The Most Arbitrary Wizard

Chapter 170: Chapter 100: "Pull Off a Big One

The sleeper compartment was too small, and it was incredibly crowded with so many people.

However, Sopea and Kate were in no condition to move and could only signal with their eyes that they would have to talk right there.

Sean: "..."

’Fine. Looks like the two old guys are seriously hurt.’

Elise noticed this as well, her expression growing more bewildered. "You’re injured?"

Normally, even a failed Meditation wouldn’t cause a Wizard significant harm. She had never seen a Wizard rendered completely immobile by it.

When Koni heard her master was injured, she snapped to attention. "Don’t worry, Teacher... and Mr. Kate," she said hurriedly. "I’ll heal you."

When it came to mental and spiritual issues, she was the most qualified person there, aside from Sopea himself.

Sopea: "..."

Kate: "..."

’Having a junior treat our wounds... This is even more humiliating.’

Lante appeared at the doorway and asked, "Need any Magic Potions?"

"Bring several bottles," Elvire said.

"I’ll go get a few chairs," said Yisha.

Standing around to talk wasn’t a viable option.

Sean walked over to the bed and pulled back the curtain, intending to open the window for some air. He discovered that the once-refreshing view had long been swallowed by darkness. Outside was a night so thick it seemed tangible, and the wind was cold. He could only faintly make out scattered starlight in the sky and the blurred outlines of mountains in the distance.

"It’s already nighttime?" Sean asked in surprise.

Yisha entered, carrying a chair in one hand and rubbing her eyes with the other. "It’s more than just nighttime," she said with a yawn. "We’ve already slept and woken up... Ahh."

As she spoke, she let out another yawn.

Elvire frowned. "But it was just getting dark when we went to the Florist Family, wasn’t it?"

They hadn’t spoken with Robes for long before they all logged off.

Theoretically, the flow of time in the Meditation World and the Real World should be roughly the same. However, their "start times" differed. For example, entering the Meditation World at noon didn’t guarantee it would be noon there, so experiencing a "time lag" was normal.

However, Elvire remembered that Sean had specifically mentioned this "time lag" problem before.

This "time lag" was the very reason they were heading to World’s End, far from the continent’s center, to find the Kovri Ruins.

Sean let out a soft sigh. "This means that everything in the New World is very likely real."

The fact that even the time lag was replicated made it difficult not to believe it was a copy of the Real World.

If they hadn’t gone to the Florist Family and had instead tried to determine their direction and head for the center of the landmass, they might have even found an identical New Elderidge and Siracle State.

"Wait, you went to the Florist Family?" Yisha asked, confused. "There are Witch Hunters in the Meditation World, too?"

Sean nodded. "We didn’t just go to the Florist Family; we also found the Holy Temple Ruins."

Yisha: "Huh?"

Her eyes widened. ’The Holy Temple Ruins are real?’

Elise’s reaction was different. She had been inclined to believe Sean from the start, and while she was surprised the Holy Temple Ruins actually existed, her reaction wasn’t as dramatic as Yisha’s. What she didn’t understand was Sean’s tone. "Shouldn’t this be good news, then?" she asked, perplexed.

From the snippets of conversation between Elvire and Sean, it was clear that the "New World" of their dual Meditation was very much like the Real World. Since Sean claimed that everything in the New World was real, then the existence of the Holy Temple Ruins there must mean they also existed in the Real World.

In all likelihood, Sean and Elvire had probably pinpointed the general location of the ruins, which would be a massive help to their journey. It also meant their hopes for this trip wouldn’t be dashed. As long as they were on the right track, it was safe to say that "victory was in sight." So why was he sighing?

"Because the Florist Family’s main stronghold is near Kovri."

Sean continued, "And their Clan Leader is a Grand Mage."

"A Grand Mage?!"

Everyone: "???"

Upon hearing this title, one of the greatest honors a Wizard could achieve, Koni was so shocked that her healing motions faltered. In her distraction, she lost control of her power and nearly inflicted new wounds upon Sopea and Kate’s barely-recovered minds.

Yisha blurted out, "Impossible!"

"With resources so scarce in this day and age, how could anyone possibly cultivate to Tier Seven?"

"That’s a question for Mr. Sopea," Sean said, looking at Sopea.

