Chapter 15: Healing Ice Coffin

It wasn't just the playing card guards; there were many other dolls that looked quite cute. Most importantly, Angel discovered that Mr. Rabbit, who had been reading all along, was slowly floating before his eyes, staring at him with tiny, crimson pupils.

Angel couldn't decipher the look in its eyes, but being stared at so intently made him feel an inexplicable sense of dread.

The previous cuteness was gone; looking at everything before him, Angel felt nothing but terror.

A playing card guard suddenly lunged toward Angel. Startled, Angel grabbed a book from the table and threw it at the guard.

As the purple-covered comic book flew through the air, a bloodthirsty maw filled with fangs suddenly burst from the cover illustration, instantly chewing and swallowing the playing card guard directly in front of it. The scene left Angel stunned. Seizing the moment while the surrounding creatures were distracted by the gaping maw, Angel burst through the encirclement and sprinted toward the exit of the hall at full speed.

"Hee hee hee hee, don't run, Shava, come play with me~" A ghostly female voice rang out from behind.

Angel heard it, but he didn't pause for a second, racing toward the next corner. He remembered that if he just turned the corner, he would reach the storage room.

He would be safe in the storage room! — This thought arose from nowhere, and he didn't know if it was true. Angel couldn't distinguish truth from falsehood, but it was his only choice.

The entrance to the storage room drew near, and Angel charged inside with great strides.

Just as he stepped through the doorway, he felt a sudden, agonizing pain in his back and collapsed to the ground.

Looking back, he saw a heavily made-up woman with bright red hair standing outside the door. Her face was covered in dense, intricate stitches, and she wore an ornate, complex dark-patterned gown with a black heart-shaped crown on her head.

Angel didn't know who she was, but he noticed droplets of blood dripping from her razor-sharp fingernails. Combined with the sharp pain in his back, Angel had no doubt that the blood was his.

The stitched woman's eyes were filled with malice as she hissed incessantly, but no matter how angrily she cursed, she did not cross the threshold. It was as if the door to the storage room isolated two different worlds.

After observing for a long while and realizing she truly could not enter, Angel finally breathed a small sigh of relief.

But after the relief came a new worry.

Though he had escaped death, what should he do next?

Angel surveyed the storage room once more. Aside from the tables and chairs, there was only a lit candle and a red crystal ball—the Eye of Abilas, a Talent Ball.

Looking at the crystal ball shimmering with red light, Angel felt an inexplicable urge to approach. With a hint of hesitation, he gently placed his hand upon it...

...

"Hahaha, I didn't expect that in this remote town, I would not only find an opportunity for advancement but also discover a Talent User! Heaven bless Moro, heaven bless my Mongen family!" Moro's booming laughter reached Angel's ears.

After a moment of daze, Angel found himself back in the "real world." The people around him looked at him with surprise and envy, showing no sign of anything unusual.

*Did they not realize I had just traveled to another dimension? Or was that not a transition, but merely the "change" that occurs when a Talent User tests their talent? If it truly was a "change," it was far too harrowing!*

While Angel was still lost in thought regarding the wonders of the "parallel space," he felt a squeeze in his palm. Looking back, he saw that Leon had squeezed his hand because he saw him staring blankly.

"Angel, don't daze off. Mr. Moro is asking what your 'change' was," Leon said with a smile.

"Oh," Angel replied dullly. He felt no joy in becoming a Talent User; he only felt a profound exhaustion from having narrowly escaped danger. "After I touched the Talent Ball, I found myself floating in mid-air..."

Before Angel could finish, Moro interrupted him: "Floating?! Yes, that is the change! You are a Talent User, without a doubt!"

Angel had originally wanted to describe his experiences in that "parallel space," but being interrupted by Moro, he didn't speak again. Instead, he nodded with a polite smile and returned to his seat.

"Mr. Moro, since I possess talent, may I now become your apprentice and learn wizardry?" Although the unpleasant encounter in the parallel space had caused a sudden shift in his mood, it did not dampen his will to become a wizard.

As Moro withdrew the Talent Ball, he smiled and said, "I am merely an apprentice myself and am not qualified to teach you. However, my mission here in the Old Lands is precisely to find Talent Users for the Academy. Since you have talent and wish to pursue the path of the extraordinary, you shall leave the Old Lands with me tomorrow to study at the Academy! Although the White Coral Floating Island Academy is not large, it is quite prominent among the wizard organizations in the Southern Region; it will not disgrace a Talent User!"

Hearing Moro's words, Angel froze.

To leave this place and go to the unknown White Coral Floating Island Academy?

Even though Angel had suspected this might happen, he still felt somewhat lost.

Could his mentor's illness hold out until he returned successful in his studies?

Furthermore, he had promised his brother he would accompany him to the succession ceremony; if he left tomorrow, who knew when they would meet again?

Angel's eyes dimmed slightly. He didn't even realize that his thumbs and index fingers were repeatedly tapping against each other—a subconscious habit when he was hesitant and conflicted.

Seeing Angel like this, Leon naturally felt reluctant to see him go, but he stepped forward, put an arm around Angel's shoulder, and whispered in his ear, "Don't worry. Didn't you hear Mr. Moro? It's an academy; you're just going to school. It's just like how you go to Watford Noble Academy for advanced studies every spring. It will pass quickly, and I will be waiting for you at the manor."

Angel: "But..."

Angel hesitated. As his elder brother, how could Leon not know his brother's worries?

Leon: "If you're worried about old man Jon, I will seek the best physicians to treat him during my trip to Watford. Even if I exhaust all our wealth, I will keep him alive so he can wait for you to return after your studies."

Angel remained silent. Everyone else thought Jon's condition was merely an illness, but only Angel knew that it was the World Consciousness driving him away. Unless a wizard intervened, no one could save Jon.

While Angel was struggling with his dilemma, Moro, who had listened to the entire conversation, spoke up.

"You are worried about your mentor?"

"Yes."

Moro actually did not understand why Angel was so attached to Jon. The man was merely an introductory mentor, not a master who had imparted profound knowledge, nor was he a relative. This made it difficult for Moro to comprehend such a bond between people of different generations.

After looking deeply at Angel, Moro suddenly said, "I once spent two entire years' worth of savings at the Crimson Auction to purchase a magic-patterned parchment called the 'Healing Ice Coffin.' While the Healing Ice Coffin cannot cure your mentor, it can temporarily ensure his vital signs do not dissipate—though it can only be maintained for five years. Are you willing?"

Five years? Angel's pupils dilated sharply. A lot could change in five years. Although Angel didn't believe he could become a wizard within five years, as long as there was a chance, there was hope, wasn't there?

Just as Angel was about to agree to Moro's offer, Leon stepped forward and bowed to Moro. "There is no such thing as a gift without a reason. Although I do not understand the world of wizards, based on what Mr. Moro just said, wizards must also be human, and as humans, they cannot escape the ties of social obligation. Therefore, may I ask, Mr. Moro, what conditions do you have for spending such an expensive potion on Jon?"

Leon's words brought Angel to a sudden realization. Moro was merely a guide; even if Talent Users were rare, he wouldn't care much about finding one. So... what was Moro seeking in exchange for the Healing Ice potion?

Moro looked Leon up and down, his expression one of appreciation. "In five years, the probability of Angel becoming a wizard is nearly zero, so this Healing Ice Coffin would essentially be a waste. However, I am still willing to give it to you, provided that Angel agrees to one condition from me."