Malena

Malena's pretty 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 I came to the Magic Potion Shop, I offended an Advanced Apprentice. He's Nolan from the Shadow Society."

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

For one thing, her Mental Power had yet to reach perfection. Besides, she had channels for resources like this herself; she only needed to slowly save up magic stones to buy one.

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

Malena looked utterly confident, and she clearly did not regard the Shadow Society as much of a threat.

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

Afraid that Malena would underestimate the enemy, Ian told her everything he had learned.

"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 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 lovely face instantly darkened.

"Hmph! What nerve! They dare spy on our Magic Potion Shop? Harvey."

Malena called out toward the room outside. Before long, a middle-aged man hurried in.

"Manager Malena, what are your orders?"

"Go. Capture those spying outside and interrogate them thoroughly."

The moment Malena gave the order, the authority of a manager returned to her.

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

Harvey's face was grim. After giving a bow, he left the room.

Before long, chaotic screams came from outside, then quickly died down.

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

"Malena, is Harvey alone 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 bright red robe.

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

Nolan himself was being hunted by organizations such as 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 reported back.

"Reporting to Manager Malena, we captured three people. I interrogated them just now. They are indeed 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 left after a bath. Why was Ian in Malena's room at a time like this?

"What's 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 negligence. They were quite far from the Magic Potion Shop, so I did not notice them immediately."

Harvey's expression was equally unpleasant. He had recently been busy practicing wizardry and had indeed let his guard down. Who could have expected someone to dare spy on a Formal Wizard's Magic Potion Shop?

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

Having just learned that Nolan was also a genius, Harvey's competitive spirit had been stirred.

Even more pleasantly surprising, Nolan actually had the Tranquil Flower.

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

Excitement appeared on his formerly grim face.

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

But in the Wizarding World, age had never been a weakness. The older a wizard was, the more methods he possessed.

Bang!

After hearing Harvey's report, Malena slammed her hand on the table and stood up.

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

Harvey quickly said, "I'll first investigate his background. We can decide what to do after I return."

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

After Harvey left, Malena looked at Ian again.

"I don't have the Wizard Tool you want with me. You may have to wait a few days."

Ian hurriedly stood to thank her. "May I ask roughly how much it will cost? If it's too expensive, I'll owe you for it first."

A smile returned to Malena's face as she looked at Ian's embarrassed expression.

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

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

"I have another matter to ask of you. Could I borrow the wizardry practice room for a while? I'll pay the maintenance costs."

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

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

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

"Hmph! You caused such enormous trouble. If it weren't 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 wizardry diligently because he intended to deal with Nolan himself. The thought of it seemed laughable to her.

Malena leaned back in her chair and fell into thought.

Nolan was now a massive vortex. Who knew how many people would come when the time arrived?

She knew very well how difficult Advanced Apprentice geniuses were to deal with. As for Nolan, who had killed more than a dozen opponents of the same rank and escaped unscathed, his level of danger was obvious.

Lady Alivia had told her that a very small number of powerful Monsters could even pose a threat to 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 be resolved in a few days still had not succeeded. That Ian was like a turtle, hiding in the shop and never coming out.

He had long known the details of that 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 and seized the man directly, but that would not work here.

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

He was now deeply embroiled in danger himself, with many enemies hunting him everywhere.

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

He decided to wait no longer and act directly. When the time came, he would flee beyond Shadowmoon Tower's sphere of influence, advance to wizardhood, then return to 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.

Every day, aside from completing the minimum quota of potions, he devoted all his strength to practicing the Crystal Energy Barrier.

This greatly displeased Malena, but she also knew that before Nolan's matter was resolved, Ian had no mind for brewing potions. She could only let him be.

Ian was also somewhat anxious. With danger looming, he could not go without a defensive wizardry.

The feeling was like walking naked into a pack of fierce beasts, 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 shelter him for so long. It would be even better if they could drive Nolan away directly this time.

But in the end, Ian still had to rely on himself to resolve it.