Mercenary Wars

Chapter 254 Library

Gaucano deliberately steered the conversation toward the Shackleton family history, especially what happened shortly after Pierce Shackleton's death.

As for the reason, it was naturally that he "admired the glorious history of the Shackleton family".

This is a valid reason, given that the Shackleton family has a truly illustrious history and has produced many renowned figures.

Of course, there are also many less prominent or even unknown people. In fact, even in a large family like Shackleton, being unknown is still the most common life.

“Actually, I’m not really interested in magic, but I had to go to a college eventually, and the War College, the Theological College, and the Craftsman College weren’t suitable for me, so I came here… Compared to magic, I want to become Egil’s successor more,” Christine said. “You know Egil, right? Egil Shackleton.”

"Uh." Gaucano paused, then tried to say, "It seems to be related to opera?"

This was his guess; in fact, he had never heard of Egil Shackleton.

But he was clearly right.

Christine nodded immediately, a longing look on her face: "That's right, Ethel is a great playwright, and 'Elysis' is one of Ethel's works."

"Elysium" is an opera that has been performed at the White Agate Opera House. Although it is not as popular as "The Blood Elf Prince's Revenge", it is still a classic. Gaucano had indeed heard of it.

“Edgeel was the most talented playwright, it’s just a pity she died young.” Christine sighed softly. “You know, she lived during the War of Asur. To escape natural disasters and man-made calamities, the Shackleton family paid a heavy price; many people died in battle, including Edgeel’s father and brother…”

"Fortunately, we were not defeated by the disaster. In fact, that experience made the Shackleton family stronger and more united." She occasionally expressed her pride in her family history.

Gaucano echoed, "Yes, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger."

Then he asked, "Was Eijer the most famous Shackleton of that era?"

“I suppose so.” Christine thought for a moment, then changed the subject. “At least in my mind, she is the most dazzling genius in the history of the Shackleton family!”

“Gaucano, are you also interested in opera?” she asked.

“A little,” Gaucano said. “I have a makeup artist friend who has told me a lot about opera, but to be honest, I don’t know much about Etier or I’ve seen Elisith.”

“Of course, that’s normal. There aren’t many performances of Elisis. The owner of the Bainaohui Opera House is a mercenary businessman. He doesn’t understand art at all and only knows how to stage the most profitable operas over and over again!” Christine said.

Suddenly, she touched her storage ring and took out two books.

"These two books are for you." She handed the books to Gao Jiano.

Gaucano looked down and saw that the two books were titled "Elysis" and "The Works of Etzel".

"Hmm, thank you." He was considering looking for some of Eijer's works, since Eijer was likely closely related to Pierce by blood and was a celebrity, making him an excellent starting point for collecting the Shackleton family history.

Christine: "You're welcome. I should be thanking you! With the method you taught me, I can borrow those precious books myself and no longer have to listen to that old man's lectures."

Gaucano smiled and casually remarked, "Professor Bertrand seems quite young, doesn't he?"

"She just looks young, but she's actually over sixty..."

The three of them walked through the library, chatting as they went.

After a while, they started to look a bit lost.

"Huh, how did we end up in the forbidden book area?" They noticed the blue light screen not far away.

In the pitch-black environment of the already closed museum, this was one of the few sources of light.

Through the light screen, one could vaguely see a handful of bookshelves, displaying the most precious and forbidden books of the Ax Magic Academy, which only chair professors were qualified to read.

Christine was about to turn around, but suddenly stopped, a hint of expectation appearing on her face: "Gaucano, do you have any way to get into the forbidden book section?"

Gao Jiano was taken aback: "Me?"

Christine: "You even discovered such a well-hidden loophole in the borrowing limit; you might even be able to find a loophole in the forbidden zone's barrier!"

"That's probably unlikely." Gao Jiano thought the suggestion was very improbable, after all, he had heard that the books in the forbidden section were fundamentally different from those in other sections.

Books from other regions are simply precious.

The books in the restricted book section highlight a particular danger—the danger of knowledge itself and the danger of the books themselves.

“Let’s give it a try. It might not work on your own, but I have this.” Christine said, taking out a badge. “It’s my uncle’s badge. But when he lent it to me, he specifically sealed the access to the restricted area. See if you can remove the restriction.”

She handed the badge to Gaucano.

As soon as Gao Jiano touched it, some information immediately appeared.

[Enchantment: Key Spell (Sealing)]

[Level: Six Rings]

[Effect: A magical token that opens a specific barrier]

……

Six-ring key manipulation...

However, upon closer inspection, Gao Jiano discovered that the seal on the Restricted Key Technique only had four rings.

He couldn't solve the key manipulation of the six-ring.

However, removing the seal on the fourth ring shouldn't be too difficult.

But what happens after the barrier is lifted? Gao Jiano clearly remembers that there is a guard hidden behind the light barrier, and only by passing through the guard can one truly enter the forbidden book area.

So he didn't intend to go along with Christine's idea. He took the badge and pretended to examine it for a while, then shook his head slightly and said, "It seems to have a sixth-circle spell on it."

"Sixth Ring Road?" Christine was also somewhat surprised.

Just then, a beam of light suddenly shone from afar.

The three turned around and saw a deacon mage holding a glowing wand, shining it at them with a serious expression: "Who are you?"

Christine quickly explained, "Hello teacher, we accidentally missed closing time. Could you please open the library door for us?"

The monk remained serious, continuing to walk over as he said, "This is the forbidden book section ahead. You wouldn't be thinking of taking any forbidden books, would you?"

