Chapter Twenty Two

A grimoire was a 'container' of sorts. It was an essential tool for mages who dabbled in complex and difficult magic. One could look at a grimoire and see it as a culmination of the numerous years of study and practice of a mage. Most grimoires were restricted by classes and needed a huge amount of mana to be able to bridge the gap between classes. For example, a grimoire restricted to the Master class could only contain spells of the Master class and below. A Grandmaster class spell would be too much of a burden to the rules that bound the Master class grimoire, ultimately causing its destruction.

The Black Wyvern's Heartfall was a rarity in itself. Not only was a Wyvern a mighty and rare beast which was rarely seen, even the weakest of its kind was an early Lord class. When its offspring was born, they always started off at the Lord class. Those that started off on the back foot were at least at the Pseudo-Lord class tier.

"When my husband hunted the Black Wyvern that was used to create this grimoire, he was cursed by the dying Wyvern's last breath. I've consulted numerous specialists across the world ever since, but there was nothing we could do. The most we've been able to do was stave off the curse for a few more years but my husband doesn't have much time left."

"Excuse me?" Kai stepped up, "What exactly is this curse?"

"His life has been tied to the grimoire in a twisted way. As long as the grimoire remains ownerless, his life force will be drained. It's absolute torture. I had to get some experts to force him into a deep slumber so he wouldn't feel all that pain." She shook her head sadly, "Would you like to try? If you can form a link with it, then you can take it, free of charge." She offered.

'What do you think, Divine Mage?' Kai asked the system within the confines of his mind.

[Information concerning the Curse of the Black Wyvern indicates that what she has described is valid. There are no negative side effects to be gotten from linking with the grimoire.]

'Hmm. That's good, but the question is whether I can do it or not. After all, I'm pretty sure many mages have tried it out before me.'

[Give me a moment.]

The system went silent for a few seconds. Meanwhile, the old shopkeeper kept on looking at Kai hope. He hesitantly stretched out his hand, hovering above the surface of the dark leather book for a moment.

[Analysis complete. Magic Attributes adjusted. Dark Magic Skill Set acquired.]

Kai's eyes gleamed as he heard the notification from the system and he finally lowered his palm to rest against the surface of the book. A gush of cold wind blew around him; surprisingly, he was the only one able to feel it. The sound of a lock opening up clicked in his mind as a strange feeling overwhelmed him for a short moment. His eyes blanked and his movements froze up.

"Kai?" Ryan's hand patted his shoulder an Kai's mind returned to the present. He blinked as his eyes regained their focus. He was met with curious looks from their group.

"Huh?"

"So?" The shopkeeper asked hopefully.

"I... uh... um. It feels weird. Kai flexed his fingers as he tried to familiarize himself with the strange sensation. It felt like a stream of cold water was constantly running through his veins, dragging a cool, but dark magical energy through his body. It brought about a new feeling. A feeling that made him feel alive in a very different way than he thought possible.

"It... worked?" A wide smile spread over the old shopkeeper's face as she took in the slightly different aura that hung around Kai.

Kai raised the grimoire which had shrunken down considerably in size. A silver chain ran around it, binding it shut.

"Wow... Pretty neat." He turned it around to take a proper look at it. It shone with a unique dark luster as it spun slowly.

"Indeed, today is my lucky day. Please come in." The old lady tried to usher them into her shop. "Let me treat you to an afternoon snack. Please, come in." At that time, the city bell suddenly rung loudly, signaling the setting of the sun. They had spent quite a while outside the training camp already, and it was getting late.

"I'm sorry, but we have to be going back to the camp now. Is there any way we can pay you for the grimoire? It must be worth a fortune." Suzy held the old lady's hand tenderly.

"No, no. Saving my husband's life is already good enough for me. I'm indebted to you." The old lady replied with a warm smile. Suzy looked hesitant before slipping a few silver coins into the lady's palm and waving goodbye. The old shopkeeper smiled at their departing backs warmly for a few moments longer.

"Step one, complete."