Chapter 28: His Attitude Doesn’t Matter

Doman squinted his eyes as he confirmed, “You mean… the Wood Spirit Magic experiment?”

Dorothy urgently nodded her head.

Doman’s expression grew serious.

As a leading figure in the Kewell Empire’s Wood Spirit Magecraft, known as the ‘Child of the Forest’, Doman’s mastery may have only reached the level of a Master Magician, but his status was more influential than that of some Archmagi.

Many of the Wood Spirit Magic spells in the Kewell Empire were personally researched and created by him.

Some even boldly predicted that if Doman could advance to Archmage, possibly, he could elevate Wood Spirit Magic from a specialized element to a mainstream one! This alone shows his deep understanding of Wood Spirit Magic.

As his most favored granddaughter, Dorothy, though she might not be profoundly skilled in Wood Spirit Magic, had knowledge and insight due to her close proximity to him.

The fact that she was so shocked and excited is enough to imagine how much Ajef’s magic experiment impacted her!

Her performance clearly showed that she was willing to risk offending Ajef just to tell him the importance of this magic experiment.

—If he could participate, considering his mastery in Wood Spirit Magic, and if he could secretly learn even a bit, perhaps he could use it to break through to Archmage!

No one knew that Doman had long been in a rut with his research in Wood Spirit Magic.

If not for family, empire, and personal ties, he would have long ago gone far away, in search of a breakthrough opportunity.

Now, a possible chance had appeared.

Doman stood up and began pacing in the study, his expression flickering.

It seemed rather incredible, but even now, he hadn’t figured out Ajef’s identity.

With his extensive network, deeply rooted in the empire thanks to Wood Spirit Magic, and staying on good terms with all sides…

Even the Archmage was courteous to him.

It could be said that his position in the Kewell Empire was as stable as a mountain.

But even so, he still couldn’t find out Ajef’s identity, which made him a little uneasy.

Especially after seeing that his beloved granddaughter was forced to participate in Ajef’s magic experiment, he gritted his teeth and sent over that ‘dead egg’.

Now, seeing his granddaughter’s reaction, Doman felt a deep sense of relief.

He hadn’t made a mistake!

He suspected that Ajef might be a Wood Spirit Magician with a mastery even higher than his! Even if not, Ajef might possess magic knowledge entirely different from that of the Kewell Empire.

This is why Archmage Dundar values him so highly while keeping Ajef’s identity a secret.

As he thought of this, Doman’s body began to tremble slightly, filled with both hesitation and excitement. He hesitated over the idea that this person might usurp his position in the empire’s Wood Spirit Magic field.

And was excited by the possibility that his stalled Wood Spirit Magic study might have a chance for further advancement.

“I understand. You can go back now!”

Doman took a deep breath and waved his hand.

“Yes.”

Dorothy did not persuade him further. Her grandfather’s prolonged contemplation clearly indicated a decision had already been made.

After his granddaughter left, Doman pondered for a moment and then summoned his personal butler, whispering a few instructions.

The butler nodded and left to carry out his orders.

He instructed the butler to gather information about the attitudes of the other magic apprentices involved in Ajef’s magic experiment. Although the secrecy contract would prevent them from leaking information, their emotions can’t be concealed.

After all, Dorothy was only a magic apprentice; a misjudgment on her part wasn’t out of the question.

Therefore, he had to compile the information to make his final decision.

…

Meanwhile, in the Felix Magic Academy—no, in the entire magical community of Willis City—everyone was discreetly or openly probing into Ajef’s magic experiment.

The truth is, his experiment was so high-profile that it was impossible not to draw attention.

However, after the magic apprentices returned from participating in the experiment, those who inquired were met with disappointment and frustration!

Ajef actually made all the magic apprentices sign a secrecy contract?! Damn it, that move left countless people dumbfounded.

Yet, despite the complaints, the curiosity among people only grew.