"No, absolutely not." The three denied it repeatedly.

The monk continued his serious questioning: "What are your names?"

"Christine Shackleton," Christine introduced herself first.

Upon hearing this name, the monk's expression finally changed: "Are you related to Professor Bertrand?"

Christine nodded: "Yes, Professor Bertrand is my uncle."

The monk remained silent for a while.

Two seconds later, he spoke again: "Pay attention to your time next time, understand?" "Understood, understood..."

"Come with me."

The monk then led the three of them toward the gate.

As they passed a small room, he pointed and said, "There are two people on duty at the library at night. If you accidentally miss closing time again, just knock on this door and the person inside will open it for you. Don't go near the restricted book area."

"Okay, thank you teacher."

Christine then pointed to the books in the guard's arms: "By the way, teacher, the borrowing procedures for these books haven't been completed yet. Could you help me with that?"

If the same words came from someone else, they would probably be considered an unreasonable request and rejected.

But Christine, as a member of the Shackleton family and the niece of Bertrand Chair Professor, was naturally in a different situation.

Therefore, although the monk maintained the serious demeanor of a law enforcer, he still granted the request.

Gao Jiano also benefited and completed the borrowing procedures, saving him the trouble of making another trip tomorrow.

The monk then opened the library door, and the three thanked him again before leaving.

It's getting late.

Therefore, after leaving the library, Gao Jiano said goodbye to Christine and went back to his dormitory.

In the following days, he devoted himself to studying the Lesser Titan Elixir.

In addition, he also studied some knowledge about demons.

The main reference is still the book "Elementary Demonology," which is said to be the primary "textbook" for the vast majority of demon warlocks. There are almost no channels to obtain more advanced demon books than this.

Even the Orsini Library, with its collection of millions of books, including many rare and unique editions, contains not a single book about demons. One can only find a few scattered pieces of knowledge about demons in books on natural history, archaeology, and religious precedents, which is better than nothing.

Perhaps only the forbidden book section contains books that truly contain knowledge about demons, but unfortunately, I can't get in.

Gaucano also read "The Works of Etzel" and "Elysis", especially the former.

After all, some of the former works are factual and are the best materials for understanding the Shackleton family’s experiences during the Asur War.

As expected, Eijer is indeed a close relative of Pierce—a brother and sister.

By reading "The Complete Works of Etzel" and consulting other relevant materials, Gaugano finally gained a clearer understanding of the Shackleton family history after Pierce's death.

That day, while Gao Jiano was reading in his dormitory, there was a knock on the door.

"Dong dong."

The door was not closed. Gaucano turned his head and saw that it was Tom, Professor Francis's disciple.

"Senior Tom," he stood up and greeted, "What can I do for you?"

Tom: "My advisor has completed the improvements to the elemental balance experiment and plans to conduct it again soon. When are you free?"

How about the morning of the day after tomorrow?

"can."

Two days later.

As promised, Gaucano went to the elemental balance laboratory in the alchemy workshop, where Professor Francis and Tom were lying on the ground, making final checks and fine adjustments.

After a while.

Professor Francis stood up and clapped his hands: "That should be much better!"

He then touched his storage ring, took out a shimmering silver robe of a unique texture, and handed it to Gao Jiano: "This is the armor I designed for you, the 'Mithril Robe,' made of mithril threads, and it also contains my exclusive magic. It will definitely keep you safe during the experiment!"

Gaucano looked at the soft mithril robe with some surprise; it was the first time he had ever seen mithril made into such a form.

Seeing his expression, Professor Francis said with no small amount of pride, "How about that? Pretty impressive, right?"

“You truly deserve to be called Ferraro’s most outstanding metal master!” Gaucano said.

"Ha." Professor Francis looked a little embarrassed and waved his hand.

"Put it on, and then, just like last time, stand in the center of the magic circle and use both blessings at the same time," he said.

Gao Jiano did as instructed, put on the mithril robe, and then walked to the center of the elemental balancing magic circle.

The experiment began again.

However, to everyone's surprise.

The improved magic circle did not become more stable; instead, it quickly encountered an accident.

"boom!"

With a loud bang, Gao Jiano was thrown into the air, crashed into the wall, and then landed awkwardly.

Fortunately, the mithril robe was quite effective, greatly reducing his injuries compared to last time, leaving only a few scrapes.

"It's even worse than last time, how could this be?" Professor Francis frowned, pacing back and forth while scratching his head, making his already bird's nest-like hairstyle even more chaotic.

Gaucano suggested, "Professor, why don't we try one more time?"

Professor Francis thought for a moment, then nodded: "Okay, let's try again!"

After a short preparation, the three of them resumed the experiment.

Just like before, Gaucano was quickly sent flying out again amidst the chaotic elements.

Both attempts yielded the same result.

It's clear that the previous direction of improvement was flawed.

Professor Francis had no choice but to stop the experiment, instructing Tom to organize the experimental records, while he himself lay in front of the magic circle for a while, pondering and muttering to himself from time to time.

Then Gaucano walked over and said, "Professor Francis, I'm planning to make some potions and I need to use the Mithril Chamber, but the waiting time for appointments at the Mithril Chamber is too long..."

Professor Francis didn't say anything, but simply wrote a note and handed it over: "Here."

Gao Jiano took it and looked at it.

The note read in bold: "Please grant Gaugano Laziville the right to use the Alchemy Table of the Fifth Mithril Chamber at any time - Francis Mecatock."

(End of this chapter)