Warlock Apprentice

The cloud whale cruised among the thin clouds, decorated by shiny stars.

If not for the shifting clouds, Angor could not even make sure whether the cloud whale was moving at all.

If he could find a giant mount like this, could he bring his brother and teacher to travel around the world?

It was only a dream. He did not know that the cost to keep a cloud whale fed was beyond the annual expense of a small wizard organization.

As Angor was immersed in his imagination, Flora brought him to Sunders’ beautiful tent.

“Here you go. The teacher is waiting.”

Angor thought Flora would join him but it seemed she had another plan.

He lifted the curtain and walked inside while maintaining his manners.

The tent looked small at first but was a lot bigger on the inside. Angor took a guess that there must be some kind of space expansion spells. He saw golden runes shining on the black cover cloth of the tent.

“Surprised much?”

Sunders was still wearing his usual black attire while sitting at his desk with his legs crossed. He did not have his gloves this time. He was looking at Angor through his gold monocle, with his clean, slim fingers crossed.

“Good evening, professor.” Angor did a hand-on-abdomen salute.

“No need for the protocols. My student should have his own characteristic. I don’t want a pupil who couldn’t even make out who he is. So are you wondering why the tent is bigger than the outside?”

“Yes. A wizard technique?”

“It is. But not every wizard can do it. Not even me,” said Sunders. He picked up his cane and pointed to the golden runes, “To extend space isn’t something I can explain quickly. There are a lot of elements. The tent cloth was crafted using alchemy products, while the shining symbols are space-stabilizing runes.

“Those two steps alone require expertise in Alchemy and Rune Craft. Extending space is yet another subject. Now, this is wizardry. Most things are complicated to explain. Are you ready for it?”

Sunders’ simple words opened up a shining, brand new door in Angor’s mind. Another whole world stood behind the door. A wizard’s world, filled with formulas, symbols, danger, opportunities, the beginning and the end of everything. A world of truth.

Angor nodded firmly. He was prepared. Even if not for Jon, he still wanted to see this world. What was the fun in life if one did not see something amazing like this?

Sunders nodded, satisfied. He accepted Angor because the boy’s talent could help him greatly. However, since Angor was his student now, he should be responsible for the boy’s future.

“I guess the apprentice called Mara already told you about the basic concept about wizards? Now… If you want to become a real wizard, from today onwards, forget everything he said. Wizard isn’t a concept. See things for yourself, and solve problems by yourself. Go find your own way of learning wizardry.”

Sunders brought Angor into a separated room. There were about a dozen rows of double-sided bookshelves, each one was about four to five meters high. A wheel ladder stood in the passage.

“How to see things or solve things is another question,” said Sunders as he pointed at the bookshelves. He added, “Before that, you still have a lot of basic knowledge to learn. These are my personal collections. Before reaching Brute Cavern, you can come here anytime you wish, and you’re free to read or learn anything. Just one advice. There are some channeling methods and low-level cantrips in these books. You can read about them, but better not study them without careful preparation.

“Of course, if your only goal is to become a wizard, go ahead and learn them, it’s fine.”

Next, Sunders tossed a gold coin towards Angor. There was a line written in curlicue, universal language on the coin’s front: Unbeaten Rose, Eternal Glory.

An image was carved on the back. A thorned rose pierced by a winged sword.

A typical noble emblem. Angor looked at Sunders with a puzzled expression, not sure what he meant.

“A permit for entering the tent. With that, you can come here whenever you wish. Without the permit, a backlash from the spell array will shatter you into dust.”

Shattering someone to dust?!

Angor imagined it and shivered. He would not expect such danger when he was just going into a tent. Looked like he really needed to approach everything in the wizarding world with great caution. Otherwise, he would not even have time to regret.

“Okay now. To stay or to go back to your tent is up to you.”

Seeing Sunders was going to leave, and his biggest question was still unanswered, Angor quickly spoke, “Can I ask a question, professor?”

Sunders looked back and smiled at Angor’s eager expression.

“No.”

Sunders walked away.

Angor thought he got his chance when Sunders smiled at him. He even prepared his wording. Instead, Sunders refused right away and left without a second thought.

Was that a joke? And what’s with the smile?!

Angor felt frustration building up inside him.

“I know what you wanted to ask. I’ll give you an answer on the day when you become an apprentice.” Sunders’ distant voice came from afar.

This meant Angor still did not get an answer to his doubt.

It seemed his uneasiness would remain. He still earned something new though. Without the tablet, he could read here, and it would be fun. Not to mention all books in the room were related to wizardry. As someone who spent the last dozen years studying science, this would be a feast for him, where old and new knowledge intertwined with each other.

Looking at the valuable books, Angor felt his heart flying.

He had another question though. There were not many leather books. Most of them were cheap papers.

In Goldspink Empire, leather books were favored by noble families or authorities as a way to keep records, while paper books were common among ordinary citizens. Their prices varied greatly. Leather books were expensive and rare.

But, Sunders’ collection contained a few leather books sitting in the corner. On a closer look, they collected a thick layer of dust. Sunders did not pay attention to them.

More than ten rows of bookshelves and 95% of the books were paper ones.

“Maybe the paper books are the most common medium at Fey Continent?” Angor picked up a random, thick paper book.

The title was About 15 Common Meditation Methods in the Sleepless Nation .

Meditation method was referring to channeling method. People from the old times used “meditation method” more. As more and more people preferred expressive words in recent years, people changed “meditation”, which sounded more like idealism, into “channeling”. The new name was well accepted by wizards, so it got adopted.

There was an interesting story about the debate around these two names. An apprentice who was bored at learning his dull channeling method published a refutation article on a small magazine designed for apprentices. The article itself was insignificant and not worth mentioning, but it created a “war” which lasted for several years.

A name war between “channeling” and “meditation”.

It was basically a debate about whether one should drink beer from a glass or a can but between wizards. People only wanted to tease, while occasionally pumping some fuel into the fight.

Even several formal wizards were dragged into the nuisance, creating a joke in the southern region.

Maybe the apprentice who published the article never thought he actually created such an uproar.

…

Angor opened the book and noticed the smooth and white paper. The surface of the paper was extremely fine, and the black, printed words on it looked really clear. This book was many more times better than those cheap, yellowish papers in Goldspink Empire.

It was only a few minutes, and Angor’s complaint towards paper books already disappeared.

Such clean, easy-to-read books with the sweet smell of superior ink on them. Any book lover would enjoy reading these!

Reading a book like this made Angor feel relaxed. No wonder all those leather books were collecting dust.