A Wizard’s Secret

“Ten days. I give you ten days! After ten days, I’ll visit the northern Spell Caster world again. Hopefully, I’ll see you all prepared to join the Spell Caster Alliance by then. Otherwise, I’ll be following after Kleis’ footsteps!”

Merlin did not wait for Wizard Ian and the others to respond. Ten days was already pushing the limit. It should be enough time for the Seven Major Spell Caster organizations of the northern Spell Caster world to discuss their strategy.

Merlin did not want to waste too much of the Spell Caster force. However, if the Seven Major Spell Caster organizations remained unwilling to join the Spell Caster Alliance, then Merlin would not mind obliterating some Spell Caster organizations and unify the northern Spell Caster world by force at all. In some sense, this was similar to Kleis’ intention.

Swish!

Merlin flew towards Wizard Tamo and Wizard Gilles, causing the two of them to tense up immediately.

“We meet again, Wizard Tamo!”

Merlin took a look at Wizard Tamo and Wizard Gilles. Both of them were Great Wizards. Not too long ago, they tried to confront Merlin but were defeated. In the end, they came all the way to the northern Spell Caster world to report the news to Kleis.

Now that Kleis was dead, they naturally felt dismayed.

“Don’t worry, as I’ve said, I’m doing this to unify the entire Spell Caster world to defeat a common enemy, so I won’t kill you. Nevertheless, the fact remains that Kleis is now dead but Ozmu Headquarters stands still. Don’t you think you have something to tell me?”

Merlin’s gaze lingered on them. Kleis might be dead, but Ozmu was not controlled by Kleis alone. It was controlled by numerous other Great Wizards. If he could not find Ozmu Headquarters and destroy it with a single move, then Ozmu would still be a wildcard which might cause him problems in the future.

“We’ve signed a contract… Since you’ve obtained Kleis’ ring, there should be no problem for you to enter Ozmu’s headquarters then. It’s a beacon ring!”

Wizard Tamo explained in detail to Wizard Merlin. After all, Kleis was dead now. Faced against Merlin who was even more powerful than Kleis, how much longer could Ozmu possibly hold on?

Upon becoming a Great Wizard, Wizard Tamo had already realized how harsh reality was. His only motivation now was to grow more powerful and perhaps to become a legendary Great Legend.

His so-called ‘loyalty’ towards Kleis was simply because Kleis was probably the only existence that was closest to a Great Legend and would one day become a Great Legend. Wizard Tamo would have a glimmer of hope to consolidate a Maxim and become a Great Legend only if he followed Kleis.

Kleis was dead now though. He had been replaced by the powerful Merlin. Not only was Merlin more powerful than Kleis, but he was also comparable to a Great Legend. This was the level of power that Wizard Tamo dreamt of achieving!

Therefore, Wizard Tamo did not see any further benefits of staying in Ozmu. He might as well tell Merlin everything he knew, except for the bits restricted by the contract. Besides those, Wizard Tamo had shared all other information with Merlin in detail.

Merlin produced a pale green ring that was glowing with a green light.

“Beacon ring?”

Merlin looked at Wizard Tamo suspiciously. Then, his Mind Power enclosed around the ring. Instantly, a strange feeling appeared. It felt like there was a special place far away that was calling out to Merlin.

“This is Ozmu Headquarters?”

Merlin reached an epiphany. Ozmu Headquarters had always been a very mysterious place. Even if he were to capture the Great Wizards of Ozmu, they could not reveal the location of Ozmu Headquarters due to the contracts they’ve signed.

“Yes, Wizard Merlin, what you’re sensing is none other than Ozmu Headquarters! The beacon ring is created by Kleis. After he created the ring, even the Great Wizards are unable to know the location of Ozmu Headquarters. We can only rely on the beacon ring to find it. What’s more, once a Great Wizard dies, their beacon ring will break. Hence, it’s useless even if an enemy obtained it. They won’t ever be able to find Ozmu Headquarters!”

Wizard Tamo spoke carefully. It would not be considered a breach of contract, and he would not be punished as long as he did not reveal the address of Ozmu Headquarters.

“If the beacon ring is to break after its owner dies, why didn’t this ring break?”

Wizard Tamo shook his head in bafflement. “The beacon ring is created by Kleis. No matter what, he was a real prodigy and was also sufficiently talented in the field of alchemy. His alchemy skills were considered expert-level even in Ozmu. Perhaps, he didn’t think that he would die. That could be why his beacon ring didn’t break after his death.”

Merlin nodded. This was a highly plausible explanation if one took into account Kiels’ arrogance. Only Kleis’ beacon ring was unique compared to the others. However, Kleis’ arrogance would now bring calamity upon Ozmu.

“Come on, let’s go check out your Ozmu Headquarters. Seeing that Kleis was able to become such a mighty existence in just a few decades, I’m sure that Ozmu’s support was also fundamental to his success besides his natural talents…”

Ozmu had always been very mysterious. After all, it was not a simple feat to nurture the mightiest existence below a Legend like Kleis. Perhaps Ozmu was one of the several secrets hidden by the Glorious Land.

