Chapter 52

Gret tried to take a shortcut but failed, so he had to patiently copy books for two more days. On the third day, he went to the magic tower again. Even before his horse stopped in front of the magic tower, he heard a familiar sound—

“Boom!”

It was still the fourth floor of the magic tower, still that window, still that figure in a robe, flailing and flying out along a parabolic trajectory.

Gret: “...”

This time, he rode much slower. When he reached the landing point, it was indeed Elliot, wobbling and covered in dust, floating down. As he descended, he grumbled,

“Damn brat, resorting to violence when you can’t argue... Aren’t you afraid of blowing yourself up... Hey, why are you here?”

“Mr. Elliot...” Gret looked at him with great helplessness: “I came to see if you need any help...”

Elliot really wanted to tell him to get lost. Unfortunately, the last time he flew out of the magic tower, he had to rely on Gret’s help to get back, otherwise, he would have had to hop for who knows how long. At this moment, he couldn’t say anything harsh, so he could only grumble and get up, walking back.

He didn’t provoke trouble, but the trouble didn’t let him off. The fourth floor of the magic tower creaked as a window opened, and a young man with golden hair poked his head out, shouting in a strange tone,

“Come on if you dare!”

Elliot glanced up but said nothing, continuing to walk with his head down. Gret accompanied him around a quarter of a circle, and when the young man’s golden hair had disappeared from sight, he asked softly,

“Can’t you beat him?”

“Who says I can’t!” Elliot’s voice suddenly rose: “That brat is only one level above me! How could I not beat him!”

Gret didn’t say anything. Elliot walked a few more steps, his shoulders slumping as he sighed,

“Just a little bit more! ... Humph, he comes from a prestigious family, had the best meditation techniques from a young age, and has stronger mental power. Just a little bit more, and I could cast four spells in a row like him!”

“Meditation techniques?” Gret’s heart skipped a beat, and he immediately seized the opportunity to ask: “What kind of meditation techniques are better?”

“Brat, you’re trying to get a freebie, aren’t you?” Elliot raised an eyebrow at him. Without waiting for Gret to lower his head in a repentant manner, he sighed,

“Since you still came to pick me up, I’ll tell you. ... Anyway, it’s not a secret. With your mental power, becoming a mage is just a matter of time, and this information isn’t hard to come by.”

Gret immediately perked up his ears. Master Elliot slowly said,

“Listen carefully, brat. Meditation techniques consist of three parts: ‘Core,’ ‘Shell,’ and ‘Line.’ The Core is about shaping a mental core, the more it resembles yourself, the better, so it can be supported by your physical body; the Shell is about shaping an outer shell, the better the shape, the more it can attract and filter useful forces while resisting external impacts; the Line teaches you how to extend your mental power to perceive and influence the world. Good meditation techniques have unique skills in all three aspects. Ordinary mages either use the ‘Basic Meditation’ book or learn from their teachers or exchange with the Magic Council.”

It sounded like some basic theoretical stuff. Gret was fully focused, but Master Elliot’s voice paused, and he stopped talking.

Is that it? Or is the next part the paid part? Gret quickly followed up, “Mr. Elliot, when you say the mental core should resemble yourself, does that mean every detail should be as close as possible?”

“Yes...” Elliot sighed. “But who can do that? The face, limbs, number of bones, and the positions of internal organs—just shaping these is very difficult. As for more detailed parts, I’m not clear either... By the way, why are you asking this?”

In the morning light, in front of the magic tower, Gret stood straight, holding the reins, a confident smile playing on his lips.

“I think I might know... what the details of the mental core structure should be like.”

“You?!”

Elliot’s eyebrows shot up. He grabbed Gret and hurriedly walked out, dragging him to the side of the stables before letting go and standing still,

“What do you know? You don’t even know how to meditate!”

“I meditated last night.” Gret insisted. He broke free from Elliot’s grip, sidestepping to avoid a pile of horse dung,

“Yesterday afternoon, you cast ‘Comprehension’ for me. I used that time to memorize the ‘Basic Meditation’ from the bookshelf and tried it at home. —First, I built a mental core based on the human body framework in the book, then I refined the details according to my own understanding. After refining, I felt my mental power became much more solid.”

Elliot frowned. He stared at Gret intently, his body leaning forward, his fists clenched so tightly they crackled. The way he looked at him was as if his eyes could shoot out knives to dissect Gret and examine his mental core.

Gret stood firm, letting him look. One minute, two minutes... Elliot suddenly jolted, his eyes coming back to reality. He took a step back, looking at Gret with a new perspective, and let out a long breath,

“Yes, yes, you are a healer... You already know what the human body is like... You know...”

Elliot murmured, his mind swirling with thoughts. Command him, force him, trick him—after all, Gret was just starting to learn magic, didn’t know anything, and didn’t even have ten gold coins in his pocket—

Give him some benefits, or help him cast a few copying spells as he requested, and he would definitely be willing to share... If he was afraid of being exposed, tell the teacher about the meditation techniques, and everyone would get the benefits and keep the secret...

No knowledge comes without a price. And meditation techniques, which are fundamental to a mage’s power, are even more valuable than many spells.

In the magic tower, spells from level one to three are open to all the mages in the tower. However, meditation techniques, except for the introductory ‘Basic Meditation’ book, are nowhere to be found.

That was a price he couldn’t afford.

He stared at Gret, his mind in turmoil. It would be easy to use some tricks to get the meditation techniques, but... but...

But, not to mention that the other party was a healer, a fellow spellcaster, and couldn’t be taken advantage of. Elliot’s sense of morality and principles wouldn’t allow him to do such a thing.

After hesitating for a while, Elliot bit his lip and turned to leave. —Using a healer’s way to observe the human body and then refining the mental core based on the observed details. Just this one idea, a one-sided claim of effectiveness, was worth everything he had to exchange for it.

No matter how much more information Gret was willing to share, he couldn’t offer anything equivalent in return.

The young mage walked briskly, his black robe billowing like a large wave. Gret smiled slightly, watching the black-robed mage who had always taken care of him leave as if fleeing. When he had walked a few steps, Gret called out, “Hey!”

“No time!” The man in front of him rudely replied, not looking back, as if afraid of regretting it. Gret smiled even wider,

“Don’t try it yourself, I’ll tell you!”

Thud! Elliot stumbled and fell flat on the ground.