Richard maintained an impassive expression, his words sharp and cutting: "You're just too naive, Chris. I was always a Black Wizard. Where's the betrayal in that?"
"What!!!" Chris was utterly stunned.
Unfortunately, Richard had no intention of elaborating further. He turned to the alchemist standing nearby and ordered, "Make him shut up."
The man, cold and expressionless like a machine devoid of thought, immediately craned his neck and opened his mouth. From within, a dark metallic tube extended outward. A faint 'pssh pssh pssh' sound was heard as puffs of pale purple gas erupted from the tube in rapid spurts.
The purple mist quickly enveloped Chris, whose eyes betrayed fear. Before he could utter another word, his eyelids drooped, and his body collapsed limply to one side.
Richard snorted disdainfully, sneering, "Hmph, a greedy idiot who actually believed in the nonsense of free miracles falling from the sky. How laughable..."
Before he could finish his sentence, his voice abruptly cut off. It seemed something had occurred. Richard's expression darkened, and he hastily pulled a vial of black liquid from his pocket and downed it in one gulp.
Then, an eerie scene unfolded.
Richard's left cheek began to ripple as though disturbed by an unseen force. Moments later, his entire face started to contort and deform.
Before long, a bizarre, unfamiliar face emerged suddenly on the left side of Richard's face.
Where his normal face should have been, a second, smaller face had grotesquely grown out. The sight was unnervingly strange, like some kind of horrifying parasitic entity clinging to him.
Richard's demeanor shifted at once, becoming reverent and submissive: "Master."
The grotesque face spoke: "How is the situation progressing?"
Richard forced a smile: "Quite smoothly. Thirteen specimens in total: ten..."
He briefly glanced at the unconscious Chris before continuing, "Eleven are alive. The other two resisted and were killed by me, but I've already preserved their corpses immediately. The bodies remain intact, and all their organs are in usable condition."
"Thirteen?" The face expressed mild doubt. "Weren't there supposed to be sixteen?"
Richard flinched visibly, hurriedly replying, "Three apprentices changed their minds at the last minute and didn't show up..."
"Didn't come?" The face's tone sharpened.
Richard quivered in fear, bowing deeply: "I will make up for the missing ones, Master."
The grotesque visage's tone softened slightly: "Sixteen specimens were promised, and sixteen must be provided. My experiment is calibrated for sixteen. Should you interfere with my work, you already know the consequences."
Richard's face turned ghostly pale, sweat streaming down his brow. "Y-Yes, Master..."
"That's enough. Once this is resolved, return to the academy quickly." With those parting words, the face gradually faded until it vanished completely, leaving Richard's left cheek to return to its normal state.
Several moments passed before Richard straightened himself up again. He cautiously touched his cheek to confirm the "person" had indeed departed. Only then did the tension lift from his expression.
"Ugh!"
He spat vehemently and swung a fist violently against the trunk of a nearby tree.
"Damn bastard. Don't let me get a chance. Sooner or later..."
He paused, seemingly remembering something, and quickly glanced toward the man standing next to him. After confirming that the man remained cold and blank-faced, he finally finished his thought aloud.
"Hmph. Mark my words—one day, I, Richard, will trample this damned world beneath my feet!"
...
Early the next morning, Lynch headed to the mission hut to submit his task. But before he reached it, he noticed messenger Ravens flying one after another into the Tower. Shortly thereafter, the anxious ringing of bells erupted from within.
Not long after, a large group of Black Robe Enforcers hurried out in a steady stream. Their faces were pale and tense as they mounted their witchcraft contraptions and swiftly flew toward the depths of the Forest without uttering a single word.
"Did something serious happen?"
"Why do the Black Robe Enforcers look so grim?"
The apprentices around began murmuring in low, speculative tones.
Lynch stood listening for a while but failed to catch any meaningful information. He shook his head and continued toward the mission hut.
The mission hut served as the Tower's central hub for all tasks. Any assignments from the Tower were posted there for apprentices to take on voluntarily. Likewise, apprentices could post their own tasks within it as well.
"Mr. Bic, I'm here to submit my task."
Lynch placed ten modified Magic Devouring Flowers onto the counter. Due to time constraints, the flowers were required to be delivered in batches of ten at a time.
The mission center was run by goblins—small green-skinned creatures only half as tall as humans. Naturally gifted with logic and computation, goblins excelled in planning and management.
Goblin Bic was visibly surprised to see Lynch again. "It's you again, little guy! Don't you ever sleep? If I recall correctly, you just handed me a batch of Magic Devouring Flowers three days ago."
Lynch replied straightforwardly, "I've been focused on completing the task as quickly as possible these past few days."
Bic commended him, "A diligent little fellow indeed."
"Let's see here... Hmm. Impressive. Every single Magic Devouring Flower has been expertly modified—practically flawless! I doubt even the pickiest employer could find fault."
"Alright, your batch of ten flowers has been approved. Here are your magic stones."
Bic handed Lynch two Magic Stones.
"Thank you."
Lynch accepted the payment with gratitude, a joyful glint in his eyes as he pocketed the stones.
In the Wizard World, Magic Stones were a universal currency that was notoriously difficult to earn. During Lynch's early days at the Tower, he could only take on menial tasks such as weeding or fertilizing, earning only a few Magic Stones per month.
As his proficiency in the Basic Transformation Technique improved, he began handling simple modification tasks. Yet even with that, his monthly income only amounted to about ten Magic Stones. Tasks like modifying Magic Devouring Flowers were considered relatively lucrative—a month's worth of work yielding twenty Magic Stones.
"No need to thank me. You've earned it." Bic allowed a small smile. "If any worthwhile tasks arise in the future, I'll be sure to inform you ahead of time."
Lynch froze momentarily in surprise, then quickly pulled out a Magic Stone to express his thanks again.
Bic waved him off. "Unnecessary. A diligent apprentice who excels at completing tasks is already a great help to me."
"Frankly, the quality of apprentices these days is declining. They're overly picky about tasks, half-hearted in execution, and rarely submit anything beyond barely passable results. Yet they whine all the time about fairness and their grievances."
"Fairness? Do they even deserve it?"
"They refuse to focus on proper cultivation, choosing instead to daydream about treasures falling from the sky or a powerful figure taking notice of them, granting resources and lavishing them with training. Ha! They should look at themselves in the mirror first. What makes them so special to deserve that?"
Lynch couldn't help but twitch his lips at Bic's sharp critique. It seemed this goblin had quite the outspoken personality.
"Alright, enough of that," Bic said with a shake of his head before continuing, "Kid, you've got potential. I hope you keep this up."
"Sure, there are a few lucky ones in the Wizard World, but they're the exceptions. No matter how talented someone is, none can go far on the Wizard's Road without hard work."
Lynch nodded, solemnly replying, "I'll remember your words."
"Click-click-click!"
Just then, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed as another group of Black Robe Enforcers exited through the door. They, too, wore bleak expressions and silently marched out into the world beyond.
Lynch, visibly puzzled, asked, "What's going on? So many enforcers have left today."
Bic replied, "Word is something happened in the Red Mushroom Forest. Apparently, a group of apprentices claimed they'd found ruins there and went exploring. None of them came back. Looks like they fell into a Black Wizard's trap."
Lynch's eyes widened in alarm. "The Red Mushroom Forest?"
Wasn't that the same place Chris had invited him to explore not long ago?
Bic nodded. "Yes, indeed. A bunch of fools. That forest has been picked clean for hundreds of years. Any talk of ruins there is clearly nonsense..."