Eye of the Transcendent

Take and the others probably would not be coming back. The Temple of Tyrion itself, the only entrance into Amber City, was buried deep underground. Only at specific times would it project a mirage-like illusion onto the surface. Lucky local witnesses called it Saint Taliel, though most people believed they had merely been seeing things or were drunk.

The sealing function of Leonart's Fourth Solution that Li Wen had drawn was meant to prevent the temple from escaping. Unfortunately, her magic power was too low, and the formation had only lasted long enough for them to enter the temple the first time.

After catching her breath, Li Wen rummaged through the Fire Mage's belongings. It gave her the satisfying joy of looting treasure after defeating a boss, but she had not expected him, as a mage of the Arcane Academy, not to even have a Magic Pocket.

A Magic Pocket was a magical creation that could usually hold four or five times its own volume, while its weight always remained around ten pounds. It was a storage item mages greatly favored, and some mages had even specifically created magic for making Magic Pockets.

Yet the Fire Mage did not even have one. Perhaps, as he had said, he truly had not been well regarded within the Arcane Academy.

The Fire Mage's belongings—or rather, drops—were quite numerous: a black-and-red wooden staff, a magic ring, a key of unknown purpose, a round gemstone fractured within, a Levitation Spell scroll, a Colored Mist scroll, and a small amount of casting materials and unidentified potions.

A staff was one of the mediums mages used to cast spells. It was not that every mage had to hold a staff to cast magic, but staffs could significantly improve a spell's stability and safety. That was why mages always encouraged those new to magic to keep a tight grip on their staffs.

The Fire Mage's staff had likely been made from the branch of a plant that grew near volcanic craters. Such a staff had no other abilities, but casting fire-related spells through it was smoother. The reason the Fire Mage had not used it in the earlier battle was simple: like the mage robe he wore, it was a standard-issue magical item of the Arcane Academy. If he had used it to cast magic, the Academy's mages would likely have been able to track him.

The ring was the magical item the Fire Mage had used to lift the Dark Word Curse. It was called the Ring of Fiery Passion and was likely produced by an alchemy workshop under the Magic Committee.

Ring of Fiery Passion

Accessory - Ring - Magic (Blue)

A magic ring crafted through modern alchemical techniques. It can be used to cast Flame Heal once.

Flame Heal: Consumes 1 point of magic power to restore a certain amount of health while dispelling curses and frostbite from oneself. Requires 3 natural days to recharge after each use.

Li Wen noticed that something seemed to be engraved on the inner side of the ring. M? Could that be an abbreviation of the Fire Mage's name?

Li Wen had no use for either the staff or the ring. The staff was exclusive to mages, needless to say, while the ring was indeed a fine item. But whether it was restoring health or dispelling ailments, her Prayer Incantation could achieve the same effect without requiring any recharge time.

Keeping them for someone who needed them or selling them off would be their best fate.

Li Wen then looked at the remaining items. Magic scrolls were valuable goods; they only required magic power, not a mage class, to use.

Levitation Spell could temporarily make a person's body lighter, allowing them to jump higher and run faster. It differed from Flight Spell by only one word, yet their effects were worlds apart. Colored Mist was a second-tier spell capable of creating a patch of colorful mist to confuse enemies. It had hallucinatory effects and was essentially an upgraded version of White Mist.

Neither scroll was especially powerful, but both were broadly useful. There was no need to consider selling them; keeping them for herself would be enough.

That left the key of unknown purpose and the shattered gemstone.

Li Wen looked at the gem. If she was not mistaken, it should be a Shattered Eye of the Transcendent.

The Eye of the Transcendent was an exceptionally rare and powerful magical item. In the present age, there was virtually no known method for crafting one. More often, mages believed it was a naturally formed magic item, perhaps even a base material needed to create some divine artifact.

It was a magical item capable of influencing space. Some mages tried embedding it in their staffs to cast large-scale, long-distance teleportation magic, or even to open doors to other dimensions.

Shattered did not mean it was broken or incomplete. A Shattered Eye of the Transcendent possessed a more random sort of power and beauty, often producing unexpected effects in unexpected situations.

Could this be the secret treasure the Fire Mage had mentioned?

Li Wen was somewhat puzzled. The Eye of the Transcendent was rare, but calling it the secret treasure of the Sunday Secret College gave her the same feeling as an emperor using a golden hoe. As the Kingdom of Arthur's strongest Magic Society, the Arcane Academy probably would not think much even of ten Eyes of the Transcendent, much less one.

Perhaps the Fire Mage's horizons had simply been too narrow. Maybe he had seen some slightly rare treasure and assumed it was a secret treasure?

That was indeed possible. If the Fire Mage had truly stolen some secret treasure from the Arcane Academy, those high-level old mages would have been unable to sit still. They would already have chased him all the way to Black Dragon Territory. What would Li Wen have had to do with it then?

Li Wen stuffed everything into her bag in one go. She had originally wanted to strip the Fire Mage's robe from his body, but it was already tattered and covered in all sorts of bloodstains, so she abandoned the idea.

At that moment, Li Wen recalled the Fire Mage's movements before his death. She searched his corpse again and successfully found a letter hidden in the inner chest layer of his mage robe.

The envelope read: "For Miss Melina at 21 Hackenlo Street."

What was this? A confession letter? A letter from home? Or some kind of last letter?

After thinking it over, Li Wen decided to keep the letter. It might turn out to be an important clue.

All that remained was the Fire Mage's corpse.

This was Amber City, the eternal nation. Even if a corpse was left here untouched, it would not decay, forever remaining in the same state.

Then she would leave him here. There was no soil here to lay him to rest in. Or should she throw him beneath the bridge instead?

Li Wen glanced beneath the bridge and saw only a pitch-black abyss. This was the bottomless chasm that divided Amber City into the Inner City and Outer City, while the stone bridge of the spire was the only passage connecting the two districts.

Li Wen looked toward the end of the stone bridge again.

The cold black city stood there. The warm-colored light of the dim Sky Dome shone down, yet it lent the city no warmth. Instead, the bizarre contrast made it feel all the more chilling.

Li Wen took a deep breath and walked along the stone bridge toward Amber City.