Wizard Lord:I can Extract Anything

"Orey!?" Bartolas exclaimed in disbelief as he recognized the person at the core of the white wizard army.

"It's me."

The white wizard army parted to make way for their commander, Orey.

"Equipped with better gear and greater numbers, yet you were driven to mere defense..."

Orey approached Bartolas, the sunlight casting a shadow over his face, creating an oppressive aura that made Bartolas feel suffocated.

"Is this how your command council fights?"

Bartolas opened his mouth to defend himself, but in the face of undeniable facts, any words were rendered powerless.

With a single battle, Orey dismantled the newly established command council and reclaimed authority.

"Assess the casualties," Orey ordered calmly.

"...Yes," Bartolas replied bitterly.

The casualty report came swiftly: the black wizards had lost a hundred, while the white wizards had suffered nearly four hundred dead.

Including the previous battle's losses, Keeper Wizard Academy had lost more than half of its apprentices in just one day.

Yet, in that same day, Keeper Wizard Academy's apprentices had been tempered by blood and fire, facing battle without the previous fear.

"Perhaps this is why the academy conducts apprentice wars."

In the meeting room, Orey muttered as he reviewed the statistics.

He recalled his mentor mentioning that the initial casualty rate for white wizard corps in their first battle was an astonishing fifty percent. Even after mixing new and experienced troops and adding war machines, the rate only dropped to thirty percent.

This high mortality was not solely due to the perilous nature of planar conquest but also to issues among the white wizards themselves.

Some white wizards performed abysmally on the battlefield, their competence in large-scale warfare sometimes inferior to even natives.

This apprentice war, using the hands of black wizard apprentices, weeded out the inept among the white wizards, significantly improving the remaining students' quality.

At least, they no longer wet themselves on the battlefield.

"Take a rest, and have the wounded treated by the necromancy apprentices. Those uninjured, repair the resource point defenses," Orey commanded.

"Yes."

A while later, the senior apprentices of Keeper Wizard Academy reconvened in the meeting room.

This time, Orey sat at the head of the table.

"After these two battles, our apprentices have matured. I plan to let them rest and digest the experiences from these battles."

He tapped his fingers on the table.

"Any objections?"

The senior apprentices exchanged glances, but none spoke up.

"If there are no objections, we'll proceed as planned."

Knock, knock, knock!

As Orey finished speaking, there was a knock on the meeting room door.

Upon opening it, a white wizard apprentice whispered to the one who answered.

"The other two academies have arrived," the gatekeeper announced.

Orey stood up.

"Let's go meet them."

...

In the sky above, Foggy circled over the white wizards' resource point, unnoticed due to its high altitude and the distortion of light.

"The white wizards have begun corps-style warfare; this isn't good news," Richard muttered.

The war had rapidly accelerated the white wizards' growth, and the black wizards' disorganized attacks hastened this process.

During the two academies' assault, Richard noticed the black wizards fighting independently, while the white wizards tended to form groups.

Though the black wizards were individually strong, they struggled against groups of apprentices with similar paper strength.

If Richard were commanding, he would focus on dividing and encircling the white wizards, commonly known as "making dumplings."

Concentrate superior forces, breach the white wizards' defenses swiftly, and encircle to annihilate.

Unfortunately, the leaders of the other two academies didn't share Richard's mindset. They managed to break through defenses but then let their apprentices scatter, leaving them to secure their own victories.

This approach aligned with black wizard ideology but was ill-suited for warfare.

"The two new academies, according to the rules, should be Frostwind Wizard Academy and Aurora Wizard Academy," Richard mused, observing the two new groups of white wizards on the ground.

From above, the two groups formed a cluster outside the resource point, seemingly having minor conflicts with the Keeper Wizard Academy apprentices.

"We're all white wizard apprentices; why won't you let us in?" an Aurora Academy apprentice protested loudly at the guards blocking the entrance.

"Exactly, according to the rules, we're allies. Why can't we enter an ally's resource point?" a Frostwind Wizard Academy apprentice chimed in.

Earlier, these two academies had arrived at the resource point just as the black wizards were leaving, their timing almost too perfect.

Keeper Wizard Academy, in mourning and anger due to the black wizards' slaughter, naturally suspected the timing was deliberate.

Arriving just as the enemy left seemed too coincidental.

Yet, it was indeed a coincidence.

Unlike Keeper Wizard Academy, these two academies lacked a leader with enough prestige, leading to a power struggle upon entering the realm.

After resolving leadership disputes, both academies followed the white wizard manual, starting to build defenses at their resource points, which delayed them further.

Once these issues were settled, they bickered internally before finally deciding to send representatives to Keeper Academy's resource point to exchange information and establish an alliance.

Their arrival coincided perfectly with the end of Keeper Academy's battle with the black wizards.

"Rules are rules. Without the leader's order, none of you can enter."

The guarding white wizard replied coldly, dismissing the outsiders' protests.

Having experienced war, Keeper Wizard Academy's apprentices looked upon these untested apprentices with a mix of pride and pity.

These newcomers had no idea what awaited them.

The protests were short-lived, as Orey's order came down.

"Let them in."

Orey exchanged information with the leaders, or rather representatives, of the two academies.

He shared some of Keeper Academy's experiences with them.

