Chapter 14
The features of the person outside the window grew clearer and clearer, until the entire face was pressed against the glass.
Nose, chin, cheeks were all pushed against the glass, shamelessly peering into the room.
Anika, sitting on the bed, trembled involuntarily as she witnessed this scene, a mixture of anger and helplessness coursing through her.
“Damn it, what are you doing in front of my house!” A voice of anger suddenly emanated from outside.
The person against the windowpane pulled away, “Hey, buddy, is this your home?”
“Get lost! If I catch you loitering around my house again, I’ll beat you to death,” the man outside retorted angrily.
The other man outside the door soon left.
Before long, the door swung open.
Two figures, one tall and one short, entered the room.
“Anika, I chased that person away,” the one who entered was a middle-aged man who looked to be in his thirties.His face was adorned with stubble, he had short black hair, thick eyebrows, a square jawline, and a tall, robust build.
He was none other than Anika’s husband, Hamilton.
Walking alongside Hamilton was their second son, Borg. Though his cheeks still bore a hint of youthfulness, he had a confident air about him and a sturdy frame.
“Dad, I’ve seen him around our place several times in the past few days,” Borg said.
“I know. How about we move to a different place?” Hamilton suggested.
“But the houses in the city are too expensive, and I’m worried that if we move, that person might still find us,” Anika expressed her concern.
Hamilton fell silent.
They had been here for almost half a month and had gleaned some information.
Word was that in this area, some people targeted attractive and cute children, particularly those who were refugees from other places.
As for the abducted children, they heard that some were sent to brothels, while others were sent to the mansions of nobles.
Some nobles had eccentric preferences and targeted delicately handsome young boys.
Over the past half month, they had gradually come to understand the atmosphere of Bangor Port.
The place was highly developed, with an extremely open culture. The bustling districts were filled with five or six-story houses, and everywhere one could see well-dressed merchants and nobles from various places.
It was a paradise for the wealthy and a hell for the poor.
Fortunately, Bangor Port was undergoing continuous development, requiring a substantial labor force.
He and Borg found manual labor jobs at the docks, moving goods. Though it was tiring, the wages were indeed decent.
The more you worked, the more you earned.
As long as you worked hard, you could make about 4 or 5 silver coins a day now.
“Don’t worry, you focus on recovering these days. I’ll try to come back early. As long as Eva doesn’t go out, they won’t dare to break into the house during the day,” Hamilton reassured, “Once Borg and I save up some money, we’ll move to a different place in the city.”
“I’m afraid Lynn will not be able to find us,” Anika spoke after a moment of silence.
This was the slums, and most refugees who fled would end up here.
Lynn didn’t have any money on him— during their escape, Anika and Hamilton carried all their money.
If Lynn came to Bangor Port, they might be able to find him here.
“No worries, I’ll ask some acquaintances here to keep an eye out for us, have them help us. If they see Lynn, they’ll let us know,” Hamilton said.
Along with them, there were also some familiar faces from their hometown who had come to Bangor Port.
In this unfamiliar territory, hometown folks tended to stick together more easily.
***
The carriage stopped in front of the inn.
As Ted had said, the journey had been relatively safe, without any significant mishaps.
The journey had gone smoothly.
Closing the door, Lynn went to the washroom to clean up a bit, then removed his coat and sat on the bed.
Picking up the notebook placed beside him, the new one given to him by the teacher appeared more like a journal recording various experiments. There was less content about personal emotions in this one.
Through the pages of this notebook, Lynn could almost see a young and earnest figure within the wizarding academy, facing setbacks step by step.
“7th Era of Wizard Calendar, Year 4671, the 5th day of the 3rd month.
My sister’s curse has worsened. I used the magic stones I earned from part-time work to have Harin buy a potion that can alleviate the curse. My sister’s condition has temporarily stabilized. However, there is still a long way to go before finding a solution to the curse.
I begged my curse-specialized teacher to help treat my sister, but he demanded 800 magic stones as a treatment fee. I can’t possibly come up with that much money. I begged many people, but no one was willing to lend me magic stones. I’m sorry, sister. My talent is lacking, and even if I want to sell myself, no one would want me.”
Upon reaching this point, Lynn’s heart trembled.
Did the teacher have such a past?
Did he ultimately manage to cure his sister?
