Reward and Advance

"Can you erase the mark on this storage pouch?" Ruger asked.

Baangte shook his head. "No wizard apprentice can do that."

"If possible, I'd like to redeem my reward now," he said tentatively.

"Are you sure?" Baangte looked at how unsteady he was.

Ruger nodded again in confirmation. He believed in keeping what was in hand safely in the bag. Since he could cash in early, there was no need to delay it. Once he had the goods in hand, he could take greater initiative in seeking a chance to leave. The world changed every moment. No matter what happened, he firmly believed that hiding away as a little kobold and focusing on meditation to improve himself could never be the worst choice.

Baangte took out several books and scrolls.

"I don't have time to teach you what I know right now, so you can only choose from these. They're all spoils from this period. You may pick one and take it," Baangte said.

"May I ask some questions first?" he said.

"Of course."

Baangte agreed readily.

"However, among fifth-rank wizard apprentices, I can hardly be called learned. I only focus on the fields I'm good at, along with some basic common knowledge from various fields. I hope you won't put me in an awkward position."

"I want to contract a bonded magic pet, but I have some concerns."

Before Ruger could finish, Baangte showed a knowing expression, as though this was such a common matter that there was no need to say more.

Baangte began searching, while Ruger waited beside him with eager eyes.

"This should be a decent one. The simplest way to eliminate hidden dangers is not to contract a bonded magic pet at all. For Beast King wizards, the real removal of such dangers only comes after becoming an official wizard. That's why this exists—the contract stone—to satisfy people like you and apprentices who have only just set foot on the path of Beast King wizards."

Baangte took out a small diamond-shaped stone.

"This Magic Pet Contract Stone should be fairly good. It's also spoils from this period, so I can only estimate that it can withstand five or six times before shattering. If a caster at the level of an official wizard or above tries to deal with you through the magic pet, it can only block it once. Add it during the normal process of contracting a magic pet. Afterward, you can choose to feed it to the magic pet. Once you sense that it has shattered, just feed it a new one. There are two here—take them both."

Baangte took out another diamond-shaped stone and casually tossed both to Ruger, as if he thought little of them. He had probably only picked them up to exchange for magic stones later.

Ruger accepted them with delight. The two diamond-shaped stones were blackish gray overall, dull and murky, without the slightest hint of crystal clarity.

"Pick a spell, then let's leave this place."

Baangte spread the books and scrolls before him and urged him roughly. Gray Longneck Saint Lord's shrunken body bent over to serve as a makeshift table.

Ruger relaxed his mind, leafing through them one by one while greedily trying to sense that spiritual guidance again.

At the same time, he thought about where these items had come from. A commission from some so-called Wizard Niteri had brought a group of wizard apprentices, either in groups or alone, to this inconspicuous corner. And the discord among the wizard apprentices was even greater than he had imagined. By the time this commission had fermented and neared its end, there would surely be even more interesting developments and conflicts.

Just as Ruger was about to give up hope, the tardy spiritual intuition finally knocked on his door once more.

Spiritual intuition still favored him. Sighing inwardly, he picked up that book and checked its title again. Written on the cover was Zero-Ring Spell · Demon Body.

"That's a minor spell adapted from demonic flesh transformation. It can increase the caster's resistance to most toxins, make a person taller, and make them stronger for a short time. It requires a catalyst when cast—a spellcasting material carrying a demonic aura. Broadly speaking, it isn't a mature spell. It's a whole tier below Strength of the Savage Bull. My assessment is that I don't recommend choosing it. Still, you've already saved yourself the trouble of finding spellcasting materials. The Demon Skin Spell on you carries a demonic aura."

As Baangte spoke, he saw that Ruger had not put down the book, so he collected all the other books and inheritance scrolls.

From his lofty vantage point, the burly man failed to notice that when he mentioned the spell could make someone bigger, Ruger's little kobold eyes had already lit up.

"Thank you. This is exactly what I need."

Ruger solemnly put the book away. A suitable spell was not something one came across easily. He wasn't doing this merely for the pointless sake of getting taller.

Baangte's huge hand suddenly reached over. Without even asking Ruger's permission, he grabbed him and lifted him up.

Then came inhuman explosions of sound as feet pounded the ground. The scenery around them sped backward amid one thunderous crash after another. The sudden burst of high-speed travel made Ruger feel as though his bones were about to come apart. And he still had not recovered his favorite long staff. Fortunately, when he had retrieved his clothes, he had already put away two rather handy short spears.

It seemed Baangte was truly in a hurry. As Ruger's thoughts ran wild along the way, he figured that this burly man had finally caught the snake and was certainly eager to make his next move. He had wanted to ask what would ultimately become of that cunning snake, Gray Longneck Saint Lord, but unfortunately, he had never found the chance to speak.

They raced onward like wind and lightning, and soon he began seeing places whose routes he could recognize.

His heart settled a little.

Baangte suddenly stopped. Ruger felt all the blood in his body surge upward at once. Before he could recover, he was set down on the ground. He promptly collapsed into a seated position. Solid ground that did not sway was truly a wonderful thing.

"I'll be leaving for a few days. Give my regards to that cook for me," Baangte said.

Ruger raised his head, but there was already no one before him.

With the understanding between you two, you don't need a little kobold errand boy at all.

He immediately cast Mental Boil on himself again, then took out a short spear and held it in his hand. The enhancement from Strength of the Savage Bull had not yet faded. Recalling the map in his mind, he chose a direction and set off.

Outside was too dangerous, and he was still too weak. That was all he could think at the moment.

No kind of roasted meat was as tempting as returning to meditate in peace.

He walked and stopped along the way, avoiding several obviously dangerous areas. Emerging from the entrance of a cave in an inconspicuous small-hole region, he gazed into the distance and saw those towering spindle-shaped mushrooms once more.

He had finally returned to the kobolds' hunting territory.

He wondered whether the lizardfolk had continued invading the kobolds' settlement.

After resting briefly, and seeing that he had already made it this far, he tipped back the other bottle of Big Silly Hum's blood and drank it. With the green potion Baangte had given him as his final shield, he could afford to be a little extravagant. It would make the journey ahead easier.

He hurried as much as he could, but he was still noticeably slower than on the way there.

As he walked, he ate cooked meatworms and planned to see Half-Man the moment he returned. Among wizards, every offering came with a demand. Since the other party had demands, they probably would not mind giving a little more—for instance, taking action to help this body full of tormenting wounds recover faster.