Ivan was convinced that perhaps not many magicians could do as well as he did. The meditation method recorded on the parchment had only slight differences from the previous one he knew. In fact, it was exactly the case. This kind of meditation was originally just used to gather wind elements and was not an extremely advanced magical meditation to begin with.
For Ivan, the truly difficult part was the three long incantations. All the incantations were recorded in five special characters called "divine scripts". On the parchment that Teacher Lavash left him as a magic enlightenment textbook, two relatively common "divine scripts" were recorded. During this past week, apart from mastering the meditation method, his main task was to learn these "divine scripts".
Those "divine scripts" were quite difficult to learn. They were different from any of the languages prevalent in the world that Ivan knew. There were as many as 325 letters in total when combining the two kinds of "divine scripts". What gave Ivan the biggest headache was that each letter of these "divine scripts" had five or six completely different pronunciations with no rules at all. How these "divine scripts" should be pronounced depended entirely on the combination of the letters, and again, there was no pattern to this either.
In just one week, Ivan's mastery of this mysterious language was still extremely limited. Holding that piece of parchment, Ivan could only summon up his courage and rack his brains to try to interpret it. Fortunately, the uses and casting methods of the three kinds of magic were clearly recorded on the parchment. That magic wand was like a special launching device, just like the crossbow he liked to use the most. However, what the magic wand launched was not crossbow bolts but liquid.
This magic wand could gather wind elements and launch the liquid in three ways. The first kind of magic could turn the liquid absorbed by the magic wand into a mist that would disperse within a radius of ten meters in front of him. The second kind of magic would condense the liquid into a droplet and launch it to a place two or three hundred meters away wrapped in wind elements. That was much better than a crossbow bolt.
What made Ivan even happier was that this magic was almost always on target. There was no need to aim at all, and the liquid could definitely hit the position where you needed it to hit. As for the third kind of magic, it was simply a combination of the first and the second. It could also push the droplet to a place two or three hundred meters away and then turn it into a mist with a radius of ten meters in the air.
Of course, correspondingly, the length of the incantation for the third kind of magic was close to the sum of the lengths of the incantations for the first two kinds.
Since he knew the steps of casting spells and had the magic incantations in hand, the only thing left to do next was to experiment, again and again, until he found the correct pronunciation of the "divine scripts". Although Ivan didn't know where to start with these long incantations, he still had some clever ideas. There were some combinations in the three incantations that looked familiar, as if he had seen them elsewhere.
Ivan remembered that he had learned a few simple incantations before. Beside those "divine script" incantations, Teacher Lavash had marked the pronunciations in the language of Francis. So Ivan knew how to read them.
Then all he needed to do next was to figure out the remaining combinations of the "divine scripts". Ivan didn't understand why the teacher didn't simply record the pronunciations beside these three incantations.
Was it that the teacher wanted him to practice finding the tricks in the combinations of the "divine scripts"? It seemed that this was the only explanation.
During the following period of time, Ivan spent all of it on studying magic. Of course, he would never use the precious and dangerous hallucinogenic powder as a consumable for his magic experiments. Anyway, there was a kind of liquid called "water" everywhere in this world.
Ivan's magic experiments went fairly smoothly. When he felt extremely tired and couldn't concentrate his mind no matter what, he finally found the correct pronunciation of one of the magic incantations. Ivan knew that he had reached his magic limit. It would be impossible for him to cast any magic for at least three or four hours.
It seemed that these three kinds of magic consumed much more magic power than the floating magic that the teacher had taught him at first. However, since he knew the pronunciation of one incantation, he could roughly guess the other two. These three kinds of magic were closely related to each other, and they had common magical characteristics.
Ivan felt that he had somewhat grasped the pattern among them. Thinking of this, he suddenly realized that it was already quite late. They had set out early in the morning. He had ridden his horse very fast and arrived here in just two hours. It was impossible for Mr. Juan and the others to be this fast. He remembered that the first time he came to Piton with Mr. Audrey in a carriage, it took half a day. They should be arriving here soon.
