Recaps

Fivik informally accepted He Xi as her apprentice and began turning the Ghoul Hag’s head into a staff. She gave him a magical monster reference manual to study, leaving him with a new resource for learning about Hags and the Witch Coven.

• Fivik confirmed He Xi already met her standards and accepted him as her student, then promised to improve his apprenticeship gift.
• Fivik began working on the Ghoul Hag’s head and explained that she hoped to preserve some of its innate magic in the staff.
• The Ghoul Hag’s head suddenly opened its eyes and snapped at He Xi, but Fivik slapped it into behaving.
• Fivik revealed that the Witch Coven explained her experience with Hags and gave He Xi her Personal Monster Quick Reference Manual.
• He Xi appraised the manual and learned it could provide monster records when its user stroked the spine and silently recited a monster’s Real Name.

He Xi received Pig Knuckle Peggy's Finale, an epic magic staff made from a Ghoul Hag's skull, and learned its powerful abilities. After binding the staff to himself, he realized Fivik genuinely treated him as her disciple, while her favorability toward him increased.

• He Xi read the book's information about hags and learned that a coven could be a catastrophic threat.
• Fivik showed He Xi the completed staff, Pig Knuckle Peggy's Finale, and told him to appraise it.
• He Xi discovered that the staff amplified spells, could bite targets, and granted Animate Dead and Witch Disguise.
• Fivik warned He Xi about the risks of using Animate Dead on creatures far stronger than himself.
• He Xi infused the staff with magic and formed a mental bond with it.
• Fivik's favorability toward He Xi increased, and she awkwardly told him to stop looking at her so sentimentally.

He Xi learned to disguise the information on his equipment and began a question-and-answer session with Fivik as her new student. After revealing his real identity and the danger from Rose Town’s baron, he learned that Fivik was over eighty, despite insisting she was eighteen.

• Fivik taught He Xi how to disguise equipment information, and he labeled his wand with a warning about Lady Pig Knuckle Peggy.
• Fivik began questioning He Xi about his hobbies, wisdom, spells, and age.
• He Xi confessed that his real name was Hoxi Atmesia and explained why he had used the alias Galen in Rose Town.
• Fivik started to cast Teleportation Spell to address the threat from the baron, then decided He Xi should investigate and handle it himself.
• He Xi asked Fivik about herself, and she revealed her food hobbies and accidentally disclosed that she was over eighty before showing an old academy recording.
• Fivik ended the exchange by asking how much He Xi knew about professionals.

He Xi learned from Fivik how sorcerers and mages differ and what it takes to awaken as an orthodox mage. He left determined to pursue the mage’s path, while Fivik warned him to stay away from the Mist Cave as she investigated it.

• Fivik explained that sorcerers gain power through their bloodlines, while mages develop through learned spells, and He Xi decided to save the [Weak Red Dragon Bloodline] trait for Bruce.
• Fivik told He Xi that awakening as a mage required 58 Wisdom and maximum proficiency in [Mage Hand], [Mage Armor], and [Magic Missile], and advised him against pursuing a hidden profession.
• Fivik offered to teach He Xi the other two basic spells and told him to return when he reached a genuine bottleneck.
• Fivik warned He Xi that the Mist Cave in the Gray Mist Forest was protected by a powerful magical barrier and told him to stay away while she investigated it.
• He Xi headed home with his new staff, forgot that he had planned to meet someone, and wondered how Bruce would react to the possibility of breathing fire.

Cardassana welcomed He Xi home and mistook his monster-headed staff for a huge mop, then fed him and Bruce until they were stuffed. The next morning, He Xi and Thomas went to Jonathan’s training ground, where Jonathan mistook the staff for a Hag’s head and chased off two boys.

• Cardassana recalled how Galen’s advice had helped Thomas grow more serious and prepared extra grilled meat patties for dinner.
• He Xi arrived with the monster-headed staff, and Cardassana mistook it for a mop before accepting his explanation.
• He Xi and Bruce could not finish dinner, so Thomas ate the remaining patties.
• He Xi and Thomas went to Jonathan’s training ground the next morning, and He Xi paid to use the magic training ground.
• Jonathan examined He Xi’s staff, guessed it was a Hag’s head, and then ordered two sneaking boys to leave.

