CHAPTER 14: CHAPTER 14: POCKET WATCH

"Wizard Apprentice... This means that wizards are not legends but really exist."

Herag felt a longing in his heart, he wanted to become a wizard.

"Shenlan, temporarily name the unknown radiation energy as magic power."

"Naming completed."

Herag, based on the information from the pocket watch, guessed that this unknown radiation energy was magic power.

What puzzled him was why his body could absorb and store magic power even though he never learned anything about wizards.

"Shenlan, how much more magic power can my body store now?"

"Fully stored."

"Consider the current magic power as 100%, and add magic power into the personal body data."

"Herag Merlin: Power 2.0, Agility 1.6, Constitution 2.2, Spirit 2.5, Magic Power 100%."

Herag really wanted to try the Holy Healing Technique enchanted on the pocket watch, but he wasn’t sure how much magic power it would consume and whether the magic in his body was sufficient.

Another problem was that he temporarily had no other sources of magic power.

The magic power in his body would decrease with use, and he didn’t think he would get another demonized item like the pocket watch in the short term, so he had to use it sparingly.

"Nicholas Carlos Camby..." Herag silently committed the name to memory.

He did not know why this wizard’s pocket watch appeared in this place and had existed for at least forty years since the guard disappearance incidents began forty years ago.

From Nicholas’s intent, the pocket watch should not have that face attached to it.

From Herag’s perspective, that face looked more like it was residing on the pocket watch and had acquired some extraordinary power from it, leading to subsequent events.

"I just heard that scream again, it came from under the lake, I thought you were in trouble," Emil said.

Herag shook the pocket watch a few times: "That scream had no effect on me, so I dared to go down there. It seems the nasty thing on it is gone."

"This must be a treasure, its intrinsic value alone is extraordinary, you better keep it safe," Emil praised.

"This thing must still be hiding many secrets," Herag hung the pocket watch around his neck and tucked it inside his clothes.

The two of them gathered the scattered bones from the ground, since it was impossible to tell which bone belonged to whom, they buried the bones and armor together.

Those five missing guards finally had a resting place.

By the time they finished, it was sunrise, the sun peeked over the snow mountains, its rays piercing through the darkness of the Pumpkin Farm, dispelling all gloom.

When Herag returned to the farm, he saw Massimo standing at the gate, holding a broken lock, cursing: "Damn two brats! I gave you the keys!"

Emil could only bow his head and apologize, while Massimo muttered incessantly.

"I didn’t expect you to return, the others disappeared in the middle of the night and then vanished," Massimo said after tiring of his scolding, looking at the two with a peculiar gaze.

"We found those five missing guards," Herag said as he approached.

"You found them?" Massimo was very surprised.

"In the lake to the north, we’ve buried them in the woods by the lake," Emil said.

Massimo looked nostalgic, as if recalling something: "It’s good that you found them, good that you found them."

...

More than half a month passed, the weather grew colder, and the whole Pumpkin Farm was covered with white snow.

A glance revealed a silvery scene.

Herag walked through the forest covered with thick snow, holding a rabbit in his hand.

There were few animals active in the winter, hunting was difficult.

Emil had been in a bad mood lately, often shutting himself in his room for an entire day.

Herag knew the reason, Melissa’s wedding date was fast approaching.

When people in love can’t be together, such things always leave one helpless.

Herag was grateful he didn’t have such troubles; he just wanted to return to the castle and find a way to connect with wizards.

Since he could absorb and store magic, it showed he had the potential to become a wizard.

Emil didn’t have any information about wizards, so he could only ask Baron Buck when he returned.

While Herag was thinking, he suddenly heard movement from afar and stopped to listen carefully.

"Horse hooves, quite a few people."

His mind immediately went on alert, as the sound came from the west, which was the direction of the Beihad Territory.

Herag climbed to a high point, scanning the distance, and saw a fully armed group riding quickly along the mountain road at the foot of the mountain.

This group was approaching fast, seemingly intending to cross the Pumpkin Farm and then advance over the Jade Mountain Range to attack the castle.

And a few days later was Melissa’s wedding date...

After confirming the situation, he immediately returned to the farm to inform Emil, as now only he and Emil had combat capability at the Pumpkin Farm.

At the farm, Emil and Herag armed themselves completely.

"I originally thought Behard had given up, but their invasion at this time means things are not that simple," Emil said in a deep voice.

Herag brought six bags of arrows and said: "Let’s go; they probably didn’t expect anyone to defend the Pumpkin Farm. We’ll wipe out this group first and leave one alive for questioning."

"Let’s go!" Emil mounted his horse, eyes filled with a murderous aura.

He had been in a bad mood lately, and these people seemingly aimed at Melissa fired him up even more.

Herag and Emil quickly arrived at the western mountain pass, the only path.

They took the high ground, preparing to attack from above.

Herag readied his Fine Steel Bow, poised to strike.

He had already returned Old Henry’s longbow, which was hung on the wall as before.

However, he was the one maintaining the longbow now since Old Henry was bedridden.

This Fine Steel Bow required great power to draw, and its lethality and range were incomparable to a wooden bow.

"Fourteen people in total, fully equipped, led by a Knight Level warrior, with armor bearing the Simon Family’s crest," Herag assessed the enemy situation.

An armed force from one territory entering another’s fully prepared meant war, needing no other excuse.

Once the group was within range, Herag held his fire, allowing them to come closer to prevent their escape.

Once he determined it was close enough, he fired the first arrow.

The arrow whistled sharply through the air, its speed pierced through one person’s throat, continuing unabated, and embedded deeply in a tree, carrying blood.

"Ambush!" The group didn’t panic; they dismounted and sought cover quickly.

Herag kept his Fine Steel Bow drawn, using Shenlan Assistance; hiding was futile as long as the target wasn’t in a dead angle.