The Resilient Boy

Anna had not run far before she fell in the corridor.

But everything around her was trembling.

The Picture Frames on the walls, oil lamps, curtains, statues—everything was shaking.

"Ah~~"

Anna cried out in pain, and everything began to float.

"Magic Outburst." Anton pursed his lips and stopped walking.

As Young Wizards grew older, their magic gradually manifested. Whenever their emotions fluctuated intensely, a Magic Outburst would follow.

It looked miraculous, but it also meant the magic within a Young Wizard was beginning to lose control.

Driven by the Young Wizard's emotions, that loss of control would automatically produce the effects of corresponding spells. It was extremely similar to the Old Wizard's theory—Wizard is God.

Without learning spells to organize the magic within their bodies, whether they deliberately suppressed it or indulged it freely, Young Wizards could become dangerous Obscuruses.

Obscuruses were powerful, but like Nagini, they were merely energy that had lost its own consciousness.

Of course, there were many other possibilities, but none of the outcomes were good.

The effects of the 'Eye of the Wizard' potion continued. Specks of light gradually lit up in the air around Anton, where countless lines and blocks of color intertwined.

He was drawing the Magic Image of the Magic Outburst.

The 'Eye of the Wizard' potion was far too difficult to brew, and its cost was frighteningly high. Every second after drinking it was precious.

Gradually, Anna began to float. Under the vision of Anton's Eye of the Wizard, the chaotic magic stabilized.

It formed an extraordinarily mysterious and beautiful pattern.

Levitation Charm, Flying Charm, Control Charm...

Anton had found the prototypes of countless spells almost the instant the magic erupted.

Without question, this magical effect was extremely powerful.

Moreover, the Magic Image he drew was even more complex than the image from the 'Goblin Eye' secret art.

Just then, everything fell back down, including Anna, who hit the floor heavily.

Anton was about to step forward to help her up when he saw Anna's body twisting and changing on the ground. In the end, she gradually transformed into a huge snake.

It was still Viper Species, but its markings were deeper, its dark brown coloring nearly allowing her to blend completely into the backdrop of the castle's stone walls.

Only a pair of deep emerald vertical pupils shone in the dim corridor.

Her snake eyes looked around in confusion. She slithered over, raised her head high, and stared at Anton uncertainly.

In Anton's eyes, she saw a reflected figure—a snake.

The giant snake shifted rapidly, transforming back into Anna. Her eyes rolled back, and she fainted.

Anton caught her in time. Somewhat helplessly, he looked at Pedro and the Old Wizard behind him. "Looks like I need to quickly figure out your 'Goblin Eye' secret art and find a way to lift the Blood Curse from your memories."

"We don't have much time."

Pedro's expression was complicated. He let out a deep sigh.

Time slipped quietly away, and in the blink of an eye, a month had passed.

All the flowers in the garden outside the castle had withered, only to bloom again under Rosier's spell. Nagini was clearly delighted.

This month, Rosier had searched everywhere for Pedro.

Nagini felt sorry for her travel-worn husband. Rosier laughed heartily, lifting his daughter with one arm while wrapping the other around his wife's waist. He grinned so widely that his gums showed. "For you two, it's all worth it. I'm close to finding Pedro."

Anna curled up before the castle's large window, watching the scene with sorrow on her face.

She desperately wanted to rush down and tell the man, No, don't leave your wife and daughter, because this may be your final farewell.

But she knew she could not.

Pedro, with his wealth of experience, had told her that history could not be changed. Her recklessness would only cause her mother to turn completely into a snake even sooner.

She did not know what to do. All she could do was gaze greedily and longingly at her mother.

Even if it was only one more look.

That was the conviction that kept her here.

"Fuck!" In front of the table at the center of the laboratory, Anton let out a suppressed cry of pain. He suddenly rushed toward the washroom in the corner. The sound of vomiting followed, so gut-wrenching it seemed as if he were about to vomit up his organs.

Before long, Anton emerged after washing his face. He looked at Pedro with a cheerful smile. "Old goblin, your secret art really packs a punch!"

He sat down again and stared at the goblin before him. Ripples spread out in front of him, and an eyeball within the ripples blinked before finally shattering.

