Reforged Chapter 12: Why Are You Still Alive?

"This is a beginner's guide for high elf mage apprentices. It's even better than the materials from your human magic sanctuary, Dalaran. The only problem is that it's written in the high elf language. You'll need to find someone or learn the language yourself to translate it."

Even though it's considered an introductory text for apprentices, it's not like they were revealing any secrets. After all, in the world of Azeroth, humans learned their spells from high elves.

However, even something as insignificant as roadside weeds to high elves is considered a treasure in human lands!

Looking at the system prompt stating, "You have obtained the[High Elf Mage Apprentice Beginner's Guide], which is expected to greatly improve your spellcasting abilities," Duke couldn't help but feel overjoyed to the point of tears.

Alright, since I'm a novice now! Alleria, I'll reluctantly let you buy me off!

"Uh, thank you."

"Hehe, here's something else for you." Alleria handed over a green leaf imbued with strange energy. "Can you whistle using a leaf? Just whistle with this one, and I'll come running. Remember! You can only summon me for 'interesting matters.' And... if you don't call me for too long, I'll come looking for you."

"Pfft!" Duke couldn't help but laugh.

It seems this person has taken a liking to me!

He wasn't sure if it was a blessing or a curse.

With that said, Alleria disappeared, swift as the wind. Duke couldn't even see how she left. In the blink of an eye, she was gone.

Duke rubbed his brow. "These Windrunner women are quite capricious when they're not on duty, aren't they?"

Even though he was just talking to himself, Alleria's voice suddenly came from the depths of the forest, "I heard that!"

"Cough—" Duke nearly choked on his saliva. "Cough, cough, cough!"

He couldn't defeat her nor outrun her, and now he was being observed like a lab rat. This... this must be karma, right?

Well, Alleria was gone for now.

So the situation returned to its original course. Looking at the charred half-corpse of the rogue, Duke felt nauseated.

He hadn't noticed it before, but once everything had settled down, a sudden wave of nausea hit him, impossible to suppress. Giving in, Duke vomited.

"Ugh—" Duke retched violently.

Academic types like Duke, who come from scholarly backgrounds, tend to be a bit sheltered. Out of ten such people, nine might never have killed a chicken, let alone witnessed a bloody and gruesome scene.

Luckily, it was nighttime and visibility was poor. The scorched corpse was charred black, and if it had been any more visible, Duke might have suffered from nightmares for quite some time.

The body needed to be dealt with, or else rangers, woodcutters, and hunters might come across a burnt corpse and easily connect it to Duke. After all, in the realm of humanity, a mage like Duke was still a rare sight.

At this moment, the murlocs in the distance seemed to be disturbed, as faint footsteps could be heard from afar. Although there was a good chance the murlocs would eat the corpse if left behind, Duke didn't dare take the risk.

Before the murlocs arrived, Duke quickly searched the nauseatingly fragrant half-body, scavenging a few dozen silver coins. After tossing the corpse into the river, Duke immediately turned around and left.

If his calculations were correct, the Rogue's body would be carried downstream into the murlocs' territory. Even if it didn't make it that far, the murlocs would likely catch the scent and track it down.

Murlocs in the world of Azeroth were far from lovely creatures like mermaids. With bloated, fish-like bodies as large as a water tank and humanoid limbs, these low-intelligence, brutal beings were a menace that could never be fully eradicated.

Following the distant light from the Northshire Abbey on the hillside, Duke moved stealthily through the night. The sound of human flesh being chewed by carnivorous creatures carried on the wind, sending chills down Duke's spine and causing him to quicken his pace.

About forty minutes later, Duke finally escaped the forest.

The Northshire Abbey was just a human settlement, not a large town, so its defensive measures consisted of only a simple, two-meter-high wooden fence without any sharp spikes. For a scholar like Duke, who was used to climbing walls to evade dormitory curfews, this was a piece of cake. Finding no one around, Duke easily climbed over the fence with a simple push-up motion.

After scaling the fence, Duke found his way back to the inn where he was staying. Unbeknownst to him, just after he climbed over the wall, a figure clad in full armor emerged from the shadows near the fence.

Deputy Captain Verri!

"May the Light bless the Kingdom of Stormwind, for Duke has not been harmed," Verri thought. He had seen Duke being taken away by the Rogue and leaping over the fence in the distance, but he wasn't sure. He couldn't risk alerting the guards to search the forest for Duke based on a fleeting glimpse. Nor could he abandon his post to check the inn to see if Duke was still there.

Because he knew that if it was the work of someone from the Blancdale House, it would already be too late.

Feeling anxious and unable to forgive himself, Verri spent more than an hour tormented by his conscience. Now that he saw Duke returning seemingly unscathed, he couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief.

After confirming that Duke was safely away, Verri emerged from the shadows and carefully erased any traces, such as footprints, left by Duke when he climbed the fence.

Back at the inn, with everything in his room unchanged, Duke was exhausted—physically, mentally, and spiritually. He fell into a deep sleep.

The next morning, while having breakfast on the first floor of the inn, Duke noticed two young people who appeared to be mage apprentices sitting next to the elderly mage Norton.

The old man saw the energetic Duke and his wrinkled face lit up with a smile. He introduced the burly, nearly six-foot-tall male apprentice: "His name is Daniel, a qualified candidate from the Eastvale Logging Camp, with a third-class aptitude."

The young man, who looked to be around 14 or 15 years old, had a clear baby-faced innocence and a simple honesty about him. He wore an ill-fitting short tunic and said, "Hello, Mr. Marcus. I'm Daniel, the son of the logging camp owner. I'm glad to be your fellow apprentice."

Duke greeted him with a casual smile and shook his hand, "Hello, Daniel."

Before Norton could introduce the other apprentice, the young girl eagerly stood up, as if she couldn't wait to shake Duke's hand: "I... I... I'm Itana, the daughter of the clerk of Westfall Sentinel Hill... Fourth-class aptitude. Duke Marcus, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"I'm pleased to meet you as well, Itana."

Just as Duke was about to engage in further conversation with the two apprentices, a sudden shriek came from behind him— the scream of Sir Blancdale: "How are you still alive?!"