Chapter 300: Aftermath and Inspiration

Chapter 300: Aftermath and Inspiration



As Neor stood atop the city wall, he heard rhythmic footsteps approaching from behind. Turning around, he spotted a group of several hundred City Guard soldiers rapidly closing in from the rear.

Apparently, they had also heard the commotion outside the city and assumed that something, perhaps a monster, was attacking this side of the wall.

Meanwhile, a griffin knight in the sky, having spotted Rain through the heavy rain, swiftly descended from above.

This griffin knight was none other than Fei She.

Fei She, having dismounted from his griffin, quickly approached Rain and apologized, "Lord Rain, do you remember me? During the incident in Myester, when you fought against the ancient hero Meng from the evil cult, I was there with Viscount Filk."

"I'm sorry for the misunderstanding earlier."

Rain thought for a moment, then his face lit up with realization.

He remembered Fei She; he was the young griffin knight who had delivered the message.

"Hello, Fei She. I remember you. The visibility was poor earlier, and you were just doing your duty, so don't worry about it."

"Thank you, Lord Rain," Fei She said, bowing slightly, his voice filled with excitement.

Upon witnessing this, Neor and Angus exchanged glances and couldn't help but laugh.

This griffin knight was quite interesting.

It seemed like he was looking at Rain as if he were a celebrity.

"By the way, Lord Rain, would you like to ride my griffin back to the city first?"

Rain, who had been concerned about his family, thought for a moment and nodded, "Sure, thank you. But first, let me inform my companions."

"Of course, that's fine."

When Neor and Angus spotted Rain, Rain also noticed them on the wall.

Soon, the three of them met at the base of the wall.

"Why are you here? You've worked hard," Rain said, walking forward with a smile.

"Captain, there's no need for such formality! Your affairs are our affairs," Angus replied, always straightforward in his military manner.

"Wow, so this is the Second Tier Transmutation Wizard, and he's supposedly a rare Lava-type?" Angus circled around Rain, examining the Asimov in Rain's hand with awe.

Although he hadn't witnessed Rain's battle with the opponent, the pockmarked ground and the massive, kneeling figure in the middle of the battlefield told him how intense the fight had been.

"Yeah, he was a tough one, but I managed to take him down," Rain said, glancing at the Asimov in his hand.

At that moment, a screech echoed through the sky, and a blue-and-white raptor descended, its claws holding a crystal that glowed with a red light, drawing everyone's attention.

As Rain took the heart-shaped red crystal from Blood Feather's claws, Neor's eyes widened in shock, exclaiming, "Captain, is that the Lava Heart?"

"I'm not sure what this is, but it seems to enhance the summoner's creatures, so it should be quite valuable," Rain said, shaking his head as he examined the scorching red crystal in his hand.

"That's right. This is the Lava Heart, a treasure rarely found within the bodies of legendary flame or lava creatures," Neor explained excitedly.

"Captain, may I take a look?"

"Sure," Rain said, handing the Lava Heart to Neor.

Neor carefully examined it, "Captain, this is the Lava Heart. As you said, it was used to enhance..."

Suddenly, Neor's expression changed as he realized something, and he looked at the massive figure kneeling on the ground with horror.

"Doesn't that mean the lava monster had nearly legendary power?" Neor muttered to himself.

Legendary?

Angus's eyes widened in shock, equally astonished.

Had their captain's power reached such a level?

"By the way, how's the situation at the residence?" Rain asked.

"Captain, Vieri and Evelyn are guarding the residence, so there shouldn't be any safety concerns," Neor replied.

"Alright, I'll ride the griffin back first. As for the situation here, please inform the City Guard," Rain nodded.

When Rain returned to the residence, it was already filled with people.

The outermost layer was a circle of elite Night Watch Patrol members on guard duty, and just inside them were Swordsman Guards from the Swordbearer Division who had rushed over upon hearing the news.

In the innermost area were the Sheriff of the Minster District, a captain among the Swordsman Guards, and a Bishop from the Goddess Church whom Rain didn't recognize.

The recent assassination of Grand Priest Gomes had made the recent attack highly concerning for the district and church authorities.

Rain's family, having seen his return, now emerged under the protection of Vieri and Evelyn, but the panic in their eyes was undeniable.