"A mistake, haha. Let's do it again. Hold on a moment."

Anton rolled his neck, and the ripples before him spread once more.

Pedro looked at him with some admiration. He truly could not imagine what kind of resilient heart this child possessed to persist like this.

Then, he felt a scorching, dazzling gaze sweep toward the depths of his soul, slowly leafing through his memories.

"Hiss~"

Half an hour later, Anton drew in a sharp breath and tumbled from his chair.

Anna hurriedly jumped down from the window to help him, but Anton waved his hand, climbed up, and quickly rushed into the washroom.

"Take a break!" She looked at Anton, who had already run back, with concern. "I know I can't stop you, but you need to take care of yourself too. Slow down, okay?"

Anton still wore that bright, easygoing expression. "It's fine."

He smiled carelessly, so broadly that his gums showed.

"I don't think it is." Pedro frowned at Anton. "Young Wizard, you're nearing your limit. If you keep torturing your mind like this, you'll collapse."

Anton let out a deep breath. "Fine. We'll continue tomorrow."

He walked to the table, pulled out parchment and a quill, and stared at a Magic Image hanging on the wall. As he wrote and sketched, he resumed his research.

"Has he always been like this?" Pedro looked at the Old Wizard with admiration.

The Old Wizard shrugged. "When I was still alive, he would sometimes use the brief moments when he was wiping tables or tidying things to memorize the contents of my notes, reciting them over and over again."

"Tut, tut, tut." Pedro shook his head. "Your apprentice is better than mine."

"???"

The Old Wizard's eyes widened. He sneered. "That's because his Teacher is better than mine!"

Pedro gave a derisive snort, and the Old Wizard huffed coldly. Thus, the two began another round of their verbal war.

As their skills improved, the two had made remarkable progress in insulting each other. They no longer used such simple phrases as 'stupid.'

Anton was immersed in the world of magic. He had long grown used to their bickering and automatically filtered it out.

Anna had no mood to stop them either. She crouched before a huge iron cage in the corner. The giant snake slithered with its tongue flicking, then rested its head against the bars. In the pupils on its enormous head was reflected her tiny body.

She stretched out her soft, fair little hand. The giant snake licked her palm with its tongue. It tickled, making her want to laugh, but tears welled up in her eyes instead.

Pedro walked over, sighed, and stroked her head. "Sometimes she wants to attack you, and sometimes she wants to be close to you. Clearly, for a brief time, she can still remember some things."

Anna's eyes lit up. "Can I go in and hug her?"

Pedro firmly shook his head. "I don't know when she'll turn back into a simple snake. If you're beside her, I might not even have time to save you."

"She's too fast. Sometimes, even I might not be able to react in time."

Anna's gaze dimmed again.

Her deep emerald eyes looked pitifully at the giant snake, and the giant snake looked back at her.

"I think we've gone down the wrong path!" Anton had somehow come over, his face solemn as he looked at the two of them.

"First, history cannot be changed, right?"

Pedro nodded gravely. "As a Time and Memory Collector and explorer, I can tell you clearly: it's impossible. Otherwise, I would have returned to the crucial point in time when humans massacred goblins and changed all of history long ago."

Anton nodded. "Then it's impossible for us to find a way to lift the Blood Curse in this past time!"

Anna stared at him in surprise.

Pedro looked thoughtful. "You mean..."

Anton sighed. "If your memories truly contained a way to lift the Blood Curse, then Nagini would never again become a snake. She would not attack Anna. Rosier would not need to freeze Anna, and when Anna met me, she would be nearly fifty rather than a little girl. Everything connected to it would change."

Those ripple effects could even alter history. No one knew how many events were tied together and affected by this.

"In other words, we cannot change Nagini's fate within history. We can only find that memory after we return, but by then Nagini will have already completely become a snake."

"..."

Anna clenched the back of her left hand tightly in front of her, forcing out a smile as tears nearly fell. "I should have expected this."

Pedro sighed and gently patted her shoulder.

The atmosphere froze.

"However."

Anton shook the sheet bearing the Magic Image in his hand.

"I've researched something interesting."