Going Home

Solam had always been interested in magic, and now his enthusiasm was even greater. After all, everyone has curiosity, and Solam's was particularly intense.

Throughout the journey, Solam had nearly driven Arando to his wits' end. It wasn't that Arando was stingy with his knowledge; it was simply that while the profession looked incredibly cool, it demanded immense talent and a vast amount of time. As for Arando himself, he considered his own talent and intelligence to be top-tier, yet even now, nearing seventy, the legendary realm remained a distant, unreachable dream.

Solam was the grandson of an old friend, and Arando didn't want to lead him down the same path of wasted years. One had to understand that the training of an Arcane Knight was not as simple as it sounded. Since the inception of the profession, very few Arcane Knights had ever reached the legendary level. In his youth, Arando had been arrogant, believing he was the exception who could surpass his predecessors and become a legend, but reality was cruel. Moreover, once an Arcane Knight reached a high level, their expenses were no less than those of a mage; learning spells was incredibly costly, and if one wanted to study legendary magic at the legendary level, the price was astronomical. It was precisely because he lacked money that he had considered interfering in the slave trade; otherwise, his existing slave-catching business was already quite profitable.

Arando had observed Solam over these many days and could see that the young man was clever and would likely make a fine mage. However, he was already a Shaman; if he were to take up a side profession as an Arcane Knight, he might end up achieving nothing at all. One must realize that while there were many on the continent who dabbled in multiple professions, very few truly succeeded.

However, Solam's relentless pestering over these many days had worn Arando down to the point of desperation. In the end, he had no choice but to tell him that he would have to wait until he met his grandfather, Kramsh, to ask for his opinion before making any decisions. Only then was he finally able to dismiss Solam and get some peace and quiet.

But the peace didn't last long before Solam was back at it, hoping Arando could teach him a few tricks of magic. This request left Arando feeling both annoyed and amused. What did he think magic was? Magic was a rigorous, highly disciplined craft that could not be learned in a short amount of time. Before becoming a formal mage, one first had to become a mage apprentice—and one shouldn't think the word "apprentice" implied simplicity.

First, you had to learn several languages, including Elvish, Netherese, Celestial (which devils also used), Abyssal, and Draconic. With the exception of Draconic, you had to learn to read and write all of them (as Draconic had no written script). That wasn't even the end of it; after mastering those, you had to study mathematics, history, and philosophy. Only after completing these could you formally begin learning knowledge related to magic. First was symbology, which included various common magical symbols, followed by planar studies (a vast field encompassing the history, culture, environment, races, and resources of the major material planes, as well as outer planes like the Abyss, the Nine Hells, and Mount Celestia—a truly complex discipline).

Only after finishing all of this could a mage apprentice begin to communicate with the Weave and formally become a true mage. Otherwise, you might as well go find somewhere else to cool your heels. That was why people said that while a scholar might not be a mage, a mage was absolutely a learned scholar. An average mage apprentice needed at least five to six years to complete the curriculum; if the mentor was strict, doubling that time was not impossible. Based on Arando's own experience, he had begun his apprenticeship at age six and it had taken him a full six years. Even though that didn't seem long, one had to remember that he had been taking knightly courses from the very beginning, meaning his talent was actually quite exceptional.

When Solam heard this, he was completely dumbfounded. This wasn't an apprenticeship; this was the treatment of a doctoral student! During his own process of becoming a Shaman, aside from going hungry for a few days, he hadn't undergone any systematic learning at all. It had led him to believe that all spellcasters were like this, thinking that Arando just needed to teach him how to connect to the Weave and show him a few spells. He hadn't expected the education of a mage to be so arduous. No wonder people spoke of mages with such awe; it really was a high-tech profession. Most importantly, Solam himself was still illiterate—he could speak Common, but he couldn't read it.

Therefore, Solam immediately decided to start by learning to read and write Common with Arando, lest he remain a "blind" wanderer.

Arando had no objections to this decision; on the contrary, he was quite supportive. After all, reading and writing could only be beneficial. However, Arando was a bit worried about whether Solam had the patience for it. One had to know that reading and writing Common was quite simple; as long as one had patience, even a fool could learn it, given enough time.

