there was a reciprocal reaction from the golden sculpture, which also began to vibrate.

It was now blatantly obvious that the golden relief sculpture and the four relief sculptures came from the same origin.

“The fifth relief sculpture!”

Merlin was overjoyed. It appeared that he had somehow managed to stumble upon an accidental prize from his Runic Tower challenge. He had not expected to find the fifth relief sculpture to add to his collection.

Merlin had approached Wizard Banmou about the origin of the mysterious relief sculptures before, but he seemed to have not heard of it before. It seemed like the strange postures could help to continuously strengthen a person’s body.

Thereafter, Merlin did not continue to investigate the matter because he thought that he would not be able to find other relief sculptures anymore. Who would have guessed that he would find one of it in the Runic Tower?

Although this golden relief sculpture was relegated to a small corner of the cabinet, Merlin was sure that any item placed on the sixth floor was considered a treasure by the Great Wizard Fidel.

Among these treasures included the golden relief sculpture, though it was uncertain if the Great Wizard Fidel actually knew its secrets.

“Wizard Effidel, I’ve chosen my treasure. I want this golden sculpture!”

Merlin pointed at the golden sculpture.

Behind him, Wizard Effidel’s expression was doubtful. “Are you sure you want this treasure? You can still change your mind. Are you sure you don’t want the Runic Magic Disc or the notes of the Great Wizard Fidel?”

“No thank you, I’m choosing this treasure!”

Merlin shook his head adamantly.

Wizard Effidel could only respond helplessly. “I don’t even know what this is, but since the Great Wizard Fidel treated it as a treasure, I’m sure it must have its value.”

Despite being the guardian spirit of the sixth floor, Wizard Effidel was not knowledgeable about everything within it. At the very least, he did not know that was the purpose and use of the golden sculpture.

However, according to the rules set by the Great Wizard Fidel, as long as someone succeeded in conquering the floor, he had the right to choose a treasure. Therefore, he gently waved his hand and grabbed the golden relief sculpture in his hand, lifting it from the Runic Magic Circle that was guarding it.

“Here you go, take the treasure that you deserve!”

Effidel handed the golden relief sculpture to Merlin. Upon receiving the golden relief sculpture, Merlin could hardly hide the joy and excitement on his face.

This was the fifth relief sculpture that he received. Moreover, this golden relief sculpture was visibly different from the four relief sculptures before. Perhaps with some additional practice, the strange postures too would see a mysterious change.

Previously, Merlin had thought that the mysterious relief sculptures might have originated from the Molta Empire. He also thought that they might have been common items back in the day, at least among the Spell Caster circles.

However, seeing that the Great Wizard Fidel treated it as a treasure, even with only one sculpture; for the first time, Merlin started to wonder if these mysterious relief sculptures had a more interesting origin.

“Okay, since the treasure is already chosen, it’s time for you to choose whether you would like to continue with the conquest?”

Wizard Effidel said slowly with a small smile.

Merlin kept the golden relief sculpture into his ring. Practicing the posture on the relief sculpture was not something that could be accomplished in an hour or two. When he practiced with the four relief sculptures in the past, it took him quite a long time. Although he still did not know how difficult the posture on the fifth relief sculpture would be, he was sure it would not be easy.

“Of course, I’ll continue! This is the seventh floor of the Runic Tower. Even if I end up failing the challenge, I still want to see how strange the final floor is!”

No one in the Dark Magic Region had broken through to the seventh floor before. Therefore naturally, no one knew what challenge it held. Right now, though, Merlin finally had the chance.

“As you wish!”

Wizard Effidel’s voice was calm. Following that, he gently pointed at Merlin and a white light surrounded his entire body. With a flash, Merlin’s figure disappeared completely from the sixth floor…