Chapter 216: Zarak interrogates George.

20 Golden Tickets! Thank you for donating.

This is a bonus chapter.

.

.

.

.

The old man was sitting in a chair, holding a cup containing a hot beverage that released a small amount of steam.

This old man was undoubtedly the powerful Level 2 Mage who controlled that Tower of Mages.

My heart grew even heavier.

From the first day I arrived at the Underground Cave Tower of Mages, I had memorized the name of Master Zarak.

But with my status and position, I had never imagined that I would have an opportunity to stand before him.

Therefore, I kept my head lowered.

I remained silent.

Master Zarak simply finished his drink.

Only after emptying the cup did he gently place it on the table.

Then I felt his gaze fall upon me.

I did not need to raise my head to know.

That scorching sensation was once again covering my body.

It did not necessarily mean that his elemental affinity was with light or fire.

The explanation was much simpler.

The density of the elemental energy filling his eyes was absurd.

When he directed his gaze toward me, the concentration of that element around me increased.

It was as if I were being burned.

— Have you recently been to the Underground World?

I lowered my head even further.

— Yes, Master.

—I have just returned from the Underground World.

There was a brief silence.

Then he asked.

— Did you find anything?

I slightly moved my head.

I pretended to hesitate.

It was as if I wanted to raise my face and look at him, but was afraid to do so.

Then I suppressed the impulse.

— Yes, Master. I found something during this journey.

An expression of admiration appeared on my face.

It was not genuine.

I needed it to look genuine.

After all, why would a Level 2 Mage be interested in a mere acolyte?

If Master Zarak truly controlled that Tower of Mages, it was possible that the entire structure was under his control.

Perhaps even my expressions were perceptible to him.

Therefore... I needed to act, which was why from the moment I had set foot in that Tower of Mages, I had begun mentally hypnotizing myself.

I was merely a reckless acolyte.

A boy who had encountered some strange things during a mission, nothing more.

The information I had obtained about the Mosquito was the result of my Biochip's precise analysis. An ordinary acolyte would never have been able to easily uncover that secret.

To do so, they would probably need to use extremely precise equipment, such as the kind found in a Laboratory.

And there was another detail. I had secretly probed Raticati. The Rat showed no knowledge of experiments related to bloodlines. This further strengthened my decision.

I would play the fool.

— What did you find?

—Show me!

I did not hesitate.

Maintaining a respectful posture, I carefully crouched down and placed Ruby on the ground beside me. I made sure she was in a comfortable position before standing up again.

Then I turned toward Raticati and approached him. Without much delicacy, I began giving him several hard slaps across the cheeks.

Smack! Smack! Smack!

— Wake up.

The little Rat's cheeks turned red, and he finally opened his eyes, still completely dazed.

— Bring the bag.

Raticati tried to stand up.

But his body simply refused to obey.

He staggered for a moment and fell back onto the ground.

It seemed that my command had completely lost its effectiveness.

With no other choice, I walked over to the enormous bag.

I crouched down, grabbed it with both hands, and began dragging it across the floor.

I opened the bag.

Then I turned it upside down all at once.

A rain of objects fell onto the floor.

And mixed in among all of them was the Mosquito's body.

It looked like nothing more than a limp, wrinkled leather bag.

Beside it were the broken fragments of her true form.

I made no attempt to organize or hide anything.

I simply dumped everything out.

I observed Master Zarak's reaction.

The old Mage narrowed his eyes.

His expression took on a contemplative look as he examined the objects scattered across the floor.

But then his eyes moved.

He saw the badge attached to my chest.

The emblem of the Nark family.

At that very moment, Zarak's smile deepened.

And the oppressive pressure that had compressed my body from the moment I entered the room completely disappeared.

— A magical creature at the Mage level.

—I really did not expect a Level 3 acolyte like you to be able to obtain prey of this level.

—No wonder Pretel was so eager to recruit you.

I lowered my head respectfully.

— Everything happened thanks to Master Pretel's care for me.

I paused and immediately added:

— We also managed to defeat that terrifying mosquito thanks to Ruby.

—She risked her own life to make it possible.

—Besides that, we also received the assistance of several outlaw Pseudo-Mages.

I adopted an excited expression, and even my tone of voice changed.

Without waiting for Zarak to ask any more questions, I began recounting in detail everything that had happened in the Dark Forest.

I did not hide a single event.

This was the safest approach.

I had no idea whether a Level 2 Mage possessed some method capable of directly discovering lies.

As I spoke, Mage Zarak truly listened to me.

Perhaps, in Zarak's eyes, that demonstrated an exceptional ability to control a battlefield.

When I finished my account, Zarak once again looked at the objects scattered across the floor.

— You found all of this after killing a Mage-level demon?

I immediately noticed where his gaze was directed.

The Minor Malignancy Scroll, fastened beside my waist.

Then I quickly took another object from my storage belt.

As soon as Zarak saw the object, his expression finally relaxed.

— So it's a Staff of the Brightest Light.

He examined it for a few seconds.

— Not bad.

—With your affinity for the Light element, this staff is currently the perfect magical item for you.

—I need some magical materials for the experiment I am currently working on. Therefore, I will purchase all of your spoils of war.

— And considering that you risked your life to obtain all of this, I won't take advantage of a boy like you.

—Here are some items.

—The value of each one of them is greater than that of your magical materials.

—You may choose one.

He raised his hand.

An invisible force immediately enveloped the objects.

The Mosquito's corpse and the fragments of her true form began to float.

My gaze followed everything.

The materials slowly rose.

Then the space before us opened.

A dark rift tore through the air.

Shhhk.

The Mosquito's remains were pulled inside and disappeared.

Soon afterward, three small bubbles emerged from the rift.

Each one contained a peculiar-looking magical item.

The first was a small palm-sized bottle.

Inside it was a mysterious red potion.

The second was a pair of black horns.

They gleamed with a cold metallic sheen, and a strange light continuously circulated across their surface.

The third... Was a small passport engraved with extremely complex and mysterious patterns.

I had no idea what its function was.

Zarak spoke:

— The first is a Superior Elemental Intellect Potion.

—With your current mana level, it will increase your magical power by three points without causing any harm to your body.

....

1301 Words