The wizard academy where Reg is located is called "Crown of the Night," famous for its dark magic spells and leading research on the Red Moon.
The academy is situated in a place called the Moon Lake Desert. This was once a vast swamp, but over time, changes in the flow of time and the terrain turned it into a place of ever-changing, ominous landscapes, becoming more desolate and rarely visited.
In the desert, there is an area full of jagged rocks, with few poisonous creatures or wild beasts, making it a common path for passing wizards and apprentices.
One day, a group of people drove a carriage through this area, heading deep into the Moon Lake Desert.
On the carriage, a plump man dressed like a merchant was driving a black horse under the scorching sun, staring ahead without blinking, paying no attention to the blinding sunlight.
Next to him was a burly man holding a crossbow, vigilantly watching the surroundings.
Besides them, at the back of the carriage, sat a tall and thin middle-aged man in a black robe. His eyes were vacant, but he occasionally looked around.
These three people were Reg's snake slaves, responsible for driving the carriage, keeping watch, and occasionally chasing away wild beasts, while he comfortably sat in the carriage.
Since acquiring the black triangle tattoo, he abandoned his original plans to return, skipping a series of explorations along the way and heading straight to the Crown of the Night Academy.
Along the way, some "generous" robbers gave him a black horse-drawn carriage, speeding up his journey.
As a result, he soon arrived at the Moon Lake Desert, and unless something unexpected happened, he would reach the academy by the end of today or tomorrow at the latest.
Reg sat in the carriage, holding "Grim's Diary (III)" and occasionally flipping through it.
The diary contains almost encyclopedia-like small events and the ideas of Wizard Grim regarding the Red Moon, all of which could lay the foundation for his future life as a Tier 1 Wizard.
Of course, while studying carefully, he kept in mind that the environment around him was not safe and always kept a part of his mind alert to the changes around him.
The monotonous noise of the carriage, the repeatedly changing strange rock formations, seemed like they would continue forever…
Suddenly, Reg abruptly closed the book and looked ahead through the curtain.
— Amidst the monotonous rhythm, he sensed a subtle, discordant fluctuation!
The black horse had been galloping, but suddenly, a massive, energy-particle-based blood-red mouth opened from the ground.
This blood-red mouth, made up of two jagged halves, closed around the horse's weak abdomen.
In the blink of an eye, the galloping black horse was torn open, its intestines spilling out, emitting a foul stench.
The black horse, following its momentum, ran a little farther before realizing what had happened.
Its eyes turned red, and it kicked out as if about to do something, but an orange beam of light wrapped around a steel arrow, piercing the back of its head and killing it instantly!
Inside the carriage, Reg looked grimly at the black horse and murmured silently:
"Trick—Black Forest Trap, is someone ambushing me?"
"But I've been traveling for a while. Why… Oh, they must think I'm returning with a lot of valuables?"
"No matter what, caution is the best approach!"
He shook his head, not pondering the reason too deeply, his body tensed, alert to the next move of the "enemy."
The surrounding area fell into an eerie silence, with only a slight sound coming from behind the carriage.
On the "blood trail" made by the black horse's fresh blood and entrails, a strange plant seemed to be trembling slightly.
The snake slave at the back of the carriage instantly flashed to the plant's side, grabbing it from the bottom.
It was unexpectedly "fat" beneath the surface.
Reg didn't care much about this peculiar plant but wanted to use the snake slave's action to lure out whoever was ambushing them. After waiting for a while, however, no attack came as he expected.
At the same time, several tricks confirmed that there were no other apprentices around.
He cautiously got off the carriage and glanced at the strange plant.
Just a casual glance made Reg pause.
The plant in the snake slave's hand looked like a person with grass growing on its head!
Reg vaguely had an idea and quickly controlled the snake slave to tighten his grip.
Upon closer inspection, it turned out that the plant's root system had grown in the shape of a person.
This human-shaped, strange grass was quite magical. After being grabbed by the snake slave, it continued to writhe and struggle. The area that looked like a "mouth" emitted sharp shrieks.
Reg realized it was a Mandrake root and felt a surge of joy:
"Mandrake Grass!"
Mandrake grass was no ordinary desert plant but a special magical plant.
This plant had been growing in the Moon Lake Desert for generations, constantly bombarded by high-energy particles, giving it magical characteristics. Any part of it could be used.
In the Crown of the Night Academy, whether it was in the fields of botany, dream magic, or dark magic, Mandrake grass was considered a prime material for magical enhancements.
For this reason, Mandrake grass was expensive and rare. If one could acquire it, how could Reg not be thrilled?
The negative emotions from the "ambush" faded away, and a smile even appeared on Reg's face.
He quickly called the snake slave closer and carefully examined the plant.
Sure enough, it was a Mandrake grass, and it seemed quite old. Its "mouth" had already formed, and it was even emitting a piercing shriek.
If this Mandrake grass continued to grow, its facial features would eventually complete, and it would fully resemble a human, becoming a natural Tier 1 Dream Magic Wizard!
Even now, the Mandrake grass, though not fully matured, was still rare and valuable.
In general, Mandrake grass possessed the characteristics of a plant but had transcended the scope of "plants" due to its magical nature.
It could naturally disguise itself as an ordinary plant, avoiding the searching tricks of apprentices. It could silently move to another location, remaining calm even when faced with prepared apprentices.
Only when it encountered a Tier 1 Wizard who personally came to harvest it would it be truly helpless—after all, what wizard would be so idle to personally harvest Mandrake grass?
As such, Reg had indeed been incredibly lucky.
Had it not been for the trap that had triggered first and then the black horse's fresh blood rousing the Mandrake grass into an active response, he might not have discovered this rare plant hidden right beneath his nose.
"We haven't even reached the academy yet, and here's a good start. Not bad, not bad!"
Reg took the Mandrake grass from the snake slave and admired it more and more.
He couldn't help but happily take out several steel needles, positioning them carefully before inserting them deeply into the "limbs" of the Mandrake grass.
The Mandrake grass immediately stopped moving but continued to emit an extremely shrill scream.
Reg's eyes shifted, and he stuffed a piece of oiled cloth into its mouth, silencing it completely.
Looking at the now "obedient" Mandrake grass, he smiled and nodded:
"Now, that's much cuter!"
"However… about that 'Black Forest Trap,' we still need someone to explain it to us…"
He laughed as if talking to himself, but his ears subtly twitched, picking up the sound of hurried footsteps.