Chapter 484: Bargaining

The price of breaking a Secret Word Contract was terrifying. So, if one were to sign such a contract, every linguistic trap within it had to be avoided at all costs.

After consulting the diary—whose opinion was, as usual, “no opinion”—Saul decided to join Shaya’s operation.

Julie, seeing Saul agree to the contract, hesitated for a moment before also expressing her willingness to participate.

All in all, the three of them didn’t have strong vested interests tied to Bayton Academy.

Though Julie and Shaya both held honorary mentor titles at Bayton Academy, they weren’t involved in any research projects nor did they rely on the academy for advancement. This allowed them to devote more of their time and energy to working as Cleaners.

And that was precisely the real reason why Shaya had only summoned them.

This was something Saul only realized when he began discussing the contract terms with Shaya.

As for Jonah, who wasn’t present today—

Even though he taught students at the academy, the fact that he didn’t care where he conducted his experiments clearly showed that his research mostly depended on himself and magic crystals.

That’s why Shaya had also planned to invite Jonah today.

Unfortunately, for some unknown reason, Jonah hadn’t shown up.

The group spent some time finalizing the terms of the contract.

There had to be restrictions, but not so strict that a single misstep would violate the contract.

Once the terms were set, the three of them signed their names—only then did they start earnestly planning out the details of their search for the source of pollution.

After the preliminary plan was drawn up, Shaya sent the two of them back to his villa. Then, he watched them leave.

Saul left the academy but didn’t return home right away. He wandered the streets for a while before making his way back to Shaya’s villa.

When Shaya opened the door and saw Saul, he wasn’t particularly surprised—just a little exasperated.

“Julie just left, and here you are. I knew you two were interested in that thing, but I really won’t sell it.”

Saul smiled. “I came by now because I figured she’d just left.”

Shaya froze for a moment and then curled his lip. “That’s what I mean—Julie’s too naive. Her movements were easily predicted by a newcomer like you.”

“You could at least hear my offer. Even if you’re not satisfied, I’ll inspect your dream again, free of charge.”

“No need. I’ve got my own way of confirming the wraith is gone.” Though Shaya said this, he still stepped aside and let Saul in.

They stopped in the living room.

“Julie may be average in strength, but she became a True Wizard twenty years before you did, so she does have some good stuff. That said, I became a True Wizard ten years before her, so I wasn’t impressed by anything she offered. But Saul, you’re from the Wizard Tower, and your mentor is a Third Rank wizard now… So I’m curious—what can you offer me in exchange?”

Clearly, the Wizard Tower’s reputation still invoked both caution and envy.

But while Saul was extremely interested in the spatial teleportation formation, he wasn’t about to lose his head over it.

“Before I make an offer, I need to know—did you fully grasp the formula for constructing that spatial teleportation formation? Or are you simply using some kind of magical item to set it up directly at specific locations?”

Hearing that, Shaya’s jaw nearly dropped in shock.

“Sometimes I seriously suspect you’ve placed an eavesdropping spell in my place.” He stepped back a few paces and looked toward the corners of the room. “Or did you leave something behind in my home?”

“Of course not,” Saul said as he subtly curled his finger, recalling the flying Penny back into his mental realm. “Just a logical deduction.”

Shaya wasn’t fully convinced. He still looked around the room.

But naturally, he found nothing.

“Alright, fine. It’s the second one. I obtained a set of enchanted scrolls—one of them has the formation drawn on it. It allows me to deploy a spatial teleportation formation where needed.”

Just as he expected.

The reason Saul suspected this in the first place was because, upon examining the magical formations Shaya had deployed, he realized that Shaya’s innate talent for formations wasn’t particularly impressive.

Back when Saul entered the dream realm, Shaya had tried to control him with a formation, but Saul had full confidence he could’ve broken it easily. With such limited skill, there was no way Shaya had constructed a spatial teleportation formation all on his own.

So Saul guessed that someone—or something—had helped him.

But with Shaya’s personality, he’d never allow anyone else to know about his escape route.

“Alright, now that you know—what do you want to trade for the formation?”

“Unless absolutely necessary, you usually operate alone, don’t you?” Saul suddenly asked something seemingly unrelated.

Shaya blinked, then frowned impatiently. “Of course. I can’t trust that my companions won’t betray me.”

“But acting alone has its inconveniences. There are risky but simple tasks you might give up on entirely, missing out on potential returns.”

Shaya said indifferently, “Compared to my life, a little profit means nothing.”

“But what if there were a way for you to fully control someone—to command them, control their life and death, and never worry about betrayal? They could even shield you from danger.”

A glimmer lit up in Shaya’s eyes. “You… don’t tell me you know some kind of heart control spell?”

“Controlling minds through magic is only something Second Rank wizards can do. But I have something similar—parasite-based magic. The host fully obeys your commands, and their life and death are in your hands.”

Shaya was clearly intrigued. He pressed a hand to his chin, deep in thought.

“I know you usually choose to avoid danger when it arises. But you should consider proactively probing danger instead—then decide whether to flee or deal with it.”

“Shaya, we’re wizards. If we only ever think of running, the backlash of knowledge will catch up with us sooner or later,” Saul said in a low, almost bewitching voice.

In the world of wizards, danger always lurked in the unknown. If one stagnated, they would inevitably be dragged into peril by an unseen hand.

If safety is your only concern, then you shouldn’t be a wizard.

This truth applied to apprentices and True Wizards alike.

After a few more persuasive words, Shaya finally agreed to the deal.

But the condition he offered was—

“You give me the parasitic spell, and I’ll deploy a teleportation formation wherever you specify.”

Saul’s smile vanished. “If I tell you where to place the formation, how would it still serve as a hidden escape route?”

“But I can’t just give you the scroll outright. Compared to going on the offensive, I’d rather hold onto a guaranteed way to escape!” Shaya puffed up his chest and refused to budge.

“Then there’s no deal,” Saul said, turning to leave.

“Wait!” Shaya still called him back.

After hesitating for a while, he offered a compromise.

“I’ll let you borrow the scroll for three hours. You can copy it during that time.”

Saul asked bluntly, “Is there a concealment formation layered on top of it?”

“There is, but if your talent in formations is high enough, you should be able to strip away the concealment and deduce the original formation.”

Saul scoffed. “Easier said than done. Three hours isn’t even enough for an accurate transcription. I need it for at least three days.”

“No way!” Shaya raised his voice, then quickly lowered it again. “One day, at most. And you can only copy it here. Don’t try to bargain—just say yes or no.”

Saul spent three minutes in deep thought. “If I misdraw the formation, and attempt a teleport… would I die?”

Shaya nodded. “Of course. Most likely, you’d be ripped apart by a spatial rift. Less likely, you’d end up in some unknown place. Reaching the other end would be nearly impossible.”

“Incredibly dangerous indeed.” Saul lowered his head. “Alright, I agree. Let’s start now.”

Shaya’s muscles twitched as he barely suppressed a smile. “Then let’s go to the same room as before. I’ll stand inside the defensive formation and open the scroll. You can only observe from the outside. If you try to come in, I’ll throw you out.”

“Hmph.” Saul snorted in dissatisfaction.

But his attention was already focused on the diary in his mental realm.

“Hey, diary old pal. It’s been a while since I last troubled you. But as you can see, spatial teleportation formations are extremely dangerous. You wouldn’t want me to… be torn to pieces during a jump, would you?”

(End of chapter)

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