"Since you're so capable, why bother seeking our cooperation? If it weren't for the fact that we still need a mage in some areas, do you really think we'd let you join our team?"
In the face of Fars's threat, Joanna remained unfazed. With a contract in place, as long as he couldn't afford the penalties for breach, she wasn't worried about this vampire abandoning them midway. Moreover, in her eyes, Fars was as pragmatic as they come; if there was an opportunity to gain something, he would definitely seize it. Keeping him here, knowing there were treasures hidden in the ruins but unable to access them, would surely leave him dissatisfied. Now, with the possibility of leveraging her and Agno to obtain a portion of the unknown treasure, it was a deal worth making. Joanna believed that a cunning vampire like Fars wouldn't overlook such a chance. However, he wasn't entirely wrong; while there was a contract, it didn't obligate him to follow Joanna and Agno's orders. If Joanna intended to keep Fars in the dark and reveal nothing, he would certainly not take it lying down, at least not when it came to putting in effort.
After some thought, Joanna decided to reveal a few non-critical details to Fars. It wasn't much, and she didn't stop to explain, continuing to walk ahead of the trio as she spoke. "As you can see, there isn't much of value left here. But do you really think this is the true location of the Gonsago ruins?"
"Isn't this where the ruins are supposed to be?" Fars asked, startled. If this wasn't the actual site of the Gonsago ruins, then what were they doing here? Or was there something they absolutely needed hidden away?
Joanna was pleased with Fars's reaction. Few people truly knew the secrets of the Gonsago ruins. Even a thousand years ago, when nothing had happened, the ruins were a closely guarded secret. Apart from the mages who resided here and their benefactors, not many knew about Gonsago, let alone its purpose. The Medici family had gained much insight into the Gonsago ruins thanks to the descendants of some survivors. Unfortunately, they had not been able to maintain the glory of the previous era and had gradually declined. The later generations squandered their family's treasured artifacts and books. Thus, the Medici family was fortunate to acquire detailed information about this place.
The spendthrifts who sold this information had considered exploring the ruins themselves, but it wasn't a big secret within their family. The key issue was that they lacked the strength to venture deep into the Qihar Mountains or to hire experts to take them there. Moreover, their ancestors had left behind a warning against letting future generations enter the Gonsago ruins.
While they lacked the strength, the Medici family, once part of the Miliore Empire's royalty, had long lost their throne but remained one of the oldest and most powerful families in the empire. They had the qualifications to explore these ancient and dangerous mysterious places. If the items described in the records truly existed and were obtained by Joanna and her companions, it would hold immense significance for the entire family. Otherwise, the Medici family wouldn't have sent a mage and a knight to escort several young ladies and gentlemen to "retrieve" something.
"Given that you're such a clever person, albeit a bit greedy and malicious, if you wish to pledge your loyalty to the Medici family, the conditions previously mentioned remain unchanged. We will help you cover up the deaths of Master Perugino and the others, so that the family won't know it was you." With Agno present, Joanna was cautious and refrained from directly asking Fars to pledge loyalty to her. Instead, she encouraged him to align himself with the Medici family, leaving it to fate as to which side Fars would ultimately choose.
"I can guarantee that. While the Medici family isn't an ancient lineage of mages, we have supported several mages, including grand mages who stand with us," Agno chimed in, unwilling to be outdone. What Joanna could offer Fars, he could match. Even though they had to rely on each other now, their long-standing competitive relationship couldn't be easily altered.
The situation had suddenly shifted to trying to win Fars over, which left the vampire feeling quite out of sorts. One moment they were threatening him, and the next they were attempting to recruit him. Fars certainly wouldn't trust them completely; he felt he was less important than a mage and feared that if he went with them, he might end up in the Miliore Empire as a scapegoat for Joanna and Agno, bearing the blame for the mage's death. Fars wasn't foolish enough to believe the words of these nobles, who changed their tune faster than turning a page.
"Don't expect me to walk alongside you. The facts are clear; I have enough self-awareness to know that the death of a mage cannot be repaid without blood. Since it has happened, I've considered how to proceed. And if this isn't the true location of the Gonsago ruins, then why are we still here, wandering around this empty magical tower?" Fars bluntly rejected their overtures, but he still sought answers to his questions and wouldn't be easily swayed by their vague promises.
Realizing she couldn't deceive this cunning vampire, Joanna had no choice but to explain. "The Gonsago ruins are located beneath this area, deep underground. Everything above is merely a facade, and it also serves as the entrance to the ruins. There are multiple entrances to the depths; there should be one in the castle, but the information our family has doesn't specify its exact location, so finding it will be quite a task. The magical tower we're in now is also an entrance, or rather, every magical tower has one. This tower is simply the safest option, which is why I chose it as our first place to explore."
