Chapter 44: The Curse

Cursing is an ancient art, and curse wizards were among the first in the wizarding world. Even in this age where wizards are no longer shrouded in mystery, curse wizards remain among the few who still maintain an air of enigma.

On the surface, the Corner Alley restaurant is just a dining establishment, but behind the scenes, it deals in the business of murder.

Killing within the wizard academy is no easy feat. The academy's monitors keep a constant watch over the campus, and any significant elemental fluctuation will catch their attention.

But curses are different.

Curse magic requires no physical contact or elemental manipulation. With just an item belonging to the target and a curse ritual, a person can be killed invisibly.

Moreover, curse spells are extremely difficult to trace. Even if a cursed individual is discovered by the academy monitors, they can only block the curse, not apprehend the wizard who cast it.

Part of this is due to the academy's deliberate leniency.

Curse spells aren't infallible; the larger the gap in strength between the curse wizard and the target, the lower the success rate. If the target's strength surpasses the curse wizard's by a significant margin, the chance of a successful curse becomes negligible.

This looming threat serves as a motivation for apprentices to grow stronger.

Joseph's order quickly reached a curse wizard. Since Richard's potions were easy to find, Joseph didn't even need to provide a curse medium.

The curse wizard placed the potion made by Richard on a stone altar covered in blood-drawn runes. As soon as the potion was placed, the altar emitted a chilling wail.

Unfazed, the curse wizard cut his wrist, feeding the altar with his blood while chanting an incantation.

Once the incantation was complete, he placed a curse insect on the altar, which instantly ignited with black flames. Simultaneously, Kevin, who was reading in his dorm, was suddenly engulfed in black fire.

"Damn, a curse!"

Without wasting time, Kevin quickly grabbed a glass vial from his pocket, which contained a plump, white curse insect.

He smashed the vial, grabbed the insect, and the black flames transferred to it.

However, Kevin's curse insect was too low quality, and the curse wizard was much stronger, so the insect quickly began to carbonize. Once it died, the curse would return to Kevin.

In this dire situation, Kevin downed a Focus Potion, knowing that panic would only worsen his predicament.

As the potion's effects kicked in, Kevin's mind cleared.

He had two tasks: first, survive; second, warn Richard.

When the curse insect fully carbonized, the black flames returned to Kevin, but under the potion's influence, his pain was significantly dulled, allowing him freedom of movement.

Bang!

Kevin dashed to the window and leapt out, shouting as he fell.

"Curse! There's a curse!"

His commotion quickly drew the academy monitor's attention. A large owl swiftly flew overhead, isolating the curse.

"Apprentice, you are safe."

"Sir, someone else is cursed!" Kevin shouted to the monitor. "In building four, room 215, another apprentice is cursed! He's Master Jolord's formal apprentice!"

Kevin, having dealt with these monitors before, knew that while they appeared as a group, each owl's soul was interconnected. Informing one meant informing them all.

To ensure the owls took action, he emphasized Richard's identity.

Meanwhile, as Richard was reading in his dorm, black flames suddenly enveloped him.

"A curse?"

Frowning, Richard quickly grabbed a prepared curse insect to temporarily transfer the curse, then rushed into Ellie's room.

"Ellie, curse."

He managed only two words before the black flames ignited again.

Seeing this, Ellie hurried to her desk, grabbed a curse insect, and handed it to Richard. Once the curse was transferred, she held the insect, summoned her magic, and began chanting ancient words.

"Hmm?" The curse wizard frowned, sensing Ellie's resistance. "Is there an ally helping?"

He produced a dried toad from his pocket, carefully broke off a piece, and tossed it onto the curse insect.

Instantly, the black flames on the insect intensified.

"Ugh?" Ellie felt the curse strengthen, her face pale.

"A battle of tools?"

Gritting her teeth, she retrieved a black finger bone from her drawer and swallowed it whole.

A battle of tools? She was Master Susanna's sole disciple!

Sensing the renewed resistance, the curse wizard was alarmed. He knew the curse wizards capable of resisting him, and if one of them was aiding Richard, there was no way he could kill him before the academy monitors arrived.

"Damn, what bad luck."

Cursing under his breath, the curse wizard decisively squashed the burning curse insect, severing the curse connection.

Curse magic is difficult to trace, but not impossible.

Once the curse was severed, Ellie breathed a sigh of relief, wiping sweat from her brow.

Battles between curse wizards are perilous; a slight mistake can redirect the curse to oneself. Fortunately, she had a good teacher. Though Susanna hadn't taught her much about cursing others, she'd learned plenty about defending against curses.

"Is it over?" Richard asked.

"It's over. The wizard didn't engage further and cut off the curse decisively."

"Can you track him?"

"No," Ellie shook her head. "If he'd tangled with me longer, maybe my teacher could trace him, but he was too quick. No trace left."

Richard frowned, "That's troublesome."

Without identifying the curse wizard, he couldn't uncover who cursed him. You can't guard against an unknown foe forever. Without identifying the culprit, he'd be constantly on edge.

"Maybe you should ask Senior Chaxes?" Ellie suggested. "I heard from friends that he has a wide network among apprentices. He might uncover some leads."

"That's all I can do..."

Bang!

A sound came from next door.

Richard recognized it as coming from his room.

"Apprentice Richard, Apprentice Richard!"

Hearing the owl's voice, Richard rushed back to his room.

"Apprentice Richard, someone reported you were cursed," the owl said, its round eyes scrutinizing Richard. "You resolved it yourself?"

"Thank you for coming, monitor. I managed to handle the curse," Richard replied, bowing slightly.

"Kaa, as expected of Jolord's disciple." The owl praised before flying off.

Watching the academy monitor leave, Richard rubbed his chin, "Seems Kevin was useful as a whistleblower."

The academy monitor arrived immediately after the curse was resolved, clearly informed by Kevin, his agent who took on the curse initially.

If Ellie hadn't been nearby, Kevin's action might have saved Richard's life.

"He's probably injured. I'll check on him later."

Richard was pleased with Kevin as an agent. The materials he'd been testing were mostly sourced by Kevin from the trial area. Some of the more obscure materials would have taken Richard ages to find on his own.

Richard always looked out for his own.