Chapter 16 – Alfredo

On the way, Isabella kept thinking about what happened just now. Until finally she decided to ask.

"Hey, how did you become this strong?"

"Eehh…" Griffin scratched his neck that didn't itch. He didn't know how to explain.

There were several things that Griffin knew after obtaining the Basic Knowledge of the Magic World.

First, this world did have a system that indicated one's level and status. But there's no quiz-like system that awards prizes and penalties. This made sense, because if everyone got a quiz that could help them become strong, of course the mages from Lirest wouldn't be that weak.

Second, Griffin's massive amount of mana was extremely unreasonable. With his current status, Griffin was more or less in the level 14 range. But his mana and recovery speed were beyond reasonable for this level.

Third, it is very difficult for magicians to learn magic. To get a skill, they need very hard training and luck. And even though people can memorize spells, that doesn't mean everyone can use them right away. Generally others take 1-2 days to cast one spell properly. And it would take longer if it was a high level magic spell.

So if Griffin explained that he took the quiz, had an insane amount of mana, and was able to cast spells right after obtaining the 'Basic Knowledge of the Magic World', Isabella would definitely not believe it. After all, the Griffin that fell into this world already had many oddities.

"Erm, hard to explain."

"Why, which part is difficult?"

Griffin was increasingly confused by this question.

Isabella exhaled seeing Griffin who couldn't answer.

"In that case, where did you learn the spell just now?"

Griffin thought for a while, he felt that it should be fine to tell Isabella a little. Moreover, two of them were now allies.

"Well, somehow, I obtained the 'Basic Knowledge of the Magic World'. So I already know basic information like this."

"WHAT?!" Isabella half shouted very loudly when she heard Griffin's words.

"You obtained one of the knowledge collections? How?!" Isabella asked excitedly. Very different from the usual cold and calm her.

Griffin was not surprised. There were books filled with rare information in this world, but knowledge that could be directly transferred to memory was very rare and expensive. And that also made Griffin surprised, because he got two knowledge at once and one high-level skill just by killing a level 15 creature.

"Well, it's hard to explain." Griffin said awkwardly.

Isabella who saw Griffin like that didn't ask any further.

"It's fine if you don't want to tell it, there's no need to force yourself. One thing you need to know, I am your ally from now on. So there's no need to be so awkward with me."

Griffin felt guilty hearing Isabella's words. He knew that Isabella could be trusted, but Griffin's existence was indeed very strange, so he didn't want to say too much right now. Moreover, he still wants to find out what's behind all this strangeness in him.

They were both silent for a few moments. Luckily no monsters appeared this time or the room moved on its own, so they could walk around at ease.

"By the way you haven't told me what Raymond is like. I won't be able to recognize him if we meet later." Griffin asked so at least the atmosphere could feel more comfortable.

"Raymond is an excellent leader. She likes helping people of Lirest even though he is a powerful wizard with a high level. That's why he is also respected by other mages, including me."

"Wow, you've known him for a long time?"

"I've known him since childhood. Long time ago, I was an outcast who accidentally passed through the forest around Lirest. Raymond who soon replaced his father's position accepted me in this place."

"Replace his father's position?"

"Yes, his father died because of a dispute with Boaren. So it's Raymond who has to step up so there won't be any chaos."

Griffin got it. Long conflicts often end in war and death.

"What about Cody?"

Isabella was silent for a moment. She looked like she didn't want to say this, but finally her mouth forced she to speak.

"In short, he's Raymond's younger brother. Since coming to Lirest I've always been with the three of them. But unlike Raymond, Cody doesn't like dealing with other wizards, he is naughty, often fights with Raymond. Even so, he's still a good person, at least he used to be."

Isabella's eyes showed a sad expression when she said this. She still didn't want to accept the fact that Cody was a traitor, but it was the truth.

Griffin who saw Isabella's expression immediately changed the question.

"S-so in order to return the favor, you helped Raymond protect Lirest?"

"That's one reason, but there is another. Raymond once said, 'protecting the weak is the responsibility of the strong'. Because of that, I want to help Lirest magicians who are helpless in a war like this."

Griffin was amazed to hear that. From Isabella's explanation alone, he felt that Raymond was a responsible leader who really cared about others.

"One thing for sure, Raymond and Cody both have leafy green hair. And their eyes were like sparkling green pearls. It's very eye-catching, so you can tell right away when you see it. But Cody has a single line of scars down the side of his mouth, so you would have recognized them immediately."

Griffin nodded, their features unique enough to be distinguished.

