Chapter 241: Magic Swordsman?

After many discussions, the major Mage organizations of the South Coast finally reached a unanimous agreement: advancement to the Official Mage realm had to be strictly regulated.

The decision made sense to those sitting at the top.

Under the jurisdiction of the established contracts, all major Guilds had to follow the same rules. It did not matter whether an acolyte was absorbed by a Tower, recruited by a Mage family, or taken in by some independent organization. Everyone had to swear absolute secrecy regarding information related to advancement to the Official Mage realm.

In other words, no one who knew the path could simply go around telling others about it.

However, there was one exception: information found within ancient inheritances, ancient ruins, and places that had existed before the agreement.

That loophole was practically impossible to close. The South Coast possessed an enormous number of remnants left behind by ancient Mages. The problem was that almost all of these places were located in extremely dangerous regions.

Even Official Mages had to risk their lives to search for fragments of these ancient inheritances.

And there was an even bigger problem. Finding a remnant did not necessarily mean finding something useful. A ruin could contain an incomplete inheritance, a useless object, a deadly trap, or simply nothing at all.

I knew this better than most. After all, I had previously spent an almost incalculable amount of resources, time, and effort in the laboratory of Far Wind City. In the end, I had obtained practically nothing that I could directly use for advancement.

The situation was extremely common among explorers. But occasionally, someone got lucky. When a Mage found a genuine ancient remnant and managed to obtain a complete inheritance, a powerful technique, or some precious resource, their life could change completely.

That was how new legends were born.

Therefore, despite the unpredictable dangers, countless Mages continued searching for ruins and remnants.

According to the information I had gathered during my research, Marcelina had also become an Official Mage in this manner.

During an adventure, she had discovered a fragment of information related to advancement.

The problem was that the fragment was far from complete.

More than sixty percent of the original information had disappeared.

That fragment alone would definitely not be enough for someone to become an Official Mage, but it was still worth trying, and I needed someone capable of acting as an intermediary.

In this case, there was only one choice: Totil.

When I finally explained the situation to my teacher, he remained silent for a few moments.

Then he asked:

— All right, then.

— What do you intend to offer in exchange?

— Although the information is extremely valuable, these and the other one-time-use records are quite different. I believe this will satisfy Professor Marcelina.

As I spoke, I took out a heavy sack and placed it in Totil’s hands.

The weight caused his arms to drop slightly.

— Besides, after obtaining this fragment of information, Professor, you can also keep a copy of it.

Totil raised his eyebrows.

He did not answer immediately.

He simply opened the sack.

The moment he did, his expression changed.

— That perverted vampire, Marcelina... would probably be unable to refuse you after receiving this.

I smiled faintly.

Inside the sack were not only a large quantity of magic crystals and precious ingredients.

There was also a Nuplim bone.

Nuplim bones were extremely difficult to obtain and possessed particularly valuable regenerative properties for Mages who had lost limbs.

For a Nuplim bone to grow, it required an environment with an enormous concentration of positive energy. In addition, it had to be watered daily with the blood of pure-blooded monsters, provided that the blood was not contaminated by unsuitable magical energy.

As for that Nuplim bone... I had managed to get my hands on it without having to spend a fortune.

Marcelina needed it. She had been desperately searching for materials capable of regenerating Toral’s arm.

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Three days later.

Inside the experimental laboratory, I finally received what I had been looking for.

I held the fragment of information in my hands and examined it carefully.

Then I frowned.

— Magic Swordsman? With all due respect, Professor, what the hell is this?

I raised my eyes toward Totil.

— Wasn’t this supposed to be something that could help me become an Official Mage?

Totil laughed.

— Haha... when I first received it, I was quite suspicious as well. But Marcelina explained it to me.

He pulled up a chair and began to explain:

— George, Mages are people who possess mysterious powers. In ancient times, those who possessed great power were often called Mages. As for Magic Swordsmen, they used magical runes and formations engraved into their own bodies to obtain power. It is a small branch of the ancient Mage systems.

I lowered my eyes back to the record.

I began analyzing the available information.

The more I read, the more a familiar feeling emerged.

— Magic Swordsmen seem to place much more emphasis on physical training.

— Through constant training and the use of runes, the power of nature would be stored within the body. At critical moments, this energy could erupt with tremendous power...

I paused for a moment.

— Why does this sound so much like a Knight?