Thinking of this, Ivan quickly inserted the magic wand and the roll of parchment into the pocket on the right side of his clothes. The only thing he needed to do now was to write on the mirror the things he wanted to tell Teacher Lavash. Ivan took out the magic potion he had carefully prepared from the side pocket of the saddle and then went back to the laboratory. He really had too many things to tell his teacher.
Ivan wrote in detail on the mirror about everything that had happened recently. Maybe the teacher would come back to help him when he knew all this. However, Ivan wasn't sure about that.
After writing on the mirror, Ivan walked out of the laboratory, mounted his horse and galloped towards Baron Lipper's forest villa in the distance.
Although he couldn't use that kind of magic for the moment, for this purebred horse, Ivan's weight was hardly a burden. As it trotted along the forest path, its steps were still so light and graceful.
Before long, he arrived at Baron Lipper's villa.
Unexpectedly, the door of the villa was tightly closed, and only a few servants were picking fruits and vegetables in the farmland.
"Mr. Juan, you're Mr. Juan. Our young lady has been missing you all the time. Why didn't you come? You've really worried our young lady," an old man in the farmland stood up. After wiping his hands clean on the apron around his body, he walked towards Ivan respectfully.
Ivan recognized that the man was the butler of Baron Lipper's family. He asked politely, "Butler, I'm here to visit Baron Lipper with my grandfather and uncle. Is the baron not in?"
"Oh, what a pity. Yesterday, our master took his wife and daughter to Luxembourg. I heard that the last heir of the lord was also murdered, and this time it was a blatant and bloody massacre. Alas, what's going on in this world? The master and his family rushed to Luxembourg to attend the memorial service," the butler said.
"Yesterday? Then it seems we've missed it." Ivan didn't feel any regret about it, though.
"Yes, what a pity. If you could have traveled with us, our young lady would have been very happy," the butler muttered.
"Thank you, Butler. I have to go now. My grandfather is waiting for me. Anyway, we'll be able to see Miss Fanny when we get to Luxembourg. Goodbye, Butler." With that, Ivan turned his horse around and galloped back along the way he had come.
"What a nice young man. If he could be paired with our young lady, what a perfect couple they would make," the butler murmured to himself.
"Who says not? But, old man, stop daydreaming and get back to picking vegetables. We have to pickle them before dark. In a while, they'll be ruined by the autumn frost," his wife said.
Hearing his wife's words, the butler had to go back to work in the farmland.
After coming out of Baron Lipper's forest villa, Ivan let out a long sigh. He rode his horse slowly towards the intersection.
For him, the only thing he needed to do now was to wait for Mr. Juan's carriage to arrive.
Ivan never regarded patient waiting as a waste of time.
For a magician, meditation practice could be carried out at any time. Moreover, he had just used up the little magic power he had in order to experiment with the new magic and was in urgent need of recovering it through meditation.
Ivan stood quietly by the roadside, like a motionless statue.
The wind blew gently through the thick forest, shaking the sturdy and tall trees and making a "rustling" sound.
The continuous "rustling" sounds converged into a wave-like sound, which was like the "huge waves" made of leaves beating against the "reefs" formed by branches.
Standing there quietly, Ivan seemed to be able to hear sounds from very far away. It was the information brought to him by the wind.
This feeling was really wonderful.
Teacher Lavash should have told him earlier that meditating in the embrace of nature was so unique.
Deep in the thick Bart Forest, on the thoroughfare leading to Luxembourg that was completely hidden by the branches and leaves of the trees and couldn't be seen at all, an ordinary traveling merchant's carriage was moving slowly. The road was really difficult to travel on.
Ten meters in front of and behind this carriage, two middle-aged men were riding horses and following it. Judging from their solemn expressions, it was obvious that this desolate and uninhabited path made them rather uneasy.
