"I told you, Ethan! This plant is so precious!"
Mason was so delighted that he forgot that he was in a library. Of course, all libraries have got one typical rule: every visitor must be quiet at all costs. "Do you forget that you are in a library?" After staring at Mason for a while, Ethan asked with furrowed brows. Hearing what Ethan just said, it was as if his reminder was a mouth-shutting spell. Mason froze, as well as his mouth being shut. "Ah shit, I was just too excited," Mason said. "So, how huge is the strength we are talking about?" Ethan asked as he tried to study what was on the page. Mason hesitated a bit. "I don't really know... I can just read further since everything about the elixir is written here." Ethan nodded. "I'll just hang around then." They both agreed and Ethan left that spot. He walked around the first floor library, looking for books associated with The Changed but found no one. There were over a thousand books as said by the librarian on the first floor, and surprisingly, no book about The Changed was among them. Not even one. Ethan cast a suspicious look around. "Is this why we aren't allowed to enter the second floor?" Ethan wondered in a mutter. He guessed that these books would be hidden on the second floor. "It must be there." Ethan had full belief. He knew they might be hiding some things from the Adepts. The academy's library had three floors. Both 1st and 2nd Year Adepts are only licensed for the first floor which was located in the lowest floor of the library building. Actually, the library building was a two-story structure. The extreme top was the third floor while the mid section was the second floor. No one could be allowed to enter the second and third floors due to the miseries hidden within them. Only the high-ranked Professionals who had a breakthrough to at least the third higher stages in their Profession ranks could visit the academy library to study some information. However, the third floor was barely visited. The Albany government only made this place accessible mainly to its officials. A magical army group called The Legion. Stuck on the first floor, it was certain that Ethan wasn't going to see any book written about The Changed. Realizing this, Ethan frowned. Ethan tried to sneak into the second floor, but unfortunately, the entrance was fiercely locked. Not with the usual padlocks used in various homes, it was a magic entity that looked like lightning strings. If one tried to trespass, they might get struck... Ethan had no choice but to back out, not wanting to get struck by lightning. He knew how unfriendly the effect of a lightning strike was, much less that of a Magus-level Arcanist like the librarian. "I don't want to die..." Ethan turned to walk away. Although he was deeply furious and displeased, what would a weak inferior Adept like himself do? He shuffled frustratedly down the staircase that led to the entrance of the second floor slowly and calmly, retreating. And just as he continued stepping down, he heard a slight thud upwards. Ethan fearfully glanced up, wondering what source the sound would have came from. However, when his gaze met the ceiling area, his eyes widened in shock. Ethan saw an ironic platform that looked like a small entrance. It was more like an escape hole seen in most houses, but due to being structured upwards, calling it a hole didn't best described it. 'This must be an unknown entrance into the second floor. I must go through it.' Luckily, this entrance wasn't locked by lightning strings. By looking at it, Ethan didn't seem to notice anything that could hinder his entry. There were two handles at the surface of the ironic structure, so he should be able to push and get rid of the little cyclical door. Ethan could undergo this procession if the barricades around the stairs added to his height, so he was fine. After successfully doing these measures, he was able to open the iron circle, and he managed to enter the second floor. "Phew... Amazing," Ethan commented, his anger and disappointment suddenly replaced by delightful actions. He didn't waste a second before closing the circle entrance so he wouldn't be caught. And after doing that, Ethan began to explore the second floor library. Unlike the first floor, the books here weren't really much as many were just history books. However, the size of the books here was really massive, even though there were only a few of them. Ethan aimed to get a book telling about the entire aspect and history of both the great Terrain Seizure that befell the universe years ago, and the aspects of humanity's major adversaries, The Changed. Although it was a stressful search, he finally found a book titled "Albany Before and After the Apocalypse". Quickly, he grabbed the book, moved to a convenient area, sat down, and started reading. The first thing he came across was the universe undergoing