Kobold Wizard's Journal

Chapter 208 Time and Fear

The dying campfire crackled occasionally.

Ruger stared at the campfire, sorting out his thoughts. He had been in that dark place for so long that he had almost forgotten what he was thinking before he saw the tree hollow. At this moment, he was also glad that he had spent most of his time in the dark place in meditation, otherwise it would have felt even longer.

He scratched his chin, recalling that he had sat there quietly to contemplate the Dragon Slayer Ascension Ritual, when he noticed Raiden's unusual behavior and the person huddled there, which interrupted his train of thought.

He had actually been thinking about this matter while he was in that library, or rather, every person with dragon blood would subconsciously think about how to avoid this trouble.

What a wonderful feeling, he thought.

When he leaped from that position, the footprints he left were still clearly visible.

The time inequality.

I wonder if there are any powerful wizards who can access the realm of time. If so, to what extent? In his view, this is a very forbidden realm, and going too deep into it could be quite dangerous.

As Luger was lost in thought, he suddenly felt the warmth on his shoulder gradually turn into a burning sensation.

My vision started to blur.

He knew they had entered the town.

As long as the mysterious old witch doesn't achieve her unreliable goal, he and Raiden, the two young wizard apprentices, will never have a moment of peace.

However, it would be good to meet up with Lord Leiden, Ruger thought.

He still didn't give up on the campfire, and after poking at it a couple more times like Leiden, he disappeared into the camp.

The lukewarm light, lacking crispness, turned into darkness.

Ruger then knew that he had successfully returned to the library in the tower.

“You…” Leiden took a step back, “Lord Ruger?”

Ruger observed his behavior and could deduce a great deal from it.

He twitched the corner of his mouth, wanting to squat down like that tall, fat, inhuman creature and tease Leiden. He could even consider turning his back to the guy, but the burning sensation on his shoulder kept changing, and he dared not delay.

"We'd better go see her first, rather than make her angry."

As he spoke, Ruger walked out.

He seemed to be able to communicate, and his tone was normal, which relieved Leiden.

“You’re alright! That’s so lucky…” Leiden followed closely behind.

The two ran down to the lower level together. Although they knew they might still just stand there dumbfounded, like last time, they didn't dare gamble. The old woman was clearly not an emotionally stable person.

“It’s not all bad,” Ruger said in a low voice.

There were still many things to do, including danger and busyness. The strange feeling of not needing to eat or rest to recover even made him feel a little presumptuous and regretful. Although he took breaks and practiced spells during meditation, it was only because of mental fatigue. His physical and mental energy seemed to not exist and did not need to be replenished. However, he still needed to adjust himself after doing one thing for a long time.

The two quickly turned and went down the stairs.

“How long have I been gone?” Ruger said. “Since you left the camp.”

"Three days."

Leiden said with certainty.

Ruger had initially thought it would happen in an instant, but compared to the time he had spent there, three days was not much different from an instant.

The two arrived outside the old woman's room, and sure enough, the stone door was open, along with an unexpected figure.

The woman in black, whom I'd met briefly at the camp before, was Mutric, a practitioner of the Nightmare Wizard path. "Hehehe, you've arrived! Look what I've found... an excellent Nightmare Wizard apprentice..."

The old woman leaned on her long cane and laughed excitedly. The cane trembled and twisted on the ground, making a teeth-grinding scraping sound.

"This is the guidance of fate, a sign of my success!"

The old woman began to pace back and forth excitedly, thinking and muttering to herself with a smile.

Ruger looked at the woman who was tapping her bowl with a spoon, making him and Leiden feel as if they were in a dream, as if she were prying into their secrets.

She stood there, trembling, as if out of fear, or perhaps because she was injured.

"Ok?"

The old woman turned her head in surprise.

"Young man with a dog-like face, you did a very good job. It seems you really are trying..." The old woman looked Luger up and down with satisfaction.

After she finished speaking, she turned around and started pacing back and forth, as if she couldn't stop her short legs when she was thinking about the problem.

Ruger knew that this was a sign of his progress, a sign that he had become a fifth-level wizard apprentice.

But is it just verbal praise? A little extra reward would be nice too! Ruger thought to himself.

He hadn't had a chance to check the growth of his wings yet. The so-called Nightmare Organ should have successfully passed the first stage of growth. He was in this world now, and it was probably just psychological. Even breathing felt much more comfortable than before.

Bored, Luger turned his head to look at the woman in black. On the way, Leiden had said that this was the old woman's first summons in three days, which meant that this woman named Mutress had likely come to this town on her own.

The woman glanced back at Ruger with trembling eyes, which startled him. There was an overwhelming fear in her eyes, and he couldn't imagine what she had just seen.

The old woman paused, then casually tossed three books over.

“Master this spell as soon as possible. I am very merciful and will give you this opportunity,” the short old woman said, staring at the three of them. “The slowest one is considered the least valuable and will be the first to become a test subject. The other two, if they perform well, can become assistants. You should know that when I wanted to become a mentor’s assistant to learn more, I had to voluntarily become a test subject…”

"This 'first' probably refers to the three of them, right?" Ruger thought to himself.

As the old woman mentioned before, some attempts would begin with those few good-for-nothings trapped in the town.

The old woman looked at Mutress, her fierce gaze instantly transforming into a smile, her eyes crinkling: "You can have some time. You can stay here and chat about the Nightmare Wizards. You're better than the others I've met before, and there's also your ascension ritual... Oh, relax, I won't steal your little trinkets. They're not worthy of my attention..."

The old woman waved to Ruger and Leiden as she spoke.

The two bowed and left.

The two breathed a sigh of relief once the stone gate closed.

As Ruger walked, he glanced at the spellbook in his hand.

This appears to be a modified spell, a preparation the old woman made for her own experiment.

Clarity of Dreams, Zero-Ring Spells.

They can create and maintain a simple dream that is only for themselves at any time without affecting their normal external state. For example, they can walk and think while dreaming. Those with high mental strength can make this independent state even more effective, and can even have a beautiful dream while conducting complex experiments.

Ruger looked at it repeatedly, completely bewildered. He glanced at Leiden, who also seemed equally clueless.

Every spell exists for a reason, but this spell seems to have no real use other than potentially driving someone to a mental breakdown. Who would want to be distracted by dreaming while doing something else? After much thought, the only conclusion is that this spell is purely for the old woman's attempt at advancement, and has no other value.

Ruger pursed his lips; he had thought he could earn a spell.

(End of this chapter)