Especially Rain's mother, Emma, and father, Elder Rain, who were witnessing their son's combat prowess up close for the first time.

The inhuman speed and strength, the destructive power, and the wondrous sorcery all left the couple in awe.

The once-familiar courtyard was now in disarray, the ground steaming in the rain, emitting a scorching heat.

The two elders couldn't hide their concern for their son.

As for the beautiful woman, Jennifer, this was also her first time witnessing Rain's combat against an equally matched opponent after becoming a Great Knight.

Although Rain had disciplined two knights from his family when he served as the Crowley family's Guardian Knight, it was like child's play compared to this.

Jennifer watched the scene before her, feeling increasingly certain about her decision to rely on Rain.

She even felt extremely fortunate.

Rain's displayed strength far exceeded her imagination.

Jennifer couldn't fathom how far Rain would go in the future!

Furthermore, if Rain's current strength was any indication, it would be nearly impossible for her to have any further interactions with him.

In the current turbulent imperial situation, strength was the best guarantee.

Having a powerful figure like Rain, who was still rapidly improving, as a source of support was indeed a fortunate thing.

The same thoughts were swirling in Jenny and Agatha's minds as well.

As for Mint, she had always been extremely confident in her brother, but the sight of the courtyard also left her in shock.

She blinked rapidly, taking in the surroundings.

After reassuring his family, Rain asked Evelyn and Vieri to take them to rest.

He then proceeded to brief everyone on the situation.

Olenna, who was on duty at the Swordsman Branch that night, hurried over after learning about the incident.

She had a good grasp of the situation because Rain had initially sought her help to contact the intelligence department. So, upon seeing Rain unharmed, her first words were:

"Your Excellency Rain, please leave the follow-up matters to the branch."

"I believe this attack was a provocation against our Swordsman Branch in Minster, regardless of who the assailants are. I will report this to Admiral Edward."

Although Olenna didn't explicitly mention who was behind the attack, those who understood the situation knew.

Rain smiled at the lean woman and said, "Your Excellency Olenna, please take care of the rest."

"Your Excellency Rain, let's detain these two in the special holding cells of the Swordsman Branch. I'm concerned that the security in the regular holding cells might be insufficient."

Olenna pointed at 'Iron Man' and 'Scorpion Woman'.

"Sure, if they can be treated, it would be good to have them as witnesses," Rain nodded.

"This guy is beyond saving, but he can serve as evidence," Rain added, pointing at the corpse of Asimov.

"Umm, okay, Your Excellency Rain," Olenna said, glancing at Asimov's body and nodding.

This was the first time she learned the difference between a witness and evidence.

The sheriff beside them mumbled something, glancing at Olenna and Rain, but ultimately said nothing.

"By the way, where did that guy's right arm go?"

Vieri, hearing Rain's question, paused for a moment before turning back into the room.

"Captain, is this what you're looking for?"

Vieri brought out a set of metal prosthetics that were broken into several pieces, with most of its parts scattered.

"Yes, have someone send it to me later."

"Yes, Captain."

Rain suddenly remembered the man nicknamed 'Iron Man' and his intricately constructed metal prosthetics, which sparked some inspiration.

He planned to study it carefully later.

When Rain returned to the Swordsman Branch, it was already late at night. After a shower, he fell into a deep sleep.

The next morning, Rain woke up early, poured himself a cup of coffee, and went to the study to ponder the previous night's battle.

The night before, he had consecutively defeated three official members of the Bloodcap Mercenary Group, demonstrating considerable combat prowess.

If it had been any other First-Rank Wizard or even a Peak Great Knight, the outcome would have been sealed when the leader of the Bloodcap Mercenary Group, Asimov, summoned the Magma Monster and used the Lava Heart to transform it into a Lava Giant. There would have been almost no chance of turning the tide.

Only someone like Rain, with his extraordinary abilities, could withstand the onslaught and turn defeat into victory.

Rain picked up the red crystal from the wooden box on the desk, a crystal the size of a baby's head and shaped like a heart. In the morning light, it seemed to contain a flowing liquid like lava.

Of course, Rain could sense the surging energy within it.

"However, it seems that a significant portion of the energy has been consumed."

"Perhaps later, I can go to the Exchange Hall and have someone appraise it to understand its exact purpose and whether the energy within can be replenished," Rain thought to himself.

