Chapter 122: Looking for the laboratory
Half an hour later, I was immersed in a large white marble bath built inside the mansion’s bathing chamber.
The hot water flowed gently over my body, washing away the sweat.
Steam filled the tranquil room, and I felt pleased. Now I was a little more confident about searching for the laboratory hidden within the Forest of Distant Wind.
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The night was dark and silent.
The sky was a black mantle, nearly devoid of stars, while only the distant glow of the moon filtered through the treetops.
A gentle breeze drifted through the leaves, creating a constant rustling that masked any small sound I might make.
I was completely dressed in black.
A thick cloak concealed my body, and a hood completely hid my face. Blending into the shadows, I was nothing more than another indistinct silhouette.
Even if someone looked directly at me, they would have a hard time noticing my presence.
In the distance, the lights of the City of Distant Wind were still burning.
Small golden dots gleamed in the darkness as mercenaries patrolled the walls and streets in organized formations.
None of them had the slightest idea that their lord had left his residence quite some time ago.
Inside my private laboratory was a secret passage, one I had built myself over weeks of quiet work. Not even Jane, or any of my subordinates, knew it existed.
The exit led directly to an ancient underground tunnel beyond the city.
Thanks to it, I was able to leave without arousing any suspicion.
My objective this time was perfectly clear.
To find the ancient laboratory hidden within the Forest of Distant Wind.
Relics left behind by ancient Mages were treasures capable of completely changing a person’s fate.
Official magical research laboratories often contained decades—sometimes even centuries—of accumulated research.
Forgotten formulas, ingredients that could no longer be found, magical artifacts of immense power, lost spells, and scientific records capable of saving years of study.
That was precisely the kind of knowledge every mage longed to possess.
During my time at the Tower, I had heard countless rumors about acolytes who, through sheer luck, stumbled upon abandoned ancient facilities.
A few days later, they returned completely transformed.
Some awakened incredibly rare magical bloodlines.
Others obtained artifacts capable of allowing them to surpass several cultivation levels.
There were even those who discovered ancient meditation techniques or forgotten spells, becoming extraordinary individuals in an astonishingly short time.
Naturally...
Those were only the stories with happy endings.
Far more numerous were the failed expeditions.
Corpses crushed by automated mechanisms.
Explorers transformed into monsters after touching unstable experiments.
Curses cast by the ancient corpses of Mages that remained active even centuries after their deaths.
Entire laboratories protected by magical formations capable of eliminating any intruder.
Even so...
For a mage, searching for ancient ruins remained one of the most profitable pursuits imaginable.
The risks were enormous.
But the rewards justified everything.
Especially in this case.
That facility had been capable of creating a Giant Brown Snake that had nearly reached adulthood.
A creature of that size required an absurd amount of resources to produce.
I smiled faintly beneath my hood.
I had never feared taking risks.
Especially when the reward far outweighed the danger.
For this expedition, I had prepared everything with great care.
I carried numerous potions, scrolls, bombs, antidotes, kits, and various tools I had crafted in my laboratory.
Every item served a specific purpose.
I had considered virtually every possible scenario.
As for my subordinates...
They would have been completely useless there.
Even Knights were little more than insects before the defenses of an experimental laboratory belonging to ancient Mages.
Taking them with me would only create distractions.
That was why I chose to leave alone, without informing anyone.
I traveled through several consecutive nights.
I pulled a small silver vial from the pouch fastened to my waist.
I gave its contents a gentle shake.
White particles slowly swirled inside.
A Wind Acceleration Potion.
Without hesitation, I threw the liquid onto the ground.
The instant the glass shattered, a sphere formed from countless wind elemental particles erupted around me.
Whoooosh!
The wind completely enveloped my body.
I felt my weight almost disappear.
My skin became incredibly light.
My clothes fluttered wildly.
For several seconds, I had the strange sensation that my entire body was dissolving into streams of air.
The next instant...