After all, he had originally heard about this from Sopea.

In reality, however, this wasn’t just Sopea’s opinion—it was the consensus among all Wizards.

As one of the most skilled Alchemists in the entire Void Technique Space, Lante could personally attest to this. He spoke with conviction, "I have never seen the key ingredients needed to produce Kersu Magic Potion."

In Alchemy, some powerful Magic Potions are named after the Wizards who first created them. The Kersu Magic Potion was one such potion.

An even more potent potion was the Hesinra Magic Potion, said to have been personally developed by the first Witch Empress in human history. Unfortunately, its formula was long lost. From what Lante could recall, Wizards seeking to advance from Tier Six to Tier Seven generally relied on the Kersu Magic Potion.

He was an Alchemy Master, after all. If the materials for making Kersu Magic Potion truly existed in the modern world, he was certain he would have had a chance to see them, or at the very least hear about them from his colleagues. The reality, however, was just the opposite. He knew many High-tier Alchemists and had even more clients with whom he was on good terms, but none of them had ever seen the ingredients.

On the contrary, within the Alchemist circle, there was an organization called Rhine Pharmaceutical. Ostensibly a drug company with business in fields like "weight loss," "medical aesthetics," and "disease prevention," it was actually established to research and develop a lesser substitute for the Kersu Magic Potion.

"That’s true." Kate could finally speak.

He was one of Rhine Pharmaceutical’s shareholders.

It was just that he didn’t understand Alchemy, so he couldn’t provide technical expertise—only financial support for the Alchemists.

"Then how did Robes manage to cultivate to Tier Seven?" Sean wondered, not understanding.

’Don’t tell me that old geezer has the same earth-shattering Talent as I do, and that he brute-forced his way up the Tiers over several decades purely on his own.’

’I’m Carl Black, after all.’

’If Robes is really that amazing, why didn’t he change his name to Robes Black?’

Yisha quietly poked Sean and whispered, "Teacher, even you wouldn’t be able to reach Tier Seven just by grinding over time."

"That’s because, by middle age, a person’s physical functions decline. Without Magic Potions to help a Wizard maintain their body, cultivation yields half the results for twice the effort. With the same Magic Power conversion rate, someone who is Tier Six at thirty might regress to Tier Four by eighty."

Sean was speechless.

’I don’t care.’

’Either way, there’s no way Robes did it on his own.’

’Besides, logically speaking, if Robes’s Talent was so amazing, how could he only be a Viscount?’

The more Koni thought about it, the more frightened she grew. "If a Viscount is already a Grand Mage," she said, her voice filled with fear, "then how terrifying must a Duke be?"

"Would they be starting at Tier Ten?"

She had always assumed that even though the Witch Hunter Families were extremely powerful and had many High-tier Wizards, their overall strength was roughly on par with the various Wizard Organizations. Otherwise, the current stalemate wouldn’t exist—one side would have long since annihilated the other.

But now Sean was telling her that her assumptions were wrong. In reality, the enemy’s true strength was beyond anyone’s imagination.

At that moment, Sopea finally spoke, his voice low. "The only logical explanation is that the Church Court and these families have hoarded all the key ingredients."

And even that "logic" only reasonably explained how Robes could be a Grand Mage; it fell apart under closer scrutiny.

If the Florist Family truly had such a Clan Leader, then the entire Witch Hunt Operation was filled with too many contradictions. Many things just wouldn’t make sense.

For instance, why hadn’t they just directly destroyed Alola Town?

Or take the battle where the combined families besieged the Long Night Union—why didn’t these Grand Mages make an appearance?

If the Florist Family had a Tier Seven, then the other families should have one, too.

"I don’t think any of that matters," Sean suddenly interjected.

"The enemy must have a compelling reason for acting this way. We’ll find out what it is when the time is right."

"What’s important," he continued, "is that I think Sopea is right. Maybe resources in the world aren’t scarce at all. Maybe they’ve just been hoarded by the Church Court and the great families, kept away from independent Wizards like us."

’But by what right?’

’The world belongs to everyone, and the ingredients are a part of nature. Don’t independent Wizards have the right to use them?’

A dangerous light flashed in Sean’s eyes.

"Everyone... I’m thinking we should pull a big score."

...