Chapter 196: Traveling Mage

Mazarino hadn’t had a single stroke of good luck since arriving on this remote plane.

He’d never seen ruins with so many Undead Creatures! Was Ocas himself sealed in here?!

Completely out of Magic, he had even been forced into close-quarters combat, but he still couldn’t escape. Left with no other choice, he tore open the Seven-Ring Scroll he had bought for a high price in Imprint City and treasured as if it were his life.

Isolation Magic.

The spell’s built-in invisibility effect allowed him to vanish right under the watchful eyes of countless Undead Creatures. Mazarino entered a state of suspended animation; time stopped flowing in his world. The spell’s duration was set to last until... he was discovered by a living person.

Mazarino had given up all hope for this desolate place. Even a gang of vicious bandits would be far better than being eaten alive by a horde of Undead.

And now, as a drop of water moistened his cracked lips, the Elder Mage finally trembled and opened his eyes, as if waking from a long dream.

The first thing he saw was... green skin, a short stature, pointed ears, and a pair of large, cunning, evil-looking eyes.

’It’s over.’

Mazarino squeezed his eyes shut again, wishing his suspended animation would turn into actual death. ’This is even worse than falling to the Undead Creatures! Is a Grand Mage like me really going to end up as a slave to goblins?!’

"Hey! He’s alive! He opened his eyes!"

Mazarino peeked through a narrow slit in his eyelids. As a Grand Mage who had lived a long life and experienced all sorts of adventures, he was fluent in almost every language of the Prime Material Plane, which naturally included the goblin tongue. But he was certain this goblin was speaking the Common Language, not its native one.

’Looks like there’s still a chance. I still have some Gemstones and precious metals for Casting on me. Maybe I can trade them for my freedom.’

"It looks like Magic helped him preserve his Energy," said a woman’s voice, which sounded quite young. "Did you scare him? He’s pretending to be unconscious."

"Wake up. You’re safe now. We’re not bad people."

A cold, slender hand patted Mazarino’s cheek. The sudden chill made the Elder Mage leap up, unable to feign unconsciousness any longer. He opened his eyes wide, scanning the group of kind-hearted... people? who had saved him.

The "human content" of this Adventurer party was relatively high, but if his Magic Prosthetic Eye wasn’t malfunctioning, there were some questionable characters in the mix.

’Aren’t those two in the shabbiest clothes giving off an abyssal Spiritual Light?!’

"Are you... under the command of that Demon Lord?" the Elder Mage asked, his voice trembling. He had also spotted a Ghost Witch disguised as an old woman.

’This squad of Demon Believers must be high-level. A Ghost Witch wouldn’t normally work for just any common demon.’

"Demon Lord?" Ron and the others exchanged glances, their eyes finally landing on the two Cultists. "He’s not talking about you, is he?"

"Sir, you’ve misunderstood," one of the Cultists explained with a wry smile. "We no longer worship the Dark Monarch; we just haven’t had a chance to repent at a Divine Hall yet. You seem to be a powerful Caster, but perhaps that very power has misled you."

"Ah, oh... then what about her?" Mazarino, not yet fully convinced, turned his gaze to Ghost Witch Polly.

"I was hired," the Ghost Witch said, knowing he had seen through her disguise. "They’re looking for these ruins, and I’m their guide."

"Er, and this lady?" Mazarino nodded slightly and looked at Silvia, who was closest to him. ’She must be the one who patted my face earlier.’

At this point, Mazarino had actually started to relax. Whether she was a Vampire or a Half-blood, she was bound to be much easier to deal with than the others.

"I am Lord Ron’s subordinate," Silvia said, stepping aside to reveal Ron. "He is the current and future ruler of this land, and he is now personally leading the charge to eradicate the lingering disasters in Delusional Land."

"So you’re the Lord!" Mazarino’s face lit up with understanding. He immediately and enthusiastically reached out to grab Ron’s hands. "It’s an honor! You don’t look a day over thirty! So young and accomplished!"

"And to think you’d be willing to save an old stranger in a place like this! It is truly a great blessing for Delusional Land to have such a benevolent Lord!"

"There’s no need for such flattery," Ron said, not knowing whether to laugh or cry at the old man’s sudden enthusiasm. The man’s hands were covered in thick calluses that scraped painfully against his own. "I’ve only been here a few months. As you can see, I haven’t even finished cleaning up the problems left behind by the previous lords. To call myself a Lord right now feels a bit undeserved."

"No, no, no! This is exactly how a Lord should act!" the Elder Mage said hurriedly. "I’ve seen plenty of lords who, after receiving their appointments, rush to develop their territory. They don’t even understand their surroundings! Some don’t leave their own domain, or even their castle, for months!"

"Compared to them, your diligence and actions are simply exemplary!"

’If Delusional Land didn’t have so many damn complications like other territories, I’d love to do that too...’ Ron grumbled internally, but he kept a smile on his face.

"So, what about you? I have some measure of control over the entrances and exits around Delusional Land, but I’ve never seen you before. Did you come over those mountains?"

"That would have been quite an arduous journey."

"It’s embarrassing to say, but while I didn’t take the path you mentioned, my journey here was indeed very arduous," Mazarino said with a bitter smile. "This old man is Mazarino, a Traveling Mage. I enjoy traveling and exploring between the various planes."

"My planar travel this time went a little off course. A Cloud Giant interfered with my coordinates, and when I reappeared on the Material Plane, I ended up here."

"Speaking of which," the Traveling Mage said, turning to look with lingering fear at the Undead Creatures still wandering aimlessly, "your domain really needs a good cleaning. Even I couldn’t kill all these Undead before running out of Magic."

"You Mages have so many limitations, yet you insist on acting like lone wolves," Sera scoffed. "There was another Mage here before who ran into the same predicament you did."

"That’s not the issue..." the Traveling Mage muttered guiltily. "If I hadn’t used up so much Energy escaping that Cloud Giant, I wouldn’t have ended up..."