Kobold Wizard's Journal

Chapter 146 The Seeker and the Bookshelf
Looking at the uneven ground and old Lunser's wide-open dog mouth, Ruger understood what had happened.

The two stopped and didn't move forward for a moment.

Ruger had been observing the changes in old Lenser's expression. His good uncle seemed to be backing down, his big dog face twitching. Clearly, the other party could see through his plan, which made him hesitant to make a decision.

"Uncle Lenser, should we go around here?" Ruger didn't want to hesitate any longer.

“I’m wondering how the guys inside found it,” old Lunther said. “Nobody’s there usually, the magic circle isn’t activated, there’s no magical fluctuation from changing magic stones, it’s just a dead thing buried underground.”

“Perhaps, it’s some powerful wizard?” Ruger said.

Old Lenser's enormous dog eyes lifted his drooping eyelids and glared at him.

Suddenly, the loose soil parted to both sides, the angle of the parting facing the uncle and nephew.

The meaning couldn't be clearer.

Luger looked at old Lunser, the old dog smirked, and walked forward first.

Ruger noticed that the separated soil was not as clean and neat as he had imagined. It took old Lenser using his magical chain to clear it up before the entrance to the stone hut could be revealed. Perhaps the people inside were not as powerful as they had imagined in their hesitation.

The stone house wasn't large; it was divided into two small rooms.

A young man sat in a corner of the room, a kind smile on his face, looking at the uncle and nephew who had entered.

“You two need not worry, I should thank you,” the man said, holding up a finger beside him. “It seems you are the owners of this place.”

Ruger's eyelids twitched when he saw the man's actions.

The man slowly extended a finger, pointing to his side, whereupon a phantom image appeared, gradually forming a complex pattern.

A holy judge wizard? Ruger's heart skipped a beat for no apparent reason.

But upon closer inspection, he realized that this pattern was different from the one he had seen before. The complex pattern was very simple in the middle, resembling a clear book, and it was even open. He could not mistake it for something else.

"You are the Seeker of the Law?" Old Lunser's voice was gentle, and he even bowed to the man in greeting.

Ruger watched blankly from the side, but without hesitation, he followed old Lunser in bowing.

“Greetings, Grimm, Apprentice Seeker of the Law, from the Temple of Knowledge,” the man said with a humble smile, pointing to the side, “It was these things that guided me here.”

The two then introduced themselves.

Old Lenser looked on with a sudden realization and laughed, seemingly satisfied with his arrangement once again.

Ruger looked at where the man was pointing. There was one of the few items in this simple room: a small bookshelf with a few books scattered haphazardly on it. The small bookshelf was not even fully filled.

Old Lenser said something and walked to the side, taking out magic stones and starting to place them. Some inconspicuous holes on the wall and in the corners all had their own functions. Some could activate soundproofing magic circles, and some could gather the soil above. With proper operation, the gathering was better and more natural than what the man named Green had done before.

Ruger came to old Lenser's side and asked him a series of questions out of curiosity.

Finally, he seized the opportunity to voice the question that had been nagging at him for a while: "Uncle, what is a seeker of the Dharma?"

Old Dog shuddered, unable to resist rolling his eyes at him, seemingly shocked by his ignorance: "How can you know nothing? Those orthodox and rigorous spellbooks you borrowed and saw when you were learning magic, those books that you could sense spiritual power from and the writer's intent, were produced by them. Those who seek magic are all relatively pure people, and they will be treated with respect wherever they go..."

Upon hearing this, Luger was filled with respect and looked at the man reading in the corner. The man named Green, having overheard their conversation, smiled and closed his book, saying, “Lord Lunser, you flatter me. One of the rules for joining the Temple of Knowledge is that we are not selfless contributors. Everything we do stems from our love of worldly magic. You must reciprocate in kind for the benefits you gain from our work. Also, I must clarify one point: while spellbooks do indeed originate from the Temple of Knowledge, the copyists are responsible for their creation. The spell seekers are only responsible for traveling the world, searching for spells not yet included in the collection…”

As Ruger listened to his explanation, he became even more interested and immediately sat down to find a topic to start a conversation.