Suddenly, the carriage stopped.
An old man with a grizzled beard walked out of the carriage. The old man was dressed in a blue-gray casual suit, wearing a dark blue waistcoat, a crimson soft hat on his head, and a pair of copper-wire wide-rimmed glasses on his nose.
Seeing this outfit, anyone would take this old man as a senior accountant.
Both the brother and sister sitting in the carriage and the three bodyguards sitting on the front seat were a bit surprised that the old man had ordered the carriage to stop.
At the same time, they also felt an unusually tense atmosphere pervading the surroundings, as if there were something terrifying hidden in the deep and gloomy forest.
The old man slowly walked into a relatively open space deep in the forest. He took two deep breaths, then opened his arms as if he wanted to embrace something, or like a crane about to spread its wings and soar.
The old man's actions made everyone even more nervous.
After a while, the old man put down his arms and walked back slowly.
"Master, have you found anything?" the young master asked.
"For now, I'm not quite sure. There's a magician staying on the road we just passed. For some reason, he triggered the resonance of the wind," the old man said casually.
"Resonance of the wind? What's that? Is it a kind of magic?" the girl standing beside asked curiously.
"No, it's not magic. It's just a magical phenomenon, a rather rare magical phenomenon," the old man replied.
"Does it have any effect?" the girl pressed on.
"It has no effect at all. The resonance of the wind is just a magical phenomenon, not magic. Being able to trigger the resonance of the wind only proves that the magician has grasped the essence of the wind and can freely manipulate the wind element," the old man said.
"Then this magician must be very powerful?" the girl asked persistently.
"Perhaps. Being able to freely manipulate a certain magic element is not something that any magician can do," the old man answered.
"Master, what should we do?" the young master asked.
"Keep going. I don't have any bad premonitions. I was just curious for a moment just now. There was no hostility in that burst of magic fluctuations. It wasn't aimed at us. Moreover, I don't think our enemies would be so stupid as to expose their identities themselves, right?" The old man smiled.
"Do you mean that there's a magician in this forest who doesn't belong to any faction?" the young man asked.
"Yes, it should be like this. Just now, I found that there was a place in the forest that my spiritual power couldn't reach," the old man said.
"You should be able to see what kind of magician is hidden there, right?" the girl asked. Obviously, she was very interested in this.
"There's no need for that. It's a rather dangerous act, Miss. Please remember that we don't welcome other magicians to pry into our actions. That would mean complete hostility. If you don't want to attract unnecessary enemies, you'd better restrain your curiosity," the old man said with a bit of seriousness.
Hearing the old man's words, the girl stuck out her tongue.
"We don't need to create unnecessary trouble. Let's continue on our way," the young master ordered.
The group got back into the carriage and the carriage continued to move forward slowly.
At the other end of the forest, Ivan finally waited for Mr. Juan's carriage.
After telling Mr. Juan that Baron Lipper had set out a day earlier, Ivan tied his horse to the back of the carriage, climbed onto the luggage rack on top of the carriage compartment, and began to meditate on his own.
Now, what he needed most was to savor carefully that strange feeling when he entered the meditation state just now.
This feeling not only brought him strength but also made him seem to become a part of the wind element, dancing with the free wind, skimming over the thick leaves and branches, and feeling everything that the wind spirits could feel.
That feeling was really indescribable.
Accompanied by this strange feeling, Ivan not only found that the magic power in his body was recovering rapidly but also that the three incantations didn't seem so obscure and difficult to understand anymore.
Ivan seemed to understand naturally how those divine scripts should be pronounced.
Those divine scripts were like descriptions of the feelings of the wind spirits. Each word described their joys, sorrows, worries, and troubles. These divine scripts were like conversations with the wind spirits, and everything was so natural.
The cheerful wind spirits taught him how to speak, a natural language that didn't need to be constrained by any grammar, an ancient and mysterious language that had never changed since the world was created.
