Chapter 0006: The Mysterious Black Shadow

A simple Burning Hands spell would consume about 2 points of mental energy, which meant that Grim could theoretically cast it four times in succession. Of course, this was only a theoretical value; it was difficult to achieve in reality, since mental energy was also the very foundation upon which apprentices relied to perform their spells.

The higher the mental energy value, the more vibrant and abundant the apprentice’s mind. Whether contemplating problems or casting spells, they could always perform at their best. Yet as mental energy was steadily expended, once its value dropped below one-third of their maximum, the person would fall into a state of mental exhaustion. The most obvious symptoms were dizziness, nausea, dry heaving, and a listless demeanor.

If one attempted to cast spells at this point, a spell that normally took five seconds to complete might now require ten, and the likelihood of failure would skyrocket.

Thus, any wizard, when frequently casting spells, would always strive to reserve a portion of their mental energy, so as to avoid the many aftereffects that came from utterly depleting it.

Now, as Grim displayed these symptoms, it was clear his mental energy had fallen below five percent, plunging him into a state of mental collapse. The only remedy was a deep, restorative sleep to recover his mind.

The chip, though exceedingly useful, consumed Grim’s own mental energy during operation. Realizing his own condition, Grim struggled to crawl into bed and promptly fell into a deep sleep.

Night swiftly descended.

As a great, pale moon dimly revealed itself in the gloom above, the candles in the tower went out one by one. The already cold and lonely Swamp Tower grew even more silent and lifeless.

At some unknown hour, a tall, strange shadow suddenly appeared at Grim’s bedside. It bent over slightly, silently gazing at him.

Due to excessive depletion of mental energy, Grim’s sleep was restless. Even while dreaming, his brow was tightly furrowed, his face twisted in pain.

The eerie figure stood with its back to the moonlight, its entire form shrouded in a strange darkness. Its features were indistinct, but a pair of crimson, glowing eyes flickered coldly, sending chills down one’s spine.

“Blood... blood... I want blood...”

The shadow trembled as it reached out both hands, as if to seize Grim’s throat, but every time it would inexplicably draw them back, as though unwilling, locked in a fierce inner struggle. It mumbled those words over and over, betraying a mind in chaos.

At last, a glimmer of clarity in its consciousness allowed it to break free from its overwhelming thirst for blood. It cast a deep, lingering glance at the oblivious Grim, then turned and leapt out the narrow window.

Outside was the near-vertical wall of blue-quartz stone, and as a wizard’s tower, the surface was of course guarded by fearsome arcane arrays, making unauthorized entry or exit impossible. Yet, bizarrely, this shadow—like a gecko—crept along the tower walls without triggering any of the spell arrays.

Clearly, only a wizard apprentice possessing a magical amulet could accomplish such a feat.

The shadow moved swiftly around the outer wall of the wizard’s tower, its motions so quick and agile as to inspire awe. While traversing the tower, it deliberately chose the dark corners of window ledges, places beyond the reach of moonlight, making its presence all the more mysterious and ghostly.

Its movements were both rapid and soundless. It was clear that it had a purpose, as it avoided several still-lit chambers, searching for some time before finally selecting the most suitable target.

It hung outside a narrow window, listening intently for a while. Only when it confirmed that the breathing within was even and long did it carefully slip inside.

This time, it lingered a little longer. When it finally emerged again, there was a faint trace of blood in the air beside it.

This successful hunt clearly left the shadow feeling triumphant. Squatting on the window ledge, it was about to slip away when, by chance, it glanced up at the moon. Just then, the bright moon emerged from behind the clouds, casting a silvery beam that fell directly upon it.

It was the face of a young girl—pretty, delicate, with fair skin and two strange, slightly protruding fangs stained with traces of blood.

The beautiful girl’s slender tongue lightly licked her fangs, savoring the remaining blood before she leapt from the window and vanished into the shadows beyond the moonlight.

……

Grim was awoken the next morning by a rapid pounding at his door.

Shaking his still-dizzy head, Grim opened the door, only to be surprised to find three people standing outside.

Apprentice Chief Ankso, and the apprentices Allen and Fenrir.

Ankso’s position as apprentice chief had been appointed directly by Master Anderson, so his status was rather elevated. He could act on behalf of the wizard, overseeing all the apprentices in the tower. Coupled with the fact that he was an intermediate apprentice, his orders were ones all the others had to strictly obey. Otherwise, if he bore a grudge, he could sabotage your tower assignments, and you would not even know how you’d court disaster.

