Summoning a Water Elemental

"Mr. Bigglesworth!" The moment Lister stepped through the door with his left foot, the fat cat that had been waiting for ages meowed and leapt down from the wall. After changing his shoes, Lister took out the prepared lunchbox. "I made roasted snake meat for you today. I wonder if it suits your taste."

Mr. Bigglesworth seemed to have no objections. On the contrary, it nibbled the crisp snake meat with great interest. Lister had first roasted the meat before tossing it into hot oil to fry it. Just as Mr. Bigglesworth swallowed a bite, a whirlwind swept the lunchbox into the air, forcing the cat to chase after it.

"I warned you not to feed him too much." Kel'Thuzad approached with his arms folded. "Mr. Bigglesworth cannot eat food that is too greasy."

"I skimmed off all the fat from that snake meat. It only tastes like that." Lister's words made Kel'Thuzad raise an eyebrow. "Fine. Pray that your talent for cooking is as great as your talent for researching spells, apprentice. Let us begin the afternoon lesson."

Unlike Arcane Runes and Fire Runes, Frost Runes often appeared around people in tangible forms and required no medium. Ice was their finest manifestation. The most obvious examples were Winterthorn Grass and Elemental Water. Elemental Water was the crystallization of arcane mana; any water summoned through arcane magic contained runes within it, so long as one found them before the water elemental dispersed.

"Use your eyes. Observe carefully." Kel'Thuzad's voice echoed by his ear. With his eye pressed to the microscope, Lister searched without pause for the various structures of the water elementals. "I found one! This shape of water elemental cluster seems to have appeared many times!"

"Draw it!" Kel'Thuzad's furious voice boomed like thunder. "Draw it! I can tell you that there are thirty-two distinct water elemental runes in total!"

"Yes, Archmage." Lister observed and sketched the patterns he saw at the same time, but in less than a second, the rune vanished.

It was not just that one rune. All the water elementals in the pool were rapidly dispersing. In a panic, Lister hurriedly fetched fresh Elemental Water, only to accidentally spill it, washing away all the research results he had obtained.

Watching the cold vortex spiral down the drain in the pool, Lister trembled with fear. Kel'Thuzad's face was ice-cold. Had it not been for Mr. Bigglesworth's meowing, he might have exploded at any moment—literally. He raised a hand, and an inscription embroidered upon his mage robes flashed.

A moment later, several streams of flowing Elemental Water abruptly appeared in the air, along with even some Essence of Water. The waters swiftly gathered together and melded into a massive water giant.

This was Summon Water Elemental, a spell that even a third-circle mage could master. Mages used their own mana as payment to summon these powerful elemental beings from the deep sea. But if one could reach the level of the seventh circle or beyond, this spell could be upgraded into Create Water Elemental.

Clearly, water elementals created in this manner were less meaningful than actual living creatures and must have had flaws of some sort. Kel'Thuzad thought so as well, which was why he had deliberately summoned a natural water elemental. Its task was to replenish Lister's Elemental Water in time, continuously for an entire day.

Thank goodness for Mr. Bigglesworth, Lister thought. The water elemental looked at his experimental apparatus and released only enough Elemental Water to cover the microscope stage.

"Ahem, thank you." After some thought, Lister took out a Fire Protection Potion and handed it over. The elemental stretched out its head to "look" at the potion, pulled out the stopper, then downed the water crystal inside in one gulp before nodding.

After tidying up the laboratory, Lister continued his experiment. This time, drawing the runes went much more smoothly. With the water elemental beside him to replenish Elemental Water at any time, he worked quickly.

Thus, after an entire day, he had completed one rune.

"Your speed is passable." Kel'Thuzad nodded. Just as he was about to casually send the water elemental back, Lister spoke up. "Could you tell me how to summon this water elemental? It seems rather easy to talk to."

Kel'Thuzad fell silent for a moment before calmly saying, "Never place expectations on elemental beings. These fellows are rotten to the core. Once they have received payment, it is already good enough if they do not cheat you. I advise you not to think too much about it."

Lister's faintly disappointed expression made Kel'Thuzad fall silent again. Mr. Bigglesworth was meowing at the moment when he finally spoke. "Fine. East of Dalaran, along the eastern shore of Lake Lordamere where it borders the Kingdom of Alterac, there is a group of Shore Crawlers. They are mutated elemental beings, hybrids of natural elementals, water elementals, and earth elementals. These monsters were..."

He paused and cast a seemingly casual glance at Ebony Chill. The water elemental did the same; it was extremely interested in this frost artifact. "They were created from yetis by a former Kirin Tor councilor. He originally wanted to obtain some very good slaves, but clearly, he failed."

"However, these monsters are not entirely useless. Their bodies are the finest nourishment for cultivating herbs, and I also wish to study their internal structure..."

Kel'Thuzad seemed to notice something. "This fellow appears to have set its sights on your Ebony Chill, apprentice."

The water elemental's body rapidly collapsed. Lister immediately gripped Ebony Chill, and a current of water attempting to coil around the staff froze into a block of ice. That became its most fatal flaw—greed had killed it.

The Archmage raised his hand, and the water elemental's core was immediately frozen into a lump of ice. A surging blaze burst forth. Amid a piercing shriek, all the water evaporated completely, leaving a sticky sensation hanging in the air.

"This is what happens after Essence of Water evaporates. It is unpleasant and requires continuous baking." Kel'Thuzad reminded him, "Do not let any lifeforms outside see Ebony Chill, especially elemental beings. They will strip the elemental power from magical equipment because they can almost completely absorb the mana within."

"This is also my fault. I overlooked the greed of elemental beings. For you, this is the best lesson. You will encounter these scum in the future as well." Kel'Thuzad's tone was calm. "But those Shore Crawlers still need to be dealt with. If you can bring me ten sealed corpses..." The Archmage handed Lister a bag, its surface gleaming with magic's distinctive dim light. "This is a magic pouch, made with spatial magic. It can preserve the vitality of medicinal herbs. Fill this pouch, and I can teach you how to summon elemental beings."

"I obey your command." Lister bowed deeply. Ebony Chill spun once, and the ice crystal at its tip changed shape, becoming an utterly ordinary blue crystal staff. It no longer floated beside Lister either. Lister slung it over his back again, and now no one would be able to tell.

An inexplicable mental barrier made Lister suddenly feel very far away from Ebony Chill. Otherwise, he should have been warned the moment the water elemental tried to seize Ebony Chill.

"Meow?" Mr. Bigglesworth tilted its head in confusion. Its round face had grown a little larger again. After Kel'Thuzad grabbed it, it let out an angry yet powerless roar.