Exploring Technology in a Wizard World

August, Flame Month.

This is the hottest month of summer, with the sun suspended overhead like a fiery furnace all day long, roasting the earth and all its inhabitants and bringing unbearable heat that caused sweat to drench one's back.

But at the same time, it's also the season of harvest. The many crops of the Main Continent are successively maturing, and the wild fruits in the forests and fields are becoming red and heavy. During this month, even the poorest of people, as long as they're willing to go out into the wilds in the early morning, could eat their fill. Once the sun rose and the temperature climbed, having eaten and drunk their fill, jumping into a pond was an excellent pleasure.

Of course, all of this had nothing to do with Richard. Whether it was scorching heat or biting cold, it was difficult to drive Richard out of the Blue Lake Estate. During this time, Richard had been staying in the estate, following the many plans he had drawn up, methodically researching various things.

Such as the improvement of the Miniature Magic Tracking Missile, the enhancement of the Fighter Mode, the deciphering of spells from the Vaisya Secrets, and so on.

Some of this encountered problems, while another part made smooth breakthroughs.

Regarding this, Richard didn't experience much emotional fluctuation; he knew very well that this was the most common aspect of the research process. So when confronted with minor problems, he would think of solutions, and when he made breakthroughs, he would keep up the momentum, busy every day.

During this time, Bobbobovic did come by frequently, ostensibly to visit but then continuously suggesting they spar to exchange combat skills. Richard understood that the other party simply wanted to salvage some pride from a previous humiliating defeat.

Since Richard needed to conduct practical tests due to the improvement of the Miniature Magic Tracking Missile, he agreed.

Naturally, regardless of the outcome, Bobbobovic ended up defeated in every exchange.

After many attempts, Bobbobovic finally accepted reality, gave up on reclaiming his pride, and continued to visit, this time truly to talk about various matters with Richard.

Through these talks, Richard came to learn some background information about Bobbobovic.

For instance, Bobbobovic was different from many Wizards; his body was altered with special Transformation Magic, belonging to a class known as "Potion Wizard." This brought him both benefits and drawbacks.

The benefit was that he could quickly enhance his strength for a very short period by using some potions, with very little to almost no side effects. The drawback was that once the effects of the potion wore off, his strength would continue to decline, returning to the level of a First-level Wizard, or even lower.

With this transformation, Bobbobovic had made some name for himself and had acquired the nickname "Blue Pigeon."

And... the reason he came to Jialan City was because of a friend...

Richard was somewhat surprised by what Bobbobovic shared, but that was all it was — surprise. He didn't focus too much on it. In most cases, he simply nodded along, his greater energy spent pondering the various problems in his research. Thinking about how to break through, how to improve the Miniature Magic Tracking Missile, how to beat Bobbobovic even more... ahem, that is, how to better deal with an enemy.

If nothing unexpected happened, this kind of life might continue for a long time.

But, as the saying goes, calm is only there to be broken.

...

One day in mid-August, nightfall.

The heat of the daytime finally passed, and night arrived, bringing a cool breeze.

As the night wind grew stronger, Bobbobovic finished yet another visit to Richard, leaving the Stone Building where they had talked, walking towards the estate's main gate.

After taking a few steps, Bobbobovic stopped, turned his head towards Richard standing at the entrance of the stone building, and complained, "Hey, Richard, we're friends, aren't we? Even if we're not best friends, we've surely moved beyond mere acquaintances. Since that's the case, aren't you going to see me off? I know your time is valuable and you have a lot of things to take care of, but just watching me leave like this, doesn't seem quite right, does it?"

Richard considered Bobbobovic's words, nodded thoughtfully, and said to himself, "You make some sense, I really shouldn't just watch you leave on your own, so... goodbye!"

The next moment, Richard gave a casual wave of his hand and loudly shut the door with a "bang," then headed straight upstairs.

Left hanging in the courtyard, Bobbobovic stood there, stunned. After a long while, he touched his nose and exclaimed, "Hey, that's a bit much, isn't it? You can't treat me differently just because I'm only at the level of a First-level Wizard. The only reason I'm at this level is that I haven't taken my medicine today..."

Having finished his complaint, Bobbobovic realized that Richard truly was not going to see him off. He shook his head and turned to leave.

As he stepped out of the estate, Bobbobovic walked along the road towards Ash Academy. He wasn't walking fast, lost in thought about what he should teach tomorrow. Recently, Richard had been teaching Harry and Cathy only a little, and he was eager to seize the opportunity to pull the two children to his side.

After pondering for quite a while, Bobbobovic was only halfway to his destination.

Finally having figured out his lesson plan for tomorrow, Bobbobovic's gaze firmed up, and he was just about to pick up the pace and head back when suddenly his stride halted.

"Snap!"

Bobbobovic stood still, scanning his surroundings with squinted eyes.

At that moment, he was on a deserted pathway in the wilderness, with trees lining the road that rustled slightly in the night breeze, like specters that had escaped from the Netherworld. Further away lay a dense darkness, its blackness rising like seawater without a single spot of light.

The atmosphere was somewhat eerie.

But... that was all it seemed to be—just eerie. Other than that, nothing seemed amiss.

"Am I being too sensitive?" Bobbobovic muttered to himself, "Alright, seems like I am indeed overthinking..."

He had only spoken halfway when he suddenly stepped firmly on the ground and bolted towards the fields at the side of the road.

No sooner had he dashed a dozen meters than the sounds of "whoosh whoosh whoosh" filled the air. Following immediately were several "thuds," as three flat, blade-like ice cones pinned themselves into the ground right in front of Bobbobovic's toes, just centimeters away.

"Damn it!"

Bobbobovic cried out and was quick to change direction, escaping towards another small grove.

However, before he could even make it into the woods, a figure flashed out from among the trees.

It was a middle-aged male wizard, over forty years old, not wearing a robe but a brown, tight-fitting outfit instead. On his left shoulder, he had a thick white cloth tied around what appeared to be an injury. After stepping out of the woods and standing firm, he gave Bobbobovic a cold stare.

Bobbobovic was caught off guard and subconsciously stopped in his tracks, then made eye contact with the man.

One second, two seconds, three seconds.

The scene suddenly grew tense, and after a brief moment, it was the middle-aged male wizard who broke the silence first.