Kapitel 84: Chapter 84: Enlightenment
Chapter 84: Enlightenment
While deep in thought, Raven quietly reached for the spear, lay on the bed, and slipped into the Illusionary World.
It was the same grassland where the blue-skinned humanoid practiced its spearmanship with precision and ease. But this time, Raven noticed something different—the creature's movements held a profound clarity. With even the smallest step, he could predict its next action, his perception stretching each movement to a crawl.
He also noticed a faint aura forming along the edges of the spear.
"Aura, huh? I couldn't see it before. My 'Mind Eye' spell must've activated on its own," he mused. Summoning a spear out of thin air, Raven didn't try to imitate the humanoid exactly; instead, he applied his own understanding.
Taking a step forward, he gripped the spear and thrust ahead. His movements flowed into a routine—smooth, sweeping arcs left and right, each strike calculated and controlled. His steps carried him forward and back in fluid sequences, pivoting into each thrust. With every practiced lunge, his strikes became sharper, his connection to the spear deepening with each motion.
Gradually, Raven entered a focused state, refining his technique and correcting subtle flaws in his form.
'The reason I couldn't fully grasp this creature's movements must be our differences in perception,' he realized.
'Unlike humans, this being has a specialized sensory antenna that helps it master this unique spear technique.' Thanks to his 'Mind Eye' bloodline spell, Raven could bridge the sensory gap, filling in details he had previously missed.
His mind heightened as he moved the spear in a rhythmic dance, processing every subtle motion around him.
'Even though this is an illusion, I can see the swaying grass, tiny insects, even the ants scurrying on the ground. But I can't sense the air… It must be due to this whole illusion world within the spear.' Focusing on the blue-skinned figure, he observed ice shards forming around its spear and tried it out.
A chill pulsed from Raven's spear, manifesting faint ice shards that clung to the shaft. Although the shards were irregular and moved sluggishly, he could feel his control over them gradually strengthening.
With each practice strike, his mind sharpened, allowing him to fine-tune even the smallest mistakes. His grasp of the ice energy within the spear grew clearer. Though this spear was merely an illusionary replica, it held a power that felt strikingly real.
'The next step should be fusing basic aura into the ice shards and creating an attack skill called 'Frozen Lance." But Raven noticed that the little enlightenment he gained had ended and stopped his movement.
Then, he recollected all the things he had learned just now and started mastering them.
After some time, he left the illusionary world, hurriedly took out the monocle, and checked the frozen ender weapon.
[Name: Frozen Ender (Sealed)
Rank: Common
Experience Comprehension: 74%
Description: None
Unique Skills:
Rank-1: Frozen Lance (Unlocked) Requirement: User needs to be able to master 'Basic Sword Aura' and 'Basic Spear Mastery']
…
'74%! A big leap indeed.' But what shocked him most was a little change in his stats.
'I got a Low-rank Spear affinity!' A smile appeared on his face.
[It seems you had a good experience today. Congratulations, lad.]
'I still have a long way to go. By the way, how does my understanding of the spearmanship affect this spear?' He asked while looking at the experience comprehension section.
[A weapon like this shouldn't be a soulless one, lad. Even though it's sealed, it surely has its consciousness.] Zera said solemnly.
'Is it an intellectual artifact? How powerful is it? Arcane Fragment or even higher?' Raven's gaze sharpened.
[It must be a level similar to Arcane Apex Congitum rank in the peak state. But didn't you see its current rank? From its looks, this spear is sealing itself to the rank of the user's power level.]
'Haa, I should increase my strength to at least a Radiant Rank level sooner.'
Raven suddenly thought of something, slowly stood up, and focused on the surroundings.
In a blink, he perceived all the insects, flies, and even small reptiles hiding in the room.
A moment later, his surroundings started to move at an incredibly slow speed.
'My thought process is more than five times that of a normal human.' While thinking, he tried to move his hands according to his will. But to his shock, his body barely moved!
'As I thought, only my mind is acting faster. My physical body can't keep up with my thought process.' A frown appeared on his forehead.
'Wait… Can I use my strength and agility potion to increase my stats and temporarily use this ability for battle?' A thought crossed his mind.
