Chapter 46
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 46
Chapter Title: Richel's Secret
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Still no word today, huh.
In front of Edenhark Magic Tower Master Sander sat a crystal orb set up on his desk.
The orb was projecting the magic towers library.
The reason he was specifically monitoring the library out of all those places.
It was because of a legend passed down through generations.
The one who unravels the secret of the book written by Richel herself will appear.
Richel was a prodigy from 600 years ago, blessed with the innate talent to wield both mana and holy power simultaneously.
Unfortunately, she was ostracized by the mages and priests of her time, her talents never allowed to fully blooma tragic genius.
The tome she left behind, titled Reflections on Growth.
Previous tower masters were said to have lived with that book in hand, desperate to uncover what secrets it held.
Of course, the conditions were quickly discovered.
But the secret itself remained unsolved even to this day.
You must be able to use both mana and holy power simultaneously to unlock it.
In other words, one needed talent equal to Richels.
Thats why the book had languished in a forgotten corner of the library for 600 years.
It probably wouldnt appear in this generation either.
Once any human awakened their holy power, their mana vanished, replaced entirely by holy power.
The two forces were inherently incompatible from the start.
At that moment, a stranger entered the ancient books section.
And then pulled out Richels very tome?
Ho?
Sander stared at the orb with curious eyes.
The stranger seemed to want to borrow it, but since he wasnt a registered mage of the tower, borrowing was impossible.
Just a coincidence, then?
His curiosity deflated in an instant.
But the man didnt give up. He returned to the corner and began flipping through the pages.
Hold on
Sanders eyes began to widen bit by bit.
The page where the stranger stopped was the exact same one where previous tower masters had identified the condition.
Soon after, the book emitted a faint glow, and a magic circle appeared.
No way!
Sander couldnt hold back and shot up from his chair.
Tower Master! Whats going on?
The tower masters office grew noisy, so Sub-Tower Master Loun burst in without knocking.
A chair lay toppled on the floor, and beside it stood Sander with a face full of shock.
Louns eyes widened at the sight.
Sander was usually impassive.
Even in the face of astonishing events, hed only show mild surprise.
For the tower master to react like this was a first in Louns entire tenure as sub-master.
Tower Master? Are you alright?
Sanders gaze slowly turned to Loun at his words.
Then, in a trembling voice, he spoke.
Tell the librarian to lock the library doors right now.
Pardon?
Lock the library doors! Especially dont let that stranger inside out! If you do, youre fired!
Sander bellowed and bolted out of the office in a hurry.
What the seriously?
Sub-Tower Master Loun tried to make sense of the situation but couldnt.
For now, he had no choice but to relay the tower masters orders via telepathic magic to the librarian, instructing them to seal the doors.
Having finished his business, Jeong Hoon slotted the book back into its place.
If Im going to drink these potions, better head to the magic towers training room.
The training room inside the magic tower.
It was a space reserved solely for the tower master, the place in the entire tower brimming with the most mana. Meditating there accelerated mana accumulation by about 1.2 times.
And these potions reacted to ambient mana, boosting their effects by 10.
Drinking ten would yield the efficiency of an extra one.
But getting into the training room wasnt easy.
First, you needed the tower masters permissionand Edenharks master rarely showed his face.
You couldnt even meet him unless you fulfilled epic-grade or higher conditions in your second job change.
Of course, that didnt apply to Jeong Hoon.
Why lock the doors?
Jeong Hoon asked the librarian innocently as they fussed over tidying up.
Ahaha, sorry, but were just locking them for a bit. Mind sitting over there and waiting?
The librarian gave an awkward smile and pointed to a table.
From that, Jeong Hoon could tell the tower masters orders had come down.
They were watching everything, huh.
Jeong Hoon had planned to unlock Richels book and then seek out the tower master anyway.
Luis Verdant had done the same to gain access to the training room.
Ah, no problem. If youre locking up, Ill head out now.
No! Well reopen soon, so feel free to finish your business.
Im done. Let me out.
No wait a second!
The librarian, sweating bullets, blocked the door desperately.
Why?
Jeong Hoon tilted his head, barely suppressing a laugh.
Ahem Why not chat with me for a bit instead? Ive got some fine tea Ive been saving.
Should he stop here?
Seeing the librarians face on the verge of tears, he figured revenge was sweet enough.
But he couldnt stick around for tea.
Open the door!
The tower master had just arrived at the library.
Only then did the librarian unlock the door.
That must be Edenhark Magic Tower Master.
NPC Information
-Nickname: Sander
-Level: 300
-Job: Edenhark Magic Tower Master
Level 300, no less.
The highest level you could see in the beginner zone.
The tower master grabbed Jeong Hoons shoulder in a frenzy and shook it.
You unlocked the books secret, right?! How?! How can you wield holy power without being a priest?!
His words came so fast they were hard to follow.
Speak slowly. And let go of my shoulder.
Jeong Hoon brushed off Sanders hand from his shoulder.
Only then did Sander realize what he was doing, his face flushing as he cleared his throat.
Ah, ahem. Sorry. I was so shocked I forgot myself.
Its fine. More importantly, what do you mean by the books secret?
Come to the tower masters office for now? Id like to talk.