Wilson returned to the Shadowless Squad and announced plans to stabilize its business by recruiting competitors and putting them on a Long-term Disability Pension. After Dimi found Galen with the Undead Dog, Wilson decided Galen would be the first target.

• Wilson gathered the Shadowless Squad and announced a strategic overhaul of its business.
• Wilson proposed recruiting competitors and injuring them so they would qualify for the squad’s Long-term Disability Pension.
• Wilson privately worried that his members knew he had been arrested and hoped to restore his authority by beating Galen.
• Dimi reported that he had found Galen with the Undead Dog and a strange monster head.
• Wilson named Galen the first person on the Long-term Disability Pension list.

He Xi watched Bruce struggle to control the flames awakened by his new red dragon bloodline, then encouraged him to practice directing them through his paws. He Xi went to test his new wand on iron targets, which Jonathan agreed to provide for free.

• Bruce ran around the training grounds with flames spurting from his backside, and He Xi realized the dog's emotional excitement was making the fire flare up.
• Bruce discovered that scales protected its burned skin and that it could still use its hindquarters, but it became upset about losing its fur and tail hair.
• He Xi cheered Bruce up by promising to help its fur grow back and urged it to practice controlling its flames before it burned its new coat.
• He Xi told Bruce to guide the heat through its paws, then left it practicing while he carried his new wand to find sturdy targets.
• Jonathan offered He Xi two discarded iron targets without charge and complained that rich people were worse than goblins at haggling.

He Xi tested the new staff’s spell amplification and biting powers, finding that Peggy could strengthen Earth Spikes and tear chunks from iron targets. Outside the training ground, Wilson’s men argued with the loud newcomer Lai Li Tou, who learned that his cousin Cross-Eyed Hans had been arrested after asking the Baron Lord to marry him.

• He Xi cast Earth Spikes through the staff and found they became harder, more stable, and precise enough to deform an iron target.
• He Xi swung the staff at another iron target, and Peggy bit a large chunk out of it.
• Dimi warned Wilson that Lai Li Tou’s loud demands could draw trouble, and Wilson scolded Lai Li Tou for not understanding Rose Town’s power structure.
• Wilson asked Lai Li Tou whether he had arrived with Cross-Eyed Hans, then explained that Hans had been arrested after proposing to the Baron Lord.

Wilson rallied the Shadowless Squad’s recruits against He Xi, but their ambush was stopped by He Xi’s Earth Spike Technique and Bruce’s sudden, ferocious attack. Bruce left Lai Li Tou badly burned and struck another attacker with a Flame Ray as the fight began.

• Wilson told the new recruits that He Xi was a mage and promised to teach him a lesson with his Curved Saber.
• He Xi left the training grounds with Bruce after practicing a new attack, while Bruce admitted he had lingered to avoid showing his bare bottom.
• The Shadowless Squad sprang from the roadside bushes and attacked He Xi, who blocked Wilson’s saber with three stone spikes.
• Bruce roared at the attackers, then used a burst of flame to charge Lai Li Tou and tear through his shield and armor.
• Bruce redirected himself with another burst of flame and hit a fleeing red-nosed man with a Flame Ray, setting him ablaze.

Bruce’s Red Dragon bloodline transformed him and left Wilson terrified, while Dimi escaped by offering his belongings and stripping. He Xi blocked Wilson’s escape and revealed through Appraisal Spell that Wilson was level 16, leaving his fate uncertain.

• Bruce’s transformation finished, and he advanced on Wilson while Dimi warned him that Bruce was an Undead Dog.
• Dimi tossed down his belongings, stripped, and offered himself to He Xi, who told him to leave.
• Wilson copied Dimi by offering his valuables and stripping, then tried to inch toward town.
• He Xi raised stone spikes to block Wilson’s path and approached him with the grinning head on his staff.
• He Xi revealed that he had used Appraisal Spell on Wilson and found him to be level 16.

He Xi intimidated Wilson into revealing why the Shadowless Squad had ambushed him, then spared him in exchange for gathering intelligence on Lady Rose and the missing Annis. Wilson left with the squad’s weapons and a promise to keep the encounter secret.

