Duke Payne

Excluding the herbs, Henry only had three treasures at the second level, two from his bet against Marcos, and the Hobgoblin core.

-'Bracelet of Affluence - Low Grade - Second Level Human Realm Treasure - It is said that this bracelet brings the user good fortune.'

-' Hellhound Fur Boots - Low Grade - Second Level Human Realm Treasure - Boots made with the fur of a Hellhound, it was high resistance to fire and silences the footsteps of the user.'

The bracelet of Affluence piqued Henry's interest, he was quite impressed by the Luck Attribute, and he never expected to already have an item that boosted it. -" The effects of the boots aren't too bad either, but, I already have one." Henry thought for a moment and decided to wear the Bracelet of Affluence and save the Hellhound Fur Boots for later.

Henry turned his attention to the Hobgoblin core, he didn't analyze it yet as the system was currently busy with all the herbs. " This should give me quite a good amount of Attribute points, right?" Henry put the core in the furnace without any hesitation and smiled as he confirmed his thought.

-" 10.5 points... with the furnace at this level I only get 15% of the energy value of an item, so this should have an energy value of 70?" Henry was impressed by the quality of the core and even considered saving it for later. " What I need now is to get stronger, I can always go hunt monsters after I'm at the peak of the Mage Apprentice realm." Henry took a deep breath as he placed the core in the furnace.

Henry Flint | Magic Circle: Half-Step to First Circle | Body Cultivation Realm: No Cultivation Found | System Level: 2 | Attribute Points: 16 |

Mana: 12 | Power: 6 | Perception: 2

Aura: 0 | Agility: 8 | Luck: 1

Will: 9 | Endurance: 6 | Intelligence: 7

Henry was excited as he looked at how many Attributes points he had gathered. He was itching to drop them all on mana again, he always dreamed of becoming a mage, however, he decided that it was better to invest in his body for now.

-" Full agility or a more balanced distribution?" Henry wondered about Attributes to invest in, and eventually, he decided to use them all on Agility.

Henry Flint | Magic Circle: Half-Step to First Circle | Body Cultivation Realm: No Cultivation Found | System Level: 2 | Attribute Points: 0 |

Mana: 12 | Power: 6 | Perception: 2

Aura: 0 | Agility: 24 | Luck: 1

Will: 9 | Endurance: 6 | Intelligence: 7

Henry smirked as he began to test the difference that 16 attribute points had on his body. He ran up and down the forest, gathering every herb that appeared on his map.

A smile beamed on his face as the wind on his face, he never imagined that he could run so fast. With his current speed, he could go through the entire forest in just a few minutes.

-" Investing in my body was the right choice." Henry was happy with his choice, especially now that he could cultivate. " I'm going to use every point I get on physical attributes, and try my best to cultivate my mana."

Henry kept gathering every last bit of herb he could find until he finally run out of breath and sat down to rest. " Looks like I will need to invest some points in Endurance next." He was extremely happy with what he got out of the points spent.

- "System, level up the map feature." He decided to use the time he was resting to upgrade the only feature he could.

-' Leveling Map features 10%... 40%.... 70%... 87%....' Henry was excited as he saw the map turn gray, and the progress bar slowly go up. He couldn't wait to see how different the map would be after finally getting to level two.

Just like when he upgraded his system's level, the process only took a few minutes, but, this was enough time for him to catch his breath.

-' The map feature has been upgraded to level two.' Henry got up as he examined his map, and proceeded deeper into the forest.

Henry wanted to enjoy his time in the forest, so he decided to go slowly. He hummed a happy tune as he relished the fresh air, and it didn't take too long for him to reach the foot of the mountain.

However, just as he began to climb the mountain, two men mounted in horses came rushing towards him.

-"Halt! Duke Paine has declared the mountain a restricted area, turn back now!" One of the men on the horses yelled at Henry.

- "Restricted area? Did something happen?" Henry was suspicious, he had been on the mountain a day before, and the only thing that could have led the Duke to close the mountain was the landslide.

-" Nothing of your concern! Simply turn around and leave, once the Duke has found what he seeks, the mountain will be reopened!" The man gave Henry a deadly stare and clutched his sword.

-" This is your last warning!" The second guard shouted as he unsheathed his sword.

Henry had no thought of going against the guards, especially seeing how aggressive they were, so he instantly turned and walked back to the forest.

He felt bummed, the part he was looking for the most was exploring the mountaintop after the landslide. Henry let out a deep sigh, he was curious about the strange building he saw two days ago, but, it looked like he wouldn't be able to get an answer any time soon.

-" I'm sure the scanner would find some useful items if I used it where I found the swords." With his mood ruined, Henry used the scanner and proceeded to pick up whatever had been discovered.

At the mountain summit, a white-haired man was observing some holes in the ground. -" This is strange, I can feel leftover mana from some artifacts that were previously present on the ground, yet, they all suddenly vanish only to reappear close by."

