Black Hearted Mage

The next morning, before the sun rose, Caesars, sound asleep in his tent, was suddenly awakened by a sudden noise outside. He rubbed his eyes, drowsily climbed out of bed, put on his slippers, and walked out of the tent.

A small figure in pajamas stood at the entrance of the tent, watching. The ruins had been cleared, and many magicians were standing among them.

The ruins of Ludwig Castle have now been fully revealed. Judging from the remaining parts of its buildings, it is larger than the Northland Tower, and the underground buildings are far larger than the former.

"Kaisas, don't worry. They just found the entrance. Please carefully sense the surrounding magical elements."

Old Roman did not wear an ordinary magic robe today, but a dark gray robe with exquisite magic patterns. Although the robe looked a little faded, it was embroidered with intricate magic patterns with silver silk threads, and it shone with silver light as if it was brand new.

After listening to Old Roman's words, Caesars closed his eyes, concentrated his mind, and began to sense the magical elements around him. After a while, he opened his eyes and said excitedly, "I feel it! The dark elements here are very strong, even stronger than the magical elements in the North Tower!"

Old Roman smiled and nodded, saying, "Yes, this means there might be some powerful magical items or magic circles hidden beneath this castle."

"Teacher, there are so many magic patterns on your robe. Other people's magic patterns are golden, but yours are silver?"

Old Roman felt somewhat proud of the envious expression on his student's face, and stroked his long beard with his hand.

"This magic robe of mine is extremely precious. It was made at Ludwig Castle over 6,000 years ago. It's a combat robe, and its style is different from ordinary magic robes!"

In order to make it more intuitive for Caesar, Old Roman pointed out several places where the robe was split. Caesar found that these split places were hidden and could not be found without paying attention.

"Teacher, where did this battle robe come from?"

"It was also left by our elders. He used to study magic in Ludwig Castle!"

Kaisas felt a little emotional. It was good to have a good elder who had magic notes and combat robes.

"Boy, this robe is tougher than monster leather. It's woven from spider silk. I usually can't bear to wear it!"

"My dear! Teacher, please stand still and let me touch this robe!"

Caesars, in his pajamas, picked up his robe with his chubby little hands and touched the silver magic patterns on it bit by bit. The magic patterns seemed alive, trembling slightly under his touch. He could even clearly sense the magic power flowing through the magic patterns, and this magic power was the dark element he was very familiar with.

"What a wonderful treasure!" Caesars exclaimed in a low voice, his eyes full of desire and envy.

"Boy, don't be envious. I guess there should be such magic robes in the underground ruins. Lord Evans is a great wizard, maybe a great mage!" Old Roman looked at the extremely envious student and said casually. In fact, he just wanted to comfort the young student.

"Why are the embroidered magic patterns silver? What is a grand magician?" Caesar asked curiously, his eyes always fixed on the robe, as if he was full of curiosity about it.

"The silver thread is a precious magical metal - mithril, which is the best magical conductive material known so far. Due to its special properties, mithril is very rare, and only people in the Western Continent know how to mine mithril mines and how to refine and purify them. As for the Grand Mage, there is no clear record of him in our existing magic books, but the Mage does mention him. However, this is all relatively advanced knowledge, and you will naturally understand it when you learn more advanced magic in the future." Old Roman explained patiently.

"Why are there golden magic patterns on the magic robes worn by other magicians?"

"Those are magic coppers. Although they have good magic conductivity, they are far inferior to mithril!"

Old Roman was in no hurry to reach the ruins. He set out a low table and chairs, a charcoal stove, a cast iron teapot, and a large quantity of preserved fruit snacks at the entrance of his tent. Caesars watched curiously from the side. The great magician seemed ready for breakfast.

"Teacher, aren't you afraid that the treasures underground will be taken away by someone first?"

"Don't be afraid! Thousands of years ago, the ancient ruins beneath Ludwig Castle were discovered by many magicians, but all those who went down to explore them died!"

"The ruins are so dangerous, why do you still want to go down and explore them?"

Caesar was a little surprised and didn't quite understand why he was exploring dangerous ruins.

"Everyone has a sense of luck, hoping to find wealth and glory through risk, but the ruins are far more dangerous than one could imagine. This time, we won't be the first to go down from the North Tower, and neither will the Mage Alliance. We'll wait for people from other factions to enter first!"

A chubby little hand stretched out, with its tiny thumb erect. He felt that old Roman was too mean, letting Bie step on the magic trap first.

"Boy, do you think I'm too insidious?"

“No, this is called wisdom!”

Caesars flatly denied it and kept shaking his little hands.

"Did you know that in the past half month, many people of unknown origin have come to Violet City?"

"Teacher, if you don't tell me, how would I know?"

Caesar knew that old Roman was going to reveal some secrets again.

"After a detailed investigation by the Mage Alliance, a total of five caravans arrived in Violet City this month."

"Teacher, the caravan is also going to enter the ruins?"

"Kid, don't interrupt. These caravans are disguised. The Violet Alliance is rich in grain, but now is not the season for purchasing grain. The caravans have too many guards, too few transport vehicles, and most of them are empty. Most of them are luxurious carriages. The biggest mistake they made was to scratch off the emblems on the carriages instead of replacing them with fake ones!"

Caesar realized that these people who sneaked into Violet City were also bad people. But he was very curious about who these people were.

"Teacher, who are they?"

"There are over a thousand people in the five caravans, over three hundred of whom are from the Roland Empire Magic Guild. Over two hundred are from the Roland Empire nobles, and the rest are from the Saint Roland Empire. The nobles are purely after money, and they don't have enough strength, so they are not to be feared. The dangerous ones are the remaining two parties; they are the real threat!"

