Chapter 537 - 216: So This Is How You Want to Play?

’Fine, fine, fine. So that’s how it’s going to be, is it?’

BUZZ... BUZZ... BUZZ...

Just then, the black trophy on the desk began to buzz.

Wei’en’s mood, which had just begun to relax, tensed up again. ’Please don’t let it be Dean Josue...’

He took a deep breath and pressed the switch on the black trophy-like communicator.

"Honorable Director Wei’en Loft, Wizard Teresa Ilina Silvira, internal designation 11346, requests to open a channel. Do you consent?"

’Teresa?’

’Thank goodness...’

Wei’en calmed himself and said, "I consent."

"Good morning, Director." Teresa, wearing her gold-rimmed glasses, greeted him with a brilliant smile upon seeing his image appear.

"Good morning, Teresa." Wei’en gave a slight nod. "Is there new progress at the institute?"

Teresa produced a long sheet of parchment. "Escobar and I have finished organizing and backing up all the materials sent from the School."

"We have 432 research reports. Most of them concern the modification of Undead Creatures; only twelve relate to mechanical modification topics."

"Additionally, there are 120 scrolls of Era Relics. Likewise, only two of those scrolls contain knowledge from the Mechanical School."

"Only a little over four hundred reports on undead modification?"

Wei’en frowned. Even including the Era Relics, that was less than six hundred documents...

’The Specter School has been accumulating knowledge for several eras. There should be more than this, right?’

"Y-Yes." Teresa looked a little embarrassed, stammering, "Dean Josue said, this is all we can get for now..."

"Fine. Return the originals to the Research Center, and send a newly transcribed copy to me."

Wei’en didn’t dwell on it. The materials were merely supplementary references for his research project; it was unlikely they’d contain anything particularly useful.

"They’re already transcribed."

Teresa quietly sighed in relief. Thankfully, she had followed Oshana’s advice last night and prepared two transcribed copies of the scrolls.

As she thought this, she turned her head and gestured to a nearby Oshana, which brought smiles to the faces of Oshana and the others.

"Do you have any other instructions for us?"

"No... Yes!" Wei’en thought for a moment and asked, "I just received a notification from the School. Something about an investigation into the Magic Runes?"

Teresa was stunned for a moment. "You received it?"

"Hmm? Was I not supposed to?"

"My apologies, Director," Teresa quickly explained. "We received the notice about this last night. But Dean Josue said that since you aren’t personally here in Feng Enliso, we don’t need to participate."

"But he also said we are to obey Master Boras’s orders, that we’re forbidden from leaving the institute, and forbidden from contacting anyone from the outside world, except for you..."

"Forbidden?" Wei’en’s expression grew more serious. The Specter School’s reaction was even more severe than the letter had suggested.

"Yes. The notice says that once the investigation into all the Magic Rune flaws is complete, they will inform us when the restrictions are lifted."

Teresa looked at the others again, silently asking if she had missed anything.

Escobar and the others quickly shook their heads, then nodded frantically, gesticulating wildly at her to indicate there was one more thing she hadn’t said.

"Oh, right!" Teresa recalled for a few seconds, slapped her forehead, then looked at Wei’en in the image and said, "Director, there’s one more thing."

"Go on."

"Apparently, the rune flaws mentioned in the notice were pointed out by a Great Mage from within the School. But strangely, he didn’t publish his findings in the School’s journal. Instead, he used a false identity to announce them at a Wizard gathering in the Nightmare Realm World..."

"Someone named Faceless?"

"I think so," Teresa said sheepishly. "I was busy preparing the materials last night, so I didn’t pay too much attention... I just know that, as of now, the School still doesn’t know the specific identity of that Great Mage and is investigating."

’Just as I thought!’

’The School doesn’t know that I’m Faceless.’

"An investigation? I see."

"Is something wrong, Director?" Teresa couldn’t help but ask when she saw his strange expression. "Did the School arrange for you to participate in the investigation as well?"

"Not exactly. It’s just that when I received the notification, there was a passage I couldn’t understand."

Wei’en said impassively, "Thinking about it now, it must be the Wizard Management Office’s unique method of investigation."

He inwardly gave the middle finger to that ’genius’ at the Wizard Management Office again.

If he hadn’t realized what was happening in time, he’d probably have already contacted Sheldon Foskett at the Wizard Management Office through the communicator.

"It must be..."

Teresa didn’t quite understand what he meant, but she didn’t dwell on it. She smiled and said, "You wouldn’t believe how much of a commotion the Blink Rune flaw caused at the School last night."

"I’m not too clear about the other research centers, but here in Feng Enliso, apart from our institute and Dean Josue’s Research Institute No. 1, all the other research institutes were conducting related tests."

"They were busy for three hours before Great Mage Nierge from Research Institute No. 5 was the first to publish a report. He received a heap of praise from Dean Josue, who just a moment ago even specially allocated a sum of gold pounds to him."

"Is that so?" Wei’en asked thoughtfully. "Did any institute confirm if other Magic Runes have similar flaws?"

"Yes, Great Mage Nierge also tested for them. I heard someone mention this morning that, as of now, four flawed Magic Runes have been discovered..."

’Four?’

Wei’en nodded. "Since Dean Josue hasn’t assigned our institute to this task, our focus remains on our own research project. After I’ve finished reviewing these materials, I’ll tell you the next phase of the plan and the relevant research arrangements."

"We’ll be waiting for your notice, Director!"

Teresa patted the small bell pendant on her chest, looking very confident in their research project.

"But don’t slack off. Use this time to review the research materials and prepare the Undead Creatures and mechanical materials according to the plan we discussed."

Wei’en mused, "For the Undead Creatures, focus on zombies. Their body structure is closer to a human’s. As for the materials for mechanical modification... Teresa, I’ll leave that to you. Get us a variety of materials to start with; we’ll need them later."

"No problem!"

A smile appeared on Teresa’s face. For her, a problem that could be solved with money wasn’t a problem at all!

"That’s all for now."

Seeing her expression, Wei’en knew he wouldn’t have to worry about a lack of research funding anymore.

’Having such a rich lady in the research institute... What a relief!’

Before long, the blue and white box chimed again. Wei’en retrieved the Space Ring containing the research materials, preparing to go through all of them today.

POP.

Just then, a crisp popping sound was heard, and a small figure with a huge head appeared on the workbench.

"Huh?"

’The cute little Nightmare Worm is back?’

"HISS HISS HISS—" (Food! Food!)