042 Diary

Beside the surrounding wall outside the Emerald Tower, the blue-robed woman's spellcasting was still ongoing. Transparent streams of water fluttered and scattered amidst the graceful motions of her hands, falling all around as the surrounding moisture gradually gathered and then rose into the air.

Freya slowly walked up behind her sister, and her usually expressionless face finally showed a slight change: "Is this really going to be all right..."

"Since things have come to this, we must learn to accept it, my lovely sister." The blue robe fluttered constantly in the surging magic power. Matching her dancing hair and azure eyes, it gave her an otherworldly and ethereal aura, yet her voice remained steady: "Fate brought you and me together with them, and then separated us here; there must be a meaning to it. Perhaps they need to undergo a final test, but..."

Her sleeves slid down—Christine's hands gradually descended, and falling with them was the similarly calming surface of the water. As Grandine's party successfully entered the high tower, her task of "parting the sea" was completed.

"...They are all very capable people, I truly believe that." Christine gently patted her robe with both hands, then turned around, her pretty, large eyes blinking rapidly: "What do you think, my lovely sister?"

"...Since elder sister says so, of course I believe it too." Freya's expression returned to calm, though her attitude remained unchanged.

"Ah, sometimes you are more stubborn than gold... Has anyone ever told you that, Freya?" Christine sighed, shaking her head as she played with her long golden hair: "However, that is precisely what makes you my lovely sister, oh呵呵呵..."

She walked over and took Freya's hand: "All right, all right, I know what you mean, this matter is really nothing..." She held her expressionless younger sister's hand, shaking it casually as if coaxing a little girl from next door: "So no matter what your thoughts are, sister will support you."

Then she let go of her hand and turned to face a certain direction: "Now, it is time to face our destiny."

She drew the staff from her back and held it in her hand—she hadn't even used it while casting spells earlier.

"Cough..."

From the bushes opposite, an old man's cough sounded, and then a hunched figure slowly emerged from behind a tree.

"Cough cough... cough cough... Sorry to interrupt the intimacy of the two of you, but..."

The old man was dressed very poorly in tattered attire. The black cloth strips that could hardly be called clothes revealed his scrawny, elderly frame. Sparse, pale hair hung on the old man's head, which, combined with his wrinkled face and drooping cheeks, gave him a precarious appearance.

However, the two grand mages turned serious at the same time.

"...However, we have already made an exception by letting you occupy this place for a night. Could you... cough cough cough... consider..."

The old man reached out forward, his withered hand looking so frail.

"...Giving us some time as well?"

Golden lines suddenly lit up on Christine's blue robe.

A blue ice wall abruptly appeared in front of her. The next moment, a shattering sound rang out from that ice wall—the ice wall wasn't smashed apart, but right in its center, a round hole suddenly appeared, and the cracks spread rapidly outward from that hole—

Crash!

The instant the ice wall completely collapsed, the red-robed woman let out a sharp cry, and her hand extending from beneath her sleeve thrust forward, lengthening into a sword made entirely of flame.

A scorching scent suddenly diffused through the air, the lingering embers of the fiery sword having just swept past—to her side, a black figure had just rolled and landed from mid-air, holding a short sword in each hand. The short swords were pitch black, gleaming with an eerie purplish-black light.

Freya said nothing, but her furrowed brows slowly straightened.

"It seems the actors are all here." A tapping sound echoed by the tower, the sound of Christine's footsteps on the bluestone slabs. She walked toward the skinny old man, swinging her staff-holding right hand simultaneously to scatter the shattered ice wall into a flurry of ice crystals across the sky. Without looking back to check on her sister's situation, she stopped at a certain distance: "Oh, poor Convenor, at such an advanced age, you are still running around everywhere. You..."

She held her staff upright and thumped it against the ground beside her: "...Still haven't given up?"

"Our grand undertaking is immensely necessary, you... cough, you should understand, someone like you..." The old man leaned on his cane, pointing his finger this time and that: "And her, and... people from the Council of Seven, you all should understand..."