"Are you saying we white wizards can't win against black wizards initially unless we set traps and ambushes?" the Frostwind Academy representative asked.

This representative, named Greg, was over two meters tall with a red beard, resembling a berserker.

"Something like that," Orey replied casually. "Without the tempering of war, our apprentices' quality is far inferior to the black wizards'."

"It sounds unbelievable, but given the rules this time, the academy likely intended this outcome."

Across from him, the Aurora Academy representative spoke up.

This representative, a necromancer named Menasi, spoke with ghostly blue soul fire flickering in his eye sockets.

"To eliminate low-quality apprentices among us and make wizards more elite."

Orey did not disagree.

"Are you two planning to train your troops next?" Orey asked.

As he spoke, Orey led the two representatives through the streets.

The resource point echoed with the sound of weeping, many apprentices having lost their lives in the war. They were men and women, with various relationships to the surviving apprentices.

Undoubtedly, the deceased had connections with the living apprentices.

The weight of death pressed on those who remained; experiencing life and death was a necessary part of a wizard's journey.

The ultimate goal of wizard academies was to provide soldiers for the planar battlefields.

"We..."

Greg struggled to breathe under the resource point's oppressive grief.

The harsh realities of war left this ivory tower apprentice at a loss.

"Do you remember the rules for winning the war?" Orey suddenly asked.

"When resource points drop below two, or apprentice numbers fall by half," Menasi replied solemnly. "The academy is prepared for death; they've drawn a line for us."

"So, you two should think about it," Orey said softly. "Death is inevitable."

...

In the sky, Richard observed the other two academies' white wizards starting to leave.

But their departure direction seemed off.

Why were they heading toward his position?

Fortunately, the sun soon set, and the white wizards chose not to march at night, opting to camp instead.

"Are they planning to attack the public resource point?"

Richard shifted his perspective back to himself, rubbing his temples in anxiety.

Knock, knock, knock!

Someone knocked on Richard's door.

Since arranging the camp's defenses, Richard had stayed in this room, using Foggy to monitor the white wizards' movements.

"Who is it?"

"Boss, it's Doug. I caught a magical beast. Would you like to try some?"

"Doug? Magical beast?"

Richard realized it was someone trying to curry favor.

"Alright, I got it."

Stretching, Richard left the room.

Outside, the entire resource point had transformed.

Thick walls were completed, with apprentices standing guard atop them. Wooden cabins were constructed within the camp.

Apprentices moved about the streets, gathering around campfires with familiar faces, eating rations and chatting.

While the day's slaughter might be a painful memory for the white wizards, for the black wizards, it was just another day.

Doug, an apprentice, approached Richard, offering a roasted magical beast leg like a treasure.

The leg sizzled with oil, coated in spices, its aroma making mouths water.

"Boss, this magical beast meat is tender; you'll love it."

Richard didn't mind Doug's flattery. He took the leg, tasted it, and nodded.

"Not bad."

"Glad you like it, boss," Doug replied obsequiously. "If you want more, I have some."

"No need." Richard waved his hand. "You're Doug, right? What faction?"

"Alchemy faction, boss."

"Alchemy... How skilled are you? In what area?"

Doug laughed humbly. "I study alchemical mechanics. I'm decent, but nowhere near your level, boss."

"Alchemical mechanics, not bad."

Richard nodded, pulling a contract from his pocket, scribbling a few terms.

"Sign this, and you can stay in the rear."

Doug's skills were average, judging by his magical fluctuations at an intermediate apprentice level, likely using a basic meditation technique.

Such an apprentice would likely become cannon fodder on the battlefield.

Doug examined the contract. It required him to assist Richard in crafting alchemical components and potions, prohibiting him from sharing any information. After the war, he would undergo a memory wipe by a soul wizard.

"This..." Doug hesitated, then signed the contract.

Though the terms were harsh, they were preferable to dying on the battlefield.

"Good." Richard yawned, handing Doug a parchment.

"Follow these instructions, and be thorough."

He also gave Doug a magical pouch filled with alchemical materials.

Having Doug craft alchemical components was a spur-of-the-moment decision. As an alchemy apprentice, Doug could process a batch of materials Richard had.

Instead of sending him to the front lines, it made more sense for Doug to work in the rear.

Doug thanked Richard profusely and left.

After finishing the magical beast leg, Richard returned to his room to continue monitoring the white wizards' movements.

In the dense forest, despite learning from Keeper Academy's experience, these white wizards still underestimated the war's brutality.

Richard even spotted some male and female apprentices sneaking off together, leaving the camp.

"If they weren't so close to Keeper Academy's resource point, they'd be wiped out by morning."

Through Foggy's night vision, Richard clearly saw several black wizard scouts observing the camp.

Meanwhile, the white wizard sentries seemed oblivious, failing to notice anything.

"Void Academy apprentices?" Richard maneuvered Foggy through the forest, locating the lurking Void and Annihilation academies.

After their defeat, the two academies chose not to return to their resource points to fortify, instead lying in wait in the forest.

"Boss, these wh

ite wizards aren't from the same group as the resource point apprentices," a black wizard scout reported. "Shall we raid them tonight?"

Anderson and Aldo exchanged glances.

"A night raid is a good idea. Are you in?" Anderson asked.

Aldo's soul fire flared.

"Of course."

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