The tremors grew stronger, and the cracks in the ceiling and walls slowly widened. The tower was indeed about to collapse. If the spatial imbalance that Huoye had mentioned occurred, the things inside the tower would likely be lost or destroyed. It was imperative to rescue them as soon as possible.
Two mages and Mati'gosa hurriedly squeezed through the large hole in the wall, and together they looted all sorts of Merlin's items.
Unas had already rushed to the fourth floor, Merlin's most secret place—his bedroom. Several large holes had been broken in the ceiling. The room had a very simple style, but anything placed in it could be Merlin's Arcane Artifacts, and he swept it all away.
At this moment, a wall finally cracked completely, foreshadowing the beginning of a precipitous collapse. Unas quickly activated his Light Wings and flew out through the large hole in the ceiling.
The Little Red Dragon outside the tower was startled and flew into the air, while the Mutant Spider swarm escorted Shadra, Rosebayne, and the others to a distance.
Blue Dragon and the two mages also flew out one after another. The group landed at one place and watched as the giant tree-like Mage Tower collapsed and quickly turned into a pile of rubble.
"I didn't expect there to be a hidden trap inside the magic gate. Forcibly breaking through it would have led to the destruction of the entire tower. This was my mistake, and it's such a pity for this Mage Tower," Fode lamented.
"It's alright, I salvaged many Spellbook and notebooks, among which there are likely experimental records documented by Merlin."
"Let's not delay. Let's bring out our spoils and examine them carefully one by one. Archmage Merlin's magical insights and storage Arcane Artifacts might be hidden among them."
The group began taking things out, and soon a pile of books and furniture appeared on the ground. The two monks immediately began to carefully examine the thick books.
Unas ordered Rosebayne to lead the Mutant Spider swarm to dig through the ruins, hoping to uncover the entrance to the underground level. The Mage Tower was destroyed, but the two underground levels might still survive. Merlin's body couldn't just be buried like that.
The two mages were engrossed in turning the pages of the book, while Mati'gosa examined various chairs, vases, paintings, and other miscellaneous items one by one.
Unas could neither read the Spellbook filled with incantations nor detect fluctuations in magical energy, so he could only wait idly by.
Actually, he had secretly hidden two things that he hadn't taken out. One was a Ruby Ring on Merlin's bedside table, which was very likely a storage Arcane Artifacts. The other was a large rectangular box, big enough for one or two people to lie down in, and its purpose was unknown. It was also placed in Merlin's bedroom.
He offered an excuse for this corruption: it was spoils of war, something the victor deserved.
Logically speaking, this is perfectly reasonable. After defeating Merlin, his possessions should naturally belong to the victor. However, Dalaran will certainly not agree to this. Just look at the way Fode and his apprentice looked at those Spellbooks; they must be very valuable. They will definitely find an excuse to confiscate what Unas brought out.
So Unas also kept a backup plan, holding onto what seemed to be Merlin's most valuable possession. If he couldn't find evidence among what he had already presented, he would then take out the Ring and the long box.
Fortunately, evidence gradually emerged, and it took the two mages four or five hours to finish browsing through the books in Merlin's study. By then, they had moved to the first basement level—the underground passage had been dug out by the Mutant Spiders, and the space below was indeed undamaged.
As speculated, part of the book contains Merlin's experimental records, which clearly mention data obtained from experiments on living people of various races—irrefutable evidence.
Furthermore, with the numerous eyewitness accounts from victims beneath Fairy Lake, Merlin's crimes are undeniable and irrefutable.
"Great!" Unas was overjoyed; now Dalaran couldn't openly attack him.
Fode's emotions were complex. The fall of a hero always evokes a sense of sorrow. Resurrection as a human being is such a beautiful wish, but using such twisted and evil methods, even if one is truly resurrected, can one still call oneself a human being?
"Now that we've found the evidence, I'll put the rest away." Unas made a gesture as if to collect the miscellaneous items and books, including many works of art, Arcane Artifacts, and magical gems.
Fode immediately said, "Wait, according to the laws of Dalaran, the deceased's property should belong to his heirs. Until Merlin's will is found, these items should be kept in our custody."
"They've arrived, just as I expected," Unas said, pursing his lips. "What if there's no heir?"
"As a member of Dalaran, Master Merlin's estate will become the common property of Dalaran."
Unas didn't want to argue any further. "Then let's do it according to Dalaran's rules. You can keep them, but you must give me all the experimental records." The evidence had to be in his own hands.
You can get a copy.
"A copy?" Unas immediately objected. "I demand the original evidence; you should only have a copy."
"You still don't trust me, Paladin!"
"I believe in your neutrality, but you yourself said your neutrality is only temporary. If your boss comes tomorrow and orders you to secretly destroy the evidence, will you disobey?"
"..." Fode was speechless. He couldn't bring himself to offend his superior unless he wanted to try a mission with a near-death experience.
Many troublemakers disappear after being sent on near-death missions, and he didn't want to be one of them.
"Therefore, it's safest for me to keep the evidence." Unas stepped forward and began to collect Merlin's experimental report. Knowing he was in the wrong, Fode could only acquiesce to his actions.
After he finished tidying up, Fode took out a few letters he had selected and said, "These letters are correspondence between Merlin and several important figures. I have read the contents and there are no problems, but I still suggest destroying them to avoid needlessly offending people."
Unas took the papers and glanced at them; they were all unfamiliar names. "Big shots" likely referred to powerful figures among the mages, and these people had connections with Merlin, making them potential enemies.
"Let me take another look myself. If there are no problems, I'll destroy them." He said he would destroy them, but he was actually putting all the letters into his backpack.
Seeing this, Fode did not stop him. He could not control whether the Paladin was willing to court death. Some eccentric "big shots" would not even let a simple letter with just "hello" fall into the hands of a stranger.
"Paladin, take us to Fairy Lake. I want to see the witness you mentioned."
"No problem, they're working on an antidote over there and are short of two mages as learned as you," Unas said, still thinking about the Rot Hide Gnoll. "But I need to go back to Balnir Farmstead for a bit. You guys fly north; once you reach Fairy Lake, you'll have my warrant and can travel freely."
"Our knowledge of alchemy and pharmaceuticals is not extensive, but we will certainly do our best."
After watching the two golden Gryphon fly away, Unas and the Blue Dragon set off again.