Then Griffin remembered something. Things he wanted to try but haven't done yet.

[You activated skill "Clairvoyant" Level 1]

-

Name: Isabella Harriet

Level: 10 (Sealed)

Title: Lirest Protector

Species: Human

HP: 136/150

MP: 127/215

Age: 19

[Strength: 11] [Agility: 17] [Stamina:11] [Vitality: 9] [Magic: 18]

-

"Whoa, crazy."

Griffin spoke in thought as he saw a blue screen appear in front of him. So this is clairvoyant active mode. He could see the status of others clearly like this. At this rate, he could instantly figure out the enemy's information and abilities more easily.

"But his agility and magic are very high."

Griffin stared in awe. Even though she was sealed, Isabella's status was still higher for level 10. It was clear that she often traning to improve her own status. Other than Griffins being able to raise their status from quizzes, ordinary wizards could only train as hard as they could to raise their status. So this shows how hard this girl tries to be strong.

"And I say this just in case. If you meet Barnes Esteban, the leader of Boaren, run immediately. We have no chance of winning against him."

"You mean? He is so strong?"

"Yeah, I hate to admit it, but he sure is strong. Lirest and Boaren were not very large territories, so the presence of a powerful magician like Barnes was almost unheard of. One thing for sure, we will die if we meet him."

Griffin understood what Isabella was saying. In the 'Basic Knowledge of the Magic World', there is general information about powerful mages from various regions. One of them is Barnes Esteban, the leader of Boaren. Not much information about Barnes has surfaced, moreover he is only the leader of the Boaren who doesn't have much of an impact on the magic world.

But the fact is certain in the knowledge, Barnes is a magic user whose elements are almost on par with dark magic. Just that fact alone showed that this fellow was extremely dangerous. Because dark magic is a forbidden magic that is very deadly. So a magician capable of using dark magic must be very rare.

Meanwhile elsewhere, Edison was walking a long path that had no end. His priority right now was finding Raymond, so he didn't have time to look for Isabella or Griffin. The problem was, he didn't know where to go either.

He arrived at a place where there were many paths again.

"How many branches are there in this place?" Edison muttered to himself in annoyance at the sight of this endless place.

"When will the dark ritual begin?"

Edison heard a sound from one of the lanes. He immediately hide again like just now to eavesdrop on the witches who came. Only two people.

"Soon. All preparations have been completed. We've set a trap on Lirest, so the dark ritual can be performed any time. Just don't wait for Isabella and the other witches to fall into the trap."

"Hahaha, this way we can finish off Lirest really easily. I didn't think Mr. Esteban could actually use that magic. This is amazing"

"Right. He is the only one who can lead us all. I can't wait to hear the screams of the witches in Lirest when their homeland is destroyed by those monsters."

The two witches burst into laughter. Until not realizing that Edison had cut the throat of one of them.

When the others had not had time to react, Edison quickly cut off one of the person's hands.

"Aaaah!" He fell to the ground in pain.

Edison looked at them with great fury. His anger was so great that he came forward and directly killed the witch just now. Luckily there was a spirit mode that allowed him to instantly defeat them before the two of them even realized.

"Say, what do you mean by dark ritual?"

Edison pointed the tip of his sword at the wizard whose hand was cut off just now.

"Why should I tell you?!"

Edison unhesitatingly stabbed the man in the shoulder, causing him to writh in pain.

"'Why do you have to tell me?' It seems that you still don't understand the current situation. Whether you want to say it or not, it's up to you. But whether I cut off your head or not is up to me. So, what do you choose?" Edison threatened in a terrible tone. Resulting in the witch instantly telling him everything he knew.

"I-I don't really understand either. In other words, dark ritual is magic that creates unlimited monsters. They say it can destroy Lirest very quickly." The witch spoke haltingly.

"Creating unlimited monsters? It is impossible. There's no way any magic can produce unlimited monsters without the appropriate mana."

For a moment Edison looked unable to believe what this wizard was saying. Then he remembered something. Something really terrible.

"Perhaps..."

Edison held his sword very tightly. In his mind already had the worst-case scenario for Lirest.

Edison killed the wizard just now, before he even had a chance to beg for mercy.

"I have to leave immediately."

"Where are you going in such a hurry?"

Edison froze in place. The voice he heard just now, was the voice of someone he had heard for over 20 years. Someone who is very close, but now is the worst meeting ever.

He looked back to see if his aged ears had heard him wrong. But when he looked back, Edsion could no longer deny that 'this person' was really him.

"Cody Alfredo."