At this time, the mages of the Violet Alliance left the ruins, and the magicians of the North Tower also returned to their base. They did not live outside the ruins with Old Roman, but lived in the Mage Alliance in Violet City.

A massive frost-maned bull also slowly approached from a distance. A sturdy figure with two large, grayish-white braids also slowly approached the tent area of ​​the Northland Tower.

"Old Trump, why are you here?"

When Caesar saw his old acquaintance, he greeted him with joy. The old ogre looked like he had just woken up.

"It's a rare opportunity like this, I want to go out for a walk too. As I get older, I may not have the chance to go out again!"

"Old Trum, have you just arrived here?"

"I arrived yesterday. I slept in the jungle south of the ruins because I snored too loudly!"

Kaisas slapped his forehead with his little hand. The old ogre had just come from the south.

"Old Trum, aren't you afraid of sleeping alone in the wild? I heard from my teacher that there's a tribe of jungle ogres in the mountains of the southwest!"

Jungle Ogres, also known as White Ogres, are actually a branch of the Highland Ogres. Over 10,000 years ago, a fierce civil war broke out among the Highland Ogres. The exact cause of this war remains unknown. Ultimately, the defeated faction was expelled from the Highlands, forced to leave their homeland and migrate southward along the mountain range.

At that time, the southernmost region of Roland Continent remained in a state of eternal barbarism due to its extremely hot climate and rampant mosquitoes. However, for these ogres, this place seemed like a paradise. Even in winter, there was no severe cold, and the dense jungle was full of abundant food resources, which were almost inexhaustible.

Ogres possess tough, thick skin, making them difficult for ordinary insects to bite. This unique advantage allowed their numbers to grow wildly across the land. The abundant food supply gradually induced laziness among the ogres, who spent their days eating and sleeping, leading a carefree life. Over time, their once towering stature gradually shrank, and their bodies grew increasingly corpulent. Worse still, the lifespan of the average ogre, once nearing three hundred years, has now shrunk to only about two hundred.

Jungle ogres have become more fertile, doubling their numbers every hundred years.

Ten thousand years ago, when Castle Ludwig was rebuilt here, the number of Jungle Ogres exceeded 100,000. The sheer number of Jungle Ogres far exceeded the jungle's capacity to sustain them. They began attacking the humans who came to cultivate the land, devouring everything they could catch.

From that time on, hunting Jungle Ogres became a daily mercenary mission. However, ordinary mercenaries were no match for the Ogres, and those who entered the jungle would never return.

It wasn't until the magic school at Ludwig Castle offered clearing out Jungle Ogres as a reward quest that the Ogre population was reduced by approximately 90%. After the fall of Ludwig Castle, the Mage Alliance took over this mission, furthering the hunt for Jungle Ogres.

"Kaisas, I met jungle ogres. They are plump and white. I can't even understand the Highland language. They don't even wear clothes, just a piece of animal skin around their crotch. They are no different from monsters!"

"Old Trum, don't they think anything of you when they see you?"

Kaisas, wearing pajamas, was grinning evilly beside the old ogre.

"You bad boy! They have no other intentions except to eat me. A dozen jungle ogres, brandishing clubs and screaming, rushed towards me. I can only send them to eternal sleep!"

"Old Trum, you killed a dozen jungle ogres all by yourself?"

Kaesus was not the least bit surprised. Jungle ogres, though a bit shorter, were still over two meters tall. Jungle ogres had thick skin and flesh, and coupled with their racial talent - Stoneskin, they were a real headache for melee classes.

"Kaissa, come and sit down. I'll tell you about the shaman. Trum, come and sit down and have some tea!"

Old Roman pulled out a large wooden block. It was made of red pine, a type found only in the highlands. It looked to be over a meter thick and incredibly hard. Old Trum smiled cheerfully, walked over to the wooden table, sat down, and pressed his massive frame against the block.

"Kassas, Shamans are no ordinary creatures! They possess powerful ranged spells, including the explosive Lightning Bolt and Chain Lightning. These spells can instantly unleash immense amounts of energy, dealing a devastating blow to the enemy. In battle, Shamans don magic steel armor, which is not only sturdy but also enhances their defense. Furthermore, Shamans possess immense strength, allowing them to unleash incredible power in close combat. Most importantly, however, Shamans possess healing abilities."

Upon hearing this, Kaisas' eyes widened, his heart filled with surprise and curiosity. He hadn't expected a Shaman to be so powerful, possessing powerful offensive means, excellent melee capabilities, and even healing skills. Such an all-round profession filled him with anticipation for future adventures.

"The Shaman is so powerful!" Kaisas couldn't help but ask, with an excited expression on his face.

After old Roman's detailed explanation, Caesars had a deeper understanding of the profession of shaman.

"Little guy, we shamans also have shortcomings. Our magic sea is relatively small, and we can't cast spells and attacks for a long time. Once the magic power is insufficient, we need to drink mana potions, and we can't drink them continuously!"

"Trume, you should also know about Ludwig Castle, right?"

As the black tea boiled, steam billowed from the cast iron teapot, its rich aroma wafting into the air. As if unfazed by the heat, Old Roman grabbed the cast iron teapot and poured the scalding black tea into three white porcelain cups.

"I don't know much about the castle here, but I know a little about the old castle. It wasn't called Ludwig Castle before. It was built on a tall flat-topped hill and was called Frost Castle. We in the Ogre Tribe don't know Lord Evans either. The tribal records only mention his father, Raven Ludwig!"

Old Roman frowned slightly. Most of the true history had been forgotten, and a small amount had been distorted. Regarding the original Ludwig Castle, there was almost no description in the history books, only a few brief mentions. He felt that Trum's story was more credible, because the founder of the Northland Tower had a close relationship with the Ludwig family.