A Full Haul

Taylor quickly dealt with the Thorn-Spike Spiders, Flame Spiders, Frost Spiders, One-Eyed Spiders, and other spider-type magical beasts by other means. He could be said to have returned with a full haul.

On this trip to the Spider Cave, Taylor had barely cast a single spell. Using only traps, potions, and other auxiliary tools, he had taken down six spiders single-handedly.

When it came to the last One-Eyed Spider, Taylor did not sever its neural center. Instead, he killed it completely, dug out its Magic Core, held it in his palm, and whistled.

From a shadow not far from Taylor, a Six-Eyed Owl suddenly emerged. It looked at the One-Eyed Spider's Magic Core in Taylor's palm, swallowed it in one bite, licked its beak contentedly, then nodded at Taylor with an expression that said, You know what you're doing. I'm very satisfied.

It then went over and picked through the remains, eating every other edible part of the One-Eyed Spider clean. Taylor merely stepped forward, dug out the One-Eyed Spider's most valuable part—its enormous single eye—and watched the Six-Eyed Owl eat.

This Six-Eyed Owl was Taylor's greatest backing on this journey. As a Level 3 Apprentice surveillance creature created by wizards, it could go anywhere apprentices were permitted to go. It possessed an extremely high degree of freedom and was loyal to wizards.

This Six-Eyed Owl had originally been extremely haughty, but Taylor had stubbornly spent time feeding it mice and other tasty things, even specially buying food Six-Eyed Owls liked from the miscellaneous supplies area. Only after a long period of getting along had he barely persuaded this proud big cat to follow behind him and protect him along the way.

The One-Eyed Spider's Magic Core could only be considered an appetizer. Taylor had already made an agreement with the Six-Eyed Owl: aside from the spiders' eyes and a few other things he could use, everything else, including the Magic Cores, would go to the Six-Eyed Owl behind him.

This was an equal exchange and did not violate the Wizard Apprentice Code.

Next, Taylor brought the Six-Eyed Owl behind him into the other caves. From the spiders lying sprawled across the ground, he dug out all their spider eyes and Spider Silk Sacs, while the Six-Eyed Owl devoured everything remaining.

To let the backer behind him eat a little better, Taylor even specially mixed Inducer as seasoning and sprinkled it over the spider corpses after collecting his samples.

Looking at the forty-nine eyeballs before him, especially the largest single eye in the center, Taylor decided to use the One-Eyed Spider's unique eye, which possessed mental bewitchment abilities, as the main vessel for the Spider's Eye Witchcraft Tool. The other eyes would be fused into it as support.

As he thought, Taylor took the notebook for the Spider's Eye Witchcraft Tool from his satchel and began writing in it. He noted further improvements to the witchcraft tool, the additional witchcraft runes, and the enormous single eye that would serve as the main vessel.

As he wrote, Taylor became completely absorbed, unable to pull himself away from researching his first witchcraft tool. It was not until a little later, when his back was patted several times and he heard a familiar cry, that he put his notebook back into his satchel.

"Meow, meow, meow~~~~"

The Six-Eyed Owl let out a cheerful cry, stretched out its forepaw, and vigorously patted Taylor on the back. It meant that he should call it along again next time there was work like this.

"Understood. Don't worry!"

Taylor was now only a Level 1 Wizard Apprentice who had mastered two spell models. Naturally, he was overjoyed at the olive branch extended by such a powerful figure. He understood that this wizard surveillance beast, the Six-Eyed Owl, possessed intelligence no less than that of an ordinary person. Earning its recognition and being able to continue working with it in the future was more than he could have hoped for.

Seeing that the young apprentice ahead understood its meaning, the Six-Eyed Owl nodded its owl-like head in satisfaction and returned to hiding in a patch of shadow nearby, watching Taylor and everything around him.

After packing up, Taylor set all the spider remains ablaze, reducing them to ash. He then left the Spider Cave, intending to return to his apprentice dormitory. But after thinking it over, he turned back midway and erased every trace he had left behind, afraid someone might follow those tracks back to him.

The owl hidden in the dark rolled its eyes. It felt that this young apprentice it favored was simply far too cautious. He should not have been studying on White Wizards' territory; if he went over to the Black Wizards' side, he would be right at home.

Even it, a magical beast responsible for surveillance, knew that the apprentice code strictly prohibited apprentices from killing one another, plundering knowledge, or seizing spoils. Once discovered, the core of their souls would be removed, turning them into useless cripples.

After all, killing one another, plundering knowledge, and seizing spoils would be no different from driving the entire apprentice community into madness and internal strife. Soon, no one would seriously study knowledge anymore. They would only think about how to kill people and how to develop high-powered witchcraft, which ran completely contrary to the White Wizards' principles and their reverence for the pursuit of knowledge.

Six-Eyed Owls like it, responsible for surveillance, hid in every dark corner throughout the White Tower Alliance. That was why it had followed behind Taylor. Surveillance beasts like it were too numerous to count, and any violation of the rules would result in immediate arrest.

From the bottom of its heart, it simply did not believe anyone would dare defy a wizard's will.

Could this little fellow's soul have been taken over by a Black Wizard? It did not look like it.

The Six-Eyed Owl following behind soon stopped pondering the matter. It somehow produced another spider leg, stuffed it into its beak, and chewed away noisily as it leisurely trailed after Taylor.

Taylor now had a canvas bag full of notebooks hanging at his left side and a glass jar full of various eyeballs hanging at his right. He did not look like a White Wizard apprentice at all. Instead, he looked like a mad scientist, a lunatic, a lunatic who loved collecting eyeballs.

On the way back, Taylor also encountered a patrol team of wizard apprentices responsible for inspecting nearby areas such as the Monster Forest and Spider Cave.

The captain and his team members glanced at the eyeballs filling Taylor's glass jar, said nothing, and passed him by.

These were not precious items. If they put in some effort, they could obtain just as many.

The Wizard Apprentice Code had been carved into their bones, memorized and recited by them since childhood. It would not allow them to commit such acts of trickery and plunder.

Watching the patrol team of wizard apprentices depart, Taylor dispersed the magic power gathered on the Flame Medal and continued onward.

Before long, he could vaguely see the dense White Wizard Tower Cluster of the White Tower Alliance.