In truth, a basic rank strength potion, aka Common Rank Strength potion, could allow an Elite Walker's strength to reach the beginner Radiant Walker realm for a short time. An Uncommon Rank Strength potion could allow a Peak Stage Radiant Walker to exhibit the strength of a beginner Expert realm. But even if one consumed such a potion, they could only partially utilize this potion's effect due to their lack of understanding of their body strength and low thinking process, resulting in reckless attacks.
'But if I consume both Agility potion and strength potion and use my 'Mind Eye' ability, I can become a true Radiant Rank Walker for a short period.' Raven felt like he had created a new trump card skill!
'It's theoretically possible. Although the recoil after consuming two potions will be much harsher, it's worth a try.'
'I'll call this trump card skill as 'Limit Breaker."
[Tch, it's an overly used name. And for your information, this isn't even a skill but a combination of your spell and alchemy. Still, this will shock the enemy and catch them off guard.] Zera said, but Raven didn't even listen to her.
Instead, he took the bundle of newspapers and the diaries from the inventory and placed them on the floor.
'Zera, can you tell me more about the dream world? What I saw in the dream world is 30 years into the future. But is it possible to travel there and come back? Or is it some dream made of large illusion?'
[No one knows the answer, lad. But the more you stay in the dream world, the higher the chance of you getting lost and disappearing forever. That's why most dream walkers return to the real world before the dream ends.]
'What is the maximum time one should stay in the dream world?' Raven asked.
[Based on the time difference between two worlds. But if we go by the physical world time, you shouldn't stay in the dream world for more than 10 hours unless you have a treasure like Dream House. Although the dream world won't disappear in a blink, it will change in the form of a natural disaster and disappear altogether. Also, you might encounter dreamers from the real world, so be careful of what you say before them.]
Raven nodded in understanding.
'I have to ask you another thing. Is it possible to pull someone into the dream world and communicate?'
[It's the opposite. You can't force someone to enter the dream world you are in. But entering a person's dream world is possible using some dream ritual.]
'How do I even know when they go to sleep?' Raven couldn't help but ask.
[That's for you to find out. If you plan on making a big scene in the capital, I advise you to do it after ranking up.]
'Radiant Warlock, huh?' Raven knew he was still an Acolyte Warlock and had little strength to face big powerhouses.
'I can't afford to lose my family member. I'll take the risk.' He clenched his fist and slowly glanced at the newspapers and diaries.
"Thanks to the 'Fortuitous Finder' spell, I obtained useful information about the future. Although it won't help me now, it will be useful soon."
First, he took the newspapers and arranged them in order by date. Then, he took a notebook and started writing about important events from the 30 newspapers.
Raven didn't even sleep for a moment until early morning and started writing down important information from all the 30 newspapers. Of course, he crossed out the unwanted information and noted all the major incidents.
'It all started with the death of the emperor, huh?' Raven wrote a whole chapter about Emperor Ian's death.
"Emperor Ian's death- date: 1452 Year, January 12th. He was assassinated when he visited the Vega Empire for political talks. Reason: Assassination. Suspects: Remnants of Viser Kingdom, Wizard Alliance, and Celestia Empire. Persons involved in guard duty: Royal Knight Captain Sid Gravenstone (Dead), Vice-Captain Beckham Raynor (Missing), Tucker Thornevale (Dead), etc. Other influential persons got killed during this assassination: Nineth Prince Jett, third Concubine Jasmine, Minister of Health Kairo, etc."
"Black Undead: A deadly curse-type disease spread to humans via the air. Origin: Unknown. Symptoms: High fever, blisters on face and body, blood vomiting, and a slow loss of six senses. Time: It takes three days for humans to be completely affected and turn into wild undead. Suspects: Raynor Family, Remnants of Viser Kingdom, etc. Possible clues for the cure: Johnathan found a way to control the disease by creating a vaccine potion and preventing it from spreading. But once a human is affected, it's impossible to cure. Cure Formula: Although he never revealed his vaccine formula to the public, people found that a rare medicinal herb called 'Nightblood Moss' is being used as the main ingredient…"
"Wizard Alliance's Declaration of Democratic Rule: Prime Minister Gavin took over the emperor's position as a substitute and agreed to the Supreme Court's suggestion of the Democratic Rule…"
"Death of Empress Elise Sillalus Jorvot- Date: 1452 Rune Era, 3rd February…"
"Death of the Sixth Serpent Nash caused worry among the citizens…"
"Sudden disappearance of 100,000 people from the Blackwater City…"
"Black Undead spreads to the town of Glassy Rock…"
"Death of Eleventh Princess…"
Raven slowly understood what had happened throughout the Empire as he continued writing about the important events.
