Carl called for a carriage to head to the estate outside the city.
He had accumulated many questions about Meditation Methods and witchcraft during this period. He urgently needed answers from an experienced person, as knowledge didn’t just come from books.
Unlike the previous two times, today Adolf’s estate was bustling with carriages and thronging with people, very lively indeed.
"You’ve come at a bad time."
Hibell came out to meet him and explained, "There’s a gathering of Wizards happening in the Black Swamp, and the tutor rushed over yesterday."
Then, pointing to the busy crowd, she added, "They’ll take the goods and head over in the next few days."
"Black Swamp?" Carl murmured, recalling the area from the Gando Kingdom’s map, about five hundred miles north of Sigerno City, and asked in confusion, "Does anyone live there?"
As its name implied, the Black Swamp spanned an area as large as a city-state, filled with various dangerous swamps. There was even miasma that could corrode flesh and blood. Let alone humans, even animals and plants were exceedingly rare. It was a bona fide forbidden zone for living beings.
"Ordinary people naturally can’t survive in such an environment, but Wizards can," Hibell said. "The Grey Robed Wizard Adison lives in the Black Swamp, and he is an Official Wizard. Every so often, Wizard Apprentices from all over the Gando Kingdom gather there to exchange knowledge and goods."
"Exchange." Carl’s heart stirred. "Is it possible to learn witchcraft?"
"Of course you can, provided you have enough Magic Stones," Hibell turned, her face serious. "And, that you can come back alive."
"Hm?" Carl frowned. "Is it that dangerous?"
"Certainly," Hibell nodded. "The Wizard World is always full of various risks. It’s not just various dangerous creatures, but also fellow Wizard Apprentices. Instances of blood relatives harming each other over a Spell or a Demonized Item are commonplace, not to mention strangers with no relation whatsoever."
Carl’s expression shifted slightly.
Would letting others know that he had quickly mastered witchcraft also attract covetous looks? Despite not having mastered the Meditation Method, how would he explain having built a complex Magic Model to others?
He couldn’t tell! In case Adolf harbored ill intentions, he had no capacity to resist. I had planned to reveal my talent to attract some attention. Now it seems I’d better be cautious—better safe than sorry.
"But you really have patience."
As they sat down in the living room, Hibell waved her hand to dismiss the servants and said, "People new to the Wizard World often have a lot of curiosity and lots of questions. Having learned the Meditation Method, and with so much time passing, this is only your second visit."
"I didn’t want to disturb the tutor," Carl gave an awkward smile. "Besides... I need to save money. I’m just a fallen noble, and the tutor’s tuition fee is somewhat expensive for me."
Asking questions also cost money. Adolf had corresponding witchcraft courses, each lasting half an hour, with a fee of one Gold Coin. In class, he would explain witchcraft and resolve doubts. In the Wizard World, any knowledge has its price, and it’s not cheap.
"Indeed." Hibell nodded, smiling as she began to speak, "Otherwise, come and ask me. My tuition fee is only half that of the tutor’s, and basic questions can be answered."
"Really?" Carl’s eyes lit up.
Most of what he wanted to ask about was basic knowledge of the Wizard World—common sense questions that would be the same no matter who he asked.
"No problem," Hibell said. "I don’t think the tutor would mind."
She was a child adopted by Adolf and not really an outsider, but Carl still had one doubt: "Are all Wizards short of money?"
"Of course," Hibell sighed. "Especially us who do Potion research. Various Magic Materials and knowledge all cost money; after all, not every Wizard Apprentice is like Robert."
"Robert?" Carl asked. "Dr. Robert?"
The doctor who could increase a man’s size by several centimeters.
He is actually a Wizard Apprentice?
But then again, when one thought about it, that made perfect sense—it was only through witchcraft that such magical abilities were possible.
"It’s him." Hibell propped her chin in her hand. "Although Robert is only an Intermediate Wizard Apprentice, he has mastered a unique Spell related to flesh and blood. It has even made his wealth surpass that of his tutor, which is truly enviable."
Carl gave an awkward smile, unsure if Hibell was aware of what exactly Robert’s witchcraft entailed. He promptly changed the subject: "Let’s proceed with the lesson."
Hibell looked at Carl with some surprise. "You have a deep understanding of Meditation Methods and lesser spell force fields; it’s hard to imagine you’ve only recently been exposed to witchcraft. What a pity!"
She sighed with a look of regret. "I had hoped to earn a bit more from your tuition fees, but it seems that plan won’t work out. After a few more classes, you probably won’t need to come to me."
"The Master of Dawn closes one door but opens a window as well," Carl said. "Perhaps it is exactly because my aptitude for training is lacking that I can grasp witchcraft so quickly."
"That’s an interesting thing to say," Hibell responded with a smile. "Unfortunately, if the Master of Dawn were to close your door, he’d probably seal up the windows just as carelessly."
"Hm... you needn’t be surprised; most Wizards are generally noncommittal in their beliefs, which is why I can joke about the Master of Dawn."
Carl composed himself, indicating understanding. For Wizards who sought knowledge and truth, wholehearted devotion to a Divine was undoubtedly impossible. The fact that the Church tolerated these ’heretics’ was testament to the Wizards’ power.
"Senior apprentice sister," he spoke, "Apart from wanting to learn about witchcraft from the tutor, I have some items I’d like him to see. The tutor is not here. Could you help identify them?"
"Of course." Hibell puffed out her chest. "As a Pharmacist, identifying unknown items is a basic skill, but as you know..."
She gestured a universal signal.
Carl showed understanding. "Knowledge comes with a price."
"Since you’re my junior apprentice brother and it’s your first identification, I’ll charge you for two class sessions," Hibell said. "Is that alright?"
Two class sessions; that would be one Gold Coin.
Carl breathed a sigh of relief. "No problem."
He could afford that sum. He then opened the bundle he had brought and started laying out the items on the table.
"Huh?" Hibell instinctively picked up a piece of black stone, and then her face fell in disappointment. "I thought it was a Magic Stone... Where did you get this ore? It has some negative attributes and can be used for weapon and armor forging; it’s quite a nice ore material."
"My grandfather went to the battlefield and got some spoils of war. Some things are piled up in the warehouse because we don’t know exactly what they are," Carl explained. "So I brought them over for you to take a look."
"Hmm." Hibell was merely asking casually. After putting down the black stone, she picked up an unidentified animal’s tail. "This is the tail of an Ashen Rat. It tastes similar to grass root and is one of the ingredients for making Anger Potions. If you collect a hundred of these, you can exchange them for a Magic Stone. Dark Spider silk, rumored to be used for making invisibility cloaks, but there’s too little here to be of value."
"Huh!" Hibell pinched some dust and examined it closely, her expression gradually becoming excited. "Necromantic dust, this is some good stuff!"