• He Xi raised the charred corpse as a skeleton, convincing Wilson that he was an Undying Sage and frightening him into pleading for his life.
• Wilson confessed that Rupert’s mistaken judgment and his plan to make an example of He Xi had led the Shadowless Squad to attack.
• He Xi threatened to turn Wilson into a zombie, then offered him a chance to live if he gathered information about Lady Rose.
• Wilson mentioned that Annis had disappeared, prompting He Xi to order him to investigate her as well.
• He Xi ordered Wilson and his men to keep quiet and promised to reveal the path to true power if they served him well.
• Wilson gave He Xi the address of the Nettle and Catnip Apothecary, collected the weapons, and disappeared into the darkness.

He Xi chased after the skeleton he had created with [Animate Dead] when it escaped and fled into Rose Town. As the skeleton and Bruce raced into the town, He Xi disguised himself and followed, leaving the town in chaos.

• He Xi discovered that his skeleton had wandered off, and Bruce tracked it toward Rose Town's gate.
• The guards surrounded the skeleton, but it spotted Bruce, leapt over their spears, and ran into town with Bruce chasing it.
• He Xi feared being exposed as an undead mage, hid in the bushes, and used his bonus spell to disguise himself as a well-dressed man with a war hammer.
• The skeleton's appearance sparked panic among Rose Town's residents, while Kolding and Thorin decided to follow it.

He Xi learned that the escaped skeleton had reached the town and been pursued by Loris of the Holy Sun Church, but Wilson’s thrown saber helped it get away. Loris declared the skeleton was not a necromantic creation because it showed consciousness and a strong will to survive, leaving He Xi puzzled as he returned home with Bruce.

• He Xi found the remains of the skeleton’s severed arm and heard that Loris had nearly destroyed it before Wilson’s Curved Saber distracted him and let it escape.
• He Xi slipped away from the crowd and reunited with Bruce, who described how the skeleton’s behavior had suddenly changed and it had begun fleeing in a purposeful direction.
• Loris met with two church members, then announced that the undead creature had escaped through the town’s West Gate and that the Hand of Radiance would investigate.
• Loris claimed the skeleton was not a creation of necromancy because it showed consciousness and an unusually strong instinct for survival, confusing He Xi, who had made it with Animate Dead.
• He Xi decided to ask his teacher about the matter the next day and left for dinner with Bruce.

He Xi bought pastries for Fivik before their magic lesson, earning her favor and choosing the Solace of Home trait. He learned Mage Armor and Magic Missile with striking speed, leaving Fivik convinced that both he and she were geniuses.

• He Xi bought Rose Thousand Layer Cakes and pear tarts from Martin, who recognized him as Belt’s teammate and gave him a discount.
• He Xi gave Fivik the cakes, increasing her favorability, and chose the Solace of Home trait after receiving 25 points’ worth of traits.
• Fivik taught He Xi the principles of Mage Armor and Magic Missile.
• He Xi learned Mage Armor and Magic Missile, gaining Wisdom from each spell and impressing Fivik with his rapid progress.
• Fivik decided He Xi’s talent proved that she was a genius too, and she was pleased that he had brought her cakes.

He Xi learned that Fivik suspected he might have a talent for Necromancy after his skeleton displayed impossible agility, though neither of them knew what caused it. Fivik left him with instructions to practice his professional spells and bring food to the Drow in her basement, where He Xi discovered the supposed captive had chosen to stay.

• Fivik questioned He Xi about the level 7 skeleton’s extraordinary speed and wondered whether he had a special talent for Necromancy.
• He Xi considered whether his transmigration might explain his connection to necromancy, while Fivik admitted she could not explain the skeleton’s behavior.
• Fivik told He Xi she would visit an old friend in Fernandez for about a month and instructed him to practice three spells and bring Goblins to the Drow in the basement.
• Fivik revealed that the Drow Elf Trist had refused to leave the basement and that she had never locked him in.
• He Xi descended into the vast basement and found a silver-haired Drow Elf reading on a sofa.
• The Drow Elf recognized He Xi as Mister Galen, the apprentice Madam Fivik had mentioned.

