Chương 172: Will You Be My Son?

(Seeking Monthly Tickets~) On the way back to the hot spring inn.

Shane kept thinking about Duncan's words.

Why did Duncan adopt me as his son?

In terms of social status, Duncan is a figure of great influence in the political circles of the entire Northern Kingdoms. He is the most powerful mage, and even a renowned and powerful organization like the Continental Magic Association has to show respect to the Court.

Xia En couldn't even imagine how much wealth this old man owned.

Even setting aside social status, Duncan's own strength is already among the best of all magicians; after all, not everyone is named "Frilian."

From any perspective, becoming Duncan's adopted son is a very advantageous thing. With such conditions, wouldn't it be easy for Duncan to adopt a son if he just let the word out?

So, why did you come to me?

Xia En recalled his words in the tavern: "I know that young people nowadays are much more unruly than our generation. Let alone being an adopted son, even being a disciple, there are many who are resentful."

"Don't worry, I won't interfere with any of your decisions, and you don't need to carry any 'family beliefs'—I have no descendants, my wife passed away when I was in my twenties, and now I have no relatives left."

"Everything I have now will eventually vanish into nothingness."

"Entrusting the family business to you is just a spur-of-the-moment decision on my part. Whether you agree or not is irrelevant."

Xia En listened silently, without rushing to answer.

Duncan didn't urge him either.

Moreover, he seemed quite pleased that Xia En hadn't immediately agreed.

"I will be returning to the palace tomorrow, and will come back here again next spring. In the meantime, you can take your time to weigh the pros and cons and give me your answer then."

Xia En walked slowly.

As he walked, he casually kicked a small pebble, which rolled forward with a gurgling sound.

He has always been cautious and has never believed in free lunches.

You can enjoy unlimited benefits without taking on any responsibility.

Given Duncan's character, this is absolutely impossible.

Shane doesn't deny that Duncan is a good person, but he also can't ignore the fact that Duncan is a cunning old fox.

There must be some inside story behind this that Xia En doesn't know.

"Should we write to Lord Alden and Earl Granat and ask them about it?"

He silently pondered a solution.

next to.

Zain and Shutark watched as Shane frowned and nodded intermittently. They exchanged a glance and nervously rubbed their hands together.

"I'm sorry, it's all my fault."

Zain scratched his head and spoke.

"And me, I'm sorry, we shouldn't have gone to that tavern—" Shutark also apologized.

Xia En glanced at them; both of them looked somewhat dejected.

He gritted his teeth.

He grabbed one of their necks with each hand and pulled them off balance, causing them to stumble.

"He always knows he's wrong, but he never corrects it."

Zain and Shutark chuckled awkwardly, not daring to refute.

Xia En sighed.

"Alright, at least we weren't completely outmaneuvered this time. At least—they actually do have information about [Mithril]."

Upon hearing this...

Zain and Shutark both looked at Shane.

"real?"

Xia En nodded.

Duncan was very courteous; to show his sincerity in "adopting a son," he directly and without reservation told Shane about Mithril.

"According to him, this rare material was scarce even during the dwarves' heyday. The mithril ore produced throughout history was kept by the dwarven royal family. It is rumored that they used their mithril to forge powerful magical items, but whether the rumors are true or not, no one knows."

"After the fall of the Dwarven Kingdom, the Dwarven royal family declined, and the truth of these legends became even more uncertain. Even the existence of a material like Mithril remains shrouded in mystery."

"According to court records, there are three materials most likely to have been made of mithril:"

"The first one is the [Ring of Domination] made by the great sage Evisi from the mythical era. The material used is most likely [Mithril]. The Continental Magic Association has a replica of it, which is identical to the original in appearance and spell formula, but the material is different. It is only used for research and analysis of spell formulas. As for where the real one is—no one has been able to find it."

"The second is the Valhart family, one of the three great knightly families of the North, also known as the Azure Bow Knights. Their prized Azure Bow is said to have been forged by dwarves and may have contained mithril—but about sixty years ago, the Azure Bow Knights sacrificed themselves while fighting against the Seven Sages of the Collapse, Mahat, and the bow and arrows have been lost—"

"The third possibility is the sword of karma, passed down through generations by the Earl of Tah family on the Northern Plateau. This is the only one of the three possibilities that can be verified. However, since the lineage of those who have seen mithril has long since died out, no one can confirm whether it is indeed mithril—" After Xia En finished speaking, he sat down at the table, picked up his cup, and took a sip of water.

