mpossible for me to become a formal wizard?"

"That’s the reality. You’re a rank 3 wizard apprentice and you can live longer than a mortal for sure, that’s why you still look young. Then again, you don’t have much potential left if you decide to try to break the limit again. The only thing to serve as the fuel will be your life energy. You’ll die if there’s not enough life energy to be burnt." The reality was cruel, but Angele had to tell Nancy the truth.

Nancy lowered her head and bit her lips forcefully, no longer talking.

Angele could understand that the truth might be too hard for her to handle.

"What’s my chance? Can you just tell me...?"

Angele, with knitted eyebrows, shook his head. "I’m sorry, Nancy. It’s low…very low. To be honest, I have never heard of a wizard apprentice who succeeded on the third attempt after failing twice. It would be a miracle if you succeed."

Angele decided to give Nancy the advice because he had spent some time collecting information on her situation.

Her family was not completely destroyed. It was just losing its power in the city. However, they were left there to lure Nancy back. On the other side of the Gem Sea, wizards were unknown to the general public, and people had no idea what exactly she was to Nancy’s family. Personages of royal blood knew how strong a wizard was. It was nearly impossible for them to hurt a wizard with physical skills. If Nancy somehow became a wizard and tried to avenge her family, her enemy would have to beg a wizard for protection.

If Nancy failed to break the limit and lose her life, the rest of her family would be killed right away and by that time, her family would longer exist.

She needed to stay alive and find someone strong to have a child with.

Nancy remained silent for a while before speaking again.

"I beg you…"

"Sorry, it’s impossible. I’ll stay here for a long period. I may return to the other side of the sea 10 or 20 years later, but it’s not now." Angele shook his head. "I don’t really care about those a.s.sa.s.sins from the Labyrinth College. They’re my enemy too. I gave you this advice because we were once on the same s.h.i.+p."

Nancy opened her mouth and spoke with a shaky voice.

"What do you want from me…? My body? Sure, that’s the only thing I have. Please, help me."

"No, you seem to be misunderstanding me. You were once on the same s.h.i.+p as I had been, so I’m trying to give you my sincere advice. Yes, your body is indeed enticing but that is not the main reason. You need to think twice before making your decision. If you stay alive, the rest of your family will be fine. Your enemy already knows you’re my servant."

"I apologize…I need to rethink my choices…" Nancy lowered her head.

"It’s fine. Go have some rest." Angele nodded.

Nancy stood up shaking her head and left the living room.

Angele saw the tears in her eyes. She was crestfallen after he had refused to a.s.sist her.

Angele sipped from the teacup again, which was already cold.

Angele had mixed feelings about Nancy. She was indeed an enchanting girl and he liked her, but Angele wondered if his feelings stemmed out of sympathy.

There were many wizard apprentices who had failed to break the limit at the West Coast and some of them tried to sign slave contracts with strong wizards, but most of them would return to their hometown and try to find something else to do. The failed wizard apprentices who chose to stay in Nola were hoping for miracles.

Nancy was strong and stubborn. There were only two choices left for her. The first one was to try to break the limit again. If she failed, her whole family would be destroyed.

The second one was to sign the slave contract with Angele and become his property. In exchange, she would ask Angele to avenge her family. However, strong wizards had a much longer life expectancy than a rank 3 wizard apprentice. Nancy did not have that much time to wait for Angele to complete his task.

Unless Angele could reach the next stage much faster than she expected.

Angele stood up after Nancy left. He carefully picked up the box from the table.

Inside the gla.s.s box was a piece of a translucent crystal leaf. Angele took it out slowly.

The leaf lay atop Angele’s palm. It felt soft and warm and its twisted veins were barely visible. It almost felt like the leaf could break at any moment.

The white glow illuminated on Angele’s face. A minty fragrance rushed into his nose that was quite refres.h.i.+ng.

‘Zero, scan the leaf. Tell me if it will increase my success rate of advancing to the next stage,’ he ordered.

‘Task created…Scanning…’

Ten minutes later, Zero reported back.

‘With five pieces of crystal leaves, the success rate can be increased to 84.75%.’

Angele smiled. A success rate higher than 80% was incredible. He was certain that those leaves would help him reach the next level, and the effect of the leaves would exceed his expectations.

Sadly, Angele’s method would only work for himself. He was the son of a tree elf, and the ancient blood from the great harpy was still affecting his body. He doubted if the other wizards could survive the strong side effects of all the Demos' Water he used. When knowledge recorded on books was not helpful enough, wizards must find their own paths to their future.