Black Hearted Mage

After lunch, Caesars followed Joanna to the bottom floor of the magic tower, and walked into a directional teleportation array behind a hidden magic door.

With a flash of light, the two appeared in a small stone house. Caesars felt dizzy and even nauseous.

Upon exiting the stone hut, Caesars was surprised to find himself in a quiet valley. The valley was surrounded by dozens of towering trees, and the stone hut sat beside one of them. Not far away, a dozen or so exquisite wooden houses could be seen. There were scattered patches of snow on the ground, suggesting this place was not far from the Northland Tower.

"Joanna, is there a new mission in the tower?" a low voice came.

Kaisas turned and saw a figure in pitch-black leather armor slowly emerging from a wooden house. The figure wore a leather mask and had two sharp daggers hanging from his waist, giving off an air of mystery.

"A small personal matter, teaching the child how to improve his agility and endurance, and learn the skills to escape." Joanna answered concisely.

"Isn't it to train him to be an excellent assassin?" The assassin seemed to be full of curiosity about Caesar. He walked around Caesar and looked at him carefully.

"unnecessary!"

"Then let him do weight training first, and consider other aspects later."

The assassin, whose age was unknown, pulled out a small leather vest from his storage ring. This vest was densely sewn with many long, rectangular pockets, each bulging with steel bars. He then took out a pair of similar leather arm guards and leg guards.

"Little guy, take these home and wear them. You can only take them off when you bathe. As for how many steel bars to put in, you can decide based on your own situation, but be sure not to affect your daily movements. If you feel the weight is too light, you can always add steel bars. Remember, this is a test for you, and also a form of growth. You need to do weight training for two years first!"

Kaisas looked at the heavy leather armor before him, his heart filled with anticipation and determination. He carefully put the equipment away one by one, then followed Joanna back to the tower.

"Caesars, you must never tell anyone what happened today! Do you understand?" Joanna warned seriously.

"Okay, ma'am, I understand. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone." Caesars nodded seriously in agreement.

When Caesars returned to the Alchemy Tower, he noticed something unusual. He approached the door to the Black Serpent Feeding Room and was shocked to see the body of an apprentice. This apprentice had only recently arrived at the Tower and had never interacted with Caesars before. But now, he lay quietly on the cold tile floor.

Caesars squatted down and carefully examined the blackened corpse before him. Two bloody holes were clearly visible on the corpse's neck, about the diameter of his little finger, obviously caused by the bite of a golden-eyed black demon snake.

Kaisas didn't pay much attention to the corpse, but walked straight to the metal door. The thick, golden-eyed black snake had already returned to its nest, and the large iron cage was still open.

Kandel had once told him that there were only three keys to the feeding room, and ordinary craftsmen could not duplicate them. Two of them were in the hands of the Grand Alchemist and Caesars, and the last one was in the hands of an old apprentice.

But which old apprentice it was, Kaisas didn't know at the moment, because only Kandel knew. When Kaisas went to the Violet Alliance, it was another old apprentice who fed the black magic snake.

Looking at the new apprentice's body lying dead at the door to the feeding room, Caesars couldn't help but feel a surge of doubt. It was clear that this new apprentice had been used by the older apprentice who held the third key, becoming an innocent scapegoat. But why would someone want to kill him? He had no conflict of interest with the other apprentices, so why did he suffer such a brutal attack?

Caesars frowned and fell into deep thought. He really couldn't figure out who hated him so much that they went to such great lengths to harm him.

Pulling out the steel bars from his leather vest, Caesars donned the three items and tested the weight he could bear. He could only carry six bars: four in his leather armor and two in his shin guards. He couldn't put bars in his wrist guards, or he wouldn't be able to lift his arms.

During dinner, Caesars discovered the body was gone. He could see through the ventilation holes that heavy snow had begun to fall outside. This was his second winter in the Northland Tower, and this year's winter would be as harsh as ever.

The thick, warm wolfskin had been spread out in the cage, half as a cushion and half as a cover. The little golden-eyed black snake had already crawled into the wolfskin mattress.

Under normal circumstances, black snakes in the wild need to hibernate. However, in order to obtain more snake venom, the temperature in the feeding room of Kandel is a bit high, and the black snakes here cannot hibernate.

The next morning, the metal door of the feeding room opened, and Joanna and several magicians arrived at the door.

"Ma'am, is there something wrong?" The metal door was opened a crack, and Caesars asked in confusion.

"Kaisas, the black snake broke out and bit someone, and even killed the earl's grandson. How do you explain this?"

Just as Joanna was asking, a pitch-black snake head with golden vertical pupils stood up behind Caesar, making a "hissing" sound with a strong warning.

"Golden-eyed black demon snake!"

A magician who saw the golden-eyed black snake screamed and retreated, and Joanna was also frightened.

"Ma'am, wait a moment, I'll get it into the cage!"

A moment later, the metal door was fully opened. Several magicians did not come in directly, but stood at the door and looked inside furtively.

"Where's that little snake of yours? Put it away quickly!"

"It's under the covers, wait a moment!"

Joanna watched as Caesars returned to the iron cage, grabbed a small black snake and stuffed it into a linen bag, tied it up, and then stuffed it into the quilt.

"Ma'am, the golden-eyed black demon snake didn't escape. Someone sneaked into the breeding room. I opened its iron cage when I left. Master Kandel has instructed everyone else that no one is allowed to enter the breeding room while I'm here!"

While Caesar was explaining, a power word fell on him, cast by an old magician. The old magician did not speak, but nodded to Joanna.

"It's okay, Kaisas. This matter can only be handled after Kandel returns. We can't interfere in the affairs of the Alchemy Tower, but Kandel will know what happened. After we leave, you should release the big snake!"

