Chapter 88: The Birth of the Genius Mage Merlin

When the three mages heard Donald bring up this topic, the impatient Dina was about to leave immediately. Seeing this, Donald hurriedly said, “It’s not too late for you three to wait until I finish speaking!”
Among them, Mage Moray, who was the most steady and had always acted as the leader, stepped in to hold back Dina and the other mage, Russell. After all, given Donald’s status and strength, they should show him some respect.
Donald smiled gratefully at Moray and then said, “I can provide each of you with the potions and materials needed for training every month, along with two pieces of magical equipment per person, one alchemy tool, and several disposable items. As for the books required for training, my private library is far richer than those in the mage guild, including dozens of advanced texts copied by the Kingdom Mage Association.”
Donald offered these generous benefits—things they couldn’t get from the mage guild or any other noble. Though tempted, the three mages still disdained the idea of selling themselves.
Seeing that words alone couldn’t persuade them, Donald took them to the library in his manor and showed them his collection in person.
Upon arriving, the three mages were astonished that someone who had only become a mage for half a year could have gathered so many magical books. Looking at the titles, most of them were already available in the mage guild, but there were also dozens of ancient, highly advanced spellbooks.
Seeing the mages impressed by his library, Donald invited them to browse freely. The content of those precious books was quite complex; even a silver mage like his teacher needed time to study them thoroughly. It was impossible for the three of them to gain much knowledge in such a short time. Moreover, Donald had cast protective spells on each book using high-quality materials, making them durable and safe to glance at.
After a while, Donald continued, “Don’t think this is selling the dignity of mages. Those mages who work for nobles out of necessity just want a better life—it’s a personal choice, and outsiders shouldn’t interfere. But aside from being a noble, I am also a mage. If a mage stronger than you were to offer you positions as his assistants, would you accept?”

Moray, along with the other two, was opening a precious book titled “The Evolution from Ancient Arcana to Spells.” Hearing Donald speak, Moray replied, “Mage Donald makes a good point, but our own choices should not be interfered with by others!”
Seeing that they had begun to soften, Donald seized the opportunity and said, “Of course, I won’t force you three. So if this last condition doesn’t convince you, then let’s call it a day for now. I won’t bother you with this issue again!”
The three mages put down their books and stood at attention, waiting to hear what Donald had to say.
“I’ve asked other mages, including my teacher, about your situations, so I know quite a bit. I believe you took the wrong path from the beginning, which is why you’ve remained stuck at the Black Iron level for so long without advancing. My condition is to help you become Bronze mages.”
At these words, Moray and the other two mages became excited.
“Is what Mage Donald says true?”
“In the name of a mage, what I say is certainly true.”
……
A few minutes later, the three mages decided to accept Donald’s offer to become private mages for the Merlin family, responsible for teaching apprentices. Their decision was largely due to Donald’s own advancement to Bronze rank. The three mages, who had been stuck at the Black Iron level for years, were already quite old—Russell, the oldest, was 45—but they hadn’t given up, showing their determination on the path of magic.
They desired nothing other than magic, so when Donald offered them not only basic benefits but also promised to guide them in advancing and provide assistance, they decided to stay, filled with hope and determination.
Then Donald said to them, “To be honest, I have at least three methods to help you advance directly to Bronze rank. The first two rely on artifacts and potions, while the third method can correct your path, fill in the gaps, and give you the chance to advance on your own. Although the first two methods are simple and guaranteed to work, I don’t recommend them. After all, relying on external help can never compare to the benefits of advancing on your own, which may even lead to further progress in the future. The third method is difficult and requires your own effort, but once successful, the rewards will be tremendous!”

