Chapter 422: Old Friend
Half a month later, in Medimus City-State.
It was already May. The First District in the early morning was as tidy as always. The city-state had dedicated personnel wake up early every day to clean the streets and sprinkle water, something unmatched by other districts.
Morton, already in his forties, walked upright and looked very majestic.
Several young men followed behind him, listening to his instructions. Morton wore a white robe with a red sash, a silver laurel crown on his head, and several bright badges pinned to his chest, which looked quite valuable.
On an olive tree branch at the street corner, a cat, black and shiny all over, was staring at Morton. Its ears twitched slightly, seemingly listening to their conversation. As Morton and the others gradually walked away, the black cat jumped down from the branch and followed Morton, treading on the top of the enclosing wall.
“Your Excellency Vice Consul, the Wasteland Reclamation Decree has been implemented for nearly ten years. Thirty citizens have been awarded honorary noble titles, and forty-two noble families have established reclamation territories. Our city-state has purchased as many as 400,000 young and strong slaves from the New and Old Continents in the past ten years, and grain production is also extremely abundant. The Wasteland Reclamation Decree can be said to be very successful. Your contribution is great. This royal banquet might be the time for you to advance further.”
One of the young men following Morton whispered, and the others also beamed with joy.
Morton glared at him and whispered, “Do not speculate on His Majesty the King’s thoughts. Let’s do our own duty well. His Majesty will make his own judgment on the rest.”
The young men lowered their heads and stopped talking, following Morton into a carriage and slowly departing.
The black cat meowed softly, narrowed its eyelids slightly, and ran toward Peter’s house. This black cat was Ace in transformation. After that night’s stroll, Ace decided to go to Medimus City-State to see Teacher Peter. After leaving messages for the members of the Magic Council via his Grimoire, he left quickly.
The black cat ran briskly and soon arrived at Peter’s villa. The elderly Peter was nearly eighty years old, yet he was still vigorously lecturing new disciples. Ace the black cat lay lazily on the roof, listening to Peter explain logic to everyone.
“The word ‘Logic’ is a new term created by my proud disciple, your late senior brother, the great scholar Ace. It is composed of the root for ‘thinking’ and the affix for ‘rationality,’ meaning rational thinking…”
Medimus City-State and the High Tower Territory were separated by the projection land of the abyss, and there was almost no communication between the two sides. The truce agreement between the Five Northern City-States and the High Tower was also a major secret and shame, so no one revealed it to Medimus City-State in the south of Salia.
Therefore, the nobles and citizens of Medimus City-State did not know that Ace was not only alive but had also established the High Tower Territory and created the path of magic.
Ace listened lazily to Teacher Peter’s narration, nodding repeatedly. His cat mouth uttered human speech.
“Senior Morton has already become the Vice Consul, and it is very likely he will go further. Although somewhat surprising, it is also reasonable. If I hadn’t left the city-state, if I hadn’t discovered the Wisdom Potion, perhaps the current me would already be a citizen, striving hard within the established rules of the city-state like Senior Morton.”
Everything here was very familiar. The First District of Medimus City-State was still so clean, and the citizens of the city-state were still so full of vitality and ambition. It was a pity that he couldn’t stay here.
Ace waited quietly. The sun rose in the east and set in the west. Peter also began to fall asleep. Nearing eighty, he always went to sleep very early and woke up very early.
Black Cat Ace turned into a shadow and entered Peter’s bedroom. Then he slowly stood up and transformed into human form. His eyes held a trace of nostalgia, seemingly returning to the time when he came to Peter’s house to study at the age of ten. Golden dream mist gradually spread, soon filling the entire room.
Ace gently approached Peter. Layered rune structures flickered in his eyes. He wanted to see if Peter had the possibility of entering the path of magic. Back then, Ace’s future was uncertain, and he didn’t have full confidence in his own future. Plus, Peter firmly believed in Deities, so Ace chose to give up at that time.
But now Ace was a 4-Ring Wizard, an existence comparable to a Golden Hero. Even within Medimus City-State, unless King Tedius used the power of his status, no one could suppress him. His strength gave him confidence.
As long as Peter had magical aptitude, and as long as Peter was willing to walk this path, Ace had the ability to guide him to become a wizard.
Under the observation of the Eye of Truth, Ace discovered with astonishment that Peter had no magical aptitude. In other words, Peter was mana-intolerant. This was also common in the High Tower Territory. Too many people were mana-intolerant, having not a shred of magical talent, and could never approach magic in their lifetime.
“It seems, Teacher, you are destined not to be with magic after all. However, we are not without other alternative choices. Let us meet first.”
The dream mist suddenly condensed. Ace transformed into a dream creature and poured into Peter’s dream along with the mist.
Still in Peter’s villa, the elderly Peter was tending to flowers and plants. A black cat suddenly broke in. It ran quickly to Peter. Under the sunlight, its shadow gradually elongated, transforming from cat to human.
Ace wore a pitch-black magic robe, a magic top hat on his head, and the 4-Ring Hexagram Badge on his chest flickered. He took off his hat and performed a standard Peter School bow.
Peter in the dream seemed very excited. He looked at Ace in disbelief, and the entire dream began to shake violently.
“No, Teacher, you cannot wake up yet.”
Ace’s gentle voice seemed to possess magic. The shaking villa, falling bricks, and cracking ground were all restored quickly as if rewound. Dream mist lingered, slowly stabilizing Peter’s dream and allowing Peter to become completely lucid within the dream.
Peter, with completely white hair and beard, suddenly became younger here. He looked at his state with some surprise and said to Ace, “Are you Ace? Are we in a dream? Why have I become younger?”
Ace smiled slightly, his silver hair flying.
“Teacher Peter, I am your student Ace. In a dream, when you become lucid, your age is determined by your mindset. This shows that you have a young mindset.”
Peter happily held Ace’s hand and said, “You are still so eloquent. I always felt you weren’t dead. Before your parents disappeared that year, I saw a black cat bowing to me. Was that you? Did you gain supernatural power?”
Peter’s voice gradually lowered. Even in the dream, he said very cautiously, “I don’t know where your power comes from. If it comes from devils or demons, please be careful. Those guys are not trustworthy. If it comes from Deities, then you are a legendary Favored One.”
Ace couldn’t help but sigh in his heart. Peter was indeed worthy of being a polymath; he knew so much. He whispered, “Neither. My power comes from myself. Researching the supernatural with an objective and neutral spirit can eventually lead to obtaining supernatural power. If I must state a source, it is the inspiration of Shamans.”
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