Planning

Once everything had been discussed, their temporary little group was officially established.

Everyone needed to go back and properly digest what had been discussed at the gathering. Without lingering any longer, they dispersed.

Ronan deliberately dragged his feet until everyone else had left, leaving only himself and Old Wells behind.

"What's Linas's background?"

Ronan asked Old Wells directly.

"I'm not entirely sure either... He actually approached me himself and asked to join."

Old Wells's answer surprised Ronan.

"He asked to join on his own?"

"Yes."

Old Wells nodded. "He heard about our last gathering and specifically came looking for me. Linas doesn't seem like a Wizard Apprentice from a wandering background. He told me himself that he couldn't rent a suitable house in town, and there were too many people there, so he decided to live in seclusion in the forest instead."

The reason was not entirely implausible, but Ronan felt there had to be other reasons.

"Let's not talk about him. As long as he bears us no malice, it's fine."

Ronan did not think a group of "poor" Wizards from the Treehouse Area had anything a Level Five Apprentice could possibly covet. Setting the subject aside, he asked Old Wells, "Now that the team is established, what are your plans?"

"What plans could a mere Level Three Apprentice like me have? I've only lived a few more years than you."

Old Wells gave a bitter smile. "I'll keep looking for people and persuading them to join. There are still too few people in the team."

Ronan nodded. That was true. There were only five groups in the team altogether, meaning each group had to patrol once every five days on average. That was a little too frequent, especially for a Wizard like him who preferred Ascetic Body Forging.

"Let's try it for a while first. Many problems only reveal themselves in practice, and our team needs time to adjust to one another. We should also be prepared for people to leave at any time."

Old Wells had thought much further ahead than Ronan.

Ronan then asked about the arrangements for the little girl, Sheryl. When he learned that Qiao Lin and his wife would help look after her whenever Old Wells and Venecia were assigned to patrol together, he was relieved.

"Oh, right."

After some idle chat, Ronan finally asked the question he wanted answered most.

"Can you tell me more about the Black Robes?"

Ronan's expression gradually turned solemn as he said in a low voice, "Even now, I still don't know what kind of enemies we're patrolling against and preparing to face."

Old Wells fell silent for a while before slowly replying, "Most Black Robe Wizards from the Black Wizard Land have twisted temperaments and cruel methods.

"The spells they specialize in may not necessarily be more powerful than ordinary spells, but their casting methods and effects are far more bizarre and terrifying. Still, don't worry. Curse-Type Spells like the one that killed Potter are rare even among the Black Robes. Very few have the qualifications or ability to study them.

"Most Black Robe Wizards specialize in ordinary dark and Undead Arts spells. The problem of energy particle erosion is far worse for Black Robes than it is for us. I've heard that even official Wizards cannot completely solve it, so many Black Robes are keen on bodily modification. If you ever encounter one, be careful. Their vital points may not be in the same places as an ordinary person's..."

Ronan carefully committed every word Old Wells said to memory. This was all precious experience that might save his life someday.

"Do Black Robe Wizards have any obvious traits that make them easy to identify? Quite a few Wizards in Hoddam like wearing black robes too."

Ronan stroked his chin as he asked.

Old Wells thought for a moment before answering, "Their aura. Black Robe Wizards are more or less surrounded by negative energy particles.

"You'll understand once you see one. You can basically sense it immediately."

Ronan sighed softly. "I truly hope I never do..."

Old Wells said nothing.

After returning to his treehouse, Ronan was still thinking about the little group and the Black Robe Wizards.

He supported Old Wells's mutual-aid Patrol Team with both hands and feet.

He preferred Ascetic Body Forging and found the town too noisy and inconvenient. Since he could not enter an academy for the time being, the forest remained the best place to live if he did not want to delay his cultivation progress.

The establishment of the little group would free him from a great many worries.

But I can't rely entirely on it.

Ronan knew very well that Old Wells's little group might work under normal circumstances, but the slightest incident would cause it to crumble at a touch.

If he wanted to survive the coming Black Robe crisis, he would still have to rely on himself.

Only by becoming stronger can I have more chances to survive—and live better!

Ronan brought up the Character Panel and began formulating his cultivation plan for the coming days based on its contents.

With a crisis looming, Rune Inscription could be set aside for the moment. His main focus should be on raising his combat strength.

It was unlikely that his Spiritual Power cultivation would see any major improvement in the short term, so he could only start with spells.

His first small goal was to grind Energy Missile beyond Expert Level.

Barring any surprises, Ronan's combat strength would rise tremendously again by then.

Then he would learn the remaining three low-level spells in the Complete Compendium of Zero-Order Spells, in case of emergencies.

Second were Ascetic Body Forging and Basic Swordsmanship.

Those two were also key areas of cultivation.

Combat between low- and mid-level Wizard Apprentices was not as lofty as ordinary people imagined. It was common for both sides to open with several spells hurled at each other, then both enter a long "cooldown period."

That was when the advantages of a powerful body became apparent.

Physical combat techniques required no spell guidance and could often swiftly determine the outcome of a battle.

If I can train Basic Swordsmanship to mastery and pair it with a mastery-level Charged Weapon, it may be possible to unleash damage comparable to an ordinary intermediate zero-order spell in an instant—without needing spell guidance.

Ronan looked at the One-Handed Sword in his hand as he thought.

The last point was magical equipment.

Ronan had intended to buy one or two offensive or support-type magical items, but the current prices on the market left him no choice but to abandon the idea.

Two magical rings should be enough. At the very least, I'm much stronger than ordinary Wizards in the Treehouse Area.

Old Wells had said that the Black Wizard Land had a harsh living environment. Things like murder and robbery were only occasional occurrences in Hoddam, but they were commonplace in the Black Wizard Land.

As a result, many Black Robe Wizards from the Black Wizard Land were skilled in combat and far surpassed Gray Robe Wizards like them in practical battle experience.

That was one of the reasons so many Wizards in Hoddam Wizard Land turned pale at the mention of Black Robes.

The news of the Black Wizard Land's invasion was like a dense dark cloud hanging over all of Hoddam. Even Ronan felt as though he were in the low-pressure air before a storm, his chest heavy at every moment, as if something were lodged inside it.

Only cultivation could ease it.

On the second day after the little team was established, its routine patrol work officially began.

The first day's patrol was assigned to Old Wells and the socially anxious girl, Venecia.

When the two of them patrolled near Ronan's residence, Old Wells even made a point of standing beneath the tree and greeting him.