He Xi spoke with Trist Solarin about his life in Drow society and why he escaped to the Surface World. Trist responded to He Xi’s welcome with an awkward attempt at a smile.

• He Xi thanked Trist for his commission and asked what had driven him to leave his homeland.
• Trist explained that Drow society valued women and priestesses, while men were treated as tools, and that he lost his standing after failing to have a daughter with his wife.
• Trist said a human bard’s biography introduced him to the idea of relationships based on love, friendship, and loyalty.
• Trist escaped through an abandoned tunnel during a conflict between houses.
• He Xi welcomed Trist to the Surface World and told him that people’s worth should depend on their choices and actions.
• Trist tried to smile in response, but his expression came out stiff and awkward.

After He Xi left, Trist struggled against an ancient force that demanded souls, while He Xi learned Telepathic Communication from Fivik and asked her to obtain a scroll for Shared Eye. The chapter ended with He Xi realizing Fivik was short on money too, as she tried to explain why she was eating sweets.

• He Xi agreed to bring Trist live Goblins, and Trist resisted an ancient presence that shouted “Blasphemy!!” when he called He Xi’s soul bright like sunlight.
• Trist decided that feeding the presence more Goblins would satisfy its appetite for now.
• He Xi told Fivik he wanted to use Telepathic Communication to contact Bruce, and she taught him the spell.
• Fivik explained that Shared Eye was a restricted spell requiring a Skill Scroll and offered to buy one if He Xi paid her.
• He Xi gave Fivik 20 Gold Shields toward the scroll, and she agreed to cover a small difference while insisting he repay her.
• Fivik defended her sweets as necessary Taste Magic Resistance training, then turned around and asked where He Xi had gone.

He Xi, Zoya, and Bruce tested whether He Xi’s magic could create an unusual undead by animating a Goblin. When the Goblin skeleton suddenly grew stronger and ran toward an abandoned settlement, the group followed it to a ruined manor.

• Zoya caught a Goblin, and He Xi used [Animate Dead] to turn it into a skeleton that initially remained still.
• He Xi practiced [Magic Missile] while Zoya trained and Bruce breathed fire near their campfire.
• The Goblin skeleton began running south, and He Xi discovered its level had risen from 8 to 14.
• He Xi, Zoya, and Bruce chased the skeleton for more than ten kilometers into an abandoned village.
• Bruce reported that the skeleton had entered a large house, and He Xi caught up with him near a ruined two-story manor.

He Xi, Zoya, and Bruce searched the ruined manor for the rogue goblin skeleton and found signs that someone had recently lived there. They cornered a starving man in the passage, who begged them not to kill him and offered them his food.

• He Xi, Zoya, and Bruce entered the manor and found the goblin skeleton’s scent stopped in the main hall.
• He Xi examined a family portrait and searched the second floor with Zoya and Bruce before they split up to investigate the manor.
• He Xi found a large, empty bedroom and wondered where the little girl from the painting had slept.
• Bruce detected a human scent on the first floor, where He Xi found a warm fire pit and bones stripped clean of meat.
• He Xi and Zoya followed footsteps through the manor and found a ragged, emaciated man hiding near a small door.
• The man begged He Xi and Zoya not to kill him and offered them the food he clutched.

He Xi questioned a starving vagrant in Shadow Split Manor and learned how the Blood Axe Gang destroyed Shadow Split Town. The vagrant concealed what he knew about the manor’s dangers, so He Xi left for Rose Town to look for an Adventurer Guild commission.

• He Xi offered the vagrant food and water, then asked why Shadow Split Town had been abandoned.
• The vagrant said the Blood Axe Gang had killed the baron and his family, burned the town, and that a bald man with a huge axe had slain the guard captain.
• The vagrant explained that adventurers had later searched the manor and taken what the bandits left behind.
• He Xi questioned why the vagrant stayed and whether he had seen unusual creatures, but the man denied knowing anything and showed obvious fear.
• He Xi gave the vagrant the remaining meat pies and left with Zoya and Bruce to seek information about the commission in Rose Town.

He Xi asked Clara about the commission concerning the Blood Axe Gang’s raid on Shadow Split Town and learned it had already been taken. Clara secretly gave him copies of the commission and the guild’s records, leaving him with details of the manor’s destruction and reports of unexplained nighttime disturbances.