All of this was full of charm for Ivan, the charm of magic and the charm of nature.
Ivan was completely captivated by this infinite charm.
"What are you doing? Come down quickly. It's quite dangerous. In case there are branches sticking out, you'll fall off the carriage," the coachman Ted said.
For Ivan, who was immersed in the mysterious world, all the words from the mortal world had been blocked out of his ears, so he didn't move at all.
"Come down quickly. It's too dangerous," Ted raised his voice.
"Ted, just let him be. You just need to be careful. Let's continue on our way," Mr. Juan ordered from inside the carriage compartment.
"Yes, master, I understand. Giddy up," Ted drove the carriage carefully.
However, before long, he was completely relieved.
Because although Ivan remained in a meditative state all the time, sitting on the luggage rack, he seemed to be protected by something. Whenever there were branches sticking out, Ivan's body would naturally dodge them. Those strange and eerie dodging movements made it really hard for Ted to regard this guy as an ordinary person.
Those movements were extremely strange. Sometimes, he moved like a spider that could move freely; sometimes, like an earthworm that could bend at will; and sometimes, like a gecko that was flattened extremely. Those movements were unbelievably weird.
Although Ted didn't know what Ivan was up to, he at least knew that there was no need to worry about this strange guy.
The carriage continued to move along the forest path.
The trees in the Bart Forest were quite dense, and the sunlight that penetrated through the layers of branches and projected onto the ground was extremely sparse and dim.
Therefore, there wasn't much light on the thoroughfare to illuminate the road ahead.
As the sun gradually set in the west, it became even more difficult to see the road clearly.
Fortunately, Ted was an excellent coachman, and this was hardly a problem for him. He could even drive safely on this bumpy and rough road at night with just a dim lantern for illumination.
However, there was still one thing he needed to consider.
Where should they stop to rest tonight? Although it was possible to travel overnight, and both Mr. Juan and Audrey were already used to this kind of travel.
However, there was really no need to rush. Ted wasn't interested in doing such a thankless task.
To cross the Bart Forest, it would take at least two days even if they traveled day and night without stopping to rest.
If they didn't rush and traveled at an ordinary speed, it would take one more day.
However, in that case, they would have to find a place to stop and rest.
The Bart Forest was full of trees, and it wasn't easy to find an open space large enough to accommodate the whole carriage.
Fortunately, the traveling merchants who had traveled back and forth on this road for years had already opened up more than a dozen places for rest on both sides of the thoroughfare.
Ted was contemplating where to stop for the night. He remembered that there was a resting place not far ahead, but since it was still early, they could cover some more distance. There was a rather nice stopover about a dozen kilometers further, which had a stream. It would be convenient for boiling water and watering the horses.
Having made up his mind, Ted urged the carriage forward. Although he was certain they'd reach the place before dark, he still hoped to get there earlier. After all, no one liked setting up camp in the dark. Ted knew the road from Avila to Luxembourg like the back of his hand. He was well aware of every ditch, every difficult section, and every turn. Thus, he could calculate the travel speed and the estimated time of arrival with great accuracy.
Just as he had expected, when the sun's afterglow was still shining obliquely on the Bart Forest, the forest rest area came into sight. There were five or six open, treeless clearings scattered over nearly six hectares of land on both sides of the road. A stream flowed slowly not far away, making a pleasant gurgling sound as it rushed along.
Ted drove the carriage towards one of the parking spots. In the distance, he could see another carriage parked there. It seemed to be a group of traveling merchants, a common sight on this road. Judging from the shabby carriage and the goods on it, these merchants didn't seem to have much wealth. Perhaps that's why they only dared to travel with a few guards.
Although there were few bandits along the way from Avila to Luxembourg, it was not so peaceful once they left Luxembourg's territory. Therefore, most traveling merchants would travel in groups and hire dozens of guards. Although it was costly, sharing the expense among several parties wouldn't cost too much.
