Chapter 4: Ernst Academy
As time passed, the little Shadow Mouse, having experienced little affection, grew less wary of Linley. By the eighth day, before Linley had even set down the hare and taken two steps back, the little Shadow Mouse darted out and began devouring it, chirping at Linley.
On the tenth day!
“Mm, today I should let the little Shadow Mouse try some roasted meat,” Linley said, wrapping a roasted wild chicken in a small cloth bag before cheerfully heading toward the ancient building cluster behind the manor.
Doehring Cowart walked alongside Linley, though no one but Linley could see him. His white beard curled up as he smiled. “Linley, it’s been nine days now. That Shadow Mouse has no guard against you anymore. Today, with even tastier roasted meat, it’ll be thrilled and grow even closer to you.”
Linley couldn’t help but smile at that.
Just as Linley stepped onto the old threshold—
“Squeak, squeak~~~” The little Shadow Mouse darted straight to Linley’s side, stood upright, and hopped around, chirping incessantly at him.
“I haven’t even taken it out yet, and it’s already run over, not afraid of me at all,” Linley thought, a surge of joy in his heart.
Beside him, Doehring Cowart watched the little Shadow Mouse with a grin. The mouse couldn’t sense Doehring Cowart’s presence at all. “It seems this little Shadow Mouse has grown quite fond of you now,” Doehring Cowart said with a chuckle.
“Squeak~~~” The little Shadow Mouse’s glossy black eyes fixed on Linley, chirping impatiently, as if urging him to hurry up and bring out the food.
“Don’t rush,” Linley said, pulling the roasted wild chicken from the cloth bag.
The moment it caught the scent of the roasted chicken, the little Shadow Mouse’s tiny black eyes lit up, and it immediately looked at Linley with a pitiful, pleading expression. Seeing this, Linley nearly doubled over with laughter. He remembered how, when he used to bring treats to little Wharton, Wharton would shout, “Brother, I want some!” while putting on a pitiful face.
Now this little Shadow Mouse was pulling the same trick.
“Heh heh, here you go.” Linley tossed the roasted chicken to the little Shadow Mouse.
The mouse let out a joyful chirp, leaped up, caught the chicken in its mouth, and took its first bite. Then its tearing speed increased rapidly. In no time, a roasted chicken nearly the size of the mouse itself was devoured clean.
“I really don’t get how you can swallow all that with a belly that small,” Linley remarked with a laugh.
The little Shadow Mouse seemed especially pleased with this meal. It hopped upright cheerfully, chirped at Linley, and even wrapped its tiny forepaws around Linley’s calf. Linley felt a thrill—this was the first time the mouse had shown such affection after eating.
“Linley, try stroking its fur gently. Most magical beasts enjoy having someone they trust groom them,” Doehring Cowart suggested.
Linley slowly reached out and placed his hand on the Shadow Mouse’s head. The little mouse didn’t flinch at all; instead, it closed its tiny eyes in contentment. Linley relaxed and began to gently stroke its fur. The little Shadow Mouse even started purring softly.
“This little one is really adorable,” Linley thought, growing fonder of the mouse.
“Grandpa Doehring, magical beasts are truly strange. Think about it—a Velocidragon is huge, with scales as hard as iron, and it’s a rank 7 magical beast. This little Shadow Mouse might grow up to become a rank 7 beast too. How can two rank 7 beasts be so different?”
Linley stroked the mouse, feeling a sense of awe.
“You can’t judge by appearance alone. You might pass an ordinary old man on the street, and he could be someone who rides a wyrm and levels a mountain with a wave of his hand,” Doehring Cowart said with a smile.
Linley understood that principle.
But instinctively, he still judged by looks.
Take the Velocidragon—just its massive size and the cold, metallic gleam of its scales showed how formidable it was.
“I wonder when this little Shadow Mouse will be willing to form a ‘Pact of Equality’ with me,” Linley muttered. He had no choice—forming the Pact of Equality required the magical beast to initiate it, so he could only wait passively.
Doehring Cowart chuckled. “Things are going well. Remember, be patient.”
“Mm, I know.” Linley smiled too.
…
Twenty days had passed since Linley started feeding the little Shadow Mouse. Now the mouse was extremely close to him. But strangely, no matter how intimate their bond became, the little Shadow Mouse still showed no sign of initiating the Pact of Equality.