Crash!

The three-headed dragon stretched open its wings and flew up into the sky. It caressed its three heads lovingly against Merlin’s calves once it landed on the ground.

Merlin beamed and patted the three-headed dragon on its crown gently. Then, he hopped on together with Wizard Tamo and Wizard Gilles and flew in the direction of the beacon ring.

The remaining dozen or so Great Wizards of the northern Spell Caster world finally regained their wits as they watched Merlin’s departing figure.

“Wizard Ian, Kleis is dead, but an even more powerful Merlin has emerged. Merlin is heading towards Ozmu Headquarters right now. What should we do?”

The Great Wizards were reluctant to accept Merlin’s offer, yet they were sorely tempted by it at the same time. The terms outlined by Merlin were extremely tempting to the Great Wizards.

The offered guidance to become a Great Legend through his sharing of experience was particularly tempting. It was an utterly irresistible offer for the Great Wizards. Many of them had in fact made up their minds when they enquired about Wizard Ian’s opinion.

Wizard Ian swept his gaze towards the direction in which Merlin had headed. He said in a meaningful tone, “Do we have a choice?”

With that, Wizard Ian ceased to pay any attention to these Great Wizards and headed back to Fog City right away, leaving the Great Wizards baffled…

…

In a dazzling golden palace foyer sat the eighth prince on the symbolic throne wearing a purple gold crown. He must be the King of the Kingdom of Blackmoon, King Bhutto XVII!

The eighth price, or the ambitious King Bhutto XVII, looked extremely troubled at the moment though. Several Spell Casters, army men and officials were staring at him expectantly standing below his throne.

King Bhutto XVII had vowed to transform the Kingdom of Blackmoon into a flourishing country the moment he ascended the throne. In the early days, the Kingdom of Blackmoon was indeed ruled commendably by the eighth prince, and its force grew stronger.

However, the enemies of the Kingdom of Blackmoon had grown even stronger and faster than them. Following the war waged by the Holy Light Empire’s in its crusade against heresy, the Kingdom of Blackmoon had been defeated continuously. They had mobilized every last ounce of strength, including the Elders’ Court of the royal family, but still did not manage to stop the conquest of the Holy Light Empire.

They had just received news a few days ago that out of the three most powerful Great Wizards of the royal family, two of them had been assassinated by unknown assailants from the Holy Light Empire. Consequently, the army had also suffered an utter defeat. The Kingdom of Blackmoon was in grave danger now.

He had went from a proud and ambitious king to the ruler of a falling nation. This was the greatest humiliation and biggest blow to the eighth prince.

“Your Majesty, please make a decision. If we can’t hold on any longer, then we can retreat from the Imperial City temporarily. As long as Your Majestic is still around, we have hope in our hearts. Moreover, the conflict between Ozmu and the northern Spell Caster world would soon be over. Regardless of whether Ozmu or the northern Spell Caster world emerges triumphant, the entire Spell Caster world will be unified and the chaos will cease. I believe that they would not sit back and watch the Church of Light oppresses the Kingdom of Blackmoon. After all, this is a free country for Spell Casters!” One of the black-robed Spell Casters exuding Ninth-level Spell Caster elemental fluctuations from head to toe exclaimed loudly, obviously feeling quite emotional.

“A free country for Spell Casters…”

The eighth prince who had been looking forlorn whipped his head up suddenly and murmured, “Yes, this is a free country that belongs to the Spell Casters. Countless Spell Casters are able to live their lives freely in the Kingdom of Blackmoon. Our royal family also has three Great Wizards. It’s almost equivalent to a large Spell Caster organization!

“In the beginning, it was the Great Wizard Blackmoon who founded the Kingdom of Blackmoon and became the first king of the royal family. His objective was none other than to safeguard the freedom of Spell Casters. Numerous Spell Casters who had reached a dead-end entered the Kingdom of Blackmoon and were given refuge by this kingdom. Gradually, the Kingdom of Blackmoon became a free country for all Spell Casters. In fact, we even hold on to the legacy of the Molta Empire which collapsed three thousand over years ago in hopes of recreating another glorious era of Spell Casters. This was the original objective of establishing the Kingdom of Blackmoon!

“Right now, the kingdom is in danger. Even if no one else comes forward to help us, the Blackmoon royal family should defend this free country at first instance! Let’s go and gather every last strength of the kingdom. I’ll put on the purple and gold crown and march to the frontline myself to stop the Church of Light’s conquest into this free country…”

The purple and gold crown sitting atop the eighth prince’s head was inlaid with several huge gemstones. At this moment, the gemstones radiated waves of strong elemental fluctuation, and they gradually soothed everyone’s anxious hearts.

The eighth prince was going to wear his purple and gold crown into the war. This meant that he was prepared to fight till’ the end!

After all, the purple and gold crown represented the orthodox rule of the royal family in the Kingdom of Blackmoon. It was also a powerful casting tool. Even a Great Wizard would find it difficult to break it.

The purple and gold crown actually represented the final fortress of the Kingdom of Blackmoon!