Wizard: I brought the wrong system.

Chapter 216 Entering the Castle
The sun is shining brightly.

But the abandoned castle was filled with mottled shadows.

Like moss, or like wriggling black jellyfish, it adds a strange and weathered touch to the desolate castle.

Clap, clap...

The heavy thud of hooves startled a flock of birds, the flapping of their wings echoing through the deserted town. In the sunlight, several dark spots flashed across the ground.

Yaro dismounted, and Bard carefully tied the child to the scaly horse before walking over to Yaro.

“Lord Yarrow, the third window on the left is where Old Guy died. After he died, the whole castle became extremely dangerous.”

"The second window from the left, that's where the Redek father and son died."

"The first one on the left is the stairs, and he's dead..."

Bard's voice grew increasingly heavy.

Although at his age, he had long been accustomed to life and death.

But the death of so many familiar people in a familiar place still broke through his psychological defenses.

His eyes flashed with grief and fear, and his legs felt as if they were filled with lead, so he dared not take another step forward.

To him, the castle was a giant demon, and the shattered gates were its fangs.

The castle's windows are less like the eyes of demons and more like the tombstones of loved ones!
Yaro listened in silence, when Yu Guangzhong suddenly noticed something, paused in his tracks, and turned to look at the broad shadow beneath the Scaled Horse, pondering thoughtfully: "Is the color of the shadow—darker?"

His eyes flickered slightly as he recalled the bird's shadow that had passed by him earlier.

Snapped!
With a snap of his fingers, a ball of light appeared out of thin air.

"go with!"

Under Yaro's control, the orb of light gradually fell, illuminating the ground with light.

"grown ups?"

Bard looked at the ground in surprise.

Under the illumination of the Light spell, the shadows faded, revealing seven snake-like black threads.

Yaro raised his hand to stop Bard from speaking and continued to activate the Light spell, the light sphere maintaining a stable brightness and constantly shining.

Under the continuous illumination of the light, wisps of gray mist gradually rose from the dark figure. They writhed violently, like dehydrated crucian carp struggling, appearing extremely painful, yet they were unable to escape the light and could only gradually dissolve in it.

Yaro then illuminated the shadow beneath Bard, revealing six dark figures hiding beneath him.

Once the shadows on the ground had completely dissipated, Yaro controlled the ball of light to float back and forth, ensuring that there were no more black lines under their feet before dispersing the ball of light.

Bard's face grew increasingly terrified, and he couldn't help but ask, "Lord Yarrow, isn't it daytime? How did they get here?!"

This is a question that not only Bard wants to know, but also Yarrow wants to know.

A single bird or beast can only create a patch of shadow. There was only one bird or beast that flew over my head just now, so why are there seven dark shadows in the shadow beneath my feet?

Could they have been infected during the journey?
The shadows of the birds and beasts flying this way contain shadow creatures. So, if there were so many birds and beasts that took flight before, were there also shadow creatures in the shadows of the other birds and beasts?
How many more shadow beasts have spread out from the surrounding woods?
So—just how far have these shadows spread?
What went wrong with Perrin Castle?
Why are so many creatures from the Shadow Realm emerging?

And—with such a big problem here, why haven't the local superhumans come to deal with it?

Despite the many doubts, Yaro was not prepared to give up.

If even ordinary people like Claire could successfully enter and exit, the level of danger involved couldn't be too exaggerated.

Take ten thousand steps back.

Even if there is a really strong enemy, he still has the 'Secondary Stand Puppet' to save his life.

Gaining experience inevitably involves risk.

Moreover, the bigger the problem here, the more experience it contains, and the more likely it is that monsters will appear—so you can earn magic stones!

When your life is not in danger, this is actually a great thing!

Yaro withdrew his gaze and turned back to instruct, "It should be coming from the surrounding shadows. Be careful not to touch the surrounding shadows."

“If such a thing enters your shadow, light a torch, just like I did, and use the light to destroy it.”

Bard looked at Yaro nervously: "Sir, are you going in? What about me... what about this child?"

Yaro glanced at the horse's tense face and nodded, saying, "Leave the rest to me. You take the child back to Perrin Manor first."

Bard wasn't even a proper knight, so he was helpless against those shadow creatures.

Letting him go in would only make things more difficult for me and wouldn't serve any other purpose.