Joanna said a few simple words and then left with several magicians. Caesar understood something. He was not safe in the Northland Tower, so Joanna asked him to release the golden-eyed black snake.

Kaisas felt a sense of urgency and wanted to escape from the North Tower as soon as possible. He realized that he needed a stronger force to protect himself, so he began to work harder to practice magic and improve his strength.

In the days that followed, Caesars spent almost the entire day in the feeding room, meditating and practicing with the magic crystal. As time went on, his magic level improved significantly.

Although Kaisas has made some progress, he still feels uneasy. He knows the dangers and complexities of the North Tower, and his own strength is far from enough.

At that moment, his thoughts drifted back to the ruins beneath Ludwig Castle, and he recalled the words of the tall flame man. At that time, the flame man told him many things: there were the most powerful dark spells, whose power far exceeded the spells mastered by old Roman; there were also the best magical weapons, waiting for Caesar to take them away.

A thought suddenly flashed through Kaisas' mind: Tower Master Ethan had successfully cracked the magic pattern array. Once the Northern Tower retrieved the Archmage Demon's treasures, they would head to the ruins beneath Ludwig Castle. At this moment, his sense of urgency grew stronger, because these were precious legacies left by his ancestors, specially prepared for him.

In a state of tension and anxiety, Kaesus spent a long winter. When the ogres returned from the Icecrown Mountains, the three great wizards who had gone on the expedition also returned to the tower. They did not look well. Although they wore new magic robes, their hair and beards had completely disappeared.

A few days later, Caesars heard some news from Joanna. The person who wanted to kill Caesars in the alchemy tower was the one who had previously been responsible for cleaning the alchemy laboratory. Because Garlon had been killed by the black snake's venom, the old apprentice instructed a new apprentice to investigate the feeding room. Needless to say, the new apprentice became the scapegoat, and the old apprentice fled in fear.

The conflict of interest between the old apprentice and Caesars was that Kandel discarded the alchemical potion he had refined. The reason was that simple.

Caesars was very surprised and angry at this result, but at the same time he was glad that he had escaped. However, to his disappointment, the old apprentice of the Alchemy Tower did not receive any punishment, which made him more determined to leave the Northland Tower.

In the summer, Rad was finally promoted to a low-level magician, and this talkative old friend left the tower and returned to his hometown, the Violet Alliance. Although their friendship did not end, the distance between them became greater.

By the autumn, Caesars had become a senior apprentice. During this six-month period, he still rarely saw Old Roman, and even Kandel was hard to come by.

One day, Caesars met Lady Joanna again and asked the three great magicians whether they had succeeded in getting the great magician's treasure.

"I only got a few things, and I missed the most valuable thing!" Joanna said with a look of regret on her face.

"Ma'am, what treasure did you miss?"

Caesars was a little curious about what the treasures the great magicians thought were.

"The disk of the ice array, this is a magic array unique to the Ludwig family. After they opened the coffin, they took several magical items, but didn't find the body. Just as they moved the metal coffin and were about to take the disk, the ice array suddenly reversed, and the fire crystal that melted the ice became a deadly force. The ice array reversed into a fire array, igniting everything. If the three old guys hadn't run fast, even the ashes would have been burned!"

"Ma'am, the ice turned into fire?"

Caesars didn't understand at all, he had never learned about magic circles.

"Almost. The material required to reverse the magic circle is extremely special. Ordinary materials can't withstand it at all. It's definitely not magic copper, and it won't be mithril either. They can't withstand high temperatures!"

Caesar looked at her blankly. He knew nothing about magic circles and had no idea what magic circle reversal was, let alone why this situation occurred.

"what is that?"

"I don't know. The tomb is still burning, and the stones inside have turned to magma. Even if the ice array disk hasn't melted, it will sink deep into the ground and will never be found again!"

"It's a pity!"

Although Caesars looked regretful, he was actually very happy in his heart.

"Those three old guys have gained some insights and are now studying the magic array beneath the ruins of Ludwig Castle. I don't know much about magic arrays; they're not only complicated, but also require a lot of time to study!"

Just as Caesars was talking to Joanna, the communication stone on his waist suddenly made a slight sound, indicating that his long-awaited low-level apprentice mission had finally arrived.

"Ma'am, please excuse me, I have to leave for a while because my apprenticeship mission has arrived!" Caesars said apologetically.

"Go, little guy. Remember, Roland Trading Company is not completely trustworthy because they are all made up of nobles. If you need to find a reliable resource supplier, Thorn Flower Trading Company may be a good choice. The foundation of this trading company is even deeper than that of the Tower!" Joanna smiled and patted Caesar's shoulder gently, signaling him to complete his apprenticeship task as soon as possible.

Caesars nodded gratefully and hurriedly left the library tower. On the way, he recalled the introduction he had read in the library tower about the Thornflower Trading Company. This trading company had a long history, dating back to the First Roman Dynasty, approximately ten thousand years. Its headquarters was located northwest of the Violet Alliance, in the Thornflower Kingdom, the smallest kingdom on the Roland Continent, a place also known for its mysteries.

On the Roland Continent, no one dared to target the Thorn Flower Trading Company, because those who had targeted this trading company basically repented in their graves.

At the gate of the Northland Tower, forty or fifty carriages were parked, along with a large number of guards, almost all of them archers wearing leather armor. The door of one of the two luxurious carriages opened.

"Little Bean, you haven't grown much! The food in the North Tower is terrible. Come with me to the Kingdom of Thornflowers!"

The lady in leather armor came again. She jumped off the carriage, came to Caesar's side, and stretched out her hand to gesture his height.