Frillie stroked her chin, pondered for a moment, and said, "Leaving aside the first two whose whereabouts are unknown, let's just talk about the third one—when we were fighting the Demon King, we helped Count Tah's family find their lost family heirloom sword. I don't remember if it was called the 'Sword of Karma'."

"I only remember that the sword was pitch black with blood-red magical patterns on it. It contained a lot of magical power, but no human warrior could unleash its true strength. Only when a demon held it did it become incredibly powerful."

"As a result, the sword has always been coveted by the demons, and the Count Tah family has paid a heavy price to prevent it from falling into their hands."

"If that sword is indeed made of mithril, then when we obtain our Level 1 Mage qualifications and head to the Northern Highlands, we can take the opportunity to get rid of this burden on his family."

Everyone nodded.

Zain's expression became excited.

"In that case, we have news about the [Demon Sealing Stone], [Holy Snow Crystal], and [Mithril]. As long as we reach the [Northern Plateau] and collect these three items, wouldn't we really be able to hatch that [Dragon Egg]?"

Which man wouldn't want to raise a dragon?

【Heavenly Dragon】———— That's a legendary dragon.

They are enormous, some even carrying an entire mountain range on their backs. Unlike other dragons, they are gentle and averse to fighting, spending their entire lives in the sky, and their lives are nearly eternal.

If these could actually hatch, and we raised one—wouldn't that make it a "Castle in the Sky"?

Riding a dragon to fly into the sky.

Even Xia En was starting to get excited.

Of course, first of all, they need a permit to travel to the Northern Plateau.

"Where are those three little ones?! Have they gotten their pop quiz results yet?! [Level 1 Mage] Exams don't tolerate idlers! Get moving!"

Xia En immediately began to wield the small leather whip.

After leaving the tavern.

Duncan walked through the alley.

A gaunt figure silently followed.

Duncan didn't stop; he knew who it was.

"Laylen, he is indeed a reliable person, just as you said."

"Did he agree?"

Duncan shook his head.

Lylene couldn't help but feel disappointed for her friend.

Duncan replied casually, "No rush. The more cautious he is, the better I like it."

As he spoke, he looked up at the sky.

It is now late autumn.

The sky was high and the clouds were light.

"Whether it's taking the Level 1 Mage test or returning to my hometown in the future and possibly facing a showdown with Mahat, to be honest, I'm not confident I can escape unscathed."

"But seeing this boy today, I suddenly felt a sense of relief."

"If I try my best and still can't go back, then I hope that one day in the future, my adopted son with [Lexile], our grandson, our great-grandson—can take me back. I believe that boy will not disappoint me."

Duncan turned his gaze to Lylene.

"Furthermore, you said that you sealed [Viize] in the first place so that one day you could find a way to break [Goldenification]. So, if I fail, please persevere. Whether it takes decades or centuries, you must find a way to break it."

"Whether in life or after death, no matter what it takes, I will go back."

Lylene suddenly stopped in her tracks.

He looked at Duncan, feeling a pang of sadness.

His old friend, from the moment he made up his mind to return to his hometown, schemed against himself and against Xia En, plotting and planning extensively, even devising arrangements for what would happen if he failed.

Never give up, always persevere.

This vibrant life force made him feel as if he had been transported back to those days, seeing the person who had once stood up for him.

The young Duncan.

Decades of court life seemed to have changed him.

But it seems that nothing has changed.

At that very moment, a plan that had initially caused some hesitation in Lylene's mind—a plan that could potentially alter the landscape of the Continental Magic Association—gradually solidified.

Lylene clenched her hands.

"it is good."

Duncan smiled.

He waved goodbye to Lylene and returned to the palace.

Let's return our attention to the hotel room.

Five hours have passed.

The three little ones, each carrying their own boxes, gathered again in Xia En's room.

All three of them actually solved the test questions.

Frillie felt a little relieved.

Xia En was somewhat surprised.

Although the words on the box— 【Pattern Recognition (White, Standard)】: Provides an item with this attribute with a 3x3 dotted grid. A unique pattern is set within the grid to lock the item. Only the person who successfully draws the pattern can open the item.

