Ancient trees with gnarled roots, countless towering timbers stood like giants of old between heaven and earth, creating a vast, undulating forest sea that unfolded into a magnificent scroll.
The second layer of the barrier was not yet fully established, when a few mages stood dumbfounded as the Death Knight suddenly appeared, racking their brains they still couldn’t understand why he had arrived so quickly today.
The woman leading them was stunningly beautiful; her delicate features were as fine as porcelain, and her long hair cascaded down, releasing a faint fragrance. Her pale green dress clung to her figure, perfectly outlining her graceful curves.
Seeing the Undead Knight looking over, she hurriedly raised her hand to cover her face.
Wayne looked at her in surprise, noticing that her thought patterns were almost indistinguishable from his mentor Hefei’s; it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say they were the same person.
What was going on? Could she be the teacher’s twin sister?
Wayne was puzzled. Observing her elegant demeanor and guessing her to be around twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, it seemed unlikely she was the teacher’s daughter, leaving him with the aforementioned guess.
But why cover your face, when you’re not ugly?
Across from him, the woman regretted tremendously. Overflowing with magic power befitting her status as a Golden Mage, a tide of magic power swirled through the air, mingling with a swath of pure moonlight to swiftly complete the deployment of the second layer of the barrier.
The cold moon shone down from the sky, transforming into invisible chains that entangled the Undead Warhorse. Wayne’s arm, holding his sword, became as heavy as a lead weight, a strange and indescribable chill spread across his bony frame.
"The barrier won’t hold him for long. I’ve planted the seed; the task is complete. Retreat," ordered the woman swiftly, leading her subordinates through the barrier’s secret door.
On Wayne’s end, it was as if something extra had taken root within him, he felt it, and The Book of Greed felt it too.
"Don’t eat so quickly next time, at least let me see what it is."
Wayne complained, still puzzled by the mysterious woman’s mental resemblance to his teacher, Hefei. The truth was elusive, fooling even him, the student.
"Who exactly is she?"
Wayne marveled at the hidden dragons and crouching tigers of Lundan; any mage that emerged seemed powerful enough to make one gasp in awe. He swung his sword to break the invisible chains and began to saunter around the barrier atop his Undead Warhorse.
Though only a phantom barrier, the natural scenery was so grand and vast, it imbued him with a sense of profound tranquility, promising doubled effects on practicing communication with nature here.
Wayne was so tempted that he almost wanted to sit down and meditate right away.
Too bad he couldn’t sit!
With a shift of scene, the Undead Warhorse leaped out of the portal, shaking its head and snorting continuously.
"Master, I’m allergic to pollen."
"Stop kidding, you’re just a pile of bones now, how could you be allergic to pollen?"
Wayne patted the horse’s head, dismissive of any real pollen allergy; it had to be a restriction from the Field Card. Yuliya preferred the Grand Cemetery under the darkness of the night over the natural barrier under moonlight.
"Who exactly is she?"
As Wayne muttered about the woman’s identity, a doubt suddenly struck him. During his confrontation with the Dark Knight, that exceedingly similar thought process to Hefei’s had suddenly interrupted.
He had thought his teacher couldn’t help but laugh at seeing a dog-eat-dog situation; now it seemed that the woman had purposefully exposed herself to attract the attention of both the Death and Dark Knights.
Afterward, Wayne was puzzled; it seemed like she lured him into the barrier and did nothing...
The woman had planted something related to the moonlight, which The Book of Greed promptly swallowed, serving as nourishment for its little spirit.
Wayne suspected this was part of a conspiracy against knights. The Dark Knight sensed something amiss and beat a hasty retreat to avoid further involvement, leaving him alone to fall into the trap.
"No, there was another person who was fooled!"
His teacher Hefei’s face came to mind. The woman’s ambush wasn’t meant for battle, but through her manipulation, she successfully drew the ire of two enemies towards his teacher – one was the Death Knight, the other, the Dark Knight.
Unfortunately, despite her meticulous planning, she never anticipated the Death Knight breaking through the first layer of the barrier early and seeing her true face.
"She can skillfully harness natural and moonlight magic; is she with the Liberty Mage Alliance, or is it that the Tri-Goddess Alliance in Lundan is dissatisfied with my teacher and this is a plot to kill with a borrowed knife?"
Wayne pondered for a moment. The situation became increasingly convoluted, and with limited intelligence at his disposal, he could no longer make sense of it.
Not only were Hefei’s troubles multiplying, but his student was getting in deeper and deeper.
The mantle of the Death Knight was pulling in too many threads; each appearance attracted a great deal of attention, evening when several churches tuned in closely, with each one represented by high-level authorities in Lundan.
The more entanglements the mantle of the Death Knight gathered, the broader its influence spread, and the more severe the escalation of its situation.
Wayne decided it was time to set this Vest System aside and to reduce the number of times he made public appearances in the near future, preferably not at all, putting the Death Knight persona on ice.
In the eyes of others, Lundan’s Death Knight was him; Wayne was well aware that only by wielding The Book of Greed could he pull Shadowmare into action. He was no actual Death Knight and couldn’t shoulder the multitude of grievances associated with that identity.
To continue the charade would only intensify the situation until it reached a breaking point beyond repair.
It’s impossible to disguise fire with paper; fakes are ultimately fakes. He donned the mantle for convenience in his undertakings, not to bring trouble upon himself.
"The surge of great power made me lose sight of my limitations; it’s a warranted rebuke. It’s time to return to being that ordinary Mage apprentice..."
Wayne took a deep breath. The mantle of the Death Knight was a double-edged sword: beneficial yet detrimental. This night served as a wake-up call; it was wiser to keep a low profile as a Mage.