elf successor

Gus walked closer and sat sideways at the table, waiting for Brooke to get up.

It took half an hour for Brooke to get out from under the table, holding a thin booklet in his hand. He pulled the chair hard, patted the table and said to Gus in surprise: "Look, it's written in this book." I only discovered this book by chance. If you hadn’t mentioned the Sea of ​​Knowledge, I would have almost thrown it away.”

Under the dim light, the yellow cover had been worn away and there was no text. Gus held it solemnly in his hand and gently opened the page. Most of the text on the yellow kraft paper had fallen off, but there were still some simple portraits. printed on it.

"What do these mean?"

Gus kept fingering, and in just a few breaths, the thin book had been flipped through. There were only some pictures on it, plus some sparse text, which was really difficult to understand.

Words are no longer what they are now.

"Hey, look."

Instructor Brooke took the book, opened two pages, ran his green fingers across the vellum, pointed at a portrait, and tapped it slowly with his fingertips, "Look, this painting seems to vaguely refer to the location of the Sea of ​​Knowledge."

Gus glanced at Brooke in confusion, quickly picked up the book and held it under the lamp, examining the drawing carefully.

A stone pillar that looks like a tombstone stands among the messy grass. There is no inscription on the tombstone. There is only a lake, a dry lake. The bottom of the lake is clearly visible. It is no different from the bottom of the ordinary lake. The cracked soil separates the bottom of the lake into many parts. Uniform squares.

Is this the sea of ​​knowledge?

"What about the mage's light?"

Gus asked. In the previous books, there was a stone pillar rising into the sky. The light emitted from the stone pillar made people feel oppressed from the bottom of their hearts.

"Look at this tombstone, what does it look like?"

Brooke took out a piece of paper from his clothes and spread it on the table. It was the same picture that Gus had seen when he first looked for it a year ago.

Putting the book aside, Gus's heart sank and his face became more solemn. Except for some differences in size, the shape of the stone pillars in the paper was exactly the same as that of the tombstone.

After a long time, Gus shook his head, pressed his hands on the table, and said in a deep voice: "These two stone pillars are not the same. They give me different feelings. This one is like a star, and this one is like the gate of hell."

"You mean, this tombstone with the sea of ​​knowledge printed on it comes from hell? How is it possible? I think they only have one feeling, which is bottomless, like despair, without any hope."

There was piety in Brooke's voice, but more of it was fear. He scratched his scalp in annoyance. For the first time, he had resistance to the mage's research. The bottomless hole made him despair. He used to think that I have already entered the hall, but now, I suddenly found that the journey of the mage I studied is just a splash in the long river of history. It is not even a splash. It is just a drop of water, a drop of rootless water that rushes to the shore with the huge waves. .

The two portraits were placed together, as if something was happening. The two forces were constantly pulling and fighting, and Gus' eyes were deeply absorbed in it.

Brooke lay on the chair dejectedly, pressing his sore eyes hard. He had only glanced at it a few times before feeling that the image had drained all his strength.

"This booklet was found there."

"This, I picked this up in a corner of the art studio when I was young. At that time, I had just started to study mages, and I was full of strength. I naturally picked it up when I encountered it, but I couldn't understand it at the time. , turned it over and threw it into the laboratory. I suddenly remembered it a few days ago and didn't expect it was still there. By the way, this is what I saw at that time. It has not changed at all in these years."

After the words fell, the two of them were speechless. Gus kept staring at the tombstone without moving.

Only the boiling test tube made a sizzling sound.

After a long time, with a "tear" sound, Gus tore off the page from the booklet and carefully put it into his pocket along with another piece of paper on the table. Brooke did not stop him, but just reminded: "These two pictures are a little evil. , you have to be careful, I always feel that the reason for the demise of the mage may be related to this tombstone. If it is not the light of the mage, it may be a tombstone used to worship the Sea of ​​Knowledge."

"How could the sea of ​​knowledge dry up?" Gus took a deep breath and stopped arguing. The two of them had completely blank knowledge in this area. If this fearless argument continues, the two of them may get into a fork in the road. Gradually deviating from the path of a mage, getting further and further away. "Teacher Brooke, I came to you this time because I want to learn some witchcraft."

Brooke straightened up, reached out and took out something like a notebook from under the table, threw it to Gus, and said with a smile: "In my life, I have rarely left the academy, and I have done nothing, so I don't know much about advanced witchcraft. This contains all my witchcraft, you can study it yourself, it will not be difficult for you depending on your talent."

The notes are not thick, but they are filled with black words and are densely packed. Underneath all the witchcraft, there are very detailed notes. This note should be Brooke's understanding of the wizard.

"This······"

"I am the most useless tutor in Massa Academy, but I want to train you to be a mage, a real mage. I know that the academy is not peaceful recently. I saw the battle last night. If the dark wizard hadn't With high-level witchcraft, you are enough to kill him." Brooke gave a wry smile, full of bitterness, "Gus, don't blame the academy for not taking action. The dean is under too much pressure, and the academy has reached a moment of survival."

Gus was startled and asked hurriedly: "What's going on?"

"A hundred years ago, the college was already in its twilight years. If it hadn't been for the dean's efforts to turn the tide, there might not have been a Massa College on the Jiuji Continent. The apprentices were separated, the mentors were declining, and the college was really in its twilight years."

Brooke's words were full of sadness. Over the years, the situation of the college could not escape his eyes. The previously strong colleges had begun to make concessions in some places. Even the hunting grounds that had been passed down for many years opened their doors to allow the other three families to participate. This In the previous academy, this would have been impossible. Brooke knew what the hunting ground represented.

Gus looked at Brooke's desolate expression, and it seemed as if he was lying. Normally, Brooke's mentor would not be so worried.

At this moment, Gus only felt that the notes in his hand were heavier.

"You are still weak now. Depending on your talent, you will undoubtedly have a place on the mainland. By then, if the academy has not completely collapsed." Instructor Brooke paused and suddenly stared into Gus's eyes, "I I hope you can help the academy."

Gus nodded slightly, looked down at the words on the note, and smiled sadly.

I hope that I can still be alive and remember by then.

"Let's go and study. The academy has been very uneasy recently, so you have to be careful."

"it is good."

Gus responded, bowed slightly to Instructor Brooke who was sitting behind the desk, and walked out of the laboratory.

The moment he opened the door, dazzling eyes shone on his face. Gus raised his head, closed the door with a clatter, and strode towards the castle.