This past month has truly worn Leon out. In order to quickly understand this era, he tore through over a dozen shelves of books in just one month—a terrifying amount of reading that would have driven anyone else insane.
Today, as he walked into the library, Leon decided to take a rare break. No more cramming dreary history, no more comparing magical knowledge between two eras—just grabbing a random leisure read to pass the time...
So, Leon picked up a copy of Vanrison's Formulas.
To Leon, the magical knowledge at the archmage level was no different from light reading. It required no mental effort at all—he just flipped through page after page, occasionally spotting mistakes and muttering criticisms to himself.
Basking in the sun, reading a casual book, and grumbling about the author—life was truly beautiful...
"Tsk tsk tsk, you're a Magus and you still believe in the Seven-String Theorem? Contracting the Mana Vortex, cross-arrangement—what a mess..."
"What mess?" Solon happened to catch the tail end of Leon's muttering as he approached, and gave the young mage a curious look.
"Morning, Mage Solon. There's nothing messy about it, you must've misheard." Leon would never admit to anything—he looked up and lied without missing a beat.
"Is that so..." Solon smiled ambiguously, not really pressing the issue. That wasn't the point anyway—he'd come over to offer this young mage a bit of friendly advice.
Maybe that pass came too easily, so this young mage didn't really treasure it. Whether it was his book selection or his reading attitude, everything seemed too casual. He might not care now, but a few years—or a decade—from now, when he starts striving for Archmage, he'll regret not taking things more seriously.
As someone who's been through it all—a senior, really—Solon genuinely hated to see this happen. Sometimes, when you miss an opportunity, it's gone for good, no matter how much you regret it later.
"Um, Mage Merlin..." Solon hesitated before speaking. After all, the other party might only be a first-level mage, but could have a Grandmaster Alchemist backing him. He couldn't just lecture him the way he would the usual young mages at Sage's Spire.
"Ah, what's up?"
"It's nothing important, really. I just wanted to ask if Mage Merlin has any requests. You know, you're one of our most honored guests with top-level access. If you need anything, we'll make it a priority." Solon paused after his polite words, then added, "By the way, Mage Merlin, do you need any book recommendations? I've worked here for two years, so I know the magic section pretty well."
Honestly, Solon felt pretty helpless saying all this. With a Grandmaster Alchemist possibly backing Mage Merlin, even his own teacher, Salomon, wouldn't dare make a move lightly. If Solon wanted to give advice, he could only hint at it subtly; being too direct might just provoke the other side...
So Solon could only sigh to himself. The opportunity's been given—whether you seize it or not is up to you.
"That's really too kind..." Leon felt a headache coming on. He'd finally decided to take a day off, and now Solon wanted to recommend books? Wasn't this just making things complicated? But it was hard to refuse, since Leon could tell Solon meant well. So he kept up the polite front while secretly plotting an excuse.
"Mage Merlin, you're really too polite. As a guest of Sage's Spire, it's only right we help you out." The young archmage introduced enthusiastically, "You're a first-level mage now, right? If you're interested, I suggest looking into Goddard's Notes. It's a complete record of the experiences of Goddard, the last titled Magus of the Third Dynasty, during his mage years. Oh, and Farrell's Conjecture is pretty interesting too. A lot of its theories have been disproven, but I think its creative approach is worth learning from."
"Alright, alright, I'll go find them and take a look." Honestly, even though the young archmage was enthusiastic, Leon couldn't muster any interest in these recommendations. They were too basic, too entry-level—not even good enough for leisure reading. If anything, they'd just put him to sleep.
"Well, if none of that interests you, then I suggest you study the Flame Spear spell. It's the closest thing to archmage-level magic—you might find it useful in the future..." Noticing Leon's lackluster attitude, Solon's tone grew a bit stiff, especially when he emphasized "future"—a pointed reminder that Leon was still just a first-level mage.
Unfortunately, Leon showed no reaction at all. But the mention of the Flame Spear spell reminded him of something else.
"By the way, Mage Solon, I heard Sage's Spire supposedly has the complete set of Path of the Stars spells. Any chance I could take a look?"
If there was any spell from this era that could pique Leon's interest, Path of the Stars was definitely one of them. Even at the height of magical civilization, the most powerful mages held this spell in the highest regard.
In that decaying library, Leon had seen the Path of the Stars spell—but it was the version perfected by countless predecessors. As for the original, primitive version, Leon had never actually seen it for himself.
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"Path of the Stars?" Solon nearly burst out laughing. Yes, Sage's Spire did have the complete set of Path of the Stars spells, but those were forbidden-level magic. Even the Triumvirate couldn't cast them together, and here was a first-level mage daring to ask about it?
After being left speechless once again, Solon's words lost their earlier politeness: "Mage Merlin, isn't it a bit early for you to be studying Path of the Stars? Forgive me for being blunt, but at your current level, this library doesn't have much that's suitable for you. Your options are really limited. No one in the world of magic ever leaps straight to the top. Even if I put Path of the Stars in front of you, could you understand a single rune?"
...Leon actually wanted to say he could understand them. He'd read them countless times—how could he not?
Unfortunately, the young mage wasn't giving him a chance to say anything more. "Alright, Mage Merlin, I've got other matters to attend to. I'll take my leave."
Leaving the library with a belly full of frustration, Solon thought for a moment, then headed back up to the study at the top of Sage's Spire.
Salomon was still sitting by the fireplace, his frail body covered with a gray blanket, a magic book half-open on his knees. Every so often, a violent cough wracked his frame...
His teacher's health was getting worse and worse...
When Solon entered, he sighed quietly to himself. Twenty years ago, Salomon had suffered a severe injury—a secret known to only a handful in Sage's Spire. Because of that wound, Salomon had lived as a recluse ever since, his strength stuck at the peak of Magus, unable to break through.
"Teacher, your cough's gotten much worse. Should I ask Magus Sophron to prepare you some potions?"
"No, Sophron's potions taste awful. I don't want to suffer through that. I've survived this long, and this body won't get better—but it won't kill me either."
"Yes..." Solon's expression dimmed. Salomon's injury was a thorn in the side of every mage at Sage's Spire. Everyone hoped he'd recover, but no one had found a solution. Even Sophron, the renowned alchemist, had tried for two years before giving up. All he could do now was occasionally prepare alchemical potions to ease Salomon's pain when it flared up.
Salomon himself didn't seem to care much. "So, you just came from the library? How's that young mage from the Merlin family doing?"
"Same as always—the first to arrive every day, the last to leave."
"You've spent quite a bit of time around him. What do you think of the young mage's character?"
"He's a good person—smart and polite. But..."
"But what?"
"But he seems a bit... overly ambitious."
"Oh?"
Solon thought for a moment, then recounted everything he'd seen over the past few days. After a brief hesitation, he added, "Right, today he was reading Vanrison's Formulas. When I passed by, I think I even heard him muttering something about 'a mess' or something like that."