'After the Emperor's death, some people targeted the royal family non-stop… From the looks of it, many noble families also didn't extend their support to the Royals and created an opportunity for the Wizard Alliance to take over the capital city…"
…
Raven continued writing down the important information and finally completed reading news of date up to February 14th.
'From the gathered information, I confirmed two catastrophic disasters occurred in the Empire before the Black Undead. First was the great war between the Empire and the Viser Kingdom, which resulted in the complete defeat of the Viser Kingdom. Following that, a big famine also seems to have occurred, resulting in the death of millions due to hunger.' Although he didn't find the exact date or year of these two disasters, both incidents reduced 30% of the Zenith Empire's population.
'And Black Undead disease could be considered as the worst disaster.'
With a deep sigh, he stored the newspapers and diaries and took out the silver bow and arrow.
Then, he touched the monocle and activated it.
…
[Name: Starchaser
Type: Weapon
Rank: Rare
Description: The bow is made from cold star metal by a renowned Dawn Goblin Blacksmith from the Grimsmoke World. It is highly durable and has been imbued with the blessing of the Wind.
Main Ability: Multi Arrow- Allows the user to cast multiple arrows and attack the opponent's vitals randomly.
Additional Effect: 3.5 % chance to cast 'Damage Boost' Rune skill (Rank-1 Damage boost: 200%).
Restriction: Rank 1 to Rank 4 (Damage boost effect will become less effective as the user's rank increases.)
Unused Cold Star Arrow: 21.]
…
'I thought it was an uncommon weapon but didn't expect it to be rare!' Raven knew that even an Uncommon Weapon would sell for 10,000 gold coins!
'Its worth shouldn't be less than 50,000 gold coins!' In truth, it was just his assumption. After all, he had never seen a rare rank weapon or equipment being sold in the auction.
'I can lend this weapon to Jacob or Felicity.'
[That's more like giving away for free, lad. Rune Skill is a skill that transcends the ranks and can be used by any rank walker. Although Jacob and Felicity are talented enough, they are still unsuitable to wield this weapon. And don't forget they are not your knights or servants but mercenaries. Only consider giving them this weapon if you sign a long-term contract.]
'They seem trustable, though.' Raven muttered.
[Human greed has no end, lad. This rare weapon may look insignificant in your eyes, but this is a priceless treasure. If an Expert Rank Archer gets his hand on this artifact, he can even kill a Mystic realm Walker thanks to that 'Damage Boost' skill. For example, if a Radiant Rank Archer casts an arrow while imbuing it with the 'Intermediate Aura,' this 'Damage Boost' skill will enchant the aura effect up to 150% and can even create an 'Advanced Aura.' Even an expert-ranking archer can double the damage using this artifact and overpower his opponent. In my eyes, this artifact is more like an Epic rank artifact. If Jacob or other mercenaries managed to find out its true worth, I don't think they would stay loyal to you. In the worst-case scenario, they might end up betraying you.] Zera said in a serious tone.
'But I already signed a contract with them, though?'
[Put that contract paper in the dustbin. It's just a paper with a royal seal, nothing more. Although you can file a case in court, it might take years for the case to succeed. But what will you do if they decide to leave the Empire? Don't forget that the Zenith Empire is not the only nation on Ivory Island.] Zera's words made Raven fall into deep thoughts.
[If you plan to share your secrets, you must create Magic contracts and have them sign them. As long as you create a magic contract using the authority of a higher being, your secrets will always be within your grasp. They can't even reveal your personal information to outsiders or betray you. You'll learn more about the magic contract once you absorb more of my owners' memory books.]