Lynn felt a kind of gossiping joy, as if he had stumbled upon some juicy information.
However, he certainly wouldn’t dare ask the teacher about these matters in front of him.
If he touched upon the teacher’s sensitive spot, he might not get a good outcome.
Following this diary entry, there were no more of Angley’s journal entries in the notebook. Instead, it was replaced by a series of increasingly cruel experiments.
Starting from here, Angley began experimenting with living subjects.
Though it wasn’t his personal experiment, the data from these experiments, including Angley’s recording methods and analysis techniques, were meaningful.
After reading for a while, Lynn felt somewhat fatigued.
Closing the notebook, he placed it under his pillow.
Then, Lynn took out another magical book containing information about the Sleeping Curse.
The book was somewhat heavy, and it was only after flipping through its pages that he understood why.
Looking at the gleaming golden pages, Lynn was momentarily stunned, gently rubbing the pages. How could they seem as if they were crafted from solid gold?
If it was all gold, how much gold was used for such a thick book? The pages were imprinted with text, and Lynn flipped through them. There were a total of eight golden pages.
These golden pages contained both text and patterns on both sides, making a total of sixteen pages of content that recorded the Sleeping Curse spell.
Through reading, Lynn gradually understood the content recorded in this Sleeping Curse spellbook.
It covered everything from the spell’s casting effects, precautions, to the spell framework and the specific requirements for constructing that framework.
Almost step by step, it guided how to build a spell framework, from the basics to the intricacies.
For a wizard to cast a spell, they needed to first construct a spell framework within their mental sea. Then, by expending mental energy, they could release the corresponding spell associated with that framework.
This explanation seemed simple. To Lynn, it was like constructing a model within the mental sea, then using mental energy to activate it, allowing it to manipulate the magical elements in the air and form a spell.
It sounded easy, but merely constructing the spell framework was a massive task.
The hardest thing in this world was the breakthrough from 0 to 1.
Especially constructing a framework— it required anchoring first, creating nodes within the mental sea, laying the “foundation.”
Though the magical book had detailed instructions, Lynn tried for nearly an hour and still hadn’t figured out how to anchor mental energy first.
Lynn opened his eyes, feeling somewhat frustrated.
Well, he thought, let’s take a break for today and meditate a bit.
After settling his emotions, Lynn sat cross-legged on the bed and began to meditate. His thoughts entered a state of emptiness, and in his mind, a new ring began to form… Beyond the nine rings, a new one gradually coalesced, ultimately becoming the tenth ring.
Finally, the tenth ring formed, connecting with the previous nine.
In the dark expanse of his mental space, all around, the freely-floating blue dots of light seemed to be drawn by something, converging into Lynn’s mind.
His spirit surged.
Lynn opened his eyes, a gleam of light seemingly dancing within them.
A smile curled upon his lips.
‘Lynn
Level: Level 2 (1/100)
Physical Fitness: 1.32
Mental Strength: 2.3
Mastery:
——Earth Ring Meditation (10%)
Life Occupation:
——Level 1 Mutation Studies (9%) (0/10)
——Level 1 Bloodline Studies (1%) (0/10)
General Experience Points: 90′
Though the lack of daily tasks prevented the increase of general experience points, the daily meditation practice was steadily advancing the Earth Ring Meditation, and knowledge progress in mutation studies was also growing.
This gradual and steady process of getting stronger and more enriched brought Lynn a sense of satisfaction.
It would be even better if he could reach Bangor Port and find his family sooner.
Knock, knock.
A knocking sound came from the door.
Lynn looked toward the door. “Who is it?”
“It’s me, Old Kim.”
“Do you need something?”
“Sir, we’ll be reaching the Sagunto Mountains tomorrow. The road might get rougher from there.” Old Kim outside the door spoke.
“How many days will it take to cross the Sagunto Mountains?” Lynn asked.
“We’re taking the fastest route. It should take around three days to cross the mountains. There are no towns or villages in the mountains, so we’ll be camping in the wilderness for three days.”
“Understood,” Lynn replied.
As he listened to the fading footsteps of Old Kim, Lynn had just completed the formation of the earth ring during this moment and had a breakthrough in his meditation. His spirit was in an excited state, making sleep elusive.
After a moment’s consideration, Lynn put on his coat and shoes, then descended the stairs and stepped outside the inn.
——
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