Chapter 953

Anton finally realized why Lemuel had looked uneasy when he reported the details of his completed mission. Master Vernatu had been scolding him for the way he had handled it.

Apparently, the first mission a Novice Traveler was supposed to complete was designed to teach them how to endure and fulfill their duties even in harsh environments.

Thankfully, Master Vernatu stopped scolding him once he realized that, due to Anton’s high rank in wizardry, he simply had the power and resources to complete the initial missions comfortably and, in all likelihood, with very little difficulty.

Master Vernatu sighed and admitted to Anton that his situation was not unique within Traveler’s Haven. Some travelers had already reached incredible heights in wizardry before joining the organization. There had even been an instance of a Semi-Divine wizard starting as a Novice Traveler.

Just like Anton, the primary reason those powerful wizards chose to become members of Traveler’s Haven was to acquire the skills and support of an established and powerful organization as they pursued their goal of traveling across the multiverse.

It was simply that Master Vernatu had never personally experienced such a situation before. He admitted that Anton was his first student who had started from scratch within Traveler’s Haven while already possessing enough power to complete the initial missions assigned to Novice, Initiate, and even Journeyman Travelers with little difficulty.

After some deliberation, Master Vernatu told Anton that he would still be required to complete the missions necessary to advance through the ranks. However, he would set his expectations accordingly and assume that Anton would be able to complete them without much difficulty.

“Besides, your past experiences have shown me that you’ve learned everything you were supposed to learn from those missions, despite your young age,” Master Vernatu told him.

After his conversation with Master Vernatu, Anton’s teacher summoned someone, and they waited for a couple of minutes. Soon, a woman knocked on Master Vernatu’s door.

When she entered, Master Vernatu introduced her to Anton.

“This is Apprentice Serena. She will be your tutor until you reach the Apprentice Rank. Congratulations on becoming an Apprentice Traveler,” Master Vernatu told him with a smile.

Anton thanked his teacher and followed his new tutor out of Master Vernatu’s office.

Apprentice Serena led him to the place where he could submit the spatial-energy-laced mithril ores. Once that was done, Serena led him to her office.

“These are the skills you need to learn as an Initiate Traveler,” Serena told him as she handed him five books.

Anton looked at the books and realized that they were simply advanced versions of the books Master Vernatu had previously given him.

The first book contained the Spatial Magic Meditation Array, which would allow him to solidify his third and fourth circles.

The Blink spellbook would primarily increase the spell’s range.

Currently, the range of Blink was the same as his Sorceress Teleport spell, but with the new spellbook, its range would increase dramatically. That meant that, before long, Blink would probably become more useful to him than Sorceress Teleport.

The Initiate Rank versions of Anchor and Gate would allow him to cast spells capable of anchoring himself and creating a Gate to a nearby planet. Meanwhile, Spatial Coordinate Determination at the Initiate Rank would allow him to determine the coordinates of the planet he had arrived on in relation to his home planet.

Serena also informed him that he was now allowed to acquire Archmage-level spells from the tower’s library in exchange for the appropriate amount of credit.

She then told him how much credit he currently had, which was what he had earned after completing his initial mission.

Serena, Anton’s Apprentice tutor, told him that over the next month, he was expected to learn the advanced versions of the spells she had given him. After that, he would be assigned a second mission.

The second mission would not be a rank-up mission. Instead, it would be a mandatory mission that he would have to complete as an Initiate Traveler.

Serena also told him that if he wanted to earn more credit, he could complete additional missions listed on the mission board in the mission hall of the tower.

“Where am I supposed to stay as an Initiate Traveler?” Anton asked.

“You’ll still be staying in the original dorm room assigned to you. You will only change rooms once you reach the Apprentice Rank,” Serena told him.

Afterward, Serena told him that their first lesson would be in three days. In the meantime, Anton was expected to spend the next two days resting after completing his supposedly grueling mission.

Anton happily left Serena’s office and returned to his room on the second floor.

On the way there, he ran into some of his batchmates. Before long, many of them had gathered in the room where they usually watched movies.

Anton had been gone for almost two months, and the fact that he was now wearing the badge of an Initiate Traveler meant that he had completed his rank-up mission.

He was the first person in their batch to do so.

His batchmates admitted that it would probably be several more months before they were assigned their own rank-up missions.

What surprised Anton was that his batchmates did not look at his badge with envy.

Apparently, their tutors had already instilled in them the idea that speed was not the important factor. What mattered was skill. Even if they took a long time to complete their missions, their tutors would only allow them to rank up after they had proven themselves capable of becoming Initiate Travelers.

Anton was beginning to appreciate that mindset.

He approved of the fact that Traveler’s Haven considered the long-term contributions of its members rather than focusing solely on the immediate resources or power they could provide.

He thought that, more than likely, this was one of the reasons Traveler’s Haven had remained a powerful organization despite existing for millennia.

Anton also understood that the main reason the organization could afford to take such a long-term view was the simple fact that wizards had extremely long lifespans.

After the party, Anton was excited to examine the spellbooks Serena had given him. However, it was time for him to rest.

The next morning, when he woke up, the first thing Anton checked was the schedule for the new ladder season.

Before going to sleep, he had realized that he might have made a mistake when he thought the next ladder season would begin in a month or two. He had forgotten that he had spent several weeks in the Xinati Wilderness.

When he checked the schedule, he discovered that the next Diablo II ladder season would begin in three weeks.

He needed to inform Anders and Anna about it because, at present, the only way for them to learn about the schedule was through him.

He took a shower and then used the Gate spell to travel to Rose Manor.

When he arrived, he was glad to find that his father was there, handling some business with his mercenary team.

“Why are you here? I thought I wouldn’t be seeing you for a long time,” Anders said.

“I successfully completed my rank-up mission, so now I’m an Initiate Traveler. The organization gave me the skills necessary to travel to nearby planets. Of course, I’m still not allowed to do that—not until I master the spells and complete the required testing,” Anton told his father.

After Anders congratulated him, Anton explained that the main reason he had returned home was to inform him about the schedule for the next Diablo II ladder season.

After giving his father the exact schedule and reminding him to share the information with Anna, Anton did not stay for long. He returned to his room at Traveler’s Haven.

Anton then went outside to find a nearby place where he could eat breakfast.

Afterward, he returned to his room and began studying the first book Serena had given him—the advanced version of the Spatial Magic Meditation Array designed to solidify his third and fourth circles.