Understood.
Jeong Hoon chuckled inwardly.
Things were going even smoother than expected.
Tower masters office.
Jeong Hoons gaze lingered on the crystal orb set on the table.
So thats how he saw it.
Now it made sense why the tower master had noticed so quickly.
Ahem, first, let me apologize again. I was out of sorts earlier.
Its fine.
Then, can you tell me? How did you unlock the books secret?
It was puzzling.
As tower master, Sander had inherited all knowledge from his predecessors, including the books secret. But how did this stranger know about it too?
I have the ability to decipher items.
A lie slipped from Jeong Hoons mouth.
Ability to decipher?
Yes. Thats how I read the book.
Ho, so its safe to assume you possess both mana and holy power.
Yes.
Then wont you tell me? What was inside it.
He was curious.
What the genius from 600 years ago had devoted her life to researching.
Previous tower masters had desperately wanted to uncover Richels research, but they all died without success.
But Sander was different.
He had the stranger whod unlocked the book right in front of him.
Of course, Jeong Hoon wasnt one to spill easily.
Sorry, but I cant tell you.
What?
Sanders face twisted in a scowl.
Jeong Hoon calmly continued.
Even with the tower masters power, you couldnt unlock it, right?
A book that important, gathering dust in a corner of the magic towers libraryit was as good as abandoned since no one could solve it.
The policy of actively recruiting outsiders stemmed from a faint hope that someone with both mana and holy power might appear.
Honestly, leaving it in the corner even if unsolvable was ridiculous.
This is New Worlds gimmick too.
A fateful encounter for players.
The fact that such a crucial book was stored in the library without anyone acting on it was because New World had set it up that way.
So hed exploit it to the fullest.
I solved it, so asking me to just tell you outright isnt fair, is it?
It sounds like youll share if theres compensation right?
Jeong Hoon nodded.
Sander snapped his fingers.
The left wall slid open smoothly, revealing a trove of gold and treasures.
Not just gold and jewels.
Epic to rare-grade items lined up neatly.
10,000 gold. And any ten items from here. Hows that?
An outrageous reward, unbelievable for the beginner zone.
But it wasnt what Jeong Hoon wanted.
The training room. Let me use the one you use, Tower Master.
The training room?
A question mark floated over Sanders head.
General Quest: Edenhark Magic Tower Masters Training Room
-Restriction: Users in possession of Richels Research Journal
-Reward: Sanders Recognition Massive Affinity Increase
-Description: Use the training room to prove Richels research.
Jeong Hoon accepted the quest immediately.
Yes.
Why do you want to use the training room?
Ill show you what Richel left behind.
With that, he pulled out the research journal and showed it to him.
This is?
Her research journal.
Richels Research Journal
It came bundled with the elixir.
Sanders eyes bulged as he checked it.
W-wait a moment, please.
Sander urgently summoned the sub-tower master and ordered him to fetch Richels books.
Soon after, Sub-Tower Master Loun arrived with several of Richels tomes.
The handwriting matched the journals perfectly, without a single discrepancy.
How in the world
Sander read through the journal in bewilderment.
Richels lifelong research: the growth elixir.
Its definitely her research.
From the journal, he learned Richel was obsessed with growth.
With accumulating more mana and holy power within her body.
There was one reason she had no choice but to be.
Richel possessed both mana and holy power, but her constitution prevented her from forming circles naturally.
Thats why shed clung so desperately to growth?
Closing the journal, Sander led Jeong Hoon to the training room.
The training room was at the top floor of the magic tower.
The entire top floor was the training room, with an open ceiling.
Above was the mana zone, far richer in mana than anywhere else.
Time to start.
Seated in the center, Jeong Hoon pulled out the elixir.
First, the experience potions.
Advanced Experience Potion
-Type: Consumable
-Grade: Epic
-Grants experience points scaled to the users level.
-Using within the mana zone grants an additional 10 experience.
Exactly.
Thats why you drink it in the mana zone.
Ten potions net you a bonus one no reason to drink outside.
Jeong Hoon gulped down one potion.
Experience gained!
Experience gained!
Experience rose each time the thin liquid slid down his throat.
Level up!
All stats 1.
Bonus stat 1 granted.
After emptying half the bottle, he leveled up to 52.
Experience gained!
Experience gained!
Level up!
All stats 1.
Bonus stat 1 granted.
By the time he finished the first bottle, hed gone from 52 to 53.
One bottle gives two levels?
Jeong Hoon quickly emptied the remaining 28 potions.
Experience gained!
Experience gained!
Level up!
All stats 1.
Bonus stat 1 granted.
Countless experience gain messages scrolled by.
After downing all 28 bottles, hed reached 91.
29 potions for a whopping 40 levels.
Plus an achievement.
Achievement Unlocked! Completed Savor the Good Stuff (3)! 10,000 achievement points awarded.
Mark of the Extreme Patient granted.
Perfect!
The 10,000 achievement points mattered, but more importantly, this mark.
Got it. Now I have two.
Eight marks left to go.
A long road ahead, but with his past experience collecting them all, time would handle it.
Now for the rest?
Advanced Mana Potion x35
Advanced Holy Power Potion x35
He was eager to see how much these two would boost his stats.