The three mages were even more relieved by this decision. Having a master who cared so much for them dispelled the resentment they had harbored at the thought of having to serve others. With the three black-iron mages taking turns teaching, and Donald also setting aside time to instruct the apprentices, the four mage apprentices quickly got into the swing of things. Especially the eighteen-year-old adult apprentice, aware of his limited time, studied harder than the other three less experienced youths, thus making faster progress. In just half a month, he managed to cast his first level-0 spell, Light, and became a full-fledged mage apprentice. It was Donald’s turn to teach, explaining how to sense and arrange magic, using the simplest and most common level-0 spell, Light, as an example. After half a month of study, the apprentices had basically mastered how to control their emotions and perform basic meditation; the next step was to learn the correct spellcasting procedures. Unexpectedly, after Donald finished explaining the basic steps of casting Light and his own insights, a faint but holy light appeared in the hands of the adult apprentice sitting at the back of the temporary magic classroom in the lord’s manor. Witnessing this, Donald was greatly surprised. He never expected to have a genius mage apprentice in his domain! “Your name is Shi Tou, right?” Facing Donald’s question, the adult apprentice, who was a year older than Donald, replied with an excited yet slightly nervous voice, “Yes, my lord!” “Congratulations! You’ve successfully become a mage apprentice!” The adult apprentice was stunned for a moment, then… “I’ve become a mage apprentice? Haha! I’ve become a mage apprentice…” Seeing him excitedly singing and dancing, Donald recalled his own day when he became an apprentice and felt equally thrilled. “Alright! It’s just being a mage apprentice for now. In the future, you might become an even more powerful mage.” Seeing his emotions calm down a bit, Donald said, “The name Shi Tou really isn’t suitable for a mage. Are there any others in your family?” “My lord, I’m the only one in my family. My parents passed away early, and I was raised by my uncles and aunts in the village.” Donald thought to himself that it was better to be an orphan—without any attachments, it was easier to focus on cultivation, and they could develop a sense of belonging to him.

“Since that’s the case, I hereby officially take you as my apprentice. I’ll use the first two syllables of my family name as your name—from today onward, you shall be called Merlin! Do you agree?”
Hearing this, the apprentice Merlin was almost overwhelmed by the wave of happiness.
“Lord… sir!”
Donald gave him a stern look and said, “Stop calling me ‘Lord sir’!”
Merlin quickly realized his mistake and respectfully replied, “Teacher!”
Then he performed a rather informal mage’s salute.
Seeing that the boy reacted quickly and wasn’t stupid, Donald nodded in satisfaction and said, “That’s enough for today’s lessons. Go back and study hard, striving to achieve success like Merlin. Now, Merlin, come with me!”
Under the envious gazes of the other three children, the new mage apprentice, whose name had been playfully changed to Merlin by Donald, left with his lord, not even noticing the arrival of Mage Moray.
Donald was very pleased to have taken on his first apprentice. He first taught him a bunch of standard principles for mages to follow, then gave him a mage robe as a gift for his promotion.
The next day, he took Merlin to meet his teacher. Messel was quite satisfied with Merlin’s simple yet flexible mind. From then on, Merlin became the successor of their faction, though he himself wasn’t aware of it. Of course, the formal inheritance would wait until Merlin had solidified his foundation and become a peak Black Iron mage, at which point Donald, as his teacher, would continue to guide him. By then, Donald himself would likely be at least Silver rank, making it easy for him to mentor a peak Black Iron disciple.
While Donald was devoted to teaching his disciple, Ferdinand visited Dalaran once again to conduct their transaction.
This time, in addition to the potions, Donald also provided many items that had appeared at auctions, including the Moonlight Elf Wine that had already caused a sensation throughout the kingdom.
“I really don’t know what’s in your head—how could you even create something like this! You should know that even in the Ancient Magic Empire, potions that could enhance human talents could only be made by archmages or above, and the materials required were extremely rare and precious—at least dragon blood-level materials were needed to achieve such effects!”
Of course, Donald wouldn’t reveal to him the method he had accidentally discovered for making Moonlight Elf Wine. Even among friends, one doesn’t share all their secrets.

Besides, the Moonlight Elf Wine is currently his most important source of income, and the funds needed for the territory’s development in the future will rely entirely on it. After the transaction, he also asked Ferdinand about the identity of the silver-haired old man behind the Golden Sol Auction House. Upon hearing Donald ask about that man’s identity, Ferdinand replied in surprise, “Have you dealt with that old fox before?”