Chapter 348: Herman
"Heh, Sylas West, long time no see..." Leon couldn't help but smile when he saw it was Sylas West. He knew that the middle-aged alchemist's life was safe for now, so he just greeted Sylas with a chuckle, dispelling the brewing Fireblast spell and withdrawing from his elemental avatar state.
"Merlin, what are you doing here..." Sylas West stared in shock at the scene before him.
Still, Sylas West wasn't slow to react. He glanced at the grinning Leon, then at the sweating middle-aged alchemist, and gradually pieced things together.
As soon as he understood, Sylas West felt his vision go dark...
At this point, even if Sylas West were a fool, he'd know that a fight had broken out here before he arrived...
The fight itself wasn't the problem—the real issue was who had fought whom...
Sylas West had been part of the Thousand Sails City joint exploration team and had fought side by side with Leon until the very end. How could he not know just how terrifying this young mage was? Back when Leon was only a Level 9 Archmage, he had already defeated Fran, a Title Magister. Now, Leon seemed to have advanced to Magister—his strength must be ten times greater than before...
He was, quite literally, a monster.
Fran had guts, didn't he? Ever since he returned from Four Seasons Gorge, he'd been left with a psychological shadow. Just mentioning Matthew Merlin's name made him glance around in panic, as if he'd been scared half to death.
Even Sylas West, a Title Magister himself, couldn't help but shudder when he recalled the trip to Four Seasons Gorge. If not for the fact that both his teacher and Caron had some ties to Matthew Merlin, then with what he and Fran had done at Four Seasons Gorge, dying ten times over would have been getting off easy...
Even after returning to Auckland, every time Sylas thought of that unfathomable young Archmage, he couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat...
He'd thought that, with one of them in Thousand Sails City and the other in Auckland, at least for a long while, they'd have no reason to cross paths...
Yet here he was, barely a month later, facing that terrifying monster once more...
And under these circumstances, no less.
It was enough to make him want to drop dead...
This monster was just as ruthless as ever. If he'd arrived even ten or twenty seconds later, he'd probably be picking up Barlow's corpse right now...
"Barlow, what happened?" Sylas's voice was unusually harsh.
He couldn't help it—at this moment, Sylas really had no choice but to be strict...
If he didn't get tough with Barlow now, he'd really be doing him a disservice. There are stupid ways to die, but picking a fight with a monster who nearly killed Fran? If Sylas hadn't begged for mercy, Fran wouldn't have made it back to Mercury Tower alive...
That's right, Barlow, you're certainly powerful—a Grandmaster and a Magister. In Auckland, that makes you someone to be reckoned with. But even so, are you really a match for Fran at Four Seasons Gorge? Back then, Fran, empowered by that bizarre magical artifact, was a bona fide Title Magister. And what happened? He was still utterly defeated by Matthew Merlin.
Did you eat lion's heart and leopard's gall or something? You actually dared to pick a fight with him...
There are stupid ways to die, but this is just ridiculous...
And now look—he nearly got himself killed, and dragged me into his mess too. Damn it, doesn't he realize that just standing in front of this monster makes my legs go weak...
But of course, Barlow had no idea...
At this moment, Barlow looked completely bewildered.
Earlier, when Sylas West appeared and stopped the young battle mage, Barlow was overjoyed, thinking his savior had arrived. Sylas West was one of Nolan's personal disciples, and now that Caron and the others had left Mercury Tower, he was basically the number one there—a genuine Title Magister. As long as he stepped in, any problem would be solved.
So Barlow waited eagerly...
But after all that waiting, what he got was Sylas West's stern reprimand.
"Sylas West, sir, here's what happened..." Barlow grew anxious and hurried to explain himself.
"Barlow, shut up!" Sylas West wasn't about to let him explain himself—what a joke. If Barlow was in the wrong, fine, he'd just pile on more blame and let Barlow take the fall...
But what if Barlow was actually in the right...
Then they'd really be in trouble...
If Barlow was right, wouldn't that mean Merlin was wrong?
How could Merlin possibly be wrong?
If Merlin was wrong, that would mean real trouble...
What if there was another incident like Four Seasons Gorge?
Back then, Sylas could save Fran, but now—who would save Sylas?
Sylas didn't even hesitate—he cut Barlow off immediately: "Do you even know what you're doing?"
"I..." Barlow was stunned by the scolding, standing there dumbfounded for a long moment before suddenly blurting out, "Sylas West, sir, he's... he's a battle mage from the Caucasus!"
"What do you mean, 'battle mage from the Caucasus'? Are you kidding me..." Sylas West was nearly driven to the point of spitting blood. How could Merlin possibly be a battle mage?
Damn it, do you think Fran and I are blind?
"It's true, Sylas West, sir, he really is..."
"Enough nonsense. Merlin is my friend. And even if he were a battle mage, so what? Don't forget, Mercury Tower hasn't declared war on the Caucasus yet. If you're worried about how the Black Tower will react, tell them to come find me..."
"So that's who was mouthing off—Sylas West. Well, Sylas, do you have some kind of grievance against the Black Tower? Let's hear it..." Just as Sylas was about to tell Barlow to get lost, a voice suddenly rang out from outside the door...
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Right then, the door to the alchemy lab was pushed open.
A middle-aged mage in a black robe walked in.
But on the cuffs of this mage's robe, there was a ring of interwoven gold and silver embroidery...
A Title Magister!
He was a Title Magister from the Black Tower!
"Herman, it's you?"
"Heh, why shouldn't it be?" The middle-aged Title Magister entered, casting a cold glance at Lin Yun, his gaze clearly dark. Then he turned to Sylas West: "My Eye of the Evil Dragon is damaged. I came to Mercury Tower for help with repairs..."
He glanced at Lin Yun again. "If I hadn't come, I wouldn't have known Mercury Tower was consorting with those Caucasus barbarians. So, Sylas, from what you just said, it sounds like you're trying to shield this Caucasus barbarian?"
"Herman, that's going a bit too far. Since when does the Black Tower get to dictate how Mercury Tower does things?"
After speaking, Sylas West shot Barlow a fierce glare. Damn it, look at the mess you've made...
There was no problem at all, but you insisted on bringing up battle mages. Now look, you've drawn the Black Tower here. Let's see how you get out of this...
"Oh?" The middle-aged Title Magister was clearly surprised by Sylas West's unusually direct attitude. After a brief pause, his face darkened as he stared at Sylas: "Sylas, you'd better think carefully. There's a death feud between the Black Tower and those Caucasus barbarians. Don't think that just because you have Lord Nolan backing you, you can meddle in this. My advice: don't bring disaster down on Mercury Tower..."
"Let me say it again, Herman. Mage Merlin here is from Thousand Sails City, owner of the Gilded Rose, and a bona fide Andalusia mage—not the Caucasus barbarian you're talking about. Barlow made a mistake, but you, Herman, as a Title Magister, should know better than to be so ignorant..."
"Enough, Sylas. Whether this kid is a battle mage or not, the Black Tower will decide. Since when does Mercury Tower get a say?" With that, Herman didn't even look at Sylas, raising his hand and pointing at Lin Yun. "Kid, come with me. If you won't admit you're a battle mage, that's fine. The Black Tower's Obsidian Dungeon in Auckland is famous—spend a day there, and you'll spill every secret, even how many lovers your mother had..."