The old man covered his mouth and coughed twice more: "There are always things that need to be done... Besides." A smile suddenly broke out across his aged face: "You aren't very young yourself, aren't you running around everywhere too..."

***

Grandine and the others' process of entering the tower was not actually smooth, because after passing through the entrance on the wall, they still had to figure out a way to climb up to the first floor.

Although strictly speaking, the underwater area was considered the first floor.

There was a hollow on the right side, looking as though there used to be a flight of stairs there, probably made of wood originally, which was why it had now vanished due to the erosion of the current. Snow Linghuanbing and Breaking Mountain had higher stats, so the two of them went up first and were responsible for pulling the others up behind them. The parting of the water below also made the condition of the floor clearly visible—it should have been intact originally, but now there were many cracks, and the river water probably flowed from here to some unknown destination.

There were also many old furnishings here, which were damaged beyond recognition due to long-term immersion, and Grandine's group didn't have much time to observe these objects—heaven knew how long that water mage could maintain her spell.

Sure enough, just as Grandine was the last one to climb up, the sound of converging water currents came from behind. Several people looked back, and the water level had risen at that opening, gradually returning to calm.

"What about those two... those two grand mages?" Mengzhu asked with some worry.

"It's fine, they'll find a way in," Grandine replied. "After all, their strength speaks for themselves, we don't need to worry... Have you guys started searching this place yet?"

"Not yet, but we can start now." Snow Linghuanbing answered him. The woman turned her head and began to survey the dim room.

This second floor had no windows, but light still shone in. Grandine looked up; there were small windows around the perimeter of the ceiling—there should have been higher floors originally, but light filtered through, likely due to some clever design.

For some reason, this tower looked very large from the outside, but this floor didn't appear spacious at all. Through the light surrounding the perimeter, several people could see the opposite wall, which was only about a dozen meters away from the edge where they stood. From the outside, the width of this tower should have been at least twice this much.

"It seems this really is a magic tower, somewhat interesting..." Breaking Mountain made his own judgment and was the first to ignite a torch. The bright yellow light instantly illuminated everything here.

They were shocked by the sight before them.

Having searched the ruins yesterday, Grandine and the others already had a general impression of this place that had spanned a millennium, and they were mentally prepared to face the interior of a tower that looked like ruins. But the second floor of the tower they were looking at now far exceeded their expectations.

Here... was almost completely preserved.

Wooden tables, wooden chairs, bookshelves, beds, and in the corner near that bed sat a quaint wooden chest. On the other side near the center was a layer of yellowish-gray carpet, with flowerpot-like objects placed on it. It looked as though some plants should have been cultivated inside them previously, but now they were gone. Near their location was a wooden bucket, apparently used for holding water, which was now empty. In the center of the circular room, a small round table stood, upon which were utensils resembling cups, plates, and candlesticks. Like all the furniture nearby, it was covered with a layer of the traces of time due to long disuse. But compared to the fate suffered by the furniture outside, the condition here was infinitely better.

Moreover, this place looked like a place where someone lived.

"Hit the jackpot!" When Grandine's whistle sounded, Mengzhu also cried out in pleasant surprise: "Finally... finally there's a place we can loot, wuwuwu..."

Thinking of the various encounters of the past few days and the almost fruitless results, even Grandine couldn't help shedding a tear. But he still maintained the professionalism of an expert, waving his hand grandly: "Try not to touch things randomly, watch out for traps, start searching."

Even if he hadn't said it, the rest of them knew what to do. Several people dispersed, beginning to search for anything of value in this room, and the little girl's side even emitted her bouncy, excited voice: "Looting, looting..."

It seemed she had been holding back for a long time...

Grandine had also been holding back for a long time. He looked around to the left and right, then walked toward the bookshelf that no one had yet paid attention to.

***

"Phoenix Calendar Year 548, Water Month, 2nd Day, 20th."