Totil nodded.

— Exactly. Your interpretation is correct.

— Part of the information related to the ancient inheritance of the Magic Swordsmen was widely disseminated. After some modifications, it became more suitable for ordinary humans. That was how the Knight systems emerged, followed later by higher-level Knights.

My expression became serious.

— So a Magic Swordsman is a more advanced version of a Knight.

— You can understand it that way.

That piqued my interest.

But the excitement did not last long.

Totil sighed.

— Unfortunately, more than sixty percent of the information has disappeared. Especially the part related to the formation of the marks and the configuration of the magical runes. Almost everything was lost.

— Trying to forcibly inscribe a spell formation onto the body would only cause the magical power to collapse completely.

— In ancient times, the combination of Knights and Mages was a true nightmare for the enemies of many other worlds.

I bowed deeply.

— Even so, I am still very grateful, Professor.

The information was incomplete, but it was not useless.

After leaving the experimental laboratory, I carefully held the book containing the records about the Magic Swordsmen.

For anyone else, that would probably have been a death sentence for their research. But I had the Biochip.

I had always liked preparing alternative plans. After all, relying on a single possibility was simply foolish. The advanced meditation technique hidden within the Mundane Forest of the Distant Mountain was still only a possibility.

Everything had originated from several fragments of information obtained from the ghost acolyte.

The credibility of those fragments was extremely low. If I had not found similar information in the experimental laboratory near the lair of the Great Brown Serpent, I probably would not have taken that story seriously at all.

And there was another issue. Even if the Great Mage Redof’s Gardens really existed...

That did not mean his inheritance was still there. Perhaps someone else had already discovered that laboratory and looted everything decades ago.

Therefore, preparing an alternative plan was no longer an option. It was a necessity.

I then decided to set a limit for myself.

If I could not discover anything in the Mundane Forest of the Distant Mountain, I would stop relying on that possibility.

After graduating from the Tower, I would travel throughout the South Coast, searching for ruins and looking for information about high-grade meditation techniques. And if, after some time, I still could not find a suitable technique... I would use what I had in my hands and attempt the advancement.

Perhaps this would cause difficulties for my future advancement. But if I could not see any concrete hope after years of searching, it would be better to increase my strength first and look for alternatives afterward.

On the way back to the dormitory, I realized that, on that enormous floor of the dormitory, I was practically the only person living there. The hall was silent, empty, and lifeless.

After so many years, the place looked more like an abandoned building than a dormitory belonging to a Mage Tower.

I entered my room and closed the door.

I sat down and immediately began checking the progress of my research.

— Biochip.

— How is the simulation of the Level 1 defensive spell model progressing?

— And what about the simulation of the Black Rainbow Crystallized Aura?

[Level 1 defensive spell model simulation: 14.3%.]

[Estimated completion time: 800 days.]

I remained silent for several seconds.

The estimated time was surprisingly long.

Still... As long as it can be completed, two years are nothing. I can wait.

Previously, the Biochip had not even been able to accurately estimate when a simulation of this level would be completed.

But after I managed to record the enormous amount of information hidden within the library, it finally had enough data to work with.

By the time this period ended, I would only be nineteen years old. I would still be at the beginning of the path of a Level 3 acolyte. That was one of the greatest advantages of youth.

[Calculation of the Black Rainbow Crystallized Aura formula in progress: 5.32%.]

[Estimated ingredients: Nectar of the Thousand Suns Tree, Crystallized Tear of a Forest Titan...]

[Estimated effect: enormous consumption of the acolyte’s life force to stimulate the breakthrough of the mana bottleneck.]

My eyes narrowed.

So that was why the Tower considered a Level 3 acolyte under twenty years old to be a potential candidate for becoming a Mage. The Black Rainbow Crystallized Aura did not simply provide energy to break through the bottleneck.

It used the body’s own life force to stimulate advancement. The younger the acolyte was... the more abundant their life force would be. And consequently, the greater their ability to withstand the process.

But as the body aged, that reserve would diminish. An old acolyte might possess enough mana, sufficient knowledge, and even enough Black Rainbow Crystallized Aura. Even so, their body might simply lack enough life force to sustain the process.

It seems the previous plan needs to be modified. I could not simply wait until I was fifty. If I reached thirty and still had not found a suitable high-grade meditation technique... I would attempt the advancement.

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