It's just a white entry.

However, the fact that they were able to crack the code in such a short time demonstrates a level of capability that should not be underestimated.

Ailu was the first to present the results.

"Breaking seals is an essential part of practical magic classes, and I practiced it a lot at school." With that, the Elru Staff conjured a complex magic incantation, which landed on the box. She continued, "I used several [Break Seal] spells in succession."

"Of the universal magic, one was found that could trigger a resonance with the magic on the box."

"Although the resonance effect was weak, after five hours and several bottles of magic potions to replenish my magic power, I still managed to crack it."

Click.

The box's latches successfully fell off due to the interference of the magical incantation.

Frillie nodded.

"Steady and solid, very excellent."

Next up was Philen's turn to demonstrate, and her method differed slightly from El's.

"I didn't use the magic to break the seal directly. I judged that my magic power might not be enough to support breaking the seal, so I used the [Spotting Magic] first and found the traces left on the box." As he spoke, Philon's staff lit up.

Immediately, many finger marks appeared on the small box that belonged to Philon.

These were all left behind by Shane during his actions.

"From these traces of manipulation, I deduced that Mr. Shane must have drawn some kind of pattern on the box. I traced the position of the fingerprints and deduced hundreds of possible pattern combinations. After trying them one by one, I successfully opened the box."

"Not much magic was lost during this period."

With that, Philon put down his staff and drew a "Z" shape on the box.

Click.

The clasps on the box also came off successfully.

Frillie nodded as well.

"Observant and well-behaved."

Finally, it was Ubel's turn to present.

Yubel looked at Elu and then at Philen, before taking out his box.

Unlike the previous two people.

Yubel's box was now completely open.

The upper part of the lid is broken, and the top of the lid is missing.

Everyone: "—" Frillie was a little stunned, and after a long pause, she commented: "A unique approach, very creative."

Yubel gave a soft hum.

"I'm not good at any magic like 'breaking seals' or 'spotting magic.' I'm only good at magic like 'cutting.'"

"It was just an ordinary wooden box, so I simply cut off the top of the box."

Xia En smacked his lips.

I silently gave Yubel a thumbs up.

"They handled the situation very well."

Even the slightest deviation would cause the contents of the box to be shredded along with it.

Hearing Shane's encouragement, Yubel smiled slightly.

Then, the girl picked up the contents of the box, waved it around, and asked, "By the way, what's this thing in the box? It's wrapped up so tightly!"

What Yubel was holding was a small square wrapped in kraft paper.

Xia En smiled.

"This is your reward for passing the pop quiz."

"Open it and take a look."

Yubel opened it without hesitation.

A small dark green handbag appeared before her eyes.

Made of leather, this small piece features a simple yet exquisite four-leaf clover design.

Yubel's eyes lit up immediately.

Upon seeing this, Philon and Ellu quickly opened their own boxes as well.

Inside were small handbags of the same size.

The three people have the same style, only the color and pattern are different: Ailu is purplish-red with flower patterns on it.

Philon is dark brown with a butterfly pattern on it.

The three girls, each holding their own small handbag, looked at each other and smiled happily.

"These are gifts I picked out at [Neutoral Port]. I originally planned to give them to you after you finished your [Level 1 Mage] exams—"

"I also added a little surprise inside, open it and see."

Upon hearing this...

The three of them quickly opened it.

The space inside was surprisingly large!

Although it's a tiny handbag, no bigger than the palm of your hand, the interior is surprisingly spacious, comparable to a super-large suitcase!

Using the [Mad Scientist (Purple Epic)] entry he had obtained earlier, Shane successfully duplicated 3 [Space Expansion (Blue Excellent)] items. At this moment, the internal space of the small handbags in the hands of the three people had expanded 50 times.

It's big enough to hold important items.

Moreover, it has almost no weight, making it easy to carry around and convenient.

"Friline and I discussed it, and to increase your motivation to learn, we'll be giving out these little gifts with every quiz and periodic exam from now on."

"Remember!" Shane gave the three little ones a serious look.

"Only those who pass the test successfully can get it."

The three girls nodded quickly, clutching their small handbags, and asked in unison, "When does the next class start?"

Forehead---- This has significantly increased their enthusiasm.

Beside them, Zain and Shutark also quietly raised their hands, "Um—are there any courses for monks (warriors)?"