evolution. Of course, everyone knew that that was the cause of the apocalypse, but no one really knew how large the apocalypse affected the universe. Ignoring that part, Ethan came across a page that revealed the secret behind the continuous increase of The Changed. People would always say that The Changed couldn't reproduce, yet there would be reports of population increase in their kin. Ethan had been wanting to know about this, and now that he had the chance, he was quite happy. "Good thing I'm here. I hope I find how it's possible to get transmigrated into a novel. If I don't get an explanation, I wouldn't hesitate to meet Martin." "He must tell me what I need to know." Ethan mumbled. He tried to concentrate on reading the pages about the increase in population of The Changed. He spent more than two hours reading these pages and even forgot that he had come with Mason to the library. Actually, Mason should have been looking for him by now, but unfortunately, Ethan Nox was deeply engrossed in the book he was reading. He was utterly heedless. He continued reading until it was about four hours being spent. Although he didn't stop deliberately, something made him stop. Ethan heard a sound in the second floor's main door. If anyone heard this sound, they would surely notice that someone was coming in. Ethan's heart almost skipped. It must be the librarian. Perhaps, they must have been looking for him because Ethan knew really well that Mason would have gathered all the ideas on making the Sapling's Strength Serum. With a rush, Ethan returned the book to its usual position and found his way to hide. He heard the door open, and two figures entered. Judging by their voice, he noticed that they were both adults. Well, it was until he heard them speak that he knew he was in big trouble. "Welcome Principal Bernard, this way leads to the third floor."There were four lengthy ranges of tall shelves lined in the vast room, the books shrouding every space. Out of these four, Ethan hid behind one, the second one. There was a lengthy space that looked like an aisle by every shelf's compartment. But out of all, Ethan's hiding spot came to be the widest aisle. What's worse? Ethan sighted a door from the near distance... He was taken aback. He just heard the librarian speaking to the principal about the third floor. Glancing around, Ethan didn't seem to notice any other entrance unit in any part of the room, making it clear that this was the path they would take upon going to the third floor. The entrance was just a tiny distance away from his hiding spot. *Thud. Thud. Thud.* Soon, Ethan heard bold footsteps approaching his direction, well, he didn't hesitate before finding a way to get himself outta there. If he got caught by any chance, he would be fiercely punished. Ethan made a promise to himself... "No matter what happens, I
Ethan and Mason ran out of the second floor and out of the library building. Although they knew that they were in trouble, they just didn't want to be caught red-handed by the principal. At least, maybe they could spend some time preparing for their greatest nightmare in their dorm room before being summoned.Mason had this urge to cry. He had just returned from the Woodlands a few hours ago, and now he just got himself into trouble again."I can't believe I would be going to the Woodlands again," Mason said, his face painted with a dismal hue. For a moment, Ethan was silent while staring down at the concrete floors. He was lost in thoughts, imagining what version of "hell" the Woodlands would be. Many who had journeyed into the Woodlands have had different yet complicated experiences. Generally, it was known that only strong and smart individuals could enjoy the good side of the Woodlands. For people like Ethan who couldn't even learn simple martial arts for self-defense, his succ
Martin's face had a sad picture as he stared down to the ground, deeply ashamed. He couldn't even dare to raise his head to look at his fellow offenders... His acts were giving something far from boldness. "Hey! Keep working," one of the disciplinary officers shouted after noticing that Ethan's pace had lessened. Ethan was lost in looking at Martin's sorry ass and how he acted. Martin was someone with low self-esteem and wasn't bold, and this did much to make him a silent, bullying figure. Even by looking at his face, one could notice slight bruises due to assaults from stronger students. A part of Ethan was deeply sorry for him, but...'I hate him because I'm going to suffer his miseries in double fold.'Ethan mused inwardly and hastened his steps forward. Martin was later taken to join them as they progressed to the principal office. When they got to Principal Bernard's office building, he came out from his inner chamber and met them in the office compound space.As usual, his f