"Do you know where this entrance is?" Fars, who had been curious countless times before, was determined to extract some genuinely useful information. Not wanting to miss the opportunity while Joanna was still in a decent mood, he pressed on with his questions.
"Above us. As for the exact location, don't ask me; I don't know. Keep your eyes peeled for anything that looks like a secret passage or a teleportation array, and that should be it. However, according to analyses from several masters in our family, the entrance in the magical tower is likely a teleportation array that can directly transport people to the ruins below. The teleportation array in the tower isn't built solely for the tower's owner; any mage here can use it, so it won't be located in the core area of the highest tower." Joanna, feeling somewhat annoyed by Fars's relentless questioning, dropped a few remarks and ignored the vampire, who seemed to be deep in thought.
Fars finally began to piece things together. So, the ruins were underground, and this place had not been meant for public access. In other words, the research or creations here were taboo, not to be known by outsiders, and certainly not to be flaunted. This also explained why Joanna and Agno had agreed to cooperate with him; if there was a teleportation array, they would need someone to activate it. While these two might not lack magical cores or crystals, as non-mages, they couldn't do anything with the teleportation array. It wasn't as simple as tearing open a scroll; each teleportation array corresponded to a specific incantation, which was tied to the mechanics and location of the array. Without magical power, they couldn't recite the incantation needed to activate it. Fars's necessity became evident; after all, in such a sparsely populated area, finding another mage with enough power to activate a nearby teleportation array would require at least a high-level mage. The distinction of high-level mages lay in their significant leap in power compared to mid-level mages, thanks to their understanding of the laws of magic.
"So, once we find the teleportation array, I will be the one to activate it, right?"
Joanna, uninterested in continuing this conversation with Fars, had no intention of indulging his rhetorical question. Agno, who had been sulking, looked as if everyone owed him a hundred gold coins and didn't bother to engage with Fars either. Fortunately, the three of them had developed a certain understanding, and Fars wouldn't take their silence to heart. They continued their ascent up the magical tower.
The tower stood sixty meters tall, with eight floors, averaging over seven meters in height per floor, giving it a grand and spacious feel. However, not every floor was as open as the ground level. Starting from the third floor, Fars, Joanna, and Agno split up to search each room for any engraved magical arrays. As for whether they were teleportation arrays, Fars, being a mage, should be able to identify them, and Joanna and Agno had come prepared, so they certainly wouldn't raise alarms over something that wasn't a teleportation array.
The third and fourth floors were likely where apprentices lived and conducted experiments. Most of the rooms resembled bedrooms, and what remained were decent wooden beds and chairs. While mage apprentices were considered quite prestigious in the eyes of the world, within a magical tower, they were merely servants. The tower's owner or the resident mages wouldn't regard non-heir apprentices highly and certainly wouldn't provide them with comfortable living conditions. Fars had spent two years as a mage apprentice, working hard to please his mentor—a rather ordinary high-level mage, who now seemed quite common in Fars's eyes. After enduring two years of servitude, he was eager to leave and returned to the Derong family as their second young master. Resigning was different from graduating; resignation meant leaving the apprentice status to venture out on his own. If he returned home, it could also be considered a form of resignation. Graduation, on the other hand, indicated that the mentor had sufficient confidence in the apprentice's abilities to stand on their own, and that there was little more to teach. Involving deeper issues of magical laws would depend on personal comprehension and opportunity. Venturing out for experience could yield better results.
The apprentices' living quarters in the tower felt oddly familiar to Fars. They were so monotonous, with a small space of about ten square meters filled with a two-meter-long, one-meter-wide wooden bed, making it feel cramped. A mage, especially a newly initiated apprentice, couldn't do without a wooden desk and chair for studying, and of course, a small bookshelf filled the room to the brim.
The apprentices' quarters clearly lacked any significant value for deeper exploration, but perhaps due to a subconscious sense of nostalgia, Fars searched every small room, rifling through places where apprentices were known to hide things, hoping to find any remnants. It was likely that everything had been taken when they evacuated, leaving only the uniformly arranged tables, chairs, and beds.
However, it wasn't entirely fruitless. Fars did uncover a few items in the hidden compartments of some tables, including a diary—an intact diary—and a few scraps of materials. For an apprentice, those scraps might have been quite precious.
The most significant discovery was likely the diary. Fars was curious about its material, which seemed impervious to decay after millennia. If it weren't for some magical enhancement, how could it remain intact after so much time? He hadn't yet had the chance to delve into its contents when he heard Agno calling from the staircase.
Suppressing his curiosity for the moment, Fars hurried over, and Joanna, having heard Agno's shout, followed suit. Of course, Agno wasn't in danger; he had been fortunate enough to locate their primary objective—the teleportation array that would take them down below.