-" Disappear? What do you mean? The treasure was put in a spatial treasure?" A blonde man in red armor asked in confusion.

- "No, I would usually feel the remnants of the treasure mana, but there isn't anything here. What is even more strange is the fact that I am unable to sense the mana of the person who dug this hole." As he pondered, the old man ran his fingers through his beard. " It appears that the person who took the treasures here has no mana."

- "No mana? So how can he use a spatial artifact?" The blonde man's face twitched with anger.

- "Who knows? The mountain collapsed a day ago, right? There is no possibility that mana would disperse so quickly; even with the mountain collapse causing the mana in the area to shift, it would normally take a little longer."

-" So we can't figure out who dug this treasure? And we can't even find the rest of the treasures?" The eyes of the blonde man flashed coldly. "Did he steal all of the treasures? Why can't we discover even one of them?"

The white-haired senior inhaled deeply and closed his eyes. -" Duke Paine, allowing rage to control you will not help you in this circumstance; perhaps it is not your destiny to inherit the Star Gazing Sect's legacy."

The remarks spoken by the white-haired man upset the already enraged man even more. -" Fate? This is meaningless to me. My future will be built with my own two hands. You may depart now, Mister Hugh. Please accept my apologies for taking your time."

-" I'll be leaving then, Duke Paine. I hope your endeavor is successful." Hugh sighed and motioned for his disciples to follow him as he began to descend the mountain.

- "How dare he act like that? Master, you are the Dean of the Royal Academy, not even the King would dare to disrespect you like that." As they approached the base of the mountain, one of Hugh's disciples began to complain.

-" Piere, I understand how you feel; however, there is nothing to be done about it for the time being; Duke Paine is a very powerful man." Hugh stopped at the bottom of the mountain and began to cast a spell.

- "A powerful man? Even more powerful than you or the king?" Piere looked at Hugh with anguished eyes.

-"It may be difficult to swallow, but for the time being, yes." Hugh completed the spell and added. "Please do not move while I conduct the teleportation."

Piere closed his eyes as the ground beneath him flashed and the forest around him transformed into a rustic room. " Tsk, I'm curious as to how Duke Paine would hold off the imperial army." Piere immediately resumed his complaints after the teleportation had ended.

-"Would your father order his troops to move against Duke Paine if the king ordered it?" Hugh spoke while looking at his table.

-"He would, of course." Piere responded confidently.

- "What about the other nobles of the realm? Would they also move?"

Piere froze when he heard Hugh's question; he knew Duke Paine wielded far too much power in the Great Nobles' households. "No, while some would back Duke Paine, the vast majority would remain on the sidelines."

-"This is why the king is biding his time; he can't afford to start a civil war right now; the king's biggest concern right now is the ever-expanding Drasta Empire, not Duke Paine and his lofty ambitions."

Piere clenched his teeth, knowing that the Drasta Empire was massing forces on the border, but he couldn't stomach Duke Paine's arrogance.

-"Don't be too concerned; not everything has been lost; at the very least, Duke Paine has not obtained the Star Gazing Sect Legacy."

- "Legacy of the Stargazing Sect? Is this related to the myth you always talk about?"

- "Myth? This is not a legend; it is the legacy of Tyrnos Zador, the greatest ruler of the Thule Kingdom, and his ten retainers."

- "Master... I asked my father about it, but he had no idea, and neither did my family records mention this treasure that Tyrnos bestowed upon my ancestor."

-"That doesn't mean it didn't exist; it just means your family lost it." Hugh smiled slightly as he flipped open a book on his desk.

Piere was troubled; he didn't want to offend his master, but he doubted that his family would lose something so valuable, especially something given to them by their most cherished sovereign.

Hugh sighed when he saw Piere's troubled expression. "Do you know the Royal Academy's history, Piere?" Hugh questioned Piere, who nodded. "What about Tyrnos Zador and his ten retainers?" Piere gave Hugh another firm nod.

-" Do you know why I'm so confident that Tyrnos Legacy is true?" Hugh's eyes gleamed as he examined the book he had just opened. " Vannaril Thevaris, the founder of the Royal Academy, was also one of Tyrnos' retainers."

Hugh began to turn the pages of the book until he came to the section in which Vannaril's story was written. " Tyrnos also gave him a treasure, which is still kept in the academy's deepest vault."

Piere was taken aback by this discovery; after all, if Hugh was correct, it meant that his family had genuinely lost the treasure Tyrnos had bestowed upon them. "Is it true that my family lost the treasure? How is this even possible?" Only the thought of it made Piete frown in disappointment.

-"Perhaps your family did not lose the treasure, but simply knowledge of it." Hugh put the book down and handed it to Piere. "You should read this book if you want to learn more about this subject."

Piere's eyes shook as he clutched the book and read the title. -" Tales of the Zador Dynasty and the Golden Age of the Thule Empire." Piere was overcome with emotion as he opened the book; could his family still possess the famous treasure that Tyrnos had given them?