Only those weak and solitary merchants would take the risk of traveling with just a few attendants. But with not many goods, they weren't afraid of being robbed. Ted estimated the background of these people. Although there was nothing to worry about with these merchants, he knew that Mr. Juan wouldn't like to be disturbed by them. So, Ted chose a parking spot far away from them.
Mr. Juan, Herbert, and Audrey got off their horses. For Audrey, the long nap during the journey had somewhat made up for his lack of sleep. Now, it would be good for him to take a walk and clear his head. As for Ivan, he was still on top of the carriage, continuing his meditation practice. Ted used the brake to fix the carriage wheels and then called the driver of the rear carriage to lead the horses to the stream for water.
In no time, the buckets were filled. Setting up the tent, boiling water, and cooking were all part of Ted's job. It was impossible to ask Audrey, Herbert, and Mr. Juan to do these chores.
The only trouble for Ted was that Ivan was sitting on top of the carriage, with the tent and bedding underneath him. Ted climbed onto the roof and picked up Ivan. To his surprise, Ivan's body was extremely light, as if he had no weight at all. Ted wondered if he could lift the boy with just one finger. "Magic is really incredible," Ted sighed in his heart.
It was no secret to them that Ivan was a magician. Ted had heard about it long ago. He casually placed the boy on a nearby stump and continued with his work. To outsiders, they probably looked like a group of wealthy merchants traveling. The old master was sitting comfortably in a deck chair, enjoying the sunset in the Bart Forest.
Beside him stood his personal bodyguard, with sharp eyes looking around. Audrey, perhaps the tutor or private secretary, didn't seem to be used to this journey and was pacing along the forest path to recover from the fatigue of the trip.
The young master was sitting on a stump, dozing off. Maybe this was his first trip. Two servants were busy getting everything in order. All of this seemed so ordinary. However, the people sitting in the traveling merchant's carriage on the other side of the forest didn't see it that way. "That's the kid we saw just now, and that horse," the young master of the group said.
"The one you said had riding skills as good as yours when we passed by?" his sister asked curiously. Apparently, due to their age, she was definitely not willing to call the rider a kid like her brother did, because they were really about the same age. "What's he doing?" the youngest of the guards asked. "Don't know. Maybe dozing off. The journey has been tiring, and I'm a bit tired too," another guard said.
"He seems to be meditating," the young lady guessed suspiciously. "You're right, Miss. That young man is indeed meditating," the old man's voice came from behind. "It seems that the magic fluctuation I sensed earlier was caused by him." "Is he strong?" the young master asked. He wasn't interested in magic; the only thing he worried about was the other's strength.
"At his age, it's unlikely that he has strong magic power. However, the strength of a magician is not measured by how much magic power they possess. This young man can cause the resonance of the wind, which most magicians who have studied magic all their lives can't do. Therefore, just in terms of talent, this young man is outstanding. In my opinion, his future is limitless," the old man said in a slow and melodious voice.
"A potential huge threat," the leader of the guards muttered to himself. "Brother, should we?" The girl made a slashing motion across her neck, her meaning quite clear. The young master thought for a while and finally shook his head. "There's no need to cause unnecessary trouble." "A correct choice, at least I think so," the old man nodded approvingly. "And we have to get ready. I feel danger is slowly approaching here." "Finally, it's coming," the leader of the guards said, his tone full of determination.
"Hopefully, the ones coming will take care of that trouble," the little girl said, with her eyebrows slightly raised. For those who knew her character well, it was clear that this young lady was plotting something. Ivan, sitting on the stump in meditation, didn't know that someone was plotting against him. Perhaps because of the presence of people or their activities disturbing the peace of nature, the wind sprites, who usually flew freely through the forest, had gradually dispersed. Ivan could no longer sense anything and slowly woke up from his meditation state.