Because when the magic apprentices talked about the experiment, their faces turned pale, and an expression of disbelief and shock appeared in their eyes.

According to some magic apprentices who spoke in private, this experiment was related to the Divine Magic authority.

Once this information spread, it caused an uproar in Willis City’s magical community.

Finally, some people realized why Archmage Dundar was so heavily invested in supporting Ajef’s experiment.

Of course, others scoffed at this notion!

“Divine Magic authority, my foot! A bunch of inexperienced fools spouting nonsense!”

“I’ve had people investigate, and there’s no new species created, no mysterious plants, no flesh magic, and certainly no Divine Magic involved. This should just be a standard Wood Spirit Magic experiment.”

In the hall of a mansion, members of the [Willis Magic Plantation Association] gathered to discuss.

For these high-level magicians, breaking a secrecy contract wasn’t a piece of cake, but through a process of elimination, estimating the experiment’s purpose and content was manageable.

Because of this, they showed disdain for the magic apprentices’ claims about ‘Divine Magic authority’.

This isn’t surprising—the few magic apprentices lucky enough to be involved in an Archmage’s experiment often returned mentally disturbed.

It’s human nature to exaggerate the unknown.

Just as commoners view magic apprentices as significant figures.

Sometimes, when magical apprentices went on missions, they were genuinely revered as gods by ignorant villagers.

But are magic apprentices really that powerful?

Clearly not.

In the eyes of Master Magicians, they are nothing more than free labor.

The [Willis Magic Plantation Association] members were gathering again to scheme how to reclaim their free labor.

“It’s clear that Dundar is siding with Ajef. Does that mean we should just give up?” someone brought the discussion back to reality.

At these words, the others’ faces instantly darkened.

Yesterday, they had collectively approached Archmage Dundar with the intent to pressure him.

Unexpectedly, Archmage Dundar had said, ‘Good timing, there’s something I want to discuss with you.’

Then, he opened the Empire’s Official Website, pulled up the complaints page, and pointed to a mass of anonymous complaints, questioning them about it.

Upon closer inspection, most of the complaints were about their forceful seizure of fertile land.

Seeing this, their faces turned grim.

Magical plants require highly fertile land, especially those grown with magic, which consumes soil fertility at an alarming rate.

After planting on a fertile piece of land for several years, it often becomes unsuitable for further planting.

Because of this, the plantation owners constantly need to purchase fertile land or exchange infertile land for fertile one.

During this process, it’s impossible to say there hasn’t been any coercion.

Faced with the Archmage’s questioning, the plantation owners could only shift the blame to their subordinates and promise to deal with the issue promptly.

After this interruption, they no longer had the courage to apply pressure and could only leave in disgrace.

Upon reflection afterward, they gradually realized the truth.

Archmage Dundar’s timing in bringing up civilian complaints couldn’t have been coincidental—it was clearly used as leverage to favor Ajef and to put them in their place.

Realizing this, frustration welled up within them.

“By the way, where’s Anthony?” someone suddenly asked.

“Him? He said something happened at home, so he couldn’t make it.” someone replied.

Hearing this, the others exchanged knowing glances.

Anthony had always been close to Dundar, and now he was deliberately avoiding the association’s meeting, clearly out of fear of Dundar.

Or perhaps, he had fully sided with Dundar and would no longer oppose the Archmage’s orders, even if those orders might harm his own interests.

“I suggest we speak with Ajef. Nearly four hundred magic apprentices is too many—if he hands over half to us, it shouldn’t impact him much,” someone proposed.

“What if he refuses?”

“Hmph! I don’t believe he has the guts to offend all of us.”

“His attitude doesn’t matter. Archmage Dundar’s attitude is what matters the most. Haven’t you realized it yet? Archmage Dundar has his eyes on our plantations!”

“This…”

“We should concede some profits; otherwise, if this drags on any longer, we’ll suffer even more.”

“Sigh, there’s no other choice.”