'That's how the Wizards from the academy monopolize the spell models and techniques?'
[Even high-rank noble families use the magic contract to keep their core secrets from leaking out. If you plan on creating a Knight Squad, you must make the newly recruited knights sign magic contracts. Also, search for more of these hidden treasures and use them to strengthen your squad in the future.]
Raven nodded solemnly and decided to rest for three hours.
…
After a short rest, Raven woke up and prepared for departure.
Raven, Jacob, Selene, and Stephine walked out of the Glory Wine Inn around 7.30 A.M and went towards the Railway Station through a carriage.
By 8.40 P.M, the group reached the station and boarded the train to Red Ember City. The journey to the Royal Capital was smooth. For the next two days, Raven spent most of his time in the memory library and the Frozen Ender's Illusionary World, increasing his Rune mastery and Spearmanship.
…
Red Ember City,
September 19th, Year 1420, Rune Era.
It was around 5.30 A.M.
A steam-engine train came from the east and entered the Royal Railway Station through the eastern gate. The train hissed to a halt at the bustling station, releasing clouds of steam that billowed around the platform.
Raven, Jacob, Selene, and Stephine stepped out, scanning their surroundings with anticipation and caution. Many people in their formal attire stepped down from the train and mingled with the crowd. The station was alive with the clamor of voices, the clanging of metal, and the rustle of papers as travelers hurried along the platforms.
Raven and others followed the crowd, entered the railway station, and checked out.
After leaving the railway station, they rented a carriage and moved towards the West Borough.
"This city looks much livelier than Bloodstone City," Raven muttered while peeking outside through the curtain gap.
Red Ember City was a lively and crowded place, buzzing with energy. The streets were packed with carriages, street vendors, and people rushing to work or shop at the markets. Tall buildings lined the narrow cobblestone roads, while magic lamps gave off a faint light that barely cut through the fog, adding a mysterious feel to the city.
The Joy River, though dirty and polluted, ran through the center of the city, serving as its lifeline. Bridges like Blackarts and Ember Bridge were always busy with people walking, horses trotting, and wagons rattling by. Along the riverbanks, factories stood tall, pouring thick smoke into the air. The fog mixed with the smoke, darkening the sky and leaving stains on the city's buildings. No matter where anyone looked, they saw nothing but tall buildings and endless factories.
After traveling for more than 30 minutes, the carriage finally arrived at the West Borough. However, as soon as they entered the West Borough, the outside environment became much clearer. There were no factories or stalls that appeared in their sights. Instead, countless mansions, large houses, theaters, opera houses, and luxurious inns started appearing along the way.
"West Borough is divided into twelve streets: Baker Street, Chapel Road, Druid Lane, Chancery Street, Central Court Street, Fleet Lane, Lombard Road, Grace Street, Rise Mall, Crows Street, Graden Street, and Royal Street. And the ones who stay in the West Borough are all Nobles, Wizards, and high-ranking officials, My Lord. Are you also planning to stay here? I recommend we should check inns in Druid Lane." Selene said.
"Why is that?" Jacob asked curiously. Although he had visited the Royal Capital multiple times in the past, he never explored the West Borough.
On the other hand, Selene had stayed in the Crows Misery for more than four years and knew a lot about this place.
"Compared to other street Inns, the Inns in Druid Lane are much cheaper."
"Graden Street, Crown Tavern. I want to stay in that Inn for the next few days." Raven said with a smile.
Meanwhile, Selene's face froze.
Staying on a street like Druid Lane would cost a lot, even for a noble, due to high expenses. And Garden Street was where only high-class nobles and Wizards gathered around.
"A single day's rent for the room will cost more than five gold coins in Crown Tavern, My Lord!" Selene said after waking up from the shock.
Instead of responding, Raven took out a leather pouch, poured over fifty gold coins from the inventory, and gave the pouch to Jacob.
"Book the best ones."
Although Jacob wanted to tell Raven he was wasting money, he soon realized he was not even his servant.
'I'm nothing more than a mercenary hired to protect him.' He hurriedly took the pouch, opened the carriage door, and told the coachman to move towards Garden Street.
…
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein