Undine's Gift

"The gathering of southern wizard prodigies had begun long ago."

Undine spoke calmly, her voice like the eternally unchanging cold wind outside the tower. "Baker left the Ring of Law a year ago and headed for the Fey Ancient City Ruins.

"The battle for Isidore's Prodigy Seats will officially begin in about four months."

"Four months..."

Dago silently repeated the number and said nothing.

It was not merely a unit of time, but a countdown to death.

In the world of wizards, falling a single step behind often meant becoming someone else's experimental material or stepping stone for advancement.

Baker's departure a year in advance meant that he had already established his own advantageous rules there and might even have cleared out a number of competitors.

Undine thought for a moment, then turned her Spatial Ring. As ripples of spatial fluctuations spread, she took out three items and handed them to Dago.

Dago examined the three items before him. They were not merely objects, but solidified energy and rules.

The first was a bottle of murky black potion.

Even through the specially made crystal bottle, Dago could still sense the heart-palpitating energy radiation within, as though countless wronged souls were howling inside.

That murky blackness was not an impurity, but a visual illusion created by highly concentrated negative energy particles in an extremely active state.

The second was a small section of dried, twisted root-like material. Only upon closer inspection did he realize it resembled the dried intestinal lining of some animal.

Its surface was covered in fine, naturally formed magical patterns and gave off an ancient, fishy-sweet scent—the lingering smell of a high-level creature's life essence.

The final item was a strangely shaped metal box. Its surface was covered with densely packed brass gears that meshed and turned. These