At first, Ethan felt a ringing sound in his head, his brows furrowing in confusion.'Extract what?' This was the second question he asked after the Sidekick Assistant System sounded in his head. Ethan slowly switched his gaze below and attempted to take a look at the hard substance he had just stepped on. Just as his gaze landed on the substance, he shrugged. 'Is this the remains of the Giant Monkey Beast?' He was pointlessly asking himself this question inwardly when the system voiced again in his head. [Yes, host. There are bones, almost rotten flesh, and meats in it. Extract the Valuables to gain more Mana Points].Hearing this, Ethan could not help but broaden his eyes. He wasn't only shocked by how one could extract Valuables from the bones and meats of a dead beast, the fact that he could gain Mana Points made him stunned. The Giant Monkey Beast was a very large beast that seemed to be exactly the size of an old gorilla. Although most parts of its body were already rotten,
Spirit Beasts are ranked Inferior Leveled, Superior Leveled, and Brutal Leveled. This brought a system of separation for the mysterious creatures, dividing the weakest from the strongest. The strongest Spirit Beasts were able to kill and devour weaker beasts, and this was why weak beasts like the Giant Monkey Beast resided around the entrance area of the Woodlands. If they go much further into the Woodlands, they will get devoured by stronger Spirit Beasts. The corpse of the Giant Monkey Beast showed a clear explanation of the merciless devouring of a stronger Spirit Beast. It was torn by the razor-sharp claws of a seemingly Superior Leveled Beast. As Brutal Leveled Beasts wouldn't even live anywhere around a hundred kilometers from the entrance of the Woodlands, one wouldn't suspect any attack from them around. They were extremely terrific, only Enchanter-level Arcanists or above could dare to intrude on their territory, and even if they did, they must be prepared as if they were
After hearing what the system said, Ethan could only let out a small, raging statement. 'Shut up, system!'They were just attacked by a Giant Humanoid Mantis from nowhere and were extremely left in shock. Now, the system said he should kill and extract the Valuables?Ethan's face almost reddened.At least, he expected the system to bring out a safe technique or idea of escape, but it was proudly urging him to kill the Spirit Beast.'A mere Adept-level Arcanists like me??? Impossible!'If anyone were to be in his shoes, almost all would see this as insanity. Which system would want its host to endanger himself when it knew that its host is a weak figure who hasn't even learned typical martial arts, much less magic?But...The Sidekick Assistant System wasn't wholely a fool. It knew what it was doing, which Ethan didn't actually understand at first. [You four can unite to kill the Giant Humanoid Mantis, and after it dies, you can go ahead and extract the Valuables].'Ohh... I get it.'
Jeff, Mason, and Martin who had almost freaked out when Ethan charged at the Giant Humanoid Mantis later cast complicated gazes at him, undoubtedly dumbfounded. They watched the head of the giant mantis fall to the red mud, green foamy blood rushing out of its neck, their eyes widening to the very limit. "E... Ethan, how come... How come you dared to decapitate the beast by yourself?" Mason stared at Ethan and asked, his eyes emitting glows of curiousness. "What do you mean? Is anything bad with me killing the beast?" Ethan furrowed his brows and stole glances at the three of them, pretending as if he didn't really understand Mason's point there. They had known Ethan since he arrived at the Aetherum Arcanum Academy. Even if he saw a dead beast, he would hesitate severally before daring to go close. They also noticed how nervous he was when the beast first appeared, and now he had the guts to kill the beast?It was quite complicated. "I noticed it was really exhausted, so I decide
"Bitter piece of shit!" A young man with pale skin and raven short hair who seemed to be around sixteen to eighteen years old almost freaked out as he stared at his smartphone screen, utterly angered and disappointed."Why did the author always have a reason to make him suffer?""Why?" He queried, still staring at his smartphone with a fierce scowl.It had been four months since Jason started reading a particular web novel: Saga of Albany. This web novel was serialized on one of the best platforms in the globe, however, with every passing chapter, there was always a reason to make the MC suffer...Although it was a very wonderful novel with great potential, the world-building and character development was outstanding. The only thing that wrenched Jason's gut was this usual problem that the main character would get himself into. Jason usually read "Saga of Albany" every day on either his way to work or when coming back. As a young chap who had lost his parents when he was eight, lef