Chapter 23 Level Up (1)

Because the teacher was right there, Lynn still didn’t raise his level right under his nose.

After all, he hadn’t experimented with the sudden increase in mental strength and the potential anomalies it might bring, or the rapid improvement in physical fitness. He couldn’t be sure if he could hide it from Angley’s watchful eyes.

After tidying up the laboratory, things looked much more pleasing to the eye. While rearranging the bookshelves, Lynn found a notebook that contained some self-narratives about the second owner.

Lynn wasn’t sure if it was because of the profession of a wizard or some other reason, but he noticed that most of the wizards he encountered liked to write diaries or take notes.

Which honest person likes to write a diary?, he muttered in his heart.

However, he could also understand the mentality of these people. For wizards, due to the nature of their profession, they had fewer friends, and most of them were somewhat reclusive.

With no one to confide in, they liked to write diaries to record their daily trivia or research insights. Personal secrets were not recorded in these diaries. Moreover, they often stored these diaries in the most secure places. If someone could find them, it probably meant that something unexpected had happened. These diaries and some research findings served as evidence that they had once existed.

Every wizard had a certain pride. As researchers among the extraordinary, they naturally stood at the top of the disdain hierarchy.

Even if I dissipate in the future, my works, my achievements, and my wisdom will continue to exist in this world eternally. On the path to truth, there will always be a footprint of mine.

As a fellow wizard, the more Lynn understood about wizards, the more he could empathize with this mentality.

Thinking of this, Lynn couldn’t help but sneak a glance at his teacher, the guide who had set him on this path.

“Why aren’t you reading the book properly? Why are you looking at me?” Angley suddenly frowned as he looked at his book.

“I just suddenly feel lucky to have met you, teacher,” Lynn said, and there was indeed a hint of sincerity in his words. If it weren’t for meeting Angley, he would still be an ordinary commoner.

Faced with the exploitation of the constable and the condescension of the nobles, even with the memories from his previous life, Lynn felt a sense of powerlessness when confronted with the trends of this era.

That was also the reason why, for most of the year after awakening his innate wisdom, he did not use some knowledge from his previous life to earn money on a large scale.

In this era, power was not emphasized, but there was something even more frightening than power— class. Nobles’ sons were born nobles, while commoners’ sons, barring exceptional circumstances, remained commoners for life.

Nobles could kill commoners without needing a reason— they only had to pay a fine.

Only the Noble Council had the authority to judge nobles.

Behind those merchants, there was always a noble background, and their wealth was always accrued for the nobility.

Lynn had persuaded his family to go to Bangor Port because he had heard that the atmosphere there was more open. He wanted to gather more information about this world through Bangor Port and then choose the right path. Originally, he had longed for this world, which was not limited to just one country. Surely, there were some countries that were relatively less rigid in their class systems.

But now, he had embarked on a different path, one that was unknown but filled with anticipation and excitement.

Angley continued reading without any movement. After a while, he said in a calm tone, “Fate has already marked a price on all gifts, you don’t need to be grateful.”

Lynn was accustomed to his teacher’s enigmatic personality. He didn’t mind. Whether I’m grateful or not is my business, it has nothing to do with your reaction.

Lynn flipped through the notes in his hand. Through the fragments in the notes and the almost worn-out dictionary book left in the corner of the bookshelf, a vague image was pieced together in Lynn’s mind.

A young orphan with the potential to become a wizard but living in poor conditions, enduring mistreatment at his uncle and aunt’s house, accidentally inherited the legacy of a wizard. He had a tough and sunny personality. Every night, he secretly entered the space to study magic. When he reached adulthood, he left his uncle and aunt’s house.

While wandering outside, he met the young daughter of a count. The two shared a deep bond but were separated due to their social statuses. Just as the war broke out, to gain a noble title and marry his beloved, the young man participated in the war and gained a significant reputation with his alchemical skills.

When the kingdom conquered the enemy country, the king rewarded the heroes. However, on the way back from the celebration banquet, they were ambushed. Using his last resort, the young man escaped with severe injuries.

He hid in the iron mine to accumulate strength for revenge. He wasn’t sure if he would ever return. The second inheritor of the wizard’s legacy believed that he might not fulfill the first wizard’s wish. He was grateful to the first wizard for giving him the opportunity to change his fate. Without him, he might have remained a country boy for his entire life.

So, before leaving, he left behind the Alchemy Laboratory, the knowledge he had acquired over the years, and his final achievements.

Lynn rubbed his chin.

The story of the second wizard in this Alchemy Laboratory sounded quite traditional.

And who knew if the revenge was successful— it was highly probable it failed, right?

Moreover, the two countries mentioned in the notes were very familiar.

The country that eventually won the war was the Erdolu Kingdom, the very kingdom he was currently living in.

Lynn had heard that the kingdom had launched a war in the south to reclaim southern lands, but that was more than two hundred years ago. Everyone involved in those events was likely long gone.

But Lynn considered a deeper possibility.

The second wizard never returned, most likely because his revenge had failed. However, the alchemical monster he created must have been seen by people at the time.

So, it wasn’t surprising that someone in the Erdolu Kingdom recognized the Iron Earthworms. This thing might even be recorded in the libraries of certain nobles.

Angley had walked to the desk at some point, looking at the blueprints for the Iron Earthworm.

He shook his head and casually said, “Not bad. Being able to produce such a product here shows some talent.”

“Although I haven’t delved deeply into alchemy, I do have some knowledge,” Angley said lightly.

“In fact, for wizards, regardless of the direction, the most important thing is perfection. You need to excel in one direction, whether it’s in terms of lethality, reconnaissance, production, camouflage, or even production cost and speed. There should always be a distinctive feature to make a wizard’s creation stand out.”

Lynn put down the book and listened attentively to his teacher’s explanation.

“Mediocrity has no future. For wizards, mediocrity means uselessness because wizards can study many creations,” Angley said, redirecting his gaze. “The only notable advantage of this Iron Earthworm is that the materials required for its production are relatively easy to obtain.

“Yellow jasper is a common stone with magical properties. Creations made using yellow jasper have good affinity with the earth.

“In the wizarding world, the price of 10 kilograms of yellow jasper powder was approximately 1 magic stone. However, the combat abilities of the Iron Earthworm were lacking. It didn’t possess innate magic and could only be considered a beast with extraordinary talents, not even reaching the level of the lowest-grade magical creature. Its only notable trait was the ability to tunnel through the earth, likely due to the inclusion of yellow jasper.”

Lynn nodded, and he noticed a key term, “wizarding world,” in his teacher’s words. He wondered whether it was a noun or a pronoun.

——
T/L Bonus: Unofficial illustration of yellow jasper.