Night had fallen, cloaking the land in darkness. The entire town of Wushan was quiet.
In the living room of the Baruch family manor, candlelight illuminated the space. Linley, his family of three, and the steward Hiri were seated at the long table, having dinner together.
“Linley, I hear you’ve been taking roasted rabbit to the old buildings in the back courtyard lately?” Halfway through the meal, Hogg set down his knife and fork, looking at Linley.
Linley’s heart jolted.
“Looks like I’ll have to come clean,” Linley thought, then met Hogg’s gaze and nodded. “Father, I found a cute little animal in the back courtyard recently. It’s very adorable, so I’ve been bringing it some food.”
“A cute little animal?” Little Wharton’s eyes lit up immediately.
“Oh.”
Hogg nodded. “It’s possible—few people go to the back courtyard, so animals might show up. By the way, the magic test enrollment in the royal capital, Fenlai City, should start in about a week. You were planning to attend, weren’t you?”
“Ah, the magic test enrollment?” Linley suddenly remembered that.
A stream of energy, visible only to Linley, emerged from the Ring of Dragons and coalesced into the white-haired old man, Doehring Cowart. He smiled at Linley. “Linley, the magic test enrollment? It’s optional. With my teaching, would it be worse than what those academy mages offer?”
Linley agreed.
Doehring Cowart was a Saint-level Grand Magus. Would an ordinary magic academy have Saint-level Grand Magi teaching?
“What, you don’t want to go?” Hogg’s smile faded, his expression turning cold, his brow furrowing.
Hogg remembered clearly how, after witnessing the battle between the rank 8 dual-element mage and the mercenary squad, Linley had been desperate to become a mage. Why was he hesitating now? In Hogg’s heart, he too hoped his son would become a mage.
“Father, I…”
“No, Linley, agree with your father.” Doehring Cowart frowned, then suddenly changed his mind.
Linley’s words died in his throat, and he asked inwardly in confusion, “Grandpa Doehring, don’t I have you to teach me? With your guidance, why would I need a magic academy? Wouldn’t that just waste the family’s money?”
“No.” Doehring Cowart said solemnly. “I haven’t truly interacted with the Yulan continent for over five thousand years. Five thousand years, Linley! You need to understand that countless mages on the Yulan continent are constantly researching new types of magic. Who knows how many new spells have been born in five thousand years?”
Linley suddenly understood.
“Besides, Linley, you need to realize that Wushan Town isn’t your final stage. You need to step onto a broader one,” Doehring Cowart said earnestly.
“A broader stage…”
Linley’s heart raced.
He couldn’t help but recall the massive Velocidragon, the terrifying scene of the “Dance of the Fire Snake” descending, and the disaster of the Saint-level Grand Magus “Rudy” casually summoning countless enormous boulders to rain down.
“The future.”
Linley’s heartbeat quickened. If he could one day ride a dragon through the skies and wield earth-shattering power, the feeling of standing at the peak would be incredible. Just thinking about it made his blood boil.
“Linley, what are you thinking about?” Hogg was growing impatient. Linley had been zoning out while he was speaking.
“Ah, no.” Linley snapped back to attention, looking at Hogg and nodding seriously. “Father, I truly want to become a mage. Please arrange for me to go to the royal capital, Fenlai City, for the magic test enrollment in a week.”
Hogg finally smiled at that.
“A mage? Oh, oh, is that the one who spits fire?” Little Wharton clapped his chubby hands cheerfully.
“Wharton, that’s a sideshow act! Don’t confuse juggling with magic,” Hogg said sternly.
“Oh.” Wharton pouted and fell silent.
Linley smiled and turned to Hogg. “Father, there must be quite a few magic academies. Which ones are the best? And are magic academies combined with warrior academies?”
Hogg chuckled. “Well, the four empires and two alliances on the continent each have their top academies. You should know that the O’Brien Empire is the most militarily powerful empire.”
Linley nodded. That was basic knowledge.
“And the O’Brien Empire’s top academy, O’Brien Academy, is the number one warrior academy on the entire Yulan continent. But when it comes to magic academies…” Hogg smiled. “The number one magic academy on the Yulan continent is in our Sacred Alliance. It’s named after the legendary Pope of the Radiant Church, Ernst, and is called ‘Ernst Academy.’”