Wizards: Starting with Synthetic Gems

Chapter 66 Quarantine Zone

Lord Ashgra and his soldiers hesitated at the entrance to the quarantine zone, and even the three centaurs hired by Locke were now filled with unease.

Simply because ahead was a quarantine zone with barbed wire.

At the entrance to the isolation area was a group of patients who were immobile, had severe physical deformities, and had disordered facial muscles; they were a sight to behold.

The sick civilians were lying behind the barbed wire fence, gazing longingly at the outside world, like drowning people futilely grasping at a straw.

Unsure whether it was a contagious disease, neither the city of Ashgra and its soldiers nor the three centaurs dared to proceed after witnessing this scene.

They were afraid that they would become like that themselves.

Locke stepped down from the carriage without changing his expression and briefly checked his surroundings. "There are no hidden spores or parasites in the air, and the magical fluctuations are not too unusual. It's just that these civilians have unusually active wood element particles on them. From this perspective, it is highly likely that some kind of magical plant is causing the trouble."

"I just don't know exactly which one it is."

Locke walked up to the barbed wire fence, leaned closer, and observed the face of a little girl, who looked back at him with an innocent expression.

Locke pondered, "It seems to be nothing more than a neurological disorder. Once the source is addressed, these people will recover quickly."

"So, it is indeed not contagious."

Locke said impatiently to Lord Ashgra and the others, "You may leave now. My centaur will follow you into the city first."

Although these sick civilians were not contagious, convincing these mortal lords to believe it would be too much trouble.

Instead of wasting my time, I should start an investigation immediately, since these mortals will only cause trouble here anyway.

Lord Ashgra looked at the patients at the entrance to the quarantine area in horror. For a moment, he seemed to really want to leave.

But his reason soon overcame his cowardice.

Lord Ashgra bowed to Locke and said, "My lord wizard, as the lord of Ashgra... it is my fault that I cannot help my people."

"I will at least lead the soldiers to wait at the entrance for your decision. If you need my help, we can lend a hand..."

Lord Ashgra pleaded earnestly, and Locke said, "My lord wizard, please help us, we really have no other choice."

"Only you can help us."

"Please save Ashgra!"

Locke gave a dismissive "hmm".

He snapped his fingers, and the iron lock on the quarantine zone gate automatically fell to the ground. He pushed open the gate and entered the quarantine zone.

Seemingly because of his wizard status, the commoners, though they saw Locke open the wire gate, did not dare to rush over.

Locke scanned the group of disaster victims and confirmed that they all had similar symptoms.

At the same time, Locke looked up at the distance and saw a second-class female wizard apprentice walking out of the grove of trees.

Gabi Montoya breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Locke arrive. "Great, the academy has finally sent someone."

"I have absolutely no idea what happened here."

“Senior, I am Gabi Montoya, a wizarding apprentice commissioned by the academy to conduct an initial investigation here.” Locke nodded slightly. “Locke Augustine.”

The academy wasn't quite sure what had happened here at first, so it would definitely send an ordinary second-class wizard apprentice to investigate. Only after confirming that it was at least caused by magical plants would it send a breeder's assistant like itself to investigate the situation.

Gabi Montoya seems to have made a lot of discoveries during this time. "Senior, I think it's very likely that the rotten fern is the culprit. Look, there are a lot of ferns in this quarantine area."

"One of the characteristics of the rotten fern is that when it grows next to other ferns, it will automatically imitate the shape of the other plant, making it extremely difficult to spot. Moreover, the rotten fern can cause disfigurement-like features in ordinary people."

Gabi Montoya said, "So I've been investigating in this direction for a while, but I don't have the relevant academic background, so it's been very inefficient. There are at least a hundred different kinds of ferns around here."

"Senior, this is my investigation record so far. You can take a look. I hope it can help you."

Locke glanced at her, but didn't take it. Instead, he said, "Junior Montoya, your investigation is completely misguided."

“The characteristics of the fern rot are not like this, and I have observed that these people do not have the typical features caused by the fern rot on their faces—facial microspores.”

Gabi Montoya blushed slightly and looked at the overly young Locke. She stammered a little and said, "Senior Locke, is...is that so? No wonder my investigation these past few days has made no progress at all."

"Then you'd better not look at my investigation records. Firstly, it's a waste of your time, and secondly, I'm afraid my thinking might mislead you."

“But it’s really strange right now. I’ve investigated these residents, and they don’t live together at all, they’re not even in the same age group, and their eating habits and beliefs are completely different.”

“They seem to have nothing in common, and sometimes I’m not even sure if they have any active wood element particles.”

Gabi Montoya sighed.

Locke nodded slightly. "It's perfectly normal that you lack the relevant knowledge and can't be certain of the situation. Junior Montoya, your mission is basically complete."

Gabi Montoya tentatively asked, "Senior, can I continue to complete this academy task?"

"I'm not after the magic stones and the academy rewards. I'm just wondering why I haven't been able to find the cause of the illness after searching for so long."

"You know, this is a very curious situation for wizards."

Locke said, "Whatever you say."

Unlike her, Locke, as a breeder's assistant, was able to keenly perceive the active wood element particles in these patients.

These people were influenced by some kind of magical plant.

Locke pondered that these people must have something in common, since Gabi Montoya had investigated them but had not found anything in them.

Either her investigation results are unreliable, or the commonality among these people does not lie in these... people.

Perhaps the common thread among these people lies not in their personalities, but in their dwellings.

Locke turned to Gabi Montoya and asked, "Have you been to their residence and seen it for yourself?"

Gabi Montoya paused for a moment. "No, senior."

Locke said, "Then let's investigate together; perhaps we can find something."

(End of this chapter)