Chapter 91: One Type of Person (3)

“Boom!” The ancient castle that had existed since the Age of Chaos finally collapsed. The intense vibrations inevitably affected the surrounding area, resembling a real earthquake.
Fortunately, before that happened, Bernie and Reid, members of the Galick Magic Association branch, had already taken those mage apprentices away from the dark ancient castle.
Watching the castle crumble before their eyes as the ground around it sank significantly, the children felt heavy-hearted, as two members of their group were missing now…
“That can’t be true. Thos will be fine, and Sister Dia too!” Perhaps seeing Lavia’s disappointed and worried expression, Lisa cheered her up loudly.
“How could that guy be in trouble?” Allen pouted, expressing some resentment, and said with longing, “You haven’t seen his current strength. Maybe he’s already left through another exit. That jerk… Gentle Sister Dia might be with him too. There might even be a scene where a hero rescues her. Tch! Why can’t I experience such good things… Oops!” As he spoke, he suddenly felt someone stepping hard on his foot. Turning his head, he saw Lisa pouting at him.
“Idiot!”
Glancing at Lisa and then at Lavia’s disappointed face, Allen smiled awkwardly, scratched his head, and joked, “Actually, those are all made up in novels. There aren’t that many good things. But I’m sure they must have left through another exit…”
“Yes,” Lavia sighed deeply, giving one last look at the collapsed castle, and said in a seemingly casual tone, “Let’s not talk about him anymore. That jerk had better never come back!”
“Hehe!” Hearing those insincere words, Lisa chuckled softly.
“Haha, I support you!” Laughing loudly, Allen turned to Scott and asked, “So what should we do now? Go back to Allicok?”
Before Scott could speak, Bernie rushed to say, “Right! You must go back to Allicok. It’s better if you don’t get involved in Connel’s affairs…” Saying that, he glanced at Lavia and smiled, “I appreciate your kindness. When I see him, I think we won’t have any conflicts. Maybe if I mention your name, he’ll also be cooperative!”

Obviously, Bernie was still shaken by what had just happened. Not to mention anything else, just Scott’s identity was enough to give him headaches—after all, he was the only grandson of the Count of Galic. If anything went wrong, not only would the old count be upset, but even the head of the Magic Division might devour him, given how dire the situation of the Galic Magic Division was at the moment.
“Well, let’s leave first. He…” With a slight sigh, Lavia showed obvious disappointment as she said softly, “Maybe that guy will come back when he’s tired. So let’s go back and wait for him…”
“Hey, weren’t we going to ignore that guy? Ah!”
“Avi is right. Thos will come back when he gets tired. He’s so lazy…”
“Giggle…”
Meanwhile, about half a mile away in the cemetery, Father Andrew and the old dean were also looking in the direction of the ancient castle. It was clear that the battle here had ended as well—those four liches, like their brethren, inevitably faced their fate of returning to the land of death. After all, these two elders were no ordinary people. One was one of the empire’s most renowned and powerful archmages, while the other was one of the twelve cardinal archbishops of the Church. When they worked together, even someone as powerful as Argus might have to flee, not to mention the presence of six Inquisitors. The Church’s white magic was far more effective against dark creatures like liches than the empire’s black magic.
“It seems something happened here that we don’t know about…” Looking toward the castle, the old dean sighed slightly.
“Lord above… I hope my fears are unfounded,” Father Andrew said, shaking his head and speaking softly. “Thank you for your efforts, Pavaus!”
Upon hearing Father Andrew’s words, the white phantom body attached to him gradually faded before disappearing into the air. That white phantom resembled an angel—an angel holding a long spear in one hand and a long sword in the other, with a determined gaze and a certain desire for battle. The only flaw was that his eyes had a strangely vacant look.
[Power Angel—Pavaus]
Glancing at the angel who had vanished into the air, the old dean said thoughtfully, “The Church’s divine magic… Why do I always feel like it’s a form of illusion magic? It’s incredible—after all, it’s just a beam of holy light without will…”

