Badge in Azure

Chapter 238: A Second Contract (Part 1)

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

For the past few days when Daniel had been on the sixth story of the magic tower, he had not only been training, but also thinking about his relationship with Saleen.

In terms of offensive abilities, a grade-3 death mage was similar to that of a grade-4 elemental mage. Especially since Daniel had a winged skeleton, he did not believe that Saleen was any stronger than him.

Even a follower had their own pride. Daniel did not want to be bossed around by Saleen. So, the best solution would be for Daniel to quickly boost his abilities and advance to grade-4, so that even if Saleen advanced to grade-5 at the same time, they would still both be grand mages. By then, the advantages of a death mage would be more pronounced.

The rules of the contract were that Daniel could not harm Saleen and could not betray Saleen no matter what methods were used. However, so long as Daniel’s powers were strong enough, Saleen would also not be able to force him to do any unreasonable tasks.

Daniel continued studying the ghost fog monster which had been torn apart by Nailisi since he wanted to analyze it and find out which death creatures were being hidden on this island. When he finally thought of the death mage who had once stayed on this island, Daniel had then harbored the intentions of subduing the death creature all by himself.

Even though Saleen had tried to destroy the balance on the island, Daniel was not worried at all and had simply played along. In reality, Daniel was well aware that such a method would have to be repeated consecutively for about a month before the seals could be loosened and all the ghost fog monsters on this island would be killed. It was just that he had not expected Saleen, an elemental mage, to figure out that important death creatures were on this island.

Furthermore, Saleen’s attitude had caused Daniel to be aghast as Daniel had thought that he was very important to Saleen. Unexpectedly, Saleen had not hesitated and had not given Daniel any face. He had simply acted to discuss the issue of respect with Daniel right away.

Saleen ignored the look on Daniel’s face, before saying slowly, “We, the people of Sikeqinya, only trust contracts. We don’t believe in anything else. By signing a contract with you, I am giving you my utmost respect already. Have you decided? Lex has been waiting outside for a long time. She will be impatient.”

If Daniel had still been in Tanggulasi, he would have scoffed at Saleen’s attitude, but his many years of being on the run had taught him many principles. Even if one was a death mage, they were not a big deal. Without a backer, it was simply too difficult for a mage to live a life of freedom.

Daniel’s assets had been confiscated. Half of them had gone to the Tanggulasi royal family while the other half had gone to the Holy See. His family members and servants had either been killed, captured, imprisoned, or banished. Everything Daniel had owned had disappeared into thin air, and the only thing left was his winged skeleton.

Now that Saleen had told Daniel that he was going to take away his winged skeleton, Daniel no longer harbored the thought of rebelling against Saleen.

Saleen was right. This was just a transaction, whether or not it was fair was entirely up to Daniel himself. If Daniel felt that it was unfair, then he should not have signed the contract. Since he had chosen to sign the contract, then he should not lament that Saleen had tempted him.

When one had no way of revolting, choosing to obey was not a very difficult thing to do. Most of the time, people resisted strongly because they had not yet grown accustomed to a life of obedience. For such matters, it was very easy for a second time to occur as long as there was a first.

When Saleen noticed that the bit of determination in Daniel’s eyes was slowly diminishing, he sighed in his heart. However, Saleen was not Lex. Lex’s ambitions were great while his were tiny. Saleen only wanted a group of people to work for him and Lex. He had given Daniel a chance to become his friend, but Daniel had not cherished that opportunity.

Daniel had repeatedly tried to deceive and hide things from Saleen. Saleen was not angry, as those were simply the instincts of a human. Since Daniel had chosen this path, Saleen could no longer regard him as a friend whom he could forgo his interests for.

Saleen had been fine with giving Aini a complete piece of black crystal while he had wanted Daniel to sign an unfair contract in exchange for that black crystal. This was because Aini had chosen to befriend Saleen and had not tried to deceive him. For a person like Aini, that was a rare event. Sometimes, one did not become friends with another person because they were good people, but because there was an intriguing affinity between the both of them.

Aini was definitely not a very good person. He could even be described as ruthless. But he had never done any harm to Saleen, ever. When the two of them had met, they had both been in dire situations, and perhaps that was fate. If Aini and Saleen had met with different timing, perhaps the two of them would have become sworn enemies by now.

In comparison, Daniel was a more peaceful person. It was just that he was a little selfish. On the contrary, it was a person like Daniel who could not become Saleen’s confidante. There were even many conflicts between them.

Daniel never tried to harm anyone. When he was unfairly treated, he did not exact revenge using his death magic. Instead, he had escaped from Tanggulasi in hopes of starting his life anew. Otherwise, had he laid low in the Tanggulasi Empire, he would have been able to slaughter the many noblemen and their underlings using his death magic.

All these events would have fulfilled a mage’s criteria for revenge, but Daniel had not done those things.

