Assassination

In the days that followed,

they simply waited for Victoria's soul mutation to succeed.

Olivier went to check on Victoria every day. Then he would go to Gandalf's restaurant to eat Gandalf's specialties, nearly working his way through every dish on the menu.

During their free time, the Sophie sisters came to the restaurant to learn Gandalf's stir-frying secrets, or stayed with Olivier at the inn.

"Old man, I truly admire your cooking. Haha!" Olivier praised.

Gandalf's cooking was indeed exceptional. After getting to know him better, Olivier also learned the secret behind Gandalf's stir-frying.

Originally, Gandalf had merely been a novice first-rank mage with average talent. He was not particularly passionate about magical cultivation; what he loved was cooking. He hoped to make delicious dishes, enter the homes of powerful nobles, and secure a promising future.

Unfortunately, his talent for cooking was not much better than his talent for magic, and he had never been able to create truly delicious cuisine.

Cooking depended on two things: ingredients first, heat second.

Gandalf had put great effort into studying ingredients and culinary skills, but had failed to achieve the results he wanted. So he began researching heat control and found another path, using Fire Element magic in place of ordinary cooking flames. Though a first-rank mage's Fireball spell was not very powerful, it was more than enough for cooking. Moreover, Gandalf had complete control over the Fireball spell, making it easier to manage than natural fire.

Thus,

Gandalf became the only mage on the Yulan Continent to use magic for cooking.

Over time, Gandalf not only improved his cooking, making increasingly delicious dishes, but also gained ever more perfect control over his Fireball spell. Before he knew it, he had advanced to a second-rank mage. From there, he rose without stopping, and a century later, Gandalf had actually become a Saint-level Archmage.

Gandalf said, "I have never cultivated magic. I only know how to cook."

Olivier sighed. This was a living legend.

As long as one devoted oneself wholeheartedly to a single thing, there would always be unexpected rewards.

Gandalf had become a Saint-level Archmage and had interacted with many other Saints, yet he had never regarded himself as some lofty Saint. He simply remained a chef, cooking the dishes he loved.

Other Saints knew of Gandalf's strength, but none of them knew how he had become a Saint-level Archmage.

In a world where the strong were revered, someone like him was truly an oddity. Olivier greatly admired Gandalf. At first, he had merely wanted to make a deal with him, but now he sincerely considered Gandalf a friend.

One loved fine food, while the other was a chef.

Like Boya and Ziqi, they had found kindred spirits.

After learning about Gandalf's culinary journey, only Sophie, a Fire Element mage, could study the ways of a magical chef under him. However, Gandalf also had unique insights regarding ingredients.

"Old man, you really are a genius."

Olivier said admiringly.

"Ha ha." Gandalf let out a lecherous laugh.

Seven days passed as they waited.

It was a dark and windy night, and everyone had already entered their dreams.

A black shadow quietly slipped into Victoria's home.

That night, Sophie and Jessica had not returned to the academy. They were staying at the inn with Olivier. Just as Olivier was preparing to sleep, he discovered someone sneaking into Victoria's home.

As a god-level expert, if he wished it, not even the slightest movement throughout the imperial capital could escape his divine sense.

The black shadow quietly approached Victoria's bed.

"Girl, you were struck by the Soul Spear and still didn't die. You're lucky. But tonight, you will die."

The black shadow muttered.

"So that was it. No wonder Victoria underwent a soul mutation."

Olivier had already arrived behind the black shadow. The shadow had noticed nothing, so Olivier naturally heard the muttering and immediately understood.

Soul mutations were generally triggered only when the soul was damaged. Olivier had always wondered how Victoria, perfectly healthy one moment, could suddenly undergo a soul mutation. Now, he finally knew the answer.

"A seventh-rank dark mage actually dared to attack a young girl. Why?"

Olivier still had questions. Before the black shadow could strike, he did not immediately intervene. He wanted to see what else the shadow would do.

Unfortunately, the black shadow did not mutter anything further. He began chanting, preparing to cast Soul Spear.

After uttering only a few words, the black shadow discovered that he could no longer speak. Time and space around him had frozen.

"A dignified seventh-rank mage actually attacked a young girl."

A voice rang out. The black shadow immediately realized that he had encountered an expert—a Saint-level expert.

Only Saint-level experts could control space.

The black shadow was not an ignorant man.

"A Saint... Saint-level expert? Is it Lord Gandalf?"

The black shadow's heart filled with fear. Faced with a Saint-level expert appearing at this moment, Gandalf was the first person he thought of.

"You know Gandalf is a Saint, yet you still dared to make a move against the Hank family. You have quite the nerve," Olivier said again. By then, he had already walked in front of the black shadow.

Looking at the middle-aged mage before him, Olivier continued.

"Speak. Why did you attack a young girl? What other objective do you have?"

The middle-aged mage hesitated. He recognized Olivier.

This young man.

He had appeared every day these past few days. The mage had never expected him to be a Saint-level expert. If he had known, he would not have come even if beaten to death.

He began guessing Olivier's identity.

"Why are you playing mute? Speak. Don't force me to act."

Olivier's aura pressed down upon the black shadow.

The middle-aged mage felt like duckweed drifting alone upon the sea, isolated and helpless.

After thinking it over, the middle-aged mage understood that he had no chance of escaping from a Saint-level expert. Nor would anyone oppose a Saint-level expert for his sake. He quickly realized that confessing was his only possible hope of survival.

"Lord Saint, I am a servant of the Sparge Family. The second young master ordered me to do this. He seemed to be searching for some treasure. I know nothing else, truly! My lord, spare my life!"

So the middle-aged mage was a servant of the Sparge Family.

The Sparge Family was one of the great families of the imperial capital, with a very long history. It was said that the family still had a Saint-level ancestor.

Several months earlier, Frankland, the Sparge Family's second young master, had somehow learned that Victoria's family possessed a treasure. The middle-aged mage did not know what the treasure was; only Frankland knew.

"Our young master was afraid of offending Lord Gandalf, so he secretly infiltrated this place to search for it—"

They had secretly entered the Hank home many times to search, but had never found it. Then, more than twenty days ago, Victoria had discovered them while they were searching. To avoid attracting the attention of others, the middle-aged mage had used Soul Spear to kill her. No one had noticed anything, and everyone believed Victoria had merely collapsed suddenly.

Afterward, they had kept a close watch on the place. When they learned that Victoria might recover, they decided to assassinate her.

"My lord, spare my life!"