Old Rensel also took out the food he had prepared in advance, gesturing for the three of them to enjoy it together.

Looking at Green, Ruger suddenly felt a longing. He had always wanted to join a powerful organization, but he had some concerns. Now, listening to the various aspects of this Temple of Knowledge, he realized that although it was somewhat different from the organization he had imagined, it exceeded his expectations in some ways.

"Lord Green, may I ask how you came to join the Temple of Knowledge?" Ruger poured him a bottle of fine wine that old Lunser had brought out, which was said to cost many magic stones per bottle.

He would fill the cup to the brim, whereas Luger usually only drank half a cup when he saw Old Lunser drinking.

"That was just an accident, and it wasn't very pleasant," Green said, not refusing their offer of help.

“Oh, sorry,” Ruger said.

Green smiled and indicated that everything was alright, then continued, "Before joining the Temple of Knowledge, I had been traveling for many years, searching for a spell, and also to hone myself. I made finding that spell my lifelong goal, and then I met my mentor, a true seeker of spells, who was pursuing a dark wizard, wanting to obtain a certain spell from that person..."

"In short, I eventually became an apprentice spell seeker. Once I find three more uncollected spells, I can shed my apprentice status," Green said with a gentle smile.

Suddenly, a tremor came from above, and the three of them looked up together.

Ruger instinctively held his breath, but then remembered that there was a soundproof magic circle here, so there was no need to be so cautious.

After a while, when they found nothing unusual, the three of them relaxed.

Luger thought to himself, "It's probably just an underground beast passing by."

"A spell that can inspire Lord Green to dedicate his life to pursuing must be incredibly powerful," Ruger blinked, trying to steer the conversation back on track.

Green shook his head.

"It's an unclassified spell, even rarer than compound spells. I read about its legend in a book and became fascinated. It's not particularly powerful, and its name is quite strange. Legend has it that a powerful wizard who loved reading created this spell. He loved reading when he was young and poor. In his impoverished hometown, there was a small library that shouldn't have existed. It was his childhood treasure until a fire destroyed it, leaving an indelible regret in his heart. So he later created this unclassified spell—Doors and Bookshelves."

Ruger glanced at Greene discreetly, as if Greene was very willing to share these stories with others.

"Legend has it that when that spell is cast, it can create a door. Behind the door, a bookshelf space will be constructed based on the extraordinary knowledge the caster possesses and the extraordinary books they have read. Beginners will not be harmed. Theoretically, as long as they don't starve to death, they can read books inside for a lifetime. It's a spell with absolutely no lethality. It's also very simple for beginners to leave immediately. They just need to place a book they brought with them into the bookshelf, a real book, and it can't be exactly the same as the book already in the bookshelf space. Then they can leave," Green said slowly.

Ruger blinked. This so-called harmless spell didn't seem as peaceful as it appeared.

Green smiled and looked over, saying, "This standard is not harsh. It's a friendly spell. For example, research books on the same spell can be considered different books as long as they are modified and studied. If a beginner happens to not have any books with them and wants to leave the bookshelf space, then don't be in a hurry. Just read one of the books there carefully, and make sure it's a book you haven't read before, and then you can leave."

Looking at Green's smile and listening to his detailed description, Ruger couldn't help but marvel at this bizarre spell.

Is he friendly? Very friendly, at least very friendly to someone like him. He always has the habit of carrying food with him, and he might not even leave after finishing a book; he might stay for a few more days.

But what if he weren't an apprentice?
Some ancient wizards who have been well-read and lived for thousands of years, if they happen to not have any books with them, such as if their storage pouches have been destroyed, may be able to survive.

Wouldn't we be trapped there forever, since the books there are likely ones that the old wizards have already read? That would mean both ways out are blocked.

(End of this chapter)