Chapter 390: Strange Magical Crystal

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

But, Jason knew he could not do it now. Having known Adelo for quite some time, he noticed that this Archmage had been tagging along with Emendas for the longest time he could remember. Jason even suspected that everything was just a façade, and that Archmage had to be the real leader of the team, whom Emendas and Hahn had to take orders from. Even Hutton, the first heir of the Malfa Family, would become especially ingratiating when Adelo’s name was mentioned. That closeness he portrayed from within, and it was a type of closeness that he didn’t treat his biological brother with…

He would be caught by Adelo and be seen as a traitor if he were to chase after Felic now. Then, he would not even be able to inform Felic about it.

Should I find a mutual friend to convey the message?

But, whom should I find…?

Weathor and Rotiah would not be able to take on the task, as they could be easily recognized by Adelo. If he were to find out about it, Jason would be unmasked as the obvious mastermind.

“Oh, yes. Jason, are you interested in venturing into Aminya after you complete this mission? I can arrange for you to work under the Malfa Family then,” Hutton asked Jason smilingly.

“Huh…?” Jason was shocked by the sudden offer.

Being an astute and shrewd man, Hutton did not show his unhappiness with Jason’s hesitation. He frowned slightly, and adopted a gentle stance to continue persuading Jason.

“You are concerned about the staff’s benefits, aren’t you? Check with Emendas. Rest assured that I would never take advantage of any men working under me. After this mission, I’m going to invite Emendas into the core organization of the Malfa Family; he would be my personal assistant, whereas my father would have no right to interfere with him. If you’re willing to come over, I can give you the same benefits as I gave Emendas.”

“Sir Hutton, I need some time to decide. As you know, I’m not like Emendas. Apart from myself, I have to discuss it with my two teammates before we can make a decision.” Jason crafted a reasonable excuse after a moment of hesitation.

To be honest, if Hutton had given him the offer earlier, Jason would have agreed to it without any hesitation. After all, he couldn’t imagine himself as an Adventurer for a lifetime. It would be a good way out to enter the Malfa Family. Moreover, Hutton was a better superior as compared to his younger brother—he knew how much to expect from his men, and always treated them with the respect they deserved.

Unfortunately, the offer came in a little late…

Jason knew very well how determined the young mage would be when he sought revenge. When he was at Doland City, the friction during the banquet caused him to fall out with people from the Brilliance Shrine. If Adelo were to create trouble for him, it’d implicate the entire Malfa Family…

At this time, Jason was really tempted to persuade Hutton to give up on that plan. The person you plan to silence is not an easy man to deal with! He is the student of the Legendary-mage Andoine, the President of the Breezy Plains Guild of Magic, and the person who slew the Humerus Wyrm single-handedly…

Unfortunately, he could only keep everything to himself…

It would be impossible for Jason to clear his name if he were to show his acquaintance with a mage who had been disguising his ability. That was a very serious and sensitive matter as he might be seen like a traitor or a spy. Then, his entire career as an Adventurer would be going down the drain.

Furthermore, Jason had no guts to expose Lin Li, either. If he were to do it without that young mage’s permission, he would be digging his own grave…

At this time, the safest approach was to keep his mouth shut…

But, before he did that, he had to inform Mage Felic about Adelo’s identity. Although it was a risky move, he could actually create a good impression of himself.

Jason became really restless as he thought of that. He got up from his seat to leave after he conversed with Hutton for a short while.

Fortunately, Hutton’s words seemed to be just a casual invitation as he did not insist that Jason give him a reply immediately. “Alright, Jason, you can discuss it with your friends and get back to me again. If you are interested, come look for me anytime. As long as I’m here, the gates of the Malfa Family will always welcome you,” Hutton said in a disappointed tone as he sent Jason out of the tent.

“Alright.”

Jason got to his two other teammates very quickly after he left the tent.

Then, he told them what he had heard from Hutton.

“So, do you have any ideas what we can do?”

In reality, Jason was just anxious, and was asking for the sake of asking. He knew that his friends would be equally clueless what action to take.

Little did he expect that they’d respond positively.

Weathor smiled hideously after hearing Jason. “Well, I have an idea…”

“Huh?”

“Hehe, didn’t you have me take a look around a valley earlier this morning?”

“Yeah,” Jason said as he nodded his head. “Are you going to tell me that you discovered a secret in that valley?”

“Not exactly. When I returned, I forgot to tell you that I’ve met someone familiar in that valley…”

“Who?”

“Do you still remember that mage named Gavin? He was that mage who tagged along with Mr. Basel when he was at the Doland library.”

“Gavin?” Jason paused, and tried to recall this memory. There definitely was a mage named Gavin at the Doland library. When this mage visited the Adventurers Guild to look for another mage, it was Weathor and himself who helped him out.

But, what did that have to do with Adelo?

“Now, Gavin joined the Tower of Dusk, and I’ve heard that he is quite trusted by Mage Felic.”

“That’s great. Weathor, please go to that valley and tell Gavin about the situation here. He would have his ways to contact Mage Felic.”

It was around noon when the advance party entered the forest. When they returned, Lin Li tried to ask about the mission. However, their answers were confusing as well.

“Mr. Hahn only had us bring this there…” Reggie did not dare to hide anything from Lin Li. He even took out six magical crystals from his pocket as evidence that he was saying the truth.

“Eh…?” Lin Li was shocked when he saw the magical crystal.

Everyone would know that a magical crystal was the essence of a magical beast. It not only contained the mana of the magical beast, but also carried the brand of the soul. Any magical crystal would have a bit of life essence that lingered in it.

But, the magical crystals in Reggie’s hand were completely different. Lin Li could not sense any bit of life essence from them. They were like six ordinary stones without anything special about them.

“That’s weird…” Lin Li commented, suspicious. He took one of the black magical crystals from Reggie for a closer inspection…

Lin Li’s expression changed as his fingers came into contact with the black crystal. It was as if the magical crystal had transformed into a huge black hole that started to engulf his mana.

“Sh*t!” Lin Li gasped as he threw the magical crystal onto the ground at once.

It was unusual as the Devouring Force of the magical crystal vanished the moment it left Lin Li’s hand. The magical crystal looked just like a real black stone as it lay among the sand on the ground.

Where did the Malfa Family acquire such eerie crystals…? Lin Li thought as he looked at the black magical crystal on the ground.

But, there was something Lin Li was very certain about…

Sending the advance party into the Scar of Death was definitely not just a way for Hahn to silence the people he despised. From the map in Johnathan’s hand and the six magical crystals in Reggie’s, Lin Li could deduce that the real person in charge of the mission had to be somebody else.

It was not difficult to guess who that person was…

There were 12 people in the advance party. Apart from his and Reggie’s friends, there were three other suspicious men. Among the three of them, there would only be one who would fear the Devouring Force of the crystal…

Yes, there was a mage aged around 40.

Only this could explain why Reggie was in charge of those six important magical crystals. Those crystals had the power to engulf mana, and any mage who came into contact with them would have their mana drained by them, being turned into a cripple with zero amount of mana.

Thinking of it, Lin Li glanced at that mage skeptically.

That mage seemed to be a normal man. He was just like many other mages at his age, and had the ability of a level-10 Magic Shooter. Lin Li could not tell if he had any outstanding talents, and it had to be many years of practice that brought him to where he was right now. He was like any other common mage in Anril World who would join the Adventurers’ ranks to earn enough money to support his magic research. If Lin Li had to use a word to describe him, it would only be “ordinary”…