After pondering for a while, Rain placed the red crystal back into the wooden box.

In terms of strength, among the three opponents, the leader, Asimov, was undoubtedly the strongest, and he left the deepest impression on Rain.

The opponent's innate ability, 'Raving', derived from the Bloodcap Troll lineage, was incredibly compatible with the Wizard's abilities. After all, for Wizards of all levels, casting spells required a certain amount of time, especially for those that weren't innate. The less proficient they were, the longer it took to cast. But with the 'Raving' ability, they could increase their incantation speed by nearly thirty percent!

With this special ability, some spells that were originally unsuitable for combat due to their long casting time could undergo a qualitative change. For example, some summoning spells that originally took seven or eight seconds to cast could be compressed to four or five seconds, and with sufficient practice, even less time.

This greatly enhanced their combat power! In this regard, Asimov gave Rain some inspiration.

The opponent's 'Raving' ability was the result of a lineage transplant experiment, which was said to be highly risky. Although Rain didn't plan to undergo such a procedure, he could still inquire about it.

Additionally, Rain realized he could use the system's skill points to achieve the goal of casting certain spells at an accelerated rate. For instance, his current 'Metal Barrier' was achieved through this method.

However, Asimov's greatest inspiration to Rain was that if one's talents and profession were highly compatible, the combat power they could unleash would be astonishing!"

His talents, 'Advanced Steel Body' and 'Basic Weapon Proficiency', seemed to be exceptionally compatible with close-quarters combat. Another thing that left a deep impression on Rain was the Iron Man's metal prosthetics.

Rain walked over to the desk, where several sections of metal prosthetics were laid out, all of them from the forearm and beyond. The palm at the front end had been reduced to powder by the powerful destructive force of the Annihilation Hammer.

Rain picked up a section of the prosthetic and examined it carefully. The remaining gear structures and metal components inside demonstrated an extremely high level of precision, comparable to the mechanical devices he had seen in his previous life.

However, Rain could vaguely discern signs of manual polishing.

"Handcrafted... Does the Eagle Federation have a bunch of eighth-level blacksmiths?"

"That's pretty impressive."

At this point, Rain's thoughts shifted.

"Can I use my innate Wizardry, 'Metal Shapeshifting', to quickly transform these intricate components?"

As Rain's mind moved, the piece of Tempered Gold in his hand began to rapidly transform into a gear. But after comparing the two, Rain realized that while the gear he had transformed looked similar, its precision was significantly lower.

After repeating this process several times, Rain estimated that the precision of his innate Wizardry was approximately millimeter-level. To achieve greater precision, he might need to reach the Transmutation Wizard tier.

This was a direction to explore, although it was far from the realm of hand-crafted War Golems. Nevertheless, it was undeniable that there was a natural fit between Metal Wizards and puppetry, as represented by the metal prosthetics.

Additionally, inside the metal prosthetics, there seemed to be a separate energy source—a smaller white crystal compared to the red crystal—that appeared to function like a battery.

Rain decided to inquire about this later.

"The Eagle Federation has something..."

"As for the Scorpion Woman?"

Rain thought for a moment and shook his head. Aside from her allure, she didn't seem to have left much of an impression. At this moment, Rain suddenly remembered that he hadn't checked the system prompt yet:

[Congratulations! You have defeated a powerful enemy and obtained 8 Golden Skill Points!]



[Congratulations! Your hidden attribute, Will, has increased!]



[Congratulations! Your Warhammer Wizard (Legendary) profession level has increased!]



The Warhammer Wizard (Legendary) profession level had risen again, reaching lv8 (790/7000), and he gained 1a 7a 1o 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1980s, he had gained 17 Golden Skill Points.

Rain looked at his attribute panel:

Constitution: 46

Strength: 48

Agility: 46

Spirit: 55

Will (Hidden Attribute): 4

"Will has increased by one point again?"

Rain nodded.

This time, he could clearly feel that the increase in Will had a suppressing and weakening effect on the Evil Flame Mark.

However, there was one more thing Rain wasn't sure about.

He vaguely sensed that his Will attribute was increasing so quickly because it was constantly opposing the Evil Flame Mark.

"If that's the case, perhaps I don't have to passively wait for the Imperial Guardians to help me remove it."

