The War Approaches, Part Two

After promoting to a Black Iron Mage, Donald now possessed the authority of a level 1 soul rank. He could withstand the mental strain of summoning over a hundred level 3 summoned creatures at once, or up to ten level 4 and two level 5 creatures. Units above level 5 could not be summoned for the time being, as he currently lacked magic cores of that rank and his soul power had not yet reached the required standard.

Aside from special varieties, level 1 creatures at the early Black Iron stage were only slightly stronger than ordinary humans, making them of little use in the dangerous environment of this world. However, level 2 and level 3 summoned creatures could rely on their numerical advantage to deal with most low-level magical beasts with ease. Furthermore, as summoned creatures, they did not need to worry about injuries and could fight with reckless abandon, allowing them to display even greater combat prowess.

Moreover, with level 4 and level 5 entities holding the line, even if a level 6 magical beast at the peak of the Bronze rank were to appear, he would have no trouble escaping if he couldn't win.

"To enhance my own strength, I cannot rely solely on the Book of Truth; I also need to read more in-depth mage cultivation texts and acquire other essential mage equipment. I currently possess these conditions. With the promotion gifts from those mages at the Association and the collection within the Mage Association, I can at least ensure I won't lack the necessary equipment and knowledge before reaching the high Black Iron stage."

"But relying on these occasional visits to Giant Stone City to read for a while will likely delay my progress significantly. And once I subtract the time spent on cultivation, I still have that massive mess of affairs at the manor to manage; it's impossible for me to reside in Giant Stone City for long. It seems I must find a way to save time!"

As a mage's rank increases, their mental power rank rises accordingly, which is the only way to gain higher authority over the Book of Truth and further master one's abilities. This way, even if the Book of Truth were to suddenly disappear one day, he would have the strength to protect himself and stand firm.

Therefore, Donald conceived a plan: he would transcribe the collection of the Association so that he could study it at home at any time.

Two days later, Donald arrived at the Giant Stone City Mage Association once again.

This time, he brought no rare products and did not converse with any other mages. Instead, he stayed in his lounge for a while before leaving the room to enter the library to browse the books inside.

However, no one noticed that before leaving his lounge, Donald had used a level 2 crystal core to summon a level 2 beast-kin unit: a Spirit Walker.

After ordering the White Minotaur to cast Spirit Link on him to connect their souls, Donald left it in the lounge and headed straight into the library.

Every mage's lounge was a place where outsiders were forbidden to disturb, so as not to affect the mage's rest and meditation.

While Donald was browsing books in the library, in his lounge, a miserable White Minotaur was hunched over the desk, writing furiously. It was truly difficult for it, given that its degenerated hoof-hands were not accustomed to holding a pen, yet it was still writing with such diligence and effort!

As it turned out, this was exactly Donald's plan: to borrow the Spirit Walker's unique telepathic transmission ability to transcribe the Association's books.

It should be known that, apart from spell incantations, all books in a mage's library are generally forbidden from being copied. Although the library of the Giant Stone City Association was an important location, because it was surrounded by mages and protected by resident mages, there were only simple defensive spells outside the library and minor spells to preserve the books. There were no high-power protective enchantments.

Furthermore, the abilities of a Spirit Walker far exceeded the level that ordinary mages could touch upon. Generally, only mages above the Silver rank could truly come into contact with knowledge regarding the soul. This was true not only for mages but for other Professionals as well, with warrior-class Professionals having even higher requirements.

After browsing in the library for the better part of the day, Donald stretched his body in satisfaction and returned to his lounge.

Looking at the seven mage books the White Minotaur had finished copying on the table, Donald felt a surge of joy. He tossed a few words of praise to the White Minotaur before recalling it into the Book of Truth.

The language used by summoned creatures was the language of this world, a capability granted to them by the Book of Truth through the knowledge Donald possessed in his soul. Donald opened one and saw that the handwriting was clear and free of errors, almost identical to his own.

Donald couldn't help but let his imagination run wild: "If I can copy seven or eight books at a time like this, it's enough for me to study for ten days or half a month when I get back. Then I can come back and copy for half a day next time; no one will ever notice! If I keep this up for a year or two, couldn't I build a magic library at my own manor? Haha!"

Just as Donald was secretly transcribing the Mage Association's collection, shocking news arrived from the kingdom's western border.

The Orcs were coming!

Orcs had always been the Kingdom of Selt's greatest external threat. Selt and the Northwest Wasteland both occupied the northern part of the continent, and despite being separated by the Rocky Ridge mountains, there were still areas in the southern part of their territories that were directly connected.

The North Shire region could be considered safe; the distant, narrow Rocky Ridge mountains and the Bloodstone Fortress blocked the path for Orcs entering from the Northwest Plateau. For many years, only small groups of Orcs had managed to cross the vast and complex terrain of the Rocky Ridge to reach the North Shire territory of the Kingdom of Selt. But faced with the Rocky Gorge, which had only one exit, and the fortress built of sturdy rock, even the strongest Orcs were forced to halt their advance.

It is said that years ago, an Orc tribe, underestimating the treacherous terrain of the Rocky Gorge and the sturdiness of the Bloodstone Fortress, carelessly sent their entire raiding party—composed of the tribe's young and strong—to their deaths beneath the Rocky Gorge and the walls of the Bloodstone Fortress.

The stone walls of the Bloodstone Fortress were stained red with the blood of the Orcs, which is how it earned its name. This name became an eternal pain in the hearts of the surviving Orcs of that tribe.

Even if the Orcs intended to bypass the Rocky Ridge to the north, they would need to cross the Cloud-Rising Mountains and the vast Green Cloak Forest before entering the North Shire from the Baron of Red Maple's territory. Not to mention the numerous magical beast threats they would face along the way, the north side of the Cloud-Rising Mountains was already close to the Snow Mountain Icefield at the northernmost tip of the continent. The harsh, cold winds were mostly blocked by the Cloud-Rising Mountains; even if they managed to cross the frigid northern end of the mountains without being attacked by magical beasts, given the Orcs' robust bodies, few would likely remain by the time they reached the south side.

Therefore, the Bloodstone Fortress had become the only place in the North Shire region of the Kingdom of Selt that needed to face the Orcs. It was also the safest place.

In contrast, the Marquis Ansel Territory, located in the far west of the kingdom, was the area facing the most severe threat from the Orcs.

Although the Marquis Ansel Territory, which was as large as a province, did not directly border the Northwest Plateau—having some mountains and hills as obstacles—these mountains and hills on the northwest border could be easily traversed by the strong and sturdy Orcs, unlike the natural barrier of the Rocky Ridge. Consequently, every time the Orcs invaded the nations of the continent, a certain number of them succeeded in reaching the Selt border, causing significant losses to the villages and towns along the way.

Especially during famine years, since the soil of the wasteland was unsuitable for farming, the number of Orcs—who possessed low agricultural capability—invading would skyrocket. In previous years, the Orcs generally invaded the human border during the autumn harvest, but perhaps this year the Orcs had already anticipated that the harvest prospects were not optimistic, which was why small groups of Orcs had arrived early to raid human territory.

Currently, scouts from the border garrison of the Kingdom of Selt, where Donald was located, had already discovered traces of the Orc vanguard. It seemed that a war was unavoidable.