Father Andrew smiled faintly and said mysteriously, “The mysteries of holy light are something you black magicians will never understand!”
“Stop it!” The old dean blew on his beard and said irritably, “We’ve known each other for over a decade. Do you really think such crude imitation magic can deceive me? But it seems your research on soul imitation is nearing completion…”
“It’s faith!” Father Andrew said solemnly, as if praying devoutly, with his hands clasped, “The Lord is everywhere; we merely use His power…”
“Is that so? Including your peculiar imitation magic?” The old dean shook his head with a smirk, then whispered, “But I’m curious—how exactly do you do it? Splitting your soul and using a part of it to create this so-called angel out of thin air…”
“That’s not splitting the soul; it’s coexistence! It’s a spiritual connection,” Father Andrew corrected, shaking his head. “Just as you never stop researching forbidden spells, Salonia also needs a powerful force to defend itself against your empire’s attacks. That’s the purpose of creating this divine art. Even if we die for various reasons one day, our power will still protect that sacred land and safeguard our people from the empire’s conquest!”
“A kind of spirit entity?”
“You could say that, or not. It’s a new life, different from humans…”
“Like inheriting power? In this way, your church can always maintain sufficient strength, right? Even a child without talent can use this power as long as their body and soul can synchronize with those angels… power from your ancestors?” The old dean asked curiously.
Andrew fell silent for a moment. Perhaps this involved the church’s secrets. After a while, he sighed and said, “Unfortunately, Salonia doesn’t have many talented children. Even if they do have extraordinary talents, it doesn’t mean they can become qualified white magicians. Compared to you, we value our children’s resilience and willpower more!”
“Oh?” The old dean smiled faintly, then touched the brim of his hat and chuckled softly, “Your church wants to cooperate with us, right? How about this—could you share with us some of your research materials on soul imitation?”

Father Andrew glanced at the old dean in shock and said irritably, “Of course. If you’re willing to donate some information on lost forbidden spells, we have no problem sharing our research results with you!”
“Information on forbidden spells…” The old dean laughed heartily, clearly unwilling. After all, compared to whatever results from soul imitation research, those forbidden spells that weren’t in circulation in the magical world and hadn’t been weakened were the most powerful—and ultimate—weapons for dark magicians. For centuries, the empire had relied on forbidden spells to suppress Salonia in wars. How could they reveal them?
Although the two countries had started cooperating recently, they actually didn’t trust each other. After all, centuries of animosity couldn’t be resolved so easily.
Just then, with faint footsteps, several figures emerged in the distance.
The old dean instinctively turned to look. Upon seeing them, he was instantly stunned.
It wasn’t…
“Kids, how did you end up here?”
“Hm?” Allen, who was leading the way, was talking to Lisa. Hearing this, he glanced over briefly and muttered, “Who’s that old man?”
No sooner had he spoken than Scott exclaimed in surprise, “Dean Cairns! How come you’re here?”
“Dean?” Allen gasped and looked at the old dean with a forced smile, then said with a grin, “Hey, Dean, you look great today!”
“Hehehe,” the old dean smiled and nodded at Allen. “Hmm—I know you. Your name is Allen, right? I often see your name on the list of students violating discipline at the academy in Manhert…”
“Impossible!” Allen said seriously, looking upright. “As you know, I, Allen, have always followed the rules. Fighting, being absent—none of that. I’ve always strived to be a source of pride for the academy!”
“Oh? Is that so?” The old dean smiled slyly and shook his head. “Interesting little guy. Maybe I’m mistaken…” He then glanced at the group of children and frowned. “Um… isn’t that kid named Thos with you?”
“Well…” Allen hesitated for a moment before telling the old dean everything that had happened. The old dean frowned even more.

“Nonsense! Complete nonsense!” The old dean frowned and said seriously, “You are still young, with a very long life ahead of you. It would be a great pity to lose your precious lives so easily. Professor Hodde thought you had gone to Operios; he never expected… Each of you will have twenty points deducted from your annual evaluation as punishment for deceiving the college professors!”
“Twenty points?” Allen widened his eyes and gasped. Twenty points was almost equal to the amount he could earn in a whole year.
Seeming to read Allen’s thoughts, the old dean said sternly, “Twenty points—no negotiation! You knew Galk was affected by the rebellion yet still dared to come here, to such a place… The horror of the liches is beyond your imagination! You should learn from this and think more carefully before acting in the future…”
“Yes!” Allen replied weakly.
Shaking his head at Allen, the old dean turned to Bernie and Reid, “You two are members of the Galk Magic Association branch, right? Your branch leader should have received my reply by now, right?”
“Yes, esteemed Archmage!” Knowing the other party’s status, Bernie and Reid treated this famous archmage of the empire with utmost respect.
“No need to be so formal,” the old dean waved his hand and then glanced at the children, saying, “We can discuss Agus’ matter at the branch. For now, please take these children back to Allicok…”
“Dean,” Ravia interrupted, hesitantly saying, “Thos… Thos might still be near the ancient castle…”
“I know,” the old dean nodded and said gently, “I will go look for him with Father Andrew…”
“Can we go with you? We’re… very worried about him…”
“No!” The old dean shook his head and said in an unyielding tone, “If it were another place, I wouldn’t mind taking you along, but there are terrifying liches here. With your current strength, you could easily get injured in a fight—I don’t want that to happen! Trust me. I’ll find that little guy by returning to Allicok with the two national magicians!”
The children exchanged glances and nodded helplessly, saying, “Alright, Dean… Besides Thos, Senior Sister Dia is there too; she might be with him…”