"Through battle, I might be able to turn a disadvantage into an advantage."

Additionally, Rain remembered that after donning the Mithril Engraved Plate Armor, his spell power had increased slightly, by about ten percent according to the records.

So, he was curious about how much damage his innate Wizardry, 'Metal Shapeshifting', could inflict on an enemy if used directly for offense.

(End of Chapter)In the courtyard he was once familiar with, Elder Rayn tested his abilities upon his promotion to a formal Wizard. At that time, using his powers directly could only inflict lethal damage on ordinary people, but against anyone stronger, he would be outmatched.

Now, with a significant boost in mental power and equipped with Mithril Engraved Plate Armor, Rayn wondered how much his capabilities had changed with these two factors combined.

Rayn entered an adjacent training room and placed a set of steel armor on a wooden dummy. He placed his hand on the center of the chestplate, focused his mind, and attempted to shapeshift the metal.

As expected, the steel knight's plate armor, after a slight initial deformation, resisted further transformation.

Clearly, with Rayn's current strength, it was still difficult to use Metal Shapeshifting to directly damage the wooden dummy wearing metal armor.

Of course, the wooden dummy was not completely unscathed; scratches and minor deformations were visible to the naked eye.

After testing this several times, Rayn fell into deep thought. Currently, his Metal Shapeshifting power could inflict lethal damage on veteran knights and below.

When he placed his palm on the metal armor of his opponent, with his innate Spellcasting talent, he could twist them into a pretzel or a metal ball within a short time.

However, when facing peak knights, he would be outmatched. As for those with Essence Defense, like great knights, it seemed he still needed improvement. Perhaps when he advanced to a Transmutation Wizard and experienced a significant boost in mental power, he might be able to achieve it.

Meanwhile, at the Axson Auction House's Minster Branch.

Drak, who had barely slept the night before, had bloodshot eyes and unkempt hair, looking like a mess.

Soon after the previous night's battle, scouts began reporting their findings.

Not long after Rayn killed Asimov, Drak received reports from the scene.

He was shocked by what he heard!

The situation was even worse than Drak's worst-case scenario predictions.

Moreover, after thinking about it all night, he still couldn't quite understand it.

According to the consecutive reports, the only person who fought the Bloodcap Mercenary Group was indeed Rayn.

However, the Bloodcap Mercenary Group was led by Asimov, a Second Tier Transmutation Wizard, and two other members.

How could they lose, let alone be completely defeated?

Drak always believed that even if Rayn's strength was hidden, it only meant the mission's difficulty had increased. It should still be achievable, albeit with more noise during the battle or a delay in the mission, causing them to miss the last airship back to the imperial capital as scheduled.

However, he never expected the outcome to be this bad!

"Knock, knock, knock!"

"Who is it?" Drak answered irritably.

"Viscount Fabien here. Lady Olena from the Swordsman Division is here to visit you," Fabien's voice sounded from outside the door, slightly hoarse.

Hearing Fabien's words, Drak's heart skipped a beat.

He immediately understood.

The Swordsman Division in Minster had decided to intervene.

Apparently, the previous message from the Swordsman Division was correct. This Rayn was likely a Star-Rank Swordsman, and he seemed to hold a significant position in the eyes of the Swordsman Division's leader.

Otherwise, the Swordsman Division wouldn't choose to engage in direct communication with them.

Normally, in such situations, even if they intervened, they would first find a proxy for communication.

In the reception room, Olena and Drak sat facing each other.

"Is this the esteemed Drak from the imperial capital? Greetings, I am Olena."

"Greetings, Lady Olena."

"Viscount Drak, I believe you are well aware of my purpose here."

"If it's a private settlement, perhaps we can discuss it."

"If it's a public matter, we will report the situation in the name of the Swordsman Division in Minster. If that's the case, I can return now."

Hearing about reporting to the imperial capital, Drak's expression turned pale.

The evidence and witnesses were all present.

Some things could still be denied, as the Bloodcap Mercenary Group, not them, had taken action.

But the issue was the relationship between the Olenz Marquis Family and the Bloodcap Mercenary Group. In a situation where both sides had a significant power gap, some things held little substantive meaning.

However, when both sides were relatively balanced, these factors became crucial.

(End)

Chapter end