As for the other two, Allen and Fenrir, they, like Grim, were only junior apprentices. However, they excelled at flattery and spent their days currying favor with Ankso, so they had become his trusted confidants.

Wherever Ankso appeared, these two sycophants were never absent. Their relationship was more like that of the killer tree and the bloodsucking demon vine—parasitic. The two flatterers relied on Ankso’s favor to secure the easiest and safest daily tasks, while Ankso needed them to bolster his authority and deter any ambitious upstarts.

Grim, by nature cold and aloof, rarely interacted with others, so his relationship with them was neither good nor bad. As such, he was quite taken aback to find them suddenly at his door.

Ankso was a young man in his twenties, with hawkish brows and a hooked nose, his sharp gaze exuding a powerful and oppressive presence despite his not entirely wicked face. When the wooden door swung open, Ankso’s eyes flashed with a peculiar light as they fell on Grim, giving him the faint sensation that his skin was being scorched.

Grim’s heart skipped a beat.

He understood that this was a phenomenon resulting from the other’s mind being so powerful that it seemed to overflow.

Among the apprentices of the tower, the hierarchy was strict. Those who had mastered only one or two spells and possessed less than ten points of mental energy were junior apprentices, the lowest tier. Those who had mastered three or four spells and had eleven to fifteen points of mental energy were intermediate apprentices, already considered figures of some standing. Those who had mastered more than five spells and possessed sixteen points or more of mental energy were the elite of the tower—senior apprentices.

Should any apprentice reach the threshold of twenty points of mental energy, they would qualify as a prospective mage, gaining special attention from the master wizard and beginning preparations to attempt the wizard’s ritual.

Unfortunately, the Swamp Tower currently had no true prospective mages.

As for Ankso, though the number of spells he’d mastered was unknown, with the aid of certain arcane devices, he could at times wield power not inferior to a senior apprentice. Within the tower, there were only three with genuine high-level apprentice strength: Hawkeye, Parasite, and the Madwoman.

Of course, these were only their nicknames.

Hawkeye, real name Krusa, was a terrifying fellow from the west coast. In order to strengthen himself, he had grafted an eagle’s eye onto his own body, gaining strange and uncanny abilities.

Parasite, or Entik, was even more sinister, raising a swarm of dreadful insects within his own flesh and blood. To face him was to risk a fate of being devoured from within by a thousand bugs.

The last, the Madwoman, was a true berserker. She wielded an enormous iron sword taller than an ordinary person, and no apprentice in the tower dared cross her.

These individuals, whether through powerful spells or bizarre abilities, had long since transcended the status of ordinary apprentices and had become the most likely candidates to ascend to the rank of prospective mage.

Thus, under the burning gaze of a formidable apprentice, Grim’s spirit was clearly weakened, his mind under tremendous pressure.

“Grim, something happened in the tower last night! Did you know?” It was not Ankso but Allen at his side who shouted, his tone shrill.

“Something happened? What? Did someone’s spell experiment backfire?” Grim’s confusion was evident.

“It wasn’t a spell experiment gone wrong—someone was murdered. In their own quarters!” Ankso spoke slowly, his eyes never leaving Grim’s face, watching for the slightest change.

“Murdered?” Grim was first startled, then deeply shaken. “Who died?”

While accidental deaths were not unheard of among the Swamp Tower apprentices, usually they occurred during dangerous assignments or as a result of spell backfires. Never before had anyone been killed by another. After all, every apprentice was a valuable asset to Master Anderson, who would never tolerate internecine killings among his students.

If such a thing were discovered, the perpetrator would face the severest of punishments.

“Milray.”

Grim frowned.

He knew Milray—a rather ordinary apprentice who had mastered only one spell. He knew little else about the boy, only recalling vaguely that he was a freckle-faced youth, younger than himself.

“Then you’ve come to me because...?”

“We need to inspect your room. This is not aimed at you alone; all apprentices under suspicion must be checked,” Ankso said coldly.

“Yes, every room must be searched. Step aside, unless you want the master to hold you responsible!” Fenrir, ever the most irritating of the lot, chimed in, backing up his superior noisily.

A flicker of anger rose in Grim’s heart, but he gritted his teeth and restrained himself.

Search everyone’s room?

Would they dare search Hawkeye’s room? Parasite’s room? Not to mention the Madwoman’s—if they encountered her, they’d likely go out of their way to avoid her!

Though furious within, Grim’s expression only darkened slightly. After a moment’s hesitation, he finally stepped aside and let them in.