I vanished into the night.
In truth, I was still there.
But I was moving so fast that my figure had become nothing more than an invisible blur streaking through the forest.
It was one of the potions I had purchased from the Magic Market.
Expensive.
But extraordinarily effective.
After some time, I finally reached the passage where, days earlier, we had fought the enormous Brown Snake.
The scene had changed considerably.
The soldiers sent by the castle had already removed nearly all of the mutilated corpses.
The ground was still covered with enormous craters, shattered trees, and deep scars left by the battle.
Some places contained stones that had been completely vitrified by the flames.
Others were stained with dried blood.
The previous scene has already been recorded by the Crystal I received from the Tower... which means the official exploration mission of the Forest of Distant Wind has been successfully completed.
At the time, I recorded only the truly important parts of the mission.
The explored areas.
The major events.
And, most importantly...
The corpse of the enormous Brown Snake.
That was more than enough proof.
My mission in the City of Distant Wind was officially complete.
However...
I had no intention of returning to Arcangrove Tower anytime soon.
The war between the factions was still ongoing.
Until a definitive victor emerged, staying far away was infinitely safer.
In approximately one month...
I would head to the rendezvous point I had arranged with Ruby.
After that, we would depart together on our next mission.
As for the corpses of the former acolytes lying on the cave floor...
I had already conducted a thorough inspection before leaving that place with Lurdot and Probel.
I took everything of value.
Magic crystals.
Potions.
Anything that could still be put to use.
Unfortunately...
Those acolytes were incredibly poor.
Not a single one of them possessed even ten magic crystals.
It wasn’t particularly surprising.
After all, they were failed acolytes, retired, and all but abandoned.
The only truly worthwhile loot had belonged to the werewolf acolyte.
The enchantment crystal found in his possession was worth a considerable amount.
As I reflected on that, I walked toward the deepest part of the cave.
At the center of the enormous chamber, a gigantic depression was still imprinted into the ground.
It was exactly where the Brown Snake used to coil itself.
I slowly crouched down.
I ran my hand across the hardened earth.
The impression was deep.
I carefully examined the full extent of the hollow.
It really did remain here for a very long time... just as the books described. An extraordinarily lazy creature... with highly unusual reproductive habits.
I rubbed some of the soil between my fingers.
Its texture felt different.
Tiny metallic specks, almost invisible to the naked eye, were mixed into the earth.
My expression immediately turned serious.
—Biochip... analyze this sample.
[Beep!]
[Processing chemical composition...]
[Separating contaminant elements...]
[Comparing with database...]
[BIOCHIP ANALYSIS REPORT]
[Residues Detected]
[Crystalline silicates: 41.8%]
[Ferromagnetic compounds: 18.2%]
[Hardened carbonates: 12.6%]
[Structural Analysis: The metallic fragments detected exhibit an atomic structure incompatible with naturally occurring metals.]
[An artificially produced alloy created through metallic transmutation spells has been identified.]
[Database Compatibility]
[Uikeplu Alloy — 98.04%]
[Hasterium Alloy — 1.21%]
[Other possibilities — 0.75%]
I couldn’t hide my smile.
Uikeplu Alloy was an artificial metal.
Produced exclusively through highly complex metallurgical spells.
Its primary application was the construction of biological incubation tanks used in experimental laboratories.
Very few Mages had mastered its production.
If traces of that alloy were embedded in the soil where the Brown Snake slept...
I slowly raised my head.
—Biochip... is it possible to follow the traces left by the snake and locate its original breeding area?
[Beep!]
[Scanning in progress...]
[Result: The target’s original trail has been severely contaminated by the tracks of other creatures.]
[Insufficient data to reconstruct the route.]
[Mission failed.]
I let out a quiet sigh.
What a shame.
Even so...
I continued examining every detail of the cave.
Based on the Brown Snake’s habits and all the evidence uncovered so far, that experimental laboratory couldn’t be very far from here.
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