Necromancer Dust

Necromancer Dust?

People in Black City called it soul powder.

The name didn't matter. From Hibel's expression, he could tell this stuff was valuable to wizards.

Karl's spirits lifted.

His trip to another world hadn't been in vain. After collecting so many things, he'd finally found something useful.

"Necromancer Dust usually appears on undead creatures. Mix it with honey, Purple Lotus, and crystal shards, and you get a potion that can increase mental power."

Hibel's beautiful eyes glimmered.

"Do you have any more Necromancer Dust at home?"

"Uh..." Karl hesitated, then slowly nodded. "I do."

"How much?"

"Maybe twice as much as this?"

He wasn't sure. He'd only grabbed a handful before coming here and had no clear idea how much there was.

"Twice as much?"

Hibel stood up, her voice excited. "Sell all of it to me, and I won't charge you for today's lesson or appraisal. What do you think?"

"Senior Sister." Karl didn't decide right away. Instead, he asked, "Is this stuff important to you?"

"Well..." Hibel's voice faltered briefly before she nodded. "A potion that can increase mental power is important to every Wizard Apprentice. I'm no exception."

"Because of the Church, undead creatures are rare in this world, so Necromancer Dust is hard to come by. That's why I got a little excited."

She wasn't lying.

There was no need to. These were basic facts about the Wizard World, and Karl would learn them sooner or later.

"Senior Sister," Karl said, "you can have it, but I don't want to use it to cover the lesson fee."

"Oh!" Hibel's eyes flickered. "Then what do you want?"

"Well..." Karl ventured, "a spell?"

"Impossible." Hibel shook her head. "Putting aside the fact that you haven't even gotten started with your Meditation Method and can't learn spells yet, this Necromancer Dust isn't worth anywhere near that much."

"Hmm..."

"But I do have a cantrip. I wonder if you'd be interested?"

"A cantrip?" Karl straightened up. "What's a cantrip?"

"You can think of it as a simpler kind of Zero-ring Witchcraft. The cantrip I can teach you is called Light Spell."

Hibel's voice trailed off as she extended her index finger and pointed lightly ahead.

Her finger was slender and white, like a piece of jade bamboo—a perfect work of art. But what drew the eye even more was its tip.

A glimmer gathered at her fingertip, then abruptly burst open. The dazzling white light made Karl close his eyes on instinct.

It lasted only an instant.

Everything returned to normal.

"This is Light Spell," Hibel said. "If you're unprepared, it can affect your vision. It also has a certain weakening effect on shadow creatures. If you control it steadily, it can keep shining and light up the darkness."

Light Spell?

Karl rubbed his chin.

The cantrip wasn't powerful. Against an enemy who was prepared, it might be completely useless, but catching someone by surprise could still give them a scare.

And...

It seemed perfect for Black City's gloomy surroundings. He clapped his hands lightly. "Deal!"

Hibel smiled.

Light Spell was worthless to her, so trading it for key ingredients that could be used to make a potion that increased mental power was a good deal too.

"Senior Sister," Karl said again, "could I learn how to make potions?"

"Of course." Hibel gave him a firm answer. "Our mentor specializes in potions. How could his students not know anything about them?"

"But..."

"You know how it is."

Karl gave an awkward laugh.

Of course he knew.

Knowledge came at a price.

He just hadn't expected that learning about potions in the Wizard World would be so expensive, or that it would be even more complicated than learning Lesser Force Field.

Botany for Beginners, A Compendium of Low-Level Enchanted Medicines, Detailed Biology, and even anatomy...

These were all essential textbooks for learning potion-making. Each one was as thick as a dictionary, and none came cheap. They cost at least one Gold Coin apiece, sometimes several.

Lessons cost extra.

By the time Karl left the estate, his pockets were completely empty. The wealth he'd gained from visiting another world had all been spent, and he even had to put the carriage fare on credit.

His expression was grim, to say the least.

Fortunately, he'd gained a lot.

Like Lesser Force Field, learning Light Spell also required meeting certain prerequisites.

The Basic Principles of Light, Eight Essentials for a Stable Light Source, and Arcane Principles. He had already studied Arcane Principles, though, which would save him some time.

"The principles behind many spells are universal. Once you've mastered one spell, learning others will go much more smoothly."

Karl set down the book and picked up a crystal ball beside him.

It was an enchanted item he'd bought from Hibel, and it had cost him half his savings.

For an enchanted item, it was already very cheap.

It could be used three times.

After that, it would be ruined.

There were crystal balls that could be used almost indefinitely, like the one Hibel owned, but no amount of Gold Coins could buy one of those. They had to be bought with magic stones.

The spell embedded in the crystal ball was Scrying Spell, which helped its holder learn more about their own condition.

The crystal ball was about the size of a human head but wasn't heavy. Its interior didn't seem solid; he could see ripples like those on water.

"Scrying Spell?"

Karl collected himself and followed the method Hibel had taught him, holding his breath and placing both hands on the crystal ball.

He uttered strange syllables.

"Sh... Oh..."

The next moment, Karl's body shuddered. He felt a faint warmth rise from the crystal ball and spread through every limb.

The warmth came and went quickly.

In the blink of an eye, it withdrew into the crystal ball. The clear, transparent water inside shifted, and colors appeared, rippling one after another.

The different colors corresponded to different readings.

"Constitution: level one. Mental power: level one and a half. Spell talent: level four..."

"Hmm."

After thinking it over, Karl carried the crystal ball to the Divine Domain.

He was curious. If he used Scrying Spell here, would the results be any different?

"Sh... Oh..."

Seated upon the ancient, mysterious chair, Karl uttered the syllables. Before the crystal ball could show any results, a strange feeling surfaced in his mind.

It seemed...

that here in the Divine Domain, he already had the ability to examine himself.

His eyes flickered. He raised his hand and gave a light wave, following an instinct hidden deep within his heart.

"Whoosh!"

Starlight gathered before him, forming a screen of text.

Name: Karl (Lord of the Divine Domain Fragment)

Constitution: 0.77

Mental Power: 0.96

Essence: 0

Profession: Knight Squire, Wizard Apprentice (not yet initiated)

"It really works!"

His attempt had succeeded. And unlike the vague rankings from the crystal ball, the Divine Domain gave him clear, precise numbers, along with some extra information.

It didn't show his talent level, though. Instead, it displayed an unfamiliar value called essence.

"Lord of the Divine Domain Fragment?"

Here, Karl's feelings stirred not at all. He had only absolute reason, with none of the excitement or exhilaration he might otherwise have felt. He could only analyze the situation calmly.

"So this is a Divine Domain Fragment. If it's a fragment, it must once have been whole."

"And I'm its lord..."

"If I could get my hands on other fragments, could I become the Lord of the Divine Domain?"

"What exactly is a Divine Domain? Is its lord a Deity? Or is there some connection between the two?"

He couldn't find answers to all these questions, so he stopped thinking about them. But one thing was certain: the Divine Domain Fragment must have other abilities he hadn't uncovered yet.

Just like this time.

If he hadn't brought the crystal ball here, Karl might never have known that his abilities could be displayed as numerical values inside the Divine Domain Fragment.

Simple, clear, and easy to understand.

Back in the real world, Karl suppressed his unsettled feelings and, as usual, tried practicing the Contemplation Method once before bed.

This time, whether he'd finally reaped what he'd sown or simply reached the right moment, he succeeded in a single try.

Contemplation Method: Initiated!