“Is there another student?” The old dean frowned and nodded, saying, “I understand. I’ll find them—now, you should leave, right away!” Then he said to Bernie and Reid, “Please take care of these students in my academy for now…”
“The Archmage, you’re too kind…”
“It’s what we ought to do!”
Watching the children leave, the old dean shook his head secretly before frowning and saying, “That little kid managed to kill a lich so easily… What do you think?”
“It’s not surprising,” Father Andrew said with a slight smile, speaking softly, “That child is born with a terrifying dark power that surpasses that of ordinary people. I believe you must have noticed as well—this situation is simply because the seal has loosened. There’s no need to worry; it was the most outstanding mage in our Church who placed that seal on him! So…” He raised his head and said seriously to the old dean, “I must take that child back to Salonia at all costs!”
“I think I’ve said it before—our academy’s students are off-limits to you…”
“That child is different. He bears the mark of Salonia—someone who wanted to atone for his sins used all his strength to place that seal. Naturally, this child will become his heir and belong to Salonia!”
“Haha, is that so?” The old dean laughed, pretending to be unaware. “I don’t see any seal at all. Andrew, I still don’t know you well. You’re just jealous of all the talented children in our academy, aren’t you? I certainly won’t give you these lovely children, not even one…”
“You! You old wretch! I bet you knew all along but refused to say anything, right? Being able to cast both black and white magic, such an outstanding student—of course you’d try to keep him by force. Even if it were me, I wouldn’t say anything… Ah! But I must take that child back!”
“I simply won’t let you take him—why should you take our academy’s students?”
“Because he possesses the holy light power of Salonia!”
“Haha, this joke isn’t funny at all, Andrew. Do you think I don’t know about that so-called holy light? Holy light is nothing but a combination of light elements and faith. You’ve merely stolen the concepts of magic from those hill dwarves who revere lightning. You…”

Watching the two elders, both over sixty years old, glaring at each other and arguing, the assistant monk Eves James said with a wry smile, “Um… Esteemed Archmage, Esteemed Archbishop, should we not go look for those two children first?”
“Hmm…”
“Ah, let’s do that then!”
Meanwhile, about three to five miles away on a small hill, Argus was talking to Jiang Zhe…
“How about it, kid? Come with me!” Argus stretched out his hand to Jiang Zhe and said earnestly, “It’s a shame to waste your outstanding talent here—you deserve a bigger stage; a wider world… And I can help you—reach the pinnacle of this world where the strong prey on the weak!”
Glancing at Argus, Jiang Zhe replied indifferently, “Sorry, I’m not interested in any kind of pinnacle! Besides, I already said I don’t want to help you. I just think you’re slightly more trustworthy than that lich—that’s all.”
“Only slightly more trustworthy,” Argus shook his head helplessly and sneered, “It seems you don’t have a very positive impression of me… But still, it’s a shame to reject without even thinking, isn’t it? Come with me!”
With a faint smile, Jiang Zhe turned to look at Dia standing beside him and whispered, “What do you think?”
“Me?” Dia was clearly unprepared for Jiang Zhe to ask for her opinion. After a brief pause, she replied calmly, “Well… You decide. Anyway, I’m alone wherever I am now—As long as you want me to, I’ll follow you forever!”
“Is that so…” Jiang Zhe gazed deeply at Dia before turning to Argus and saying, “I’ve thought it over—I refuse!”
“That’s too bad,” Argus sighed deeply, then glanced at Dia beside Jiang Zhe and said playfully, “But I understand. If it were me, I’d refuse too. Because we’re the same kind of people!”
With that, he turned around, waved at Connel and Poole, and said, “It’s time to leave, my dear companions—we still have a lot to do!”
Poole gave Jiang Zhe a mage’s salute and left with Argus. Jiang Zhe, who had single-handedly killed a lich, clearly earned Poole’s respect.
Connel merely glanced at Jiang Zhe and Dia before leaving without saying a word.
“The same kind of people…” Jiang Zhe squatted down on the hill and looked at the hexagram magic array on the back of his left hand.

“What are you thinking?” Dia asked curiously, sitting next to the boy.
“Nothing, just nothing… How about you?”
“As for me, it’s probably the annual performance review. I’m not as talented as you guys—I really should take the exam for Royal Magicians. If I pass, I’ll get a decent allowance every year… Sos, you should take it too, if you want…”
“If I remember correctly, you’re fifteen this year?”
“That’s right… Why bring it up again? You’re actually two years younger than me… By the empire’s laws, I’m already an adult, but you still aren’t, Sos…”
“Is that so? Then it’s troublesome…”
“Hehe!” With a slight smile, Dia glanced secretly at the boy beside her, hesitated for a moment, and gently rested her head on his shoulder.
“There are many troublesome things… I’ll help you as much as I can…”
“There will still be quite a few left then…”
“Yes, hehe…”