• He Xi visited the Adventurer Guild with Zoya and received a new Black Iron II badge after his contribution reached 114 Silver Scales.
• He Xi asked Clara about the Shadow Split Town commission, and she told him another adventurer had taken it the day before.
• Clara invited He Xi to lunch at The Tasty Rose and secretly handed him a copy of the commission, which sought to investigate Tami’s true cause of death.
• Clara gave He Xi an internal guild record stating that Baron Goderick Shadow Split had died, Jasmine, Vio Bell, and Helena Shadow Split had disappeared, and the case had been closed.
• He Xi read that adventurers had found no useful clues at the ruined manor and that the Black Stone Squad had reported unidentified disturbances there at night.

He Xi asked Clara for more information about the Shadow Split Manor commission and learned that the missing painter Vio Bell had been famous. Clara brought Fei Yangyang, the captain of the last squad to investigate the manor, to tell He Xi what he knew.

• He Xi asked Clara why she had risked breaking guild regulations to help him, and she said she was friends with Karin.
• Clara told He Xi that Vio Bell was a renowned court painter whose disappearance had caused a stir, and that Shadow Split Town was the last place he had appeared.
• Clara offered to summon Fei Yangyang, captain of the Black Stone Squad, whose party had last investigated Shadow Split Manor.
• Zoya cut her mutton into pieces and fed it to Bruce beneath the table.
• Clara returned with Fei Yangyang, who challenged He Xi until Clara warned him to treat her friend respectfully.

He Xi learned from Fei Yangyang that a cursed painting at Shadow Rift Manor had harmed a member of the Black Stone Squad and that the commission concerned the death of Tami, a friend of Jasmine and a student of Vio Bell. He left Clara’s lunch to investigate, suspecting that Barton, the former groom he had met earlier, posted the commission.

• Clara asked Fei Yangyang to tell He Xi what the Black Stone Squad had discovered at Shadow Rift Manor.
• Fei Yangyang explained that Rod had touched a painting, then fainted and developed a fever, and that the squad believed it was cursed.
• Fei Yangyang said Barton had posted the commission to investigate Tami’s death and had acted strangely since the manor’s trouble.
• Clara dismissed Fei Yangyang and reminded him to pay the bill, which he happily treated as a chance to take her out.
• He Xi declined Clara’s soup and left with Zoya, increasing Zoya’s favorability by refusing Clara’s flirtation.
• He Xi wondered whether Barton had posted the commission, and Zoya agreed that it was possible.

He Xi reunited with Barton, the vagrant who had posted the manor commission, and received a diary found inside Shadow Split Manor. The diary began revealing Jasmine’s life at the manor and the Baron’s increasingly threatening behavior.

• He Xi sent Bruce to scout Loris and asked Zoya to support the investigation near the manor.
• He Xi found Barton hiding by the manor’s concealed entrance, and Barton admitted he had posted the commission.
• Barton took He Xi to his home and gave him a leather-bound diary he had found in the manor.
• He Xi read Jasmine’s diary, which described her arrival at the manor, her art lessons with Vio Bell, and the mirror Bell gave her to calm herself.
• Jasmine wrote that the Baron frightened her, made an unwanted advance, and later entered her locked room and attacked her.

He Xi read Jasmine’s diary, which accused Baron Godric of abusing Jasmine and murdering Tami, and learned that Barton was Tami’s father. He questioned whether the diary told the whole truth and ended by asking Barton about the girls’ friendship.

• Jasmine’s diary described her growing fear of Baron Godric, Teacher Bell’s support, and her suspicion that Godric had killed Tami.
• He Xi gave the diary to Zoya and questioned Barton, who admitted he could not read and had heard only a few passages.
• Barton revealed that Tami was his daughter and insisted she could not have drowned accidentally because she was an excellent swimmer.
• Barton struggled to believe the diary’s claims because he thought Baron Godric was a generous man, while He Xi considered whether Godric hid his crimes behind a good reputation.
• He Xi learned that Helena Shadow Split had reportedly come from the royal capital and been an adventurer before marrying the Baron, then asked Barton about Jasmine and Tami’s relationship.