Malena

Malena's little face turned serious. This was no small matter.

Ian had been recruited into the shop by her, and he was an exceptionally gifted potion-making genius. Nothing could happen to him.

"Before coming to the Magic Potion Shop, I offended an Advanced Apprentice. He's Nolan of the Shadow Society."

Malena had also heard about Nolan recently. She knew he possessed the Tranquil Flower, yet unlike everyone else, she had not tried to snatch it.

First, her spiritual power had not yet reached completion. Second, she had her own channels for acquiring such resources; she only needed to slowly save up magic stones to buy one.

"The Shadow Society? Ordinary apprentices may indeed fear them, but you are a Potion Master from our shop. Naturally, you're different from them."

Malena looked utterly confident, and her words showed that she did not think much of the Shadow Society.

"Nolan is a genius, and one of the founders of the Shadow Society..."

Afraid that Malena would underestimate him, Ian revealed all the intelligence he had gathered.

"He also has a wizard mentor. That is somewhat troublesome, but it's not a major problem."

Malena's calm tone made Ian breathe a sigh of relief.

It seemed the shop owner, Alivia, was extremely powerful. Even Malena herself did not seem to care much about Formal Wizards.

"Through the Eye of Vigilance, I discovered that there may be people from the Shadow Society outside."

Malena's expression tightened, and her beautiful little face instantly darkened.

"Humph! Such audacity! They dare spy on our Magic Potion Shop? Harvey!"

Malena called toward the door. Before long, a middle-aged man hurried inside.

"Manager Malena, what are your orders?"

"Go. Capture those people watching outside and interrogate them thoroughly."

The instant Malena gave the order, she regained the imposing authority of a manager.

"I'll go at once. Rest assured, Manager. Not one of them will escape."

Harvey's face darkened. After giving a bow, he withdrew from the room.

Before long, chaotic screams sounded outside, only to quickly subside.

Ian wanted to get up and take a look, but he sat back down.

"Malena, is Harvey alone really enough? What if Nolan is hiding nearby? Harvey could be in danger."

Malena had just changed out of her nightclothes in the bedroom. She now sat upright in a chair, dressed in a crimson robe.

"Don't worry. Harvey is very strong. He was ordered by Wizard Alivia to guard this place. If Nolan dares to show himself directly, wouldn't that be perfect?"

Nolan himself was being hunted by organizations like the White Bear Order. He would not dare expose his whereabouts casually and was likely still hiding in the shadows.

After a while, Harvey returned with specks of blood on his clothes and gave his report.

"Manager Malena, we caught three people. I interrogated them just now. They really are from the Shadow Society and were responsible for monitoring Ian's movements."

After speaking, Harvey glanced at Ian, secretly astonished.

The moment he entered the room, he had smelled the faint fragrance of someone who had just bathed. This Ian... why was he in Malena's room at a time like this?

"What is wrong with you? Someone got right to our doorstep, and you didn't notice. Ian was the one who discovered them and told me."

Malena was somewhat angry. Harvey had been far too careless. How could he live up to Lady Alivia's trust?

"It was my oversight. They were quite far from the Magic Potion Shop, so I failed to notice them at first."

Harvey's expression was not pleasant either. He had recently been busy practicing sorcery and had indeed let his guard down. Who could have imagined that someone would dare spy on a Formal Wizard's Magic Potion Shop?

"However, I used some methods just now and obtained an important piece of information. That Nolan may be in Nightfall Town."

He had just learned that Nolan was also a genius, which stirred his competitive spirit.

Even more excitingly, the other party actually possessed the Tranquil Flower.

Harvey was also something of a homebody. He had been practicing sorcery nonstop lately and had not gone out at all, so he had no idea what had been happening at the High Tower recently.

Excitement appeared on his usually grim face.

He had occasionally enjoyed the title of genius in his younger days. Now that he was older, he had gradually faded from view.

But in the wizarding world, age was never a weakness. The older a wizard was, the more methods they possessed.

Bang!

After hearing Harvey's report, Malena slammed her palm on the table and rose to her feet.

"Daring to spy on the Magic Potion Shop is an insult to Lady Alivia. He must be taught a lesson."

Harvey quickly added, "I'll first investigate the other party's background. We can decide what to do after I return."

Malena nodded in agreement, then added, "Be careful. Nolan's methods are not easy to deal with."

After Harvey left, Malena turned to Ian again.

"I don't have the wizard tool you need on hand. You may have to wait a few days."

Ian quickly stood and thanked her. "May I know roughly how much it will cost? If it's too expensive, I'll owe you for now."

Malena smiled again as she looked at Ian's embarrassed expression.

"There's no need to buy it. It would be more economical for you to rent it once."

"That's possible too?" Ian was secretly grateful. Malena truly treated him exceptionally well.

"I have another matter to ask of you. Could you lend me the spell practice room for a while? I'll pay the maintenance fees."

Malena rolled her eyes and waved him off with some disdain.

"Why are you practicing sorcery all day instead of properly brewing potions?"

Seeing that she would not relent, Ian could only leave helplessly.

"Humph! You've caused such enormous trouble. If not for the fact that you're a potion-making genius, I would have kicked you out long ago."

She could tell that Ian was buying wizard tools and asking to practice sorcery diligently because he intended to deal with Nolan himself. The thought of it made her want to laugh.

Malena leaned back in her chair and fell into deep thought.

Nolan was now a massive whirlpool. She did not know how many people would come for him when the time came.

She knew very well how difficult high-level genius apprentices were to deal with. As for Nolan, who could kill more than a dozen opponents of the same rank and escape unscathed, his danger was obvious.

Lady Alivia had told her that a very small number of exceptionally powerful monstrous prodigies could even threaten Formal Wizards.

On the outskirts of Nightfall Town, inside an ordinary wooden house.

Nolan stood in the hall with a gloomy face. More than half a month had been wasted in this remote place.

What he had thought would take only a few days had still not succeeded. That Ian was like a turtle, hiding in the shop and never leaving.

He had long investigated the Magic Potion Shop. Behind it stood a terrifying figure whom even his mentor did not dare provoke.

If it had been any other shop, he would have gone in directly and seized the man. But that would not work here.

He did not dare target the Magic Potion Shop directly, so he could only wait patiently for an opportunity.

Now, he was also deeply embroiled in danger, with many enemies hunting him everywhere.

"Humph! Do you really think you can stump me?"

He decided to wait no longer and act directly. Once he escaped Shadowmoon Tower's sphere of influence and advanced to become a wizard, he would return and take revenge on them one by one.

Nolan quietly left the house and headed toward Nightfall Town, his figure gradually disappearing...

In the bedroom, Ian sat cross-legged, meditating to recover.

Now, aside from completing his minimum daily quota of potions, he devoted all his effort to practicing Crystal Energy Barrier.

This made Malena highly dissatisfied, but she also knew that before the matter with Nolan was resolved, Ian had no mind for brewing potions. She could only let him do as he pleased.

Ian was also feeling pressed. With danger looming over him, he could not be without a shield spell.

It felt like charging naked into a pack of beasts, leaving him without the slightest sense of security.

He had not expected Malena and Harvey to kill Nolan directly. That was somewhat unrealistic.

He was already satisfied that the Magic Potion Shop could protect him for this long. It would be even better if they could drive Nolan away this time.

But in the end, Ian would still have to solve it himself.