The servant assured her that the person was indeed a personal guard of the Duke and that the Duchess had asked Megan to help select a dress for Aresia. It seemed that they were going to attend a special event.

Although she didn’t understand, since her mother had sent someone, Aresia changed into a luxurious gown and styled her hair elaborately. She looked beautiful as she sat in the carriage and headed to the palace.

When they arrived at the palace, Aresia stepped out of the carriage and gave her father a respectful bow.

She was curious about why they had come to the palace.

Her father didn’t provide specific details and mentioned meeting a senior in the palace.

The way she referred to a senior meant that it couldn’t be the Emperor of Holy Lotean.

Aresia was puzzled until she saw the person her father was waiting for. It was an elderly man with deep wrinkles on his face, showing the marks of time. His hair and beard were completely white, and his face was covered in age spots.

This was an elderly person who seemed to be on the verge of passing away, but Aresia could sense a strong magical power emanating from him. He belonged to the level of an eight-grade mage.

In the presence of this aged appearance and such magical power, Aresia only needed a moment to figure out who he was.

Antonio, the Chief mage of Holy Lotean, the only eighth-grade mage in the empire.

As Aresia discreetly observed him, Antonio also looked at her, his gaze open and honest.

When Duke Rogest suddenly came to find him, Antonio was surprised to hear about this extraordinary situation. It involved the inheritance of a mage’s memories, not only passing on knowledge to a chosen successor but also seemingly passing on power.

However, Antonio had not been informed by the Duke about the details of this memory inheritance. Firstly, he was skeptical about the existence of a ninth-grade mage, thinking that it might be a deception aimed at Aresia. Secondly, he was well aware of the allure of an eighth-grade dark mage for anyone, especially considering the scarcity of other eighth-grade mages. Each of them was a powerful weapon for their respective Departments.

If they wanted to change to a healthier body, it was not as simple as finding a suitable one. In reality, the arrival of such a high-level powerhouse would not be difficult if they wanted to maintain a youthful appearance, but changing to a truly young body would greatly diminish their power. Unless it was absolutely necessary, whether it was the mages themselves or the Departments backing them, they wouldn’t allow such a thing to happen.

While Antonio was somewhat interested in Aresia’s situation, he wasn’t too excited about it. He didn’t even know how this inheritance worked.

Having stayed in the position of an eighth-grade for too long, Antonio had initially been full of ambition when he first entered the eighth grade. He had tried to make a breakthrough to the ninth grade, but after hundreds of years, he remained stuck at the eighth grade. He couldn’t even reach the peak of the eighth grade, let alone make the leap to the ninth grade. As time went on, his enthusiasm waned, and he even neglected his appearance. He didn’t care whether he appeared youthful or not.

Apart from his cultivation, one of Antonio’s regrets was that he had never found a suitable successor. He felt the regret of not having a successor to pass his knowledge to. Now, hearing about this method of memory inheritance, he became interested.

Although the Duke initially told Antonio about the inheritance coming from a seventh-grade mage, Antonio didn’t pay too much attention to it. He was more interested in the method of inheritance itself.

“Do you know how it was created?” he asked Aresia.

Aresia didn’t know, and although she was suspicious of the inheritance’s legitimacy, she didn’t dare to show it. She closed her eyes as if searching for the memory of the inheritance. Neither of the two men disturbed her, and she remained in that state for a long time. When Aresia finally opened her eyes, she calmly and fluently explained to them the method of creating the inheritance.

It turned out that the creation of the inheritance was not as simple as extracting memories and organizing them. Unnecessary memories were removed, leaving only essential knowledge. The knowledge was then replicated and sealed in a special container.

Additionally, a portion of power was infused into it. The container was set with specific conditions for activation, and this process created an inheritance that contained all the knowledge and some of the power. When an appropriate candidate was encountered, the inheritance would be passed on, similar to a baptism-like transfer.

This method of finding a successor through inheritance was well-known among powerful mages and even other strong individuals in the High Magic World. Typically, it was done through a testament, a preparation made by those on the verge of death. At the very least, Aresia had made preparations in case she encountered an accident. She had no regrets when it came to this matter.

Creating the inheritance was not an easy task, as it required special magical tools and expertise in container creation. Concealing the method of creating the container was also important. Antonio felt that the process was not as simple as it seemed.

However, he was satisfied after going through the examination and confirming that the soul inside Aresia was indeed in its original state and hadn’t been tampered with.

He smiled and nodded at the Duke, allowing him to relax. Antonio then said, “Your body is in good condition. Your magical reserves have indeed reached the level of a fourth-grade mage. Once you become proficient in magic, you can consider taking the professional level certification exam.”

Aresia obediently nodded in response. Although Antonio hadn’t shown much excitement about the inheritance, she knew that he was genuinely interested. Now that the danger of someone attempting to possess her had been ruled out, the Duke felt relieved. They had finally obtained a legitimate inheritance.

Moreover, Antonio had agreed to join in. On one hand, it was because someone was truly seeking a host for possession. On the other hand, he was interested in learning about the method of this inheritance.

“Did you know how it was created?” Antonio asked after listening to the Duke’s explanation.

Antonio was delighted to discover that the details of this memory inheritance were recorded. He couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed. Originally, it was supposed to be Duke Rogest owing him a favor, but now the situation seemed to have reversed, and it felt like he owed them a favor instead.

Therefore, as the Duke bid farewell to him, Antonio discreetly told them that he would not disclose the details of this matter to anyone and requested their secrecy.

The Duke expressed his gratitude and thanked Antonio before leaving with his daughter.

This was Antonio’s concern. When he sought Antonio’s help, the Duke hadn’t mentioned anything about informing Emperor. After all, this matter was quite sensitive during this period. They had recently obtained the Spider Magic Loom, Magic Hoverboards, and other unique magical artifacts.

They even possessed the Beast Contract, which could potentially change the world’s power dynamics. If the Duke informed Antonio about the inheritance of memories in Aresia, it would be difficult to prevent the two matters from being connected.

It wasn’t that he was not genuinely worried about Aresia’s safety. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have sought Antonio’s help. Although the Archmage had been inactive for a long time, he could still influence important events. The Duke was reluctant to inform Emperor about this matter.

Since Aresia had informed Antonio about the method of creating the inheritance, and he had accepted this information, the Duke no longer needed to worry about how to inform him. He didn’t need to ask Antonio to keep it a secret because he knew he could trust him.

The Duke patted his daughter’s shoulder and, as they left the palace, asked, “Have you prepared everything for your departure? Did Megan help check for any missing items?”

Aresia immediately replied, “Everything has been prepared. Mrs. Megan has assisted in making sure nothing is missing. I will bring a few servants, but they will not arrive until tomorrow morning.”

“Alright, I will have them come to the Duke’s residence to pick you up. The journey will be tiring, so take care of yourself. Once you arrive at the territory, don’t cause any trouble. No matter where you are, remember to be accompanied by someone who can protect you, okay?”

The area near the territory was more dangerous than Holy Lotean City. The Duke emphasized Aresia’s safety.

Aresia obediently nodded and replied, “Yes, I promise not to wander off.”

Although the Duke felt somewhat reassured by her promise, he still had some concerns. He knew that although Aresia enjoyed causing a bit of mischief, she wasn’t the type to wander aimlessly.

As for the preparations Aresia had made, when she brought the necessary items for the journey and arrived at the door, she was stunned to see the escort sent by the Duke.

The Duke had indeed arranged for an escort, but she was expecting around 20 to 30 people. However, there were now more than two to three hundred people!

Were these people really here to serve as escorts?!