The situation at the castle is unknown, and it's unclear how long Yaro will be stuck there. Bard's role outside is also limited.

If the sky suddenly darkens and shadow creatures become active, he may actually be in mortal danger.

To say that he is more trouble than he's worth is by no means an exaggeration.

Therefore,
Whether Bard was genuinely afraid or feigning fear, Yaro didn't bother to pay him any more attention.

By not doing anything to make things worse, you're doing Aro the biggest favor.

Bard subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief, glanced at the castle, but then reluctantly closed his eyes, turned his head and whispered his thanks: "Thank you for your understanding, sir!"

Without Yaro's permission, he dared not leave on his own initiative.

Bard moved swiftly—you could even say he was preparing to escape.

He fled this place that filled him with fear, unease, and dread.

Suddenly remembering something, Yaro called out again, "Wait a minute."

Bard, who had only climbed halfway up the Scaled Horse, suddenly froze, afraid of hearing something like being told to continue leading the way.

Yaro: "Ride the other scaly horse and take both horses back."

Without anyone to look after it, no one knows what trouble the Scaled Horse might encounter.

Did they get lost?
Were we attacked by shadow creatures?

Or perhaps—they starved to death?

Keeping it is just a hassle; it's better to let Bard take it with him.

Bard was overjoyed and quickly replied, "Yes, Lord Yarrow!"

Glancing at the two giant horses that had hurriedly departed, Yaro turned back to look at the castle ahead.

……

Pushing open the dilapidated gate, the crisp sound of footsteps broke the castle's eternal silence.

stomping on...

But after Arodo took two steps, the sunlight shining behind him suddenly went out, as if time had passed, and the surroundings suddenly became dark.

Squeak-!
The sound of a door closing behind him made Yaro glance back.

The dilapidated gate was still behind me, but the distance seemed inexplicably greater, and it appeared hazy and unreal. It was like a dream, surreal and strangely unreal.

coax--!
With a series of clapping sounds, several candles lit up at intervals along the corridors on both sides.

Each candlelight was weak and flickering, illuminating little but making the shadows even more eerie.

The darkness under the lamplight is even darker than the night itself!
The attributes of shadow creatures are exceptionally peculiar. Like moths, they are born in darkness but seek the light. They are creatures that live in the cracks, and only the shadows under the light can unleash their strongest power.

This is a corridor. The stones on the ground are ordinary, but they have been carefully trimmed and polished. Walking on them is inexplicably slippery, as if they are wet, making people afraid to take big steps.

Several portraits hung on both sides of the corridor. By the flickering candlelight, one could see that while the painting skills were commendable, the materials used were quite precious, especially the saturated and realistic skin colors, which were very rich and vibrant, indicating the use of high-quality dyes.

It's a pity that in some of the earlier oil paintings, the saturated skin has inexplicably cracked, and it seems that the precious dyes are not very effective at preserving the skin.

The portraits depict male nobles, who are either dignified or imposing, yet they wear similar clothing—the same aristocratic attire as Claire.

The flickering candlelight caused the colors in the oil painting to shift, making the portraits of the figures seem to come alive, changing their expressions.

Yarrow slowly swept his gaze across each oil painting.

Whenever Yarrow focused his attention on a particular painting, he noticed that the surrounding candlelight was still flickering, but the painting itself remained unchanged, while in his peripheral vision, the other paintings seemed to change.

Is it—an illusion?
Yaro's lips curled up slightly, and a smile unconsciously appeared on his face.

Yes!

Yaro is very happy!
I'm so happy!
Because—this place is actually a strange spatial crevice!
This is incredibly lucky!
Is this a bizarre space?

Do not!
This is a gold mine!
It's still an undiscovered gold mine!

when--!
First came the sound of metal falling, followed by a dragging motion.

Bang, bang, bang...

The gleaming blade scraped against the ground, scattering sparks and causing shadows to flicker. It was unclear whether the flickering sparks illuminated the shadows or concealed some unknown monster.

Yaro, dragging his flaming sword, was in no hurry.

Just like what Teacher Gemma once did, these things around us are not even appetizers.

What he really wants is the gateway to this bizarre space, the core of this bizarre space!
Even if we can't get those things, we should at least hunt some valuable monsters. Monsters without physical forms are really not worth hunting.