"The weather is cold as usual. I had another argument with that fellow Fabricius; he always throws his seniority around and points fingers, when in reality his skill is quite poor. No wonder he was sent to such a place to work with me."

"Phoenix Calendar Year 548, Water Month, 2nd Day, 26th."

"I need to send some money back. Mana's letter is complaining to me again—do I want to stay in this remote place?! Everything is the Empire's arrangement..."

What Grandine was holding in his hand at the moment appeared to be a diary. Grandine wasn't sure if this diary was written by the owner of this room, but the other books were either too obscure or completely unrecognizable, and he had flipped through them for a long time before finding such a book he could actually read—he had originally hoped to dig out a magic skill book or something similar from here.

The earlier contents in the diary were mostly self-venting about trivial domestic matters. Grandine originally didn't want to waste time on these things, but alas, there were no more useful items than this here, so he had no choice but to casually keep flipping through.

Fortunately, the content changed shortly after.

"Phoenix Calendar Year 548, Water Month, 3rd Day, 16th."

"The guards brought up a strange stone, supposedly discovered by nearby villagers. The stone might be related to magic absorption, and I plan to study it."

"That old fogey Fabricius is mocking me for not doing my proper job again. In fact, what kind of work in this damned place counts as a proper job anyway..."

"Phoenix Calendar Year 548, Water Month, 3rd Day, 18th."

"The research has yielded new discoveries. These stones react very specially to elements, looking neither regular nor irregular. I need to go to that village to investigate its origin for further research."

"Fabricius is starting to rant wildly about my actions again, hum... Why were such mages born into this world? It's simply an insult to this sacred profession! Can't he use that shriveled brain of his to think about how much impact it would have on our current living conditions if this stone could be developed for use?"

"The Empire will reward our achievements and contributions! We might get promoted! Even if we can't leave this place, the place we inhabit will become an important border town! Perhaps vast prosperity will emerge!"

"Forget it, how could Fabricius have such long-term vision..."

"...What are you reading?" Snow Linghuanbing leaned over, stretching her neck toward the item Grandine was holding.

"A diary." Grandine indicated it and looked at her: "What is it?"

"I found a secret passage behind that wardrobe, so I came to notify everyone." Snow Linghuanbing pointed to a corner: "The others have already gone over, but I guess it's nothing more than a passage leading to the upper floors. The placement of that wardrobe is very unnatural..."

She shrugged, then stretched her neck again: "What's written in the diary, let me see..."

"Don't rush, I haven't finished reading it yet." To avoid the woman's breath, Grandine shifted his body to prevent his arm from continuing to feel the softness of her chest: "I'll give it to you after I finish reading..."

"Tch, stingy..." Grandine's action only aroused the woman's curiosity further. The black cloak swayed twice as she tried to catch a glimpse of the diary's contents, but ultimately failed to find a suitable angle to peek. She resentfully threw a couple of punches, and seeing that Grandine still ignored her, she had no choice but to go elsewhere to continue her search.

"Phoenix Calendar Year 548, Water Month, 3rd Day, 20th."

"The team sent out for exploration has returned. That kind of stone is extremely abundant in this surrounding area, and according to villagers who have lived here for generations, this stone seems to have signs of growth. However, according to my observation and speculation, the so-called growth probably operates on the same principle as the crystallization reaction of Pukla diamonds..."

"I brought back some green ores as experimental materials for the upcoming tests; they should be enough. The previous stones infused with mana later exhibited different reactions individually; I need more samples to record..."

The handwriting experienced a gap, and then continued with the contents of that day.

"Considering that more of this green stone may be needed in the future, I plan to establish a transit station near the outpost to transport these ores. I'd better migrate some population here; they seem quite idle and can just serve as my subordinates, serving the great Empire..."

"I have decided to name that upcoming village: Greenstone Village."

A chill ran down his spine, cold sweat broke out all over, and a suddenly rising malice abruptly assaulted Grandine's heart.