The Might of Spells

"What are the Three Tenets of Mages?" Hearing this unfamiliar term, Gao De's heart stirred, and he quietly committed it to memory.

"Ilan said it. He said Mage Seda told him," Emil explained. "But he only mentioned this one. He didn't say what the other two were."

"Why would Ilan tell you these things?"

"Besides, if 'Never let others know your spells' is one of the Three Tenets of Mages, why would Mage Seda let you know about his spells?"

Gao De frowned slightly as he asked, concealing his true intentions.

Hearing Gao De's question, Emil understood what he meant and hurriedly explained, "Ilan said it before when he was showing off his status as Mage Seda's true apprentice, bragging to us in the dining hall."

"You weren't in the dining hall then, so you didn't hear it."

"And it is true. Mage Seda has never told us anything about the Three Tenets of Mages. If Ilan hadn't said it, how would we have known such a thing?"

"As for Mage Seda's spell, do you remember? Half a year ago, when Mage Seda told Nio to test a potion, Nio got scared and tried to run away.

He ran toward the back courtyard. I happened to be there at the time and saw with my own eyes that Mage Seda merely reached out and touched Nio, and Nio collapsed to the ground."

"If that spell could work without physical contact, why would Mage Seda go to such unnecessary lengths?" Emil pursed his lips, utterly certain.

"I see." Gao De fell into thought.

What Emil said was reasonable, and Gao De believed him.

At the same time, he recalled that on his very first day in this world, he had experienced Mage Seda's spell for himself.

That hand, which could inflict tremendous pain upon him, still filled Gao De with lingering dread whenever he remembered it.

"So Mage Seda has at least two spells that require contact to take effect.

If it really comes down to the final step and I have to face him, the first thing I must do is avoid physical contact with him as much as possible." Gao De silently took note as his thoughts spread outward.

"Besides avoiding it, could I possibly make use of that?"

"I understand. Go to sleep early. We still have work tomorrow." As he thought, Gao De spoke softly.

Emil did not get the response he had hoped for from Gao De. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but did not know what he could say. In the end, he could only remain silent.

Before long, Gao De's steady breathing filled the room as he fell asleep.

The next day, afternoon.

After finishing the preparation of the Novice Spider Venom early, Gao De left the workroom and headed to Hogan City's commercial district for the third time.

He did not notice that, amid the shadows of the trees directly opposite the herb garden's gates, three pairs of eyes lit up at once.

The owners of those eyes were three lean yet sturdy men.

Each was unkempt, with wine stains in his scraggly beard, greasy tangled hair, and oil stains that could never be washed from his clothes.

These were the features of people from the bottom rung.

Their gazes were all cunning and combative as well. Clearly, they were no good men.

After watching Gao De walk away, the three began discussing things in low voices.

"Boss, is that him?" asked the darkest-skinned man.

"That's him. I asked around. That old mage at Seda's Herb Garden hardly ever goes out. Whether selling potions or buying ingredients, he has the apprentices under him do it.

The one responsible before was an older apprentice, but recently it was changed to this kid."

"Good. He doesn't look very old, so he'll definitely be easier to handle."

"But he's a Mage Apprentice. He knows spells." The shortest of the three men hesitated. "Are we really doing this?"

"We would indeed need to fear an old mage, but what is there to worry about with a little brat like this?"

"A Mage Apprentice at his age won't have much combat ability. At most, he'll have mastered one or two tricks."

"And they're most likely harmless tricks like Mage Hand. We've worked in the mines for so many years—who among us doesn't have a body full of strength? Could the three of us fail to take down a little bastard like him?"

Among Zero Circle Spells, Mage Hand was arguably the best-known and most representative trick. It was also basically a spell every Mage Apprentice had to learn, and the first spell they mastered.

Thus, even many people who were not mages knew of this spell.

"Third, you're still too timid," Second chimed in with Boss.

"This kid didn't bring a package with him this time, so he isn't going to sell potions. He's buying ingredients for that old mage." The man called Boss spoke again.

"I also asked around. That old mage seems to have been researching some advanced magic potion these past few years. The ingredients he needs are all exceedingly precious and expensive, so this kid must be carrying quite a bit of money."

"We were already planning to leave Hogan City for Bremen City to seek another way of life. Once we pull this job, we'll leave immediately. No matter how formidable that old mage is, he definitely won't be able to find us and settle accounts."

The other two could not help nodding when they heard this, finding it reasonable.

"When do we make our move?" Third asked again.

"We'll do it once he reaches the Slums. It's chaotic there, and any investigation will be troublesome. That will delay things longer—long enough for us to leave Hogan City and ensure nothing goes wrong."

"Good!"

The dark, filthy stretch of road through the Slums remained an unavoidable route to Hogan City's commercial district.

However, compared to his previous two trips, Gao De had now mastered three Zero Circle Spells. He undoubtedly had more confidence and no longer needed to keep his head lowered and his eyes downcast, treading carefully.

Besides, even though the Slums were a mixed bag of dragons and fish, with plenty of thieves and hooligans, under normal circumstances, how could an ordinarily dressed commoner like him encounter so many accidents in broad daylight?

But Gao De had forgotten one truth: an accident was called an accident precisely because it came without warning.

Just like now. He had only just reached the turn where an alley opened onto the street. Since it was an alley, his vision was dim, and he could not even see the presence of shadows.

In that moment, the back of his head turned faintly cold, and a fierce rush of wind sounded by his ear.

An ambush!

And it was aimed at his head.

Gao De realized it immediately, but it was already too late. In his haste, he could only instinctively bend his body to lower the point of impact, avoiding his head, a vital area.

Gao De's instinctive reaction spared him from having his head burst open, but his back was struck instead. The powerful blow made him grunt, and his steps staggered.

Feeling the burning pain radiating from his back, Gao De made the most correct response possible. Borrowing the force of the blow, he rolled like a donkey and successfully dodged the second attack that followed close behind.

He swiftly got to his feet and saw clearly the black hands that had attacked him.

Three rather sturdy men, each holding a wooden club, stared at him with vicious eyes—one job was one job, but the three had not intended to kill anyone.

They were ruthless, but not utterly depraved.

Besides, they had only planned to rob him. It was not as if they held some deep-seated grudge against Gao De. Under normal circumstances, why would they think of murder?

They had meant to knock him unconscious with a club, strip him of all his money, then flee in a hurry.

"Fortunately, they only have wooden clubs." Gao De secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

If the attackers had been holding lethal weapons, he would already have been in grave danger.

"Who are you? Why did you attack me?" Gao De demanded sharply.

"The kid reacts fast. Hand over the money on you, and we'll let you go!" the leading man threatened, staring at Gao De.

"So they're robbers." Only then did Gao De understand. He had been wondering how he could have offended anyone when he had barely interacted with the outside world since arriving here.

However, Gao De had no intention of buying peace with money.

Besides, he only had a few dozen silver coins on him right now. That amount certainly would not satisfy the three villains before him.

With that thought, Gao De raised his hand.

A ray of cold blue light burst from his fingertips.

The beam was swift as lightning, shooting straight toward the leading man and leaving behind a crystalline trail.

The ray appeared abruptly and moved too fast.

Furthermore, after Gao De's donkey roll, he had not opened much distance between himself and the three men. Under such circumstances, there was simply no time to react to the attack.

Gao De had asked who they were, but he had never expected the three men to answer.

He had spoken only to divert their attention slightly and buy himself time to cast his spell.

The ray struck the leading man directly. With a faint crack of ice, a layer of Thin Ice instantly formed over his skin.

A chill that seeped into his bones and intense pain surged through him, twisting his expression in cold agony.

Ray of Frost!