Book of Azora!

After a long while, Theocritus finally looked up and asked, "Mage Shawn, what do you intend to trade? A staff? Robes? Trinkets? Rings? A pendant? Are you looking for magical equipment or spellcasting materials?"

Shawn chuckled and replied, "I intend to trade for a grimoire."

Theocritus wore an "as I expected" expression.

In truth, he could have guessed as much.

How could someone who could bring out a staff that even mid-tier mages could barely use be lacking in ordinary magical equipment? What he needed, naturally, was a grimoire—something far more precious and vital to a mage than a staff.

After careful consideration, Theocritus said, "Mage Shawn, the items you have brought out... their value certainly exceeds that of a grimoire for a novice mage. As for a grimoire used by a mid-tier mage, even if your items were of sufficient value, I could not trade it to you; after all, I have my own needs... This puts me in a difficult position."

Grimoires are indeed incredibly rare magical artifacts. Crafting one requires not only extremely rare magical materials and profound magical attainment, but also a massive expenditure of time, energy, and mana. Therefore, generally speaking, a mage will only ever craft one grimoire, and this book will likely accompany that mage for their entire life.

Trading for a genuine grimoire is, indeed, no easy task.

Fortunately, Shawn had no intention of making things difficult for Theocritus, as he had no intention of trading for a real grimoire.

Shawn smiled, stood up, and said solemnly, "Lord Theocritus, you have misunderstood. I do not wish to trade for a genuine grimoire, but rather for a hand-copied manuscript of one. It does not need to be a true magical artifact; it only needs to record the full contents of a real grimoire. Of course, in that case, an ordinary manuscript would likely not match the value of the items I have brought. Therefore, the manuscript I require must be sufficiently precious; it must be at least..."

"A manuscript of a high-tier grimoire. Or, to be precise, it must be..."

"A manuscript of the Book of Azora!"

The Book of Azora!

Upon hearing those words, Theocritus stood up abruptly, his face revealing undisguised shock and suspicion.

Although he did not carry his staff, dense arcane energy began to gather in his hands, ready to unleash a lethal blow at any moment.

He stared at Shawn, a startling light flashing in his eyes, and said word by word, "Mage Shawn, how do you know that I possess the Book of Azora!"

Shawn smiled slightly, showing no surprise at Theocritus's sudden outburst.

He made no move, and because his inner suspicions had been confirmed, his mood eased considerably. He sat back down slowly and said calmly, "Lord Theocritus, there is no need for surprise. In truth, I was merely guessing. I did not expect that the high-tier mage Azora had truly left behind a grimoire, and that it had actually fallen into your hands."

Shawn explained his reasoning.

Generally speaking, a Mage Tower is named after its builder or its inhabitant. For example, Karazhan is also known as the "Tower of Medivh" because Medivh resided there.

That was why Rick had said it was rumored that the Tower of Azora was built by a high-tier mage named "Azora."

The reason Shawn was more certain of this than Rick was that not only was the Mage Tower named after Azora, but the precious magical artifact at the top of the tower also bore the same name.

Therefore, it was almost self-evident that this Mage Tower had been built by that very mage.

Although Shawn could not guess the mage's exact rank at that point, he could at least be certain that they were, at minimum, a high-tier mage.

Could someone capable of creating a wondrous magical item like the Eye of Azora be anything less than a high-tier mage?

Whether Azora had left behind a grimoire, Shawn did not know; that part was truly just a guess. If one had been left behind, then according to mage tradition, the book would naturally be called the "Book of Azora."

Rick had mentioned that Azora had disappeared long ago, and then one day, Theocritus arrived in Elwynn Forest and claimed the Tower of Azora for himself.

The question arose: why was Theocritus able to claim the Tower of Azora as his own?

One must know that every Mage Tower is laden with various defensive measures, inscribed runes, guardian constructs, and other traps set by its builder and inhabitant. Given the rigorous defenses left behind by a high-tier mage, how could Theocritus, a mere mid-tier mage, have easily taken possession of it?

It seemed likely that there was some unclear or unspoken connection between Lord Theocritus and Azora.

Was the reason Theocritus left Stormwind City truly to avoid the city's politics? Or was there more to it than just avoiding the regime?

Perhaps the reason he left Stormwind and came to the Tower of Azora was to inherit the tower itself?

Who could guess the truth of the matter?

Shawn could not.

But there was one thing he could be certain of.

Since Theocritus was able to take up residence in the Tower of Azora, if Azora had truly left behind a grimoire, then Theocritus was the most likely person to have obtained it.

This was merely Shawn's conjecture.

Shawn had simply been trying to bluff him.

He had not expected that his guess would be true.

Theocritus actually possessed the Book of Azora!

On the main road of Elwynn Forest, Shawn and Rick each rode a horse, moving slowly toward Goldshire.

Along the way, Rick opened his mouth to speak several times, only to hesitate.

Shawn ignored him, instead opening the parchment book in his hands, a satisfied smile playing on his lips.

Yes, he had ultimately obtained the manuscript of the Book of Azora, which left him very satisfied.

This thick parchment book recorded over thirty practical spells, ranging from the lowest-tier Frostbolt, Arcane Missiles, and Fireball, to Arcane Explosion, Blink, and Counterspell, and even higher-tier spells like Polymorph and Spellsteal—comprehensive and complex.

Of course, like most mages, Azora did not possess the triple-specialization aura of Khadgar and focused solely on arcane magic. Therefore, starting from mid-tier spells, the book consisted almost entirely of the arcane series.

Despite this, Shawn was extremely satisfied.

For Shawn, who until now only knew Arcane Missiles, Fireball, and Frostbolt, this manuscript was vital, paving the way for his future study of magic.

Although he had lost the Staff of the Coldlight Oracle and a whole chest of pearls to obtain it.

It was worth it.

How could mere worldly possessions compare to the importance of knowledge?