At most, you might get a few more fragments of shadow energy. There are no people like Boske here. Even if you want to pick up 'trash' to sell, you need to find a buyer willing to take it!
Thinking of the direction Bard had pointed earlier, Yaro turned and walked towards the stairs.

Even if you step into the eerie space, many things will still be roughly in line with the outside world.

Unless it's a disorienting, disorienting space, or something powerful and mysterious deliberately altered it.

call--!
A strange, eerie wind swept by, and the strange sound was like a woman gently breathing in someone's ear.

The faint candlelight flickered violently, and the surrounding light and shadow danced rapidly, like a chaotic dance of demons, constantly swaying wildly.

At that moment, Yaro suddenly noticed that his shadow was gradually lengthening, completely out of sync with the direction of the light source, and was slowly climbing up the side wall, forming a thin, menacing, and terrifying black shadow.

As if sensing that Yaro's gaze was upon it, the illusory figure gradually solidified, eventually detaching from Yaro's body and solidifying directly into the outline of Yaro's form on the wall.

When Yaro raised his hand, it raised his hand too; when Yaro took a step, it took a step too—but for some reason, it was a beat slower.

Yaro stopped—and it stopped too.

With his eyes narrowed slightly, a hint of anger flashed across Yaro's face.

"It's imitating me!"

Don't think its actions are funny!

It is adjusting its own information structure, moving closer to the life fluctuations of Yaro.

A bridge that cannot be destroyed by explosives can be collapsed simply by finding its resonant frequency and having a group of people stepping in unison.

A brand new crystal glass doesn't require much force; just knowing its resonance frequency and a few soft shouts are enough to make it automatically break apart.

At this moment, the shadowy monster was right there!

"You're ignoring me, yet you still come looking for trouble?"

No delays!

The longer you wait, the closer it gets to itself.

When it reaches a certain point, it will not only gain some of its own abilities, but it can even attack itself by self-harm!
Yaro resolutely made his move—"Solar Fist!"

A blinding light emanated from Yaro!

This is a technique that Yaro rarely uses, but it is also the original intention of the Solar Fist design—to quickly unleash dazzling light from all parts of the body to launch a rapid counterattack against shadow-based attacks without any blind spots!

"Zizzizi!"

It sounded like being fried in oil or like the sudden, mournful cry of a wild mouse.

In the bright light, several fine threads of shadow around Yaro were gradually dissolving and breaking.

Boom boom boom—!
A faint sound, like a snapping string, came from above Yaro's head. With this sound, his head felt inexplicably itchy for a moment, as if some tightly pulled hair had been released.

The illusory figure in front of them gradually disappeared as if it had been exposed to the blazing sun, melting away like ice and snow.

[Ding! Defeat the enemy, Solar Fist gains 39 skill experience points]

[Ding! Defeat the enemy, Solar Fist gains 43 skill experience points]

[Ding! Defeat the enemy, Solar Fist gains 38 skill experience points]

……

The system data panel is acting like it's bugged, with a series of data constantly being displayed!
After a short while, the data stabilized, allowing Sun Fist to gain nearly two thousand experience points!

Shadow creatures that can be destroyed by light are the lowest level, and on average they only give forty experience points each. Two thousand experience points means that one Sun Fist can eliminate fifty or sixty of them!

Unfortunately, the Solar Fist skill did not reach its highest level, so the skill experience gained could not be converted into personal experience, and therefore could not be leveled up.

Because of its past recklessness, Solar Fist was designed with an exaggerated nine levels, making it virtually impossible to reach the maximum level.

Moreover, the Solar Fist is just a different way of casting the Light spell. Even if you train it to the maximum level and unleash nine Light spells on yourself at once, the effect is still very limited.

—Perhaps it would be exceptionally glaring?
This is also the main reason why Yaro previously ignored these shadow creatures.

To eliminate these intangible shadow monsters, you must use the Solar Fist.

Using the Solar Flare technique didn't yield any experience.

There's no gain from eliminating them.

In short, it's a complete waste of fire magic.

"Well, using a basic trick to deal with these shadow monsters and not having to worry about them continuing to ambush us is a good thing."

Yaro glanced at the castle corridor, which was now much brighter, shook his head, and turned to walk up the stairs.

(End of this chapter)