“This death creature… is extremely powerful. This is the first time I have seen an entire ghost fog island being used to seal a creature, so it must be a grade-8 death creature at minimum. Actually, this death creature should have returned to the death dimension after the death mage’s death, but it remained here because it is too powerful, so it is not able to pass through the narrow plane coordinates.”

“Then why do you want the winged skeleton to absorb the ghost fog? What benefits will the winged skeleton obtain?”

“There are no benefits. If that death creature is subdued, it will be worthwhile even if the winged skeleton cannot advance any further.”

“You have failed as a mage.” This time around, Saleen spoke in a very strict tone. It even sounded like an admonition. A person needed to treat their first contract creature like a friend by having it grow continuously. If Nailisi requested anything, Saleen would definitely exhaust all potential options in order to obtain it for her.

Saleen could also feel that Nailisi would definitely be the first person to rush forward and protect him should there be any danger, even though she hid various secrets and tried to create trouble for him. During the battle with the black deacon, Nailisi had risked her life by going forward to distract all the evil spirits who were assaulting Saleen. For a demon, that was truly commendable.

“I am unlike you. You received many opportunities and a great inheritance. On the other hand, did not really care about me,” Daniel said sadly.

“Daniel, your teacher doesn’t owe you anything.” Saleen’s disappointment towards Daniel welled up in his heart. He had never expected a mage to complain about their own teacher. To Saleen, his teacher was his father and someone who he could depend on.

“Saleen, you have everything, of course you would say that. But I have nothing now,” Daniel rebutted angrily, his face flushed.

“Is that the case? Perhaps you are right, so go ahead and use the winged skeleton to absorb the ghost fog. As for this death creature, I will help you capture it, but you will need to sign a second contract.”

“A second contract?”

“I want your winged skeleton. Since you don’t need it, you can give it to me.”

“What do you want it for?”

“Don’t forget, I have a friend who is also a death mage,” Saleen replied with a smile. All of a sudden, Saleen had straightened out his thoughts. Since Daniel could not be his friend, then why did he need to be frustrated over Daniel’s mistakes? No matter how Daniel thought or lived, it was entirely his own business.

Now, Daniel was hesitant. If the winged skeleton was groomed and reared properly, it would grow into a powerful death creature someday. On the other hand, he could simply capture the death creature on this island and command it. The winged skeleton’s offensive ability was only at level-5, whereas that of the death creature might be at level-8.

It would not be very challenging to recover its suppressed offensive abilities. Daniel would only need to spend several years grooming his new contract creature to turn it into a powerful spirit. But as for the winged skeleton, it would require about twenty to thirty years of grooming. It would not be a big deal even if the winged skeleton was given to Saleen. Anyway, after the ghost fog was absorbed, the winged skeleton would advance to grade-6, but it would be difficult for it to advance anymore.

“I accept your deal.” Daniel stopped hesitating.

“Mm, then I will draft the contract now.” Saleen took out a blank scroll and began writing the contract. This time around, he did not leave any opportunities for Daniel. As long as Daniel managed to acquire a second contract creature, the winged skeleton would immediately become Saleen’s.

Daniel went through the contents of the contract, then signed it and left his soul imprint. This contract could not be repudiated. As long as he captured a second death creature, the winged skeleton would no longer belong to him.

Saleen sneered in his heart since Daniel was an easy target to plot against. To be Saleen’s match, Daniel would need to possess much more knowledge than he had before. The moment the winged skeleton left Daniel, it would no longer obtain the power from the death flames and would be cut off from the death dimension. It would already be good if the winged skeleton did not die, not to mention advance.

Suddenly, Daniel’s face went pale. He felt an indignant roar of fury from the winged skeleton inside the death flames. The winged skeleton was not a normal death creature. It possessed intelligence, and had grown loyal towards Daniel. Ever since it had been banished to the death dimension by Saleen’s divine spell, the winged skeleton had been keeping guard beside the coordinates of the death dimension as it waited for Daniel’s summoning. Otherwise, Daniel could not have been so lucky as to be able to summon the winged skeleton back onto the Myers Mainland.

“Okay, Daniel, can we begin?”

“Okay, let’s go to the sixth story.” Daniel seemed to have been ready a long time ago. Saleen knocked on the broken door and signaled for the others to enter the magic tower while he and Daniel made their way up to the highest story.

The magic array on the sixth story had been redrawn by Daniel, as there were layers of clear and legible magic lines. Daniel stood in the middle of the magic array as the death flames were released behind him. The winged skeleton soared into the air and pasted itself against the ceiling, giving out a shrill howl. The red glow in its eyes began fading away until they finally became an utter black.

Saleen retreated to the stairway and watched calmly as Daniel cast his magic. Daniel pointed to the ghost fog outside the window, and commanded the winged skeleton, “Go, go and absorb the power from the spirits of the dead, and open the seal!”

The winged skeleton cried out, and its pair of bone wings repeatedly struck the ceiling of the magic tower, giving out a thunderous noise. The winged skeleton was intelligent, so it knew the significance of the contract. It was indignant that it was going to be abandoned by Daniel just like that.