When he fully regained consciousness, a strong smell of roasted meat wafted into his nose. Ivan's stomach growled. He hadn't eaten anything since breakfast and was really hungry now. In the distance, Ted was intently grilling two marinated beef steaks, carefully spreading honey over them again and again. Big drops of grease fell onto the burning fire below, sending up bursts of flame. The blue smoke, carrying the mouthwatering smell, drifted into the air. It was these smells that drove away the wind sprites. Ivan felt even hungrier.
"Are you hungry? Here you are," Audrey's voice came from behind. He was holding a plate in his hand, with shellfish meat smeared with a thick layer of sauce on it. Although this was also delicious food, the smell of the roasted meat was more tempting to Ivan. But he knew very well that the real Ivan Ester never ate meat. That peculiar diet was sometimes a great burden for him.
Knowing that there was no room for change, Ivan had to take the plate and eat silently. However, the rich smell of the roasted meat was still so alluring. Ivan sighed secretly. He endured the temptation and ate up the food in front of him. He was now in the identity of Ivan Ester, so everything had to be exactly the same as the real Ester. Audrey had told him countless times that a person's habits and hobbies were the easiest way for others to accept his identity, but also the easiest way to expose it. In these aspects, there could be no mistakes.
After dinner, as the night grew darker, Ted lit several oil lamps. The dim light of the oil lamps couldn't illuminate everything, but at least it dispelled the spooky feeling brought by the forest at night. Mr. Juan didn't like the smell of smoke and always hoped to breathe the fresh air of the wild during the journey. Therefore, they rarely lit campfires when traveling.
There were few wild animals in the Bart Forest. Over the past few centuries, human footprints had covered this thick forest, driving the wild animals to a few remote areas deep in the forest. It was rare to hear of large animals appearing within dozens of kilometers on both sides of the main road.
The Bart Forest at night was so quiet and peaceful, with only the occasional laughter and chatter from the traveling merchants in the distance.
After resting for a while and digesting the food in his stomach a little, Ivan went back to his tent to rest. His tent was independent and could only fit a sleeping mat. But for a traveler, it was enough. Lying in the bedding, Ivan pondered the astonishing discovery he had made during the day. He had never expected that he could sense the existence of the wind sprites. If only Teacher Lavash were here now, he could ask about this matter clearly.
After waking up from the meditation, Ivan clearly felt that his body was full of magic power, a feeling he had never had before. Ivan didn't know if this miraculous thing would happen again in the future. Maybe, all of this could only happen in the depths of this vast and uninhabited forest. As the night grew darker, the forest was not as quiet as Ivan had imagined. The night was the world of small creatures, filled with the sounds of insects and frogs, and occasionally two clear bird calls streaked across the sky.
The sound of the leaves rubbing against each other and the gurgling of the stream also added infinite vitality to the quiet night. Listening to the waltz played by nature, Ivan fell into a deep sleep. The night was thick, and the moon was rising. For humans, the night belonged to the god of sleep. After some time, Ivan suddenly woke up. He heard an unusual sound outside, which was the sound of someone carefully wading through the water and approaching here.
In the curriculum designed by Herbert, there was a task that required Ivan to be vigilant even when sleeping. Because for a person who lived in a world of swords and shadows all day, the night was often the most dangerous. Deadly daggers or crossbow bolts could appear from the darkness at any time. Therefore, being able to detect abnormal situations outside while sleeping was a skill that every assassin must master.
In fact, almost everyone in Mr. Juan's manor had this ability. In order to acquire this ability, Ivan had suffered a lot. However, Herbert's training was extremely difficult, and by the end of the day, he was exhausted, making it impossible to maintain a vigilant sleep.
But Herbert's education was not in vain. When Ivan had free time and wasn't as tired every day, he found that he could do as well as most people in the manor. Although this was also good, perhaps from now on, sweet and sound sleep would become a beautiful thing in his past memories, just like the warm and cozy life with Aunt Jenny. This extremely warm and comfortable life would never come back.