Arando still remembered the effort it took to teach Solam's grandfather, Kramsh. Oh, it was exhausting; every time, within ten minutes, that guy would fall asleep. After struggling for over half a year, the man was still semi-illiterate, and eventually, Arando had no choice but to give up. Arando never thought Kramsh was stupid, but he simply lacked the patience for such things. According to Kramsh, looking at those words felt like being hit with a sleep spell; he would fall asleep immediately.

However, Arando was wrong this time. In less than ten days, Solam had basically mastered reading and writing Common, which nearly shocked Arando out of his wits. He had to remember that it had taken him nearly half a year as a child to reach Solam's current level. Arando secretly wondered: had he truly stumbled upon a one-in-a-million genius?

In reality, Arando was exaggerating. Learning a language is quite fast if one has a foundation. Solam possessed the knowledge from his past life, giving him a massive advantage over the average person in this regard. Combined with the fact that he already spoke Common, the two aligned, and with his naturally high intelligence, learning this was a piece of cake.

Arando still didn't teach Solam any other knowledge, not because he didn't want to, but because they had arrived.

Solam looked at the totem pole before him, his heart yearning for home; he had no mind for study anymore. They had entered the territory of the Bloodaxe Clan, and not far ahead—at most half a day's journey—lay the Frost-Free Valley where the Bloodaxe Clan spent the winter.

"Awooo!" Solam had grown up in this world and had never been away from the clan for so long. Naturally, he was excited to return, so he let out a long howl to vent his feelings.

"Awooo!" Seeing his master so excited, Frostfang naturally followed suit.

Unexpectedly, just as their voices faded, a response echoed from the distance.

"Awooo!"

It seemed the clan's patrolling wolf riders had heard their call not far away. Sure enough, in a short while, five wolf riders came galloping toward them.

Solam saw them from afar; they were all familiar faces. But what surprised Solam even more was that he saw his cousin, Krum, who had grown up with him.

"Hey! Ak!" Solam waved his arms excitedly.

Krum clearly saw Solam as well; he immediately increased his speed, racing toward Solam's direction.

Arando sat on Frostfang, smiling as he watched Solam wave his arms in excitement. To be honest, he envied Solam. He had a group of family members who loved him; otherwise, a Beast Elf would never have grown up so healthily. Then, he thought of his own family, and a sharp pain pierced his heart. His son, though a failure who couldn't do anything right and spent his days only eating, drinking, and playing, was actually kind-hearted at his core. He had always opposed Arando's involvement in those wicked businesses, constantly urging him to change to an honest trade. But back then, how could Arando have listened? He had always felt this bastard son didn't understand his hardships. His several grandsons, while not as clever as Solam, were all obedient and filial children, but now...

"Lisa, you must be blaming me in heaven, right?" Arando suppressed his heartache and confessed to his long-departed wife.

"Haha, Ram, how come you're back?" Krum, riding Bloodfang, had barely reached them before he jumped off without even slowing down, grabbing Solam and letting out a roar.

"Damn it, you bastard, get off me right now! Do you have any idea how heavy you are? Ouch, you're crushing me!" Krum was now fully grown, standing two point four meters tall with muscles all over. Combined with the momentum of his charge, he had slammed Solam straight into the ground. The feeling was indescribable—much like being hit by a wild ox.

Hearing Solam's cursing, Krum quickly scrambled up and pulled Solam to his feet.

"Ouch, my back," Solam said, holding his waist as he stood up. "I'm telling you, big guy, are you welcoming me or trying to kill me? You don't know how heavy you are, do you? Please, use your brain before you do something next time!"

Krum, being scolded by Solam, didn't get angry. He just scratched the back of his head and gave Solam a silly grin. He knew Solam was actually fine and was just complaining; he knew Solam's constitution better than anyone else.

"What are you grinning at? Anyway, how is everything at home? How are Aunt and Granny Karom? And what about Little Iluter? Can he talk yet? When I left, he couldn't even speak clearly. I wonder if he still remembers me?"

Krum wasn't the least bit angry at Solam's words. From childhood, even though Krum was the older cousin, he had always followed Solam's lead. Many times, Solam had lectured him just like this.

"Everyone is fine. Little Iluter can recognize people now," Krum said with a silly grin. "They all miss you. Just a few days ago, Little Iluter was asking for his big brother."